Bob Gibson held Chicago to 5 hits and struck out 8, dominating the Docs with a shutout. Gibson is now tied with Koufax with 3 shutouts on the season. Clayton Kershaw pitched well, but couldn’t compete. Ted Simmons singled in Roberto Clemente in the 5th, and then Clemente hit a 2-run home run in the 9th, giving the Hoots a 3-0 win. Clemente finished 3 for 4. Kershaw allowed 8 hits in his 1st loss in two starts since joining the league after retiring from the MLB. Houston has taken advantage of Los Angeles’ losing streak to increase their lead to 3 games in the National League with their 3rd straight win. Chicago has lost 3 in a row and is 7 games back with just 12 left to play.

Hoots @ Docs – 5/18/23

The Detroit Rockets dropped a 6-run inning on Oakland starter Nolan Ryan, but Frank Tanana couldn’t hold the lead in a game that saw each team hit 3 home runs. Edgar Martínez hit a 2-run home run in the 2nd inning to give Oakland a 2-0 lead. Four hits and two walks in the 3rd inning, capped by a Mark McGwire grand slam, put Detroit up 6-2. Joe Gordon hit a solo homer in the 5th to cut the Detroit lead in half, but Miguel Cabrera responded in the bottom of the inning to push it to 7-3. Oakland added two runs in the 7th, but Detroit entered the 8th still up 7-5. Tanana got two quick outs, but Rickey Henderson snuck a single through the infield. Lou Boudreau walked, and Jimmie Foxx followed with a 3-run go-ahead homer in a 5-run inning. Rafael Palmeiro hit a solo homer in the bottom of the inning, but that’s as close as the Rockets would get. Mariano Rivera pitched a scoreless 9th to seal the 10-8 win. Hank Greenberg went 4 for 5 for Oakland. After winning the World Series last year, Detroit is now 8 games back in the American League with just 12 left to play.

Jacks @ Rockets – 5/18/23

After a 3-game losing streak that dropped them to 2 games back in the National League race, the Los Angeles Dynamos turned to ace Sandy Koufax. Koufax entered the game 9-2 with a 1.35 ERA. But the St. Louis Wizards had other plans, putting together a big inning and scoring 6 runs against the southpaw. Los Angeles looked good early, scoring 2 runs in the 1st off Don Sutton with a Todd Helton double and an errant throw by Willie Mays. In the 3rd, St. Louis responded with 5 base-hits, scoring 5 runs capped by a big 3-run homer by Mays. Mike Schmidt added a solo homer in the 4th to put the Wizards up 6-2. St. Louis took a 6-3 lead into the 8th when Billy Wagner nearly blew it. Four straight baserunners and a wild pitch led to two LA runs, but Gary Carter flew out and Tony Gwynn grounded out, stranding the tying run on 2nd base. Rich Gossage pitched a perfect 9th to seal the 6-5 win and earn his 7th save. Koufax hadn’t allowed more than 2 runs since Opening Day.

Wizards @ Dynamos – 5/18/23

CC Sabathia was dominant for the New York Swats. Sabathia allowed just one run on 6 hits in 8 innings to help snap a New York losing streak. A Wade Boggs home run was his only run. Meanwhile, Babe Ruth tied teammate Dick Allen, hitting his 16th homer of the season in the 4th to give the Swats their first two runs. In the 8th, Dick Allen took the lead back, launching a solo shot, and giving New York some insurance. Satchel Paige collected his 9th save, pitching a scoreless 9th inning. The win put New York back at .500 at 21-21, while Boston’s lead in the American League closed to 6 games with just 12 games left in the season.

Swats @ Splinters – 5/18/23

The St. Louis Wizards scored 5 early runs, holding off a late rally by the Los Angeles Dynamos to win their 3rd straight game, and handed LA their 3rd straight loss. Mike Piazza got the scoring started in the 2nd against Don Drysdale with an RBI single. A pair of walks led to two more runs in the 3rd. In the 4th, Drysdale walked three straight in a 2-run inning to take a 5-1 lead. Joe Morgan hit a 2-run home run in the 8th to expand the lead. LA took advantage of three straight hits to lead off the bottom of the 8th against Christy Mathewson with 3 runs, cutting the lead to 7-5. Rich Gossage came in to close out the 9th and made things interesting when Turkey Stearnes singled and Todd Helton walked to lead off the inning. Gossage got two groundouts and then struck out Pee Wee Reese to end any rally attempts. After these losses, LA has fallen to two games behind Houston in the National League race.

Wizards @ Dynamos – 5/17/23

Rube Waddell held the New York Swats to just 4 hits and a run, outdueling Mike Mussina for a 2-1 win. It was the 4th straight win for the Boston Splinters, and the 4th straight loss for the Swats. Boston scored in the 3rd on a Wade Boggs double that scored Ichiro Suzuki. Mussina scattered 10 hits over 8 innings, often pitching out of trouble to keep the game close. Waddell’s only mistake was a Derek Jeter solo home run in the 6th that tied the game 1-1. But Boston immediately responded in the bottom of the inning when Ted Williams hit a solo shot of his own to put the Splinters back on top. The Swats nearly tied it in the 8th when Jeter singled with 2 outs, but Charlie Gehringer was thrown out on a close play at the plate by Williams. Suzuki finished 4 for 4. The loss dropped New York below .500 at 20-21. Boston has extended their lead in the American League to 7 games, and is now the only AL team over .500.

Swats @ Splinters – 5/17/23

Dwight Gooden had a rough 3 innings to start against the Houston Hoots. Chicago made a run at a comeback, but ultimately fell short, losing 8-5. All nine Houston hitters came to bat in the 1st. The 1st five hitters reached base on the way to a 4-run 1st inning. Jeff Bagwell added an RBI single in the 2nd, and then Honus Wagner hit a bases-loaded triple to put Houston up 8-2. Gooden settled for 5 scoreless innings after that. The Chicago Docs took advantage of leadoff hits by Troy Tulowitzki and Keith Hernandez in the 1st inning for their 1st runs. Pete Alexander kept Chicago off-balance, but still allowed another run in the 5th on an Albert Pujols double. Pujols added a solo homer in a 2-run 8th to cut the Houston lead to 8-5. Bruce Sutter pitched another perfect 9th for his 13th save, extending Houston’s lead in the National League to 1 1/2 games. Wagner finished 4 for 5, and was a homerun short of the cycle.

Hoots @ Docs – 5/17/23

Ken Griffey Jr. hit a 2-run home run in the 1st inning, and added an RBI double in the 7th to power the Oakland Jacks to a 4-2 win over the Detroit Rockets. Oakland overcame an early injury to starter Hal Newhouser in the 3rd. Lefty Grove stepped in and pitched 5 2/3 innings of 3-hit relief. Two of those hits came in the 8th when Bobby Grich singled, and Thurman Munson followed with a 2-run homer. Grove struck out 6 and picked up the win. Mariano Rivera pitched a perfect 9th for his 4th save of the season. Detroit slipped to 19-22 with the loss. Oakland is still in last place in the American League at 16-25.

Jacks @ Rockets – 5/17/23