1982 Atlanta Braves Retrospective

[selmaborntidefan]

April 13, 1982
Atlanta Braves 8 (W: Garber, 1-0)
Cincinnati Reds 5 (L: Kern, 0-1)
7-0
1st place
Lead: 2.5 games

BRAVES RALLY TO REMAIN UNBEATEN;
M'S-ANGELS HALTED IN 18TH INNING

So if they don't get a 5-0 lead, can the Atlanta Braves win the game? It turns out the answer is that they can not only win, they can trail for the first time all season and they still have the bats to win. They can lose their starting right fielder in the first inning, and his replacement will go 4-for-4 and score three runs by driving in another. They can send a rookie out for his first major league appearance, and he can get through the opposing lineup once before coming out for a shaky bullpen that is good enough to not let the game get out of hand so the closer can come on in the sixth inning and seal the deal until the bats making him the winning pitcher with a late rally.

With two outs in the top of the first, Claudell Washington was hit by a pitch from Reds starter Bob Shirley, knocking him out of the game and putting pinch runner Rufino Linares at first. Linares didn't score - that time - but it also forced Manager Joe Torre to switch Dale Murphy to right field and place Linares in left. As it turned out, the hit batsman would play the largest role in the game's outcome. Both pitchers navigated the lineups through three innings but in the fourth, Glenn Hubbard doubled to left and went to third on Linares's single. Murphy then smashed his fourth home run of the young season, a three-run bomb that put Atlanta out front quickly in the fourth. But Joe Cowley, making his first major league start, couldn't handle the prosperity. First, he walked legend Johnny Bench and then gave up consecutive singles to former phenom Clint Hurdle and Bench's replacement behind the plate (Bench started at third), Mike O'Berry. Cowley was pulled in favor of Preston Hanna, who immediately got a double play and the Braves out of the jam still leading, 3-1. A Brett Butler single followed by a Linares double regained the run lost, but Hanna was largely ineffective in the bottom of the fifth. After a Ron Oester double and singles by Dave Concepcion and Bench, around two outs and a walk to Paul Householder, Hanna gave way to Larry McWilliams, who retired pinch-hitter Mike Vail to keep the Braves ahead, 4-3.

Back-to-back doubles by O'Berry and pinch-hitter Rafael Landestoy tied the game, and Landestoy moved to third on an infield out and scored on a sacrifice fly to center by Dan Driessen. Just like that, the Braves were trailing for the first time in 1982. Gene Garber came on in a desperate situation and caught a break when Driessen was thrown out attempting to steal second to end the sixth. Cincinnati then opted for their own closer, former AL Relief Man of the Year (1979) Jim Kern. Kern walked Butler and retired Hubbard on a fly out but Linares then laced his third hit of the night, a single, and the Braves tied the game when Bob Horner doubled Butler home and had runners at second and third with only one out. Kern left in favor of lefty reliever Charlie Leibrandt, who walked Murphy to load the bases for Chris Chambliss. Chambliss fouled out, but then catcher Bruce Benedict singled to left, scoring the first two runners before Murphy was thrown out going for third. Garber took the mound with a 7-5 lead. Linares increased the lead with an insurance run in the 9th when he got his fourth hit, a single, went to third on Horner's double, and then scored on Chambliss' sac fly to center with the bases loaded after the Reds (again!) intentionally walked Murphy. Garber went 3.1 innings and gave up three hits while striking out three and permitted nobody to score. The win lifts Atlanta to 7-0, the best Braves start of the modern era.

Dave Kingman's three-run bomb and the effective pitching of Randy Jones lifted the Mets to a 5-2 win over the Phillies in New York's home opener. Jones, who won only one game all last year, won his second in a week. Ozzie Smith hit his first home run as a Cardinal while Joaquin Andujar and Bruce Sutter combined for a six-hitter in St Louis' 4-3 win over the Cubs. The Cubs had the bases loaded with one out in the 9th and failed to score when Sutter struck out Keith Moreland and induced a fielder's choice ground out by Gary Woods that forced rookie Ryne Sandberg at second to end the game. Rookie Alan Fowlkes pitched six strong innings for his first major league victory while Reggie Smith hit a tie-breaking double enabling San Francisco to win their home opener over the Padres, 3-2. The Dodgers raced out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first in Houston and never let it go, as they banged out 13 hits and scored 9 runs off Bob Knepper in a 9-5 victory for starter Bob Welch.

The California Angels managed to have a two-day Opening Day thanks to a late Seattle rally. Needing only three outs to seal a 2-1 win, Angels Manager Gene Mauch, long accused of "over-managing", was at his "over managing" best as he pulled two of his best hitters - Reggie Jackson and Brian Downing - in favor of defensive replacements and also pulled his pitcher, who had permitted only five hits and one run in eight innings. Don Aase came on to close out the game, got two outs, and then gave up three consecutive hits that tied the score at two before he walked Joe Simpson to load the bases and then struck out pinch-hitter Steve Stroughter to keep the score tied. Aase then pitched five more innings as both teams failed to score. After 17 innings, the American League rulebook came into play, the rule that forbids any inning from beginning after 1 a.m. local time. So the teams left the field and will complete the game tomorrow before playing the scheduled contest from the start. Reliever Dale Murray's throwing error scored two Tigers and lifted Detroit to a 4-2 win over Toronto. Four home runs, including two by Dan Meyer, guided Oakland to an 8-3 win over the Twins at the Metrodome. Rickey Henderson stole his sixth base of the season. Jim Palmer took a 5-0 lead into the fifth against Kansas City only to implode and give up five hits, all of whom scored, and gave up the mound to Sammy Stewart. John Wathan scored in the sixth and the Royals held on for a stunning comeback win, 6-5. Charlie Moore's single scoring Paul Molitor lifted Milwaukee to a 9-8 won over Cleveland in ten. Mike Morgan's Yankee debut after two seasons in the minor was a success, as he scattered 8 hits and gave up 3 runs in 6.1 innings en route to a 6-3 New York win over Texas. Lou Piniella and Rick Cerone homered for the Bombers.

The White Sox released Lynn McGlothen, and the Rangers signed Jim Anderson.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

April 14, 1982
Atlanta Braves 5 (W: Camp, 1-0)
Cincinnati Reds 2 (L: Kern, 0-2)
8-0
1st place
Lead: 3.5 games

BRAVES SWEEP REDS FOR 8TH STRAIGHT WIN;
INCREDIBLE 9TH INNING KEEPS STREAK ALIVE;
HALOS BEAT M'S IN 20 - AND GO EXTRAS AGAIN

Two years ago, the Atlanta Braves entered a season hopeful they could contend for a pennant for the first time in a decade only to see their hopes gone in the season's first ten games when they lost 7 of 8 to the Reds and started 1-9, creating an impossible hole out of which they had to climb. Had the Braves simply been able to go .500 against the Reds, they would have won 90 games and been in the thick of an exciting pennant race, but their 2-16 record against Cincinnati was enough to end their hopes. So how satisfying it is for the Braves to complete a four-game sweep of the Reds in Riverfront Stadium with a tenth inning small ball rally that netted three runs just when their hopes of breaking the NL record of ten wins to start the season seemed bleak.

The game story can be told rather easily: Tommy Boggs and Frank Pastore matched each other pitch-for-pitch for six innings until reliever Al Hrabosky came on for Boggs. Both struck out two, both allowed two runs, and both allowed an average of one hit per inning. Neither surrendered a home run or a triple. What was new for the Braves was that the Reds scored first when Cesar Cedeno led off the 2nd with a double and came home on Clint Hurdle's single to give Cincinnati an early 1-0 lead. But the Braves got the run right back when Brett Butler reached first on a fielder's choice, stole second, went to third on a throwing error, and scored on a wild pitch. But the Reds recaptured the lead in the bottom of the inning when Eddie Milner led off with a single, raced to third on a failed pickoff attempt thrown wildly by Boggs, and scored on a Dan Driessen double. And nothing more happened until the Atlanta winning streak was on the line in the top of the ninth.

Reds Manager John McNamara decided to let Pastore finish the game, and he surrendered a leadoff single to Chris Chambliss. The Reds appeared to catch a break when pinch runner Jerry Royster got picked off first and thrown out at second for the first out, but Rufino Linares reached first on a bunt and then raced around the bases to tie the game on Bruce Benedict's double. With the runner in scoring position and only one out, Pastore got the hook in favor of reliever Tom Hume, who benefited by a baserunning mistake by Benedict that retired him at third, a blunder that assumed cosmic significance when pinch-hitter Larry Whisenton singled. Hume retired Butler on a force out, and all the Reds needed to end the Atlanta streak was a run. And for a moment, they appeared to have it.

Rick Camp came on to pitch the ninth and after retiring Wayne Krenchicki for the first out gave up a double to pinch-hitter Larry Biittner, bringing rookie Paul Householder to the plate with a chance to win the game. Householder hit a sinking liner to left that had "Reds win" written all over it, so much so that pinch runner German Barranca raced home. But Linares somehow caught the ball right at the ground, shocking himself when he found the ball in his glove and threw into second where Rafael Ramirez doubled up Barranca to save the game and the streak. He would save it again in the tenth.

Newly acquired closer Jim Kern, who lost yesterday's game, came on and walked Glenn Hubbard leading off the tenth. He struck out Dale Murphy before giving up a single to Bob Horner and then a walk to rookie Ken Smith, loading the bases with one out. Kern then walked Benedict with the bases loaded to force in the go-ahead run and Ramirez followed with a double that plated two more runs and gave the Braves a 5-2 lead. Camp, who was 1-for-37 coming to the plate, grounded out to end the inning then retired the Reds in order to nail down the win. After several games of racing out to big leads, the Braves showed they could overcome poor baserunning and adversity to win their 8th in a row. Both the Braves and Reds are off tomorrow.

After suspending yesterday's contest at the end of the 17th inning, play resumed between the Angels and Mariners in Anaheim, with California eking out a 4-3 win in the bottom of the 20th thanks to singles by Don Baylor and Bob Boone sandwiched around a Doug DeCinces bunt. Then as if to show that 20 innings wasn't a fluke, the two teams played another ten innings in the day's scheduled game, the Angels AGAIN won by one run (2-1) when Rod Carew scored from first on a double by Bobby Grich. It was sweet redemption for Grich, whose wild throw in the 9th enabled Seattle to tie the game. The two teams combined over 30 innings for ten runs and 50 runners left on base. With new acquisition Lee Mazilli sidelined by injury, Billy Sample, who lost his starting job to Mazilli, reached base once via walk and once hit by a pitch, stole second both times, and scored twice to lead Texas to a 4-1 win over the Yankees despite netting only four hits against New York starter John Pacella. Toronto took a 4-0 lead to the 9th only to see Detroit tie it with a six-hit inning, but the Blue Jays prevailed in the bottom of the 9th when reserve catcher Buck Martinez singled home Tony Johnson with the winning run, 5-4. Howard Johnson, playing in his first major league game, kindled the Detroit rally by leading off the 9th with a single. The White Sox are now 4-0, off to their best start since their last pennant in 1959, after Tom Paciorek's three-run bomb proved the difference in their 5-4 win over Boston. The White Sox have won all four games on the road. Two home runs by Tony Armas, a game-tying solo shot in the 8th and a game-winning two-run bomb in the 12th, lifted Oakland to a 7-5 win over the Twins in Minnesota, a game that saw the Athletics blow a 3-0 first-inning lead. Oakland went 5-for-5 in stolen bases, including two by Rickey Henderson, who is on pace to steal 162 bases this year. A two-out ninth inning single by Amos Otis after an intentional walk to George Brett scored U.L. Washington and gave Kansas City their second straight one-run come-from-behind win over the Orioles, 4-3. Former teammates in St Louis, John Denny and Pete Vuckovich, squared off in Cleveland, and Denny got the better of it, going 7 innings and scattering six hits as the Indians beat the Brewers, 6-2. The two teams combined for 15 walks before a smattering of 7,000 fans.

Alan Ashby's solo shot in the 7th broke a 1-1 tie and lifted Don Sutton to his first win of the season over his former teammate, Burt Hooton, as the Astros edged the Dodgers, 2-1. Pinch-hitter Jerry White smashed a three-run sixth inning home run to put Montreal into the lead, and the Expos held on for a 5-4 win over the Pirates. Mookie Wilson led off the fourth inning with a solo home run off Dick Ruthven to break a 1-1 tie, and the Mets added six more runs over the duration to top the Phillies, 8-1. Andy Rincon tossed a three-hitter and Tommy Herr drove home two runs that made the difference in the Cardinals' 3-1 win over the Cubs. San Diego carried a 3-0 lead into the bottom of the 9th before a two-run shot by Champ Summers narrowed the gap to one. But the Giants could get no closer in a 3-2 loss to the Padres.

 

[selmaborntidefan]

April 14, 1982
Travel day
8-0
1st place
Lead: 4 games

BRAVES FANS ALREADY THINKING WORLD SERIES;
HEAVY HEARTED RHODEN PITCHES WELL IN LIGHT OF BROTHER'S DEATH
HRBEK HITS 5TH AS TWINS ROUT OAKLAND

Rookie Kent Hrbek's fifth home run of the season plus a three-run bomb by Randy Johnson that was part of a six-run eighth inning lifted the surprising Twins to an 11-5 win over Oakland. The Twins end their opening homestand of nine games with a 5-4 record as they hit the road. Steve Kemp hit a two-run homer and Jim Morrison ended an 0-for-13 skid with two hits as the White Sox won their fifth in a row, 8-4, over Boston. Don Baylor and Tim Foli singled and the Angels held on to complete a three-game sweep over the Mariners, 3-2. It was the second win of Angel Moreno's brief career. Bert Blyleven allowed two hits over seven innings as the Indians beat the Brewers, 8-1, behind two runs apiece driven in by Bake McBride and Rick Manning. Despite a plethora of injuries necessitating lineup creativity, Sparky Anderson continues to push the right buttons. Two of his newest acquisitions, Larry Herndon, who stole a base and raced home from first on a ball in the gap and Enos Cabell, who drove in two runs, lifted Detroit to a 4-2 win over Toronto. Detroit is down so many players they called up Glenn Wilson for his major league debut, the second Tiger to make his first appearance in the bigs this week.

Lonnie Smith and George Hendrick hit solo homers and Steve Mura took a three-hit shutout into the 9th only to lose it when Keith Moreland clubbed a homer with two outs, but the Cardinals still dominated the Cubs, 6-1. Mura lost a league leading 14 games last year. Pirates starter Rick Rhoden took the mound after learning his brother, Bill, had been killed in an auto accident in North Carolina and gave up one earned run in six innings before Pittsburgh rallied for 3 runs in the final two innings to beat Montreal, 4-3. Tied after twelve, Luis Aguayo, starting at third in place of a resting Mike Schmidt, clubbed a three-run home run in the 13th as part of a four-run inning that lifted Philadelphia to an 8-4 win over the Mets. Fernando Valenzuela only gave up five hits - three in a one-run first inning - but a series of intentional walks and one UNINTENTIONAL one with the bases loaded put LA in a 2-0 hole to the Padres, and they never scored, losing by that same 2-0 final count.

In today's failure to keep the feet on the ground moment, fans of the Atlanta Braves are already asking about World Series tickets six month hence. No doubt the 8-0 start has contributed to the optimism and Public Relations advocate Wayne Minshew even joked that the Braves players were already being measured for ring size. It's a long way to October, folks.