1980 EOBHR REPLAY #37: DAY 7 OF 16 A.L.
85 CW (3-4/T3rd) 2-8-0-9 SE (6-1/1st) 3-9-0-8
The Mariners were only four years old in 1980, and in reality, neither Mgr. Darrell Johnson (39-65) nor mid-season replacement Mgr. Maury Wills (20-38) could prevent the Seattle club from losing 103 realworld games....
But never mind that! Every team from every year -- GUARANTEED -- receives a second chance for worldwide buzz and fan adoration via EOBHR, the Mercedes CL65 AMG Coupe of realistic, dramatically, intricately re-rendered replays of the would-have-beens and could-have-beens of Ordinary Real Life Prime.
Like for instance this EOBHR #37meeting, EOBHR of course a 10% replay of 1980, where the 1980 M's are the team with the best (so far), instead of the worst record!
Seattle's fleet, great-fielding SS, leadoff-batting Mario Mendoza, gets the Mariner ship rolling with a triple over CF Bobby Molinaro's head with one out T1st; a triple that rolls all the way to the CF wall. Then red hot Seattle 1B Bruce Bochte grounds a go-ahead single one out later, improving his BA to a replay-leading .536 (15 for 28)!
But Chisox CF Molinaro is on a mission after having been tripled on T1st, and in the T6th, Bobby blasts a double off the RCF wall -- only the 2nd hit of the game against Seattle starting P Glenn Abbott -- and then a flying Molinaro knocks C Larry Cox cold while scoring when Jim Morrison lines one of his 3 hits of the game with 2 outs. Cold Cox has to be revived in the trainer's room, and will miss 19 games, or the rest of this 1980 replay.
The Sox keep the ball rolling in the T7th, the score now 1-1, when PR Leo Sutherland (C Marvis Foley leadoff bloop single) steals 2nd, and pinch-hitting sub-C Ron Pruitt delivers a 2-out go-ahead single, then celebrates by coming in to catch the rest of the game.
But Ron may have be sorry he was around to call the pitches (as signalled from the bench of course....e.g., manager picking nose = shoulder-high inside heater, etc., manager picking his waist a waste curve waist-high....etc.) during the end-game innings.
Still trailing 2-1 one out B9th, Seattle PH Rodney Craig earns his honor of Star Performer of Game, or SPOG, by smashing an RBI double deep to CF scoring tying run PR Joe Simpson from 3rd...
Then with two out B10th, veteran Seaman slugger and RF Tom 'Wimpy' Paciorek whines 'enuff of this debiliterating extra inning BS' and smokes ace Sox reliever Mike Proly, knocking one way out of the park, a true veteran display of dislike of extra innings.
I Proly could have won the game if I hadn't thrown that one lousy high, chin-music heater that instead came in instead waist-high, right over his dinner platter!
P.S. But the wurst part of this game is that I couldn't find Bosox reliever Guy Hoffman after this game... I mean, I couldn't locate his player card, but to me, that is him. I looked for a good 45 minutes before I gave up. Guy did pick up his 2nd blown save of the replay in this bad loss, and his ERA in '80 spiralled to 220.25, maybe the highest ERA I ever saw.
84 TX (4-3/T2nd) 1-6-0-5 MN (3-4/5th) 6-13-1-6
The Rangers lose their 1st two games in this '80 replay, but then win their next four in a row over the Jays, Tigers, A's, and Orioles: some pretty tough teams. Plus, a Bump Wills 2-out double followed by a Twin 2nd generation SS Roy Smalley throwing boner (E6) gives Texas the early lead in this game. And with #6 starter Fernando Arroyo on the mound, arguably the Twins weakest starting pitcher, what could possibly go wrong, even on the road?
Well, one problem might be for some inexplicable reason failing to score any more runs against mediocre Arroyo would be one potential loss-leader.... And Texas accomplish that feat.... But, with their ace, Doc Medich (10-6/3.08 actual '80) on the mound, I mean, seriously....But the fine Doc ends up allowing 12 Twinkie hits, including 5 Twin extra base hits (2 doubles, a triple, 2 homers), and 6 earned runs...a reminder that even Docs can have a bad day.
C Butch Wynegar leads off the B2nd with a double, and one out later Mike Cubbage singles Butch home with the tying run. In the B3rd, #2 batter, speedy LF Hosken Powell lines a leadoff double, and then John 'Clams' Castino blasts #2, a 2-run homer RF and the rout is on. Wynegar drives in another run with a single later in this B3rd rally, and Wyoming product Rick Sofield smashes a 2-run HR B5th to make it 6-1....
Where it will stand, as Fernando 'Freddy' Arroyo pitches a 6-hit CG win, allowing just the one early unearned run.
Texas hitters: That pitcher was Arroyo pain in the xxx
83 BR (2-5/7th) 8-15-1-7 KC (4-3/3rd) 18-24-0-11
Willie Aikens goes 4 for 6 with a double, homer, 6 ribbies, and even a GDP to prove he's human. The Royals score at least 2 runs every inning from the 3rd through the 8th (excluding a goose egg in the B7th) and they thrill (or put to sleep) the home fans with a 9-spot in the B4th.
Bosox starter/loser Chuck Rainey (3 1/3 innings, 12 hits, 7 runs, 6 earned, 3 doubles, 6 punchouts, BUT NO WALKS) comments after being lifted that 'maybe I should have wasted a few more of my pitches....changed things up a bit....did more nibbling....because they were certainly wasting practially all of my offerings, even my best dazzlers! ....At least Skip told me that if he has to send me back to the minors due to this, he might bring me back as the Bosox batting practice pitcher next year!!'
Veteran reliever Dick Drago, who was roughed up for a similar 7 runs, 6 earned in 4 1/3 innings, also walking four men.... 'Well, I tried to really work the corners and even off the plate.... Same result as Chuckie... But the saving grace to both of us was Lockwood's job: 4 runs, albeit unearned darn it all, in one-friggin-third of an inning...'
Skip Lockwood, coming and putting his arms around Chuck and Dick: 'One thing I'll say.... None of us let each others down!! That's what you call real teammates, real unity!! No showoffs or 'hopeless heroes'... Hey, man, if you're going to lose, I always say LOSE BIG!! Get all the sxxt out of yer system.....Misery still needs plenty of company, even in this modern, hyper-informed era!!'
Rainey: 'Yep, game score 18-8 or 1-0, it's still just a W or an L depending on which number's yers!'
Drago: 'Look, I'm not Drago and you guys aren't Rainey or Skipper either... We're just three axxhxles trying to help this pathetic imaginary game maven capture a few more temporary readers...assuming he has any to start with...which I doubt seriously!!'
Nerdley, steaming: 'I swear, I'm going to tear each of yer player cards to shreds if you don't shut up right now!!'
Royal Humiliation!
82 TO (3-4/T5th) 2-2-1-3 NY (5-2/1st) 4-8-0
Yankee starting pitcher Gaylord Perry fans 4 and walks only 2, plus allows just 2 hits in his 6 innings of work.... But those two hits are a Roy Howell leadoff single followed by a Lloyd Moseby 2-run bomb to RF T5th, giving speedy, athletic Lloyd 2HR/6RBI in his 24 AB in this '80 rehash and 4HR/17RBI (plus 27 runs and 11 2-baggers) in his 148 career EOBHR at bats.
However, they are the only hits the Jays manage to collect in this odd game. Ace Yankee reliever Goose Gossage faces just 10 Jays in the 7th/8th/9th, one reaching on a walk...but no hits as he just flat out grounds the Jays and has them for a sandwich after the game. 'It tastes a bit like chicken...' he smiles, as he munches on his game-winning sandwich....'but then again, so do a lot of things....'
The first Yankee run scores courtesy of Graig Nettles and Rick Cerone T2nd hits...plus a game-changing bungle by LF Gary Woods (E7: Cerone's hit glancing off his glove and galavanting off towards the wall as slow-moving Nettles nettles Gary and all his Jay pals by scoring from 1st). A Jim Spencer gift groundout brings in the relatively uneventful game's other Yankee B1st run.
At the time, the extra out allowed by Woods' error appears important also because Willie Randolph loops what proves to be the game-winning double down the LF line with 2-out B2nd (should've been 3 outs, Jays up).
Graig Nettles adds a 2-out insurance HR B4th, hoping that this will prevent poor Woods from being taken out behind the woodshack by manager Bobby 'Match Light' Mattick.
Graig Nettles Squawking Jays
81 MB (4-3/3xT2nd; 1/2 GB 1st) 2-7-2-8
DT (4-3/3xT2nd; 1/2 GB 1st) 9-12-1-3
Yes, things are rather bunched up in the A.L. East, with a trio of 4-3 teams tied for 2nd, including the two combatants in this game, and the 1st place Yankees (4-2) at risk of falling into this murky multi-team soup with a loss against Toronto (3-3), which then would elevate the Jays into a smoggy 5-team traffic jam of 4-3 teams for 1st in the 7-team division, the 16 game regular season near half over, with the Tribe (3-4) one game out and the Red Sox (2-4) a game and a half behind them.
The Tigers come roaring into the T1st in dramatic fashion: a John Wockenfuss bomb to LCF off uneasy-feeling Brewer starting P Mike Caldwell... Then 3B Tom Brookens singles, utility man 2B Stan Papi takes an RBI triple into the RF corner, and SS Alan Trammell bloops a double down the RF line... Thus. the first four Detroit batters T1st, as a unit, no one out, hit for the Cycle to start the game!
There is no further meaningful action until Wockey wocks a 2-run homer, his 2nd of the game, with 2 out B5th. That understandably spells the end of Mike Caldwell's day, who cannot be reassured by the old family adage, Caldwell that ends well. C Lance Parrish takes some of the blame after the game, saying...'Parrish the idea, but that game was not called well leaving Mike in the (Randy) Lerch...I just have to do a better job with my pitch-calling next game..or I may find myself entangled in cobwebs on 'Johnny Bench'!'
You know, it's hard to imagine what happened to solid starter Caldwell ever happening to Tiger starter and winner Jack Morris (2-0/2.65) as he breezes through to an efficient 7-hit (6 singles, double), 3-punchout, 2 free pass CG win... Breezes...except for when his mates are scoring 5 runs (1st) or four runs (4th) in an inning!! Then he jest rests and licks his pitching paw...like Morris the Cat.
Tigers ride cycle to speed ahead in early part of game
80 OA (2-5/T6th) 5-12-0-11 CL (3-4/6th) 0-2-1-4
This explosion of the A's talent in the face of Indian starting P Rick Waits and in front of the rest of the Indians is far more one-sided than even the 5-0 score indicates.
For one thing, the A's squander 11 baserunners, more than one an inning, leaving them hanging out near home but not there as innings ended.
Meanwhile, the Tribesmen collected only two feeble singles, and drew two worthless walks in the entire game. They ended up stranding all four of their baserunners still far from home when the 3rd-out bell, like mom's dinner bell, or the school lunch period clanger, rang imperiously sending these four lost fellows back to the comfort of their own dugout to grab the gloves and try to regroup in the field.
The A's Mike Norris, who was actually a monster in 1980 (22-9/2.54/24CG!!/180K) is the complete game pitcher and the masterworker behind this complete squelch of the Tribal offense.
There are numerous offensive standard bearers for the winning A's, but I was especially enamored with leadoff man Rickey Henderson's expert work... For instance: Walking, stealing, scoring on a Tony Armas pop fly single in the go-ahead (for good) T1st.
In the T4th, 4 for 22 2B Rob Picciolo gradually makes his way to 1st on a single LF, to 2nd on a 3B Dave McKay sac bunt, then to 3rd on a Mario Guerrero dribbler out at 1st. At this point, starting P Waits is so rattled by his jogging but relentless progress one station at a time, that with a runner on 3rd and Rickey Henderson at the plate, that Rick unfurls a wild pitch and Picciolo comes sweetly tooting home.
With Picciolo no longer making any noise, and starting and winning P Mike Norris on 2nd, our man Rickey H. then bounces a slow, 2-out, enticing, but strangely unreachable RBI grounder up the middle and it's a mighty 4-0 A's T4th.... Then mostly forgotten A's 1B Orlando Gonzalez lines over 2nd scoring Rickey...5-0 T4th.... the final score, as the A's ease back, relax, play good D after this and Norris continues twirling his 2-hitter!!
Rick Waits to speak to press after his loss to the A's.... No, never mind, I just saw his limo pick him up and sweep him away from this bitter scene!
79 CA (2-5/6th) 8-11-0-7 BA (4-3/3rd) 2-7-1-7
Well, the Orioles won 100 games in actual 1980, while the Angels finished 30 games below .500 (65-95).... But as we know from the NFL...on any given Sunday (I guess Monday night games always go to the favored team).... Or in baseball, more simply, on any given day, regardless of day of the week, there is puportedly always hope for the underdoggy...At least that's what they'd like the fans of, say, the 1962 Mets or the 1916 A's (36-117) to think!
In this contest, the highly underdoggish Angels are ahead 7-0 by the 5th inning, having KO'd Mike Flanagan (16-game winner in 1980, 167 wins in real MLB career)....With the O's at the same time seemingly powerless to do any damage against a guy whom, frankly I'm ashamed to admit I never heard of before... Alfredo 'Freddie' Martinez, a lifetime 7-game winner and 4 complete games in his 32-appearance 1981-82 MLB realworld career.
But Freddie goes the distance in this one, allowing only 2 runs....Which further are scored when his Angels already have a 7-0 lead... Alfie does escape a bases loaded jam B6th, walking in one run after allowing a PH Terry Crowley leadoff HR.
Meanwhile, Joe Rudi (.241) is unconscious for the Angels, scoring half (4) of their 8 runs, with his 2-out 2-run homer T1st putting the Angels on the fast track to heaven on this day.
What's this all about, Alfie?