May 12, 1984 - Five For Fighting

Game #409 - Boston Red Sox, 0 @ Kansas City Royals, 5

Darryl Motley has been one of the worst starters in Statis Pro so far, but he was a big contributor in this game.  He launched a two run homer in the first to give KC the early lead.  The Royals would tack on three more runs in the seventh thanks in part to a pinch hit home run by Jorge Orta.  Meanwhile, Bud Black dominated the Red Sox hitters while tossing a shutout.

Winning Pitcher - Bud Black
Losing Pitcher - Bob Ojeda
Player of the Game - Black, CG SHO, 5H's, 3K's
Hall of Famers in the Game:  Wade Boggs, Jim Rice

Game #410 - Minnesota Twins, 3 @ Milwaukee Brewers, 5

This was the second game in a series between two of the worst teams in the American League so far.  The Brew Crew scored first in the bottom of the third.  Dion James doubled home Ted Simmons.  Minnesota responded in the fourth.  Tim Teufel hit his first triple of the year, and Gary Gaetti later knocked him in.

A two-out error by Don Sutton in the sixth, his second of the game, led to two more runs for the Twins.  But in the bottom of the seventh, Twins starter John Butcher self-destructed.  He allowed four straight singles before being lifted in favor of Len Whitehouse.  Whitehouse would hit a batter and then give up a bases loaded double to Cecil Cooper to secure the victory for Milwaukee.

Winning Pitcher - Don Sutton
Losing Pitcher - John Butcher
Save - Rollie Fingers
Player of the Game - Cecil Cooper, 2-4, 2B, 2RBI's
Hall of Famers in the Game - Kirby Puckett, Don Sutton, Rollie Fingers

May 12, 1984 - Happy Memorial Day

Happy Memorial Day in the present, not 1984.  My dad served in the Air Force for the first 14 years of my life.  He finished his service by recruiting for the Air Force Academy for years.  I grew up on military bases and have a special place in my heart for this holiday.

Game #407 - Toronto Blue Jays, 15 @ Cleveland Indians, 8

Can I make a small confession?  I screwed up this game.  The Indians batted around in the third inning.  In the top of the fourth, I started at the top of their line up (Brett Butler) instead of the number eight hitter (Jerry Willard), who was supposed to have batted next.  I didn't catch it until I was recording the stats.  I know I should have erased the last six innings and started again, but after 23 combined runs and seven combined relief pitchers, I took the lazy way out.  Theoretically, it should have helped the Indians anyway, and they still lost.  Please don't think less of me!

Winning Pitcher - Bryan Clark
Losing Pitcher - Steve Farr
Player of the Game - Alfredo Griffin, 3-5, HR(!), 5RBI

Game #408 - California Angels, 4 @ Detroit Tigers, 3

With the Blue Jays winning the previous game, the Tigers were under increased pressure to keep pace in the AL East.  Unfortunately, Juan Berenguer didn't have his best stuff.  He gave up a solo homer in the second to Reggie Jackson, and a RBI double to Fred Lynn in the third.  Ruppert Jones of Detroit grounded into a double play in the fourth, but it plated Kirk Gibson in the process, cutting the California lead to one.  But in the top of the sixth Jackson went yard again off Berenguer, and the Tigers couldn't complete a comeback victory.

Winning Pitcher - Ron Romanick
Losing Pitcher - Juan Berenguer
Save - Don Aase
Player of the Game - Reggie Jackson, 2-4, 2HRs, 3RBI
Hall of Famers in the Game - Rod Carew, Reggie Jackson

May 12, 1984 - Dry Spells

It's been quite some time since posting, and even longer since playing Statis Pro.  Sometimes we get stuck in seasons of life where personal recreation takes a back seat to more important roles...like husband, father, employee, etc.  I'm hoping to get back on tracks soon!

In the meantime, here are a couple of games I completed a few weeks ago:

Game #405 - Oakland A's, 8 @ Baltimore Orioles, 5 (12 innings)

With two outs in the top of the 12th, Mark Brown hit Dave Kingman, walked Bruce Bochte, gave up a double to Mike Heath, and a single to Tony Phillips.  The Orioles loaded the bases with two outs, but Tim Conroy got Rick Dempsey to ground out to end the game.

Winning Pitcher - Larry Sorensen
Losing Pitcher - Mark Brown
Save - Tim Conroy
Player of the Game - Dave Kingman, 4-5, 2HR's, 3R's, 2RBI's
Hall of Famers in the Game - Rickey Henderson, Joe Morgan, Cal Ripken, Eddie Murray

Game #406 - Texas Rangers, 1 @ Chicago White Sox, 6

Rich Dotson only surrendered three hits, but added five walks over 6 2/3 innings.  Texas only plated one run, because they are the worst team in the AL this season.

Winning Pitcher - Rich Dotson
Losing Pitcher - Dickie Noles
Player of the Game - Greg Luzinski, 3-4, HR, RBI