Yesterday, the St. Louis Wizards needed their final inning to beat the Houston Hoots. Today, they needed just two innings. Houston Dizzy Dean lasted just 3 innings after allowing 8 earned runs on 11 hits. Meanwhile, Juan Marichal allowed just 2 runs and 5 hits in 8 innings of work to improve to 3-1. Every Wizard had a hit, led by Larry Walker, who went 3 for 5 with a homer and 2 RBI. St. Louis is now a Baseball Maelstrom best 15-2. The loss drops Houston to 6-11.
The New York Swats and Oakland Jacks took a 2-2 tie into the 8th, but Walter Johnson blinked 1st. With 2 outs, Johnson walked Rod Carew, who stole 2nd and scored on Joe DiMaggio’s single. Two batters later, Reggie Jackson hit a 3-run homer to give Oakland some more breathing room with a 6-2 lead. The Swats made it interesting in the 9th off Jim Kaat. With 2 out, George Brett bobbled a sharp grounder. Paul Molitor followed with a pinch-hit single, and Harry Heilmann followed with another single to cut the lead to 6-3. Mariano Rivera came in and got Eddie Collins to ground out to end the game. Both teams are now 7-10. Ben Taylor saw his 1st at-bat for the Swats when Jimmie Foxx was ejected for arguing a 3rd strike call.
Houston’s Tom Seaver pitched 8 strong innings, allowing just 2 runs and 5 hits in 8 innings before turning over a 4-2 lead to Hoots closer Lee Smith. Smith was a perfect 4 for 4 in save chances this season. But the St. Louis Wizards continue to show that they can find ways to win. Smith struck out Larry Walker to lead off the 9th, but Orlando Cepeda and Ron Santo followed with back-to-back singles. When Smith struck out Mike Piazza, it looked like the tying runs would be left on base. Ozzie Smith hit a bloop single to score Cepeda and cut the lead to one. Oscar Charleston walked to load the bases. That brought up Rogers Hornsby, who was struggling with a .150+ batting average this season. Hornsby drilled a single, scoring Cepeda and Smith to put the Wizards in the lead. Bruce Sutter slammed the door on the Hoots to earn his 6th save. The win improves St. Louis’ record to 14-2, while Houston drops to 6-10.
The Oakland Jacks’ Bert Blyleven allowed just 1 earned run and 7 hits in 7 innings against the New York Swats. However, two costly errors in the 2nd inning ruined his good outing and gave him his first loss of the year. Robin Yount couldn’t handle a Jimmie Foxx grounder to lead off the inning. Blyleven walked Ken Griffey Jr. and Lou Boudreau before Roberto Alomar drove in 2 with a single. Harry Heilmann hit a shallow fly to right. Then, Iván Rodríguez dribbled one to Rod Carew for what should have been the third out of the inning. Carew couldn’t come up with it, and two batters later, Ty Cobb drove in two more with a double. The Swats’ Bob Lemon allowed a leadoff homer to Mickey Cochrane and just one other run to pick up the win. Red Faber was called on to close the game after Satchel Paige was reportedly scratched due to illness. This was Faber’s first relief appearance after losing his spot to Walter Johnson. Joe DiMaggio drove in 2 with a double to put the tying run on 2nd before George Brett grounded to third to end the game. The 5-4 win moved New York out of last place to 7-9, while Oakland fell to 6-10.
It’s not easy being the backup 1B for the Los Angeles Dynamos. With Johnny Mize as their everyday starter, Gil Hodges had been without an at-bat until the game against the Chicago Docs. In the top of the 1st, Jim Edmonds hit a slow roller down the firstbase line. Edmonds collided with Mize, who held onto the ball for the out but was shaken up on the play. That gave Hodges his shot, and he made the most of it. Hodges went 2 for 3 with a homer and a walk. That solo shot was the only run that Chicago’s Jerry Koosman would allow. Koosman earned his 1st win, allowing just 4 hits. LA’s Jim Bunning allowed 4 runs on 10 hits, picking up the loss. Chicago improved to 5-11, while Los Angeles fell to 7-9.
