June 17, 1984 - Downing Goes Deep Three Times!

Game #825 - Cleveland Indians, 5 @ California Angels, 6

Pitching legends Rick Sutcliffe and Tommy John opposed each other in this one, and both were on rocky footing early.  A Bob Boone error eventually allowed Brett Butler to score in the top of the first.  The Angels took the lead in the bottom half of the inning, though, when Brian Downing jacked a two-run bomb to give the Halos the lead, 2-1.

It was 3-2 in favor of California in the bottom of the third when Downing led off the inning.  He blasted his second homer of the game to make it 4-2.  That was still the score in the bottom of the seventh when Sutcliffe, running on fumes, surrendered ANOTHER home run to Downing!!!  Cleveland plated three runs in the top of the ninth to make things exciting, but reliever John Curtis finally retired Pat Tabler to preserve the win.

Winning Pitcher - Tommy John
Losing Pitcher - Rick Sutcliffe
Player of the Game - Brian Downing, 3-3, 3HR's, 5RBI, BB
Hall of Famers in the Game - Rod Carew, Reggie Jackson

June 16, 1984 - Back, Back, Back and Forth

Game #811 - Cincinnati Reds, 11 @ Atlanta Braves, 8 (13 innings!!!)

This was a topsy-turvy slug fest!!!

The fireworks started in the bottom of the first when Dale Murphy smacked a two-run homer to give the Braves the early lead.  But the Reds tied it up in the second thanks to an Eric Davis double (he scored the second run on a throwing error on a pick-off attempt by Pascual Perez).  Dave Parker added another two RBI in the top of the third off a double, making it Reds 4, Braves 2.

A Dan Driessen RBI single in the fifth extended the lead, but Atlanta came roaring back in the bottom of the seventh thanks to a clutch three-run bomb from Claudell Washington off John Franco.  Dave Concepcion pulled the Reds ahead again in the eighth, doubling home Parker.  But in the bottom of the eighth pinch-hitter Paul Runge tied it again by singling home Brad Komminsk!

It was still tied 6-6 in the bottom of the ninth with Carl Willis pitching for Cincy.  He allowed a one-out single to Chris Chambliss and then walked Komminsk.  Bruce Benedict lined out, which brought Runge back up as he had taken over at shortstop.  Runge singled and Chambliss rounded home!  Dave Parker scooped up the ball and launched a cannon to home....OUT!  Chambliss was out!  Parker saved the game and it was off to extra innings.

Both bullpen logged goose eggs until the top of the thirteenth inning.  Dave Parker led off with a walk, and the next three batters reached base.  There were two doubles after that and when it was all said and done the Reds put five runs on the board!  Cincy handed the ball to Bill Scherrer to close it out, but he made it pretty dramatic by allowing two runs before getting Chambliss to ground out to end the game.  Whew!

Winning Pitcher - Carl Willis
Losing Pitcher - Donnie Moore
Player of the Game - Dave Parker, 2-5, 2B, 2RBI, 3R's, 2BB's, ASST

Game #812 - Cleveland Indians, 7 @ California Angels, 8

Ron Romanick got roughed up early and often in this one.  In the top of the third a two-out error by Rob Wilfong led to three unearned runs for Cleveland.  Joe Carter jacked a GRAND SLAM in the top of the fourth and the Tribe were way out front, 7-0.

And that's when the comeback started.  In the bottom of the sixth Bert Blyleven allowed five runs, including a three-run job off the bat of Juan Beniquez.  Lefty specialist Mike Jeffcoat was on the hill in the seventh when he allowed back to back solo homers to Brian Downing and Fred Lynn - tie game!!!  And in the bottom of the eighth Wilfong made up for his error by hitting a go-ahead homer!!!  The Angels overcame a seven run deficit to win the game.

Winning Pitcher - Luis Sanchez
Losing Pitcher - Ernie Camacho
Save - Don Aase
Player of the Game - Fred Lynn, 3-4, 2B, HR, RBI, 2R's
Hall of Famers in the Game - Bert Blyleven, Rod Carew, Reggie Jackson

June 15, 1984 - Halo Bender

Game #799 - Cleveland Indians, 2 @ California Angels, 5

Steve Farr had a nightmare start to the game, immediately digging a hole for Cleveland that would be hard to climb out.  A Rod Carew walk and Brian Downing double put Carew on third.  Fred Lynn brought him home with a sacrifice fly.  Then Downing scored on a Doug DeCinces double.  And then DeCinces scored when Reggie Jackson launched a home run to give the Angels a 4-0 lead after just one inning.

By the top of the seventh Farr was long gone and California was up 5-0 while starter Jim Slaton was working on a shutout.  But with two outs Jerry Willard planed a ball into the right field stands for Cleveland's first runs of the game.  Doug Corbett came on for the last two innings to put the nails in the proverbial coffin.

Winning Pitcher - Jim Slaton
Losing Pitcher - Steve Farr
Save - Doug Corbett
Player of the Game - Reggie Jackson, 3-3, HR, 2b, R, 2RBI
Hall of Famers in the Game - Rod Carew, Reggie Jackson

June 14, 1984 - Take a Knee

Game #793 - Cleveland Indians, 3 @ Oakland A's, 2 (10 innings)

Mike Warren of the A's and Steve Comer of the Tribe, neither of who were particularly good in the real 1984, got off to strong starts in this one.  Each held their opponent scoreless through the first four innings of play.  A Jerry Willard solo homer in the fifth broke the tie, but an RBI double by Mike Heath scored Davey Lopes in the bottom half of the inning to knot things up again.  Lopes got into scoring position after swiping second base after a walk.

In the top of the sixth Andre Thornton grounded into a double play but Julio Franco scored from third on the play.  Rickey Henderson reached base in the bottom half of the inning on a Franco fielding error, and eventually scored on an RBI single from pinch hitter Bill Almon.

It stayed tied 2-2 through nine innings of play, so it was off to extra frames.  Joe Carter led off the top of the tenth and blasted a solo homer of Ray Burris, who was working his fourth inning of relief at that point.  In the bottom of the tenth Ernie Camacho loaded the bases on walks, but Almon grounded into a back-breaking double play to end the threat and notch the win for Cleveland.

Winning Pitcher - Ernie Camacho
Losing Pitcher - Ray Burris
Player of the Game - Joe Carter, 1-4, HR
Hall of Famers in the Game - Rickey Henderson, Joe Morgan

Game #794 - San Francisco Giants, 1 @ San Diego Padres, 6

With two outs and runners on second and third in the bottom of the first, Steve Garvey came through with a clutch single to put the first runs of the game on the board.  The Padres added three more in the fifth thanks to a three-run homer from Carmelo Martinez.  Tim Lollar, meanwhile, was highly effective, going seven innings and only allowing a run on a Jeff Leonard homer.

Winning Pitcher - Tim Lollar
Losing Pitcher - Bill Laskey
Player of the Game - Tony Gwynn, 4-4, 2b, 3Rs
Hall of Famers in the Game - Tony Gwynn

June 13, 1984 - Sluggers Gonna Slug

Game #781 - Cleveland Indians, 1 @ Oakland A's, 11

Cleveland scored the first run of the game, a sacrifice fly from George Vukovich that plated Brett Butler...and then allowed eleven to Oakland.

Ouch.

Dave Kingman hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the first.  Bill Almon hit a solo bomb in the second.  Oakland scored three more in the third before Dwayne Murphy launched a grand slam in the fourth.

It was ugly for Cleveland.

Winning Pitcher - Steve McCatty
Losing Pitcher - Neal Heaton
Player of the Game - Dave Kingman, 2-3, HR, 3RBI, BB, 3R's
Hall of Famers in the Game - Rickey Henderson

Game #782 - St. Louis Cardinals, 1 @ Philadelphia Phillies, 2

Bob Forsch was a good major league pitcher over his career but was awful in the real 1984 season.  He should be in Statis Pro, too, but for some reason he's been incredibly lucky so far.

That continued, to a degree, in this one too.

Juan Samuel was standing on third base with one out when John Denny grounded to Ozzie Smith.  Samuel broke to home and beat Smith's throw for the first score of the game.  Forsch got in and out of jams the rest of the way until the bottom of the seventh.  After allowing to straight hits in the seventh he got lifted in favor of Jeff Lahti.  Lahti was in a pickle, inheriting runners on first and third.  But he recorded back to back strikeouts against Gary Maddox and Greg Gross.  That brought up Mike Schmidt, and Schmidt roped a double to score Tim Corcoran and give the Phillies a 2-0 lead.

In the top of the eighth Tito Landrum walked and later scored on an Ivan DeJesus fielding error.  But Al Holland got two innings of relief in to save the game for John Denny.

Winning Pitcher - John Denny
Losing Pitcher - Bob Forsch
Save - Al Holland
Player of the Game - Mike Schmidt, 1-3, 2B, RBI, BB
Hall of Famers in the Game - Ozzie Smith, Mike Schmidt

Happy Trails...Mark Salas

1984 marked the brief rookie debut of Mark Salas, mostly known for his days as a backup catcher over eight years in the big leagues.  Salas was on the active roster for the Statis Pro Cardinals due to Darrell Porter's injury.  Let's see how he did:

The Real 1984:  .100AVG, .100OBP, .150SLG, .250OPS, 2B, 1 RBI, 1 R
Statis Pro 1984:  .273AVG, .280 OBP., .364 SLG, .644OPS, 2 2B, 1 RBI, 0 R

Salas only played in 14 games in the real 1984 and didn't make much of an impact, while his Statis Pro self got quite a bit luckier with the bat.  His wRAA in Statis Pro was still negative (-0.8), so he wasn't that much better.  It would have been fun to see Salas in a 1985 season replay, as he hit .300 and was the primary starter for the Minnesota Twins.

June 12, 1984 - Catch(er) of the Day

Game #767 - Pittsburgh Pirates, 5 @ New York Mets, 4

Johnny Ray smoked a one-out double off Sid Fernandez in the top of the first and scored two batters later thanks to a Tony Pena single.  The Mets answered back in the bottom of the first, though, thanks to a two-run homer by Keith Hernandez.

The Pirates tied it up in the second, though, when Dale Berra, a disaster at the plate this year for Pittsburgh, hit a rare solo homer.  It stayed 2-2 until the bottom of the fifth.  Hernandez walked with one out and then George Foster took Rick Rhoden over the left field wall to give the Metropolitans a two-run lead.

Pittsburgh wouldn't be denied, however.  Tony Pena hit a lead-off single in the sixth and later scored on a Rhoden double.  Rhoden hit seventh in the lineup thanks to a +.300 batting average in the real 1984. 

In the eighth Doug Sisk was working his second inning of relief when he imploded.  With one out he walked Pena and gave up a hit and run single to Bill Madlock, playing his first game since coming off the DL.  With Pena on third Marvelle Wynne hit a single off new pitcher Jesse Orosco.  Orosco gave up another hit, this time to Rhoden for what would be the winning RBI of the game.

Winning Pitcher - Rick Rhoden
Losing Pitcher - Doug Sisk
Save - Rod Scurry
Player of the Game - Tony Pena, 2-4, RBI, BB, 2Rs

Game #768 - Cleveland Indians, 9 @ Oakland A's, 4

This game was over as soon as it started.  Tim Conroy made his first start of the season and got SHELLED.  Chris Bando hit a two-run homer in the first, followed by a three-run homer from Joe Carter in the same inning.  Cleveland poured three more runs on from, you guessed it, another home run.  This time it was Andre Thornton going deep.

The A's did manage a four-run eighth inning to put a light scare in the Cleveland dugout but Tom Waddell finally shut the door on the hopes of Oakland.

Winning Pitcher - Rick Sutcliffe
Losing Pitcher - Tim Conroy
Player of the Game - Chris Bando, 2-3, HR, 2B, HR, 2BBs, 3Rs
Hall of Famers in the Game - Rickey Henderson

June 10, 1984 - Thornton Thumping, Downing Walking

Game #741 - Seattle Mariners, 1 @ Cleveland Indians, 4

I deviated from my normal organizational routine in this game - I didn't realize Seattle and Cleveland had a doubleheader!  I usually play both of those games back to back for the purposes of these replays and managing their bullpens, so it was quite a shock when I realized they needed to play two.  Nonetheless...

The Mariners struck first in the top of the fourth.  Phil Bradley singled off Bert Blyleven and then stole second base.  That enabled him to score when Alvin Davis raked his gazillionth double of the season.  But Cleveland tied the game in the bottom half of the inning when Andre Thornton blasted a solo shot off Jim Beattie.

It was still knotted at one apiece in the bottom of the sixth.  George Vukovich singled with one out, once again bringing up Thornton.  And once again, Thornton deposited a ball over the outfield fence!  Blyleven managed to go the distance on his way to seven strikeouts as Cleveland swept the Mariners to bring their overall record above .500.

Winning Pitcher - Bert Blyeleven
Losing Pitcher - Jim Beattie
Player of the Game - Andre Thornton, 2-4, 2HRs, 3RBI
Hall of Famers in the Game - Bert Blyleven

Game #742 - California Angels, 8 @ Kansas City Royals, 2

Mark Gubicza got into a heap of trouble right out of the gate.  Rod Carew singled to start the game and then Brian Downing walked.  They both advanced a base on Fred Lynn ground out and Carew scored thanks to a wild pitch from Gubicza.  Reggie Jackson recorded and RBI single to plate Downing and later scored on a combination of a Juan Beniquez single and a Darryl Motley fielding error in left field.  Just like that the Royals were down 3-0.

Kansas City tried to claw back.  Steve Balboni doubled home Motley in the second, and later scored on a Greg Pryor single to bring the Royals within one run of a tie score.  But Brian Downing walked for the third time of the game to lead off the fifth and the Angels would score two more runs.  They picked up two more runs in the sixth when, with two outs, Downing walked AGAIN and Fred Lynn followed with a  homer.  Downing had one more plate appearance, in the top of the eighth.  Instead of walking for the fifth time on the day he walked around the entire diamond after a solo home run.  What a day...

Winning Pitcher - Ron Romanick
Losing Pitcher - Mark Gubicza
Player of the Game - Brian Downing, 1-1, HR, 4BBs, 4Rs
Hall of Famers in the Game - Rod Carew, Reggie Jackson, George Brett

Happy Trails...Frank Wills

Similar to my predicament with the Baltimore Orioles bullpen, I now have to go the rest of the Statis Pro Season with only five relievers for the Royals!  This won't be easy because there aren't a lot of bullpen games to pick from outside of Dan Quisenberry.  I'm already stressed about it.  So how did Frank Wills do?  He started five games and worked five games from the 'pen in the real 1984.  Let's compare his performances:

Statis Pro 1984:  1-3, 34.2IP  26Ks, 7.53ERA, 1.67WHIP, 5.57FIP
The Real 1984:  2-3, 37IP, 21Ks, 5.11ERA, 1.41WHIP, 3.74FIP

Wills was a lot less lucky with the Fast Action Cards in Statis Pro compared to his actual 1984 performance.  He went on to pitch seven more seasons in the big leagues.  Sadly, he passed away unexpectedly in his sleep in 20102.

June 10, 1984 - And Now Back to Our Regularly Scheduled Program...

Hey friends!  It's been over a month since I posted last.  This is the longest stretch of not playing a game I can remember since starting the blog.  Nothing crazy on my end, just got bogged down with work and then vacation time.  Hopefully we'll get back to normal here in Statis Pro land.  On to the games...

Game #739 - Minnesota Twins, 8 @ Chicago White Sox, 0

Richard Dotson had a strange game.  He gave up a three-run homer to Ron Washington in the top of the first.  He gave up an RBI double to Tim Teufel, plating Darrell Brown, in the second.  Brown tripled home Dave Engle in the fourth, but then Dotson cruised through the next four innings with barely a runner reaching base.

But in the top of the ninth he walked the first two batters he faced and was finally lifted.  Those two runners scored on a Mickey Hatcher triple of Ron Reed.  Hatcher scored too when Washington recorded his fourth RBI on the day with a single to left.

Mike Smithson had a much better game.  He only allowed five batters to reach base and retired the last seventeen hitters he faced for a complete game shutout!

Winning Pitcher - Mike Smithson
Losing Pitcher - Richard Dotson
Player of the Game - Smithson, CG SHO, 3H's, 5K's, BB

Game #740 - Seattle Mariners, 3 @ Cleveland Indians, 7

The Mariners struck first in this game.  Dave Henderson led off the top of the second with a solo home run, and Spike Own later singled home Larry Milbourne.  Cleveland got a run back in the third when Pat Tabler punched a ball through the infield to plate Ton Bernazard.

In the fifth, sixth, and seventh innings, though, the Cleveland offense exploded.  They got two runs in each of those frames.  Five different members of the Tribe scored during that onslaught.  Steve Farr, meanwhile, navigated seven strong innings to record the win.

Winning Pitcher - Steve Farr
Losing Pitcher - Matt  Young
Player of the Game - Farr, 7IP, 2Rs, 4K's

June 9, 1984 - Wildness in the AL West

Game #725 - Seattle Mariners, 3 @ Cleveland Indians, 7

The third place Mariners were trying desperately to stay within eyesight of the Angels and Royals while on the road in Cleveland.  They had Mike Moore on the mound for the battle, but it did not go well.  Tony Bernazard batted home Pat Tabler in the second inning to score the first run of the game.  Bernazard then doubled home Brook Jacoby  and Jerry Willard on a double, with Willard crossing home plate due to a Barry Bonnell fielding error.

The Mariners started scratching back in the eighth, when starter Steve Comer went an inning too long by loading the bases before Ernie Camacho toed the rubber.  Camacho allowed consecutive RBIs to Dave Henderson, Alvin Davis, and Al Cowens before escaping the inning.  A two-run homer by Andre Thornton in the bottom half of the inning put Seattle away for good. 

There was an outfield collision in this game - Brett Butler will miss one game but little used Otis Nixon, who was in as a defensive replacement, got tagged with 87 games on the DL!  That's the largest injury total to date and only one off the allowed maximum.

Winning Pitcher - Steve Comer
Losing Pitcher - Mike Moore
Player of the Game - Tony Bernazard, 2-3, 2B, R, 2RBI, BB

Game #726 - California Angels, 3 @ Kansas City Royals, 5

Pat Sheridan was back after a stint on the DL and he made his return count.  In the bottom of the first he singled, stole second, and then advanced to third on a throwing error Jerry Narron.  That gave Jorge Orta the easy RBI on his single to center field.  Sheridan struck again in the third, this time singling home Greg Pryor, who has been manning second base due to Frank White's injury.

In the bottom of the sixth Darryl Motley and Steve Balboni hit back to back solo homers, which was helpful because Dan Quisenberry had his worst appearance of the year in the eighth inning.  He gave up three hits, including a homer to Reggie Jackson, but Mike Jones shut down California in the ninth for his first save on the season.  The win got the red-hot Royals one game closer to the first place Angels.

Winning Pitcher - Bret Saberhagen
Losing Pitcher - Jim Slaton
Save - Mike Jones
Player of the Game - Pat Sheridan, 3-4, R, RBI, SB
Hall of Famers in the Game - Rod Carew, Reggie Jackson, George Brett

June 8, 1984 - I Spit My Last Breath At Thee

Game #711 - Minnesota Twins, 7 @ Chicago White Sox, 6

In the top of the first inning a Scooter Fletcher error on a sharp grounder by Mickey Hatcher allowed Kirby Puckett to score the first run of the game.  The Twins added two more runs in the top of the second on a Tim Teufel sacrifice fly and a Tom Brunansky single.  Greg Luzinski knocked home Greg Walker in the bottom half of the inning to leave Minnesota up 3-1 after two.

The Twins scored once again in the third.  Teufel plated Dave Engle and Dan Meier on a two-out single to extend their lead to 5-1.  In the bottom of the fifth Vance Law took Ken Schrom deep to give Chicago their second run on the day.

By the bottom of the ninth the Twins were up 7-4 with Rick Lysander trying to end it.  But Jerry Dybzinski, in the game as a defensive replacement, hit an unexpected homer to bring the White Sox within a run of tying the game.  Alas, Ron Davis replaced Lysander to record the final out.

Winning Pitcher - Ken Schrom
Losing Pitcher - Britt Burns
Save - Ron Davis
Player of the Game - Time Teufel, 3-4, SF, 4RBI
Hall of Famers in the Game - Kirby Puckett, Carlton Fisk

Game #712 - Seattle Mariners, 9 @ Cleveland Indians, 11

Mark Langston was cruising through his first two innings of work, but with two outs in the third, Brett Butler hit a solo homer that just cleared the fence.  Julio Franco then walked and scored two batters later on an Andre Thornton single.

By the bottom of the fifth Cleveland was up 3-0 when their offense erupted.  They scored eight runs in the inning, including triples by Carmen Castillo (with the bases loaded) and George Vukovich (with one on).  After that the team formerly known as the Spiders had one seemed to be an insurmountable 11-0 lead...

...but Seattle started chipping back!  Al Cowens had one of his three double of the game in the sixth, scoring Alvin Davis.  In the seventh Bob Kearney launched a solo homer for Seattle's second run.  In the eighth Ken Phelps blasted a three-run job and suddenly it was just 11-5.  In the top of the ninth reliever Roy Smith got abused by the Mariners.  Alvin Davis ripped his third double of the game to plate Jack Perconte.  Steve Henderson followed that with a 2-RBI triple to make it 11-8.  Smith got yanked and one out later Mike Jeffcoat gave up an RBI double to Al Cowens.  But Larry Milbourne and Barry Bonnell made the last two outs of the game, as Cleveland nearly squandered their eleven run lead.

Winning Pitcher - Rick Sutcliffe
Losing Pitcher - Mark Langston
Save - Mike Jeffcoat
Player of the Game - Carmen Castillo, 2-5, 3B, 3RBI, R

June 6, 1984 - Human Rain Delay, Bell, Come Up Big

Game #689 - Oakland A's, 4 @ Cleveland Indians, 5

The Cleveland squad jumped all over Larry Sorensen, tagging him for four runs in the first.  Sorensen was lifted without escaping the inning, but his replacement, Tim Conroy, was dominant.  He lasted five and 2/3 innings without giving up a run.

The A's battled back.  A Brooks Jacoby error in the fifth allowed Jim Essian to score.  Then Oakland tagged Neal Heaton for three more runs in the sixth.  Bill Almon and Donnie Hill both had big RBI singles to tie things up.

In the bottom of the eighth ace reliever Bill Caudill was on the mound for Oakland.  But with one out he gave up a single to Pat Tabler.  Tabler moved to third on a hit and run single from Mike Hargrove.  Jacoby grounded out, but Tabler scored on the play and that wound up being the winning run.

Winning Pitcher - Tom Waddell
Losing Pitcher - Bill Caudill
Player of the Game - Mike Hargrove, 2-4, RBI, R
Hall of Famers in the Game - Rickey Henderson, Joe Morgan

Game #690 - Toronto Blue Jays, 8 @ Detroit Tigers, 3

The two best teams in Statis Pro squared off for the third straight game.  Each team had a win and were looking to gain a game in the standings.  Lou Whitaker started the party off right for Detroit when he launched a lead-off homer in the first. 

It was still 1-0 in the top of the fifth when the wheels fell off for Juan Berenguer.  He gave up four runs, including a two-run jack to Jorge Bell.  That was nice revenge for Bell after he got plunked by Berenguer the inning before. 

The Tigers got within a run of the lead by the top of the ninth, but Willie Hernandez was unusually easy to hit.  He gave up four runs, including another homer to Bell.  Toronto won game three of the series.

Winning Pitcher - Luis Leal
Losing Pitcher - Juan Berenguer
Save - Roy Lee Jackson
Player of the Game - Jorge Bell, 2-4, 2HRs, 5RBI, HBP
Hall of Famers in the Game - Alan Trammell 

June 5, 1984 - Best Offensive Game of the Season

Game #675 - California Angels, 5 @ Chicago White Sox, 7

Harold Baines had a monster year in the real 1984, and though he's certainly been productive in this Statis Pro season, his batting totals have been behind his '84 pace.

That all changed in this game.

In the bottom of the first Scott Fletcher singled and then trotted home ahead of Baines on a two-run homer with no outs.  Tommy John didn't fare any better in the second.  Rudy Law was standing on second with two outs when Baines stepped up again.  BOOM.  His second two-RBI homer in two innings!

Fast forward to the fifth.  John had settled down until Fletcher led off.  He singled, which brought Baines back up.  He didn't homer this time.  He only tripled.  The White Sox were up 5-0 and all the runs were driven in by Baines.  He scored from third when Ron Kittle doubled two batters later.

The Angels put up four runs in the top of the seventh to bring them back within a run of the Pale Hose.  But in the bottom half of the inning Baines was up first...and homered!  His third of the game!  That gave Chicago a two-run buffer they'd hold onto to finish the game.  Baines went 4-4 with three homers and a triple.  That's the best batting line on the season.

Winning Pitcher - Richard Dotson
Losing Pitcher - Tommy John
Save - Juan Agosto
Player of the Game - Harold Baines, 4-4, 3HRs, 6RBI, 4R's
Hall of Famers in the Game - Rod Carew, Reggie Jackson

Game #676 - Oakland A's, 5 @ Cleveland Indians, 10

Andre Thornton caught wind of Harold Baines' day and decided to try and one-up him.

In the bottom of the first he jacked a three-run bomb off Curt Young to plate three of the four runs Cleveland scored in the inning.  He then doubled in the third and fifth inning.  In the bottom of the eighth he had four hits on the day but decided to put one more ball over the fence to guarantee Player of the Game status.

Winning Pitcher - Bert Blyleven
Losing Pitcher - Curt Young
Player of the Game - Thornton, 5-5, 2HRs, 2 2Bs, 4RBI, 3Rs
Hall of Famers in the Game - Rickey Henderson, Joe Morgan, Bert Blyleven

June 4, 1984 - Lefty Sluggers Deliver

Game #663 - California Angels, 7 @ Chicago White Sox, 5

The Angels got an unexpected power boost in the top of the second inning.  With Reggie Jackson on first with two outs, Rob Wilfong gripped it and ripped it for a two-run homer.  The White Sox answered back with a run in the bottom of the second.  Greg Walker tripled and later came home on a Vance Law single.

Each team got three runs in the third.  Brian Downing doubled home Dick Schofield and later scored on a two-run single from Jackson.  Carlton Fisk doubled home Julio Cruz and Scott Fletcher and scored on a Ron Kittle ground out.  After the dust of the first three innings settled the Angels were up 5-4.

California starter Ron Romanick settled down after that, but White Sox hurler LaMarr Hoyt didn't follow suit.  Fred Lynn tagged him for a two-run bomb in the top of the fifth.  The White Sox scored a run in the bottom of the ninth but still fell short, losing 7-5.

Winning Pitcher - Ron Romanick
Losing Pitcher - Lamarr hoyt
Save - Doug Corbett
Player of the Game - Fred Lynn, 2-5, 2B, HR, 2RBI
Hall of Famers in the Game - Rod Carew, Reggie Jackson, Carlton Fisk

Game #664 - Oakland A's, 11 @ Cleveland Indians, 9

This game was nuts.

In the top of the first Rickey Henderson walked and proceeded to steal second and third base.  Two batters later Dwayne Murphy negated Henderson's effort by depositing the ball over the right field fence, giving Oakland a 2-0 lead.  But in the bottom of the first Cleveland tied things up with an RBI double from Andre Thornton, who then scored on a Mike Hargrove single.

Steve Farr was still pitching in the top of the second but pulled a feat I'm pretty sure hasn't happened this season - he walked five straight A's!  That gave Oakland a 4-2 lead going into the bottom of the second...where Cleveland sent up ten hitters who tagged Mike Warren for six runs, four of which were unearned due to a Joe Morgan fielding error.

Oakland wouldn't quit, though.  In the top of the fourth Murphy connected for his second homer of the day, this also a 2-RBI job, and then they scored four runs off Jamie Easterly in the fifth.  It wasn't all Easterly's fault, though.  Brook Jacoby had TWO fielding errors during the inning.   Murphy capped off the insanity with a THIRD homer, this time solo, in the top of the eighth as the Athletics won a wild one...

Winning Pitcher - Chuck Rainey
Losing Pitcher - Jamie Easterly
Save - Tom Burgmeier
Player of the Game - Dwayne Murphy, 3-6, 3HR's, 5RBI
Hall of Famers in the Game - Rickey Henderson, Joe Morgan

June 3, 1984 - Almost Perfect

Game #649 - Atlanta Braves, 7 @ Cincinnati Reds, 2

The quest for the season's first no-no is still afoot, and it way Jay Tibbs of the Reds who didn't just flirt with a no-hitter but a perfect game too!

Tibbs was perfect through his first six innings on the mound.  18 Braves up, 18 Braves down.  But Rick Maheler was nearly as good for Atlanta.  He'd only allowed three base runners through the first five innings.  In the bottom of the sixth things changed.  The Reds staged an epic two-out rally.  Eddie Milner singled and then stole second.  Gary Redus doubled him home for the first run of the game.  After that Dan Driessen walked.  Dave Parker was up next and he singled home Redus, 2-0 in favor of the Reds!  Mahler got lifted for Gene Garber, who retired Wayne Krenchicki to end the inning but now Tibbs had a lead to go with his perfect game.

In the top of the seventh Gerald Perry lined out to Krenchicki.  That brought up Glenn Hubbard...who HOMERED!  Perfect game - ruined.  No-hitter - ruined.  Shutout - ruined!  All in one blast!  Claudell Washington singled after that which brought up Dale Murphy.  Murph connected on a LONG BALL, two-run homer!  In just three batters Jay Tibbs went from a perfect game through six and a third to losing the ball game!

The Braves added four more runs in the top of the ninth and Steve Bedrosian pitched the final two innings for the save.

Winning Pitcher - Gene Garber
Losing Pitcher - Jay Tibbs
Save - Steve Bedrosian
Player of the Game - Dale Murphy, 2-4, HR, 2RBI, 2R's

Game #650 - California Angels, 4 @ Cleveland Indians, 3

This was one of those "anything you can do I can do better" games.  In the top of the first the Angels scored a run on a Brian Downing single...and Cleveland matched with a run of their own in the bottom half.  The same thing happened in the second, Rod Carew singled home Doug DeCinces but the Indians tied it up again in their half.

It stayed 2-2 until the top of the eighth.  Mike Jeffcoat was on in relief of Steve Comer but gave up a single to Fred Lynn and then a monster bomb to Downing, giving the Angels a two run lead.  In the bottom of the eighth ace reliever Don Aase was on the mound but he was giving up cheap singles all over the place, including an RBI hit by Tony Bernazard.  He allowed two more runners in the ninth but Cleveland couldn't tie it up.

Winning Pitcher - Jim Slaton
Losing Pitcher - Mike Jeffcoat
Save - Don Aase
Player of the Game - Brian Downing, 3-5, HR, 3RBI
Hall of Famers in the Game - Rod Carew, Reggie Jackson

June 2, 1984 - Cornerstones

Game #637 - California Angels, 2 @ Cleveland Indians, 1

Rod Carew, leading off for the visiting Angels, surprised everybody in the stadium when he went yard in his first at-bat of the game.  But Rick Sutcliffe settled down after that, tossing one of his best games of the season for Cleveland (I'm chomping at the bit to get him pitching in Chicago...).  He allowed only four more hits until the top of the eighth.  After back to back singles by Dick Schofield and Carew he was replaced by Ernie Camacho.  Camacho got Brian Downing to line out to Julio Franco, who quickly stepped on second to double off Schofield.  But Fred Lynn plated Carew on a scorching double to center field. 

With a 2-0 lead Mike Witt pitched into the ninth but was replaced by Doug Corbett after Chris Bando zapped a pinch-hit homer over the fence.  Corbett retired the last two outs to record the save.

Winning Pitcher - Mike Witt
Losing Pitcher - Rick Sutcliffe
Save - Doug Corbett
Player of the Game - Rod Carew, 3-4, HR, 2Rs
Hall of Famers in the Game - Rod Carew, Reggie Jackson

Game #638 - Baltimore Orioles, 2 @ Detroit Tigers, 4

Mike Young, the most improbable star of this Statis Pro season, continued his torrid production by blasting a solo homer in the first.  Tom Brookens answered back in the bottom of the third with one of his own to knot the game at one apiece.

The teams traded runs again in the seventh.  Al Bumbry doubled home Gary Roenicke in the top half but Brookens singled home Larry Herndon to tie things  up once again.

Storm Davis, who pitched the whole game for Baltimore, got into a bases-loaded jam in the bottom of the eighth.  With one out up stepped...you guessed it.  TOM BROOKENS.  He punched a single that plated two, giving him all four RBI on the day for a Detroit win.

Winning Pitcher - Aurelio Lopez
Losing Pitcher - Storm Davis
Player of the Game - Tom Brookens, 3-3, HR, BB, 4RBI
Hall of Famers in the Game - Cal Ripken, Eddie Murray

June 1, 1984 - Hello June!

Game #621 - Oakland A's, 0 @ Chicago White Sox, 1

Tom Seaver was well past his prime in 1984, but in this game he pulled out some old Seaver magic to pitch one of the best games of this Statis Pro season.  It was certainly a dominant performance.  Only three runners reached base!  Tony Phillips doubled in the third, Bruce Bochte singled in the fifth, and Rickey Henderson drew a walk in the sixth.  That was all Oakland could muster while Seaver struck out six.

Meanwhile, the A's wasted an unusually masterful performance by Larry Sorensen.  The only run he allowed was a Vance Law solo blast in the bottom of the fourth.  It was one of only four hits for Chicago, though they did reach on five bases on balls.

Carlton Fisk comes off the DL in their next game, which has been a long time coming.

Winning Pitcher - Tom Seaver
Losing Pitcher - Larry Sorensen
Player of the Game - Tom Seaver, CG SHO, 2H's, BB, 6K's
Hall of Famers in the Game - Rickey Henderson, Joe Morgan, Tom Seaver

Game #622 - California Angels, 1 @ Cleveland Indians, 3

This was a battle of the lefties as Neal Heaton and Geoff Zahn faced off in this series opener.  Both pitchers were cruising until the bottom of the fourth.  Andre Thornton was on third with two outs when Brook Jacoby singled him home.  The game got tied by California in the top of the fifth when Heaton plunked Juan Beniquez with the bases loaded!  He got Brian Downing to ground out to Chris Bando to end the threat.

RBI doubles by Bando and Carmelo Castillo in the bottom of the fifth gave Cleveland all the runs they needed.  Tom Waddell and Ernie Camacho pitched a scoreless two innings of relief to give Cleveland the victory.

Winning Pitcher - Neal Heaton
Losing Pitcher - Geoff Zahn
Save - Ernie Camacho
Player of the Game - Heaton, 7IP, ER, 6K's
Hall of Famers in the Game - Rod Carew, Reggie Jackson

May 30, 1984 - Schroeder Destroys Cleveland to Split the Doubleheader

Game #609 - Milwaukee Brewers, 2 @ Cleveland Indians, 10

Milwaukee and Cleveland were playing twice in one day, so the biggest fear a manager has running their bullpen is a short stint by the starting pitcher.

Enter Don Sutton.

Sutton couldn't get out of the first before hitting the showers, getting shelled for six runs in just two-thirds of an inning.  Andre Thornton went deep for a two-run  homer in the inning.

The only two runs for the Brew Crew came courtesy of Charlie Moore, who launched two solo shots off starter Steve Farr.

Winning Pitcher - Steve Farr
Losing Pitcher - Don Sutton
Player of the Game - Andre Thornton, 2-5, 2B, HR, 2RBI, 2R's
Hall of Famers in the Game - Robin Yount, Don Sutton

Game #610 - Milwaukee Brewers, 10 @ Cleveland Indians, 5

Like I said, during a doubleheader the manager doesn't want to see the starter get roasted early.

Enter Moose Haas.

Despite Milwaukee getting a three-run lead in the first thanks to a Bill Schroeder home run, Haas gave up a solo homer to George Vukovich in the second, an RBI double to Julio Franco in the third, and then a Chris Bando two-run dinger in the third as well.  But after Schroeder launched his SECOND three-run home run in the fourth inning Haas got yanked and Jamie Cocanower sacrificed his next start in the rotation by engaging in emergency mop-up duty.  He held Cleveland to just one more run over six innings of relief!

But our good friend Bill Schroeder wasn't done...HE BLASTED ANOTHER THREE-RUN HOMER IN THE EIGHTH!!!  That made it three homers and NINE RBI on the day!!!  I'm pretty sure that's the record high for the season.

Winning Pitcher - Jamie Cocanower
Losing Pitcher - Bert Blyleven
Player of the Game - Bill Schroeder, 4-5, 3HR's, 9RBI, 3R's
Hall of Famers in the Game - Robin Yount, Bert Blyleven

May 29, 1984 - 600 games!!!

Milestones are fun markers through this looong 1984 playback.  And we've hit another one!  That's right - 600 games played.  I can't believe I simulated 600 games...and that I'm not even a third of the way through the season!  As always, thanks for stopping by and reading the recaps.  On to the games...

Game #599 - Milwaukee Brewers, 4 @ Cleveland Indians, 2

Dion James continued his torrid play in this tangle with Cleveland.  He scored the second run of the game when Robin Yount doubled him home in the third.  In the fourth inning he hit a single with two on and two outs to pick up three RBI, and then added a double in the ninth.

Bob McClure darted in and out of trouble, allowing six hits but four walks in six innings.  Rollie Fingers pitched one and a third innings to pick up the save.

Winning Pitcher - Bob McClure
Losing Pitcher - Rick Sutcliffe
Save - Rollie Fingers
Player of the Game - Dion James
Hall of Famers in the Game - Robin Yount, Rollie Fingers

Game #600 - Detroit Tigers, 13 @ Oakland A's, 2

It seemed only fitting that the 600th game in Statis Pro was played by the real life world champs in 1984, the Detroit Tigers.  They didn't wilt in the spotlight, putting up an eight-spot in the fourth inning that included homers from Darrell Evans, Larry Herndon, and Chet Lemon.  Jack Morris pitched into he eighth while whiffing six A's.

Winning Pitcher - Jack Morris
Losing Pitcher - Steve McCatty
Player of the Game - Chet Lemon, 3-5, 2 2Bs, HR, 4RBI, 3R's
Hall of Famers in the Game - Rickey Henderson, Joe Morgan

May 27, 1984 - Doubleheader Madness

We had a twin bill between Cleveland and Toronto, and they were two highly entertaining affairs!

Game #583 - Cleveland Indians, 6 @ Toronto Blue Jays, 5

The Blue Jays jumped to a quick two-run lead in the bottom of the first when Damaso Garcia launched his first homer of the season, plating Lloyd Moseby in the process.  They scored two more in the fourth when Tony Fernandez tripled home Rance Mulliniks and Willie Aikens singled Fernandez home two batters later.

The score was 4-1 after seven, which was when Dave Stieb got lifted.  So began the Cleveland comeback!  Jimmy Key gave up three runs in the eighth, including a two-RBI double by George Vukovich.  In the top of the ninth, with the score now tied, Dennis Lamp gave up three straight singles but it was a Jorge Bell outfield error that allowed Pat Tabler and Mike Hargrove to score on the third hit.

With a two-run lead Mike Jeffcoat came in to face the lefty heavy top of the Toronto lineup.  But he too permitted three singles, the third scoring Garcia.  Ernie Camacho had to come in and induce a double play from the bat of Garth Iorg to end the game.

Winning Pitcher - Luis Aponte
Losing Pitcher - Dennis Lamp
Save - Ernie Camacho
Player of the Game - George Vukovich, 2-5, 2B, 2RBI

Game #584 - Cleveland Indians, 9 @ Toronto Blue Jays, 10 (12 innings!!!)

A Cliff Johnson solo homer in the second and two more Toronto runs in the third gave the Blue Jays a 3-0 lead to start off game two of the doubleheader.  But Cleveland literally walked back into the game when Doyle Alexander surrendered an uncharacteristic four walks in a four-run fourth.

Toronto tied the game in the seventh when Cliff Johnson drove home Damaso Garcia, who was one of two Blue Jays hitters to get plunked by Neal Heaton in the inning.  The game stayed knotted 4-4 after nine, so it was on to extra innings - free baseball!!!

After two games and extra frames, Jim Gott was the last arm left in the Toronto bullpen.  He promptly got TORCHED in the top of the tenth.  Clevenad put five runs on the board, including home runs from Andre Thornton and Carmelo Castillo.  With a five run lead, surely the Indians had secured victory, right....?

...WRONG!  Cleveland gave up five runs in the bottom of the tenth!  Everything went wrong.  Roy Smith, appearing in his first game on the season, gave up five hits, a balk, and suffered a Julio Franco error that put the Blue Jays right back into the game.  Pat Tabler had another error, allowing Rick Leach to score and tie things up.  Unbelievable!!!

Jim Gott got out of both jams he created in the top of the eleventh and twelfth to bring Toronto up in the bottom half of inning number twelve.  That's when George Frazier came in, also the last arm left for Cleveland.  With one out, Dave Collins and late-inning replacement Fred Manrique both singled to bring up Lloyd Moseby with two on.  And Moseby...DOUBLED!  WALK OFF WIN AFTER COMING BACK FROM A FIVE RUN DEFICIT IN THE TENTH!!!

Winning Pitcher - Jim Gott (!)
Losing Pitcher - George Frazier
Player of the Game - Lloyd Moseby, 2-6, SAC, 2 2Bs, 2RBI, R

May 26, 1984 - Last Game of the Week

Game #571 - Cleveland Indians, 4 @ Toronto Blue Jays, 10

Rick Sutcliffe and Luis Leal were in a race for worst pitching performance in the last game of the week.  In the bottom of the first Cliff Johnson launched a three run homer as the Blue Jays totaled four in the inning.  In the top of the second Indians catcher Jerry Willard deposited a Leal pitch over the right field wall for three RBI of his own, bringing the Indians within a run of tying it up.

In the third, though, Willie Upshaw took the game over.  With Jorge Bell and Cliff Johnson on base, he ripped a bases-clearing triple.  In the seventh he added a three-run homer off George Frazier and Toronto ended the game with one in the win column.

Winning Pitcher - Luis Leal
Losing Pitcher - Rick Sutcliffe
Player of the Game - Willie Upshaw, 2-3, BB, 3B, HR, 5RBI