'63-Giants sweep '79-Phillies

Game 1 With Juan Marichal on the mound for the Giants and Steve Carlton with the ball for the Philles, a pitchers duel was in the making. Marichal gave up a lead off single to Pete Rose and it looked like the Phils would get things started early, but Marichal shut down the next three hitters and the Phils couldn't score. Felipe Alou lead off the 1st for the Giants with a double, Jose Pagan moved him to 3rd on a grounder to 2nd followed by a base hit by Willie Mays and the Giants took a 1-0 lead. A lead off home run by Gary Maddox in the Phillies 2nd gave them a 2-1 lead. It stayed that way through five. In the bottom of the 6th Pagan smacked a double and Mays followed with a home rum for a 3-2 Giant lead. The score held up as Marichal shut down the Phillies,scattering 5 hits over nine innings, to win his first to go 1-1 on the year. Carlton took the loss only giving up 4 hits to the Giants.

Game 2 Sanford started game 2 for the Giants, while Lerch pitched for the Phillies. The Giants played long ball with Felipe Alou poking 2 HR, with Mays, Cepeda, Haller each knocking one a piece. Sanford only gave up 6 hits as he pitched a complete game, winning his first(1-0). With the Giants scoring 7 runs in the first 4 innings, the Phils never seriously threatened. The Giants taking game 2 at home 10-1.

Game 3 moved to Veterans Stadium with Espinosa going for the Phils and the Giants countering with O'dell. With neither team seriously threatening throught the first 4 the score was scoreless. In the bottom of the 5th Espinoas lead off with a routine ground out to 2nd. Pete Rose followed with a single up the middle and Bake MCBride hit one in the LF seats and the Phils were on top 2-0. But the lead did not hold up long as O'delll lead off the top of the 6th with a double and then Felipe Alou hit another HR to tie it up. Following a Pagan fly out to right, Mays doubled off the wall and Willie McCovey knocked one in the right field seats and the Phil lead had been erased. With O'dell shutting down the Phillies the rest of the way, San Fran took game 3 by the score of 4-2.

Game 4 Bolin for San Francisco, facing Saucier for Philadelphia was the matchup for game 4 in the City of Brotherly Love. The Giants were looking to sweep the Phillies and using the long ball, again, they did just that. Philadelphis started the scoring with a Pete Rose double folloowed by a McBride single. Mike Scmidt walked loading the bases with no body out. A missed double play attempt allowed Rose to score. Bolin pitched his way out of the jam only giving up the one run. Another Felipe Alou HR followed by a Jose Pagan single lead to a Willie McCovey HR and the Giants were up 3-1.In the top of the 4th,popped out to 2nd. Then Jim Davenport singled,Hiller singled...and then the pitcher,Bolin knocked one in the LF seats and the Giants were up 6-1. Looking to salvage a game in the series, a couple of walks to Trillo and Bowa followed by singles to Gross and Rose and it was tied,6-6. In the top of the 7th Alou singled, Pagan singled, then Willie Mays tripled scoring Alou and Pagan. After getting McCovey to pop to first, Orlando Cepeda homered and San Fran was up 10-6. It stayed that way has Gaylord Perry came in and preserved the win.
Home runs by the mighty hitting Felipe Alou lead the Giants in the 4 games as San Fransisco hit 12 over the 4 games. The Giants went to tied for 1st place in the division.

-contributed by Jim Walden-

'02-Red Sox sweep '65-Orioles

The 2002 Boston Red Sox are on a quest to prove that they should not be forgotten in the annals of their franchises history. The 1965 Orioles, on the other hand, find their season on the ropes. Manager Bob Kalec talked openly about rumblings about his immanent firing. We'll keep our eye on that situation as it develops.

GAME 1: Derek Lowe took on Milt Pappas. The Sawx scored 4 runs in the bottom of the and never looked back. Nomar's 3 runs shot was the difference. Lowe went 8 1/3 innings before yielding to Urbina, even though it was not a save situation. Pappas went the distance. Johnny Damon banged out 3 hits and also had 2 RBI's.

GAME 2: Boston again scored 5 in this contest as Pedro improved on his opening peformance by only yielding 2 runs in 8 innings of work. Urbina came on again to close it out, this time notching the save. Trot Nixon hit a 2 run shot in the 3rd to give the hometown team a 4-0 lead. Norm Siebern homered for Baltimore in a losing cause.

GAME 3: The Red Sox proved themselves to be inhospitable guest by blowing out the Orioles 6-1 at Memorial Stadium. Knuckleball king Tim Wakefield had catcher Doug Mirabelli diving all over the place, as well as the Oriole hitters. Wake struck out 5 in 7 1/3 innings of work, while his opponent Dave McNally gave up 6 in 7. Six different Boston players had RBI's and Shea Hillebrand had 3 hits.

GAME 4: The final score was 7-1 in favor of the Sox who wound up sweeping the series. Don't let the final score fool you into thinking this game was a blow out. In fact it was a 1-1 tie that had to go 11 innings to find a winner. The game lasted 4 hours and 6 minutes due to the slow pace, extra frames and a 20 minute rain delay in the 10th. Baltimore jumped out on top in the 3rd as Curt Blefary hit a low liner to right that was caught by Trot Nixon, who fell down and couldn't throw the speedy Aparicio out at the plate. Luis originally reached first on an error by Red Sox first baseman Brian Daubach. Darren Oliver started for the Bosox and gave up only 1 un-earned run in 8 full innings of work. O's starter Wally Bunker didn't last as long. With 1 out in the third he left the game with a slight shoulder strain and is expected to miss 1 start. Don Larsen came on in relief and "Mr. Perfect" tossed 5+ innings of no run ball...until the 9th when the Red Sox offense finally scored a run to tie the game. In the ninth Boston had 2 outs and a man on 3rd, when catcher Jason Varitek singled home Jose Offerman, who pinch ran for Trot Nixon. On to extra innings the game went. Neither team scored in the 10th, but in the 11th reliever Stu Miller ran out of gas and the floodgates began to open. Miller letup 6 runs before the Boston half inning was completed. Varitek struck again recording the GWRBI. Casey Fossum got the win with 3 perfect innings of relief.

'63 Cardinals 4, '85 Padres 0

Game 1 at San Diego: St. Louis -1, San Diego-0, 10 innings Ray Washburn and Mark Thurmond took the mound to start the four game series between the ’63 Cardinals and ’85 Padres. Thurmond set the tone of the game right away by striking out Curt Flood to start the game, and retired the Cardinals in order. Washburn faced only three Padre batters in the first as well, but surrendered a walk to Tim Flannery, but he was erased in a 6-4-3 double play off the bat of Steve Garvey. The two pitchers battled through 7 innings of scoreless ball, rarely facing trouble. Craig Lefferts came on for San Diego in the 8th and retired the Redbirds in order. Manager Bike Mike allowed Washburn to hit for himself in that 8th inning. In the bottom half, Washburn quickly retired the first two hitters before Garvey lined a single. Graig Nettles then hit a sharp two-hopper that handcuffed Julian Javier, who was given an error on the play, Garvey stopping at second. On came Bobby Shantz. Carmelo Martinez greeted Shantz with a sharp single to center. Curt Flood charged the ball as Garvey lumbered around third. Flood uncorked a perfect one hop throw home to Gene Oliver, who blocked the plate and tagged out Popeye. On to the ninth, still scoreless. Lefferts allowed a single to Javier, but no further damage. Shantz surrendered a single and wild pitch in the bottom half, but kept the Padres at bay. The Cardinals finally broke through in the 10th off of Tim Stoddard. George Altman stroked a one out single to right, and Gene Oliver doubled him to third. Tim McCarver replaced Oliver on second base, the hope that his better speed might net an insurance run. Shantz was due up, so manager Roberts went to the bench for veteran Stan Musial, mired in an early season slump. Stan was hitless, and did not get his first hit this time either, but got enough of the bat on the ball to loft a fly to medium deep center. Altman tagged and scored. That was the lone run of the inning, and the game. Ron Taylor came on for St. Louis and gave up a hit, but retired the Friars without further incident and the Cardinals had their second win of the season against three defeats. The Padres dropped to 1-4.

Game 2 at San Diego: St. Louis -4, San Diego-2, 16 innings The Cardinals and Padres again went extra innings in game two, a four hour thirty-nine minute marathon that wasn’t decided until the 16th inning. This was the fourth overtime game for the Cardinals, out of six games played. Ernie Broglio and Eric Show toed the slab for the two clubs. The game was scoreless after three, when the Cardinals put together a two run rally in the fourth. Curt Flood walked to lead off the frame, followed by a perfectly executed hit and run by bat magician Dick Groat. Bill White kept it going, singling home Flood and sending Groat to third. Kenny Boyer then launched a deep fly to center fielder Kevin McReynolds that plated Groat. The snake bit Musial then lined a shot right at Garvey, who snagged it and tagged White to complete and unassisted double play. The Padres got solo home runs in the fourth and fifth innings, Terry Kennedy and Steve Garvey taking Broglio deep, to bring the score even at two. And there is stayed through 15 innings of baseball. A weary Tim Stoddard took the hill as San Diego’s sixth pitcher in the top of the 16th. Stoddard didn’t have it, giving up two runs on three hits. Veteran Lew Burdette came on for the Cardinals in the bottom of the 16th, and gave up one out singles to Jerry Royster and Carmelo Martinez. Could the Padres pull off the comeback? Not this time. Burdette bore down and retired McReynolds and Kennedy on ground outs to end the game.

Game 3 at St. Louis: San Diego-4, St. Louis-6 Young flame thrower Bob Gibson took the hill in front of the home town fans for game 3, facing Padre right-hander Andy Hawkins. The Padres looked like they were on their way to their first win of the series, jumping on Gibson for a run in the fifth and three more in the sixth, Gibson’s control getting him into trouble. The Cardinals stuck back in the bottom of the sixth, scoring two on a Curt Flood double, and singles by Groat, White (scoring Flood), Boyer (scoring Groat) and McCarver. Up stepped the struggling Musial with the bases juiced. But alas, Stan’s slump continued as he fouled out to catcher Terry Kennedy. George Altman grounded out, ending the inning. Ray Sadecki took over for Gibson, and blanked the Pads in the seventh. The Cardinals then jumped on Hawkins in the seventh, with four singles, a double, and a walk, all good for four runs and a 6-4 lead. Sadecki retired the visitors in order in the 8th and 9th innings to nail down the victory.

Game 4 at St. Louis: San Diego-4, St. Louis-5 Gene Oliver put a crimp in the Padres hope of salvaging a win in this series, but unloading a second inning grand slam home run off of Dave Dravecky to jump start the Cardinals to 4-0 lead. Curt Simmons, roughed up by the ’85 Mets in his first start, was much sharper this time around. The Redbirds made it 5-0 with a run in third, which was answered by San Diego in their half of the fourth. The Padres hit Simmons for a three spot in the seventh, bringing them to within a run at 5-4. But the crafty veteran retired the Friars in order in the eighth and ninth innings to give the Cardinals a sweep of the series.

-contributed by Mike "bike mike" Roberts-

'07-Tigers 3, '75-Royals 1

Game 1: Steve Busby was masterful as he threw a complete game shutout scattering five hits on the way to a 2-0 victory. All the runs came in the second. After Al Cowens was hit by Jeremy Bonderman, Jim Wohlford tripled and Fran Healy singled. This was all Busby needed.

Game 2 The Tigers used 5 pitchers to contain the Royals in a 5-2 victory. Nate Robertson got his first win of the season and Todd Jones earned his second save.

Game 3 Dave Leonard was masterful for 7.2 innings as he gave up only 2 runs on 2 Tiger homers. Brandon Inge homered in the second. On his next trip to the plate, he was beaned by Leonard and had to leave the game. Warnings were issued to both benches and there were no further incidents. Leonard gave way to Marty Pattin in the 8th who promptly gave up a a triple to Carlos Guillen to make the score 4-3. The Tigers scored off Doug Bird in the bottom of the 9th to send the game into extra innings. In the bottom of the tenth, with runners on second and third and one out, Doug Bird got a big strikeout of Tiger leadoff hitter Curtis Granderson. Placido Polanco, who had homered off Leonard in the 8th, hit the next offering by Bird just out reach of Freddie Patek and Todd Jones earned his first win.

Game 4: In a game played in a light rain, KC jumped out to a 2-1 lead. Pudge Rodriguez, batting third in place of a slumping Gary Sheffield, erased the lead with a 3rd inning grand slam. The Tigers added three more runs but there was NO quit in the Roayls. They got one in the 7th on a Cookie Rojas sacrifice fly and added two more in the 8th on a Jim Wohlford pinchhit double. Fernando Rodney gave up a third run on a wild pitch and the Royals went into the 9th down 8-6. With Rodney still on the mound, Rojas led off and was safe on a Carlos Guillen, the third Tiger error of the game. George Brett stroked a double and Wilfredo Ledezma came into face John Mayberry. He walked Mayberry and with dh Harmon Killebrew coming to the plate, gave way to Todd Jones. Killebrew, in the twilight of his career, gave way to pinchhitter Bob Stimson. Stimson grounded into a 6-4-3 double play and the Royal were down 8-7 with the tying run on third. Al Cowens, who was 3-4 with two doubles, hit a groundball to Inge and the game was over.Both teams are now at 4-4. -contributed by Tom Davis-

'82-LA 3, '74-CIN 1

The opening series for the 1982 Dodgers in KOD2 have them facing the 1974 Big Red Machine of Cincinnati.

In Game 1, Valenzuela took the mound for LA and Billingham took it for Cincy. LA got things off in the bottom 1st with a 2-run shot by Guerrero. In the bottom 3rd, Garvey singled home Sax – to give LA a 2-0 lead after 3. LA struck again in the 5th with another 2-run shot by Guerrero. In the 6th, Sax singled home another run for LA – who now led 6-0 after 6. Meanwhile, Valenzuela held Cincy scoreless thru 6 – giving up a few scattered hits. Cincy got on the board in the 7th, with a Double by Driessen. But, LA countered in the bottom half of the 7th with a 3-run shot by Guerrero (3), his 3rd of the game. LA led 9-1 after 7 – and only gave up another run in the 8th. Guerrero had 3 homers and 7 RBI’s in this one. LA wins 9-2.

In Game 2, Reuss (LA) would face Gullett (Cincy). Both teams were cold for the first 3 innings. In the bottom 4th, LA scored on a 3-run shot by Baker (1). That was pretty much the game, as Gullett settled down to hold LA to only 1 other run in the 8th off a Guerrero Double. Both pitchers went the distance, as Gullett pitched well for those 8 innings – but Reuss pitched better with a 4-hit shutout. LA wins 4-0.

In Game 3, LA had Welch going – and he would face Kirby. Also, LA rested a few of their starters for this game. Cincy struck first with a 2-run shot from Bench (1) and another solo shot from Geronimo (1) – for quick 3-0 lead. The backups for LA struggled until the 6th, when they managed a run with some scattered hits. Cincy countered in the 6th with another solo shot from Morgan (1). Cincy now led 4-1 after 6. LA scored 2 in the top 7th – with the help of a wild pitch from Kirby – but that was as close as they would get. Cincy held for a 4-3 win, as Kirby went the distance. In

Game 4, Cincy looked to even the series – as Norman squared off against Stewart (LA). LA decided to keep a few bench players in to rest their starters even further. Cincy scored first in the bottom 2nd off a Single from Foster. However, that is all Cincy could muster against Stewart. Norman held his own for 8.2 innings, but LA did score a run in the top 7th off a solo shot from Marshall (1). Stewart pitched 7 solid innings giving up only 3 hits and that one run. LA then used Forster and Niedenfuer to hold the 8th and 9th, respectively. With the score tied 1-1, we were now heading into Xtra innings folks. LA did not waste any time as they got to Borbon early with a 2-run shot from Baker (2). Niedenfuer held his part in the 10th and Howe came in for his first Save. LA wins 3-1.

-contributed by Georges Bseraini-

El Perfecto !!! Mike Norris tosses Perfect Game vs 88-Twins

1980 was the lone bright shinny year in Mike Norris' troubled career. That was the year he put it all together to win 22 games and contend for the Cy Young award. Billy Martin gave him the ball every 4th or 5th day and he never dissapointed. Norris narrowly lost the Cy Young award to Steve Stone of the Orioles who won 25, but was no where near as dominant as Norris was.

Let's set the stage for this game. The 1980 Oakland A's are facing the 1988 Minnesota Twins and All-Star hurler Bert Blyleven. The Twins are fresh off a World Championship in 1987 and have one of the most potent lineups a pitcher could face. Oakland in 1980 was under the tuteledge of Billy Martin, the Firery Little Genius, who managed every game like it was game 7 of the World Series. Martin was a great manager, who wore out his welcome as fast as he wore out the young arms of his pitching staff.

Norris saw 27 Twin batters and set them all down, but still had to worry about the win since his opposing number, Bert Blyleven, wasn't allowing any runs to score either. The A's won it with a 2 out walk off hit by Wayne Gross in the bottom of the 9th. I found it very funny that the game program chose Gross as the game MVP and not Mr. Norris, who must feel grossly (all puns intended) underappreciated.

Aug 21 88 Minnesota 0 80 Oakland 0Inning: 3 Outs: 1 Bases: 1st
Dave McKay steps in against Blyleven runner on 1st Blyleven looks at first the first offering from Blyleven Henderson is going for 2nd pitch out Laudner throws to 2nd Henderson ends up at third! Laudner will be charged with an error

Aug 21 88 Minnesota 0 80 Oakland 0Inning: 6 Outs: 2 Bases: 1st
Dwayne Murphy at the plate Armas is on deck if he gets on..man on 1st the first pitch to Murphy he swings..grounder between third and short it's a base hit McKay moves to third Murphy rounds and holds at first

Aug 21 88 Minnesota 0 80 Oakland 0Inning: 6 Outs: 2 Bases: 1st & 3rd
Tony Armas against Blyleven Page is on deck if he gets on..runners on the corners Blyleven is in a jam1-0 count fastball Armas swings..lined towards right center and catches it no runs, one hit, no errors after 6 complete 88 Minnesota 0, 80 Oakland 0

Aug 21 88 Minnesota 0 80 Oakland 0Inning: 9 Outs: 2 Bases: Empty
Dave Revering steps in against Blyleven 2 balls, 2 strikes Revering swings..broken-bat blooper toward right base hit and it gets by Bush! Revering ends up at 2nd

Aug 21 88 Minnesota 0 80 Oakland 0Inning: 9 Outs: 2 Bases: 2nd
Wayne Gross steps in against Blyleven runner on 2nd the first pitch to Gross he swings..grounded between third and shortand into left for a base hit Revering will score from 2nd perfect game for Norris!! perfect game for Norris!!

80-A's and 88-Twins split series 2-2

10 series played and the last one is the only one that featured a 2-2 split. In fact the teams even split games in each venue. The key moment occurred in Game 2 when Mike Norris threw the second KOD no-hitter and 1st ever KOD perfect game.

Here are some key highlights from the series by game:

GAME 1: Kirby Pucket went 3 for 5 with 5 RBI's and 2 HR's as Frank Viola gutted out a game where he didn't have his best stuff, but still notched the win. Keith Atherton came on to pitch the 9th and notch the save. The A's threatened in the home half of the 9th and Rickey Henderson was a demon on the basepaths with 3 thefts.

Aug 20 88 Minnesota 0 80 Oakland 0Inning: 1 Outs: 2 Bases: Empty
Rob Picciolo to the plate the count is even, 1-1 Picciolo swings..well hit fly ball down the left field line it could go Moses chasing back..Home Run! that's his first home run on the year a 348 foot shot
Aug 20 88 Minnesota 0 80 Oakland 2Inning: 2 Outs: 1 Bases: Empty
Tim Laudner faces Langford 1 ball, 0 strikes Laudner swings..deep fly ball down the left field lineit's got a chance to go..Henderson to the warning track..a long way out of here! that's Laudner's first home run 376 foot homer

Aug 20 88 Minnesota 1 80 Oakland 2Inning: 3 Outs: 0 Bases: 1st & 2nd
Kirby Puckett faces Langford runners on 1st and 2nd 0-1 count Puckett swings..flied deep towards left center way back thereracing back is Henderson..out of here! Puckett's first home run a 397 foot homer.

Aug 20 88 Minnesota 4 80 Oakland 4Inning: 7 Outs: 1 Bases: 1st
Kirby Puckett now batting Hrbek is on deck..runner on 1st1-0 count Puckett swings..he rips a deep fly ball to left center Murphy back pedaling..on the trackit's gone!that's his 2nd HR of the game that's number 2 for Puckett a 395 foot shot

Aug 20 88 Minnesota 6 80 Oakland 4Inning: 7 Outs: 1 Bases: Empty
the first baseman Kent Hrbek steps inthe first delivery from Langford breaking ball Hrbek swings..fly ball to right center driven it could goMurphy and Armas chasing back Home Run he got a hanging curve!the first home run for Hrbek384 foot homer

Aug 20 88 Minnesota 7 80 Oakland 4Inning: 9 Outs: 0 Bases: 1st
Kirby Puckett against Langford Hrbek is on deck..runner on 1st1-1 count Puckett cuts..he clobbered this onehere's a deep fly..hit towards right center chasing back is Murphy the track dives and makes a sensational catch!

Aug 20 88 Minnesota 7 80 Oakland 4Inning: 9 Outs: 1 Bases: 3rd
Dave McKay steps in against Atherton man on 3rd2-0 count fastball McKay swings..on the ground to Herr at second Henderson is heading for homeHerr fires to first out Henderson scores

GAME 2: (The perfect Game)

GAME 3: The Twins jumped out and scored 3 quick runs in the first and relied on their pitching the rest of the way. Oakland starter Matt Keough gave up 4 runs over 8 innings, but couldn not get any run support. Gary Gaetti went 2-4 with a homer and 2 Ribbies.

Aug 22 80 Oakland 0 88 Minnesota 0Inning: 1 Outs: 2 Bases: 1st
the third baseman Gary Gaetti steps in runner on 1st Keough gets the sign the first delivery to Gaetti fastball Gaetti swings..he really got a hold of this one down the left field line and deep it's got a chance to go Henderson racing back Home Run! that's his first of the seasona 368 foot shot

Aug 22 80 Oakland 0 88 Minnesota 2Inning: 1 Outs: 2 Bases: 1st & 3rd
Tim Laudner comes up against Keough Gagne is on deck if he can get on..runners at the corners Keough gets the sign from Heath0-1 countfastballLaudner swings..hammered toward left center in the alley that will be extra bases Bush will score Larkin rounds third the throw comes in from Henderson he's dead Larkin dives for the plate Heath swipes the tagout! Laudner with a standing double

Aug 22 80 Oakland 0 88 Minnesota 3Inning: 4 Outs: 2 Bases: 2nd
the second baseman Rob Picciolo steps inrunner on 2nd 1-0 countPicciolo cuts..he hits a grounder between third and short it's a base hit Newman takes a look at home he's heading for home Moses's throw Picciolo is going to secondit's cutoff the throw to second..it'll be close Picciolo slides Lombardozzi tags him safe on a close play! Newman scores from third

Aug 22 80 Oakland 1 88 Minnesota 3Inning: 4 Outs: 2 Bases: 2nd
Mario Guerrero to the plate Henderson is on deck if he gets on..man on 2nd0-1 count Guerrero swings..grounder between 1st and 2ndbase hit Picciolo takes a wide round of third he's heading for home here comes the throw from Bush Guerrero is heading to second Picciolo slides for the plate Laudner puts the leather on himout!

Aug 22 80 Oakland 1 88 Minnesota 3Inning: 7 Outs: 2 Bases: Empty
the shortstop Greg Gagne steps inthe first offering to Gagne fastball Gagne cuts..Gagne got a hold of this one well hit fly ball towards left center Henderson and Murphy going back..it's gone!his first of the seasona 393 foot shot

GAME 4: Oakland nursed a tight 3-2 lead into the 8th inning when with 2 outs they forged a rally that netted 2 runs. Twin relieve Juan Berenguer struck out 3 batters that inning. Unfortunately it was sandwiched between a single and walk and a Dave Revering 2 out 2 RBI double. Steve McCatty pitched 9 solid innings yielding only two runs and netting the series split for his team.

Aug 23 80 Oakland 0 88 Minnesota 0Inning: 1 Outs: 1 Bases: 1st & 3rd
infield in at the corners the right fielder Tony Armas steps in..runners on the corners corners are playing up Straker looks at the runner on first 0-2 count Armas swings..he hits it on the ground between 3rd and shortand into left for a base hit Henderson crosses the plate Murphy moves to third Armas rounds and holds at first

Aug 23 80 Oakland 1 88 Minnesota 0Inning: 1 Outs: 1 Bases: 1st & 3rd
infield in at the corners Wayne Gross comes up against Straker..runners on 1st and 3rd corners are playing up Straker looking in to Laudner 2-0 count Gross swings..fly ball towards left center Puckett tracking it downhe's under itand he puts it away Murphy is trying to score Puckett will hold onto the ball

Aug 23 80 Oakland 2 88 Minnesota 0Inning: 2 Outs: 1 Bases: 2nd & 3rd
infield in at the corners the left fielder Rickey Henderson steps in..runners on 2nd and 3rd in at the corners 1-2 count Henderson swings..toward left and deep Moses drifting back on the warning track waiting for it and makes the catch Heath is trying to score there won't be a throw from Moses

Aug 23 80 Oakland 3 88 Minnesota 0Inning: 3 Outs: 2 Bases: Empty
Gary Gaetti faces McCattyhere's the wind-up and the pitch fastball Gaetti cuts..flied deep to left center Henderson backing up..out of here!Gaetti gets number 2404 foot homer

Aug 23 80 Oakland 3 88 Minnesota 1Inning: 4 Outs: 1 Bases: 1st & 3rd
infield in at the corners Rob Picciolo steps in against Straker..runners on the corners infield expecting a bunt 0-2 count Picciolo cuts..he hits a high fly ballto left centerMoses giving chase under it and catches it Revering is going home here comes the throw from Moses Heath is trying for second Revering lowers his shoulder Laudner blocked the plate Laudner puts the tag on himout!

Aug 23 80 Oakland 3 88 Minnesota 1Inning: 5 Outs: 0 Bases: Empty
Steve Lombardozzi will start the inning McCatty gets the sign from Heath McCatty deals Lombardozzi swings..long fly ball down the left field line it might be out of here Henderson racing back..it's gone if it's a fair ball it is..gone!that's his first home run on the yeara 352 foot shot

Aug 23 80 Oakland 3 88 Minnesota 2Inning: 8 Outs: 0 Bases: Empty
Dave McKay will lead off the inning Berenguer is readyf ull count fastball McKay swings..roller to Lombardozzi at second throws to firstin there!base hit

Aug 23 80 Oakland 3 88 Minnesota 2Inning: 8 Outs: 2 Bases: 1st & 2nd
the first baseman Dave Revering steps inrunners on 1st and 2nd1-2 count fastball Revering swings..it's lined down the line at third in play that will be extra base sit's in the corner all the way to the wall McKay will score Gross takes a wide round of third Moses's throw Revering is heading for third Gross hits the dirt Laudner slaps the tag on him safe! Revering goes to 3rd

59-Braves 3, 85-Padres 1

This was a fun series. Joey did his best to keep the 85-Padres in it. What a tough team to manage with such little offense, but he held it close.

GAME 1: The first game saw Lew Burdette start over Warren Spahn and give the Braves 8 2/3 innings before he ceeded to Don McMahon who notched his first save of the season. Below are the PBP highlights straight from the game:

Aug 20 85 San Diego 0 59 Milwaukee 0Inning: 1 Outs: 1 Bases: Full
Del Crandall steps in, batting 5ththe sacks are fullthe first pitch to Crandallhe cuts..hit on the ground to shortTempleton has itto second for oneto firstand the throw pulled Garvey off the bagAvila scoresAaron goes to thirdAaron scoresCrandall is safe at first
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Aug 20 85 San Diego 0 59 Milwaukee 2Inning: 2 Outs: 1 Bases: 1st & 3rd
infield in at the cornersthe pitcher Eric Show steps in..runners on 1st and 3rdcorners are inBurdette gets the signthe first offering to Showhe swings..towering fly towards right centerAaron is under itand he gloves itKennedy is trying to scorehere comes the throw from AaronKennedy slides for the plateCrandall tags himsafe!__________________________________________________
Aug 20 85 San Diego 1 59 Milwaukee 2Inning: 2 Outs: 0 Bases: Empty
Johnny Logan will get this inning startedhe kicks and throwscutterLogan swings..flied to centerwell hitit's got a chance to goMcReynolds going back quicklyHome Runthe first home run for Johnny421 foot homer
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Aug 20 85 San Diego 1 59 Milwaukee 3Inning: 5 Outs: 2 Bases: 2nd
Eddie Mathews at the platerunner on 2nd1-2 countMathews swings..he hits a ground ball between third and shortit's a base hitAvila takes a wide round of thirdhe's heading for homethe throw from MartinezMathews is going for secondAvila slides for the plateKennedy with the tagsafe!Mathews goes to second
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Aug 20 85 San Diego 1 59 Milwaukee 4Inning: 8 Outs: 2 Bases: 1st & 2nd
Kevin McReynolds steps in against Burdettemen on 1st and 2ndthe first pitch to McReynoldshe cuts..grounder to Mathews at thirdit's off his gloveGwynn will score from secondNettles goes to thirdMcReynolds gets all the way to secondthat's an error on Mathews

GAME 2: Spahn must have been angry for being passed by for the opening day start as he went the distance and tossed a 6 hit shutout. Aaron, Mathews and Crandall knocked it big runs.

Aug 21 85 San Diego 0 59 Milwaukee 0Inning: 2 Outs: 2 Bases: 1st
Andy Pafko steps in against Hawkinsrunner on 1stthe first pitch to Pafkohe swings..it's roped hard to left centerMartinez on the run..he cuts it offMathews goes to thirdPafko is in with a stand-up double
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Aug 21 85 San Diego 0 59 Milwaukee 0Inning: 2 Outs: 2 Bases: 2nd & 3rd
Felix Mantilla comes up against Hawkinsrunners on 2nd and 3rdHawkins is ready1-1 countcurveballMantilla swings..routine ground ball to secondRoyster boots itand he can't make a playMathews scoresPafko goes to 3rdMantilla to firstthat's an error on Royster
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Aug 21 85 San Diego 0 59 Milwaukee 1Inning: 5 Outs: 2 Bases: 2nd
Hank Aaron now up at the platerunner on 2nd1-0 countAaron swings..Aaron really got a hold of this onetowering fly down the left field lineit's well hithooking..way backit's got a chance to goMartinez backing up..off the wall!Spahn scoresAaron with a stand-up double
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Aug 21 85 San Diego 0 59 Milwaukee 2Inning: 6 Outs: 0 Bases: Empty
Del Crandall will lead off the inningthe pitchcurveballCrandall swings..it's a deep fly ball to left centerback, backMartinez and McReynolds going back..Martinez back on the trackthat's out of here!that's his first home run on the year382 foot homer
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Aug 21 85 San Diego 0 59 Milwaukee 3Inning: 7 Outs: 2 Bases: 2nd
Eddie Mathews steps in against Hawkinsman on 2nd0-2 countMathews swings..line shot between 1st and 2ndit's a hitBruton will score from 2ndGwynn tosses it back inMathews rounds first and holds

GAME 3: Bob Buhl went the distance yielding only 1 run. Adcock had 3 hits and Crandall knocked in 2 runs.

Aug 22 59 Milwaukee 0 85 San Diego 0Inning: 2 Outs: 0 Bases: Full
Garry Templeton now battingbases juicedthe first pitch to TempletonfastballTempleton swings..flied to left centerBruton is under itand makes the catchMartinez is going for homethere won't be a throw from Bruton
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Aug 22 59 Milwaukee 0 85 San Diego 1Inning: 4 Outs: 1 Bases: 2nd
the right fielder Hank Aaron steps inrunner on 2ndHoyt gets the sign0-2 countAaron swings..hit on the ground between third and shortTempleton lays outbut he can't make the playthat's a base hitBruton holds thirdAaron rounds first and holds
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Aug 22 59 Milwaukee 0 85 San Diego 1Inning: 4 Outs: 2 Bases: 1st & 3rd
the first baseman Joe Adcock steps inrunners at the cornersHoyt keeps the runners closehas the signthe first delivery to Adcockhe cuts..laced toward right centerin the alleythat will be extra basesit rolls to the wallBruton scoresAaron rounds 3rdthe throw from McReynoldsAdcock is heading for thirdhe's deadAaron dives for the plateKennedy slaps the tag on himout!Adcock with a stand-up double
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Aug 22 59 Milwaukee 1 85 San Diego 1Inning: 7 Outs: 2 Bases: 1st
Wes Covington now battingCrandall is on deck if he can get on..runner on 1st2-0 countCovington cuts..lined to right centerAdcock goes to thirdCovington takes a look at secondCovington is going for second!here comes the throw from GwynnCovington slidessafe!double
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Aug 22 59 Milwaukee 1 85 San Diego 1Inning: 7 Outs: 2 Bases: 2nd & 3rd
Del Crandall steps in against Hoytmen on 2nd and 3rd0-2 countCrandall swings..it's laced down the left field linethis ball is well hitfair ballthat will be extra basesit's in the cornerall the way to the wallthat will clear the basesAdcock crosses the plateCovington scoresCrandall takes a look at thirdhe's is heading for third!they have a chance to get himthe throw comes in from Martinezhe slidesNettles applies the tagsafe!triple
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Aug 22 59 Milwaukee 3 85 San Diego 1Inning: 8 Outs: 0 Bases: 1st
Hank Aaron digs in against DeLeonrunner on 1stthe first pitch to AaronfastballMantilla is going for 2ndthe pitch is a ballKennedy fires to secondTempleton with the tagout

GAME 4: Both teams had getaway day lineups starting. It all came down to the Goose having to get Aaron out with the bases loaded and the Pods up by 2. Score one for the Goose.

Aug 23 59 Milwaukee 0 85 San Diego 2Inning: 1 Outs: 2 Bases: 3rd
Kevin McReynolds steps in against WilleyBochy is up next if he gets on..runner on 3rdWilley is ready0-2 countMcReynolds swings..flied deep towards left centerget up, get up, get out of here..at the wall..outta here!that's his first home run on the yearthat one measured 414 feet
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Aug 23 59 Milwaukee 0 85 San Diego 4Inning: 2 Outs: 1 Bases: 2nd & 3rd
Stan Lopata now in the batter's box2 runners in scoring positionDravecky looking in to Bochy3-2 countLopata swings..hammered to right centerit's a base hitGwynn on the run..he cut it offPafko scoresTorre holds thirdLopata rounds 1stand stays
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Aug 23 59 Milwaukee 2 85 San Diego 4Inning: 8 Outs: 1 Bases: Empty
Carmelo Martinez against Willey1-2 countMartinez swings..long fly ball down the left field linehookingway backit might goVernon racing back..off the wall!Martinez with a standing double
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Aug 23 59 Milwaukee 2 85 San Diego 4Inning: 8 Outs: 2 Bases: 2nd
Bruce Bochy comes up against Willeyman on 2nd0-2 countBochy swings..he hits a fly balltoward centerPafko is under itPafko is under ithe dropped it!Martinez scoresBochy is safe at 2nd
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Aug 23 59 Milwaukee 2 85 San Diego 5Inning: 9 Outs: 1 Bases: Full
the infield is looking for twoBill Bruton digs in against Gossage..all of the bases are occupied2-2 countBruton swings..easy grounder to secondFlannery boots itand he can't come up with itWise scoresMaye goes to 3rdCovington goes to 2ndBruton to firstFlannery will be charged with an error

04-Cubs 3, 63-Giants 1

GAME 1: Cubs jump out to a 2-0 lead, Derek Lee hit a two run homer off Marichal. 5-0 zip Cubs, Marichal is gettting pounded. Sosa just hit a two run HR, up now 7-0. 7-1 Bailey hit a HR for San Fran. Zambrano is cutting them down like butter. McCovey 2 run triple, 8-3, Zambrano is releived. Final 8-3 Winner Zambrano, loser Marichal.

GAME 2: Perry vs. Maddux in this one. 1-0 Cubs after 1/2 thanks to a passed ball ny Haller. SC fly brought Alou home. Steroid age 3 old age baseball 1, Sosa 2 run shot, you would think that the Giants have no clue of how to hit. End of 7, McCover solo HR now 3-2 Cubs, Perry leaves game for Giants, in comes Bolin. Maddux he has only had 72 pitches. runner on first and 3rd, 1 out Alou caught stealing and then Cepeda k's. Chicago 3 SF 2 final. Hawkins with the save. Maddux wins, Perry loses.

GAME 3: O'Dell vs Prior. Error, Walk now a base hit bases loaded for Cubs. Damn sure this isnt SAT and the dice from it LOL. 3-0 Cubs, 2 errors and walked a run home, Geez, I am getting pummeled. Walk, passed ball, walk, and now a 3 run HR by Lee. 6-0 Cubs. Can I trade teams. 3 straight wifs by Prior, top of 3rd 6-0 Cubs. 7-0 Cubs, Even Prior gets the RBI single. No hitter through 5 and about a 35 K's. Haller ends no hitter with home run, Prior 10 K's through 6 ---7-1 Cubs. 12 K's for Prior now still 7-1 bottom of 7th coming up. 10-1 Cubs, O'Dell has now walked in 2 runs, 6 for the game, and he is going to gut it out cause my bull pen has already been used way to much in the first 2 games. Prior leaves with 12 K's. 11-1 final Cubs, 13 K's by my hitters, no hitting at all through first 3 games, Cubs are acting like the 27 Yankees LOL !

GAME 4: Clement vs. Bolin. 4-0 Giants, McCovey 3 run shot, followed by Alou solo HR , Back to back homers. 4-0 still, but Giants added two more errors to its already awful defense. 5-0 after 7 Cepeda home run. 5-1 after 7 Bolin went 6 IP, 2 hits, and 7 K's. 6-1 Giants, Mays solo HR. Fisher is tying his best to blow the lead, walked in a run, after Grudzi earlier 2 run shot, it is now 6-4 and bases are loaded with one out. 6-5 after 8. 11-5 Giants with 1/2 inning to go. McCovey second HR of game 2run shot, followed by solo HR by Alou, then Mays singled, and Bailey followed with a HR. 3 HR in inning. 11-6 final, Alou added a solo shot for Cubs, Bolin win, Fisher in releif was horrible, 2.2 IP 6 H, 5ER, 2 BB.

-contributed via AIM updates from Bill Vogt-

85-Mets 3, 63-Cardinals 1

I took a different approach with this write-up. St. Louis' manager, Mike Roberts and I were chatting on AIM during the game. He gave me some great updates and rather than have him do a "special" write-up or have Andy create one I figured I'd cut and past his comments during the 4 game set:

GAME 1: Doc vs Broglio. Flood leads off the game with a singleno score in the third...Altman gets hurt chasing down a fly ball. Mets push across a run in the fourth. 1-0 NYCards plate two in the top of the eighth on run scoring singles by Flood and Groat; 2-1 StL in the bottom of the 8th. Doc was dominant until the 8th. Ron Taylor sets the Mets down in order in the bottom half. On to the 9th...Mets with runners on first and second and one out in the ninth! Tense!! Foster is up Holy cow!! Foster struck out, but HoJo doubled in the tying run! Carter came around third for the game winner, but Charlie James, subbing for Atlman, gunned him down! Extra frames. Cards get one in the 13th, win it 3-2

GAME 2: is Gibson and Darling. Well, the Mets take that one 6-3. Gibby was throwing bullets, but Foster hit a three run bomb in the sixth.

GAME 3: Jeez, despite 17 Cardinal hits and three Met errors, Mets win game three 7-6 in 11 innings"I can't get Groat to execute the hit and run. It's failed every time". Man, any kind of start at all by Simmons in game three, and I would have won that one and split. Simmons had a 2.48 ERA, but was roughed up early and I lost 7-6 in 11.

GAME 4: NY is blowing me out in game four. 6-0 in the third. Sadecki getting hammered, vs El Sid. I got two back, but he came back with two. 8-2 now. Man, The Mets doing a lot of stealing, even with a 10-3 lead in the 8th. He walloped me 12-3 in the finale.

That was a good Met team. They'll be tough because Doc is a real stopper. Ironically the only game I won was when Doc started. Flood hit a ton in the series. He might be the league leader after the first round. He was on base all series, but I couldn't get a successful h&r from Groat, who in real was a great h&r guy. Flood is hitting .588, mostly singles though.

60-Chisox 3, 07-Tigers 1

"Roy Seivers has rejunevated his career at the expense of the Tigers pitching. 6 homeruns, including two grandslams powered the Pale Hose to a 3-1 series victory over the Tigers. EarlyWynn, Bob Shaw and Billy Pierce shut down the Tigers powerful hitting attack and Shaw threw a game two shutout. The White Sox defense was constantly evident as it seemed that every time the Tigers got something going, Aparicio or Fox would start a crushing double play. The Tigers had a two run head going into the ninth inning of game three when the South Siders broke loose for nine runs off a succession of Tiger relievers starting with Todd Jones. After Game Three, Tiger manager, Tom "Crash" Davis was heard to be muttering something about the Purple Gang and how much a gang land hit might cost. Major League Baseball has decided that it was the ravings of a lunatic and will not investigate. Although Sievers hit a homer off Kenny Rogers in his first at bat in Game 4, Zach Miner earned the Tiger win in relief on the strength of a Marcus Thames seventh inning homer, with relief help from Jones. Davis was seen in the Tiger clubhouse afterwards drinking a Sam Adams Cherry Wheat and moaning about the lack of arms on the Tiger pitching staff."

-contributed by Tom "Crash" Davis-

02-Red Sox 3, 93-Yankees 1

Game 1 saw Johnny Damon hit a walk off homer in extra innings to give the fans at Fenway something to celebrate.

Game 2 saw the (evil) empire strike back as Jim Abbott pitched well enough to win and Steve Farr notched his first save of the year. The Sawx made 4 errors, including 2 by Nomar. Pedro got lit up for 6 runs in 6 innings and was generally ineffective. Dion James went 3 for 4 with 3 RBI's to pace the Bombers.

Game 3 was the home opener up in the Bronx. Manager Ed Mikhli surprised the home faitful by starting Bob Wickman who gave up 7 runs in 7 innings. Red Sox's starter Tim Wakefield was barely effective himself, but he did notch 6 k's with his dancing kuckler. Many was 4 for 4 with a homer and 4 ribbies. Donnie Baseball was 3 for 5 himself, but the Sox doubled up the Bombers 16-8.

Game 4 saw John Burkett do his best imitation of what Boston fans expected Pedro to look like as he went 8 innings and yielded only 1 run to the powerful Yankee lineup. Johnny Damon hit his 3rd homer of the season, while going 3 for 5. Boston won 4-1 as Allan Embree came on to pitch the 9th and notch his first save out of the pen.

75-Royals 3, 06-Angles 1

Game 1: John Lackey goes 6 2/3, giving up 1 run on 5 hits to get the win. The top 5 hitters in the Anaheim lineup each had an rbi. Anaheim 5 KC 2. W- Lackey, L-Busby, SV- F. Rodriguez

Game 2: Anaheim leads 3-0 going into the 9th as Ervin Santana and Scott Shields have only given up 2 hits to the punchless Royals. After George Brett K's to lead off the 9th, Brendan Donnelly is brought on in relief. John Mayberry & Tony Solaita greet him with back-to-back homers. Hal McRae then delivers a pinch-hit single followed by a Jim Wohlford single. Al Cowans squeezes home McRae and reaches first on the play at the plate. F-Rod then unleashes a wild pitch to put runners at 2nd & 3rd with the score ties and 1 out. Frank White then lays down a perfect bunt down the 1st base lane that scores Wohlford with the game winner.KC 4 Anaheim 3. W- Fitzmorris, L- Donnelly, SV- Mingori

Game 3: Anaheim takes an early lead with a 3-run 4th, started by a Vlad Guerrero HR. With KC down 6-4 in the bottom of the 8th, the scrappy Royals score 2 runs aided by the 5th of 6 Anaheim errors in the game and a double steal of 3rd and 2nd by Wohlford and Rojas in a busted hit & run. In the bottom of 10, Al Cowens doubled with 1 out and after an IBB to Rojas, a Patek sac bunt is bobbled by Maicer Izturis to load the bases. Hal McRae delivers again with a pinch-hit game winning single.KC 7 Anaheim 6. W- Mingori, L- F. Rodriguez

Game 4: In the KC 1st Mayberry & Solaita go back-to-back again. Solo blats by Napoli and Vlad Guerrero get Anaheim back in it, but Doug Bird's 2 innings of perfect relief shuts the door.KC 4 Anaheim 3. W- Pattin, L- Weaver, SV- Bird

-contributed by Allan Silverwood-

'79-Phillies 3, 76-Pirates 1

The Philadelphia Phillies hitters hammered Pirates pitching to the tune of .319 batting average and 6 homeruns in the 4 game series. They scored 28 runs also. Mike Schmidt was the hitting star as he went 9 for 16 with 4 homeruns and 9 RBI's. Schmidt looks like he will win KOD2 MVP honors. The Phillies pitching limited the Pirates to just 14 runs in 4 games. Carlton, Lerch, and Espinosa all recorded victories for the Phillies staff. The Pirates were lucky to escape with a victory in game 4 as Kent Tekulve almost blew a 8-5 lead and the Buccos held on for an 8-7 victory. The usually reliable Bucs staff posted a 6.43 ERA. One note in the series was that Greg Luzinski beat out an infield hit. I will have to write to Dave about that one. Thanks to Gary for hosting.

-contributed by Frank Aluzzi-