KOD12 World Series: Reds take crown in 6 over Twins

GAME 1 -  Metropolitan Stadium
Jim Maloney (10-2) vs Dave Boswell (6-4)
Reds 6, Twins 1
Cincinnati scores 4 runs in the first as Minnesota's Boswell walks 3 of the first 4 batters.  Cincy pulls away behind great pitching from Jim Maloney as he pitches the Reds to a complete game 6-1 win.  Frank Robby provides enough offense for the Reds by going 2-4 with a HR and 2 RBIs.   Mickey Vernon and Harmon Killebrew had the only 2 hits that the Twins would post on the day.  Killebrew walked and was also hit by a Maloney fastball.

GAME 2 -  Metropolitan Stadium
Tom Seaver (8-3) vs Camilo Pascual (4-5)
Reds 6, Twins 4
Tom Seaver guts out a tough performance and outlasts the Twins' Pascual enroute to a 6-4 Red victory.  Cincy’s bullpen trifecta of Norm Charlton, John Franco and Rob Dibble protected the lead after Seaver left with 2 outs in the 8th.  Everyone in the Red lineup with the exception of catcher Ed Bailey, who walked twice, had a hit.  Minnesota made a run at it in the 9th, but came up short thanks to the bullpen work done by the Reds.

GAME 3 -  Crosley Field
Jim Kaat (6-2) vs Jose Rijo (7-3)
Twins 9, Reds 3
The Twins enjoy the road trip to Cincinnati as Jim Kaat pitches well and beats Jose Rijo.  The Twins 4 and 5 hitters Harmon Killebrew and Tony Oliva go for a combined 6-9 with 3 HRs and 7 RBIs.   Minnesota had a 4-2 lead heading into the 5th when they scored 4 to blow it open thanks to Oliva’s grand slam.  Killebrew had 2 homers and a double.

 

GAME 4 -  Crosley Field
Jack Kralick (4-1) vs Gary Nolan (6-2)
Reds 9, Twins 7
The Twins come in looking to even the series and dominate the game until the 9th.  Minnesota takes a 7-3 lead into the 9th and puts their fate in the hand of reliever Rick Aguilera.  Aguilera walks the first 3 batters and after a Pinson double, the game is tied.  Two batters later, Johnny Bench blasts a shot to seal the game and incredible comeback for the Reds.   Those 6 runs scored in the bottom of the 9th are a KOD World Series record for comebacks.  Up until this game “Aggie” had been a virtual lock in relief.  He picked the worst time ever to record his second blown save of the season.

GAME 5 -  Crosley Field
Dave Boswell (7-4) vs Jim Maloney (10-3)
Twins 4, Reds 2
Minnesota needing a win to stay alive puts Dave Boswell on the mound against Cy Young candidate Jim Maloney.  This time, the Twins get to Maloney and Boswell holds on for a 4-2 Twin win.   Maloney, who was lights out during the regular season, has had some spotty outings here in the post season.  After yesterday’s fiasco the Twins went to Al Worthington to close the game out instead of “Aggie”.  1965 AL MVP Zoillo Versalles  went 3 for 4.  Kirby Puckett is the only Twin regular not to post a hit.  Frank Robby knocked in both of Cincy’s runs in a losing cause.

GAME 6 -  Metropolitan Stadium
Tom Seaver (9-3) vs Camilo Pascual (4-6)
Reds 2, Twins 0

Not much offense in this game and the Reds go with “Tom Terrific” Seaver and he pitches a gem as the Reds clinch with a 2-0 victory.  Seaver scatters 5 hits without yielding a run, before exiting with 1 out in the 9th.  Even the partisan Twin crowd gave “The Franchise” a “standing O” for his performance.  Rob Dibble recorded the final 2 outs to notch the save and clinch the series.  Cincy scored a solo run in the 2nd on a Tony Perez sac fly and another solo run in the 5th thanks to a wild pitch by Pascual.

MVP:  Tom Seaver (2 wins and gives up only 3 earned runs in 16 IP)
--submitted by Steve Tate KOD12 Champ--

NLCS: Reds outlast Cubbies in classic 7 game set

GAME 1 - Crosley Field
Cubs 8, Reds 0
Ferguson Jenkins vs Jim Maloney
Cy Young hopeful Jim Maloney picked the worst time of the season to have a bad outing.  The Cubbies touched the hard throwing righty for 8 runs in 8 innings, while their ace right hander, Ferguson Jenkins, was spot on sharp.  The tall Canadian went the distance and recorded a 5 hit shutout vs one of the toughest lineups in the NL.  Chicago struck first with a 3 run outburst in the top of the 3rd, then finished off the day with 4 more in the 8th.  Backstop Jody Davis had a career day going 3 for 4 with 2 runs scored, 6 RBI's and a 3 run homer in the 2nd.  Davis' bases loaded clearing double was the final coffin nail for Maloney's day.
Cubs lead series 1-0

GAME 2 - Crosley Field
Reds 5, Cubs 1
Bill Hands vs Tom Seaver
Tom Seaver was more than just terrific striking out 10 Cubs and going the distance allowing just 1 run, a Ron Santo solo shot.  Cincy's offense struck back with a vengeance.  Joe Morgan went 3 for 4 with and RBI and 2 runs scored.  Frank Robinson's 3 run blast in the bottom of the third broke a scoreless tie.  Morgan's solo shot in the 7th capped off the scoring.
Series tied 1-1

GAME 3 - Wrigley Field
Cubs 5, Reds 3
Jose Rijo vs Greg Maddux
With the score tied 2-2 after 6 1/2 innings of play the Cubbies unloaded on Jose Rijo to the tune of 3 runs in the bottom of the 7th.  Andre "the Hawk" Dawson led off the inning and broke the 2-2 tie with a fly ball that just cleared the ivy.  Rick Monday doubled and scored on a Ron Santo single two batters later, then scored when pinch hitter Jose Cardenal singled down the right field line.  Cincy scored an unearned solo run in the 9th thanks to an error by Banks at short, but Bruce Sutter was able to strike out Tony Perez with a nasty splitter to end the game.  Ryne Sandberg went 2 for 4 and hit to solo shots.
Cubs lead series 2-1

GAME 4 - Wrigley Field
Reds 5, Cubs 2
Gary Nolan vs Rick Reuschel
Ted Kluszewski's 3 run blast in the top of the first rattled "Big Daddy" Reuschel, but did not knock him out of the box.  Ryne Sanberg scored on a wild pitch in the bottom of the inning to make it a 3-1 game.  Hank Sauer's solo shot in the 6th made it a tense 1 run game until Big Klu hit his second homer of the game (a 2 run shot) to put it away.  Norm Charlton would pitch a scoreless 9th to notch the save.  Lee Smith gave up Klu's blast in the 8th and failed to keep his team close.
Series tied 2-2

GAME 5 - Wrigley Field
Reds 4, Cubs 1
Jim Maloney vs Ferguson Jenkins
In a rematch of game 1 starters the tables were completely turned.  This time Maloney was back in stride giving up just 1 run in 6 1/3 innings of work.  The Reds bullpen was phenomenal getting the final 8 outs without yielding a single run.  Mario Soto, John Franco and Rob Dibble were the modern day "Nasty Boys".  Frank Robinson knocked in 3 of the 4 Red runs via a double and a homer.  Tablesetters Rose and Griffey were both 2 for 5.
Reds lead series 3-2

GAME 6 - Crosley Field
Cubs 8, Reds 2
Bill Hands vs Tom Seaver
The Reds headed home hoping to close out the Cubs in 6 with Tom  Seaver on the mound.  Seaver didn't have it today and was gone after giving up 5 runs in 5 innings.  Bill Hands rebounded from his previous poor performance by giving up just 1 run in almost 6 innings of work, before Scott Sanderson and Lee Smith closed out the game.  "Mr. Cub", Ernie Banks, making the most of his first ever post season appearance went 4 for 5 with 3 runs scored and 2 RBI's thanks to 2 solo blasts.  Jody Davis had another monster day with 3 RBI's and another homer.  Leading 5-2 the Cubbies tacked on 3 more runs in the top of the 9th to win this one going away and thus forcing a deciding game 7.
Series tied 3-3

GAME 7 - Crosley Field
Reds 7, Cubs 1
Greg Maddus vs Jose Rijo
By the third inning all of the drama surrounding this game 7 was gone.  Barry Larkin doubled home Frank Robinson and Vada Pinson to make it 2-0 Reds after 2.  Banks' solo blast with 1 out in the top of the 3rd made it a 2-1 game, but the hopes of every Cub fan faded like it was August all over again when the Reds scored 5 big runs in the bottom of the inning.  Back to back 2 run doubles by Johnny Bench and Vada Pinson was followed by an RBI single by Larkin.  No further scoring was needed and no further scoring occurred.  Greg Maddux basically got lit up like a Christmas tree, while Jose Rijo cruised to victory.  Rijo fanned 7 Cubs and gave up ust 2 hits and 1 run in 7 1/3 innings of work.  Don Gullett and Rob Dibble were called on to finish the game out without any fanfare.  A great series ended in a very anti-climatic fashion.  Cincy will now head to the Twin-Cities to face the Twinkies for the KOD12 World Championship.
Reds win series 4-3

4th time a charm, 4 KOD playoff appearances, 4 ALCS appearances, 1st WS

Game 1 – Yankee Stadium

Ralph Terry vs Dave Boswell

Minnesota jumped out to an early 2-0 behind a solo HR by Mickey Vernon in the 1^st and a Bobby Allison triple in the 4^th driving in Tony Olivia. Dave Boswell would pitch 7 scoreless innings before giving way to Al Worthington.  Worthington proved ineffective yielding 3 runs in 0.2 innings. Ralph Terry would leave the game after 8 with the Yankees up 3-2 looking to take 1-0 lead in the series. Goose Gossage would come in to try and close out the game. The first batter, Harmon Killebrew would fly out. Tony Olivia would then double and pinch hitter Kirby Puckett would single and bring home Olivia to tie the game. In the 10^th, Sparkly Lyle would give up a walk to Carew and a single to Vernon. MVP Candidate Harmon Killebrew would get a 3 run HR off Lyle to put Minnesota up 6-3. Rick Aguilera who came into the game in the 9^th, would give up a single to Roger Maris and then get the next three batters to put Minnesota up 1-0. Minnesota 6, New York 3 (10 innings).

Game 2 – Yankee Stadium

Vic Raschi vs. Jim Perry

The Yankees would strike 1^st on a single by Thurman Munson who  would then steal 2^nd. Rickey Henderson would hit a single to bring him. The Twins would tie the game in the 6^th. The Yankees would add 2 runs in the 7^th only to see the Twins tie it in the top of the 8^th. Dave Righetti would come into the game for the final two outs in the 8^th.Perry would yield 3 runs in the bottom of the 8^th including a 2 run blast by “Mr. October”, Reggie Jackson to put the Yankees back on top 6-3. Goose Gossage shut down the Twins in the 9^th for the save. Righetti would get the win to even the series 1-1. New York 6, Minnesota 3.

Game 3 – Met Stadium

Camilo Pascual vs. Ron Guidry

New York would get a run in each of the 1^st three innings including solo shots by Graig Nettles and Mickey Mantle. Minnesota would add one each in the 5^th and 6^th to close the score to 3-2.Don Mattingly would add a solo shot in the 8^th to give the Yanks a 4-2 lead.  With 2 outs in the bottom of the 9^th, Righetti would walk PH Tom Brunansky. Cesar Tovar would come in to run for Brunansky. Kirby Puckett would get a 2 out HR to tie the game and send it to extra innings. NY would take the lead in the top of the 10^th but Minnesota would again tie the game in the bottom of the inning. In the 11^th, Kirby Puckett would hit a walk off HR to put Minnesota up 2-1 in the series. Minnesota 6, New York 5 (11 innings).

Game 4 – Met Stadium

Jim Kaat vs. Allie Reynolds

Minnesota would get to Allie Reynolds early and often 8 runs in the 1^st four innings and knocking Reynolds out of the game. Reliever Fritz Peterson did not fare much better yielding 4 runs in 3 innings. Jim Kaat would pitch 8.2 innings and giving up 3 runs before giving way to Frank Viola who would yield an additional run before the final out. Minnesota would get 16 hits while the Yankees committed 3 errors in a game that would see 7 HR’s including shots Bill Skowron, Mickey Mantle & Yogi Berra for the Yanks and Kirby Puckett, Tony Olivia, Harmon Killebrew & Gary Gaetti for Minnesota.

Minnesota 12, New York 4.

Game 5- Met Stadium

Dave Boswell vs. Mel Stottlemyre

Minnesota, not wanting to go back to NY put game 1 winner Dave Boswell on the mound. Rod Carew would single in the 1^st and a HR by Harmon Killebrew  would put Minnesota up 2-0 after 1. The Yankees would come right back with Joe DiMaggio leading off with a double and moving to 3^rd on a single by Nettles and a sac. Hit by Thurman Munson to pull NY within 1. Minnesota would load the bases in the 4^th. A sac. Hit and a sac. Fly would put the Twins up 4-1. New York would come right back with two outs on a 3 run HR by DiMaggio to tie the game. Minnesota would add a solo HR by Kirby Puckett in the bottom of the inning and a 2 run HR by Tony Olivia in the bottom of the 7^th. DiMaggio would add a solo shot in the 8^th but Al Worthington would come in to get 5 of the 6 batters he faced for the save. Minnesota 7, New York 5.

Congratulations to Michael Hopcroft and the New York Yankees on an excellent season.

--submitted by Marvin Sik--

KOD 12 – LCS Preview

For the first time in the history of the King of Diamonds league all 4 division winners have punched their ticket to the League Championship Series.

Joe D. and his all around play vs	“the Killer” and the long ball

Michael Hopcroft’s Bronx Bombers will face off against Marvin Sik’s Minnesota Twins.  Minnesota had the largest margin for victory for a divisional champion (5 games), while the Bronx Bombers overcame injury to post the best record in baseball.

1950’s/60’s NL stars Robinson	& Banks will do battle

Over in the NL Steve Tate’s Big Red Machine is set to do battle with Jim Walden’s surprising Cubbies.  The Reds pretty much outhit their competition and got solid pitching all year, especially from Cy Young Candidate Jim Maloney.  The Cubs had one of their typical late season swoons and backed into the playoffs.  Chicago swept the powerful Dodgers in 3 straight to regain their momentum.

Both series should be entertaining best of 7 sets.  I’m going to hold off on making any predictions, but I’d love to hear everyone else’s prediction.  Please reply back on the blog.

LDS: Reds eliminate Braves in 4

GAME 1 - Crosley Field
Reds 8, Braves 3
Lew Burdette vs Tom Seaver
Tom Terrific was merely just good, but with the Redlegs posting an 8 spot he didn't need to be terrific. Seaver had a 6-0 shutout going until the top of the 6th when Eddie Mathews hit a two run shot and Joe Adcock had a solo blast.  The Reds struck back with 2 more in the bottom of the frame to end all hopes for the Braves.  Frank Robinson, Vada Pinson and Johnny Bench all went deep.  Cincy featured a balanced 10 hit attack where every regular had a safety except Joe Morgan.

GAME 2 - Crosley Field
Braves 10, Reds 3
Tom Glavine vs Jim Maloney
Atlanta struck back with a vengeance after going down 3-1.  A 4 run 6th and a 3 run 8th blew the doors off the Reds wagon to even the series.  Cy Young candidate, Jim Maloney, was rocked for 7 runs on 11 hits over 7 innings.  Reliever Norm Charlton was not much better giving up 3 runs in 2 putrid innings worth of work.  Rico Carty's 4 for 5 day paced the Brave offense.  Dale Murphy's 3 for 5 day with 2 RBI's in the lead off spot fueled the engine.  Tommy Glavine went 8 2/3 allowing just 3 runs before giving way to Don McMahon to get the final out.  Hank Aaron made 2 uncharacteristic errors, which did not play into the decision.  Aaron, Mathews, Murphy and Blauser all hit homers as the Braves evened up the series.

GAME 3 - Fulton County Stadium
Reds 8, Braves 5
Jose Rijo vs Warren Spahn
Heading into the top of the 8th the Reds were barely protecting a tenuous 1 run lead.  Jeff Blauser's 6th error of the season allowed Ken Griffey to score with the bases loaded.  Spahn drew on all of his veteran guile to stop the bleeding, but the Reds were now up by 2 runs.  Johnny Temple's solo shot in the 9th made it a 3 run lead and Frank Robinson's sac fly put the Reds up by 4.  Atlanta eeked out a run on a Blauser ground out in the bottom of the inning, but they could not erase Cincy's big lead.

GAME 4 - Fulton County Stadium
Reds 8, Braves 5
Gary Nolan vs Phil Niekro
Staving off elimination fueled the Braves to knock Gary Nolan around for 3 runs in the bottom of the 2nd.  Knowing that the Big Red Machine could strike at anytime, Nolan did not fold up his tent.  That machine began to heat up when Joe Morgan hit a solo shot in the 4th to cut the deficit to 2.  Johnny Bench's 2 run shot in the 5th evened the game up.  Felipe Alou's RBI double in the bottom of the 5th helped the Braves temporarily regain their lead, but the Reds were locked in and went on a 5 run tear over the final 4 innings to close out the game and the series.  Long reliever Mario Soto blew the lead, but got the win.  Franco and Dibble shared duties closing out the 9th, with "Dibbs" getting the save.  Don McMahon took the loss as the loss as the Reds punched their ticket to the NLCS vs Chicago.

Cubbies sweep Boys of Summer in 3 straight

GAME 1 - Wrigley Field
Don Sutton vs Ferguson Jenkins
Cubs 6, Dodgers 5
Chicago limped into the playoffs thanks the the Phillies out "swooning" them down the stretch.  They talk about needing momentum when the post season starts, but the Cubbies proved that to be a bunch of bunk.  After going down 4-1 to the Dodgers thanks to a 4 run top of the 4th supplied by a Reggie Smith Single and a Gil Hodges 3 run shot, the Cubs looked dead.  The North side would come back to life in the bottom of the inning when Billy Bucks hit a 2 out RBI triple and Ron Santo crushed a 2 run shot to tie the game at 4-4.  Ernie Banks' solo shot in the 5th gave Jenkins a 5-4 lead, his error at short in the 7th allowed Maury Wills to score and tie the game at 5-5.  Rick Monday would lead off the bottom of the 9th and work out a walk off of knuckleballing reliever Charlie Hough.  A passed ball, which could have easily been recorded as a wild pitch allowed Monday to move over to second.  After Buckner struck out looking Santo hit one that drove Hodges back to the ivy in left for out number 2.  Jose Cardenal was called on to pinch hit for catcher Randy Hundley and the man with the big "fro" delivered the game winning walk off RBI single to put Chicago up 1-0 in the series.

GAME 2 - Wrigley Field
Sandy Koufax vs Greg Maddux
Cubs 1, Dodgers 0
North side fans were treated to a HOF pitching matchup that did not disappoint.  Koufax was his usual dominant self fanning 10 and walking just 1.  Greg Maddux fanned 8, walked three, but his most important stat of the day was zero runs allowed.  The game remained hopelessly deadlocked in a scoreless tie until the bottom of the 9th when Koufax, who threw 131 pitches, looked to be tiring.  After getting Banks to pop out Ryne Sandberg singled sharply off of Koufax.  Hank Sauer hit a bullet to Pete Guerrero at third for out number two.  The Hawk, Andre Dawson singled with 2 outs to put runners on the corners and MVP candidate Rick Monday came through with an RBI walk off single to score Sandberg and put Chicago one game away from clinching the series.  Monday fanned the first 2 times he face Koufax.  Manager Walden showed confidence in his centerfielder by letting him stay in the lineup and face the toughest lefty on the planet.

GAME 3 - Ebbets Field
Rick Reuschel vs Fernando Valenzuela
Cubs 7, Dodgers 5
The series shifted venues, but the results remained quite the same.  The Cubbies, who were left for dead and buried by the media a week ago, continued their resurrection by outlasting a HOF laden Dodger lineup.  On a day where Valenzuela had nothing (10 hits / 7 runs) the Dodger bats were called on to overcome the lack of arms.  The Boys of Summer did an admirable job keeping it with in 1 run as late as the 7th where the Cubs scored 2 and went up by 3.  Hank Sauer, as he's done all year, supplied the power with a 2 run shot to make it 7-4.  Duke Snider's solo blast in the bottom of the inning made it a 2 run game, but closer Bruce Sutter would come on to pitch the final 2 perfect innings to punch Chicago's ticket to the NLCS.

Bronx Bombers sweep rival Bosox in 3 straight

Game 1 - Yankee Stadium
Clemens vs. Guidry
Ron Guidry started the game pitching lights-out, setting the Red Sox down in order in the first three innings. Joe DiMaggio his a two-run shot in the seventh to give the Yanks a lead they would never relinquish. Mickey Mantle's two-run single in the fifth made it 5-0. In the seventh inning, cruising through a two-hit shutout, Guidry injured himself and had to be pulled. Fritz Peterson finished the game and continued to blank the /sox allowing only two hits. New York cruised along to a 7-0 win in Game One.

Game 2 - Yankee Stadium
Eckersley vs Reynolds
Cy Young candidate Allie Reynolds took the mound against Dennis Eckersley in Game 2. Eck was punished early when “Mr. October”, Reggie Jackson, hit a three-run homer in the first. The Red Sox came back with a two-run shot by Vern Stephens but from then on it was all Yankees. Reynolds would only give up one more hit, while Eckersley got hammered for four unanswered runs. Oddly enough, despite giving up seven runs Eckersley finished the game for Boston. Reynolds would pitch eight innings and give up only three hits, with Rich Gossage coming in in the ninth to record two strikeouts and a popup. The final tally was 7-2 New York.

Game 3 - Fenway Park
Stottlemyre vs Stanley
The Yankees game to Boston a win away from the LCS, and opened like they meant to win. After a steal of third by Rickey Henderson, Phil Rizzuto's RBI single made it 1-0 in the first. Thurman Munson hit a two-run shot in the second, and the Sox answered with two runs in their half of the inning. But in the third Don Mattingly drove in two with a double, followed by an RBI groundout from Joe DiMaggio, and rout was on. The Yankees added a run in the fourth and two in the sixth. The Red Sox tried to comeback, with a Ted Williams sac fly in the fifth and an RBI double from Darrell Evans in the sixth, but the Yanks kept tacking on runs. Bob Stanley eventually gave way to Bill "Spaceman" Lee, and in the ninth Lee gave up six consecutive hits and five runs. The Sox scored two off Sparky Lyle on a triple by Jim Rice and a single from Fred Lynn, but the hole was far too deep. The Yankees eliminated the Sox willing by ten runs, 16-6. The Yanks outscored the Sox 30-8 over the three games, and face the AL West Champion Minnesota Twins in the ALCS.

--submitted by Michael Hopcroft--

Twins sweep Tigers in 3 straight, head to ALCS vs Bronx Bombers

Tom, thanks for a great series. Glad to get out in 3 as I don’t think I could contain that offense through 5.

Game 1: Morris vs. Boswell

Minnesota jumped on Jack Morris early with a 2B by Cesar Tovar followed by a HR by Rod Carew to put the Twins up 2-0. Detroit loaded the bases with two outs in the 3^rd but Dave Boswell got a K on George Kell to end the inning.  Minnesota would add 3 more runs before knocking out Morris after 5 innings.  Detroit would make a run at Minnesota adding 3 runs  in the 7^th to cut the lead to 6-3. The Twins add 2 insurance runs to take game one 8-3.

Game 2: Lolich vs. Perry

Minnesota drew 1^st blood scoring in the 1^st to take a 1-0 lead. Detroit came back in the top of the 2^nd to tie the game. Minnesota would add two with solo shots by Earl Battey and Gary Gaetti. MVP candidate Harmon Killebrew would add a solo HR in the 8^th to put Minnesota up 4-1 knocking out starter Mickey Lolich. Jim Perry would pitch into the 9^th giving up a single to Alan Trammell before giving way to his closer, Rick Aguilera. The 1^st batter he faced was Kurt Gibson who belted a two run HR off the Minnesota ace closing the gap to 4-3. He would gain his composure and get the next three batters to save the game for Perry and put Minnesota up 2-0 heading to Detroit.

Game 3: Pascal vs. Aguirre

Minnesota would jump on Hank Aguirre for 4 in the 3^rd and 2 more in the 6^th before leaving the game. The Twins starter Camilo Pascal would pitch 7.2 innings giving up 1 run on 5 hits. Minnesota would seal the victory in the 8^th adding 6 runs off of Terry Fox and Willie Hernandez. Bob Porterfield tried to close it out but gave up two runs in 0.1 innings. Al Worthington came in for the final 3 outs to move the Twins into the ALCS.

--submitted by Marvin Sik--