Anatomy of a Season

[luckymann]

[luckymann]

April 29, 1985: Boston Red Sox (12-6) @ California Angels (8-11)

I suppose this is normal, but with every passing year making this trip feels just a little bit less like going home. Been a while since I lived in Cali and now it’s just another bus stop for the Greyhound in my mind. Anyway, enough with the psychobabble.

We start this Pacific sweep with two against the Angels in Anaheim. They’ve had a slowish start but are a highly-regarded club and will be tough to top, especially at home. Mike Brown gets his first start of the season for us in the opening game, up against Ron Romanick, a guy who has had the wood on me to this point, keeping me hitless in 7 AB last year. Not sure what it is with him, but I have trouble picking up the ball when Ron’s pitching. Think I’ll open my stance up a bit tonight and see if that adjustment changes my luck with him.

Bill Buckner YTD stats entering the game




Game Recap

They get to us from the off, posting a 3-spot in the 1st and missing a chance to blow it even further open by leaving them full. But it isn’t Brownie’s night and he can’t get out of the 3rd as they add two more on a Dick Schofield tater and Mike Trujillo takes over.

Romanick is nothing short of dominant, allowing barely a baserunner aboard as our bats go totally silent, mine as much as anyone’s with an ugly ohfer. When it’s done, it’s a 6-0 laugher with Romanick shutting us out on a lousy 4 hits - three of which come off Dewey's bat - while fanning 5. Not how we wanted to start this swing.

Best Performances, News & Highlights of the Day

• That shutout of the Yanks takes Frank Tanana to a sparkling, 4-0, 1.00

The Real Deal

• MLB Debuts: NIL
• Daily Notes: On this day in 1958, Red Sox legend Ted Williams becomes the tenth major league player to get 1,000 extra-base hits.

[luckymann]

April 30, 1985: Boston Red Sox (12-7) @ California Angels (9-11)

Runs are suddenly hard to come by for us these past few games and scouting reports say it won’t get much easier today against up-and-comer Mike Witt. Can’t speak for personal experience as I’ve not faced him as yet, but he won a career-high 15 games last season to earn a spot in the Halo rotation and looks set to continue that good form this year. Bruce Hurst up again for us.

Bill Buckner YTD stats entering the game




Game Recap

Once again we fall behind early and are set to the chase as Bruce leaves one hanging in the 1st and Doug DeCinces obliges with a 2-run big fly. I halve the deficit in the next when I put one into the seats and then tie it up in the 4th with another one that lands near enough in the same seat in the RF bleachers.

Three singles in the home half of that one score a run to put them back ahead, with veteran Rod Carew knocking it in for them, and then they get to Bruce again in the next to pad their lead with 2 on 3 hits.

We keep ‘em close with a run in the 6th and I just miss going yard a third time with a deep out to LF and it’s still 5-3 when Mac replaces Hurst with Rob Woodward in the 7th.

We start hitting Witt hard and get within a run on an Armas solo jack in the 8th, but their ace closer Donnie Moore shuts us down in the 9th and they take it 5 to 4.

Best Performances, News & Highlights of the Day

The Real Deal

• MLB Debuts: NIL
• Daily Notes: IRL, Atlanta's Dale Murphy ties Ron Cey's record for RBI in April with 29. In this save, he currently sits on just 13, with the MLB leader for the month being Steve Balboni of the Royals with 24.

[luckymann]

Batter

American League

IRL: Mike Davis (OAK)

National League

IRL: Dale Murphy (ATL)

Pitcher

American League

IRL: Charlie Leibrandt (KCR)

National League

IRL: Fernando Valenzuela (LAD)

Rookie (not given IRL)

American League

National League

[luckymann]

[luckymann]

May 1, 1985: Boston Red Sox (12-8) @ Seattle Mariners (13-8)

The new month sees us visit the league’s most northwestern outpost as we take on the M’s for a pair. We’ve been flat these past few games after our strong start and need to turn things around so as not to undo our good early work. Seattle, too, have started well at 13-8 and equal top in the West, so we’ve got our hands full it would seem.

Rocket is on for us today, looking to extend his undefeated run against underrated righty Jim Beattie, who has held me to a lone triple in 6 ABs when we met in a couple games last season.

Bill Buckner YTD stats entering the game




Game Recap

Boy these early frames aren’t being kind to us of late and yet again our opponent takes a 1st-inning lead, this time on a solo shot by Alvin Davis, then add 3 more in the next as Dave Henderson rocks one out with one on and they generally manhandle Roger.

We can barely lay bat on ball as Beattie is on song, and this one looks done as they post a 4-spot in the 5th, with a 3-run Jim Presley double doing most of the damage. We finally get on the board with one in the 6th but they immediately cancel it out and that closes out the scoring as we manage just 4 hits and our mini-funk deepens noticeably.

Best Performances, News & Highlights of the Day

The Real Deal

• MLB Debuts: Kirk McCaskill
• Transactions: BOS sends Ed Glynn to MON as part of a conditional deal
• Daily Notes: Separated by 31 years, it is on this day that both Babe Ruth (1920) and Mickey Mantle (1951) hit their first home run for the Yankees; IRL, Jimmy Key becomes the first southpaw starting pitcher in more than 600 games to win for the Blue Jays - he also gets the win in this save.

[luckymann]

May 2, 1985: Boston Red Sox (12-9) @ Seattle Mariners (14-8)

Starting to feel thankful that this west coast swing is a relatively short one – it is not going as planned, with us yet to register a win over here. And, with Mike Moore on the hill for Seattle, that first W will be hard-earned if it’s to happen tonight. I’ve only faced Mike in one game, when he kept me hitless in three tries last year. Al Nipper takes the ball for us.

Bill Buckner YTD stats entering the game




Game Recap

For the first time in a while, we get the early lead after Boggs doubles and eventually scores on a Dewey Evans groundout, only to give it straight back on two hits and an error in the home half.

The pitchers settle down and it isn’t until the 5th that we go ahead again with a run, with Dewey again getting the credit for batting it in, this time via a crisp single.

It doesn’t appear to be injury-related, but Moore comes out for some reason in the 5th—he certainly didn’t look to be labouring at all. Anyhow, Roy Thomas relieves and we take a liking to him, belting 4 runs on 3 hits including my second of the night (I end up scoring on a WP). Evans is having some game, as he triples in two more here.

They chip away at our lead with singles in the 7th and 8th to make it 6-3, but Al holds his nerves and closes it out at that scoreline. That's a bit more like it.

Best Performances, News & Highlights of the Day

The Real Deal

• MLB Debuts: NIL
• Daily Notes: NIL

[luckymann]

May 3, 1985: Boston Red Sox (13-9) @ Oakland A's (12-11)

Back into Cali for our first meeting this season with the A’s. With their eclectic mix of young players and veterans, Oakland can be unpredictable—but the common consensus is that they are a club on the up after a few lean years, and one to be wary of. They send third-year player Mike Warren to the mound tonight, my sole AB against whom I remember most vividly. It was last year, around midseason, and he fanned me with two on in a tie game to get out of a jam. Thankfully, I got a chance to redeem myself in the 9th and singled to put Mike Easler in scoring position, with another hit by Garry Allenson giving us a walkoff 6-5 win. OK, so that last part I had to look up. 162 games a year for as long as I’ve played this game, they can tend to bleed into each other. Oil Can Boyd going for us, trying to keep his unbeaten streak going.

Bill Buckner YTD stats entering the game




Game Recap

The pitchers are in control early, with very few baserunners allowed over the first three and my first AB ending up as a groundout.

We finally get something going in the 4th, and I get plunked and eventually score our first run after swiping second when their shortstop Alfredo Griffin throws one into the dugout. Geds adds a second on a fielder’s choice and we actually score both of those runs without a hit. Hey, we’ll take ‘em however we can get ‘em.

They reply in the home half with one scored in a somewhat more orthodox manner—a Dwayne Murphy triple followed by a Mike Heath double, and I’m not sure if it's due to injury, but Warren doesn’t come out for the 5th. Keith Atherton takes over and gives up a one-out solo shot to Jim Rice, while I also get my first hit of the game but am left aboard.

From there, the pitchers once again gain the ascendancy and it is still 3-1 when Bob Stanley comes in for the 9th to try and save it for Dennis. That save never comes, as the A’s offence explodes with a 3-run, 4-hit inning culminating in a walkoff 2-run double by Griffin, more than making up for his earlier misplay and sending us back to the hotel frustrated at another one that got away.

Best Performances, News & Highlights of the Day

The Real Deal

• MLB Debuts: Lenny Dykstra, Tim Birtsas,
• Daily Notes: On this day in 1938, Red Sox pitcher Lefty Grove wins the first in what will eventually be a 20-game winning streak at Fenway Park that lasts until May 12, 1941.

[luckymann]

May 4, 1985: Boston Red Sox (13-10) @ Oakland A's (13-11)

It falls to Steve Crawford to try and stop the rot tonight, as he get a rare start against southpaw Bill Krueger. I’ve faced Bill just the once, going 0-for-2 with a HBP in the middle of last season. He’s a bit of a nibbler, so if we can show some restraint we should get some walks and one or two pitches to drive. We just need to convert, something we’ve slowed up on of late. Saturday afternoon game, with a nice crowd in attendance despite the threat of rain.

Bill Buckner YTD stats entering the game




Game Recap

We get the early jump on them with a 3-run 2nd as Mike Easler gets aboard via an error, I work a walk and Dave Stapleton puts one into the seats. Two more follow in the next on another longball by Jim Rice, but they cancel them out directly in the bottom half as Crawf gets the wobbles.

We score again in the next without a hit after another error, a wild pitch and a sac fly by Marc Sullivan, and keep the scoreboard ticking over with one in the 5th as well on a run-scoring Tony Armas double to make it 7-2. After yet another error in the one after that, their fourth of the game, we extend our lead to six and look pretty comfortable.

Rob Woodward has entered the game by this stage and sends them down in order in the 6th. But then he gets in a world of strife and before Mac can get him out of there they have tagged him for 3 and add one more when Lansford triples off Bobby Ojeda. All of a sudden, our lead has been cut to 2 and they have their tails well and truly up.

Sure enough, our BP problems worsen as they just tear into Ojeda, leapfrogging us with another 3-spot - all unearned after a Boggs error - to make it 9-8.

I’ve had a dirty day so far, contributing nothing, so it’s to my great relief that I manage to get us back even in the top 9th with a two-out RBI single. But it counts for nothing as they get their second straight walkoff win when Mark Clear can’t hold them off. A nightmare loss for us on the roadtrip from hell.

Best Performances, News & Highlights of the Day

• In-game, Cesar Cedeno gets his 2000th career hit playing for Cincy against the Mets. IRL, he finishes with 2087 at a 285 clip.

The Real Deal

• MLB Debuts: NIL
• Daily Notes: On this day in 1871, the first official Major League game ever - a National Association contest between the Cleveland Forest Citys and Fort Wayne Kekiongas - is played, with Fort Wayne winning 2 - 0 behind a four-hit shutout by pitcher Bobby Mathews. Al Pratt is the losing pitcher. Cleveland's catcher, Deacon White, is 3 for 4, including the first hit (a double) and also is the first to hit into a double play, while Bill Lennon becomes the first catcher to throw a runner out trying to steal second base.

[luckymann]

May 5, 1985: Boston Red Sox (13-11) @ Oakland A's (14-11)

Understatement of the year is that we are all looking forward to putting this swing behind us and getting home to regroup before the three clubs we’ve just played come to Fenway. A win today would have extra significance and just soften the blow of this rough patch we’ve hit. We had a good team meeting last night just to put everything in perspective and hopefully that will be reflected in our play today. Bruce Hurst taking on Chris Codiroli, who kept me hitless in my three times up last season when we met for the first and only time.

Bill Buckner YTD stats entering the game




Game Recap

We once again start in a positive fashion with a 3-run 1st, with me chiming in for an RBI double hot on the heels of a 2-run trip by Mike Easler, and I follow that up in my next AB in the 3rd with a run-scoring hit.

Bruce looks sharp thru 3 but then serves up a gopher ball to Dwayne Murphy leading off the 4th. He shakes it off and we get him that run back in the 6th on a double by Wade Boggs to score Jackie Gutierrez.

It’s the final third of the game that seems to be giving us conniptions of late, however, and we collectively twitch just a little when Bruce struggles in the 7th and is lucky to only give up one run on two hits and a walk. But we come back with one of our own in the top 8th and Bruce digs deep to give us a complete game win. The relief is palpable as we celebrate an early-May result like it is in the heat of a pennant drive, an indication of just how much this one means.

Best Performances, News & Highlights of the Day

The Real Deal

• MLB Debuts: NIL
• Daily Notes: On this day all the way back in 1904, Cy Young of the Boston Americans hurls the second of his three no-hitters - a 3-0 perfect game against the Philadelphia Athletics and Rube Waddell - on his way to pitching 24 straight hitless innings, which remains the record to the present day.

[luckymann]

[luckymann]

May 6, 1985: No game scheduled

Best Performances, News & Highlights of the Day

The Real Deal

• MLB Debuts: NIL
• Daily Notes: On this day in 1934 at Fenway Park, Carl Reynolds, Moose Solters, Rick Ferrell and Bucky Walters hit four consecutive triples for the Boston Red Sox en route to a 14-4 win against Detroit.

[luckymann]

May 7, 1985: California Angels (12-14) @ Boston Red Sox (14-11)

Even at this relatively early stage of the season, it’s impossible to overstate how key it was getting that win in the final game in Oakland. Still, there are clearly a couple areas of our game that need some tinkering and I hope the cheese are looking at doing so in an appropriate and timely fashion. At the same time, we need to be more clinical on the field as well. Home sweet home again with the Angels on our turf now and tonight pits our young gun Roger Clemens against theirs, Kirk McCaskill. This is his first season in the bigs, so none of us have faced him as yet.

Bill Buckner YTD stats entering the game




Game Recap

It takes until the top 4th, but it is Rocket who blinks first after pitching 3 hitless frames when he leaves one hanging and Bobby Grich duly obliges to put them ahead 2-0. We get them back in similar fashion in the 5th when Dewey Evans goes deep with a man on, then go ahead 4-2 in the next when I get my second double of the game and Geds bombs one out.

Rocket gives up a solo shot to old man Bob Boone in the top 7th – just the third hit they’ve managed off him tonight and they only get 4 all told over 8 before Mac opts to let Bob Stanley finish it off. The crowd is restless when he lets two aboard, but he finally fans Dick Schofield to strand them and get us the win.

Best Performances, News & Highlights of the Day

The Real Deal

• MLB Debuts: Brian Fisher
• Transactions of Interest: Cleveland trades Mike Jeffcoat and Luis Quiñones to the Giants for Johnnie LeMaster
• Daily Notes: NIL

[luckymann]

May 8, 1985: California Angels (12-15) @ Boston Red Sox (15-11)

Second of two against the Halos with Oil Can Boyd up for us against Jim Slaton, who has had a bit of a rough start to the season losing all four of his decisions so far. I had some early success in our two meetings last year, doubling off Jim in each of my first two ABs. But he's since retired me five times in a row, so he certainly has the wood on me entering this game. Let’s see if I can flip that on its head, shall we?

Bill Buckner YTD stats entering the game




Game Recap

They go ahead in the 2nd as Reggie Jackson leads off with a trip and scores on a Mike Brown single. Both hurlers are looking sharp, but we fall further behind in the 5th on a Rob Wilfong solo shot to left.

We’ve only managed two hits to this point (I’ve walked and ground out), but get a rally going in the home half of the same frame and put one on the board with three singles, driven in by Dewey Evans for his 18th ribbie of the season. I get a hit in the next as we eventually knot it at 2 on a single by Geds to plate Tony Armas.

We immediately fall behind again, however, as Can struggles in the 6th and they tag him for two on 3 hits, with both scoring on a long Bobby Grich single. And that’s all it takes as Donnie Moore keeps us quiet over the 8th and 9th to close out the win.

Best Performances, News & Highlights of the Day

• Graig Nettles gets his 2000th career hit.

The Real Deal

• MLB Debuts: NIL
• Daily Notes: On this day in that ill-fated year of 1946, Johnny Pesky becomes the first AL player to score 6 runs in a game, doing so against the White Sox in a 14-10 win.

[luckymann]

May 9, 1985: No game scheduled

Best Performances, News & Highlights of the Day

The Real Deal

• MLB Debuts: NIL
• Daily Notes: This day in 1916 marks Tris Speaker's first return to Fenway Park since moving to the Indians and, after one half-inning, he inadvertently heads into the home dugout, much to the crowd's delight. The Sox win it 5-1.

[luckymann]

May 10, 1985: Oakland A's (15-13) @ Boston Red Sox (15-12)

The A’s come to town with Al Nipper up against Chris Codiroli in the opener of three. Dave Stapleton has picked up a niggle and has been replaced on the Active Roster with backup catcher Dave Sax, who we signed as a FA earlier this season but who is yet to play a game for us. A big Friday night crowd in attendance looking for a good show.

Bill Buckner YTD stats entering the game




Game Recap

Two singles and a Tony Armas groundout get us on the board with one in the 1st and we blow it open a bit in the next with 3 more, including one by yours truly after I lead things off with a crisp infield hit that kindly stays fair. That’s one of five hits in the frame – all singles.

We get to them again in the third as Easler doubles to get things underway and I single him home, eventually scoring myself on a two-out Boggs hit. They get off the zero in the 5th and then add two more in these problematic middle innings.

Two more on three hits in the 8th ends Al’s night with them just the one behind, as Bob Stanley enters the fray. We give him an insurance run in the home half of that one courtesy of a Jack Gutierrez single but Bob doesn’t use it, sending them down in order to close it out. 28 hits between the two teams and the crowd definitely gets its money’s worth from this one.

Best Performances, News & Highlights of the Day

• An exciting day's play indeed, with late / extra-inning / walkoff wins to Toronto, Texas, the Yankees, Montreal and the Phillies.

The Real Deal

• MLB Debuts: NIL
• Daily Notes: On this day in 1965, Carl Yastrzemski belts two homers and drives in all his side's runs to help Jim Lonborg get his first win in the bigs as the Sox see off the Yanks 3-2.

[luckymann]

May 11, 1985: Oakland A's (15-14) @ Boston Red Sox (16-12)

Battle of the southpaws today as Bruce Hurst faces trickster Bill Kreuger. We’ll need to make the most of the couple rest days we get later this week before heading on a fortnight’s roadtrip through Cleveland, Minnesota and finally Texas with no breaks. My old ankles are aching at the mere thought of that. All for the love of the game, I keep telling myself! How can you not love it on a glorious Saturday afternoon like this with the Fen packed with fans?

Bill Buckner YTD stats entering the game




Game Recap

They open the scoring in this one with a run on a passed ball in the 2nd without the need for a hit but we leapfrog them in the next on a 2-run blast by Tony Armas, his 8th of the year.

Bruce is looking sharp after his early wobble and they’ve managed only 3 hits off him thru 6. But then, almost inexplicably, things completely fall apart in the 7th as they all but put us away with a crooked number. When the dust has settled, they’ve scored 7 times on 6 hits and Mike Trujillo has come in for Hurst, who has to wear all of those runs.

Almost in shock from that onslaught, we go down quietly over the final innings and lose it 8-2. A Detroit win knocks us off top spot in the AL East for the first time in a while. To cap off an ordinary day, I cop the bagel at the plate, although I do get aboard once via a HBP.

Best Performances, News & Highlights of the Day

The Real Deal

• MLB Debuts: NIL
• Daily Notes: IRL, the Tigers' 26-4 start sets a new MLB record for the best in major league history over the first 30 games of a season, eclipsing the 25-5 mark set by the 1955 Dodgers.

[Syd Thrift]

This is fun! TBH my original thoughts on my fictional league currently in 1971 was how I’d love to play in the 80s. Then I kept pushing back how far I wanted the history to start and how hard I wanted to control the history until I bailed out at 1969 haha

[luckymann]

Originally Posted by Syd Thrift

This is fun! TBH my original thoughts on my fictional league currently in 1971 was how I’d love to play in the 80s. Then I kept pushing back how far I wanted the history to start and how hard I wanted to control the history until I bailed out at 1969 haha

Glad you're enjoying bud. I'm definitely going to do '69 at some point to see if those Mets can pull off another miracle.

[luckymann]

May 12, 1985: Oakland A's (16-14) @ Boston Red Sox (16-13)

A good one for the purists today with Rocket Clemens taking on Dun Sutton, a guy whose high win total and professional demeanour I’m sure Rocket will be keen to emulate over the course of his career. Donny is a good pal of mine from our time together as Dodgers and we’ve obviously had plenty of meetings over the years from all the way back in 1977, when I of course moved from LA to the Cubs. And now we find ourselves both in the AL and able to resume “hostilities”. Pretty even going so far, although you’d have to give Don the decision on points seeing as he’s kept me to just a 250 BA and one measly homer over 52 ABs. Time to turn that around.

Bill Buckner YTD stats entering the game




Game Recap

Jim Rice gives us the early lead with a solo shot in the 1st and we extend that with 2 more in the next after I lead off with a single and a double by Geds puts us both in scoring position for Marty Barrett, who duly knocks us both in with another two-bagger.

Oakland comes right back at us in the 3rd, cancelling out our two-spot with one of their own as Roger just loses his way a little, but then both he and Don settle right down to business and the score is still 3-2 thru six frames.

Rocket then flames out in the 7th as they chase him with 3 runs on a dreaded leadoff walk followed by 3 hits and, while Rob Woodward keeps them quiet for the remainder, we can only tack on a late run in the 9th off Jay Howell and lose it 5-4. Another tough loss to take.

Best Performances, News & Highlights of the Day

The Real Deal

• MLB Debuts: NIL
• Daily Notes: On this day in 1955, Toothpick Sam Jones of the Chicago Cubs becomes the first black pitcher in major league history to throw a no-hitter - the first at Wrigley Field in nearly four decades.
• IRL, Cincy's Mario Soto is one out away from a no-hitter when the Cardinals' George Hendrick hits a home run to tie the game 1-1, although his teammates do manage to score in the home half for a walkoff win.