After a tough start, the Boston Splinters ground out another win. The Detroit Rockets used small ball to score two runs in the 1st and another run in the 3rd off Gaylord Perry, with a ground out and a sacrifice fly accounting for two of the runs. Perry allowed just 3 runs on 5 hits in 7 innings. Frank Tanana carried a 3-0 lead into the 4th when Alan Trammel’s RBI single put Boston on the board. In the 6th, Mickey Mantle doubled with one out, and Frank Thomas singled to put runners on the corners. Trammel hit a sharp grounder to Rafael Palmeiro at 1st, who threw to 2nd for the double-play, but Trammel beat the relay. Wade Boggs followed with a 2-run homer to put Boston up 4-3. Rollie Fingers pitched a scoreless 9th for his 7th save. Ichiro Suzuki is having a tough adjustment after coming over to Boston from Detroit. He’s hitting just .214 for his new team. Boston is now 15-6 and has expanded their lead in the AL to 4 games.

Splinters @ Rockets – 4/22/23

Willie Stargell blew open a close game in the 6th inning, and the Houston Hoots topped the St. Louis Wizards 8-2. Stargell singled and scored off Don Sutton in the 2nd, and hit a solo home run in the 5th, but it was a 3-run double in the 6th that put the game out of reach for St. Louis. The big 6th inning started with an error by Joe Morgan that led to 4 unearned runs. Stargell finished 3 for 4 with 4 RBI. Cy Young held the Wizards to 2 runs on 7 hits in 8 innings to pick up his 1st win. Don Sutton was riding two amazing starts, but allowed 3 earned runs in 6 innings. St. Louis has now lost 6 straight, and have fallen to 8-13. Houston ended a 3-game losing streak to improve to 12-9, just 1/2 game ahead of Chicago in the National League.

Hoots @ Wizards – 4/22/23

The Oakland Jacks ended a 5-game losing streak, holding on to top the New York Swats 12-7 today. Oakland got to Pedro Martínez early, scoring 3 runs in the 1st inning thanks in part to Josh Gibson’s first home run of the season. New York fought back with 4 runs in the 3rd off Addie Joss, helped by a Lou Boudreau error. The teams traded leads until the 8th. That’s when the Jacks batted around and scored 5 runs against reliever Bullet Rogan. Jimmie Foxx bases-clearing double was one of 6 straight base hits. Joss allowed 4 earned runs on 14 hits, but still picked up the win. It was the 2nd loss for Martínez. Boudreau redeemed himself at the plate, going 4 for 6 with a double, and driving in 2 runs. Both teams are now 8-13.

Jacks @ Swats – 4/22/23

Albert Pujols wasn’t supposed to play today. Slated for a rest day, Pujols found himself back in the lineup after a late scratch of Lonny Frey. He made the most of the unexpected start, going 3 for 3 with a double, a home run, and 2 RBI against St. Louis Wizards starter Steve Carlton. Jimmy Rollins hit his 1st homer of the season, a 2-run shot in the 6th inning that put the Docs up 6-2. Carlton allowed 6 runs on 8 hits in 7 innings, dropping to 2-3 this season despite a 2.96 ERA. Dwight Gooden scattered 10 hits, allowing 4 runs and striking out 10 in a complete game. Joe Morgan hit a solo homer in the 3rd off Gooden, and Larry Walker added an RBI double. The last two runs came in the 9th against a tiring Gooden. The 7-4 win completes the sweep for the Chicago Docs, who are now 12-9 and tied for Houston for the National League lead. Meanwhile, the St. Louis Wizards have lost 5 straight.

Wizards @ Docs – 4/21/23

CC Sabathia held the Detroit Rockets to 2 runs on 9 hits, striking out 8 in 8 innings in his first start since joining the league. Dwight Evans scored the 1st run against Sabathia with a solo home run in the 4th inning. The New York Swats used the longball to topple Roger Clemens. Paul Molitor and Dick Allen hit solo homers in the 4th and 5th innings, and the Swats took advantage of a Mark McGwire error to score 7 runs in the 6th. Babe Ruth’s 3-run homer was the exclamation point. It was his 9th of the season. Detroit scored 3 runs in the 9th against reliever Red Faber, but the game was effectively over, and the Swats won it 10-5. The loss drops Detroit to 11-9. Dobie Moore was a bright spot for the Rockets, going 3 for 4 in his 1st start at short. He also stole a base.

Swats @ Rockets – 4/21/23

The Los Angeles Dynamos continued their recent pitching dominance, topping the Houston Hoots 4-1 to complete the sweep. It was also LA’s 4th straight win. Don Drysdale allowed just one run on 6 hits, striking out 4 in 8 innings to pick up his 2nd win. Bob Gibson allowed 3 runs on 7 hits and struck out 6 for Houston. Todd Helton and Johnny Bench hit solo home runs off Gibson, and Ralph Kiner added another off Trevor Hoffman in the 9th. Bench went 2 for 4 in his 1st start of the season. Lee Smith walked two in the 9th, but struck out Hodges and got pinch-hitter Roberto Clemente to ground out to end the game and pick up his 4th save. The Dynamos have allowed just 5 runs over the last 4 games. With the sweep, they’ve improved to 10-10, and are just a game behind Houston in a close National League race.

Dynamos @ Hoots – 4/21/23

Boston Splinters starter bounced back from his debut that saw him allow 8 runs in 3 innings, shutting out the Oakland Jacks and limiting them to 2 hits. Halladay retired the first 9 hitters he faced before Lou Boudreau doubled to lead off the 4th inning. He walked two in the 7th, but didn’t allow another hit until the 9th, when Lou Gehrig tripled with 2 out. Boston’s offense had no trouble with Nolan Ryan. Ted Williams got them started with a solo home run in the 2nd. Tris Speaker cleared the bases when the Splinters batted around in a 5-run 5th inning. The 8-0 win completed the sweep for the Splinters. They’ve now won 4 straight to improve to 14-6. It was Oakland’s 5th straight loss.

Splinters @ Jacks – 4/21/23

Randy Johnson set a Baseball Maelstrom record, striking out 16 Hoots en route to a 13-2 victory, his 1st of the season. Johnson also got help from the Los Angeles offense. The Dynamos scored in each of the final 6 innings, capped by a 7-run 9th that saw LA hit four home runs, feasting on Jesse Haines. Tony Gwynn started the inning with a solo shot, his 5th hit of the game. Turkey Stearnes, Chipper Jones, and Gary Carter all hit 2-run homers. Gwynn entered the game struggling, but boosted his average to .253 going 5 for 6. Houston starter Pete Alexander allowed 6 runs on 14 hits to pick up his 1st loss. Houston dropped to 11-8, while LA improved to 9-10.

Dynamos @ Hoots – 4/20/23