TWISP Notes #72

a
TWISP Notes
January 11, 2020

• In the August 20th game against the Yankees at the Kingdome in Seattle, M’s second baseman Julio Cruz stole his 91st base of the season, a sixth-inning theft of second off NY pitcher Bob Kammeyer, leaving him just five short of tying Ty Cobb’s AL record of 96.

• Steve Garvey and Reggie Smith of the Dodgers connected for two home runs apiece in LA’s 11-2 win over the Mets at Los Angeles. The four round-trippers came at the expense of four different New York pitchers: Nino Espinosa, Paul Siebert, Dwight Bernard, and Dale Murray. It was the first time this season two NL players on the same team had connected for two HR’s in the same game; Ben Oglivie and Gorman Thomas of the Brewers accomplished the feat in the AL on July 1st at Seattle.

• The Blue Jays have lost six games in a row, while the Mariners and Red Sox have lost five.

• A new location was added to the long list of SP78 games-hosted sites, as two games were played in November at the newly-christened NM5, my friend Steve P’s apartment in Las Cruces, New Mexico. In the first game, the visiting Reds defeated the Steve-led Cubs 6-4, while Steve took Game 2 the next day with a 13-2 Cardinals win over the Braves.

• With first place in the NL East now in their sights, the Pirates called up starter Odell Jones and reliever Clay Carroll from their AAA affiliate in Columbus, hoping to bolster their pitching staff for the stretch run. To make room for the pair, the Bucs sent utility infielder Mario Mendoza and pitcher Dave Hamilton to the Columbus.

• Detroit second baseman Lou Whitaker, who’s been practicing with members of the University of Michigan baseball team in Ann Arbor, is set to return to the major leagues from his two-month suspension on August 23rd, when the Tigers travel home after a five-game road trip to meet the Blue Jays in a twi-night doubleheader at Tiger Stadium. Whitaker, who last played on June 10th, is slated to make his comeback in the second game of the Wednesday night twinbill.

• A’s outfielder Glenn Burke was injured when he crashed into the center field wall at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on Sunday, while chasing a long drive off the bat of Red Sox designated hitter Jack Brohamer, which dropped for a triple. Burke left the game with a serious shoulder injury, and will likely be placed on the disabled list on August 21st.

• In New York’s 9-7 win over Seattle on August 20th, the teams combined for six home runs, with Yankees outfielder Gary Thomasson connecting for his second career grand slam, off M’s starter Paul Mitchell in the fourth.

• In need of left-handed relief pitching, the Blue Jays recalled Mike Willis from Syracuse of the International League yesterday; also recalled was outfielder Willie Upshaw, currently batting .328 for the Chiefs. On the same day, Jays pitcher Dave Wallace and outfielder Sam Ewing were both sent down to Syracuse.

• Against the Blue Jays on August 20th, Twins reliever Mike Marshall earned his 20th save of the season in a 5-3 Minnesota win; it was the first time he’d collected twenty saves since 1974, when he played for the Dodgers and won the NL Cy Young Award.

Fans! Be there for the SP78 40th Anniversary celebration on August 22nd,
when the Cardinals take on the Reds at Riverfront Stadium!

 

Tensions Run High as Cards Crush Braves 13-2

With the Cardinals putting the game away in the seventh with an eight-run explosion, an already tension-filled match-up between two last-place teams became even more strained when a teenage baserunner took matters into his own hands, hammering a final unapologetic nail into the Braves coffin and helping the Cards to a 13-2 rout at Busch Memorial Stadium in St Louis.

Things were quiet enough throughout the first few innings, with Atlanta building a 2-0 lead thanks to an RBI double from Biff Pocoroba in the second and a solo home run from Gary Matthews in the fourth. But St Louis countered in the bottom of the fourth, thanks in part to a pair of errors—by starting pitcher Eddie Solomon and second baseman Jerry Royster—and a passed ball by catcher Pocoroba, which helped three runners to cross the plate. Two harmless innings followed, with the Cards still holding a 3-2 advantage…and then everything went horrifically south for the Braves.

To read more about the game, make comments, and see a few photos, click here.

August Injury Report – Week 2

The following is a list of injuries to players which occurred between August 8th and August 15th of the the SP78 season, with injuries noted by date, team, player, and number of days or weeks missed.

August 8th

LA:  While sitting in the dugout talking with pitching coach Red Adams, relief pitcher Charlie Hough was struck on the arm by a foul line drive off the bat of Padres shortstop Ozzie Smith, the second batter of the game. Hough was not hurt, but for precautionary reasons, he was not used in the game, and would be cleared to play the following day.

CLE: In the first inning of their game against the Red Sox, Indians batter Jim Norris was struck on his right elbow by a pitch from Luis Tiant; he was replaced by a pinch-runner and left the game. X-rays showed no breaks or fractures, but Norris would miss four more games due to numbness in the elbow and arm.

August 9th

SF: During pre-game warm-ups, outfielder Larry Herndon pulled a thigh muscle while running wind sprints and would not participate in that afternoon’s contest. He would return to action the following day.

August 10th

OAK: In the second inning of their game against the Angels at Anaheim, A’s rookie Dell Alston ran into first baseman Ron Jackson while rounding the bag after his base hit, and left the game with an unspecified injury. He would miss seven games with what would later be classified as ‘lower body trauma’.

CAL: In the same game, Angels outfielder Lyman Bostock was injured chasing a shallow fly ball off the bat of A’s slugger Rico Carty, a violent collision that again involved first baseman Ron Jackson. Bostock would be lost for a week due to minor head injuries and dizziness, while Jackson was unhurt and remained in the game. It was Bostock’s fourth injury of the SP78 season, good for 22 games missed.

August 13th

NY-N: Another collision between a team’s first baseman and right fielder occurred in a match-up between the Cardinals and Mets at Shea Stadium; in the seventh, a routine fly to right by Dane Iorg fell for a double when Mets outfielder Elliott Maddox slammed into first baseman Willie Montanez, knocking both men to the ground. Montanez was not injured, but Maddox had to be helped off the field, and would be placed on the 15-day disabled list the following day due to a severe neck sprain.

SF: In the sixth inning of a Giants-Dodgers game at Dodger Stadium, Giants reliever Charlie Williams faced just one batter, walking Lee Lacy on four pitches, before signaling to manager Joe Altobelli that he needed to be taken out. He’d go on the 15-DL the next day, suffering from back spasms.

August 14th

CHI-N: Once again, a first baseman and a right fielder collided while chasing a fly ball, sending one man to the disabled list: Bill Buckner, who had settled under a pop-up from Braves batter Darrel Chaney, but never made the play when outfielder Jerry White crashed into him from behind, allowing the ball to drop as both fielders crumbled to the grass. Only Buckner left the game; he was placed on the 15-day DL with what the Cubs team physician described as ‘slight damage and contusions to the back and neck’.

MIN: In one of the more unlikely injuries of the season, Twins starter Gary Serum left the game against the Indians after just 1.1 innings pitched, due to the after-affects of food poisoning. He’d been stricken a few days earlier, and had felt well enough to make the start, but the exertion of pitching just one inning drained him of all energy, and he quickly became both exhausted and nauseated. He would miss one more start before feeling ready to pitch again.

August 15th

HOU: In his first day back after coming off the disabled list, outfielder Denny Walling pulled a calf muscle while taking his cuts during pre-game batting practice, and sat out that day’s game against the Cardinals. He returned to action—albeit as a pinch-hitter—the following day.

MON: Lance Parrish joined the growing list of players running into first basemen after base hits, doing so in the fourth inning of Montreal’s game against the Giants at Olympic Stadium. Parrish would depart for a pinch-runner and would miss the next three games with a knee injury, the result of falling to the stadium’s hard artificial turf after the collision. Mike Ivie, the recipient of Parrish’s wayward impact, remained in the game.

NY-N:  First baseman Willie Montanez was out for three games after chasing a foul off the bat of Padres batter Jerry Turner at Shea Stadium and stumbling into the home dugout, where he twisted his left ankle. X-rays were negative.

SEA: M’s shortstop Craig Reynolds collided with left fielder Tom Paciorek during their game against the Orioles at the Kingdome in Seattle; Reynolds was the only player hurt, and left the game with a strained shoulder. The injury was severe enough to land him on the 15-day disabled list.

TWISP Notes #71

a
TWISP Notes
October 1, 2019

• LA starter Doug Rau was forced to leave the August 19th game against the Mets in the second inning with what Dodgers pitching coach Red Adams called ‘stiffness in his left shoulder’. Rau has been listed as day-to-day, but will likely miss his next start.

• With the Blue Jays extra-inning loss to the Twins on Saturday, which saw them without a left-handed reliever when the Twins sent four left-handed batters to the plate in the extra frame to win it, Toronto manager Roy Hartsfield will be looking to Syracuse for a southpaw to add to his all-righty bullpen. The likely candidate is Mike Willis, who in 17 games with the Jays earlier this season was 0-0 with one save and an unfortunate 7.64 ERA.

• The resurgent Pirates have suddenly found themselves in second place in the NL East, having won 10 of their last 13, which included three wins in a four-game series against the division-leading Phillies. For the moment, however, the Phils can rest easy; the Bucs are still 14½ games back.

• With voting on Tigers second baseman Lou Whitaker’s return to major league action stalling at 13 votes (11 for his return, and two for keeping him suspended), the commissioner’s office will now make a decision regarding Whitaker’s status, taking into account the preferences of SP78 voters as well as the input of other AL team administrators. No date has been set for this announcement.

• The first game of the just-completed August 19th slate, a Padres-Expos match-up at Olympic Stadium, was the 100th game to be played at site AZ18 in Peoria, Arizona. The site is the fourth to reach the coveted century mark, and with 112 games now hosted, AZ18 is just 33 games behind ESC7 for third place on the all-time list.

• Dusty Baker of the Dodgers returned from the 15-day disabled list on the 19th; to make room for him on the roster, the club sent outfielder Joe Simpson—who had one hit in two at-bats during his three-week ML stint—to the Albuquerque Dukes of the Pacific Coast League.

• Boston’s Luis Tiant tied an SP78 record for runners picked off in a game by a pitcher when he nailed Oakland’s Miguel Dilone and Mitchell Page on August 19th at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. Tiant now shares the record with Geoff Zahn of the Twins and Dave Freisleben of the Indians.

• White Sox second baseman Jorge Orta slugged his first career grand slam on Saturday, in the sixth inning off Tribe starter Mike Paxton, in a 7-3 Sox win at Municipal Stadium. The blast erased a 3-1 Cleveland lead, and was Orta’s only hit of the night after collecting three walks in his other plate appearances.

• My week-long ‘check the SP78 schedule and make sure each team is on track for 162 games played’ project has been completed, and I was surprised to find I’d only made only a handful of errors overall. Twice I’d flat-out failed to schedule games, and three times I wasn’t aware that single games were actually doubleheaders (thanks to the confusing term ‘twilight night’ I’d found on some schedules). I’d also had a postponed game that I didn’t realize was the last meeting of the season between the two teams, and since I want every team to play their full 162 games, I had to wedge that contest in where both teams happened to have an off day. Now, with so many games to add into the August-September schedule, I’m thinking I might have them all played on the October 2nd ‘free day’ between the end of the regular season and the start of the post-season…and maybe even turn October 3rd into a make-up day as well.

• My next project will be scanning the remainder of classic scoresheets from my list and adding them to the site, as well as figuring out how to get them lined up properly into rows of four. I think I’ve found the solution, so we’ll see if it works.

August 21st is McDonald’s Junior Jays Day at Toronto!