Tag: Mickey Cochrane Page 2 of 3

#Birmingham Black Barons

The Black Barons recalled P John Malarkey, 1B Nate Colbert, and OFs Andy Pafko and Curt Flood to help in their final playoff push.

#Brooklyn Royal Giants

Lefty Fernando Valenzuela, IF Dickie Thon, and OF Raúl Mondesi were all recalled as Brooklyn chases the final wildcard spot.

3 hits from John Briggs, including his 6th homer of the year weren’t enough as the Royal Giants fell to Memphis, 9-3. The loss officially eliminated Brooklyn from post-season contention, ending a nice late-season surge.

#Miami Cuban Giants

The Cuban Giants went back-to-back twice in a win over Ottawa. First, Yasiel Puig and José Canseco did it in the 8th inning, giving Miami a come from behind lead, then Canseco and Jim Thome did it in the 9th to put the game on ice. Dontrelle Willis, Sandy Consuegra, and Ramón Martínez didn’t allow a run in relief in the 10-4 victory.

#Portland Sea Dogs

Joseíto Muñoz was activated from the DL, with both Atlee Hammaker and Ray Fontenot being sent to AAA. Muñoz takes Mike Cuellar‘s spot in the rotation, and Jerry Blevins was recalled from AAA.

Muñoz was shut down immediately, and will miss time well into next season with elbow surgery. Hammaker was recalled to the active roster.

#San Francisco Sea Lions

With the San Jose Bees season winding down, the Sea Lions made a flurry of moves for the final week or so of the season, promoting Ps Red Ehret, Tommy Bridges and Dennis Eckersley, and IFs Don Money, Keith Ginter and Denny Hocking and activating C Mickey Cochrane from the DL.

Lefty Grove, James Shields, Ron Robinson, and Rod Beck combined on a 2-0 shutout victory for San Francisco. The victory went to Shields, with Robinson picking up his 18th hold and Beck his 31st save.

Series XXXIV Best Games

By mknn

On July 3, 2023

In Featured Games, Game Recaps

A good collection of games overall … a few pitching duels, a few intriguing games.

We’ll start with two games from the series between San Francisco and the New York Black Yankees–first a great pitching matchup, then a bit of a see-saw.

#San Francisco Sea Lions @ New York Black Yankees, Games 2 and 4

The opening game of the series saw a great pitching matchup where, honestly, the better performance lost. Ron Guidry continued a bit of a hard-luck season, falling to 7-11 on the year despite allowing only 2 hits in 7 innings while striking out 9. But an error by Eric Davis (1 of 2 on the day by the Black Yankees’ CF) led to a run in the 6th and a solo shot by Sal Bando in the 7th put the Sea Lions up, 2-0. That was all San Francisco’s starter, Eddie Plank, needed, as San Francisco’s starter allowed 4 hits and 0 runs in his time. Plank improved to 11-6 on the season with Rod Beck picking up his 29th save.

SFS 2 (Plank 11-6; Beck 29 Sv) @ NYY 0 (Guidry 7-11)
HRs: None.
Box Score

San Francisco, powered by key hits from Bob Cerv and Pedro Guerrero, held a 5-3 edge going into the bottom of the 7th inning (Babe Ruth‘s 43rd and 44th homeruns of the year, both off Lefty Grove, had kept the Black Yankees in the game). Late season call-up Roger Maris started New York off with a pinch hit single. Maris was replaced at first by Tommy Herr, who, along with Thurman Munson, scored on a single by Mickey Mantle to tie the game. Mike Schmidt followed with a 2-run shot to put New York up, 8-5.

The Black Yankees bullpen continues to be weak, with Ralph Citarella giving up 2 runs (one one on a solo shot by Gene Oliver, the other on an RBI from Jack Clark) in the 8th. Aroldis Chapman had a rough 9th, but did survive to earn his 10th save with the Black Yankees and 30th overall.

Mantle had 3 hits on the day, Ruth scored 3 times, and Schmidt drove in 3.

After the game, San Francisco’s Mickey Cochrane hit the DL, with the Sea Lions recalling Brian Downing.

SFS 8 (Howell 4-5, 4 B Sv; Shields 2 H) @ NYY 9 (Lavelle 1-3; Chapman 10 Sv; Citarella 11 H; Cormier 3 H)
HRs: SFS – Oliver (2); NYY – Ruth 2 (44), Mantle (24), Schmidt (21).
Box Score

Let’s look at a few other games with fantastic efforts by the starting pitchers, starting with Miami‘s visit to Indianapolis then heading to Kansas City, where the Monarchs, and one of the most mercurial arms in the league, hosted Brooklyn.

#Miami Cuban Giants @ Indianapolis ABC’s, Game 2

Johnny Cueto and José Méndez each delivered their best start of the year, with Cueto’s 7 scoreless innings topped by Méndez’ 8 innings of 3-hit, shutout ball. Neither would figure in the decision. Cookie Rojas put Miami ahead with a solo shot in the top of the 9th, but Indianapolis tied it on an Ed Charles single in the bottom of the frame. The ABC’s walked off in the bottom of the 10th on a Jake Stenzel single, with Octavio Dotel earning the victory with an inning of scoreless relief.

MCG 1 (López 3-2; Looper 2 B Sv) @ IND 2 (Dotel 2-1) [10 Innings]
HRs: MCG – Rojas (2); IND – none.
Box Score

Brooklyn Royal Giants @ Kansas City Monarchs, Game 4

Kansas City’s Luke Hamlin is one of the more frustrating pitchers in the league. He turned in his 3rd start with a Game Score over 80 in this one, allowing only 3 hits over 9 innings. But he also has four starts this year with a Game Score below 30. And it’s hard to build a rotation around someone that mercurial: the 87 pitch gem he threw today merely improved his record to 9-12 with an above-league-average 4.80 ERA.

Brooklyn’s Frank Knauss was the hard-luck loser here, giving up a single to Stan Musial to lead off the bottom of the 9th. Knauss was replaced by Trevor Hildenberger, who surrendered a deep fly to Ducky Medwick, scoring Jack Rowe, who had pinch-run for Musial.

BRK 0 (Knauss 11-5) @ KCM 1 (Hamlin 9-12)
HRs: none.
Box Score

Two more season finales of note.

#Philadelphia Stars @ Memphis Red Sox, Game 4

Memphis‘ Bill Doak turned in a strong start, but Philadelphia used a late comeback to force extra innings in this one. The game entered the 9th inning tied at 2, but a homerun by one of the few bright spots for Philadelphia, young RF Aaron Judge, gave the Stars a 1 run lead.

It wouldn’t last, as Memphis’ Claude Ritchey followed up a Vern Stephens sacrifice fly with a 2-run triple, putting the Red Sox up, 5-3 with their closer, Jonathan Papelbon taking the mound in the top of the 9th. Papelbon was hit hard: a single by Juan Samuel was followed by a triple from Willie Davis and a double from Bobby Abreu, tying the contest at 5.

Sammy Sosa–who is playing fantastically for Memphis after being brought over from the House of David–singled to lead off the bottom of the 10th and eventually scored the winning run on a Manny Ramírez double.

PHI 5 (Howry 3-7; Rojas 2 B Sv) @ MEM 6 (Farrell 3-4; Papelbon 5 B Sv) [10 Innings]
HRs: PHI – Freeman (17), Judge (4); MEM – none.
Box Score

#Detroit Wolverines @ Los Angeles Angels, Game 4

Homeruns by Mike Trout and Steve Garvey helped the Angels to a 4-1 lead in the bottom of the 5th, but a 2-out rally fueled by 2 walks, a wild pitch, and a 2 run single by Ty Cobb pulled Detroit back into the lead, 5-4. A sacrifice fly from Los Angeles’ Elmer Valo tied the game in the 8th, and the bullpens took over from there.

The 11th was eventful, as Oscar Gamble touched Francisco Rodríguez for a solo shot, giving Detroit a 1 run lead. The Wolverines turned to the league leader in saves, Mike Henneman, who promptly blew the game, allowing a single and 2 walks to load the bases, followed by a sharp single from Trout that allowed the winning run to score when Chili Davis‘ throw was wildly errant.

Gamble and Cobb had 3 hits each for Detroit; Trout and John Stearns had 3 hits for the Angels, with Trout driving in 4.

DET 6 (Henneman 1-6, 5 B Sv; Anderson 2 B Sv) @ LAA 7 (Venters 5-3; Smith 2 B Sv) [11 Innings]
HRs: DET – Gamble (26); LAA – Trout (18), Garvey (3).
Box Score

Series XXXII Featured Matchup: Philadelphia Stars @ San Francisco Sea Lions

By mknn

On May 31, 2023

In Featured Series, Game Recaps

Series preview here.

#Game One: Pete Alexander @ Nick Altrock

Pete Alexander suffered from what seemed to be a ton of rust on his return from the DL, even have gone through a rehab assignment. Alexander gave up 3 runs on 4 hits and 4 walks in under 3 innings before being lifted, with 2 scoring on a double from Jimmie Foxx.

Despite the early lead, the Sea Dogs got some bad news when Dick Lundy had to leave the game with an apparent shoulder injury.

Philadelphia’s first threat came in the top of the 3rd when base hits from Aaron Judge and Ted Kluszewski put runners at the corners with 2 outs. But Nick Altrock was able to get José Ramírez to line out to right field to end the inning.

Pedro Guerrero increased the Sea Lions’ lead to 4-0 with his 22nd homerun of the year in the bottom of the 5th and Bobby Bonds made it 5-0 with an RBI single in the 7th, extending his hitting streak to 17 games.

But the story was Altrock, who finished with a 7-hit shutout, improving his record to 2-1 and lowering his ERA to 2.45.

PHI 0 (Alexander 2-7) @ SFS 6 (Altrock 2-1)
HRs: PHI – none; SFS – Guerrero (22).
Box Score

#Game 2: Steve Carlton @ Lefty Grove

Each team trotted its ace out in the second game of the series, with both Philadelphia’s Steve Carlton and San Francisco’s Lefty Grove carrying ERAs under 4.00.

A Pedro Guerrero sacrifice fly gave the Sea Lions a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first. (Bobby Bonds extended his hitting streak to 18 games earlier in the inning.) A homerun from Sal Bando doubled the lead in the next inning, and a Rickey Henderson triple scored Roy Hartzell, making it 3-0.

Grove had a shutout through 5, but got into a bases loaded jam in the 6th. He got one out, but José Ramírez singled in a run to make it 3-1 and chase Grove, who gave way to Diego Seguí. Seguí gave up a sacrifice fly to Roger Peckinpaugh, but escaped with the lead intact, 3-2.

Scott Rolen took Seguí deep in the 7th to tie the game. Meanwhile, Carlton was excellent, blanking the Sea Lions into the 7th, when a single from Henderson chased him. Minnie Rojas relieved Carlton and, after Henderson stole second, gave up a single to Bonds. Reggie Jackson walked, but Rojas gave up a fly ball to LF to score a run, giving the Sea Lions a 4-3 lead.

Ramírez tied it up in the 8th with a fly that just cleared the right field wall.

In the bottom of the 9th, after Henderson singled, Bonds tried to bunt him to second (bad choice, that), but popped the ball to Rolen at third who doubled up Henderson. That effectively sent us to extra innings.

In the top of the 11th, Ramírez did it again: another fly to right that just cleared the fence to put the stars ahead, 5-4. The Stars were helped by an error by Bando, eventually pushing the lead to 7-4.

Which is how it ended: Bob Howry was stretched out, but nicely effective, allowing only 1 run in 3 innings to earn the victory.

PHI 7 (Howry 3-5) @ SFS 4 (Robinson 5-4; Seguí 1 B Sv; Howell 3 B Sv) [11 Innings]
HRs: PHI – Rolen (17), Ramírez 2 (8); SFS – Bando (2).
Box Score

#Game 3: Hardie Henderson @ Tim Hudson

Sometimes a single big inning wins the game; sometimes it doesn’t.

The Sea Lions touched Hardie Henderson for 6 runs in the bottom of the 2nd: 2 on a double from Mickey Cochrane, 1 on a Roy Hartzell single, and the rest on a 3 run blast from Reggie Jackson. And, despite losing Tim Hudson to injury early in the game, it seemed like it would hold up.

But the Stars slowly closed the gap: 6-1, then 6-3, then 6-4. A wild pitch here, a sacrifice fly there, and an RBI double from Sherm Lollar over there. All of which set the stage for the 7th inning. San Francisco’s bullpen was a bit worn out, which left Dave LaRoche in the game despite clearly tiring. Still, he had gotten 2 outs on strikeouts. But Scott Rolen took him deep to right for a 3-run shot that put the Stars on top, 7-6.

And that’s how it ended. Ray Collins danced through the 8th despite 2 baserunners and Claude Jonnard pitched a perfect 9th for his first save of the season.

Aaron Judge added 3 hits for the Stars, while Rickey Henderson had 4 knocks for the Sea Lions, raising his average to .270.

PHI 7 (Henderson 1-0; Jonnard 1 Sv; Collins 1 H) @ SFS 6 (LaRoche 1-2, 2 B Sv)
HRs: PHI – Rolen (18); SFS – Jackson (26).
Box Score

It looks like Hudson will only be sidelined a few days and should be good for his next start. Still no clarity for the Sea Lions on the status of Dick Lundy.

#Game 4: Larry Jackson @ Diego Seguí

Diego Seguí gets the start for San Francisco, looking to even the series. The Sea Lions considered pro-actively placing Dick Lundy on the DL in exchange for a fully rested starting pitcher, but decided to hold out hop that their young SS’s injury is less serious than feared.

Seguí looked rough at first, giving up hits to Willie Davis and Roger Peckinpaugh to start the game and score a run. But Pedro Guerrero‘s 23rd homerun of the season reset the game in a 1-1 tie. In the bottom of the 3rd, Rickey Henderson was hit by a pitch, stole second (his 84th steal of the year), and scored on a double from Bobby Bonds, which extended Bonds’ hitting streak to 20 games.

The Stars’ Larry Jackson was struggling: a single from Guerrero scored Bonds, and a single from Jack Clark and a walk to Sal Bando loaded the bases. But Jackson got Phil Garner to lift a soft ball into foul territory, where Peckinpaugh grabbed it for the final out.

In the end, the Sea Lions made the same mistake they did in game 3: Seguí was left in one batter too long, surrendering a 2-run shot to Aaron Judge to tie the game in the top of the 6th.

Jackson–who had settled down–was finally chased in the top of the 7th by hits to Roy Hartzell and Henderson. His replacement, Don Carman, induced a double play from Bonds to end the inning. And so we sailed on into extra innings.

Bobby Abreu led off the 10th for Philadelphia with his 3rd hit of the game, moved to second on a wild pitch, and scored on a pinch-hit double from Ted Kluszewski. Klu scored on a sac fly, given the Stars a 2 run edge, 5-3. Their closer, Bob Howry, came in, which is always interesting. Howry has 24 saves, but also sports an ERA over 5.00 … he was facing the top of the Sea Lions’ lineup, and Henderson and Bonds started it off for San Francisco with back to back singles. Howry balked them to 2nd and 3rd, then gave up a deep, deep fly to center from Jackson, scoring Henderson and moving Bonds to third. A double from Guerrero (who ended the day with 3 hits and 3 RBIs) tied the game, and after Howry got the 2nd out of the inning, a single from Bando won it for the Sea Lions.

PHI 5 (Howry 3-6, 6 B Sv) @ SFS 6 (Robinson 6-4) [10 Innings]
HRs: PHI – Judge (2); SFS – Guerrero (23).
Box Score

TWIWBL 36.4: Series XXVIII Notes – Marvin Miller Division

By mknn

On March 23, 2023

In TWIWBL

#Birmingham Black Barons

The arrival of Jim Pagliaroni sent Del Crandall packing (he refused a demotion to AAA), with Gene Tenace being relegated to reserve duty.

Nate Colbert was the odd man out with Andy Pettitte‘s arrival prompting Birmingham to carry 12 pitchers. Colbert will be back when rosters expand if not sooner. Pettitte slides into the rotation, with Larry Benton heading to the bullpen. Optimistically, the trio of Alejandro Peña, Pettitte, and Greg Maddux are on par with any trio of starters in the league, but that depends on Maddux maintaining his current form and all three staying healthy.

Pettitte’s first start was a success: 6 shutout innings, and combining with Steve Bedrosian and Kent Mercker on a 10 hit blanking of Ottawa. The Black Barons turned a league record 6 double plays in the game, and Frank McCormick, Hank Aaron, and Bob Nieman all went deep.

Harley Young will miss about a month, a pretty big blow to the Black Barons bullpen. Jim Whitney was recalled to take Young’s place.

#Brooklyn Royal Giants

Art Griggs will miss about 2 weeks of action with an oblique strain. The Royal Giants recalled OF Matt Holliday from AAA.

#Miami Cuban Giants

Lots of roster juggling here …

Cole Hamels and Freddie Fitzsimmons join the big league roster, with Hamels sliding right into the rotation. José Méndez takes over the final rotation spot, pushing Eustaquio Pedroso back to the bullpen. Once Ozzie Canseco clears waivers, Sandy Consuegra will be recalled from AAA.

The departure of Ed Bauta and Aroldis Chapman leave the Cuban Giants pretty weak at the back end of the pen, so they’re hoping some mix of Brown, Braden Looper, and Ricky Nolasco can handle closing games out.

Willie Kamm was promoted all the way from AA, and Jim Thome recalled from AAA to replace the departed Will Clark.

Fitzsimmons pitched in 2 games and then hit the DL with a hamstring problem, prompting Miami to recall Marcelino López to fill out the bullpen.

#Portland Sea Dogs

Hal Griggs and Frank Williams were sent to AAA to clear room for Trevor Hoffman and Mark Melancon and Dizzy Trout took the final spot in their rotation. Gavvy Cravath‘s arrival sent Ruben Sierra back as well. Cravath slides into RF, most likely reducing both Jeff Burroughs‘ and Greg Litton‘s playing time.

The Sea Dogs hit 6 homeruns in an 11-5 thrashing of Los Angeles, with Harry Hooper (a grandslam), Kent Hrbek (twice), Buddy Bell, Iván Rodriguez, and Rogers Hornsby all sending balls over the fence. Hrbek once again tied for the league lead with his 33rd of the season. Despite extreme wildness, Joséito Muñoz surrendered only 1 run in just over 5 innings, leveling his record at 5-5 on the season.

Walter Johnson will miss about a week, requiring a quick trip to the DL. The Sea Dogs recalled Ray Fontenot from AAA, but Atlee Hammaker is likely to get the nod for Johnson’s next start. Both Pascual Pérez and, more interestingly, Joe Mauer, began rehab assignments at AAA.

#San Francisco Sea Lions

Billy Taylor and Nick Altrock were promoted to San Francisco, with Altrock sliding right into the back of the rotation as the Sea Lions try to figure out just what they have in the 28 year old hurler.

Gene Oliver was brought up to platoon with Mickey Cochrane behind the plate, with Cy Perkins being let go. There may be more moves ahead, depending on the status of Dick Lundy‘s injury. San Francisco would really like to move Miguel Cairo down, but it’s not clear who is ready for big league minutes at SS, especially if Lundy is out for any length of time.

Lundy will miss about 2 weeks, prompting the Sea Lions to recall Roy Hartzell from AAA.

Hartzell started his WBL career with a bang, hitting a homerun in his first at-bat. Bobby Bonds and Bob Cerv also went deep, and Tim Hudson seems to have turned the corner in his time in San Francisco as the Sea Lions beat Baltimore, 6-2.

Two homeruns from Pedro Guerrero led the Sea Lions to a 6-5 victory over the Black Sox. Guerrero drove in 5, helping Eddie Plank move to 8-5 on the year with Rod Beck picking up his 22nd save.

Taylor appeared in one game and tore his rotator cuff, putting him out for about 10 months. Bump Hadley was recalled from AAA.

Series XXV Best Games

By mknn

On January 25, 2023

In Featured Games, Game Recaps

Some very nice see-saw rides in series XXV.

San Francisco Sea Lions @ Portland Sea Dogs, Game 4

The conclusion of the clash of the sea creatures did not disappoint …

The Sea Lions scored in the first in typical fashion: Rickey Henderson bunted for a base hit, stole 2nd, moved to 3rd on a single by Bobby Bonds, and scored on a sacrifice fly from Pedro Guerrero. The 1-0 lead held until the bottom of the fifth, when Rogers Hornsby scored Kent Hrbek with a double into the gap.

Guerrero scored Bonds for a 2-1 lead, but it was short-lived, as a Bobby Murcer triple scored Harry Hooper and Iván Rodríguez, putting Portland up, 3-2. Portland looked in good shape at that point, good enough that Gary Pettis replaced Murcer in CF for better defense. Well, perhaps not only defense: after a horrid start to the year, Pettis has pushed his average well over .300.

San Francisco would tie the game in the top of the 9th in a decidedly unexpected way. With one out, John Beckwith, who is barely retaining his spot on the roster, pinch hit for Jimmy Bloodworth and singled. Phil Garner pinch ran for Beckwith and, after a walk to Sal Bando, light-hitting Miguel Cairo, forced to remain in the game for defensive purposes, doubled home the tying run off Portland’s Elmer Brown.

And there it stayed, until the 15th inning. San Francisco had turned the game over to Charlie Root, Portland to José Muñoz, and each were excellent. Mickey Cochrane–much maligned and in danger of losing his job–singled to lead off the 15th. Portland had nobody on the bench to pinch-run–or catch in the bottom of the frame–so Cochrane stayed in the game, moving to 2nd on a wild pitch by Muñoz and to third on a groundout. He scored on a single from Garner, and Root closed it out.

SFS 4 (Root 5-4) @ POR 3 (Muñoz 3-5; Brown 1 BSv; Cuellar 8 H) [15 Innings]
HRs: none.
Box Score

Homestead Grays @ Memphis Red Sox, Game 1

Willie Stargell led off the top of the 2nd with a solo homerun to kick off the scoring and while a 2-RBI double from Billy Bryan put Memphis ahead briefly, Stargell would do the same in the 4th, leading off with a homerun which, combined with an RBI groundout from Arky Vaughan that scored Chief Wilson, tied the game at 3. The teams would trade runs until, in th ebottom of the 5th, Ted Williams sent one deep to put Memphis up by 2, 6-4.

And then the Grays exploded, with a bases-clearing double from Stargell and a 2-run shot from Wilson putting Homestead up, 10-6. Each team would add a run, and Homestead would head to the bottom of the 9th, up 11-7. Should be safe, right? Especially with their closer, Michael Jackson, on the mound.

Wade Boggs doubled to start the inning, Williams walked, and Bill White doubled, scoring Boggs. Josh Lindblom promptly uncorked a wild pitch, scoring Williams and, when David Justice reached on an error from Homestead’s CF, Andrew McCutcheon, scoring White, the score was 11-10 with no outs. Manny Ramírez singled, but a fantastic throw from Rick Reichardt nailed Justice at the plate. Lindblom retired Bryan and Reggie Smith on flyouts, and the Grays squeaked through with a game that looked well in hand.

Boggs, Stargell, and Wilson each had 4 hits, with Pops driving in 5 and scoring 4.

HOM 11 (Pierce 1-2; Giusti 1 H) @ MEM 10 (Gibson 0-1; Callahan 1 BSv)
HRs: HOM – Stargell 2 (18), Wilson (8); MEM – Williams (19)
Box Score

Kansas City Monarchs @ New York Black Yankees, Game 2

New York’s Ron Guidry keeps putting in good performances to little results: in this one, he went 7 innings, giving up only 1 run. He was matched by a trio of Monarchs’ arms as Smokey Joe Wood (injured in the 4th), Joe Blong, and Trevor Rosenthal combined to also allow 1 run through 7.

And then the bullpens collapsed–expected for the Black Yankees, but a surprise for Kansas City. First, New York’s Goose Gossage and Gary Lavelle combine to give up 3 runs in the top of the 8th, with the key hits being 2-out RBI’s from Stan Musial and Ducky Medwick. But Craig Kimbrel was equally weak for the Monarchs, giving up back-to-back doubles to Eric Davis and Thurman Munson to start the frame, and a 2-run homerun to Don Mattingly to give the Black Yankees a 5-4 lead.

But no lead is safe for New York: Lavelle gave up a single, a walk, and an error to tie the game, and Ralph Citarella gave up a go-ahead single to Albert Pujols. Kansas City’s Jeff Pfeffer had no such struggles, picking up his 12th save in closing the game out.

KCM 6 (Kimbrel 3-2, 2 BSv; Pfeffer 12 Sv) @ NYY 5 (Lavelle 0-3)
HRs: KCM – none; NYY – Mattingly (20).
Box Score

Ottawa Mounties @ Los Angeles Angels, Game 3

A successful suicide squeeze from Jim Stephens scored Anthony Rendon for Ottawa, tying the game at 1 in the top of the 4th. In the next inning, Rendon would single in a run before Larry Parrish went deep with a 3-run blast to put the Mounties up, 5-1. The Angels would roar back, taking a 7-5 lead behind RBI hits from Don Buford, Bobby Grich, Mike Trout, and Carlos Delgado.

But Ottawa doesn’t fold as easily as they did earlier in the season, with George Van Haltren sending Francisco Rodríguez‘ 4th pitch of the ballgame into the bleachers for a 3-run homerun, putting the Mounties back on top, 8-7. Ted Bowsfield, Steve Howe, and Ryan Dempster closed the game out with 3.1 hitless innings.

OTT 8 (Bowsfield 5-2; Dempster 4 Sv; Dubiel 2 BSv; Howe 4 H) @ LAA 7 (Rodríguez 3-2, 1 BSv)
HRs: OTT – Parrish (2), Van Haltren (2); LAA – none.
Box Score

Miami Cuban Giants @ Brooklyn Royal Giants, Game 4

Brooklyn’s Frank Knauss has been great all year. Miami’s Roenis Eliás less so. But they matched frame for frame in this one, each tossing 7.1 IP while allowing only 3 hits and 1 run. The game remained tied at 1 into the 10th, when Miami’s closer Aroldis Chapman was left in to pitch a second inning. He gave up a walk to Art Griggs, a single to Duke Farrell, and a walk to Al López. That brought José Méndez in from the pen for the Cuban Giants … who promptly gave up a walkoff, grand slam shot to Beals Becker.

MCG 1 (Chapman 4-3) @ BRG 5 (Gagne 4-4) [10 Innings]
HRs: MCG – Canseco (24); BRG – Becker (16).
Box Score

Series XVII Featured Game: Birmingham Black Barons @ Houston Colt 45’s

By mknn

On December 8, 2021

In Featured Games, Game Recaps

We’re going to focus on the usual see-saw affair, this one between the Birmingham Black Barons and Houston’s Colt 45‘s, pitting Birmingham’s Tim Hudson against Houston’s Stephen Strasburg.

It’s an interesting matchup: Hudson was seen as pretty washed-up, but the 36-year old has posted a 5-0 record with an ERA in the mid 2.00’s, and could begin appearing on league leaderboards within a few starts. Strasburg, on the other hand, has shown great promise at only 23, but has yet to harness his potential, posting a 2-4 record with an ERA in the low 4.00’s.

The two hurlers were at the top of their game, and we saw a scoreless contest into the bottom of the 5th when a solo homerun from Jim O’Rourke gave Houston a 1-0 lead. Houston missed a chance to double their lead when HR Johnson missed on a suicide squeeze attempt, leaving Craig Biggio to be easy pickings at home.

The Black Barons would finally touch Strasburg in the top of the 7th, when Hank Aaron launched a 2 run homerun, scoring Curtis Granderson to put Birmingham in front. They would add another run in the 8th, scoring against Mark Melancon when an RBI single from Tom Herr plated Omar Infante for a 3-1 lead, and then another in the 9th when Eddie Mathews took Melancon deep.

So. 4-1 Birmingham. But Hudson was gassed at this point after a marvelous effort: 8 innings, 5 hits, and only the single run allowed. But, Birmingham’s closer, Carlos Díaz, wasn’t an option. So the Black Barons turned to Harley Young to close the door.

It went OK at first: Jim Wynn led off the bottom of the 9th with a single, but Johnson grounded out, and after consecutive singles loaded the bases, Lance Berkman struck out. So, bases loaded, 2 outs.

Young gave up an RBI single to Jorge Posada, prompting Birmingham to bring in hard-throwing Steve Bedrosian … who promptly surrendered a walk-off, grand-slam, homerun to Casey Stengel.

Melancon, who did not pitch very well, improved his record to a stunning 7-1 out of the bullpen, while Birmingham ended up with nothing to show for Hudson’s great effort.

Granderson had 2 hits for Birmingham, while Jeff Bagwell and Tony Gwynn had 2 each for Houston.

BBB 4 (Young 0-4; Bedrosian 2 BSv) @ HOU 6 (Melancon 7-1)
HRs: BBB – Aaron (11), Mathews (11); HOU – O’Rourke (5), Stengel (6).
Box Score

Other Noteworthy Games

The Ottawa Mounties turned to Gary Peters, freshly back from AAA, to take on Ned Garvin of the Baltimore Black Sox, who is making an argument for the best pitcher in the WBL at the moment: this certainly seemed like a mismatch. But it was Ottawa, perhaps enlivened by the return of Larry Walker from the DL, who held the lead, 4-3, heading into the 9th. Curt Blefary turned it around with a 2-run shot, Brian Roberts added another RBI, and while they gave up a run in the bottom of the frame, Baltimore’s bullpen held on.

BBB 6 (Miller 2-0, 1 BSv; Bessent 8 Sv) @ OTT 5 (Bowsfield 2-1, 1 BSv; Dempster 2 H; Leroux 1 H)
HRs: BBB – Blefary (19).
Box Score

A 6-run Homestead comeback in the bottom of the 8th, keyed by homeruns from Tom Brown and Rick Reichardt, went for naught as Yasiel Puig hit his third homerun of the day in the 9th inning to give the New York Gothams the win. Puig tied the league record for homeruns in a game and picked up 6 RBIs, while Mike Epstein and Reichardt each had 3 hits for the Grays. While note involved in the decision, the Gothams’ Gaylord Perry was fantastic through 5 innings, allowing only 1 unearned run.

NYG 8 (Wilson 1-0) @ HOM 7 (Jackson 2-2, 1 BSv)
HRs: NYG – Puig 3 (6), Rojas (1); HOM – Brown (1), Reichardt (9).
Box Score

When the Los Angeles Angels closed out their series against the San Francisco Sea Lions, they were looking to salvage a series split and, perhaps as importantly, to find out more about what they have in young Nolan Ryan, who has been a bit erratic since moving into the starting rotation. Ryan delivered a typical “good” performance for him: 5 innings, 2 hits (but 7 walks), and no runs. San Francisco’s Eddie Plank turned in another strong start, going 7.2 innings allowing only 2 runs. So the Angels took a 2-1 lead into the 9th. And then the wheels fell off for both teams: Los Angeles rocked Ron Robinson for four runs, the key hit being a 2-out, bases loaded triple from Doug Rader. But two of the Angels better bullpen arms–Jonny Venters and closer Joe Nathan–couldn’t hold it, with Mickey Cochrane, who seems perpetually on the verge of being sent to AAA, ending the contest with a walk-off 3 run homerun.

LAA 6 (Nathan 3-4, 4 BSv; Galvin 1 H; Rodríguez 6 H; Venters 8 H) @ SFS 7 (Robinson 4-1)
HRs: SFS – Cochrane (5).
Box Score

Series XV Featured Matchup: New York Black Yankees @ San Francisco Sea Lions

By mknn

On October 12, 2021

In Featured Series, Game Recaps

Preview here.

#Game One: Dave Righetti @ Lefty Grove

Despite a few superb outings, New York‘s Dave Righetti comes into this game with a losing record (3-4) and a poor ERA (5.43). San Francisco will start one of the more dependable arms so far in the league, Lefty Grove, who sits at 5-2 with a sparkling 3.23 ERA.

Derek Jeter led off the game against Grove with a grounds-rule double, but was left stranded at 2B. San Francisco’s leadoff hitter, Rickey Henderson, walked and, as he is wont to do, stole second while Bobby Bonds and Reggie Jackson were striking out. But Pedro Guerrero singled to left, and Henderson scored easily, putting the Sea Lions up, 1-0.

It didn’t last long: Lou Gehrig took Grove deep in the top of the 2nd to tie the game. Willie Randolph–continuing to keep his average over .200–added an RBI single to give the Black Yankees the lead, but it could have been much worse for Grove, as Bonds caught a fly ball by Don Mattingly in shallow centerfield for the 2nd out and nailed Thurman Munson, trying to score from 3rd, to end the inning.

Again the lead barely lasted: Jimmy Bloodworth took Righetti deep to lead off the bottom of the 2nd. Later in the inning, a Henderson single scored Cy Perkins to edge San Francisco in front, 3-2.

It was a sloppy game through 3 innings with each team committing 2 errors (Randolph and Babe Ruth for New York, Dick Lundy and Jack Clark for the Sea Lions), Righetti walking 2 and Grove walking 3.

Mattingly would tie the game with homerun in the top of the 4th, and Jeter would drive in a run in the top of the 6th, giving the lead back to New York, 4-3. Again though: a lead with a short life. Perkins chased Righetti from the game with a 3-run shot in the bottom of the frame, with the Black Yankees bringing in Dellin Betances who got out of the inning without any further damage and a 6-4 lead for San Francisco.

The Black Yankees got one run back when Eric Davis singled, stole second and third, and scored on a base hit by Albert Belle.

San Francisco added 2 in the bottom of the 7th on Randolph’s second error of the game, an errant throw that allowed both Henderson and Bonds to score.

But this New York team is hard to put away: Davis led off the top of the 9th with a single against Ron Robinson, and after Gehrig whiffed, Belle walked and Munson doubled, scoring Davis to make it a 2-run game, 8-6. Ken Howell relieved Robinson and promptly fanned Doug DeCinces and got pinch-hitter Mike Schmidt to groundout weakly in front of the plate to end the game.

NYY 6 (Righetti 3-5) @ SFS 8 (Grove 6-2; Howell 3 Sv; Street 1 H; Devlin 2 H; Robinson 8 H)
HRs: NYY – Gehrig (14), Mattingly (10); SFS – Perkins (3), Bloodworth (10)
Box Score

#Game Two: Waite Hoyt @ Eddie Plank

This one started out as a pitching duel, with New York’s Waite Hoyt and San Francisco’s Eddie Plank each only allowing a single hit through 4 innings.

New York added 2 hits in the 5th–a double by Mike Schmidt and a single by Willie Randolph–but Plank fanned Derek Jeter and Don Mattingly to get out of the inning.

Dick Lundy opened the scoring in the bottom of the 5th when Lundy singled home Bob Cerv. Lundy would score in a hit by Rickey Henderson, and the Sea Lions took the lead, 2-0.

Plank held the shutout through the 6th, then gave up a single to Thurman Munson and a walk to Schmidt to lead off the 7th. That was it for him, as San Francisco brought in Chad Bradford from the pen with 2 on and no outs. New York would counter by bringing Lou Gehrig out to pinch-hit for Randolph. Gehrig was retired, but Bradford allowed one run before getting Babe Ruth to end the inning on a flay to deep center.

That narrowed the game to a 2-1 lead for San Francisco, which is where it stayed heading to the top of the 9th, where the Sea Lions turned to their closer Rod Beck.

The first batter was Munson, who immediately added to his incredible few weeks by taking Beck into the left field seats to tie the game. Schmidt would walk, followed by an infield single from Gehrig, and it suddenly felt like New York might blow the game open. Instead, Jeter grounded into a double play, and with the hugely ineffective Craig Counsell up, San Francisco seemed in decent shape … until Beck’s 2-2 pitch was wild, bouncing past Mickey Cochrane and allowing Schmidt to score. Counsell flew out to left, but the Black Yankees were ahead, 3-2.

They brought in their closer, Sparky Lyle, who set the side down in order, striking out Bobby Bonds to end the game.

Munson ended the day 3-for-4 with 2 runs scored as all 6 of the Black Yankees’ hits came from the bottom 3 slots in their lineup.

NYY 3 (Hoyt 5-1; Lyle 7 Sv) @ SFS 2 (Beck 0-1, 1 B Sv; Bradford 2 H)
HRs: Munson (7)
Box Score

#Game 3: Ron Guidry @ Cy Falkenberg

Rickey Henderson led off the bottom of the first with a long fly that sliced down the right field line, and barely stayed fair for a leadoff homerun off Ron Guidry and a 1-0 Sea Lions lead.

Leading off the bottom of the 3rd, it was Henderson again, this time with a double. He scored on an RBI single from Pedro Guerrero, making it 2-0. And, while Henderson led off the bottom of the 5th with a strikeout, the Sea Lions did add to their league on singles from Guerrero, Bobby Bonds, and Jimmy Bloodworth.

Through 5 innings, Cy Falkenberg had easily outmatched Guidry, allowing only 1 hit and 2 walks while strikeout out 5. But the top of the 6th began with a leadoff walk to Mickey Mantle, followed by Babe Ruth‘s 20th homerun of the year, cutting the lead to 3-2. Falkenberg walked Lou Gehrig and Albert Belle, and Thurman Munson dinked a little looper into right to load the bases. Don Mattingly tied the game with a sacrifice fly, but Falkenberg was able to escape the inning without further damage.

So, Guidry got a reprieve, having given up 8 hits through 5 innings while striking out 6. He struck out John Beckwith and Eddie Joost to lead off the 6th, but Dick Lundy doubled to deep left-center, chasing Guidry from the game in favor of Cole Hamels, who was able to retire Henderson to maintain the tied score.

Rick Langford may have pitched himself to AAA, allowing homeruns to Mantle and Gehrig, giving the Black Yankees a 6-3 lead.

Henderson would plate 2 in the bottom of the 8th with a double, scoring Beckwith and Lundy, and pulling San Francisco to within 1 run.

Ralph Citarella relieved Hamels, and promptly surrendered a ground-rule double to Guerrero, tying the game once more. Left in to pitch the bottom of the 9th, Bloodworth took Citarella deep to win the game for San Francisco.

Guerrero had 4 hits in the victory and Henderson 3 hits, driving in 3 and scoring 3 times.

NYY 6 (Citarella 1-3, 1 B Sv) @ SFS (Howell 3-2)
HRs: NYY – Ruth (20), Mantle (8), Gehrig (15); SFS – Henderson (3), Bloodworth (11)
Box Score

#Game 4: Jack Scott @ Diego Segui

Ah, the pitching duel we all expected … Diego Segui has been one of the shocks of the season, with an ERA near 2.00 since being recalled from AAA. He delivered here, allowing only 1 hit through 5 innings while the Black Yankees’ Jack Scott did him one better, with a no-hitter through 5.

Manny Sanguillen took Segui deep for his first homerun of the year in the top of the 6th and from there the wheels sort of fell off: Mickey Mantle drove in 1 run, then Babe Ruth hit his 21st homerun of the year with a couple runners on, making it 5-0 New York.

A single by John Beckwith broke up the no-no, but Scott kept the shutout intact for another inning, until Reggie Jackson sent a line drive into the rightfield stands, cutting the lead to 5-1.

An Eddie Joost homerun closed it to 5-2, and Sparky Lyle seemed to close the door, easily retiring the first 2 Sea Lions in the bottom of the 9th. But singles by Jimmy Bloodworth and Wally Moon were followed by a pinch-hit double from Bob Cerv, bringing the winning run to the plate in the form of the conundrum that is Joost.

Lyle struck him out on a slider, preserving the win for New York and splitting the series at 2.

Derek Jeter was 3-for-4 for New York.

NYY 5 (Scott 6-3; Lyle 8 Sv; Gossage 4 H) @ SFS (Segui 2-3)
HRs: NYY – Sanguillen (1), Ruth (21); SFS – Jackson (11), Joost (6)
Box Score

#Series Notes

So, a split in a close series with some excellent baseball on both sides.

Babe Ruth hit 2 homeruns, driving in 5 for New York, but those were his only 2 hits in the series. Other than the unstoppable Thurman Munson–who went 6-for-11, lifting his average to .320 on the year– and Derek Jeter (6-for-18) the Black Yankees offense was kept largely in check.

For San Francisco, Jimmy Bloodworth went 6-for-17 with 2 homeruns and Pedro Guerrero 5-for-17. Perhaps more importantly for the Sea Lions, Rickey Henderson showed signs of breaking out of his slump, going 5-for-10 while scoring 5 runs and driving in 5.

TWIWBL 15.4: Series XII Notes – Marvin Miller Division

By mknn

On August 27, 2021

In TWIWBL

#Birmingham Black Barons

The Black Barons may have found something with Tim Hudson. The recent callup improved to 3-0 with 8 strong innings against Portland, allowing 4 hits and 2 runs. Birmingham scored 5 runs against Walter Johnson in the 3rd inning in the 6-2 victory, preventing Johnson from notching his 7th win of the year. Tommy Herr–he of the .354 average–hit his first homerun of the season.

Not all the news was great for Birmingham, as Hoyt Wilhelm had to leave the game injured in the 9th inning. It looks like Wilhelm will miss about 5 days, leaving it up in the air whether the Black Barons will put him on the DL.

Playing .400 ball, the Black Barons made some major changes. Greg Maddux and Warren Spahn were both sent to AAA, as was closer Carlos Diaz, with Fred Fussell returning to Birmingham after injury rehab and Steve Bedrosian being recalled all the way from AA, where he had allowed only 8 hits in 22 innings. Juan Rincon will take over as closer from Diaz. Additionally, Chipper Jones and Emil Frisk were both waived, and 3B Pie Traynor was recalled into a platoon with struggling Eddie Matthews.

They would shake it up more, but the minor league talent that is performing well largely duplicates the only bright spots at the big league level–OFs Bob Nieman and Billy Southworth and IFs Frank McCormick, Frank Isbell, and Herr are playing too well to be replaced at the moment.

#Brooklyn Royal Giants

Brickyard Kennedy and Smokey Joe Williams were both sent to AAA, with Dave Von Ohlen completing his rehab assignment and Tommy Hanson being recalled. Sandy Koufax moves into the starting rotation, taking Kennedy’s slot. Additionally, Pee Wee Reese was released and Hobe Ferris demoted to AAA, with Ray Dandridge and Hi Myers coming to Brooklyn. Mike Piazza lost his starting role, and is on the verge of demotion as well.

#Miami Cuban Giants

Alejandro Oms and Will Clark each hit homeruns (Oms’ first of the year) and Charlie Bennett added a key long ball to blow the game open as Miami beat Memphis, 8-4. Don Newcombe got his 2nd win on the year. Not all the news was good for the Cuban Giants, as Carlos Moran had to leave the game with an apparent elbow injury.

Sandy Consuegra was sent to AAA with Steve Brown receiving the call to Miami, a move that necessitated Yonder Alonso‘s being waived. 17 year old Martin Dihigo has struggled since returning from the DL, but his defensive versatility keeps him in Miami for the time being.

#Portland Sea Dogs

Kent Hrbek had 4 hits and Jim Fregosi–who had stranded 6 runners on base earlier in the game–delivered a walk-off sacrifice fly in the bottom of the 10th inning to lead the Sea Dogs over the Black Barons 3-2. Portland pitchers only allowed 4 hits in the game (all from starter Jerry Koosman, who gave up 2 earned runs in 8 innings of work). Johan Santana picked up the win to even his record at 1-1.

The Sea Dogs have some good decisions to make on the mound. Wade Miller‘s fantastic turns in the starting rotation mean that Smokey Joe Wood returns from injury to the bullpen instead of his starting spot. Bob Porterfield and Randy Myers both did well in Portland, but Wood and Jim Kern‘s return send them back to AAA, along with Frank Williams.

On the bench, the Greg Litton question persists: Litton serves as a reserve at a ton of positions, but is struggling to reach a .400 OPS. He remains for now, but the team is considering a bench shake up, returning Litton, Jeff Burroughs, and Gary Pettis to AAA due to their offensive struggles.

#San Francisco Sea Lions

The Sea Lions overcame a 5 run deficit, winning the game against Detroit 8-7 with a walk-off homerun from Jack Clark in the bottom of the 10th. Jimmy Bloodworth homered and had 4 RBIs and Reggie Jackson continued his torrid season going 3-for-5. The win went to Ron Robinson, who is now 3-1.

Dennis Eckersley was returned to AAA to try to find his rhythm on the mound again, with Huston Street being recalled to shore up the middle of the bullpen. Charlie Root will replace Eckersley in the rotation.

In a somewhat surprising move, Charlie Reilly was sent to AAA, while Eddie Joost and Mickey Cochrane remain on the roster. Bob Cerv, who had impressed in a brief stint with the Sea Lions, was recalled into a very crowded OF.

Series XI Featured Game: San Francisco Sea Lions @ Houston Colt 45’s

By mknn

On August 3, 2021

In Featured Games, Game Recaps

The featured game in Series XI is the opening tilt between two teams hovering around .500 as the San Francisco Sea Lions visit the Houston Colt 45’s. San Francisco will start Dennis Eckersley to face Houston’s Bret Saberhagen.

Both pitchers have had a rough go: Saberhagen has just struggled to find much consistency, while Eckersley has been absolutely hammered since an early-season trip to the DL.

A 3-run homerun by Jeff Bagwell, his 6th of the year, opened the scoring in the bottom of the first for Houston. Eckersley continued to struggle, allowing a run in the 3rd, and another in the 4th on a solo shot by Tony Gwynn. That ended his day, with the Sea Lions forced to go to their bullpen early. Charlie Root relieved Eckersley, and wasn’t much better, giving up 2 runs in just under 3 innings before giving way to Jim Devlin.

Saberhagen, on the other hand, seemed to find some rhythm. He ended up giving up 3 runs over 7 innings–not great, but far better than he had been providing for Houston. All three runs were solo homeruns, from Wally Moon, John Beckwith, and Charlie Reilly.

Put all that together, and we headed to the 8th with Houston on top, 7-3.

Leon Day was on to pitch for Houston, but he only lasted one batter, grabbing his elbow in pain after walking San Francisco’s Jimmy Bloodworth. Day was replaced by Mark Melancon, who gave up a 2-run double to Moon, closing the score to 7-5.

Devlin surrendered a single to HR Johnson and a walk to Lance Berkman, but two groundball outs–one a double play–kept Houston off the scoreboard in the bottom of the 8th.

Houston sent their closer, Brad Lidge, out in the top of the 9th. Lidge has been mediocre at best all season, and seems in danger of losing his job to Billy Wagner. This outing didn’t help: Bob Cerv pinch-hit for Eddie Joost and deposited Lidge’s third pitch into the seats for a solo homerun. Lidge sandwiched a strikeout between walks to Mickey Cochrane and Bloodoworth, setting the stage for San Francisco’s hottest hitter–and the league leader in BA and OBP–Reggie Jackson.

The small contingent of visiting fans started up the chant heard in San Francisco when he approaches the plate: REG-GIE, REG-GIE, REG-GIE.

Jackson responded with a deep fly that sailed into the second deck, for a 3-run homerun and a 9-7 lead for San Francisco.

The Sea Lions’ closer, Rod Beck, cut through Houston in the bottom of the frame, three-up and three-down, to preserve the victory.

Johnson had 3 hits for Houston, but the 10 runners left on base, combined with Lidge’s implosion at the end, were just too much to overcome for the Colt 45’s.

Jackson and Moon had 3 RBI each, with Moon adding 3 hits for San Francisco. Beckwith continued to fight his way out of his early season doldrums, going 2-for-4 and raising his average to .234.

SFS 9 (Devlin 1-3; Beck 10 Sv) @ HOU 7 (Lidge 0-2, 1 BSv)
HRs: SFS – Reilly (5), Jackson (8), Moon (3), Beckwith (4), Cerv (2); HOU – Wynn (5), Gwynn (2), Bagwell (6)
Box Score

Series IX Featured Series: San Francisco Sea Lions @ Baltimore Black Sox

By mknn

On July 9, 2021

In Featured Series, Game Recaps

Series preview here.

#Game 1: Eddie Plank @ Bill Byrd

Eddie Joost is a mystery to San Francisco–and to most fans of the WBL. His batting average sits under .150, but he draws enough walks to have an OBP over 100 points higher, and while he doesn’t hit with much power, when he does, the ball leaves the ballpark. In early April, that meant his slash line was 267/333/567. A month later, he’s at 131/277/250.

With 2 outs in the top of the 3rd, Joost took Baltimore starter Bill Byrd‘s second pitch over the right field wall for an early 1-0 lead for the Sea Lions.

But the Sea Lions’ Eddie Plank struggled mightily with his command, and after an error by John Beckwith helped load the bases, Plank walked in a run, and then allowed two more to score on a wild pitch and a passed ball.

Curt Blefary tripled home a run in the bottom of the fifth, extending the lead to 4-1.

In the top of the 7th, a single by Mickey Cochrane chased Byrd, who was relieved by Mike Mussina. Beckwith–who has showed some signs of life at the plate recently–singled, bringing up Joost. The Sea Lions decided not to pinch hit, and Joost rewarded them with … a groundball double-play to second base. Cochrane would score on a single by Rickey Henderson, but a great opportunity to get back in the game went by the wayside.

The Black Sox are the only team in the WBL without a designated closer, instead rotating key situations between Bob Miller and Don Bessent. Today was Bessent’s turn, and despite struggling with control a bit, he only allowed a double to Beckwith in the 9th, preserving the victory for Baltimore.

Baltimore scored 4 runs on only 5 hits, with Blefary’s triple and a double from Paul Blair the only extra-base shots. Byrd moves to 3-2 on the year, allowing 2 runs in 6 innings, with Mussina and Bessent combining for 3 innings of 3-hit, scoreless ball.

The Sea Lions saw Beckwith go 3-for-4 in the losing effort, with Henderson stealing 3 bases in a game for the first time this season. Plank evened his record at 2-2 with the loss, despite only allowing 1 earned run in 5 innings.

SFS 2 (Plank 2-2) @ BAL 4 (Byrd 3-2; Mussina 1 H; Bessent 5 Sv)
HRs: BAL – Joost (4).
Box Score

Game 2: Jim Devlin @ Johnny Sain

This may be a make-or-break game for San Francisco’s Jim Devlin, who comes in with an 0-2 record and a 6.57 era, allowing almost 2 baserunners per inning.

Both Devlin and his opposite number, Johnny Sain, gave up runs in the first. For San Francisco, back-to-back doubles by Pedro Guerrero and Reggie Jackson gave the Sea Lions an early 1-0 lead, while the bottom of the first was very Devlin: 2 hits, 1 walk, an HBP, an error … 8 batters faced, 2 runs scored, 1 earned.

But both would settle down. Sain allowed 1 more run, on an RBI double from Charlie Reilly, scoring Wally Moon and Devlin 2 more, on a double from Dan McGann and a sacrifice fly by Brooks Robinson, leaving the score 4-3, Baltimore, after 7 innings.

It would stay that way, with Ned Garvin, Buddy Groom, Gregg Olson, and Bob Miller combining for 3 innings of 1-hit relief to preserve the Black Sox victory.

Garvin finished with a good enough line for him (7 innings, 6 hits, 2 walks, 3 earned runs)–perhaps enough to stave off the demotion, but not to preserve his spot in the rotation.

SFS 3 (Devlin 0-3) @ BAL 4 (Sain 4-2; Garvin 2 H; Groom 3 H; Olson 2 H; Miller 2 Sv)
HR: SFS – Bloodworth (4)
Box Score

#Game 3: Cy Falkenberg @ Dennis Martinez

Dennis Martinez has been excellent so far, with a 3-1 record and a sub-4.00 ERA; Cy Falkenberg has been solid: his 2-0 record belies some poor outings leading to a 4.40 ERA.

Helped by a homerun from Eddie Joost, San Francisco was up 2-0 in the 6th, but then the wheels fell off for Falkenberg, with Harlond Clift hitting a grand slam as the Black Sox moved out to a 6-2 lead. A 2-run shot by Larry Gardner in the 8th provided the final margin of 8-2 as Baltimore moved to the verge of sweeping the four game series.

Martinez moved to 4-1, lowering his ERA to 3.42 in his 8 innings of work, while Falkenberg too his first loss of the year.

SFS 2 (Falkenberg 2-1) @ BAL 8 (Martinez 4-1)
HR: SFS – Joost (5); BAL – Clift (5), Gardner (3)
Box Score

#Game 4: Dennis Eckersley @ Mark Baldwin

Dennis Eckersley was absolutely hammered in his first start back from the DL, lowering his record to 1-3 and seeing his ERA balloon to 9.00. He’ll be opposed by Baltimore’s Mark Baldwin, who at 2-4, 6.62 has had his own fair share of struggle.

Both pitchers struggled, but somehow at the end of 5 innings, San Francisco only lead by 1, 3-2. A solo homerun by Jimmy Bloodworth in the 8th extended it to 4-2, and Ron Robinson and Rod Beck each pitched a 1-hit, scoreless inning in relief of Eckersley, who lowered his ERA by well over a run in his 7 innings of work.

Dan McGann and Frank Robinson each had 2 hits in the losing effort.

SFS 4 (Eckersley 2-3; Robinson 4 H; Beck 8 Sv) @ BAL 2 (Baldwin 2-5)
HR: SFS – Bloodworth (5)
Box Score

Series Notes

John Beckwith showed signs of emerging from his season-long slump, going 5-for-11 in the series for San Francisco.

For Baltimore, Dan McGann was 5-for-7 and Ken Singleton 5-for-15 in a series dominated by the pitchers.