Top 10 Spokane Indians Postseason Performers
Published on October 1, 2025 under Northwest League (NWL)
Spokane Indians News Release
There are a handful of special players that shine the brightest in October, when the stakes are at their highest and the pressure is cranked up to 11. From clutch hits and epic home runs to legendary pitching performances, these former Spokane Indians embraced the spotlight, delivering unforgettable moments that etched their names into baseball history.
Carlos Beltrán
Hardware: 2017 World Series champion
Key Stat: 1.021 career postseason OPS
Beltrán's 2004 postseason run with the Houston Astros is the stuff of legend. In just 12 games against the Atlanta Braves and St. Louis Cardinals, the switch-hitter slugged eight home runs, swiped six bases, drove in 14, and finished with a combined slash line of .436/.532/1.024. Beltrán also had strong showings in the 2006 NLCS with the Mets (3 HR, 1.054 OPS) and 2012 NLDS with the Cardinals (5 XBH, 1.486 OPS) before finally capturing a World Series title in his final season - though not without a trash-can sized asterisk attached.
Jack Billingham
Hardware: 2x World Series Champion
Key Stat: 0.36 ERA in seven World Series appearances
An underrated part of Cincinnati's Big Red Machine, Billingham helped the Reds clinch back-to-back titles in 1975-76. The right-hander allowed just one earned run in seven career World Series appearances spanning 25.1 innings and his 0.36 career ERA in the Fall Classic is the second-best all-time among pitchers with 20+ IP.
Bruce Bochy
Hardware: 4x World Series Champion, 4x NL Pennants, 1x AL Pennant
Key Stat: .606 career postseason winning pct.
He'll be a lock for the Hall of Fame once he finally decides to retire, but in the meantime, Bruce Bochy just keeps winning. After leading the Texas Rangers to the franchise's first ever World Series title in 2023, Bochy is now one of just six skippers to win four or more Fall Classics and is tied for fifth all time in postseason wins. He is 6-0 in winner-take-all postseason games - the most such wins in history - and is the only manager in MLB history to win a LCS with three different franchises.
Ron Cey
Hardware: 1981 World Series MVP
Key Stat: .803 career postseason OPS
The Penguin shared World Series MVP honors with Pedro Guerrero and Steve Yeager in 1981 after hitting .350 with one home run and 6 RBIs. Cey also starred for the Dodgers in the 1974 NLCS (4 XBH, 1.109 OPS) and 1977 NLCS (1 HR, 4 RBI, 1.015 OPS) and finished a higher career OPS in the postseason (.803) than regular season (.799).
Stan Coveleski
Hardware: 1920 World Series champion
Key Stat: 3 CG in 1920 World Series
The Hall of Famer turned in one of the greatest Fall Classic performances of all time in 1920, tossing three complete games while allowing just two earned runs in 27 innings (0.67 ERA) as the Cleveland Indians defeated the Brooklyn Robins in seven games.
Ron Fairly
Hardware: 3x World Series Champion
Key Stat: .903 career postseason OPS
A veteran of 21 MLB seasons, the keen-eyed Fairly won a trio of World Series titles with the Dodgers (1959, 1963, 1965). He played a starring role in the team's seven-game triumph over Minnesota in 1965 as he batted .379 with three doubles, two home runs, six RBIs, and just one strikeout in 29 at-bats.
Steve Garvey
Hardware: 1981 World Series champion, 2x NLCS MVP
Key Stat: .338 career postseason batting average
How good was Steve Garvey in the playoffs? His .338 career postseason average is the highest all time among players with at least 200 plate appearances - 17 points higher than his closest competitor Albert Pujols and a full 30 points higher than "Mr. November" Derek Jeter. Garvey won NLCS MVP in 1978 with LA (.389, 4 HR, 7 RBI, 1.611 OPS) and in 1984 with San Diego (.400, 1 HR, 7 RBI) and hit .417 as the Dodgers won the 1981 World Series in six games over the Yankees.
Dave Henderson
Hardware: 1989 World Series champion
Key Stat: .946 career postseason OPS
Henderson did all he could to help the Boston break the "Curse of the Bambino" in 1986, hitting .400 with four extra-base hits and five RBIs as the Red Sox fell in seven games to the Mets. He shined in Oakland's World Series title three years later (2 2B, 2 HR, 4 RBI, 1.423 OPS) and finished with a 1.015 OPS in 20 career Fall Classic games.
Kyle Hendricks
Hardware: 2016 World Series champion
Key Stat: 2 ER in 21.1 IP during 2016 NLCS/World Series
Have we forgiven Joe Maddon yet for removing Kyle Hendricks after 4 2/3 innings in Game 7 of the 2016 World Series? No, no we have not. The right-hander helped the Cubs clinch their first championship in over 100 years as he allowed just two earned runs over four starts in the NLCS and World Series.
Duke Snider
Hardware: 2x World Series champion
Key Stat: 11 HR in 36 World Series games
The Duke of Flatbush was a Hall-of-Fame talent during the regular season and even better in the playoffs. Snider ranks fourth all time in World Series home runs (11) and seventh in RBIs (26) - leading the Dodgers to titles in 1955 and 1959.
HONORABLE MENTIONS
Don Bessent - Bessent won a World Series with Brooklyn in 1955 and posted a 1.35 ERA (13.1 IP, 2 ER) in five career appearances in the Fall Classic.
Jesse Chavez - Chavez spent a decade in the majors before finally reaching the playoffs with Chicago in 2018. He posted a 1.42 ERA in 11 career playoff appearances and won a World Series with Atlanta in 2021.
Joe Coleman - The right-hander appeared in just one playoff game during his 15-year MLB career but he made the most of it, tossing a complete-game shutout with 14 strikeouts against Oakland in the 1972 ALCS
Chuck Essegian - One of just two players to ever appear in the Rose Bowl and a World Series, Essegian was a linebacker at Stanford but is best remembered for clubbing two pinch-hit home runs in LA's 1959 World Series triumph over the White Sox.
Tommy Davis - Davis hit .400 in LA's 1963 World Series sweep of the Yankees and posted a .313 average in 20 career playoff games.
Phil Douglas - Shufflin' Phil won two games and posted a 2.08 ERA as the New York Giants defeated Babe Ruth and the cross-town Yankees for the 1921 World Series title.
Bill Madlock - A career .305 hitter during the regular season, Madlock hit .375 in Pittsburgh's 1979 World Series win over Baltimore and finished with an .898 OPS in 17 career postseason games.
Dutch Ruether - The right-hander won World Series titles in 1919 with the Reds and 1927 with the Yankees, posting a 2.95 ERA in three career Fall Classic starts.
Larry Sherry - A two-time World Series champion with the Dodgers, Sheery was MVP of the 1959 Fall Classic after collecting two wins, two saves, and posting an 0.71 ERA in four appearance against the White Sox.
DISHONORABLE MENTIONS
Swede Risberg - One of the ringleaders of the infamous 1919 Black Sox, Risberg went 2-for-25 and committed a World Series-record eight errors as the heavily favored White Sox fell to the Cincinnati Reds. He received a lifetime ban from organized baseball for his efforts and passed away in 1975 as the last remaining member of the Black Sox.
Northwest League Stories from October 1, 2025
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- Top 10 Spokane Indians Postseason Performers - Spokane Indians
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