June 16, 1984 - Slim Margins of Victory

Game #815 - Minnesota Twins, 7 @ Kansas City Royals, 6

The Twins posted two runs in the top of the first inning thanks in part to a U.L. Washington error.  Darrell Brown was able to knock in both of those runs on a bases-loaded single.  Minnesota got a third run of starter Mark Gubicza in the third thanks to a rare hit from DH Pat Putnam.

Kansas City even things in the bottom of the fifth, though, when Hall of Famer George Brett blasted a three-run bomb off John Butcher.  The score stayed tied 3-3 until the bottom of the seventh.  That's when Willie Wilson doubled home Washington and Brett launched his second homer of the day!

With a three run lead the Royals looked like they had won...BUT THAT'S WHY YOU PLAY THE GAME!!!  The Twinkies erupted for a four-run inning off reliever Joe Beckwith, sending eight hitters to the plate who dinked and doinked him for the damage and the win.

Winning Pitcher - Rick Lysander
Losing Pitcher - Joe Beckwith
Save - Len Whitehouse
Player of the Game - Darrell Brown, 2-5, 3RBI
Hall of Famers in the Game - George Brett

Game #816 - Detroit Tigers, 1 @ Milwaukee Brewers, 0

Pitcher's duel alert!!!

In the top of the second inning Chet Lemon lead off with a solo homer off Chuck Porter...and that would be the only run of the game.  Porter would pitch into the eighth, where Tom Tellmann took over, while recording 7 punch-outs.

Milt Wilcox was just as good, if not better.  He scattered five hits and two walks across seven innings and the Brew Crew only ever had one runner reach third base.  Willie Hernandez came on for the last two innings to preserve the shutout and victory.

Winning Pitcher - Milt Wilcox
Losing Pitcher - Chuck Porter
Save - Willie Hernandez
Player of the Game - Wilcox, 7IP, 5H's, 5K's, 2BB's, 0R's
Hall of Famers in the Game - Alan Trammell, Robin  Yount

June 16, 1984 - Flying in a "V" Formation

Game #813 - Philadelphia Phillies, 6 @ Chicago Cubs, 5

Yet another game where I couldn't pilot the Cubs to victory...

It was a scoreless game until the top of the second inning.  That's when Ozzie Virgil doubled home Tim Corcoran, and Virgil later scored when Juan Samuel hit an RBI sacrifice fly.

The Cubs took the lead in the bottom of the third when Charles Hudson surrendered an RBI to Cubs pitcher Dickie Noles, whose bloop hit caused Ivan DeJesus and Greg Gross to crash into each other, knocking both out of the game and putting them on the DL.  Ryne Sandberg plated another two three batters later to give Chicago a 3-2 lead.

It stayed that score until the top of the sixth.  Luis Aguayo led off with a solo homer (in the game in place of DeJesus) and later in the inning Joe Lefebvre hit a two-run dong of his own.  That made it 5-3 Phillies.  Philadelphia never relinquished the lead after that, thought they sent their third player to the DL when Tim Corcoran hurt his hand on a line drive catch.

Winning Pitcher - Charles Hudson
Losing Pitcher - Dickie Noles
Save - Al Holland
Player of the Game - Ozzie Virgil, 2-4, 2B, RBI, 3R's
Hall of Famers in the Game - Mike Schmidt, Ryne Sandberg, Lee Smith

Happy Trails...Dickie Noles

Dickie Noles started this game, his only start of the year for Chicago, thus completing his season for the Cubbies.  Don't worry, you haven't seen the last of him.  In the real 1984 he got traded to the Rangers, where I currently have him on their active roster.  Don't ask me how he can be pitching for two teams at the same time...

Let's compare the Dickies!

Statis Pro 1984 - 1-2, 6.05 ERA, 1.50 WHIP, 4.40 FIP, 30K's
The Real 1984 - 2-2, 5.15 ERA, 1.50 WHIP, 4.25 FIP, 14K's

If you go by WHIP and FIP, those are two very similar seasons.  Statis Pro Noles got tagged for more runs, though.  But he also doubled his strikeouts in fewer innings pitched.  Funny enough, Statis Pro Noles also recorded two hits, which didn't happen in the real 1984.  We'll see you down in Arlington, Dickie!

Game #814 - Los Angeles Dodgers, 10 @ Houston Astros, 1

Dial up the Fernandomania, because Valenzuela had himself a game.  He wasn't super dominant on the mound, but he scratched through eight innings by spreading eight hits and two walks, only allowing one run to cross the plate.  He really shined in the batter's box.  He went 2-4 with a double and home run!

Other Dodgers shone too.  Mike Scioscia scored three runs out of the lead-off spot and Mike Marshall homered from the cleanup spot.  Terry Whitfield had a nice game too, going 3-4 with a walk and a RBI.

Winning Pitcher - Fernando Valenzuela
Losing Pitcher - Mike Scott
Player of the Game - Fernando Valenzuela

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 - Shutty

We've got ourselves three straight games of shutouts to end the day!  Somewhat unusual...

Game #809 - New York Mets, 9 @ St. Louis Cardinals, 0

Ron Darling had the Cardinals on lock-down for the entire game.  St. Louis only managed to put more than one runner on base at a time twice in nine frames, and both times Darling escaped the jam.

Kurt Kepshire, meanwhile, had his worst game of the year.  A surprise top performer this season, he only completed four innings before being chased off in the top of the fifth.  Mookie Wilson was a big nemesis on the day, falling short of the cycle without a double but with a two-run homer and a triple to pair with a single and walk.  Darryl Strawberry added two doubles himself as every non-pitching Mets starter recorded at least one hit.

Winning Pitcher - Ron Darling
Losing Pitcher - Kurt Kepshire
Player of the Game - Darling, CG SHO, 6H's, BB, 4K's
Hall of Famers in the Game - Ozzie Smith

Game #810 - Boston Red Sox, 0 @ Toronto Blue Jays, 13

There were four - FOUR - bean balls in this affair.  I know one of you faithful readers pointed out a way to simulate a benches clearing brawl a couple of years back, I need to go and find that.  Could be fun to spice it up.

Cliff Johnson had himself a day.  He homered in the bottom of the first to give Toronto the only lead they'd need on the day.  Then he singled home a run the third to make it 3-0.  He made it to the plate twice in the sixth, walking the first time and then clearing loaded bases with a double in his second at-bat.  He was a triple shy of the cycle.  Scroll to the bottom of this entry to see a hilarious video I saw a few years back and have been waiting patiently to include if/when Johnson was ever Player of the Game again.

Jim Clancy was worth of praise two.  He tossed the shutout and only gave up four hits and walk to go along with his five K's.

Winning Pitcher - Jim Clancy
Losing Pitcher - Bob Ojeda
Player of the Game - Cliff Johnson, 3-4, 2B, HR, 3R's, 6RBI, BB
Hall of Famers in the Game - Wade Boggs, Jim Rice


This was the last game for June 15th - the stats on the sidebars have been updated!

June 15, 1984 - Craziest Game of the Year? Plus Tanana too..

Game #807 - San Francisco Giants, 13 @ San Diego Padres, 14 (10 innings!)

We've got a front runner for the craziest game of the year, so I'm going to do an inning by inning recap:

1st - Al Oliver doubled home Jack Clark in the top of the first but a pair of two run homers by Carmelo Martinez and Graig Nettles gave the Padres a 4-1 lead

2nd - no scoring.

3rd - Chris Brown singled home Jeff Leonard, cutting the lead to 4-2.

4th - A Nettles fielding error allows Manny Trillo to score, now it's just a one run lead for the Padres, 4-3.

5th - A Jack Clark solo homer and back to back doubles by Oliver and Brown give the Giants a sudden 6-4 lead!

6th - RBI singles by Tony Gwynn and Martinez knot the game back up!  6-6.

7th - Solid reliever Greg Booker gives up an unexpected three runs in the top of the inning, but Frank Williams gives up four in the bottom of the frame and the Padres are back out in front, 10-9.

8th - Bob Brenly solo homers off Goose Gossage to tie the game, but Nettles responds with his own tater to keep San Diego out front, 11-10.

9th - Gossage implodes in the top of the ninth, including surrendering four straight singles at one point, giving the Giants a two-run lead with their ace reliever, Gary Lavelle, on the mound for the save.  But Kevin McReynolds records his lone hit of the day, a two-run bomb, to tie the game and force things into extra innings!

10th - The Padres last available reliever, Jose DeLeon, strikes out the side in the top of the 10th.  Scott Garrelts loads the bases before giving up the game-winning single to Bobby Brown - walk-off win for the Padres!!!

Winning Pitcher - Jose Deleon
Losing Pitcher - Scott Garrelts
Player of the Game - Bobby Brown, 2-2, R, GWRBI
Hall of Famers in the Game - Tony Gwynn, Goose Gossage

Game #808 - Texas Rangers, 9 @ Seattle Mariners, 0

The Mariners laid a big ol' egg in this one.  Frank Tanana went the distance for a shutout, and only faced three batters over the minimum thanks to five double plays by his defense.  Only two Mariners made it as far as second base on the day.

Meanwhile, the Rangers offense was paced by Wayne Tolleson, who recorded two triples and three runs.  Buddy Bell and George Wright each chipped in with three RBI.

Winning Pitcher - Frank Tanana
Losing Pitcher - Matt Young
Player of the Game - Tanana, CG SHO, 4K's, 3H's, 4BB's

June 15, 1984 - Summer Break

Friends...my goodness, it's been too long.  I apologize.  I must confess, though, the posts will be a lot more erratic moving forward.  This summer I started an Ed.D. program and now my free time is spent reading journal articles and swearing about APA formatting.  I squeezed a couple of games in recently, so here we go...

Game #805 - Baltimore Orioles, 4 @ New York Yankees, 5

I was so pumped to play my first game in a couple of months with my beloved O's, but just like the 2019 rivalry, things didn't go well for Baltimore...

They did tag the first three runs of the game on Phil Niekro in the top of the second, though.  Rick Dempsey had an RBI fielder's choice and then Al Bumbry and Mike Young each had run-scoring base knocks.  Butch Wynegar homered in the bottom of the inning to reduce the lead to two.

Dennis Martinez had a fielding error in the third that eventually allowed Oscar Gamble to score.  But it was the fifth inning when the offense poured in three more runs.  Dave Winfield, newly off the injured list, batted home Ken Griffey and then Don Mattingly moved Winfield to third on a double.  A batter later Wynegar came up big again with a two-run single.  Jay Howell and Dave Righetti combined for 2 and 2/3 innings of relief to secure the win.

Winning Pitcher - Phil Niekro
Losing Pitcher - Dennis Martinez
Save - Dave Righetti
Player of the Game - Butch Wynegar, 2-4, HR, 3RBI, R
Hall of Famers in the Game - Cal Ripken, Eddie Murray, Dave Winfield, Phil Niekro

Game # 806 - Chicago White Sox, 5 @ Oakland A's, 8

Neither starter looked good in this one.  Curt Young started the game by allowing a double to Jerry Hairston and then a two-run tater to Harold Baines before even recording an out.  But Oakland put up a five-spot in the third, led by a Davey Lopes double and a solo homer off the bat of Dave Kingman.

Back to back doubles from Baines and Carlton Fisk tied the game in the top of the fourth, but Fisk got thrown out at home by Lopes to prevent the South Side from taking the lead.

The game was still knotted 5-5 when ace reliever Ron Reed walked two batters before facing Dwayne Murphy.  Sure enough, Murphy launched one deep into the night to give Oakland a three-run lead.  Bill Caudill was flawless in two innings of relief to save the game for the A's.

Winning Pitcher - Chris Codiroli
Losing Pitcher - Ron Reed
Save - Bill Caudill
Player of the Game - Caudill, 2IP, 2K's, 0R's, 0H's, 0BB's
Hall of Famers in the Game - Harold Baines, Carlton Fisk, Rickey Henderson

June 15, 1984 - Memorial Day

Game #803 - Detroit Tigers, 5 @ Milwaukee Brewers, 0

This post is dedicated to all who have made the ultimate sacrifice so that we have the freedom to play inconsequential games like Statis Pro.

Dave Rozema turned in one of the top pitching performances of the season in this one.  It looked good early as he struck out the side in the bottom of the first.  Cecil Cooper led off with a double in the bottom of the second and that would be the only extra base hit of the game.  By the bottom of the ninth the Brew Crew only had two hits and no walks.  With two outs Bob Clark and Jim Sundberg hit back to back singles and then Robin Yount flew out to the warning track in left to end the game.  Rozema only faced three hitters above the minimum while blanking Milwaukee.

Winning Pitcher - Dave Rozema
Losing Pitcher - Jamie Cocanower
Player of the Game - Rozema, CG SHO, 5K's, 4H's, 0BB's
Hall of Famers in the Game - Alan Trammell, Robin Yount

Game #804 - Pittsburgh Pirates, 10 @ Montreal Expos, 3

The Pirates jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the second thanks to a pair of homers from Tony Pena and Doug Frobel.  Pena scored the fourth run of the game in the fourth off a sacrifice fly from Dale Berra.

The Expos made a game of it in the bottom of the sixth.  Tim Raines led off with a triple and then Bryan Little doubled him home.  Little scored on the play after Lee Lacy booted the ball in left field.  One out later Gary Carter launched a solo bomb to close the Pittsburgh lead to one.

The Pirates cushioned their lead in the seventh, though, on RBI hits from Marvelle Wynne and Jason Thompson.  They piled on four more in the top of the ninth to turn it into a route.

Winning Pitcher - Jose DeLeon
Losing Pitcher - Bryn Smith
Save - Don Robinson
Player of the Game - Tony Pena, 3-4, 2B, HR, BB, 3R's, 2RBI
Hall of Famers in the Game - Tim Raines, Gary Carter, and Andre Dawson

June 15, 1984 - ...and I'm back!

Game #801 - Los Angeles Dodgers, 6 @ Houston Astros, 9

Sorry for the two months off, everyone!  During that time we had a major kitchen renovation to repair a slab leak and the table and area of the house I use to play my Statis Pro games became swamped with kitchen appliances during the upheaval. 

Let's catch up with this game in the top of the fourth.  The Dodgers had a 3-2 lead when Steve Yeager went yard with Greg Brock on base ahead of him, giving L.A. a three-run lead.  But Houston came roaring back in the bottom of the fifth.  Dodgers starter Jerry Reuss allowed four straight batters to reach base, including an RBI double by Jim Pankovits and an RBI triple by Bill Doran. 

The Dodgers managed to tie the game in the seventh after Terry Whitfield doubled home Pedro Guerrero.  But reliever Pat Zachry allowed two unearned runs in the seventh after a Mike Marshall fielding gaff.  Frank DiPino pitched two scoreless innings to notch the save.

Winning Pitcher - Bill Dawley
Losing Pitcher - Pat Zachry
Save - Frank DiPino
Player of the Game - Bill Doran, 4-4, 3B, BB, RBI, 2Rs

Game #802 - Minnesota Twins, 2 @ Kansas City Royals, 7

The Royals continued their climb towards first place in the AL West after a drubbing of the Twins.  Minnesota actually scored first, though, in the top of the fifth.  Consecutive fielding errors by George Brett resulted in two unearned runs.  But in the bottom half of the inning U.L. Washington singled home Pat Sheridan before back to back triples by Willie Wilson and George Brett gave K.C. the lead.  The Royals would tack on four more runs over the last third of the game to give them an easy win.

The Twins saw Kirby Puckett go down for 14 games after he dove for a ball and couldn't come up with it.

Winning Pitcher - Bret Saberhagen
Losing Pitcher - John Butcher
Player of the Game - Saberhagen, 7IP, 0ER, 2K's, 7H's
Hall of Famers in the Game - Kirby Puckett, George Brett

June 15, 1984 - 800 Games Played...Seriously!!!

Game #800 - Philadelphia Phillies, 7 @ Chicago Cubs, 3

I can hardly believe it, but I've mowed down another games played milestone.  This was the 800th game I've played in the Statis Pro season.

800.

It's weird to think about, and even weirder to think I'm 80% of the way to a thousand.  It's been a lot of flips of the ol' Fast Action Cards.

Dick Ruthven of the Cubs and Steve Carlton of the Phillies were trading goose eggs across the first four frames of the game.  In the top of the fifth, though, Juan Samuel put the first run on the board with a solo homer.  The Cubs tied it in the bottom half when Bob Dernier smoked a two-out double to plate Ron Cey.

The Cubs took a two-run lead in the bottom of the sixth on back to back RBIs from Cey and Jody Davis.  Ruthven completed the seventh inning and got pulled for a pinch hitter.  The Cubbies sent their best reliever, Warren Brusstar, to the mound to get the last six outs.

He.  Got.  SHELLED.

When the smoke cleared he allowed six runs off three homers, including a three-run job to Joe Lefebvre to give the Phillies the lead.  Yet another back breaking loss for Chicago...I can't win with them!!

Winning Pitcher - Larry Andersen
Losing Pitcher - Warren Brusstar
Player of the Game - Joe Lefebvre
Hall of Famers in the Game - Mike Schmidt, Steve Carlton, Ryne Sandberg

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 15, 1984 - Take the Long Road and Walker It

Game #798 - Cincinnati Reds, 7 @ Atlanta Braves, 2

Frank Pastore and Len Barker were the starting pitchers for this game and the first two innings were rather harmless.  But Barker got into trouble in the top of the third.  With runners on second and third Gary Redus went big-fly for a three-run homer!

A bases loaded walk to Glen Hubbard in the bottom of the fourth nipped into the Reds lead but Dave Parker drove in two more runs in the top of the fifth to extend the score to 5-1.  Duane Walker followed that up with a two-run jack in the sixth and the Braves were pretty much done after that.

Winning Pitcher - Frank Pastore
Losing Pitcher - Len Barker
Player of the Game - Duane Walker, 3-4, 2 2b's, HR, 2RBI, 3R's, BB

June 14th, 1984 - Ward of the State

Game #797 - Minnesota Twins, 3 @ Texas Rangers, 13

I can't remember if I've mentioned this before (I probably have) but I once saw Gary Ward at the Detroit Airport.  This was in the early 90's, when he was on the Tigers.  He was in a track suit deboarding a plane.  My eyes got big as saucers, he walked right past me, and that was it. 

But I've had a soft spot for him ever since.

This was game was all Ward and Mickey Rivers.  The two combined to go 9-9 with two homers, a double, six RBI and six runs.  It was quite remarkable.  Danny Darwin took a shutout into the ninth before the Twinkies finally put some runs on the board.

Winning Pitcher - Danny Darwin
Losing Pitcher - Al Williams
Player of the Game - Gary Ward
Hall of Famers in the Game - Kirby Puckett

This was the last game of June 14th - I'll work on updating the stats between now and when this posts!

June 14, 1984 - W's for the W's

Game #795 - Kansas City Royals, 7 @ Seattle Mariners, 5

Whoa Nelly, where have I even been the past month???  My apologies - life, work, and parenting have gotten in the way.  We'll see if I can't get back in a groove here for the rest of March.

A Steve Balboni RBI double in the top of the first gave the Royals an early 1-0 lead, but the Mariners tied it up in their half of the inning when Jack Perconte singled, stole second, and scampered home on a Steve Henderson hit.  They went up 2-1 in the second when Jim Pressley doubled home Al Cowens.

The tide turned again in the top of the fourth.  Ed VandeBerg got shelled for three runs by the Royals.  U.L. Washington plated two of those runs off a double.  The Royals put up another three-spot in the eighth, which proved pivotal because Seattle made a late comeback in the bottom of the eighth.  It wasn't enough as Dan Quisenberry came in to save the game.

Winning Pitcher - Charlie Liebrandt
Losing Pitcher - Ed VandeBerg
Save - Dan Quisenberry
Player of the Game - UL Washington - 3-4, 2b, R, 3RBI
Hall of Famers in the Game - George Brett

Game #796 - New York Mets, 7 @ St. Louis Cardinals, 5 (13 innings!)

The Cardinals were up 1-0 in the top of the third when the Mets put up four runs thanks to back to back homers from Darryl Strawberry and George Foster!  But the Cardinals kept chipping back and actually went up 5-4 in the fifth thanks to a two-RBI single from David Green.

Pinch-hitter Jose Oquendo singled home Mookie Wilson in the sixth to tie things up, and it would stay knotted...until the top of the 13th inning!!!  Both bullpens got used up until Jeff Lahti, working his third inning of relief, gave up a surprise two-run homer to Mookie!  Doug Sisk worked his third inning of relief to preserve the hard-earned win for the Metropolitans.

Winning Pitcher - Doug Sisk
Losing Pitcher - Jeff Lahti
Player of the Game - Mookie Wilson, 4-6, HR, 2RBI, 2SB's, 2R's
Hall of Famers in the Game - Ozzie Smith, Bruce Sutter

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 14, 1984 - Wait For It

Game #791 - Baltimore Orioles, 2 @ Milwaukee Brewers, 6

This game started as a great pitcher's duel between Mike Boddicker of the O's and Don Sutton of the Brewers.  In fact, there wasn't a single run score through the first five innings.  But in the top of the second, Jim Dwyer stroked a double to plate both Ken Singleton and John Shelby.

The Brewers finally got on the scoreboard when Jim "Gumby" Gantner launched his first homer of the year, a solo job.  Boddicker stayed on the mound until there were two outs in the eighth.  Cecil Cooper had just singled to move Dion James to third.  Sammy Stewart came in to slam the door but the unthinkable happened - Cal Ripken Jr. had errors on consecutive hitters and the flood gates opened!  The Brew Crew scored five unearned runs in the frame!  Rick Waits worked an inning and a third to record the win.

Winning Pitcher - Rick Waits
Losing Pitcher - Mike Boddicker
Player of the Game - Waits, 1.1 IP, 2Ks
Hall of Famers in the Game - Cal Ripken, Eddie Murray, Robin Yount, Don Sutton

Game #792 - Pittsburgh Pirates, 0 @ Montreal Expos, 1

The Pirates nearly scored the first (and only) run of the game in the top of the third.  John Candelaria had scored and moved to second when Lee Lacy poked a single with two outs.  The Candy Man charged for home but got gunned down by Andre Dawson.

Candelaria and Montreal starter Charlie Lea both lasted seven innings in the game without yielding a run.  The Pirates put two runners on base in the top of the ninth, but Jason Thompson and Tony Pena both grounded out to push the game into the bottom of the ninth.

Jim Winn took the mound after an inning of relief from Kent Tekulve.  He immediately walked Dawson.  Derrell Thomas lined out but Pete Rose singled and Roy Johnson walked to load the bases for Mike Ramsey.  Ramsey...singled!  WALK-OFF!!!

Winning Pitcher - Dan Schatzeder
Losing Pitcher - Jim Winn (ironic)
Player of the Game - Mike Ramsey, 1-2, walk-off single
Hall of Famers in the Game - Tim Raines, Gary Carter, Andre Dawson

June 14, 1984 - Hall of Fame Effort

Game #789 - Philadelphia Phillies, 1 @ Chicago Cubs, 7

Tim Corcoran jumped on a Rick Reuschel fastball for a solo homer and an early 1-0 lead in the top of the first.  But the Cubs would triple that score in the bottom half with only one hit!  Jerry Koosman allowed a lead-off single to Bob Dernier and then walked Gary Matthews.  Ryne Sandberg was up next and hit a hard grounder to Juan Samuel who bobbled the play, allowing Dernier to score.  Keith Moreland was up next and hit a grounder in the infield.  Matthews charged for home and was safe on the fielder's choice.  A couple of batters later Henry Cotto hit a sacrifice fly to plate Sandberg. 

Reuschel cruised in and out of trouble through the seventh, and even had an RBI single in the fifth to extend the Cubs lead to 4-1.  Chicago added two more runs on a Sandberg homer in the sixth and the Phillies never threatened after that.

Winning Pitcher - Rick Reuschel
Losing Pitcher - Jerry Koosman
Player of the Game - Ryne Sandberg, 2-4, HR, 2RBI, 2Rs, BB
Hall of Famers in the Game - Mike Schmidt, Ryne Sandberg

Game #790 - Los Angeles Dodgers, 1 @ Houston Astros, 2

Nolan Ryan and Rick Honeycutt both looked good early, but especially Ryan.  The first five outs of the game for the Dodgers were all K's and Ryan had nine through four innings!  I thought we could be approaching Roger Clemens/Kerry Wood territory but Nolan let off the gas a bit after that.

The Dodgers scored first in the top of the fifth thanks to an RBI double by Pedro Guerrero.  But Houston responded by scratching out two runs in their half of the inning on RBI singles from Bill Doran and Jerry Mumphrey...

...and that would be all the offense on the day!  Ryan lasted seven innings while Dave Smith pitched two innings of relief for the win.

Winning Pitcher - Nolan Ryan
Losing Pitcher - Rick Honeycutt
Save - Dave Smith
Player of the Game - Ryan, 7IP, R, 11K's
Hall of Famers in the Game - Nolan Ryan

June 14, 1984 - Backups to the Rescue

Game #787 - New York Yankees, 6 @ Boston Red Sox, 3

New York scored twice in the top of the second inning off starter Bruce Hurst.  Roy Smalley hit a sacrifice fly to plate Brian Dayett and Tim Foli (playing for the injured Willie Randolph) doubled home Ken Griffey.

The Yankees picked up another run in the third when Bobby Meacham hit a solo homer, but the Red Sox picked up two runs in the bottom of the third.  Jim Rice singled to bring home Dwight Evans, and then Rice scored on a Tony Armas triple.  That made it 3-2 in favor of the Yankees.

It stayed that way until the top of the eighth.  Smalley and Foli had back to back hits that led to three runs to pad the New York lead.  Armas would homer in the eighth but that's as close as the Red Sox got.

Winning Pitcher - Roy Fontenot
Losing Pitcher - Bruce Hurst
Player of the Game - Tim Foli, 3-3, 2 2B's, BB, RBI, R
Hall of Famers in the Game - Wade Boggs, Jim Rice

Game #788 - Chicago White Sox, 3 @ California Angels, 7

This game was over almost as soon as it started.  In the bottom of the first LaMarr Hoyt gave up four runs; two on a homer by Fred Lynn and the other two on a double to Rob Wilfong.

Doug DeCinces added a two-RBI triple in the second to extend the California lead to 6-0.  Wilfong (getting increased playing time with Bobby Grich on the DL) added a solo homer in the fifth.

Chicago finally got three runs off Geoff Zahn later in the game but it was too little, too late. 

Winning Pitcher - Geoff Zahn
Losing Pitcher - LaMarr Hoyt
Player of the Game - Rob Wilfong, 4-4, 2B, HR, 3RBI, R
Hall of Famers in the Game - Carlton Fisk, Harold Baines, Rod Carew, Reggie Jackson

June 14, 1984 - Mahler Delivers

Game #786 - Cincinnati Reds, 1 @ Atlanta Braves, 5

Atlanta opened the scoring in the bottom of the first with lead-off, back to back doubles by Glenn Hubbard and Claudell Washington for the early 1-0 lead. 

The Reds managed to tie the game in the top of the fourth.  Wayne Krenchicki hit a solo homer off Rick Mahler.  Mahler sure settled down after that, though!  He retired the next 14 hitters in a row.  I also had him batting sixth in the lineup since he hit in the .290's in the real 1984.  He went 2-4 with a double!

The Braves went back out in front in the bottom of the fourth with an RBI double by Jerry Royster, who is subbing at shortstop for the injure Rafael Ramirez.  But the sixth inning was the major turning point for Atlanta.  They plated three more runs, including a rare solo homer from Bruce Bennedict.  Mahler went the distance for a complete game win.

Winning Pitcher - Rick Mahler
Losing Pitcher - Joe Price
Player of the Game - Mahler

June 13, 1984 - Tigers Clawing Towards First

Game #785 - Detroit Tigers, 14 @ Toronto Blue Jays, 11

You read that right - 14 to 11.  I think the pitchers were throwing underhand like a softball game...

The game was scoreless until the top of the second.  The Blue Jays had Doyle Alexander on the mound and he might be having the best season in Statis Pro.  But lil' Tom Brookens ripped a triple to plate Lance Parrish and Howard Johnson.  Whitaker then knocked in Brookens.

Alexander gave up solo homers to Chet Lemon and Lance Parrish in the third but the Blue Jays scored four in the fourth to cut the lead to one for Detroit.  Dave Collins hit a triple to plate two in that sequence.  Alexander gave up another home run, this time for two runs to Larry Herndon in the top of the fifth and finally got lifted.  His replacement, Jim Acker, gave up a solo job to Brookens and the Tigers were back up 8-4.

But the Blue Jays wouldn't give up!  After Willie Hernandez pitched three scoreless innings in relief of a short start by Dan Petry, Doug Bair took the mound and got rocked.  Toronto sent ten batters to the plate in the sixth and by the end of it the game was tied at eight apiece.

An RBI single by Lou Whitaker and a bases loaded walk to Darrell Evans in the seventh gave Detroit the lead again, but Ernie Whitt hit a solo homer in the bottom half of the frame and the Tigers were clinging to a one run lead.  But in the bottom of the eighth Roger Mason had a runner on base with two outs when Jorge Bell came to the plate.  HOME.  RUN.  Toronto finally had a one run lead!

The top of the ninth saw Jimmy Key take the mound hoping to preserve the lead.  He hasn't been good this Statis Pro season and his bad luck continued.  He gave up back to back doubles to Barbaro Garbey and Whitaker and the game was tied.  Alan Trammell singled to push Sweet Lou to third and bring up Evans.  Evans sent a ball deep into the right field bleachers and Detroit retook the lead by three runs!  Mason retired the side in the bottom of the ninth to go from the losing pitcher to the winner.

With that win the Tigers are now just a game and a half behind Toronto for first in the AL East!

Winning Pitcher - Roger Mason
Losing Pitcher - Jimmy Key
Player of the Game - Darrell Evans, 2-4, HR, 4RBI, 2 BB's
Hall of Famers in the Game - Alan Trammell

June 13, 1984 - AL West End Boys

Game #783 - Kansas City Royals, 7 @ Seattle Mariners, 11

Seattle jumped to an early 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first thanks to a two-run homer from red-hot rookie Alvin Davis.  They added another two runs in the second thanks to consecutive RBI hits from the Henderson boys (Dave and Steve).  Frank White managed to score after a triple in the top of the third, but another Seattle run in the fourth had them at a 5-1 lead.

Kansas City came roaring back in the fourth.  A Larry Milbourne error allowed Don Slaught to score and then, with two runners on, Darryl Motley crushed a homer to tie the game!

White hit a solo shot in the sixth to give the Royals their first lead but reliever Joe Beckwith surrendered that lead in the seventh.  It was still tied until the eighth when Steve "Bye-Bye" Balboni blasted a solo homer to give the Royals the lead yet again.

In the bottom of the ninth Beckwith walked the first to batters and then George Brett booted an easy grounder to load the bases with nobody out.  Al Cowens walked to tie the game but KC got two outs while keeping the bases loaded to bring up Bob Kearney for the Mariners.  All he did was HIT A WALK-OFF GRAND SLAM FOR THE WIN!!!!

Winning Pitcher - Don Geisel
Losing Pitcher - Joe Beckwith
Player of the Game - Bob Freakin' Kearney
Hall of Famers in the Game - George Brett

Game #784 - Minnesota Twins, 7 @ Texas Rangers, 4

The Twins hit three straight doubles off Mike Moore to give themselves a quick 2-0 lead in the top of the first.  Kent Hrbek hit his second RBI double of the game in the third to push that lead to 3-0.  Tom Brunansky added a two-run homer in the sixth to go up by five.

The Rangers attempted a comeback in the bottom of the sixth.  Ed Hodge gave up back to back solo homers to Pete O'Brien and Larry Parrish.  They also scored twice in the eighth but that was as close as they could get with the Minnesota offense scoring once in the eighth and ninth.

Winning Pitcher - Ed Hodge
Losing Pitcher - Dave Stewart
Save - Rick Lysander
Player of the Game - Kent Hrbek, 3-3, 2 2B's, 2RBI, 2BB's, 2R's