Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Rd 02: Dem Bums sweep the ‘70 O’s in 3 one run games

GAME 1 - Memorial Stadium
Dodgers 5, Orioles 4 (10 inn)
Don Newcombe vs Dave McNally
McNally kept a frightening Dodger lineup full of righties at bay for 6 and 2/3 innings until Jackie Robinson lined an opposite field 2 run homer to cut the Oriole lead to 1.  Don "Popeye" Zimmer’s sac fly to left in the 9th scored Frank Kellert from third to make it a tie ball game.  The game headed to extras and Jim Hardin served up a lead off double to the "Little Colonel" Pee Wee Reese, who moved over to third on Zimmer's ground out.  Carl "Skoonj" Furillo lined one right up the middle to score Reese and give 'dem Bums a 1 run lead.  The O's had a great chance to tie it back up in the bottom of the inning, but a key blunder by Don Bufford hurt them big time.  Bufford hit a one hopper to Reese, who's eratic arm pulled Hodges off the bag at first.  The ball went off Gil's glove and rolled about 15 feet away.  Buford thought he could get to second, so he challenged Hodges' arm.  Gil threw one right over the top of Buford's head to Zimmer, who applied the tag for the first out of the inning.  This mistake would loom large as Davey Johnson walked and Frank Robinson singled to put runners on 1st and 2nd.  If Buford isn't erased the bases would have been loaded and the tying run would have had a chance to score on Chico Salmon's long fly to left.  Brooks Robinson was caught looking at a suspect called strike 3 to end the game as the O's blew a golden opportunity twice today to jump out to a series lead.
Dodgers lead series 1-0

GAME 2 - Memorial Stadium
Dodgers 4, Orioles 3
Carl Erskine vs Mike Cuellar
Merv Rettenmund's solo shot in the 3rd was all the scoring either team could muster until  the 5th when the Boys of Summer posted deuces on the scoreboard in consecutive innings.  Jackie Robinson continued to wield a hot bat by going deep off of Cuellar for a 2 run shot to make it 2-1.  Pee Wee Reese greeted Cuellar with a lead off homer to start the 6th and Roy "Campy" Campanella followed suit two batters later to hand "Oisk" a 2 three run lead.  That lead would be threatened in the top of the 7th when Frank Robinson lined a 2-0 pitch deep into the night to make it 4-3.  Oisk would face one more batter before his day would officially come to an end and Clem Labine would come on to protect the lead.  Labine would not give up a hit in 2 and 2/3 innings worth of work as he shut the door on the O's and handed 'Dem Bums a commanding lead in the series as they headed home to the borough of churches.
Dodgers lead series 2-0

GAME 3 - Ebbets Field
Dodgers 4, Orioles 3 (11 inn)
Jim Palmer vs Billy Loes
Baltimore came to Brooklyn baffled, bruised and down 2-0 in the series.  Brooklyn was the beneficiary of timely hitting and resolve, something that seemed to escape them in their real life post season lives from 1947-1956.  That one play or one hit that did the O's in usually did the Boys of Summer in during this golden era.  Both games 1 and 2 were 1 run affairs.  Game 3 would not only follow suit, but it would go extra frames.  Right out of the gate the Orioles looked to be aggressive.  Three of their first 4 hitters battered Billy Loes with round trippers.  Don Buford led off the game, just like he led off game #1 in the 1969 World Series, with a homer.  Rettenmund did the same and so did Boog Powell.  Loes was knocked down on the canvas, but he got up like a true champion and battled his way into the 6th without giving up another run.  Brooklyn immediately cut the lead to 3-2 when Reese led off the bottom of the 1st with a triple, then scored on Junior Gilliams grounder to third.  A lead off solo shot in the 4th by Campy made it 3-2.  Furillo followed Campy by hitting a triple off the chain link fence in right.  Gil Hodges' single tied the game at 3-3 by the bottom of the 4th.  Just like that 'dem Bums erased Baltimore's quick 3-0 lead.  Palmer settled back in and did not allow another run as he worked 3 more innings.  Dick Hall would come on in relief of Palmer and toss a scoreless 8th and 9th.  Roger Craig would one up hall and pitch 3 and 2/3 scoreless innings in relief of Loes who threw almost 120 pitches in a bit more than 5 innings.  Eddie Watt found himself on the hill replacing Hall and in trouble in the bottom of the 10th.  Brooklyn had runners on 1st and 2nd, but Watt was able to escape.  Jim Hughes pitched a scoreless 10th for the Dodgers while fanning 2.  He would hit a bump in the road in the 11th when he loaded the bases with 2 out.  Davey Johnson came to the  plate with the sole purpose of getting Don Baylor in from third for the go ahead run.  With the count 1-2 Hughes bounced one in the dirt and the ball got by Campy and rolled to the short backstop.  Baylor took off and headed down the line, but could not anticipate that the ball would rebound back into Campy's mitt.  Brooklyn's HOF backstop lunged for the plate and tagged the young fleet footed Baylor out to end the inning.  That freak play seemed to give the Brooks new life.  Captain Reese led off with a single, but was immediately erased on a 4-6 force play when Junior Gilliam grounded weakly.  That set the stage for one Edwin "Duke" Snider to make amends for his .167 tournament average.  Nobody hit more homers in that little ballpark on Bedford Ave than the "Duke of Flatbush", so even though he was slumping Brooklyn's moody centerfielder was still a threat.  Oriole lefty reliever Marcelino Lopez tried to slip a slider by the Duke and when the ball didn't slid it wound up hitting the top of the scoreboard for a walk off double that put the final stamp on a hard fought 3 game series sweep.
Dodgers win series 3-0

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