'62 Dodgers are too much for Crosstown '95 Halos

Game 1: Don Drysdale (LAD) vs Chuck Finley (CAL) - 

Chuck Finley struggled from the first pitch and only lasted 14 batters, giving up 8 hits and 7 earned runs. Finley gave up 3-run homeruns to both Willie Davis and Maury Wills. Don Drysdale went 7.1 innings, scattering 8 hits and 4 runs before he stepped aside for Ron Perranoski to get the final 5 outs. The Dodgers jump out to a 1-0 series lead with an 8-4 win.

Game 2: Johnny Podres (LAD) vs Mark Langston (CAL) - 

This game was a tight battle with the Angels eking out a 1-0 victory on a Rene Gonzalez (who only had 18 at-bats in the '95 season) RBI single in the 7th inning. Langston pitched 6.1 innings before giving the ball to the bullpen who faced 8 batters and got 8 outs. Lee Smith picked up his first save of the series. The Dodgers left 7 men on base and the Angels left 6. With the 1-0 victory, the Angels tie the series at 1.

Game 3: Shawn Boskie (CAL) vs Sandy Koufax (LAD) - 

As the series moves all the way from Anaheim to Chavez Ravine, Manager Doug Zaner was ready to build on the momentum of the Angels' big 1-0 victory in game 2. That was until he realized that Sandy Koufax was pitching for the Dodgers. Zaner came up with all kinds of reasons why Koufax should not pitch, even bribing a local calendar maker to tell Koufax that it was Yom Kippur. Alas, Koufax did pitch and he threw 8 innings of 7 hit, 2 run ball striking out 10 Halos. Shawn Boskie looked intimidated on the mound, (but who wouldn't be?), giving up 9 runs in 6 innings on only 7 hits. Frank Howard hit a grand slam that traveled 405 feet in the 3rd and Larry Burright brought in another 3 with a big blast in the 6th. Koufax took a seat after 8 and watched Ed Roebuck seal the deal, although he did give up 2 runs, as the Dodgers cruise to a 2-1 series lead with a convincing 10-4 win in front of their home fans.

Game 4: Brian Anderson (CAL) vs Stan Williams (LAD) - 

In a must win game, Manager Zaner asked Brian Anderson to go out to the mound and do him proud.Larry Burright squeaked a single between first and second bringing in two more runs and giving the Dodgers a big 5-3 lead going in to the 9th inning. Larry Sherry came to the mound for the Dodgers in the 9th, threw 15 pitches, did not allow an Angel to reach base, and earned the save as the Dodgers beat the Angels 5-3 in front of the home fans to send the Boys in Blue on to the second round.

But Anderson may have tried a bit too hard as he injured himself in the 4th inning forcing Zaner to use a total of 7 pitchers in the game. Mike James was the pitcher who relieved Anderson and Frank Howard greeted him by singling to center and then Willie Davis followed up with a 2 run blast down the right field line. The Angels came back and tied the game in the 6th with solo blasts by Gary DiSarcina and Tim Salmon. And then in the top of the 8th, the Angels got the break they were looking for in this tie game. Dodger catcher Johnny Roseboro couldn't handle a pitch from Ron Perranoski, giving up a passed ball and allowing Jim Edmonds to trot in with the go-ahead run for the Angels who were getting ready for a game 5. But in the bottom of the 8th, Frank Howard singled, Willie Davis singled, which brought in Jim Gilliam to tie the game and then

--submitted by Keith MacDonald--

'64 Pale Hose sweep '72 Cubbies

GM 1 Horlen vs Jenkins

It was Moose Skowron vs the Cubs as he started out with a 3 run shot in the 1st and a 2 run shot in the 3rd off Fergie as Sox win 8-2 in opener. Pete Ward 3 hits, 2 runs, Ronnie Hansen 2 rbi.

GM 2 Pizzaro vs Pappas

Sox hit 4 homers including one from pitcher Juan Pizzaro in 14-2 romp. Sox scored 7 meaningless runs in 9th. Cubs made 4 errors (3 on Carmen Fanzone) that went for 7 unearned runs... Hansen 3 more hits.
GM 3  Peters vs Hooton

Floyd Robinson doubled and homered with 4 rbi as Sox hang on for sweep with a 5-4 win. Wilhelm and Eddie Fisher 3 scoreless. Cubs 3 more unearned runs allowed.

--submitted by Dan Holm--

'61 Tigers need miracle comeback to beat '79 Royals in 5

Game 1:  Dennis Leonhard was perfect through 6 innings, 18 Tigers up, 18 down.  Meanwhile the Royals staked him to three runs on an Al Cowens single and a two run triple by Darrell Porter.  But Jake Wood opened the 7th with a triple.  After Billy Bruton singled, Wood scored on a wild pitch.  With a base opened, Leonhard intentionally walked Al Kaline.  Stormin' Norman Cash really resented the disrespect and tripled home two runs to tie the game.  Rocco Colavito brought Cash home with a groundout and Dick McAuliffe added a fith run with a solo homer.  After Jim Bunning walked two in the bottom of the 7th, and then gave up a single to Willie Wilson to load the bases, Terry Fox came on to face George Brett. Fox struck out Brett, but was so jazzed, he plunked pinch hitter Jamie Quirk to force in run.  The Tigers added a un in the 8th and a Darrell Porter lead of homer in the 9th made it a one run game.  Fox got the next the three hitters to preserve the win for Congressman Bunning.  Tigers 6  Royals 5

 

Game 2:  A duel of lefties as Don "Big Ears" Mossi took on Paul Splittorff.  Dick Brown (who in a

1960 replay for me started the season 0 for 56) started the scoring with a homer in the 5th.  The Royals struck back with a two run Frank White homer in the bottom half of the inning.  Steve Boros tied the game with a solo homer in the top of the 9th and he game went into extra innings.  In the top of the 11th, Boros led off with a single and went to second on a wild pitch by Dan Quisenberry with two out. Chico Fernandez then singled but Al Cowens threw Boros out at the plate.  Porter led off the 11th with a single and Freddie Patek came into run.  Wilson singled and with George Brett coming to the plate, Jim Donahue was in trouble.  Sure enough Brett singled but Bruton threw out Patek at the plate.  It only postponed the inevitable as Cowens punctuated his great throw in the top half of the inning with a game winning single.  Royals 3  Tigers 2

 

Game 3:  In Tiger stadium, the Royals were at a disadvantage as their pitchers had to hit and the next two Tiger pitchers (Frank Lary an Paul Foytack both knew hot to hit and each had homered in the regular season.  Each team scored in the first and Kaline gave the Tigers the lead in the 3rd with a ribbie, one of four hits on the day.  White homered in the 4th though to tie it up.  But in the bottom of the 4th, the Tigers scored 5 times highlighted by Al Kaline's grand slam off starter Larry Gura.   That was enough and Frank Lary shut down the Royals the rest of the way.  Tigers 10  Royals 2

 

Game 4:  Paul Foytack did get a hit in his first at bat but wasn't

around for his second.  The Tigers scored in the first on a Kaline sac fly.  The Royals tied it in the second with a lead off homer by George Scott.  Darrell Porter led off the third with a homer to give the Royals a lead Rich Gale (who also had a hit) would never relinquish.  Porter then hit a 3 run homer in the 5th to plant an explanation point to the game.  Royals 8  Tigers 4

 

Game 5:  Leonhard and Bunning again.  The Tigers scored in the first on a Colavito single.  For three innings, Bunning looked great.  But Frank White tied the game with a single in the 4th.  In the 5th Pete LaCock doubled and Bunning, wanting nothing to do with Porter deliberately walked him.  Good strategy except that Bunning then walked Hal McRae to load the bases.  With the bases loaded and one out, Willie Wilson dropped a perfect suicide squeeze and the Royals were in front.  LaCock and Porter both singled home runs in the 6th and lead became 3.  The Royals added a run in the 8th on a passed ball and the Tigers were looking at a 4 run deficit.  In the 9th, with one out, Cash walked and Colavito singled.  Leonhard struck out pinch hitter Bobo Osbourne and the Royals were one out from advancing. After Steve Boros doubled home two runs, the Royals manager went to the mound.  Leonhard assured him he had plenty left but he didn't.  Bubba Morton's pinch hit single and Chico Fernandez' triple tied the game.  Finally Leonhard was gone and the Quiz struck out Jake Wood to send the game into extras.  In the tenth, Kaline singled and with two out Rocky Colavito homered.  With Fox out of gas and bullpen options limited, Don Mossi was summoned.  He gave up a double but was otherwise unhurt and the Tigers advanced.  Tigers 7  Royals 5

--submitted by Tom "Crash" Davis--

'20 Black sox knock out '88 Bucs in 4

ChiSox Bind Bonds and Bucs

Game 1 at Pittsburgh – Red Faber (7IP) and the ’20 White Sox blanked the ’88 Pirates in the opener 3-0. All 3 Pale Hose runs came in the 7^th. Shano Collins led off with a triple. Ray Schalk (3 hits) singled him in. Swede Risberg fanned, but “Finding” Nemo Leibold singled. Faber bunted to put runners on 2^nd and 3^rd and Eddie Collins singled to drive in both runners.

Game 2 at Pittsburgh – A wild 11^th inning capped a pretty good pitcher’s^th on a Shoeless Joe Jackson RBI double and a Shano Collins suicide squeeze plating Jackson. Spanky LaValliere led off the B11 with a base on balls from reliever Dickie Kerr. Jose Lind (3 hits) struck out, but Junior Ortiz followed with a single up the middle. Roy Wilkinson (0-1) took the mound but Felix Fermin tripled to tie the game. PH Darnell Coles knocked Fermin in with a game-winning single. Jim Gott (1-0) was the winning pitcher in relief. 

duel and found the Bucs evening the series with a 5-4 win. Eddie Cicotte (9IP) and Bob Walk (7IP) each gave their respective clubs a chance and the combatants went to extra innings tied at 2-2. The ChiSox went up 4-2 in the top of the 11

Game 3 at Chicago – Swede Risberg’s suicide squeeze plating Happy Felsch in the B9 gave Chicago a bunt-off (let’s hope that phrase doesn’t catch on) win, 4-3. The play caused great celebration for White Sox fans and agony for the Pirates and their cranks. Pittsburgh had led 3-0 heading into the B8 on a 2^nd inning Andy Van Slyke triple and tally; a Van Slyke sac fly in the 6^th and Lind RBI single in the T8. The ChiSox began their come-back in the 8^th on a 2-run PH single from Harvey McClellan. Jackson, Felsch and S. Collins hit back-to-back-to-back singles to open the 9^th with Jackson scoring to tie the game. One out later, Jeff Robinson issued Eddie Murphy a free pass and Bob Kipper took the mound with the bases jammed. Risberg bunted his 2-0 pitch.

Game 4 at Chicago – The White Sox advanced to the 2^nd round of the Holiday Festival Tournament Happy Felsch powered the offense with 4 RBI and 3 hits, including a 3-run blast in the 5^th. Tough choice for MVP in this series; Red Faber earned his second win with 8 innings of stellar work. He had an ERA of 0.60 in 15 innings. 1B Shano Collins had a BA of .438 with 4 RBI. In fairness, Bonds wasn’t exactly bound, as he hit .333.

with a blow-out 10-1 win.

Chicago now advances to play the 1963 Cardinals

--submitted by Bruce Thomas--

'85 Yanks outscore '00 M's in 4

GAME 1
85 New York      4
00 Seattle          8

WP     Sele
SV    Sasaki
LP     Guidry

Seattle jumps all over Guidry with 2 in the second, 2 in the third, chasing him in the fourth where they plated 4 more for an 8-0 lead.   Aaron Sele cruised into the ninth with a shutout before needing bullpen help from Rodriguez then Sasaki as the Yankees plated 4 to make it respectable.

GAME 2
85 New York    5
00 Seattle        2

WP    Niekro
SV    Righetti
LP    Halama

Butch Wynegar broke open a 2-1 game with a three-run bomb in the fourth.  Seattle

countered with a solo shot from A-Rod, his second of the series, to cut it to 5-2, but the Yankee bullpen combo of Shirley and Righetti pitched 2 1/3 innings of shutout relief to secure the win.

GAME 3
00 Seattle        5  
85 New York    8

WP    Cowley
SV    Righetti
LP    Moyer

Seattle took a 1-0 lead on the first on A-Rods third dinger of the series, but the Yankees countered with two in the second on Don Baylor's 2-run homer.   Not to be outdone,  A-rod hit jack number 4,  a 2-run shot in the fifth to give the Mariners a 5-3 lead.  New York counters with three in the fifth to take the lead,  then Dave Winfield finishes it off with a 2-run bomb in the seventh for the final 8-5.

GAME 4
00 Seattle        4
85 New York    6

WP    Righetti
LP    Rhodes

In a battle of Henderson's,  young Ricky bests old Ricky, 

finishing of a remarkable series performance by hitting a 2-run walk off homer in the bottom of the ninth to send the Yankees into the next round.  The home crowd felt confident heading into the ninth with a 4-2 lead and Dave Righetti on the mound, but the feisty Mariners would rally.  Three straight singles,  a wild pitch then a fielders choice tied the game up, setting the stage for young Ricky's ninth inning heroics.  Young Ricky finished the series hitting .571 with 5 steals, 3 runs and 3 RBIs.  A-Rod led the way for Seattle, hitting .438 with 4 homers and 6 ribbies.

"Joe-vial" '71 Cards upset '85 Mets in 4

1971 Cardinals Upset 1985 Mets

Game 1 at St. Louis – The Cardinals batter around Doc Gooden (did he find Keith Hernandez dealer in the Gateway City) for 7 runs on 9 hits in 4 innings. Joe Hague crushed a 3-run homer run off Gooden in the 1^st for an early lead. Joe Torre banged a 2-run shot in the 3^rd and the Redbirds never looked back on their way to an 8-2 win in the opener. Steve Carlton (1-0) went the distance for St. Louis.

Game 2 at St. Louis – The Mets return the favor against Cardinals legend Bob Gibson, sending him to the showers after surrendering 5 runs and 6 hits in 4 innings. Mets even the series with a 6-1 victory. Daryl Strawberry was the offensive star with 2 hits (HR), 2 runs and 2 RBI. El Sid Fernandez (1-0) tossed 6 innings, yielding a single run on 7 hits. Rick Aguilera (1) added the iron-man save with 3 innings of work.    

Game 3 at New York – St. Louis put up large crooked numbers in 3 innings and cruised to an 11-6 win in Gotham. The Cardinals plated 4 runs in the 1^st highlighted by a 2-run homer by The Hague. They scored 3 in the 6^th highlighted by a 2-run Joe Torre single. Torre’s 3-run bomb highlighted a 4-run 8^th. The ’71 NL MVP finished with 3 hits and 5 RBI. Interesting strategy by Mets manager Justin Ryan; intentionally walking Matty Alou in front of all 5 Torre ribbies. Jerry Reuss (1-0) was the beneficiary of the Redbird batting display.

Game 4 at New York – The only tight game of the

series saw St. Louis hold on for a 3-2 win to advance to the second round of the Holiday Festival. The Redbirds jumped to an early lead again when Torre and Ted Simmons came through with RBI singles in the 1^st. The Mets got 1 back in the 5^th when Mookie Wilson tripled in PR Kelvin Chapman. St. Loo answered in the 6^th with what proved to be the game winner as Lou Brock singled home Jose Cruz. Strawberry scored George Foster with a double in the 8^th, but Frank Linzy (1) took the ball for the final four outs to preserve the win for Reggie Cleveland (1-0).

St. Louis now advances to play the 1946 Tigers

--submitted by Bruce Thomas--

'97 Bombers have a bit "Mo" than the '80 Dodgers over 5 games.

Game 1 (Dodger Stadium)

New York  1  Los Angeles 2 (10 inn)

WP Castillo  (1-0)

LP  Rivera    (0-1)

 

An excellent pitchers dual between Andy Pettitte and Don Sutton. Sutton's only mistake was giving up a HR to Tino Martinez in the 5th inning and it looked like that would be the deciding run as Pettitte was spectacular through 8 innings of scoreless ball, giving up only 3 hits and 1 walk. Then the fateful decision of manager Mike Hill to bring in "The Sandman" Mariano Rivera to close it out proved costly. After breezing through the first two batters in the ninth, he gives up a single to Reggie Smith, then walks Ron Cey and blows the save by giving up another single to Davey Lopes that scores Smith with the tying run. In the 10th, it was the same scenario of a single, walk and single that brought in the winning run for LA.

 

Game 2 (Dodger Stadium)

New York 5  Los Angeles 2

WP Cone    (1-0)

LP  Hooton  (0-1)

SV  Rivera   (1)

 

The Yanks tie the series thanks to another excellent pitching performance. This time it was David Cone going 6 innings only giving up 3 hits and 1 run. Mo Rivera redeems himself by closing this one out for his first save. 2B Rey Sanchez was MVP driving in 3 runs in support of Coney. The series now shifts to Yankee Stadium for game 3.

 

Game 3 (Yankee Stadium)

Los Angeles 7  New York 0

WP Welch (1-0)

LP  Wells   (0-1)

 

The Dodgers strike back at the Yankees with a dominant performance led by Bob Welch's 8 shutout innings and Pedro Guerrerro's HR and 3 RBI. Yankee pitcher David Wells didn't last long only going 4 innings and gave up 7 runs (3 earned). The Dodgers blew it open in the 4th with 4 runs and added 2 more in the 5th to make it a 7-0 score that held up the rest of the way.

 

Game 4 (Yankee Stadium)

Los Angeles 2  New York 3 (11 inn)

WP Rivera (1-1)

LP  Howe   (0-1)

 

The series' second extra inning game was another nail biter. The Yankees in a "win or go home" situation decided to bring back Andy Pettitte on short rest to keep their hopes alive. Pettitte answered with 6 strong innings of 2 run ball. He was facing Dodger's lefty Jerry Reuss.

The Dodgers jumped on top in the 3rd with a HR from Pedro Guerrerro, his second of the series. The Yanks answered with a run in the bottom of the inning on a double by Tino Martinez, scoring Paul O'Neill, then added another run in the 4th on a ground ball single between third and short by Tim Raines, scoring Chad Curtis to go up 2-1. LA tied it in the 7th on a single by Steve Garvey, however, the Yankees won it in the bottom of the 11th on a Derek Jeter single scoring Luis Sojo sending the series back to Chavez Ravine for the deciding 5th game.

 

Game 5 (Dodger Stadium)

New York 6  Los Angeles 4

WP Mendoza (1-0)

LP   Sutton     (0-1)

SV  Rivera      (2)

 

David Cone coming back on short rest to face Dodger ace Don Sutton for game 5. It was all hands on deck for the Yankees as Cone could only go 2.2 innings as he threw an unbelievable 90 pitches in those few innings. It turned out not to hurt as the Yankee bats woke up with 12 hits in the game including homers by Jeter, O'Neill and Tino Martinez' 3rd of the series. The Yankees jumped out to a 5-1 lead in the third and 6 relievers combined to make the lead hold up, culminating with Rivera's 2nd save of the series as New  York defeats Los Angeles in another classic Yankee-Dodger match up.

 

Excellent job managing, Keith. It was a fun series.

 

Mike Hill

'97 NY Yankees

 

'64 Phighin's beat up rivals from Gotham in 4

64 Phillies vs 87 NY Mets

Game 1 -

A real pitchers duel between Doc Gooden and Jim Bunning that ended up going 13 innings. The Mets took a 1-0 lead in the 4th when Keith Hernandez scored on a Howard Johnson double. The score remained 1-0 until Phillips scored on a Jesse Orosco throwing error on a pickoff attempt. Philly had the bases juiced with one out when the Mets brought in Roger McDowell who got Johnny Callison and Ruben Amaro to send the game into extra innings. In the bottom of the 13th, Johnny Briggs singled and moved to 2nd on an error. A Doug Sisk wild pitch moved Briggs to 3rd with no one out. After a Cookie Rojas IBB, Wes Covington flied deep to right scoring Briggs.

Game 1 Final 64 Philadelphia 2 NY Mets 1 (Philadelphia Leads Series 1-0)

Game 2-

Ron Darling vs Chris Short. A back and fourth affair seeing Philadelphia go up 4-0 before the Mets put up 3 in the 6th and tie the game with 2 in the 7th. Philly took the lead for good in the bottom of the 8th with 2 runs across. 

Game 2 Final Philadelphia 7 NY Mets 5 (Philadelphia Leads Series 2-0)

Game 3 -

Dennis Bennett vs Sid Fernandez. The Mets come home to Shea and go up 4-0 with 1 in the 4th, 2 in the 5th, and 1 in the 6th. Philly came back with 2 late runs but this was all Mets 5-2. Sid Fernandez grabs the win and Bennett takes the loss.

Game 3 Final NY Mets 5 Philadelphia 2 (Philadelphia Leads Series 2-1)

Game 4 -

Jim Bunning vs Bob Ojeda. This game was tied at 3 into the 8th when Philly exploded for 11 runs sealing the series 3 games to 1. Jim Bunning picks up the win pitching 7 strong innings.

Game 4 Final Philadelphia 14 NY Mets 3 (Philadelphia Wins Series 3-1)

Thanks to Brian Hasleiet for a good series!

Gary Maurer

Teddy Ballgame blasts '75 Phightin's as '49 Sahx gain 2nd round

Game 1 -

Great pitchers duel between Steve Carlton and Mel Parnell at the Vet. Both hurlers had not allowed a run until the 6th when Ted Williams the "Splendid Splinter" smacked a 2 run 378' tater to right center. Philly made a game of in in the bottom of the 9th by loading the bases with one out but Ollie Brown flied out scoring Maddox and Tony Taylor grounded out to end the game.

FINAL Boston 2 Philadelphia 1

Game 2 -

Philadelphia evened the series as Larry Christenson picked up the win allowing only 1 run and Gene Garber got the save. The game was tied at 1 in the 5th when Philly put up 3 runs, 2 on the strength of a Mike Schmidt left field blast.

FINAL Philadelphia 4 Boston 1

Game 3 -

Boston returns to Fenway where they showed the visitor no quarter. Boston scored early and often chasing starter Tom Underwood after only 3 innings. Ted Williams smacked 2 homers including a 4th inning grand slam.

FINAL Boston 10 Philadelphia 2

Game 4 -

Boston used a 4 run 2nd and a 1 run 3rd to lock up the series in 4 games.Steve Carlton didn't look sharp and was chased after pitching 5 innings and allowing 5 runs. Mel Parnell took a no hitter into the 6th but Ollie Brown doubled to spoil the no-no bid. Parnell was the star only allowing 1 run on 3 hits for a complete game series clinching win.

FINAL Boston 5 Philadelphia 1 Boston Wins Series 3-1

Good luck to Mike Sorochen and his 49 Red Sox going forward!

Gary Maurer (All chips are now on 64 Philly!)

Pedro pushes '99 Sahx by '77 Rangers

Game 1: 77 Texas 3-1

WP: Bert Blyleven (1-0)

LP: Pedro Martinez (0-1)

HR: Bert Campaneris (1)

Texas got to Pedro Martinez (7 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 10 K), early with a run in the 1st and 2 in the 3rd, then rode the strong arm of Bert Blyleven to a 3-1 game 1 victory. Blyleven (9 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 7 K) was in command all day allowing only back to back hits to John Valentin and Nomar Garciaparra in the 6th inning. Bert Camapneris hit a 2 run homer off Pedro to lead the Texas offense.

Game 2: 99 Boston 2-1

WP: Rod Beck (1-0)

LP: Gaylord Perry (0-1)

SV: Derek Lowe (1)

HR: none

Gaylord Perry (8 IP, 4 H, 2 R), was darn good for the Rangers but Bret Saberhagen and 2 delivers were just a little better as Boston evened up the series. Sabes held the Rangers to 2 hits over his 7 innings but left with his team trailing 1-0. The Red Sox bats finally woke up with 3 hits to start the bottom of the 8th lead by a double by Troy O'Leary and an RBI single by Darren Lewis. The eventual winning run scored on a Perry wild pitch allowing Trot Nixon to score with 2 outs in the 8th. Rod Beck and Derek Lowe were perfect over the final 2 innings to pick up the win and save for the Sox.

Game 3: 77 Texas 7-3

WP: Doc Ellis (1-0)

LP: Ramon Martinez (0-1)

HR: Brian Daubach (1)

In what seemed like arcade game offense for this series, Texas used 3 runs in the 2nd and 4 in the 7th to power their way to a 2-1 advantage in the series. Ramon Martinez was pulled in the 2nd after suffering an injury and Doc Ellis (8.1 IP, 3 R) kept the Sox bats from rallying despite Boston putting runners on in several innings. Offensively, Texas was paced by Toby Harrah (3-3, 2 R, 1 Rbi) and Willie Horton (2 Rbi).

Game 4: 99 Boston 2-1

WP: Kent Mercker (1-0)

LP: Doyle Alexander (0-1)

SV: Derek Lowe (2)

HR: Brian Daubach (2), Jim Sundberg (1)

With their back against the wall, and knowing they had Pedro Martinez waiting to start a

game 5, the Red Sox turned to Kent Mercker in game 4. and Mercker responded with 7 strong shut out innings holding the Rangers to 2 hits and a walk over that time. Doyle Alexander almost matched Mercker but was touched for a run in the 2nd via a Brian Daubach bomb before departing in the 7th trailing 1-0. Boston added an insurance run in the 8th when Jason Varitek walked with 2 outs and eventually scored on a Troy O'Leary single. That run would prove valuable as Texas got to reliever Tom Gordon with a lead off Jim Sundberg home run to cut the lead to 1. But Gordon settled down and Derek Lowe got the last 5 outs to save the win for Mercker and force a game 5.

Game 5: 99 Boston 3-0

WP: Pedro Martinez (1-1)

LP: Bert Blyleven (1-1)

SV: Derek Lowe (3)

HR: Troy O'Leary (1)

Pedro Martinez did not disappoint his home crowd in this big game. Pedro was absolutely dominant over his 8 innings. After allowing a lead off walk, Martinez (8ip, 1 H, 11k), allowed a lone Claudell Washington double to the Ranger lineup that seemed overmatched throughout. Troy O'Leary belted a 3 run homer in the 2nd of tough luck loser Blyleven (8 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 6 K) to provide Boston with all the offense it would need. Derek Lowe closed out his 3rd game of the series with a 1-2-3 9th needing only 9 pitches to close out the series.

--submitted by Peter Daly--

'51 Bums are "King's" for a day taking 3 of 4 from '77 Reds

Game 1 – Riverfront Staduim
Newcomb vs Seaver

The two aces stepped to the mound to open the tournament, and a pitching duel ensued. Newcomb gave up an RBI  double to Geroge Foster but nothing else for eight innings. Tom Seaver was just as good, allowing only a fifth-inning solo shot to Andy Pafko. The deadlock held until the ninth. In the top Seaver was lifted for Rawly Eastick, who gave up a leadoff single to Carl Furillo but got the next two batters to fly out and the third to hit a line drive out. Newcomb gave up a single and a stolen base to Foster in the bottom of the ninth and was lifted for Carl Ersikine, but Foster was thrown out trying to score on a single from Dave Conceptcion forcing extra innings. Nothing came across in the tenth, but in the bottom of the eleventh Dan Driessen drove in the winning run of a sac fly with the cases loaded. The Reds take a 1-0 lead going into Game 2 on a 2-1 score. WP: Borbon. LP: Podelbain. MVP: Dan Driessen

Game 2 – Riverfront Stadium
Roe vs Norman

Preacher Roe took the mound for the Bums in Game 2 and was lights-out all night. Roy Campanella hit a two-run double in the first and that would be all Brooklyn would need. Roe finished the game with nothing across and only four hits conceded to a potent Big Red Machine. Two insurance runs in the ninth removed all doubt, leading to a 4-0 final score and a tied series going to Brooklyn. WP: Roe. LP: Norman MVP: Preacher Roe 

Game 3 – Ebbets Field
Moskau vs Branca

Coming home, the Dodgers bats exploded. With a 1-1 tie going into the bottom of the fourth, Reds pitching imploded and Moskau was chased after giving up two consecutive two-run base hits to Carl Furrilo and Jackie Robinson. In all, dix runs were scored in that inning and afterwards Brooklyn cruised. Ralpha Branca game up only one run in eight innings, and further aided his cause by going 3-3 with two RBIs at the plate. Carl Erskine came in to pitch the ninth, which was an error on the manager’s part as he had forgotten Erskine was supposed to be the Game 4 started. The final score of 7-1 barely indicated how bad a night Cincy had. WP: Branca. LP: Moskau MVP:  Andy Pafko

Game 4 – Ebbets Field
Billingham vs. King

Thanks to the managerial boner in Game 3 seldom-used starter Clyde King was inserted into the rotation. After giving up an RBI double to Foster, he rose to the occasion, while the Dodgers launched anoffensive flurry scoring five in the first two innings highlighted by a two-RBI single from Jackie Robinson. From there King held serve, giving up only a solo shot to Forsterin the 6th. Billingham only lasted one and two-thirds innings and the Reds ended up using six outchers before the night was through. Roy Campanella went 3-4 at the plate and the Dodgers ended up with six runs on eleven hits. King finished out the game and the Dodgers advanced (the first time I have ever advanced to the second round in the Holiday Festival). WP: King. LP: Billingham. MVP: Clyde King
--submitted by Michael Hopcroft--

'32 A's almost upset by '14 Mets who were the 64th seed.

In a hard fought series the '32 A's overcame a 2 - 1 deficit to take the final two games and the series.

GAME 1

New York struck first blasting A's ace starter Lefty Grove for 4 hits and five runs, the only extra base hit being a double by Granderson.

The A's came back in the second inning tallying five runs featuring a grand slam by Al Simmons.  Grove shut down the Mets over the next seven innings while the A's added four more runs en route to a 9 - 4 Win.

WP: Grove; LP: de Grom

HRs Cochrane, Simmons (GS) and McNair

GAME 2

The Mets got to A's starter Rube Walberg for 4 runs in the second and coasted to a 6 - 2 win to even up the series.  The Mets attack featured singles by Lagares, Campbell, d'Arnaud, Tejeda and Young.  Mets starter Zack Wheeler shut out the A's on five hits to pick up the win.

WP: Wheeler; LP: Walberg

HRs;  Foxx 

GAME 3

Curtis Granderson and Wilmer Flores each smacked two home runs to lead the Mets to  a 9 - 6 win and a 2 - 1 series lead.  Mets pummeled the A's starter George Earnshaw ror six blasts as  d'Arnaud and  Duda also chipped in with four-baggers.  Bartolo Colon went six and 1/3 innings for the win, but needed help from his bull pen as he surrendered four in the seventh to make the game close.  Mejia picked up the save.

WP: Colon;  LP: Earnshaw

HRs Mets: Granderson (2), Flores (2), d'Arnaud and Duda

       A's: Cochrane 

GAME 4

Facing elimination the A's turned to ace Lefty Grove and

he responded with a complete game, six-hit shut out with 12 K's as the A's won 4 - 0 to even up the series at two each.

All the scoring took place in the first three innings as Cochrane, Foxx and McNair homered off Gee to account for all four A's runs.

WP; Grove, ( 2 - 0): LP: Gee 

HRs: Cochrane, Foxx McNair

GAME 5

The A's jumped out to a three run in the first as Mickey Cochrane doubled and following a walk to Foxx, Cramer and Haas hit two out doubles to plate three runs.  The score remained 3 - 0 until the 7th when Cochrane hit a two-run homer (his fourth of the series) to give the A's a 5 - 0 lead.  Dykes and McNair each doubled in the 8th to extend the lead to 6 - 0 and it appeared that it was all over but for the shouting, but the Mets were not ready to concede victory.

In the bottom of the 8th Young reached on a bunt single, stole second and scored on a Granderson single to plate the first run for the Mets

The A's lacking a true closer let starter Walberg remain for the ninth.  Rube issued two walks and a single to load the bases with none out.  Walberg induced Abreu to hit into a double play, but a run scored to make a 6 - 2 game.  Krausse came in to relieve Wlalberg and promply wild pitched a run in and then walked the batter.  Frietas, a seldom used left-hander came in to face left- hander Curtis Granderson who grounded out to end the game and give the A's the win and the series.

WP: Walberg, (1 -1); SV Frietas(1)  LP: deGRom, (0 - 2)

HRs: Cochrane.

--submitted by James Clouser--

 

'12 Orioles and '77 Bucs hook up in a 5 game pitcher's duel.

Expected a series between the 77 Bucs and the 12 Birds to be a slugfest.....nothing could be further from the truth in this series.....close, low scoring games with plenty of pitching as Baltimore edges out a close one in the 5th and final game.

Game 1
Pittsburgh
Tillman vs Candelaria
Baltimore 2 Pittsburgh 0

Chris Tillman shuts out the Lumber Company on only 3 hits over 7 innings.  John Candelaria also goes 7 innings and gives up 7 hits to Baltimore, but yields 2 runs on consecutive RBI singles to Nick Markakis and Mannny Machado in the 3rd.  Both bullpens continue the trend with Jim Johnson recording the last two outs in the bottom of the ninth for he save.

Game 2
Pittsburgh
Gonzalez vs Kison
Pittsburgh 3 Baltimore 1
Bucs fight back as the fans witness another well pitched game from both sides.  All the scoring in this one happened in the first two innings and Baltimore was held to just 4 hits on the day.  Pitsburgh scores two on consecutive RBI singles by Sanguillen and Hebner in the first.  Matt Weiters drives in one in the top of the second on an RBI single and Al Oliver closes out the scoring in this one with (you guessed it) an RBI single in the bottom of the inning.  Where have all the home runs gone?  Larry Demery provides stellar work in relief of Kison pitching the final three innings of no-hit ball against the struggling hitters of Baltimore.

Game 3
Baltimore
Ruess vs Hammel
Baltimore 3 Pittsburgh 2
Not realizing the need to set the DH rule for the move to Camden Yards (thinking it was a bug in the program...Not!) Baltimore manager decided to play without the DH......the first time this has happened in an AL part since 1973.  For 6 complete innings neither team could breakthrough against Ruess or Hammel.  In the 7th the teams traded runs with Pittsburgh's Bill Robinson hitting a solo shot for the first home run onf the series and Manny Machado answering back with an RBI single in the bottom of the frame.  Countering Machado's single, Al Oliver lashed an RBI double of the scoreboard in right field to put the Bucs back in front 2-1. The bottom of the ninth saw the first two Baltimore hitters quickly retired before Nate McClouth was wlaked by reliever Doug Bair.  Mike Demery then entered the game for Pittsburgh and walked Nick Markakis.  Enter Bob Moose to face Baltimore pinch=hitter Jim Thome.  Thome lashed a single (what else could it be?) to left to send this one into extra innings.   In the bottom of the 10th three consecutive singles by Chris Davis, Weiters and Hardy gave Baltimore the win 3-2.
Game 4
Baltimore
Rooker vs Chen
Pittsburgh 4 Baltimore 2

Would ya believe it?  Another well pitched game. Pittsburgh broke through with a two RBI double in the top of the third by Bill Robinson.  Baltimore tied it back up on an RBI triple by JJ Hardy in the bottom of the 4th.  In the top of the 6th Willie Stargell found his power and lofted a solo homerun down the right field line to put the Bucs in front and the next inning Al Oliver added another run on an RBI double. Baltimore led off the bottom of the ninth with a Hardy double, but Dave Guisti came in to throw cold water on the threat and send the series back to Pittsburgh for one final game.

Game 5
Pittsburgh
Tillman vs Candelaria
Baltimore 2 Pittsburgh 1

In a re-match of game 1 starters all the marbles were on the line Once again another fantastic pitchers duel as Tillman yielded only 4 hits over 6 1/3 innings and the Candyman gave up only 5 hits in 7 innings.  Unfortunately for Pittsburgh, two of the O's hits were solo homeruns in the first and second innings.  Nick Markakis started the game with a lead off homer and Steve Pierce followed with his home run in the bottom of the second.  Willie Stargell got Pittsburgh on the board with a solo home run in the bottom of the 7th to close out the scoring in this one and send Baltimore to the second round of the DKS/KOD Holiday Tournament.

This was a very tight series all the way and exciting to play!  A special thanks to Bill Schneider for being extremely flexible in scheduling as after 4 games I had to leave for a bit (the dog was going insane here :-)) and the final game was not played until much later in the evening.

Hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and on to the New Year!~

--submitted by Mark Nixon--