1982 Atlanta Braves Retrospective

[selmaborntidefan]

April 13, 1982
Atlanta Braves 8 (W: Garber, 1-0)
Cincinnati Reds 5 (L: Kern, 0-1)
7-0
1st place
Lead: 2.5 games

BRAVES RALLY TO REMAIN UNBEATEN;
M'S-ANGELS HALTED IN 18TH INNING

So if they don't get a 5-0 lead, can the Atlanta Braves win the game? It turns out the answer is that they can not only win, they can trail for the first time all season and they still have the bats to win. They can lose their starting right fielder in the first inning, and his replacement will go 4-for-4 and score three runs by driving in another. They can send a rookie out for his first major league appearance, and he can get through the opposing lineup once before coming out for a shaky bullpen that is good enough to not let the game get out of hand so the closer can come on in the sixth inning and seal the deal until the bats making him the winning pitcher with a late rally.

With two outs in the top of the first, Claudell Washington was hit by a pitch from Reds starter Bob Shirley, knocking him out of the game and putting pinch runner Rufino Linares at first. Linares didn't score - that time - but it also forced Manager Joe Torre to switch Dale Murphy to right field and place Linares in left. As it turned out, the hit batsman would play the largest role in the game's outcome. Both pitchers navigated the lineups through three innings but in the fourth, Glenn Hubbard doubled to left and went to third on Linares's single. Murphy then smashed his fourth home run of the young season, a three-run bomb that put Atlanta out front quickly in the fourth. But Joe Cowley, making his first major league start, couldn't handle the prosperity. First, he walked legend Johnny Bench and then gave up consecutive singles to former phenom Clint Hurdle and Bench's replacement behind the plate (Bench started at third), Mike O'Berry. Cowley was pulled in favor of Preston Hanna, who immediately got a double play and the Braves out of the jam still leading, 3-1. A Brett Butler single followed by a Linares double regained the run lost, but Hanna was largely ineffective in the bottom of the fifth. After a Ron Oester double and singles by Dave Concepcion and Bench, around two outs and a walk to Paul Householder, Hanna gave way to Larry McWilliams, who retired pinch-hitter Mike Vail to keep the Braves ahead, 4-3.

Back-to-back doubles by O'Berry and pinch-hitter Rafael Landestoy tied the game, and Landestoy moved to third on an infield out and scored on a sacrifice fly to center by Dan Driessen. Just like that, the Braves were trailing for the first time in 1982. Gene Garber came on in a desperate situation and caught a break when Driessen was thrown out attempting to steal second to end the sixth. Cincinnati then opted for their own closer, former AL Relief Man of the Year (1979) Jim Kern. Kern walked Butler and retired Hubbard on a fly out but Linares then laced his third hit of the night, a single, and the Braves tied the game when Bob Horner doubled Butler home and had runners at second and third with only one out. Kern left in favor of lefty reliever Charlie Leibrandt, who walked Murphy to load the bases for Chris Chambliss. Chambliss fouled out, but then catcher Bruce Benedict singled to left, scoring the first two runners before Murphy was thrown out going for third. Garber took the mound with a 7-5 lead. Linares increased the lead with an insurance run in the 9th when he got his fourth hit, a single, went to third on Horner's double, and then scored on Chambliss' sac fly to center with the bases loaded after the Reds (again!) intentionally walked Murphy. Garber went 3.1 innings and gave up three hits while striking out three and permitted nobody to score. The win lifts Atlanta to 7-0, the best Braves start of the modern era.

Dave Kingman's three-run bomb and the effective pitching of Randy Jones lifted the Mets to a 5-2 win over the Phillies in New York's home opener. Jones, who won only one game all last year, won his second in a week. Ozzie Smith hit his first home run as a Cardinal while Joaquin Andujar and Bruce Sutter combined for a six-hitter in St Louis' 4-3 win over the Cubs. The Cubs had the bases loaded with one out in the 9th and failed to score when Sutter struck out Keith Moreland and induced a fielder's choice ground out by Gary Woods that forced rookie Ryne Sandberg at second to end the game. Rookie Alan Fowlkes pitched six strong innings for his first major league victory while Reggie Smith hit a tie-breaking double enabling San Francisco to win their home opener over the Padres, 3-2. The Dodgers raced out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first in Houston and never let it go, as they banged out 13 hits and scored 9 runs off Bob Knepper in a 9-5 victory for starter Bob Welch.

The California Angels managed to have a two-day Opening Day thanks to a late Seattle rally. Needing only three outs to seal a 2-1 win, Angels Manager Gene Mauch, long accused of "over-managing", was at his "over managing" best as he pulled two of his best hitters - Reggie Jackson and Brian Downing - in favor of defensive replacements and also pulled his pitcher, who had permitted only five hits and one run in eight innings. Don Aase came on to close out the game, got two outs, and then gave up three consecutive hits that tied the score at two before he walked Joe Simpson to load the bases and then struck out pinch-hitter Steve Stroughter to keep the score tied. Aase then pitched five more innings as both teams failed to score. After 17 innings, the American League rulebook came into play, the rule that forbids any inning from beginning after 1 a.m. local time. So the teams left the field and will complete the game tomorrow before playing the scheduled contest from the start. Reliever Dale Murray's throwing error scored two Tigers and lifted Detroit to a 4-2 win over Toronto. Four home runs, including two by Dan Meyer, guided Oakland to an 8-3 win over the Twins at the Metrodome. Rickey Henderson stole his sixth base of the season. Jim Palmer took a 5-0 lead into the fifth against Kansas City only to implode and give up five hits, all of whom scored, and gave up the mound to Sammy Stewart. John Wathan scored in the sixth and the Royals held on for a stunning comeback win, 6-5. Charlie Moore's single scoring Paul Molitor lifted Milwaukee to a 9-8 won over Cleveland in ten. Mike Morgan's Yankee debut after two seasons in the minor was a success, as he scattered 8 hits and gave up 3 runs in 6.1 innings en route to a 6-3 New York win over Texas. Lou Piniella and Rick Cerone homered for the Bombers.

The White Sox released Lynn McGlothen, and the Rangers signed Jim Anderson.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

April 14, 1982
Atlanta Braves 5 (W: Camp, 1-0)
Cincinnati Reds 2 (L: Kern, 0-2)
8-0
1st place
Lead: 3.5 games

BRAVES SWEEP REDS FOR 8TH STRAIGHT WIN;
INCREDIBLE 9TH INNING KEEPS STREAK ALIVE;
HALOS BEAT M'S IN 20 - AND GO EXTRAS AGAIN

Two years ago, the Atlanta Braves entered a season hopeful they could contend for a pennant for the first time in a decade only to see their hopes gone in the season's first ten games when they lost 7 of 8 to the Reds and started 1-9, creating an impossible hole out of which they had to climb. Had the Braves simply been able to go .500 against the Reds, they would have won 90 games and been in the thick of an exciting pennant race, but their 2-16 record against Cincinnati was enough to end their hopes. So how satisfying it is for the Braves to complete a four-game sweep of the Reds in Riverfront Stadium with a tenth inning small ball rally that netted three runs just when their hopes of breaking the NL record of ten wins to start the season seemed bleak.

The game story can be told rather easily: Tommy Boggs and Frank Pastore matched each other pitch-for-pitch for six innings until reliever Al Hrabosky came on for Boggs. Both struck out two, both allowed two runs, and both allowed an average of one hit per inning. Neither surrendered a home run or a triple. What was new for the Braves was that the Reds scored first when Cesar Cedeno led off the 2nd with a double and came home on Clint Hurdle's single to give Cincinnati an early 1-0 lead. But the Braves got the run right back when Brett Butler reached first on a fielder's choice, stole second, went to third on a throwing error, and scored on a wild pitch. But the Reds recaptured the lead in the bottom of the inning when Eddie Milner led off with a single, raced to third on a failed pickoff attempt thrown wildly by Boggs, and scored on a Dan Driessen double. And nothing more happened until the Atlanta winning streak was on the line in the top of the ninth.

Reds Manager John McNamara decided to let Pastore finish the game, and he surrendered a leadoff single to Chris Chambliss. The Reds appeared to catch a break when pinch runner Jerry Royster got picked off first and thrown out at second for the first out, but Rufino Linares reached first on a bunt and then raced around the bases to tie the game on Bruce Benedict's double. With the runner in scoring position and only one out, Pastore got the hook in favor of reliever Tom Hume, who benefited by a baserunning mistake by Benedict that retired him at third, a blunder that assumed cosmic significance when pinch-hitter Larry Whisenton singled. Hume retired Butler on a force out, and all the Reds needed to end the Atlanta streak was a run. And for a moment, they appeared to have it.

Rick Camp came on to pitch the ninth and after retiring Wayne Krenchicki for the first out gave up a double to pinch-hitter Larry Biittner, bringing rookie Paul Householder to the plate with a chance to win the game. Householder hit a sinking liner to left that had "Reds win" written all over it, so much so that pinch runner German Barranca raced home. But Linares somehow caught the ball right at the ground, shocking himself when he found the ball in his glove and threw into second where Rafael Ramirez doubled up Barranca to save the game and the streak. He would save it again in the tenth.

Newly acquired closer Jim Kern, who lost yesterday's game, came on and walked Glenn Hubbard leading off the tenth. He struck out Dale Murphy before giving up a single to Bob Horner and then a walk to rookie Ken Smith, loading the bases with one out. Kern then walked Benedict with the bases loaded to force in the go-ahead run and Ramirez followed with a double that plated two more runs and gave the Braves a 5-2 lead. Camp, who was 1-for-37 coming to the plate, grounded out to end the inning then retired the Reds in order to nail down the win. After several games of racing out to big leads, the Braves showed they could overcome poor baserunning and adversity to win their 8th in a row. Both the Braves and Reds are off tomorrow.

After suspending yesterday's contest at the end of the 17th inning, play resumed between the Angels and Mariners in Anaheim, with California eking out a 4-3 win in the bottom of the 20th thanks to singles by Don Baylor and Bob Boone sandwiched around a Doug DeCinces bunt. Then as if to show that 20 innings wasn't a fluke, the two teams played another ten innings in the day's scheduled game, the Angels AGAIN won by one run (2-1) when Rod Carew scored from first on a double by Bobby Grich. It was sweet redemption for Grich, whose wild throw in the 9th enabled Seattle to tie the game. The two teams combined over 30 innings for ten runs and 50 runners left on base. With new acquisition Lee Mazilli sidelined by injury, Billy Sample, who lost his starting job to Mazilli, reached base once via walk and once hit by a pitch, stole second both times, and scored twice to lead Texas to a 4-1 win over the Yankees despite netting only four hits against New York starter John Pacella. Toronto took a 4-0 lead to the 9th only to see Detroit tie it with a six-hit inning, but the Blue Jays prevailed in the bottom of the 9th when reserve catcher Buck Martinez singled home Tony Johnson with the winning run, 5-4. Howard Johnson, playing in his first major league game, kindled the Detroit rally by leading off the 9th with a single. The White Sox are now 4-0, off to their best start since their last pennant in 1959, after Tom Paciorek's three-run bomb proved the difference in their 5-4 win over Boston. The White Sox have won all four games on the road. Two home runs by Tony Armas, a game-tying solo shot in the 8th and a game-winning two-run bomb in the 12th, lifted Oakland to a 7-5 win over the Twins in Minnesota, a game that saw the Athletics blow a 3-0 first-inning lead. Oakland went 5-for-5 in stolen bases, including two by Rickey Henderson, who is on pace to steal 162 bases this year. A two-out ninth inning single by Amos Otis after an intentional walk to George Brett scored U.L. Washington and gave Kansas City their second straight one-run come-from-behind win over the Orioles, 4-3. Former teammates in St Louis, John Denny and Pete Vuckovich, squared off in Cleveland, and Denny got the better of it, going 7 innings and scattering six hits as the Indians beat the Brewers, 6-2. The two teams combined for 15 walks before a smattering of 7,000 fans.

Alan Ashby's solo shot in the 7th broke a 1-1 tie and lifted Don Sutton to his first win of the season over his former teammate, Burt Hooton, as the Astros edged the Dodgers, 2-1. Pinch-hitter Jerry White smashed a three-run sixth inning home run to put Montreal into the lead, and the Expos held on for a 5-4 win over the Pirates. Mookie Wilson led off the fourth inning with a solo home run off Dick Ruthven to break a 1-1 tie, and the Mets added six more runs over the duration to top the Phillies, 8-1. Andy Rincon tossed a three-hitter and Tommy Herr drove home two runs that made the difference in the Cardinals' 3-1 win over the Cubs. San Diego carried a 3-0 lead into the bottom of the 9th before a two-run shot by Champ Summers narrowed the gap to one. But the Giants could get no closer in a 3-2 loss to the Padres.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

April 14, 1982
Travel day
8-0
1st place
Lead: 4 games

BRAVES FANS ALREADY THINKING WORLD SERIES;
HEAVY HEARTED RHODEN PITCHES WELL IN LIGHT OF BROTHER'S DEATH
HRBEK HITS 5TH AS TWINS ROUT OAKLAND

Rookie Kent Hrbek's fifth home run of the season plus a three-run bomb by Randy Johnson that was part of a six-run eighth inning lifted the surprising Twins to an 11-5 win over Oakland. The Twins end their opening homestand of nine games with a 5-4 record as they hit the road. Steve Kemp hit a two-run homer and Jim Morrison ended an 0-for-13 skid with two hits as the White Sox won their fifth in a row, 8-4, over Boston. Don Baylor and Tim Foli singled and the Angels held on to complete a three-game sweep over the Mariners, 3-2. It was the second win of Angel Moreno's brief career. Bert Blyleven allowed two hits over seven innings as the Indians beat the Brewers, 8-1, behind two runs apiece driven in by Bake McBride and Rick Manning. Despite a plethora of injuries necessitating lineup creativity, Sparky Anderson continues to push the right buttons. Two of his newest acquisitions, Larry Herndon, who stole a base and raced home from first on a ball in the gap and Enos Cabell, who drove in two runs, lifted Detroit to a 4-2 win over Toronto. Detroit is down so many players they called up Glenn Wilson for his major league debut, the second Tiger to make his first appearance in the bigs this week.

Lonnie Smith and George Hendrick hit solo homers and Steve Mura took a three-hit shutout into the 9th only to lose it when Keith Moreland clubbed a homer with two outs, but the Cardinals still dominated the Cubs, 6-1. Mura lost a league leading 14 games last year. Pirates starter Rick Rhoden took the mound after learning his brother, Bill, had been killed in an auto accident in North Carolina and gave up one earned run in six innings before Pittsburgh rallied for 3 runs in the final two innings to beat Montreal, 4-3. Tied after twelve, Luis Aguayo, starting at third in place of a resting Mike Schmidt, clubbed a three-run home run in the 13th as part of a four-run inning that lifted Philadelphia to an 8-4 win over the Mets. Fernando Valenzuela only gave up five hits - three in a one-run first inning - but a series of intentional walks and one UNINTENTIONAL one with the bases loaded put LA in a 2-0 hole to the Padres, and they never scored, losing by that same 2-0 final count.

In today's failure to keep the feet on the ground moment, fans of the Atlanta Braves are already asking about World Series tickets six month hence. No doubt the 8-0 start has contributed to the optimism and Public Relations advocate Wayne Minshew even joked that the Braves players were already being measured for ring size. It's a long way to October, folks.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

April 16, 1982
Atlanta Braves 5 (W: McWilliams, 2-0; SV: Camp, 2)
Houston Astros 3 (L: Ryan, 0-3)
9-0
1st place
Lead: 4.5 games

BRAVES RALLY FROM 3 DOWN TO BEAT NOLAN RYAN, NOW 9-0
CAN TIE BROOKLYN FOR BEST NL START TOMORROW;
DECINCES WALKS OFF THE TWINS

Brett Butler may have an infamous (sounding) name in Atlanta, and he may be a rookie, but he's a pretty smart rookie, too. With runners at second and third and one out, and the Braves trailing the flame throwing Nolan Ryan, 3-0, and in danger of their first loss of the season, Butler knew the heater was coming from Ryan, and he hit the top of it, driving it through the middle to send both runners home and narrow the Atlanta deficit to 3-2. Butler then stole second, went to third on an infield ground out by Glenn Hubbard, and tied the game when Ryan threw a wild pitch, allowing Butler to race across the plate. When Dale Murphy walked after the wild pitch, Bob Horner drove Murphy in with the go-ahead run with a double in the gap, and in the process drove Ryan from the game in favor of reliever Dave Smith. Smith's error on a shot by Chris Chambliss allowed Horner to give the Braves and insurance run, and the Atlanta bullpen held the rest of the way to lift their record to 9-0 on the young season and set themselves up to tie the 1955 Brooklyn Dodgers with ten wins to start the season should the win tomorrow. Larry McWilliams picked up his second win of the season in relief of Rick Mahler, and Rick Camp retired the Astros in order for his second save of the year.

For five innings, it was all Houston and all Ryan. The Braves had only one hit, only two baserunners, and Bruce Benedict, who had the hit, was thrown out trying to steal second to end the Atlanta third. In the fourth, two Houston singles and a double by Alan Ashby plated two runs, and Ashby advanced home when Art Howe singled and drew a throw to second for the third out of the inning to give Houston a solid 3-0 lead. Then in the fifth, Atlanta's winning streak came the closest it has come thus far to entering history.

After striking out Dickie Thon, Mahler surrendered consecutive singles to Ryan and Phil Garner and then walked Terry Puhl, loading the bases with one out. McWilliams came on with the Braves in danger and struck out Tony Scott before getting the dangerous Jose Cruz to fly out to center, ending the inning and keeping the game close. That's when the only Brave to have solved Ryan thus far, Benedict, doubled, which apparently broke Ryan, as he then walked Rafael Ramirez. Needing runs, Manager Joe Torre sent Biff Pocoroba to pinch-hit for McWilliams, and while Ryan retired the backup catcher, it was a productive out as Pocoroba bounced out to first, advancing both runners and setting the stage for Butler's heroics and Houston's collapse. To tie the NL record, Atlanta will have to beat Joe Niekro via Bob Walk.

Pittsburgh prevailed over Chicago when Tony Pena singled home Omar Moreno and beat the Cubs and Willie Hernandez, 7-6. Al Oliver led off the 9th with his second home run of the season off Jesse Orosco, lifting Montreal to a 4-3 road win against the Mets. Jeff Reardon got the win in relief. St Louis got two quick runs in the first off Mike Krukow and Cardinal starter Bob Forsch got two hits himself as the Cards held on to beat Philly, 3-2. San Diego struck with 3 quick first-inning runs, immediately gave up three, and then rode the RBI double of Sixto Lezcano and the two-run shot of Luis Salazar to an 8-3 win over the Dodgers. New starter Rich Gale went the distance as the Giants blistered Mario Soto for four runs on seven hits in just four innings in a 6-1 win over the Reds.

U.L. Washington tripled home Lee May while Vida Blue and Dan Quisenberry combined on a four-hitter as the Royals beat the Indians, 3-1. The key play to the game was due the rain delay as Len Barker slipped covering first on what appeared to be an infield out on May. Washington then drove him home for the win. Texas erupted for a three-run tenth against Brewer closer Rollie Fingers to prevail, 4-1. Pinch-hitter extraordinaire Bill Stein, who set a record last season with seven consecutive pinch hits, drove in the eventual game winner. Lou Piniella's two doubles and Ron Guidry's first complete game in two years helped the Yankees pound the woeful Tigers, 10-2. Jesse Barfield's two-RBI triple and Luis Leal's eight innings of scattering seven hits helped Toronto top Boston, 3-0. Doug DeCinces smashed a two-out Doug Corbett pitch into the bleachers for a game ending two-run home run as California topped Minnesota, 4-2. Floyd Bannister scattered 7 hits and went the distance courtesy of Al Cowens' three-run shot that carried Seattle to a 5-0 win over Oakland.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

April 17, 1982
Atlanta Braves 2 (W: Hanna, 1-0; SV: Garber, 2)
Houston Astros 1 (L: Niekro, 1-1)
10-0
1st place
Lead: 4.5 games

BRAVES TIE BROOKLYN DODGERS' NL RECORD 10-0 START WITH 2-1 WIN OVER HOUSTON;
REDS END SIX-GAME SKID WHILE CHISOX SWEEP TWO FROM O'S

How many times since the Braves got terrible in 1976 have we seen what happened tonight against Houston? The Braves would jump on a team for a couple of early runs, go flat the rest of the game, and wind up losing when the opposition scored late. It's happened too many times, including Opening Day 1977 (against these same Astros), April 28, 1978 against the Cubs (where the Braves scored 3 runs in the first two innings and lost, 4-3), and April 23, 1979, where Atlanta got two early runs and allowed the Cardinals to tie it in the 9th then win it in the 10th, while the Braves got no hits over the last four innings. It's been a common theme in Atlanta losses over the last six seasons. Tonight, the Braves did that exact same thing - except the bullpen held and after bringing in Preston Hanna to face a bases loaded jam in the fourth, Atlanta's pitchers allowed exactly one of Houston's last 15 batters to reach base (a walk) and nailed down their tenth straight win to tie the NL record of the 1955 Brooklyn Dodgers for most consecutive wins at the start of a season. The Braves will attempt to both break the NL record and tie the MLB record set just last year by Oakland.

The Braves didn't exactly tear the cover off the ball themselves. Were it not for an errant pickoff throw from Houston starter (and loser) Joe Niekro that put two Atlanta runners in scoring position with one out in the top of the first, the Braves might not have scored at all. But Bob Horner drove both runners home with a two-run double - and Atlanta never scored again, despite six more hits and five more walks by the Astros pitchers. Braves starter Bob Walk did a highwire act before getting pulled as eight of the 20 hitters he faced reached base - but only one, Terry Puhl, crossed the plate. With the winning streak on the line, Atlanta Manager Joe Torre pulled Walk after he gave up the RBI double to Phil Garner, bringing Larry McWilliams into a one on, nobody out mess against the heart of the Astros batting order. McWilliams retired the first two dangerous hitters before walking Ray Knight and then giving up an infield single to Tony Scott that loaded the bases. McWilliams got the hook and Hanna came on to induce an inning-ending out to left by Art Howe. Nobody knew it, but Houston's night was over. Gene Garber nailed down the win with a sinker that struck out Garner. The Braves will send rookie Joe Cowley to the mound tomorrow night against Bob Knepper in hopes of tying Oakland's record and breaking Brooklyn's.

Joaquin Andujar pitched a three-hit shutout as the Cardinals drilled Steve Carlton for five early runs en route to a 6-0 win over Philly. Mookie Wilson's sacrifice fly scored Tom Veryzer with the winning run as the Mets beat the Expos, 2-1, as Rusty Staub got his 2600th career hit, the single that moved Veryzer to third. Bruce Berenyi and Tom Hume combined on a four-hitter as Cincinnait ended a six-game losing streak, 8-2, over the Giants as Paul Householder hit his second home run of the year. Terry Kennedy's two-run double helped Eric Show win his first game of 1982 with a 4-3 edging of Los Angeles. With a narrow 3-2 lead following a rain delay, the Cubs unleashed a barrage of eight hits in a five-run inning and thumped the Pirates, 10-2, on Leon Durham's home run. Larry Bowa busted out of a 1-for-25 slump with two hits.

Boston drove home five runs in the first inning, Glenn Hoffman's three-run bomb as the key point, then held on for dear life and topped Toronto, 5-4. The Jays chased 3 runs across the plate before Boston came to bat, but the Red Sox came to life immediately with four hits and a walk that all scored. The White Sox played 18 innings against Baltimore and only trailed for one as 3-1 and 10-6 scores made winners of Britt Burns and LaMarr Hoyt. Enos Cabell had 3 hits and 3 RBIs as Jack Morris and Kevin Saucier combined to beat the Yankees, 5-3. Amos Otis drove in five runs as the Royals pounded Cleveland pitching for 22 hits in a 12-10 escape. Kansas City trailed, 10-7, entering the seventh but rallied to win. Dan Quisenberry got his fourth save. Rickey Henderson stole two bases to lift his season total to 12 in 11 games, but Davey Lopes stole home and homered as the Athletics thumped the Mariners, 10-3 . The largest crowd in Anaheim Stadium history watched the Angels beat the Twins, 6-2, thanks to two home runs by Brian Downing, extending their win streak to five. They also saw Rick Burleson go down with an injury at shortstop that may keep him on the shelf for awhile. Lamar Johnson's two-run bomb in the sixth gave the Texas Rangers the lead, and the bullpen held it despite loading the bases in the ninth with nobody out. Steve Comer got Robin Yount to hit into a double play and Don Money to line out to third to end the game that saw Comer pitch 3.1 innings of relief for the save.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

April 18, 1982
Atlanta Braves 6 (W: Hrabosky, 1-0; SV: Camp, 3)
Houston Astros 5 (L: Smith, 0-1)
11-0
1st place
Lead: 4.5 games

POCOROBA DOUBLE, CAMP SAVE LIFTS BRAVES TO 11-0 START FOR NEW NL RECORD;
WHITE SOX NOW 8-0 AS ST LOUIS WIN STREAK HITS 8 GAMES;
HALOS LOSE BURLESON FOR SEASON

Tonight was the closest the Atlanta Braves have come in this short season to a loss. How close?
- the Braves trailed for four innings
- they didn't lead at the end of any inning until the 8th
- Houston had the tying run 90 feet away when the game ended
- had the Braves not scored with two out in the 8th, their win streak probably would have ended

After several games with 5-0 leads, a comeback from 3-0, and a quick 2-0 lead that they held for the entire game for a win, the Braves finally got into a contest that saw a great game unfold as history was in the making. With the win, the Braves become the lone NL record holders for longest win streak to start a season, a record that ties Oakland's MLB mark set last year. The Braves will attempt to set the record at hom in Atlanta against the Reds after an off day tomorrow.

The Braves had to start rookie Joe Cowley to try and set the record, which shows how special it is: Cowley is only in the majors because Phil Niekro is on the disabled list, which is the only reason Rick Mahler started the opener - and it was Mahler that hurt Niekro with a batted ball in spring training. If Atlanta manages to set this record, an immense level of credit must go to Mahler, whose own contribution to this streak has been 22.1 innings with a 2-0 record and a 1.21 ERA, 14 hits allowed, 16 strikeouts, and five walks while allowing neither a triple nor a home run. But Cowley is not Mahler, and while he has pitched well enough to keep the Braves' streak alive, the fact is that Cowley has yet to leave the mound at the end of an inning still possessing a lead. While it wasn't all his fault, Cowley dug the Braves into a quick hole after Dale Murphy managed to score Atlanta's first run without a ball leaving the infield in the top of the second. Murphy walked, moved to second on a passed ball, moved to third on an infield ground out, and scored on a fielder's choice. Much of Atlanta's success has been their ability to score runs without relying on the home run. But the lead only lasted three batters as Ray Knight singled, Art Howe was retired, and Dickie Thon ripped a triple to center to tie the game. Cowley then walked the next two hitters to load the bases, but he got Phil Garner to fly out to Murphy in right. But in his aggressiveness and with the runners all holding, Murphy gunned a heave high over catcher Bruce Benedict, allowing Thon to score and give the Astros a 2-1 lead. Jose Cruz then singled two runs home and in a matter of moments, the Braves were suddenly trailing, 4-1. Cowley allowed base runners in both the third and fourth then retired the side in order in the 5th, finding his groove. Glenn Hubbard singled to lead off the sixth and after Rufino Linares struck out, Bob Horner walked, bringing Murphy to the plate. Having scored one run by given up three by virtue of his error, Murphy evened the personal score as well as the game score with a long drive to deep centerfield that Denny Walling misplayed into a triple, bringing the Braves within one. Chris Chambliss doubled to right, scoring Murphy, and ending the day for Houston starter Bob Knepper. After walking Bendict, reliever Mike LaCoss got the speedy Rafael Ramirez to ground into a rally-killing double play with the scored tied at four.

Cowley took the mound and immediately walked Thon, who moved to second on pinch-hitter Joe Pittman's bunt. When Houston send Mike Ivie to plate as a pinch-hitter, Cowley got the hook in favor of Larry McWilliams. The Braves then caught a break when Thon attempted to steal third but was thrown out, which made the walk to Ivie harmless. Tony Scott ran for Ivie and moved to second when Garner singled to right. A walk to Cruz loaded the bases for Alan Ashby. With a chance to possibly end the Atlanta win streak, Ashby flew out to center to end the inning still tied at four. Al Hrabosky came on to pitch the Houston seventh and retired the side, which set him up for good fortune. Chambliss doubled to center with one out, which led Houston to walk Benedict intentionally to set up the double play. Ramirez grounded to short, retiring Benedict, but he beat the throw to prevent the double play. With runners at the corners and two outs, Hrabosky was due to bat. Pinch-hitter Biff Pocoroba then drilled an 0-1 delivery to center, the ball rolling all the way to the wall. Pocoroba got a double, and both Braves scored to give Atlanta a 6-4 lead as the top of the 8th ended. Rick Camp came on and despite giving up a single, he retired Houston without damage, setting the stage for the ninth. Needing three outs, Camp got into trouble immediately.

Cruz walked and Ashby's single put runners at the corners with nobody out, and the winning run at the plate. Alan Knicely then put Ashby at second with a bunt good enough to move the runner but not good enough to score Cruz. Knight then hit a sacrifice fly to center that made it a one-run game and put Ashby at third. But Camp then got Art Howe to bounce a harmless grounder back to the mound and threw him out to end the exciting game, earn the save, and give Atlanta the NL record they sought.

Lost in Atlanta's hot start is the win streak of the St Louis Cardinals, who extended it to 8 with a 6-5 win over the Phillies that saw David Green single home the tying run in the 9th and winning run in the 11th. Bo Diaz hit his second homer of the season for Philly. Home runs by Andre Dawson and Gary Carter gave Montreal a 6-0 lead after two, and Tim Wallach's single proved the difference as the Mets rallied but fell short, 7-6. Leon Durham's three-run bomb was the difference as the Cubs and Fergie Jenkins beat the Pirates, 5-2. Trailing 3-2 in the 8th, the Padres exploded with a 7-run inning off of relivers Dave Stewart and Steve Howe, leaving the bases loaded to end the inning but still winning, 9-3, over the Dodgers, the first time San Diego has taken a four-game series from Los Angeles since a four-game sweep in September 1969, the Padres' first year in the league. Reggie Smith's first homer as a Giant ruined Tom Seaver's long awaited season debut for the Reds in a 4-2 San Francisco win.

The White Sox, who had several games delayed due to snow, are a rather quiet 8-0 after a 6-4 win over Baltimore that extends the Orioles' losing streak to six. It's the best start in White Sox history. Aggressive baserunning in a 4-4 tie in the 7th led to two runs and the win for Chicago. Needing 3 outs for a 3-2 win over the Mariners, Oakland could only get one, and that one was on a sacrifice bunt. Richie Zisk led off the 9th with a game-tying home run. A single, an error, and two walks loaded the bases and Todd Cruz singled to right to win the game for Seattle, 4-3. Bruce Bochte smashed his first home run of the season. Alan Bannister doubled home two runs and Toby Harrah homered to lift John Denny to 2-0 in Cleveland's 8-2 win over the Royals. A four-run 8th inning rally capped by a three-run bomb from George Wright lifted Texas over Milwaukee, 9-6, in the Brewers' fifth straight loss. Dan Petry and Elias Sosa combined on a five-hitter as Detroit beat the Yankees, 5-2. Roy Smalley hit his first career home run as a Yankee. Carl Yastrzemski is 42 years old, but he connected on his third home run of the year in the fourth inning off Toronto starter Jim Clancy, narrowing the gap to 2-1. Boston eventually won, 4-3, when Glenn Hoffman led off the bottom of the 9th with a triple and then scored on Jerry Garvin's wild pitch. California lifted their record to 9-3 with a 6-2 win over the Twins behind two bombs from Don Baylor. Minnesota rookie Kent Hrbek socked his sixth home run in the short season.

The Angels took the field after learning the terrible news that starting shortstop Rick Burleson, a four-time All-Star and a Silver Slugger winner last year for the first time in his career, will miss the rest of the 1982 season with a torn rotator cuff.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

April 19, 1982
Travel day
11-0
1st place
Lead: 4.0 games

JAYS WIN AT FENWAY ON PATRIOTS DAY;
HRBEK'S BASES LOADED DOUBLE LIFTS TWINS;
PADRES SET HITS RECORD IN ONE GAME FOR TEAM

The (pretty much) annual tradition of a Red Sox game during the Boston Marathon on Patriots Day in the Commonwealth unfolded with disappointment on the 207th anniversary of the start of the American Revolution in nearby Lexington. Solo home runs by Barry Bonnell, Ernie Whitt, and Lloyd Moseby led a 12-hit attack by the Blue Jays, who leave Boston with a four-game split after a 5-4 win in today's finale. Relievers Dale Murray got the win and Mark Clear the loss in a game that saw Jerry Remy tally three infield hits. Bobby Grich doubled twice and scored twice as three Angels pitchers combined for a seven-hitter in California's 3-1 win over Seattle. The Minnesota Twins had only one baserunner for eight innings against Rick Langford, a third inning leadoff double by Butch Wynegar. But one out short of the win, Langford tired and the Twins erupted for five runs, the key blow a bases loaded double by Kent Hrbek that cleared the sacks and gave Minnesota a 5-2 lead. Oakland brought the tying run to the plate with one out, but new closer Ron Davis struck out Dwayne Murphy and retired Cliff Johnson to preserve the come-from-behind win. Kirk Gibson broke out of a 1-for-30 slump with a two-run bomb off closer Dan Quisenberry. Larry Pashnick, making his major league debut, went 7 innings and gave up only two runs, both driven in by Jerry Martin, but left trailing, 2-0. Detroit rallied to give Kevin Saucier the win and Elias Sosa the save. Quisenberry had saved four straight before blowing the lead tonight.

Don Sutton scattered five hits in seven innings and was bailed out of a 4-2 deficit by five straight hits that led to four Houston runs and a 6-4 win over the Dodgers, who dropped their sixth in a row. Philadelphia ended their three-game skid courtesy of four first-inning hits that plated the only two runs of the game, and the combined three-hit pitching of Larry Christenson and Ed Farmer. Scott Sanderson only allowed two hits after the first inning and struck out 8 going the distance, but he was saddled with the loss. The Padres set a team record with 24 hits, four of them by Terry Kennedy, in a 13-6 rout of Dan Schatzeder and the San Francisco Giants. The Giants banged out 11 hits and scored six runs, four on home runs in the defeat.

The Braves go for history tomorrow night against their longtime nemesis, Cincinnati. Tommy Boggs will square off against Frank Pastore.


CURRENT WIN STREAKS
Atlanta - 11
Chicago White Sox - 8
St Louis - 8
California - 7

LOSING STREAKS
Los Angeles - 6
Baltimore - 6
Milwaukee - 5

 

[selmaborntidefan]

April 20, 1982
Atlanta Braves 4 (W: Bedrosian, 1-0; SV: Garber, 3)
Cincinnati Reds 2 (L: Pastore, 1-1)
12-0
1st place
Lead: 4.0 games

BRAVES MAKE HISTORY WITH 12-0 START;
WHITE SOX LOSE 1ST GAME OF YEAR;
PERRY WINS #298

Great moments have been few and far between for the Braves since they left Milwaukee after the 1965 season and set up their teepee in Atlanta. They've only had 3 seasons (out of 16) where they finished more than two games above .500. Between May 17, 1975 and September 1, 1980, the Braves were only over .500 at the end of the day 16 times, never more than two games above the mark. They won baseball's first-ever NL West division title in 1969 and provided zero resistance to the Miracle Mets' entry into baseball history by getting swept in the playoff. And they had a guy who broke Babe Ruth's career home run record. That's pretty much it for the Atlanta Braves - until now. The Braves are now the only team in the modern era to have a 12-0 record to start the season, and their winning has relied upon different no-names in most cases coming through at crucial moments. They've relied during this winning streak more upon rookie Brett Butler (9 R, 7 RBI, 6 SB) and eighth place hitter Rafael Ramirez (.333, 7 R, 8 RBI) than Bob Horner (.200, 2 HR), though Horner has had a couple of solid moments. They've lost their starting right fielder for a week to a beaning, and the most amazing part is their best pitcher has yet to take the mound. It was no different tonight; the Reds got more walks (6) than the Braves got hits (5), but when the final out was recorded, Steve Bedrosian wound up with his second win in the major leagues, one of the most unlikely players homered (Ramirez), and the Braves scored their winning margin on a walk, a triple - by the beaned right fielder off the guy who beaned him no less - and a wild pitch. At the end of the night, the result was the same as the 11 previous games, the Braves were the victors.

Tommy Boggs got the start for history, and he was largely ineffective. Eddie Milner, who was 4-for-5 on the night for Cincinnati, singled and went to second on a walk to Dan Driessen. Boggs was bailed out when Cesar Cedeno grounded into a 5-3 double play, and Dave Concepcion grounded out. As it turned out, Boggs had already peaked. In the second, he retired Johnny Bench on a ground out, walked Larry Biittner, and struck out Ron Oester but walked Mike O'Berry to bring starting pitcher Frank Pastore and his .134 career batting average to the plate. But Pastore singled, scoring Biittner from second for a 1-0 lead, and Boggs lost control. He gave up a hit to center from Milner that wasn't deep enough to score O'Berry, so the bases were loaded. Boggs then walked Driessen again, scoring Biittner, giving the Reds a 2-0 lead, and Bedrosian came on with the bases loaded, inducing a fly out to center by Cedeno to keep the game close. The Braves got half of it right back when Chris Chambliss drilled a solo home run in the bottom of the second. An inning later, Ramirez homered leading off the inning to tie the game, but Pastore retired the next two batters. He then walked Glenn Hubbard, bringing Claudell Washington to the plate. The same Washington that Pastore beaned a week ago, and he hadn't played since. The same Washington that struck out in the first. He got ahold of a Pastore pitch and hit it deep to center, scoring Hubbard to take the lead and motoring all the way around to third. Moments later, Washington scored on a wild pitch by Pastore. And that, quite frankly, was it. At 10:16 pm EDT, a crowd of over 37,000 fans watched Gene Garber throw the final pitch, hit deep to the warning track by Dan Driessen but caught by Dale Murphy to nail down the win, and thousands raced onto the field to celebrate the accomplishment. And unlike all previous holders of the record, the Atlanta record-setting win was seen nationally because of the Braves' exposure on WTBS.

With an 8-0 record, the White Sox appeared on the verge of perhaps challenging Atlanta's start as they led, 2-0, after six innings at Comiskey Park. But the Yankees erupted with 8 hits in the 7th inning, leading to seven runs. Just to be sure, they added four more in the last two innings to give Chicago their first loss of 1982 by an 11-2 final score. Just like last night against the Twins, Oakland took a lead into the 9th and lost it; unlike last night, the Athletics recovered to win thanks to a leadoff double in the 16th by Davey Lopes. Oakland eventually loaded the bases, and Dan Meyer's single won the game. Milt Wilcox celebrated his 32nd birthday with a one-hit Detroit shutout over the Royals, 8-0. Vida Blue was blasted for six runs in 1.1 innings and left after facing only 10 batters. Glenn Hoffman, who hit only one home run last season, hit his second in three days that helped list Boston to an 8-3 win over Baltimore, the 7th straight defeat for the Orioles. Baltimore is off to their worst start since 1955. Andre Thornton drove in three runs with a homer and a double while Bert Blyleven struck out seven in seven innings as Cleveland topped Texas, 9-4.

Joel Youngblood and Dave Kingman homered and Mike Scott gave the Mets 8.1 innings of effective pitching and scattered 9 hits with 6 strikeouts before leaving with the go ahead run batting in favor of Neil Allen, who got the final two outs for his 3rd save of the year in New York's 3-2 win over the Cubs. Tommy Herr had four hits and scored 3 times while Lonnie Smith hit a solo home run in the Cardinals' 7-4 victory over Pittsburgh. Luis Salazar drove home four runs, including two on his first home run of the year as the Padres won their 7th in a row with an 8-4 win over the Giants. Milt May homered for San Francisco. Fernando Valenzuela ended a six-game Dodger losing streak by scattering 8 hits in a complete game 10-2 win over Houston that saw the portly lefty single home one run and score another himself. And Gaylord Perry won his 298th game by striking out 13 California Angels and ending their seven-game win streak in Seattle's 6-4 win. It was the 40th time in his career that Perry has struck out at least ten hitters, and he is now 149 behind Walter Johnson for the all-time record for most strikeouts.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

April 21, 1982
Atlanta Braves 4 (W: Camp, 2-0)
Cincinnati Reds 3 (L: Shirley, 0-1)
13-0
1st place
Lead: 4.0 games


13-0!
BRAVES EXTEND HISTORY ON SINATRO'S "HIT"

That's one way to keep the fans around until the end of the game.

The Atlanta Braves extended their major league all-time record start to 13-0 with an incredible comeback against the Cincinnati Reds that saw the Braves down to their last out, and they have a baserunner hit in the act of attempting to score the tying run to thank for the fact the streak didn't end tonight. Brett Butler's hard ground ball to short hit Matt Sinatro, who raced around with what appeared to be the tying run only to be called out. But given that Cincinnati may have turned a streak-ending double play, it left the Braves one out to keep it going, and they did. With Rafael Ramirez at second and the speedy Butler at first, Reds reliever Jim Kern moved both runners ahead with a wild pitch and intentionally walked Biff Pocoroba to set up a game-ending force at any base and gave way to lefty reliever Joe Price to face lefty batter Claudell Washington. Washington had missed a week from a beaning by Reds starter Frank Pastore, and Price's first pitch nearly hit Claudell with the bases loaded, obviously not intentional. Washington got around on the next pitch and drilled it back through the pitcher's box, Price ducking to avoid being hit. The ball shot into centerfield as Ramirez scored the tying run and Butler dove into home plate well ahead of the throw to give the Braves the most dramatic win in their 17th year in Atlanta and extend their winning streak to a franchise record and MLB modern record 13 games. The Braves rallied from a 3-0 fitfh inning deficit with a run in the 5th, one in the 8th, and two on the last swing of the bat to win. It was an emotional night that saw the Braves trail most of the game, load the bases in the 8th and not score, and the back-and-forth emotions of the final inning.

Rick Mahler, the new ace with Phil Niekro still out, did not by any means pitch poorly. Indeed, he made only one bad pitch in his seven innings, but Larry Biittner smashed it for a 3-run home run in the third to give Reds starter Mario Soto a cushion, and he rode it well. Soto himself made only one bad pitch in the first six innings, and Chris Chambliss sent it into the right field seats for a solo home run that cut the lead to 3-1. Dale Murphy led off the 7th with a double and advanced to both third and the plate on sacrifice flies to cut the Cincinnati lead to 3-2. Then in the 8th, Tom Hume lost the strike zone with two outs and walked both Washington and Bob Horner. Dale Murphy singled to third, but it wasn't enough to score Washington. Bob Shirley came on and struck out Chambliss, and it appeared for all the world the Braves would be thinking about what might have been. But the ninth inning rally set off celebrations both in and outside Atlanta's Fulton County Stadium. The Braves will attempt to add to their accomplishment tomorrow with yet another game against Cincinnati. Bob Walk will take the mound for Atlanta against Bruce Berenyi.

After the game, debate centered upon whether or not the Reds would have turned the double play and won the game had the ball not hit Sinatro. Sinatro was noncommittal, noting that Butler is one of the fastest runners in the National League but that the ball had, in fact, been hit quite hard. Soto, who watched a win taken from his grasp, said there was zero doubt in his mind that with fielder extraordinaire Dave Concepcion at short, the game was as good as over until the ball hit Sinatro. Soto further added, however, that the Braves got the kind of break teams get when they're playing well and on a hot streak. Reds Manager John McNamara was less than thrilled, saying both that it had a chance to be a double play and noting as well that Butler runs very fast.

ORIOLES LOSS STREAK REACHES 8, CARDS WIN 10TH IN A ROW

The Baltimore Orioles began 1982 as one of the favorites to win the AL East, but they have hit a horrific dry spell. Rich Gedman's double with the bases loaded in the third was the key blow to a six-run inning as Boston overcame a 2-0 deficit to beat Baltimore, 6-5. The Orioles rallied for 3 runs and had the tying run at second in the 7th, but that was as close as they came. Ron Guidry tossed a complete game three-hitter as the Yankees edged the White Sox, 1-0. Paul Molitor's two-run homer was enough combined with the five-hit pitching of Randy Lerch and Rollie Fingers to give Milwaukee a 3-1 win over the Blue Jays. Buddy Bell got his 1500th career hit and extended his hitting streak to ten games as the Rangers topped the Indians, 4-2. Rookie Mike Rickardt drove home two runs and Lamar Johnson, recovering from the flu, scored two to help give Doc Medich his first win of 1982. After a game lasting over 5 hours (and 16 innings), the Twins and Athletics got 5-6 hours of sleep and played Oakland's shortest game of the year, a 5-2 Athletics win that lasted only 2:14 and featured a five-run inning with homers by Joe Rudi and Jeff Newman. Pat Underwood allowed just 4 hits and Kirk Gibson slammed a two-run homer as the Tigers topped the Royals, 4-1. The Angels and Mariners both got 12 hits, but a 3-for-4 night from Al Cowens that included a home run and Todd Cruz's sixth inning double gave Seattle a 5-3 win over California. Brian Downing homered for the Halos.

A two-run double by Tommy Herr and a home run by 1972 World Series hero Gene Tenace paced the Cardinals to their 10th win a row, 6-2, over the Pirates and ace starter John Candelaria. It is the longest St Louis winning streak since a 10-game streak in 1963. Jerry Reuss, who threw a no-hitter two years ago, tossed a one-hitter tonight as the Dodgers beat the Astros, 6-0. Pedro Guererro homered for Los Angeles. Steve Rogers scattered 9 hits and hit his own RBI single as the Expos topped the Phillies and Steve Carlton, 5-2. A five-run 8th inning lifted the Mets to a 7-4 win over the Cubs and gave Craig Swan his first big league win since June 11, 1980. The key hit was a two-run single by Ron Hodges. The Padres extended their win streak to 8 games with a 7-6 edging of the Giants as a two-run shot by Rupert Jones led San Diego.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

April 22, 1982
Cincinnati Reds 2 (W: Berenyi, 3-1; SV: Hume, 3)
Atlanta Braves 1 (L: Walk, 2-1)
13-1
1st place
Lead: 3.5 games

BRAVES RECORD STREAK ENDS AT 13;
MOORE GETS 1ST MLB WIN

The inevitable happened tonight as the Atlanta Braves finally found a hill they could not climb, a situation they could not reverse, as they lost their first game of the season with a 2-1 defeat at the hands of the Cincinnati Reds, which means the record of 13-0 will enter the books as the longest unbeaten streak at the start of a season in modern MLB history. As lucky as the Braves got last night to reach win #13, they were equally as unlucky tonight in their effort to win #14. The Braves scored first to take a 1-0 lead in the second inning, but it's a review of their failures that will haunt them years from now. The Braves had:
- runners at the corners with one out in the first
- runners at 2nd and 3rd with nobody out in the fourth
- bases loaded with one out in the 7th
- the tying run at second with nobody out in the 8th
- the tying run at first in the 9th

and exactly one of those runners crossed the plate safely. Six times in 9 innings, the Braves got the leadoff runner on base. Three times they got the first TWO batters of the inning on base. And all the Braves got for this was one run and one runner thrown out at home with 10 runners left on base.

There was precious little offense in this thriller. There were no homers, no triples, and the Reds had the game's only double. Bob Walk mowed down the Reds through four innings, allowing only one baserunner, who was immediately erased by a double play. Dale Murphy and Chris Chambliss led off the Atlanta fourth with walks and both moved ahead on a wild pitch by Cincy starter Bruce Berenyi. Murphy scored on a ground out by Bruce Benedict, but Berenyi avoided further damage despite walking the pitcher, Walk. In the fourth, a near deja vu occurred as Murphy and Chambliss both singled and then moved up to 2nd and 3rd thanks to one of Alex Trevino's three passed balls. But the Reds opted to throw Murphy out in a rundown near home on Rafael Ramirez's bounce back to the mound, and the Reds came to bat in the fifth down only 1-0.

After Dave Concepcion popped out in foul territory to lead off the inning, the next three Reds singled, scoring Larry Bittner to tie the game at one. Then with two outs, the unthinkable happened when Berenyi lined a single to left, scoring rookie Paul Householder to give the Reds a 2-1 lead. Berenyi's lifetime batting average entering this season was .163, but in three games thus far in 1982, he's 3-for-9, but the run that ended the Atlanta streak was only the second RBI of his brief career. Atlanta's last good chance came in the seventh when, for the first time this year, they blew it.

Benedict led off the 7th with a single to right and Matt Sinatro, whose hit by the batted ball kept the streak going last night, came on to run. When Ramirez reached to put runners at first and second, Manager Joe Torre send the versatile Jerry Royster to bunt in place of pitcher Larry McWilliams. But Royster's bunt wasn't great, and the Reds forced Sinatro at third. Butler walked to load the bases, and Berenyi gave way to closer Tom Hume. Hume got Glenn Hubbard to fly out to right, too short to score Ramirez, and Claudell Washington to ground out to short and get out of the jam. Despite five runners left on base in the final 3 innings, the Braves still couldn't score. Gene Garber, asked about the streak, said losing is never good and he is NOT glad the streak is over because there was no pressure anyway.

The Braves-Reds game was the only matchup between National League teams Thursday.

Mike Caldwell scattered four hits in a complete game shutout over the Blue Jays, 7-0. Cecil Cooper and Ben Oglivie homered. Joe Charboneau and Rick Manning each drove in two runs to pace Cleveland in a 4-3 win over the Rangers. Chet Lemon hit a two-run homer and Jack Morris scattered six hits to lead Detroit to a 3-1 win over the Yankees. It is the Tigers' third win in a row. Minnesota took a 2-0 lead into the bottom of the third against Seattle, but five walks and four hits sent 12 Mariners to the plate in a 7-run inning that gave last year's #1 overall baseball draft pick, Mike Moore, his first win as a major leaguer with a final score of 8-4.

Lester Fuchs, a minor league umpire in 1949 and 1950 who crossed the picket line to help the American League during the 1979 umpire's strike at the ripe old age of 66, has passed away at the age of 69. Fuchs only called 3 games. He was the brother of Tigers pitcher Charlie Fuchs, who played during WW2.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

April 23, 1982
San Diego Padres 6 (W: Chiffer, 2-0)
Atlanta Braves 3 (L: Camp, 2-1)
12 innings
13-2
1st place
Lead: 2.5 games

LEZCANO LIGHTS UP ATLANTA FOR PADRES' 9TH STRAIGHT WIN;
CARDS WIN 11TH STRAIGHT, O'S LOSE 9TH STRAIGHT;
BRAVES ACQUIRE WATSON FROM YANKEES

It will be interesting to see if the Atlanta Braves follow their record winning streak with a losing streak. So far, they're up to two.

Sixto Lezcano had the best game of his major league career, a 4-for-6 night that included two home runs, the last a 3-run shot with two outs in the top of the 12th that gave the surprising Padres a 6-3 road win over the recently hot Atlanta Braves, who lost their second straight game. Lezcano drove in four runs and scored three, ruining the 1982 debut of Phil Niekro, who scattered seven hits over 8 innings only to see two of his pitches wind up in the bleachers for solo home runs. In addition to Lezcano's fourth inning shot, Niekro suffered the ignominy of giving up a solo home run to his mound opponent, Tim Lollar, in the third. It was the second home run of Lollar's career, and he outpitched Niekro as well, giving up but four hits while striking out 10 Braves in 8 innings of work.

The two solo shots gave San Diego a 2-0 lead entering the bottom of the fourth, but the Braves fought back. Bob Horner walked and then scored on a Dale Murphy double to cut the lead in half. Glenn Hubbard then shocked everyone by leading off the sixth with one of his rare homers (it was the 21st of his career in 1333 at bats) to tie the contest. Both starters were pulled after 8, and the game turned into a battle of the bullpens.

The Padres had runners at 2nd and 3rd in the 9th but failed to score after a Murphy error put the potential winning run on second. After Hubbard's home run, the next 15 Braves went down in order. Then in the top of the 11th, the Padres took the lead when (who else?) Lezcano singled, moved to second on a walk and then scored on a single by Kurt Bevacqua. With the game on the line, Rufino Linares singled, moved to second on an infield ground out by Brett Butler, and scored to tie the game on Hubbard's single. With the winning run on first and only one out, San Diego Manager Dick Williams replaced Gary Lucas with rookie Floyd Chiffer, who promptly struck out both Claudell Washington and Horner. Rick Camp came on in relief and immediately surrendered a double to Gene Richards before retiring the next two Padres. After walking the dangerous Rupert Jones, Camp then gave up the three-run shot to Lezcano. When the Braves failed to even reach base in the bottom of the 12th, the game was over, and the Padres - who have quietly gotten off to a start nearly as impressive as Atlanta - had their 9th win in a row, good for a 10-4 record and a 2.5 game deficit behind the Braves in the NL West.

The Braves got better news off the field as they acquired a long ball threat and platoon at first base with right-handed power hitter Bob Watson. The 36-year-old Watson was one of three first basemen on the Yankees - and as the oldest and most expensive, he was the odd man out in the attempted platoon. Watson gives the Braves another potential home run threat from the right side of the plate in the Launching Pad. Watson's career numbers don't appear impressive to the naked eye, but it must also be remembered he's spent most of his career in the pitcher haven known as the Astrodome. He's not going to slug 30 home runs, but the Braves would be content if he and Chambliss together could combine for 25. Watson has a .297 career batting average and over 900 RBIs in 13 big league seasons.

Al Oliver's bases loaded single over second base off Neil Allen with one out in the ninth scored Rodney Scott and lifted the Montreal Expos to a 5-4 over the New York Mets. Scott singled, moved to second when Terry Francona walked, and moved to third on an infield dribbler by Andre Dawson. Dave Kingman hit his sixth home run of the season for the Mets. Omar Moreno drove in four runs while Mike Easler and Tony Pena drove in three apiece as Pittsburgh pounded out 17 hits in a 12-10 win over the Cubs. Home runs by George Hendrick and Ozzie Smith keyed a 12-hit attack that lifted the Cardinals to their 11th straight win in a 9-2 triumph over Philadelphia. Pete Rose drove in both runs for Philly. Back-to-back home runs by Phil Garner and Art Howe keyed a six-run third inning as Houston coasted to a 7-3 win over Cincinnati that dropped Reds ace Tom Seaver to 0-2 on the season. Ron Cey fell a triple short of the cycle as he banged out two singles, a double, and a home run while driving in four as the Dodgers shut out the Giants, 9-0. Bob Welch went the distance for Los Angeles and scattered 7 hits while striking out four as he raised his record to 3-0.

Jim Rice hit a two-run shot, Carney Lansford hit a solo home run and Dwight Evans ended the game by throwing out the tying run at home as the Red Sox escaped with a 5-4 win over Toronto. Jim Morrison tripled Harold Baines home to give the White Sox the lead in the 9th inning as LaMarr Hoyt outdueled Jim Palmer, sending the Orioles to their 9th straight loss. Amos Otis, Lee May, and Hal McRae each had three hits as they led the Royals' 16-hit attack against four Cleveland pitchers that routed the Indians, 11-6, and ended Kansas City's four-game skid. Larry Herndon, John Wockenfuss, and Alan Trammell each drove in two runs as the Tigers won their 7th in a row with a 9-1 thumping of Dave Righetti and the Yankees. Rickey Henderson stole two more bases to extend his league leading 17 thefts and scored both runs in Oakland's 7-2 loss to the California Angels. Brian Downing and Tim Foli each drove in two runs. Moose Haas scattered six hits in eighth innings as the Brewers edged the Rangers, 2-1, thanks to Don Money's RBI single. Ron Washington had four hits and John Castino and Bobby Mitchell homered as the Twins smacked 18 hits and routed Seattle, 12-4.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

April 24, 1982
San Diego Padres 6 (W: Show, 2-0; SV: DeLeon, 1)
Atlanta Braves 4 (L: Garber, 1-1)
13-3
1st place
Lead: 1.5 games

PADRES EXTEND ATLANTA LOSING STREAK TO 3 WITH 10TH STRAIGHT WIN;
CARDS WIN 12TH STRAIGHT; MURRAY'S 2 BOMBS END O'S SKID

Just three days ago, it looked like the Atlanta Braves would never lose again; for the last three days it has looked as though they will never win again. And beneath all the coverage of Atlanta's record-setting 13 wins to start the season is the anonymity with which the Padres, the only team to finish below Atlanta in the NL West last season, won their 10th in a row and moved to within 1.5 games of first. San Diego rallied from behind with a four-run 8th inning to a 6-4 win against the Atlanta bullpen that began the season as a question mark but performed solidly in the season's first two weeks. For the second straight start, a Braves pitcher allowed two runs during his innings on the mound only to see the bullpen fail to shut down the opponent.

Rookie Joe Cowley took the hill for his third career start after two so-so outings during Atlanta's winning streak, where he pitched 8.2 innings and gave up 11 hits and 5 runs with a 4.15 ERA while walking six. Tonight, he pitched well for six innings before tiring with one out in the 7th and giving way to Gene Garber with a 4-2 lead and runner on second. Garber ended the inning with a double play grounder, and the Braves appeared headed for their 14th win of the season. But in the 8th, the Atlanta bullpen imploded, as Garber retired Luis Salazar but then walked Broderick Perkins and hit pinch-hitter Randy Bass to put runners on first and second. Bass gave way to pinch-runner Dave Edwards while Garber gave way to Rick Camp. Juan Bonilla singled to left, scoring Perkins, and moved to second on the throw home. Camp then intentionally walked Garry Templeton to face Rupert Jones, amusing only in the fact that Atlanta walked Jones last night fearing his power and gave up the game-winning home run to Sixto Lezcano. Jones hit the ball back to the mound, but Camp, attempting to get the force at home, threw wildly into the dirt, scoring both Edwards and Bonilla to cap a four-run inning and give the Padres a 6-4 lead. With six outs remaining, only one Atlanta hitter reached base, and Chris Chambliss saw his single obliterated when he was out on a double play grounder from Rafael Ramirez. It was Camp's second throwing error of the season, both against the Padres, and both in games with final scores of 6-4.

Despite winning their 10th straight, San Diego does not have the longest current winning streak in baseball. That designation belongs to the St. Louis Cardinals, who won their 12th straight contest with a 7-4 triumph over the Phillies despite surrendering two home runs to Philly catcher Bo Diaz. The Cards rallied from a 3-0 fifth inning deficit to score seven runs largely on the shoulders of two former Phillies, Lonnie Smith and Dane Iorg. John Stearns drove in the game's only run with a 7th inning double and Charlie Puleo and two Mets relievers held the Expos to four hits as New York edged Montreal, 1-0. Cincinnati scored two quick first-inning runs on hits by Johnny Bench and Dave Concepcion and added a third when Cesar Cedeno scored on Mike Vail's single in the fourth that was enough to lift the Reds over Houston, 3-2. Pittsburgh fell behind the Cubs early, 5-0, but climbed back into the game with 8 runs in the final five innings to topple Chicago, 8-5. Dave Parker's run-scoring double in the 7th provided the turning point. The Dodgers held their opponents (the Astros for the first nine, the Giants for the rest) scoreless for 24 straight innings and took a 5-0 lead into the bottom of the 7th in San Francisco. But three hits and three errors - by Steve Garvey and Bill Russell, no less - opened the door to a wild 7th inning that saw the Giants take an improbable 6-5 lead. Two outs from victory, the Giants surrendered an infield hit and a single that scored two runs and lifted the Dodgers to a 7-6 win at Candlestick Park.

Eddie Murray's second home run of the game, a three-run blast in the 7th, carried the Orioles to victory, 7-4, over the White Sox and ended the worst losing streak in Baltimore Orioles history at 9 games. Murray, a switch hitter, connected from both sides of the plate, the 17th time in MLB history a player has done that. He also extended his current hitting streak to 17 games, dating back to last season. The largest crowd ever to see and Oakland Athletics contest filled the stands - in Anaheim, California for Little League Night - and saw their beloved Athletics go down to defeat to Geoff Zahn and Don Aase, 4-2. Steve McCatty pitched well for Oakland, but he made just enough mistakes to lose, surrendering three doubles, hitting a batter, and throwing a wild pitch that scored the Angels' first run. Paul Splittorff held Cleveland to four hits through 6.2 innings as a late replacement for Vida Blue as the Royals beat the Indians, 5-1, and Jerry Martin socked a two-run homer to round out the scoring. Three bombs from Larry Herndon, Jerry Turner, and Kirk Gibson blew away the Yankees, 7-2. Todd Cruz, Julio Cruz, and Dave Henderson socked solo home runs that accounted for all the Seattle scoring as the Mariners topped the Twins, 3-2. Rookie Kent Hrbek's league-leading 7th home run of the season was a two-run shot that tied the score in the sixth. Last night, the Blue Jays fell behind Boston, 5-0, before rallying for four runs in the last two innings only to have the tying run thrown out at the plate to end the game. Tonight, the Blue Jays fell behind Boston, 6-0, before rallying to trail by one run (8-7) again, only to leave the tying run stranded at first when the final two batters struck out. Luis Aponte earned his save with a stellar final frame. Pete Vuckovich tossed a three-hitter and Roy Howell socked a two-run homer to give Milwaukee a 4-1 win over Texas.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

April 25, 1982
San Diego Padres at Atlanta Braves
PPD Rain
13-3
1st place
Lead: 1.5 games

BRAVES RAINED OUT;
MURRAY HIT STREAK AT 18;
CARDS WIN STREAK ENDS AT 12

Due to rain in Atlanta, today's Padres-Braves finale was rained out. No makeup date has been scheduled. The Braves host the Pittsburgh Pirates for a three-game series starting tomorrow while the Padres have an off-day tomorrow as they return to San Diego to host the New York Mets.

Poor Toronto. A three-game sweep at the hands of the Red Sox, all three by one run. Carl Yastrzemski drilled his fifth home run of the season, a solo shot in the fourth, and went 2-for-6 while scoring twice in the 5-4 Boston triumph in 12 innings. Todd Cruz had four hits, the last a home run leading off the bottom of the 11th to lift the Mariners to a 5-4 win over Minnesota. Seattle trailed by two entering the 9th, and tied the score thanks to an Al Cowens solo shot and an RBI by Bruce Bochte, but Mariners fans were disappointed when Seattle loaded the bases with one out in the ninth with the score tied - and failed to end the game. Don Money had three hits and Cecil Cooper three RBIs as the Brewers blasted the Rangers, 11-6. Bobby Grich drove in 3 runs and Brian Downing hit his seventh long ball as the Angels dumped the Athletics, 5-1. Rick Dempsey's two-run shot was all the offense the Orioles needed to edge the White Sox, 2-1. The Orioles are 7-15 at home on Sundays in the last two seasons. Eddie Murray stretched his hitting streak to 18 games. Willie Randolph's seventh-inning homer broke a 1-1 tie and ended a three-game Yankee losing streak as New York topped the Tigers, 3-1. George Brett connected, and Lee May homered for the first time since 1980 to give the Royals a 6-3 win over Cleveland that completed a three-game sweep.

Dave Concepcion's sacrifice fly that scored Eddie Milner helped the Reds overcome four errors to beat the Astros, 4-3. Larry Bowa's two-run double highlighted a four-run Cubs fourth that ended Chicago's four-game losing streak with a 5-3 win over Pittsburgh. Andre Dawson had a pair of run-scoring singles and Scott Sanderson scattered four hits over 7 innings as Montreal beat the Mets, 5-2. Jeff Leonard's first career grand slam in the bottom of the 8th was the difference as the Giants came back to beat the Dodgers, 6-3.

Ross Baumgarten of the Pirates broke two fingers on his pitching hand and will be out 3-5 weeks. Former Cardinal Steve Carlton won his first game of 1982 against his old mates, allowing only one run and three hits in 8 innings before struggling in the 9th of an 8-4 that ended St Louis' 12-game winning streak. Ed Farmer got the save for inducing former Phillie Lonnie Smith to hit into a game-ending double play.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

April 26, 1982
Pittsburgh Pirates 6 (W: Tekulve, 2-0)
Atlanta Braves 4 (L: McWilliams, 2-1)
13-4
1st place
Lead: 1.0 games

BRAVES LOSE 4TH STRAIGHT ON MADLOCK HR;
PIRATES TO STAY IN STEEL TOWN
YANKS FIRE LEMON, HIRE GUY HE REPLACED

The Atlanta Braves continued to be the streakiest team of the young 1982 baseball season as they dopped their fourth straight contest thanks to Bill Madlock's first homer of the season, a two-run shot that lifted the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 6-4 win over the Braves less than a week after Atlanta set a major league record with 13 wins to begin the season. Reliever Kent Tekulve pitched the final 3 innings and wound up the winning pitcher after allowing two singles that brought Dale Murphy to the plate as the winning run and got the slugger to bounce back to the mound, sealing the win for Pittsburgh.

Rick Mahler started for Atlanta, and while not as sharp as in his first two starts, where he pitched complete game shutouts, he got through the Pirates' lineup once before a one-hour, nine-minute rain delay paused the game and may have cost him his effectiveness. When Mahler returned to the mound, he gave up a one-out double to center by Dave Parker and then a two-run blast to Jason Thompson to give the Pirates the early lead. Pirate starter John Candelaria was pulled after the delay in favor of Enrique Romo, and the Braves tied the game with one run in the fourth on a Bob Horner double and run scored on error, and a Dale Murphy double to score Brett Butler. Then in the sixth, Bob Watson got his first hit as a Brave leading off the inning but was caught stealing. The out proved to be huge moments later when Rufino Linares walked, Rafael Ramirez singled him to second, and pinch-hitter Chris Chambliss chased both home with a double that put the Braves in front, 4-2. But when Mike Easler hit his first bomb of the season with a solo shot off Preston Hanna in the top of the 7th, Larry McWilliams took the mound and got through the inning with the lead. In the 8th, McWilliams got the first two batters out before surrendering another double to Parker, who scored on Thompson's single and then Madlock connected for what proved to be the game-winning home run. The win leaves the Pirates five games behind the Cardinals in the NL East while the Braves' once 4.5 game lead is now down to a single game.

Ray Knight singled, doubled, and homered and drove in three runs to give 0-4 Nolan Ryan his first win of the season in Houston's 6-2 win over the Cardinals, who lost their second in a row after 12 straight wins. In the American League, the Red Sox swept the White Sox by scores of 3-2 and 5-0 to move into first place in the AL East. Rick Burleson had rotator cuff surgery for the Angels, and he is out for the year.

Pittsburgh Pirates owner Dan Galbreath announced the team will not be leaving Pittsburgh after the 1982 season as has been rumored. The two city names that constantly arise concerning the Pirates are that they will move to New Orleans or Denver, but Galbreath vociferously denied any such move was being considered. He further noted the club is not for sale. And then there's the New York Yankees and their manager, George Steinbrenner, who always hired someone else to take the fall for his bad decisions. Last September, Steinbrenner fired Manager Gene Michael for refusing to pay him proper "respect" despite the fact Michael already had clinched a playoff spot in the first half of the season. Michaels' replacement, Bob Lemon, then took the Yankees to the World Series only to commit the arch sin of losing to the Dodgers after New York led, 2-0, in games. Today, Steinbrenner tired of being "only" 6-8 and fired Lemon and replaced him with (wait for it) Gene Michael, who probably needs his head examined for taking the job. Rest assured, when Michael fails to win the World Series this year - and fail he will - George will look and see if Billy Martin is available, and if he is, George will hire and fire him next.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

April 27, 1982
Pittsburgh Pirates 10 (W: Griffin, 1-1)
Atlanta Braves 4 (L: Walk, 2-2)
13-5
2nd place
.028 behind

5TH LOSS IN A ROW DROPS BRAVES FROM FIRST;
REGGIE'S 1ST '82 HR - OFF GUIDRY
WILD 11TH IN CLEVELAND

The baseball season is officially 10% over, and so is the honeymoon for the 1982 Atlanta Braves. The team with the excellent spring training and record 13-game winning streak to begin the season fell out of first place today by percentage points after their first blowout loss of the season, a 10-4 pounding at home by the Pittsburgh Pirates. It is Atlanta's 5th loss in a row, and the first game all season where the Braves never led or at least tied their opponent after the game's beginning. Three Pirates home runs, two off the bat of Jason Thompson, doomed Atlanta's chances, and their shaky bullpen continued to struggle, allowing the runs that sealed their fate tonight.

With two outs in the first, Dave Parker singled and Thompson homered to give the Pirates a lightning quick lead. Atlanta starter Bob Walk was less effective in the second, giving up three singles, but he escaped without surrendering a run because catcher Tony Pena was caught stealing. When Bill Madlock and Mike Easler both singled to open the fourth, Walk was pulled in favor of rookie Jose Alvarez, who retired the first two hitters, although a deep sacrifice fly to center moved both runners into scoring position. But opposing pitcher Tom Griffin singled home two runs off Alvarez, and the Pirates were in command, 4-0. Walk's line for the game was nine of the 15 batters he faced reached base and four scored, including the Thompson home run.

But Atlanta did not go quietly at this point. Claudell Washington drew a one out walk and raced around to score on Dale Murphy's double, and Murphy came home on a Chris Chambliss single to cut the Pittsburgh lead in half. But with Alvarez taking the mound in the fifth, the roof fell in on the Braves and Atlanta Fulton County Stadium doesn't even have one.

Johnny Ray opened the fifth with a single to center and moved to second on a wild pitch. Alvarez then walked Parker but retired the next two hitters by getting Thompson to pop out on an infield fly and Madlock to ground out, moving both runners into scoring position. The Braves then opted to walk Easler, loading the bases for Pena, who responded by socking his first career grand slam that landed just inside the left field foul pole and all but ended the night for both Atlanta and Alvarez. The game was so one-sided at this point that former Mets 11th round draft pick Randy Johnson made his major league debut as a pinch-hitter for Alvarez in the fifth and struck out. The Braves' bullpen allowed single runs in the 7th and 9th and scored a pair of cosmetic runs in the final frame when Bob Horner followed Murphy's leadoff walk with a two-run home run that finished the scoring. The Pirates go for the sweep tomorrow as they pitch former Brave Buddy Solomon against Atlanta legend Phil Niekro.

The Atlanta loss allowed the hapless San Diego Padres, a team that has never been in first place later than April 26 in any season, to move into first place for the latest in a season in their brief history as a franchise. And the Padres were up to the challenge as they battered Mets starter Pat Zachry for five runs in the second inning, gave the lead back in less than two innings, and scored enough late to give Eric Show his third win of the season and take first by percentage points, 8-5. Dave Kingman hit his 7th home run of the year. Vern Ruhle and Joe Sambito combined for a five-hit shutout and Jose Cruz hit his second homer of the year as the Astros beat the Cardinals, 3-0, to extend St Louis' losing streak to 3 games. Steve Rogers scattered seven hits while striking out 7 and went the distance as Chris Speier hit his first home run of the year and scored twice in Montreal's 3-2 win over the Giants. Jerry Reuss tossed a four-hitter and Pedro Guererro hit a two-run shot as the Dodgers beat the Phillies, 3-0. Johnny Bench's first home run of the year erased a 2-1 Cubs lead and Cesar Cedeno's 3 RBIs lifted the Reds to a 6-3 win over the Cubs that gave Bruce Berenyi his fourth win.

The wildest inning of the day occurred in the 9th inning in Cleveland, where two listless clubs took a 2-2 tie into the 11th and then all hell broke loose. Thad Bosley and Richie Zisk singled to open the inning and Jim Maler then hit a drive just past Von Hayes at third that scored pinch runner Lenny Randle to give Seattle the lead over the Indians at Cleveland. But the Mariners weren't done as Al Cowens plated Zisk with a sacrifice fly, Jim Essian reached on a fielder's choice and then Seattle hit back-to-back home runs off the bats off Dave Henderson and Todd Cruz to give the Mariners a 7-2 lead. It proved to be enough. Barely. Cleveland loaded the bases with two outs and then scored two runs on Andre Thornton's single, closing the gap to 7-4 and bringing the tying run to the plate. Ed VandeBerg got Rod Craig to fly out to center to end the game and the Mariners escaped with a 7-4 win. Ron LeFlore made his major league debut in 1974 against Jim Slaton and struck out three times. He finally attained a measure of revenge today when he socked a Slaton pitch into the left field seats for a grand slam that contributed to a 7-run second inning as the White Sox routed the Brewers, 11-2. Carlton Fisk also homered for Chicago. Jack Morris went the distance as Detroit beat Minnesota, 5-2, and another Randy Johnson (different from the one making his debut in Atlanta) homered for the Twins.

Reggie Jackson was a New York Yankee for five seasons and won 2 World Series championships for the glorious franchise along with 4 playoff appearances, but George Steinbrenner let him go. And after a slow start to the season with exactly zero base hits, Reggie almost single-handedly beat his old teammate, Ron Guidry, as he went 2-for-3 with a single, two runs scored and, most memorably, a towering home run, his first of the year, that ended the scoring, 3-1, when umpires called the game after 7 innings due to a downpour. Carl Yastrzemski may be closing in on 43, but he's still got it. Yaz, hitting .349 with five homers and 15 RBIs, drilled a two-run single and set up the tying run as the Red Sox won their 8th in a row with a 7-5 victory over Kansas City. Willie Upshaw celebrated his 25th birthday with a bases loaded triple that lifted the Blue Jays to an 8-4 triumph over Texas and ended Toronto's five-game losing streak.

Truck Hannah, one of only a handful of professional baseball players with hits in at least five different decades, passed away from a chronic urinary infection and heart disease in Huntington Beach, California today at the age of 92. Although most of his accomplishments were in what are now called the minor leagues, Hannah played 244 games with the Yankees in 1918-20, mostly as a catcher, and was a teammate of Babe Ruth. He was elected to the Pacific Coast League Hall of Fame as a charter member in 1943. His daughter, Helen, was a Marine volunteer in WW2 and a chaperone for two of the franchises in the girl's professional baseball league of the time, a story that awaits a proper telling.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

April 28, 1982
Atlanta Braves 7 (W: Camp, 3-1)
Pittsburgh Pirates 6 (L: Scurry, 1-1)
10 innings
14-5
1st place

ATLANTA RALLIES FROM 5 DOWN TO END 5-GAME LOSING STREAK WITH BIZARRE ENDING;
ROSE GOES 5-for-5 FOR 9TH TIME

Three innings into tonight's game between the Pirates and the Braves, Pittsburgh had to feel pretty good about themselves and the Braves hopeless. The Bucs shelled Atlanta ace Phil Niekro for a five-run third, and the Braves appeared well on their way to a sixth straight loss - at home no less. But the Braves resiliently pecked away and took a 6-5 lead into the ninth only to see the bullpen blow yet another lead. In the tenth, the Braves then won on an infield bouncer that appeared it would end the inning and escaped with a 7-6 win that sent the partial sellout crowd of 6300 Atlanta fans into ecstasy, relief, or some combination of both. Hours later, the Padres lost a 15-inning squeaker to the Mets at home, and the Braves after three topsy-turvy weeks of streaks have the best record in baseball and first place by themselves in the NL West. It appears this team cannot do things the easy way yet.

Through the first two innings, both teams had only one baserunner and no real threats, but with two outs in the third, the Pirates began hitting. Omar Moreno doubled and then Niekro walked Johnny Ray and Dave Parker, bringing the hot-hitting Jason Thompson to the plate. Thompson lined a two-run single to center and Bill Madlock followed with another that plated Pittsburgh's third run. Singles by Tony Pena and Mike Easler plated two more runs, and Niekro got out of the jam by retiring Dale Berra on a fly out to left, Berra's second out of the inning. Atlanta was in a 5-0 hole against a team that has in the last week suddenly found their batting stroke.

In the bottom of the fourth, Atlanta began to stir with a single run that probably should have been more. Glenn Hubbard singled leading off the inning, and went to third when Claudell Washington singled to left and Mike Easler's error enabled both runners to move ahead. With two runners in scoring position, nobody out, and the heart of the order coming up, the Braves had the opportunity to quickly get back into the game. For the most part, they squandered it. Dale Murphy grounded out to short, productive in that it scored Hubbard and Washington moved to third with one out. But Bob Horner popped out to first, so the Pirates walked Chris Chambliss and took their chances with Bruce Benedict, who ended the inning with a pop out to short to keep the score, 5-1. In the sixth, Hubbard was again the catalyst as he led off with a single to center and Washington drilled his first homer of the year to right, a two-run shot to cut the Pirate lead to 5-3. Yet again, Atlanta's 4-5-6 hitters did nothing, not even reaching base, and the game remained in Pittsburgh's favor until the bottom of the 8th.

Paul Moskau had relieved Buddy Solomon to start the sixth, and he remained on the hill and retired Hubbard, leading off the 8th. But then Washington got his third hit of the game, a double to left and once again Atlanta's 4-5-6 hitters came to the plate having gone 0-for-8 with a walk. That all changed with two swings of the bat. Murphy launched a game-tying home run to left and before the fans could finish celebrating the tie game, Horner played his own game of one-upsmanship by clobbering a solo homer to center, and all of a sudden the Braves had a 6-5 lead and Moskau was yanked in favor of Rod Scurry, who walked Benedict but allowed no runs. Needing only 3 outs for the win, the Braves opted to stay with Gene Garber, who had come on in the 8th and was in line to get the win. Garber has been a mixed bag for Atlanta for the last several years. In his seven previous appearances this year, Garber has netted 3 saves but has also allowed 5 baserunners to score and given up 13 hits though it should be noted in fairness he has averaged more than 2 innings per appearance and has pitched at least 3 innings on three occasions. But he is their best bullpen hope, too. Garber found trouble immediately as Omar Moreno singled to right and stole second. Moreno then moved to third when Ray bounced out to short and scored to tie the game on Dave Parker's single. But the Pirates got aggressive, desperate perhaps, as Parker was caught stealing and Garber retired Thompson with the game still tied. Garber gave way to pinch-hitter Rufino Linares, but the Braves went in order to force extra innings. Rick Camp came on and struck out Bill Madlock and Lee Lacy before inducing Tony Pena to fly out to center. But after Scurry retired Washington and Murphy in the bottom of the 10th, he may walked Horner. Chambliss then hit a ringing double right that put the winning run at third with two outs and brought pinch-hitter Bob Watson to the plate to face Pirate relief ace Kent Tekulve. Braves Manager Joe Torre would later say that he chose Watson because he doesn't strike out often and he doesn't pull the ball, which is how Tekulve gets many of his outs. Watson then hit a seemingly harmless bouncer to short that Berra misplayed into a game-ending error as Horner scored from third and the Braves escaped with a 7-6 win. Combined with San Diego's late night loss, the Braves will wake up tomorrow back in first place.

The Braves will be in first because San Diego's 11-game winning streak ended in a 15-inning thriller at Jack Murphy Stadium. Mookie Wilson tripled leading off the final inning and scored on Bob Bailor's sacrifice fly to give the Mets a well-earned 5-4 victory over the Padres. Bill Laskey's first major league start was a masterpiece as he scattered three hits and struck out two and the Giants thumped the Expos, 7-0. Dickie Noles allowed only one hit, a fourth inning single to Eddie Milner, as he struck out 7 and went the distance against Tom Seaver and the Reds, 6-0. The Dodgers took a 3-0 lead into the 8th when all of a sudden a Phillies uprising, begun by Pete Rose's double, seized momentum and the Phils crossed the plate nine times in the final two innings for a 9-3 thumping of LA. Rose went 5-for-5, the ninth time in his career he has had five hits in a game. Rose also moved ahead of Hall of Famer Tris Speaker for 8th all-time with 5,102 total bases. David Green's two-run single capped a four-run sixth inning as the Cardinals edged Houston, 5-4.

In the American League, Oakland and Baltimore split a doubleheader as the Athletics prevailed, 6-2, in the opener and the Orioles won the nightcap on home runs by Eddie Murray and John Lowenstein, 5-1. Murray's hitting streak ended at 18 games in the opener when he went 0-for-4. Tommy John got his first win of the season by scattering six hits and striking out five as the Yankees beat the Angels, 6-0, to give new Manager Gene Michael his first win of his current tenure as skipper. Hal McRae drove in five runs with a home run and a double off John Tudor as Kansas City topped the Red Sox, 8-5, in Boston. Jim Gantner's single broke a 1-1 tie in the 7th and Rollie Fingers made it hold up with two scoreless innings in Milwaukee's 2-1 win over the White Sox. Len Barker and Tom Brennan combined on a four-hitter, and the Indians exploded for six runs in the first inning to end a four-game losing streak with a 6-1 win over Seattle. Rookies Randy Johnson and Gary Gaetti hit fourth inning home runs to propel the Twins to a 4-2 win over Dan Petry and the Detroit Tigers. Rance Mulliniks connected for a pinch-hit two-run single with two outs in the seven that turned a 4-4 tie with the Texas Rangers into a 6-4 win for the Blue Jays. Lee Mazilli and Buddy Bell homered for Texas.

The Braves sold 24-year-old Steve Hammond, who has yet to appear in the majors, to the Kansas City Royals.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

April 29, 1982
Atlanta Braves 3 (W: Garber, 2-1; SV: Camp, 4)
Chicago Cubs 0 (L: Jenkins, 2-2)
15-5
1st place
1.0 games ahead

BACK-TO-BACK BOMBS BRING BRAVES WIN

Ferguson Jenkins has won 266 games in his stellar and (probably) Hall of Fame career. Joe Cowley entered tonight's game with 3 major league appearances totaling 15 innings and allowing 7 runs while getting no decisions in all three games. But tonight, Cowley matched Jenkins pitch for pitch for seven innings until he was lifted for a pinch-hitter in a scoreless tie. He didn't get the win, but he certainly gave a good account of himself in just his fourth start at the major league level. Jenkins, meanwhile, shut down the Braves for 7 innings only to lose the contest in a three batter sequence in the 8th, when he gave up a single to Claudell Washington and then surrendered back-to-back home runs by Atlanta power hitters Dale Murphy and Bob Horner to give the Braves a 3-0 lead that wound up the final score when Larry McWilliams and Rick Camp combined to retire the Cubs in the 9th without serious threat. Camp got his fourth save of the year and reliever Gene Garber wound up the winner for one inning of work in the Chicago 8th. It was the second game in a row that Murphy and Horner homered back-to-back. The win is Atlanta's second in a row and keeps them in first place, one game ahead of the Padres. Murphy leads NL batters with 22 RBIs.

Tim Lollar scattered five hits and recorded his first major league shutout while belting his second home run of the season in San Diego's 6-0 whitewashing of the New York Mets. A three-run homer by Tony Pena turned out to be the difference and Dave Parker added a solo shot as the Pirates beat the Astros, 9-6. Burt Hooton tossed a one-hitter and hit a double for his first win of the season as the Dodgers blanked the Phillies, 4-0. The Dodgers were also 3-for-3 in steal attempts. A three-run home run by Darrell Evans capped a five-run first inning as the Giants toppled the Expos, 7-3. Montreal starter Ray Burris fell to 0-4 on the year.

Dave Stieb scattered five hits and struck out four while Buck Martinez drove in four runs with a homer and a single in Toronto's 7-0 pasting of the Royals. Ron LeFlore went 3-for-4, including a two-run home run, as the White Sox edged Detroit, 3-2. Dwayne Murphy's sacrifice fly began a three-run 9th inning that propelled Oakland to a 9-6 win over struggling Baltimore and squandered the Orioles' heroic comeback efforts after trailing, 6-1, entering the bottom of the third. Davey Lopes homered for Oakland. Rookie Storm Davis made his major league debut by throwing a wild pitch that allowed Oakland's second 9th inning run. Geoff Zahn scattered seven hits, was thoroughly outpitched by Dave Righetti, and wound up the winning pitcher when Bob Boone'*****-and-run single in the 9th plated pinch-runner Jose Moreno, and the Angels added another run on Brian Downing's sacrifice fly. The unraveling began when Shane Rawley hit former Yankee Reggie Jackson with a pitch to start the inning, and Jackson gave way to Moreno on the basepaths. Righetti allowed but two hits in 7.1 innings but left with Rod Carew perched on second before George Frazier got the Yankees out of that jam. Andre Thornton singled in a pair of runs while Larry Sorenson scattered five hits and struck out four in Cleveland's 5-1 win over Seattle. Toby Harrah homered for the Tribe.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

April 30, 1982
Atlanta Braves 1 (W: Bedrosian, 2-0; SV: Garber,4)
Chicago Cubs 0 (Bird, 1-4)
16-5
1st place
2.0 games ahead

BRAVES SHUT OUT CUBS, 1-0; PERRY WINS NO. 299;
REGGIE SMITH'S THREE-RUN SHOT ENDS GAME AS
GIANTS BEAT METS

After getting battered for 34 runs in a 5-game losing streak, the Atlanta Braves' pitching staff has recovered quite well. For the second night in a row, the Braves held the Cubs scoreless, and all it took to win was a solo home run by Claudell Washington leading off the sixth and a mound staff that extended Chicago's scoreless streak to 19 innings as the Braves prevailed in a pitcher's duel, 1-0. Steve Bedrosian picked up his second win by scattering four hits over 7 innings and striking out three. Gene Garber allowed but one hit in the final two innings to notch his fourth save of the year. The win means the Braves finish the month with a record of 16-5, their best month since July 1971. The last time the Braves led at the end of April was in 1959.

Last year, the now 43--year-old Gaylord Perry likely missed out on his 300th win while a member of the Braves thanks to the seven-week strike that interrupted play. But he reached number 299 tonight with a 6-3 triumph over the New York Yankees despite Perry's Seattle Mariners trailing, 2-1, as relief ace Goose Gossage took the mound and the Mariners' chances of victory appeared minute. But the Mariner hitters lit up Goose for four hits and three runs in the 8th inning then put the game out of reach with two outs in the ninth when Bud Bulling doubled home two runs to give Perry a comfortable lead of 6-1. But Perry couldn't quite close the deal, leaving with one out remaining and the tying run on the plate as Bill Caudill faced Dave Collins and retired him to earn the save and seal the win. If Perry wins his 300th game - and it is probably only a matter of time at this point - he will be just the fourth pitcher since 1924 to accomplish the feat. And given the number of wins necessary as baseball moves more in favor of relievers, smaller ballparks, and five-man rotations, Perry might well be the last man to ever accomplish the feat. Of course, Early Wynn thought that when he was the most recent member of the 300-win club, too. But there's no way to know for sure; Perry only had four wins when Wynn reached #300 in 1963.

Mike Torrez pitched a four-hit complete game as Boston routed Texas, 7-1, sending the Rangers to their 7th straight loss. Rick Langford went the distance and scattered three hits while Jeff Newman had 4 RBIs and Dwayne Murphy another three as Oakland thumped Cleveland, 8-0. Gary Roenicke hit a three-run home run while Al Bumbry and Rick Dempsey each drove in two runs in Baltimore's rout of the Angels. The Orioles shelled starter Mike Witt for three runs in the game's first ten batters, but it was Stan Bahnsen who took the loss after California overcame the early lead. Jim Palmer got his first win of the season. Ron Washington hit a two-run shot and Gary Gaetti a solo blast to guide Minnesota to a 7-4 win over Milwaukee. Rookie Kent Hrbek had a two-run triple for the Twins, who overcame three errors to defeat Moose Haas. Kirk Gibson's RBI single scored the first run off Salome Barojas this season and keyed Detroit to a 12-inning win over the White Sox, 6-4. The Royals came back from a 5-0 deficit to edge Toronto, 8-7, on Cesar Geronomio's squeeze play that scored Frank White with the winning run in the 8th. Dan Quisenberry got his sixth save as Grant Jackson got the win and Roy Lee Jackson took the loss.

Frank Pastore scattered nine hits and went the distance as Cincinnati beat St Louis, 8-2. Ron Cey and Pedro Guererro both hit solo homers, but it wasn't enough as Scott Sanderson outdueled Fernando Valenzuela, 4-2. Jeff Reardon got his fourth save. Bo Diaz socked a two-run homer with one out in the top of the 10th to lift the Phillies to a 3-1 win over the Padres. Both Steve Carlton and Juan Eichelberger pitched the entire ten innings. Phil Garner's three-run home run was the difference as the Astros edged the Pirates, 4-3, sending Rick Rhoden's season record to 0-3. The New York Mets were three outs from a 4-2 win at Candlestick Park in San Francisco; they failed to get even one. Jim Wohlford singled to left and rookie Jeff Ransom walked. Neil Allen came on for the Mets to face pinch-hitter Reggie Smith, and after his wild pitch moved both runners into scoring position, Allen gave up a three-run shot to right, saddling him with the loss despite facing only one batter and wasting a solid effort from Mets starter Mike Scott. If you're wondering why the Mets didn't walk Smith to load the bases and set up the force at any base, the consensus is that it's because convention wisdom, which is not always right, says that you don't put the winning run on base. Good job, Mets, you instead let him touch all four of them. The poor decision making may have been because Mets Manager George Bamberger was tossed after arguing a runner interference call in the fourth. But given that a walk would have brought Chili Davis and then Joe Morgan to the plate with the bases loaded and nobody out, it likely doesn't matter.

The Astros released former Padre and Giant Mike Ivie. Former Brooklyn and St Louis Cardinals pitcher Leo Dickerman passed away today at the age of 85.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

May 1, 1982
Chicago Cubs 5 (W: Martz, 2-2)
Atlanta Braves 1 (L: Mahler, 2-1)
16-6
1st place
1.0 games ahead

The Chicago Cubs entered Saturday's night game with a scoreless streak of 19 innings; it took them only four batters to end it, and the Cubs built on that lead with one more in the fourth and three insurance runs in the ninth off Rick Camp to beat the Braves, 5-1, and finally salvage a victory in the series after two good pitching performances that ended in a loss. This time, fifth starter Randy Martz and three relievers pitching one inning each combined to give Chicago the win over Atlanta, whose three-game winning streak ended with only one run, a solo shot by Dale Murphy in the fourth. From the opening run, the Braves trailed throughout.

Gary Woods singled for the Cubs with one out in the first and then moved to third on an excellent hit-and-run single from Bill Buckner. When Leon Durham grounded out to first, Woods crossed the plate to end Chicago's scoreless streak. Atlanta threatened first in the second when Larry Whisenton led off with a single, but he was eliminated on a "strike him out, throw him out" double play on Biff Pocoroba, which became huge when Bruce Benedict reached on a two out double but the threat got no further. In the top of the fourth, three straight singles with nobody out plated Buckner to extend the lead to 2-0, but Atlanta starter Rick Mahler mitigated the damage by getting Jerry Morales to bounce into a double play. Murphy's solo shot cut the lead in half, but neither team showed much offense until the Cubs batted in the top of the ninth. Morales singled and moved to second on a bunt by Ryne Sandberg. Larry Bowa then reached on an infield single that kept Morales at second, and Bob Molinaro walked to load the bases with one out. The Cubs then stunned Camp, the Braves - and everyone - with a bases loaded bunt by pinch-hitter Junior Kennedy that scored Morales with an insurance run and left the bases loaded. With a chance to limit the damage and keep Atlanta in the game, Camp induced Woods to send a double play grounder to Rafael Ramirez. His toss to Glenn Hubbard got the second out of the inning, but Hubbard skipped the pivot throw past first baseman Chris Chambliss, sending two runs home to make the lead 5-1 and ending Atlanta's hopes for the night. The Braves managed to get two runners on with one out in the bottom frame, but Benedict popped out and Ramirez struck out to end the game.

The ending to the Rangers-Red Sox game was similar to the Braves and Cubs but more dramatic. In the top of the 12th, Bill Stein singled home Billy Sample to give Texas a 5-4 lead. With the bases loaded and one out, Danny Darwin got Dave Stapleton to hit what appeared to be a game-ending double play. But after forcing Carney Lansford at second, Stein threw wildly to first, allowing Dwight Evans and rookie Wade Boggs to cross the plate and give Boston a 6-5 win over Texas, who lost their 8th in a row. If that wasn't exciting enough, the Angels and Orioles took a 4-4 tie into the 13th when Don Baylor unloaded a two-run shot off Tippy Martinez to give the California a 6-4 win in Baltimore. Lance Parrish entered the game batting .100, but a double and his second home run of the year lifted Detroit to a 5-2 win over the Chicago White Sox. Dave Rozema got his first save. Wayne Gross, Mike Heath, and Dave McKay each knocked in a pair of runs as Oakland thumped Cleveland, 8-2. A scoreless game entering the bottom of the 8th turned wild after Ken Griffey's ground hop double gave the Yankees a 1-0 lead and Roy Smalley ended Seattle's hopes with a grand slam as New York beat the Mariners, 5-1. Trailing 8-3 entering the ninth, Toronto rallied for four runs and had the tying run at the plate when Dan Quisenberry struck out Otto Velez to preserve an 8-7 Kansas City victory. Trailing 4-1 entering the 8th, the Brewers rallied for five runs, capped by a Gorman Thomas home run to beat the Twins, 6-5. Randy Bush made his major league debut for Minnesota in the bottom of the 9th and struck out.

A pitcher's duel between a guy who pitched a no-hitter in 1980 (Jerry Reuss) and one who pitched one in 1981 (Charlie Lea) went in favor of Reuss when Lea gave up a two-run shot to Jorge Orta for Los Angeles' only runs of the game in a 2-1 triumph over the Expos. The Expos hit three consecutive singles in the bottom of the 9th with one out, but left fielder Dusty Baker gunned down Warren Cromartie at home for the second out of the inning, and reliever Tom Niedenfuer came on to retire Jerry White on a fly out to center to preserve the Dodgers' win. Chili Davis snapped a 2-2 tie with a run-scoring single in the fourth and Duane Kuiper's two-run single highlighted a three-run fifth as the Giants beat the Mets, 6-3, to give Atlee Hammaker his first win in the National League. Solo home runs by Jose Cruz and Terry Puhl guided Houston to a 6-3 win over the Pirates and gave Nolan Ryan his second win of the season. Dan Driessen's first career grand slam and Mario Soto's five-hit pitching enabled the Reds to crush the Cardinals, 10-1. Terry Kennedy drove home three runs and hit his first home run of the season and Luis DeLeon came on after a six-run inning to allow just two hits in the final five innings and gain his second win as the Padres held on to beat the Phillies, 9-6.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

May 2, 1982
Atlanta Braves 10 (W: Walk, 3-2)
Chicago Cubs 3 (L: Larson, 0-3)
17-6
1st place
2.0 games ahead

BRAVES ROUT CUBS, 10-3; RANGERS LOSE 9TH STRAIGHT;
SIMMONS HOMERS FROM BOTH SIDES OF PLATE FOR BREW CREW

Bob Walk scattered three runs and five hits while tossing just the third complete game of his brief career while his teammates turned 12 hits and 8 walks into a 10-3 rout over the Cubs without virtue of a single home run. Bruce Benedict, Dale Murphy, and Chris Chambliss each drove in a pair of runs while leadoff batter Jerry Royster drove home three as the Braves took the measure against six Chicago pitchers. The win gives the Braves a 3-1 series win over the Cubs as they prepare for a 9-game road trip against the Pirates, Cardinals, and these same Cubs over the next ten days.

Cubs starter Dan Larson got through the Atlanta order the first time without any damage, walking two but surrendering no hits, but one out from completing three hitless innings, Larson gave up four straight singles, walked Larry Whisenton, and gave up another single, giving the Braves a lightning quick 4-0 lead after the game had seemed rather calm. Two innings later, the Braves put the game away. Allen Ripley took the mound and gave up a leadoff triple to Chambliss. After retiring the next two batters, he intentionally walked Rafael Ramirez to bring Walk and his .143 career batting average to the plate. But he drew a walk - yes, Walk walked - and Royster scorched a double that sent all three runners home to put the Braves ahead, 7-0. But the inning wasn't over. Hubbard, Washington, Murphy, and Chambliss singled - yes, his second hit of the inning - and the Braves were up, 10-0, when Whisenton popped out to center to end the inning. The Cubs never made a serious threat, and Walk only threw one bad pitch, which Keith Moreland planted in the bleachers for the game's only home run. The rout ended with a final count of 10-3 in favor of the Braves.

Joe Niekro and Randy Moffitt combined on a five-hitter and Jose Cruz and Art Howe drove in two runs each as Houston toppled Pittsburgh, 5-2. Jason Thompson slammed his 8th home run of the season for the Pirates. Tim Wallach connected for his first home run of the year as the Expos rapped out 17 hits to beat the Dodgers in a series for the first time since 1977 in a 13-1 rout. Steve Rogers won his fourth game of 1982 while Bob Welch went down to defeat for the first time. Mike Schmidt returned from a 17-day stint on the disabled list with a double and two-run homer as the Phillies beat the Padres, 3-0, in a four-hit shutout for Mike Krukow. The Giants and Mets split a doubleheader as did the Reds and Cardinals.

Dennis Eckersley scattered 8 hits and completed his second shutout of the season as the Red Sox sent to the Rangers to their 9th straight defeat, 6-0. Boston are 11-1 in their last 12 and have a 1.5 game lead in the AL East. Harold Baines drove in three runs with a sacrifice fly and a two-run triple as the White Sox crushed the Tigers, 10-3. LaMarr Hoyt becomes the majors' first five-game winner for Chicago. Mike Norris allowed only four hits and Jeff Newman clubbed a two-run homer as Oakland beat Cleveland, 6-2. Rickey Henderson stole his 25th base in Oakland's 24th game and is on a pace to shatter Lou Brock's season record of 118 set eight years ago. Toronto raced out to an early 4-0 lead and held on to prevail over Kansas City, 7-5, as Willie Upshaw and Lloyd Moseby drove in two runs each. Eddie Murray clubbed two doubles, driving in one and scored once as Scott McGregor beat the California Angels for the 10th straight time in a 6-4 Baltimore win. Ted Simmons entered tonight's game with a .204 average and then slammed home runs from each side of the plate, both three-run bombs that drove home six runs and were enough by themselves to give Milwaukee enough to dispatch the Minnesota Twins, 11-4. Gorman Thomas also homered for the Brewers. Dave Winfield lined in the go ahead run off third base and Roy Smalley ripped a two-run single, both in the 8th inning, to break a 1-1 tie and lift the Yankees to a 4-2 win over Seattle.

The Athletics signed Bill Castro as a free agent.