When it comes to World Series highlights, there’s not much that tops Kirk Gibson’s walk-off home run in Game 7 of the 1988 World Series. The at-bat was long, painful and dramatic as Gibson fouled off pitch after pitch on his bad leg before launching a rocket into the right-field roof. It was a home run that clinched the series for Toronto and remains one of the most memorable moments in baseball history.

The World Series was boycotted in 1904, but it returned in 1905 and was played every year until 1994 (players’ strike). It has become a staple of the fall sports calendar, despite the global influenza pandemic of 1918-1919, World War I, America’s involvement in World War II and America’s uneasy relationship with Cuba which has prevented a large number of talented players from defecting to play in North American professional leagues.

New York Yankees’ Reggie Jackson dominated the 1987 World Series, hitting two home runs and earning himself the nickname “Mr. October.” The Series was a back-and-forth affair and the teams met for the third time in four games. In the ninth inning of Game 7, the Yankees led 4-3 when a tricky hop off a Bill Buckner ground ball got away from Boston’s catcher and allowed the Dodgers to score a single to tie the game.

The game was in extra innings when the Yankees sent out left-hander Nestor Cortes. He got Will Smith to fly out on the first pitch he threw but then walked Gavin Lux and Tommy Edman. That put runners on first and second with one out for Shohei Ohtani. Cortes froze on the next pitch, giving up a two-run homer to Freddie Freeman that turned Dodger Stadium into blue heaven.