Down three games to one and facing elimination, the Braves returned John Smoltz to the mound for Game 5, who was still seeking his first World Series win after three previous solid starts all resulted in no decision. Jack Morris, who had lost Game 1 of the series, was given the start for Toronto. Before the game Terry Pendleton, who had seen a 3–1 lead evaporate in the World Series before (having been a member of the 1985 St. Louis Cardinals), reminded his teammates that the possibility still existed that they may win the series. The middle of the Braves' lineup, which consisted that evening of Pendleton hitting third, David Justice fourth, and Lonnie Smith fifth, had been struggling with the rest of the team and to that point, none of the batters hitting in those three slots (Pendleton, Justice, Smith, or Sid Bream who had hit fifth in the first two games in Atlanta) had recorded an extra base hit. The Braves took care of that statistic quickly.