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--
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