REGIONAL #59:    This regional included no pennant winners, but three teams that won at least 90 games, making it hard to identify a clear favorite.  As it turned out, none of those teams had what it took to win.

The first round 1 game takes 13 innings to resolve, with the 2003 Rockies pulling a mild upset over the 1982 Tigers, 2-1. Dan Petry gets injured in the 4th, but a host of Tiger relievers and Colorado starter Shawn Chacon cruise through regulation. In the top of the 13th, Lance Parrish misses a HR 1-19 and gets stranded at second; in the bottom of the 13th, Todd Helton gets a HR 1-19 off Elias Sosa's card, but he converts it for the walk off HR win.  And in a bigger upset, a 60 win 1982 Reds team beats a 90 win 1980 Expos squad in another pitchers' duel, 3-1, with Mario Soto outpitching Captain America (in Canada, no less) Steve Rogers. The Expos also got hurt by the split dice, with Andre Dawson (1-17) nailed at the plate and Ron Leflore (yes, a AAA) getting thrown out by Alex Trevino attempting to steal second. Yes, an aging Johnny Bench is on this Reds team but was playing 3rd; he may be a shadow of his former self, but he seems to have aged a bit better than teammate Tom Seaver.

The 90-win 1930 Cubs barely squeeze by the 100-loss 1964 Senators 2-1, as Claude Osteen holds the remarkable Cubs lineup (team BAVG of .309) to 5 hits. In setting up the Cubs team, I found myself wondering why they had 2 guys playing 1b with lots of ABs; research indicated that they traded for George Kelly late in the season. It's a good thing they did, as both Cubs runs resulted from a bases-loaded single by Kelly. The big bats--Hack Wilson, Gabby Hartnett, Kiki Cuyler--were silent all game, but the Cubs survive and advance.

The first round set of pitching duels is completed with the 90-win 2013 Reds topping the 1983 Rangers 1-0. Both teams can only scratch out 3 hits; Charlie Hough gets touched for an RBI single by Brandon Phillips in the 8th and that's the game. Mat Latos allows 2 baserunners with no outs in the 7th, but relief ace Aroldis Chapman comes in to shut down the Rangers and earn the win.

The regional semifinals featured a pair of hard fought games.  The 2003 Rockies scored 6 runs in the first inning to chase 1982 Reds starter Bob Shirley, but a series of Reds relievers cool down the Rockies while the Reds batters chip away at the lead for the entire game, with a 3 run 8th inning bringing the score to 7-6.  However, Rockies reliever Steve Reed retires the Reds in order to earn the save.

The second matchup involved a pitching duel between 2013 Reds Homer Bailey and 1930 Cubs and Charlie Root.   Bailey was the better pitcher this evening, tossing a two-hit shutout against the formidable Cubs lineup.   In the 9th, the Cubs managed to load the bases on two walks and an error by the normally sure-handed Zack Cozart, and with two outs the call went to pinch-hitter Rogers Hornsby.  However, Bailey struck out the Hall of Famer and the Reds head to the regional finals.

After a spate of close games, the regional finals is an old fashioned blowout as the 2003 Rockies thump the 2013 Reds 12-2.   The Reds pitching scoreless streak ends quickly as Jay Payton hits a grand slam in the 1st off Bronson Arroyo, and Greg Norton adds another grand slam in the 8th, while the Reds defense makes 5 errors, with two 2-base errors by Zack Cozart.  The Reds even trotted out supercard reliever Sean Marshall, but even he gave up 3 hits, 3 walks, and 3 runs in 4 innings.  Meanwhile, Rockies starter Jason Jennings took a shutout into the 9th, but fell apart with 2 out requiring Justin Speier to come in and record the final out.  Although this regional boasted better teams on cardstock, it was the 74-win Rockies who refused to lose.

REGIONAL #58:  After a few distractions, I was finally able to get to the next regional in my endless single C&D elimination tournament of every team I own.  Mostly mediocrities and no pennant winners in this batch, although the 1958 White Sox were a 2nd place team that won the pennant the following year, and the 1981 Dodgers "half-won" a division in that weird strike-shortened season.  And both those teams won comfortably in the first round:  The 1981 Dodgers pummeled the 1990 Phillies 11-5, with DH Rick Monday blasting 2 homers after the Dodgers had fallen behind 4-0.  Meanwhile, the 1958 White Sox and Dick Donovan beat the 1934 Browns 6-2, even though 38 year old manager Rogers Hornsby stuck himself in the lineup at DH.  The Go-Go Sox did it in their classic fashion with speed and defense, never scoring more than one run in an inning.   In the other games, the 1983 Twins relied on homers from Gaetti and Brunansky to beat the 1950 Cubs, while the 2010 Mets survived injuries to Jason Bay and starter Johan Santana to top the 1998 Brewers in a comeback 5-4 win.  All of the Mets offense was provided by 2 homers from David Wright; Francisco Rodriquez gave Mets fans a scare by allowing two hits to open the bottom of the 9th but then struck out the side to earn the save.

In the first semifinal, the 1981 Dodgers rolled on with a 5-2 win over the 1983 Twins led by homers from Garvey and Scioscia.  Burt Hooton had his knuckle-curve working, and Twins SS Ron Washington contributed two errors and a GBX hit to the Dodgers offense, establishing himself as a triple threat who couldn't field, hit, or manage.

Semifinal game 2 goes to the 2010 Mets with a tight 2-1 duel over the 1958 Sox.  Billy Pierce and Barry Latman combine to hold the Mets to 4 hits, but two of them were back to back homers by Reyes and Wright. In the 7th, RA Dickey lost control of his knuckler and loaded the bases with no outs, but Rodriguez came in early and retired the side with no damage.  The Sox efforts at small ball didn't work this time, with rallies killed by a failed squeeze play and an Aparicio caught stealing.   The Mets move on to face the Dodgers in the finals, but a depleted Rodriguez will have to sit this next one out.

And the Regional #58 title goes to the 2010 Mets, who climb back from an early 2-0 deficit to best the 1981 Dodgers 4-3.  Dodger starter Jerry Reuss hit a rough patch in the 4th inning, while Mike Pelfrey did a solid job for the Mets before being lifted for Acosta in the 7th.  Acosta then notched the save despite allowing a solo HR to Garvey in the 8th.  David Wright gets the nod as the regional MVP with 3 HR and 7 RBI across the three games.  The 2010 Mets have a decent build for this single elimination tournament--three non-terrible starters, a couple of good relievers (with Rodriguez having a killer card), decent defense, and a lineup that has the potential generate runs from top to bottom.  A 79-83 team in real life, their apparent underachieving got GM Omar Minaya fired at the end of the season, but their success this regional suggests to me that the blame was more on manager Jerry Manuel.

REGIONAL #57:  A small story of Strat imitating life: in the latest regional in my endless single elimination tournament, a first round matchup between 1930 Dodgers (actually called the Robins at the time) and 1956 Reds resulted in a modest upset, a 6-5 win by Brooklyn, even though their 2nd baseman Neal Finn rolled the dreaded 15 game injury, meaning he's out of this tournament forever. I decided to check out Finn's story, and see if maybe he went on to front the band Crowded House after his injury, but discovered to my dismay that after a good rookie season in 1930 and a '31 season in which he received MVP votes, he went in for surgery in the middle of the 1933 season for pain related to an ulcer, and never recovered from the surgery--dying a month later at the age of 29. So this regional is in honor of Neal "Mickey" Finn, who unfortunately rolled an injury 20 in both my tournament and in life.

Fittingly, injuries played a significant role in all of the other first round matchups.   The division winning 2002 Twins lost SS Cristian Guzman and the game to their 1992 Twins counterparts; the 1962 Pirates rode a Donn Clendenon walkoff double off 1986 Yankees starter Dennis Rasmussen to win 3-2, but lost Roberto Clemente for the next game; and 2016 Braves starter Julio Teheran was hurt in the 4th inning against the 1974 Giants, who scorched Braves relievers for 6 runs in the 5th to erase a 7-1 deficit.   However, a two-run single by Freddie Freeman put Atlanta ahead for good with a 10-7 win.

 

In the semifinals, a 9th inning homer by 1930 Dodgers CF Johnny Frederick off 1992 Twins star reliever Rick Aguilera pushed Brooklyn past the Twins 4-3, while the 2016 Braves continued their scoring onslaught with an 8-2 win over the Clemente-less 1962 Pirates, with seven different Braves driving in runs. 

However, in the finals matchup, the lack of any starting pitching depth in the #8 seeded 2016 Braves rotation became glaringly apparent, and the #4 seed 1930 Dodgers emerged as the regional winner with an easy 7-2 victory.   Regional MVP Johnny Frederick made it clear that the loss of teammate Finn motivated the entire squad to contribute, indicating that this would be only the beginning of a march towards the championship in Finn's honor.

REGIONAL #56:  The next "regional" in my endless single elimination tournament boasts two pennant winners, the 2002 Giants and the 1983 Orioles. Both survive the 1st round in different fashion: the Orioles ride back-to-back homers by Ripken and Murray and a Mike Boddicker 5-hitter to dispose of an 81-win 1949 A's team; the Giants, down 2-0 to the 1990 Dodgers and Ramon Martinez with 2 out and 2 on in the bottom of the 9th, see Rich Aurelia roll a HR 1-13/DOUBLE on Martinez, and miss it. However, the 1-11 runner on 1st manages to beat the throw home, and the Giants send it to extra innings, where a flagging Martinez, who insists upon remaining in the game, throws a gopher ball to Barry Bonds (hey, his name was on the card in 2002!) for a walk-off Giants win. In other first round action, the 1958 Giants beat the 1958 Cubs of the same season 6-4 on an O'Connell homer in the top of the 9th; and 2 homers and 4 RBI for Red Schoendienst leads the 1953 Cardinals in blowing out a pretty bad 2019 Giants team, with Madison Bumgarner not making it out of the 2nd inning.

The first of the two pennant winners to be eliminated is the 2002 Giants, who can't muster any late inning heroics this time and fall to their cousins the 1958 Giants 5-0, Stu Miller tossing a 2-hit shutout. '58 catcher Bob Schmidt thinks he's Mike Schmidt and hits two 2-run homers. The 1958 Giants were a decent team, 3rd place in the NL and halfway between their pennants in 1954 and 1962, meaning that they had key pieces of both squads like Johnny Antonelli and Orlando Cepeda, in addition to mainstay Willie Mays.

And down goes the other pennant winner, as Ray Jablonski takes Scott McGregor deep for a 3-run HR in the top of the 9th and the 1953 Cardinals eliminate the 1983 Orioles 4-2. Vinegar Bend Mizell tosses a 4-hitter, but with the Cards down 2-0 going into the 9th it looked like his effort would be wasted, but Slaughter and Musial knocked out base hits to set the table for Jablonski. So it's an all-50's final, break out the Elvis records!

The regional goes to the 1953 Cardinals in a hard-fought 5-3 win over the 1958 Giants, with Gerry Staley pitching out of two bases-loaded jams, one involving retiring Willie Mays to end the inning. The two big-name HOFers of Mays and Musial both had homers in the game, with Musial selected as the regional MVP although it was very much a team effort--all 9 St. Louis starters had at least one RBI over the 3 games. This is the 4th Cardinal team to win a regional in my tournament, joining the '27, '73, and '78 versions.

REGIONAL #55:  My next group is a "who are these guys?" set--eight teams that I'm not very familiar with. That's the nice thing about this project--I get a chance to learn more about a wide range of baseball history, and it forces me to actually PLAY these teams that otherwise might just get purchased and then sit in my card catalogs.

 

 

And round 1 is in the books. The 1941 Browns take 10 innings to upset the 1950 Tigers, 7-6; Andre Dawson hits a walk-off 3-run shot in the 11th and the 1990 Cubs best the anemic 1963 Astros (then known as the Colt 45s) 9-6; the 2001 Indians maul the 1920 Tigers 12-3 behind 2 Ellis Burks homers, Sabathia taking a 2-hitter into the 9th and retiring a cursing Ty Cobb to end a rally and the game; and one of the 3 Tigers teams in this regional finally wins one, with the 1957 Tigers topping a bad 1965 Angels team 6-3, Reno Bertoia driving in three.

 

In the regional semifinals, the 1990 Cubs ride homers by Villanueva (pronounced Villanova in Harry Caray-ese) and Walton to beat the 1941 Browns 4-1, while the 1957 Tigers upset the 2001 Indians 7-1, blowing the game open in the 2nd inning thanks to two big Jim Thome errors--Foytack tossing a nifty 5-hitter. That sets the stage for a finals matchup between the 77-win Cubs and 78-win Tigers...neither exactly a dynasty in the making.

 And the winner of this regional: the 1990 Cubs, who eliminate the 1957 Tigers 7-4, although the Tigers made a game of it after falling into a 5-0 hole in the 3rd. The regional MVP was Cubs CF Jerome Walton, who drove in runs in all three games from the leadoff position and made several clutch defensive plays. One thing the Tigers and Cubs had in common in this regional, aside from both being fairly mediocre teams in real life: neither of their best hitters, Sandberg or Kaline, made much of a contribution in any of the games. The Cubs may have a rough time when they start sectional play, as trying to find a #4 starter on that staff could be challenging. However, given that I am a White Sox fan, the Cubs always play over their heads in this tournament just to torture me!

REGIONAL #54:  Some wild 1st round action in the next "regional" in my endless single elimination tournament: Kirk Gibson hits 2 HRs (call that, Vin Scully!) as the 1994 Tigers best the 1959 Tigers, despite an answering homer from the late great Al Kaline; Ed Bailey hits a walkoff 3-run HR in the 10th to lead the 1957 Reds in an upset over the 1967 Twins; the HR-crazy 2019 Twins hit 3 HR in the first 2 innings against Tim Hudson, but have to hold off a furious comeback to win a 9-7 decision against the 2000 A's; and a grand slam by Randy Winn off Pedro Martinez is all the 71-win 2007 Giants need to upset the 2002 Red Sox, with a young Tim Lincecum notching the CG win. My last regional was characterized by a bunch of pitching duels and shutouts; don't think this one will turn out that way!

 

 

And the wildness continues in the first semifinal, as the 1994 Tiger's Chris Gomez, tapped to start in front of an aging Alan Trammell, responds with TWO GRAND SLAMS--both off 1957 Reds starter Hal Jeffcoat's card-- and the Tigers romp 14-2. His slams were in the 1st and 2nd inning. I'm not sure I've ever seen two grand slams by the same player in the same game, let alone in consecutive innings!

 

In the other semifinal, Giants pitcher Matt Cain keeps the HR-happy 2019 Twins from hitting any long balls, but Jake Ororizzi is even better, holding the 2007 Giants to 5 hits in a 3-1 win for the Twins. Jonathan Schoop, who paced the 2016 Orioles in winning the last regional, continues his clutch run with 3 hits and an RBI. The stage is now set for the regional finals, with the '94 Tigers, last place in the AL East, being huge underdogs against the 101-win Twins--and one of Detroit's best hitters, Junior Felix, will miss the game due to injury.

 

In the regional finals, the underdog 1994 Tigers jump out to a 5-1 lead over the powerful 2019 Twins, with a 2-run HR by Kirk Gibson chasing Minnesota starter Michael Pineda in the 3rd. However, 2019 Twins reliever Trevor May comes in and slams the door on the Tigers, while the floodgates open for the Twins sluggers. When the dust clears, the Twins knock 7 homers (two each by Cruz and Sano) and they Cruz to a 12-5 win, with May notching the win in relief with 4 shutout innings. The 2019 Twins are a formidable team, with a pretty strong bullpen to augment their awesome power. However, their starting pitching depth is unimpressive, and in the three games of the regional they committed 7 errors, pointing to another potential weakness. But, as someone on the boards recently said, this team will never be out of a game, and they could go far in this single elimination format.

REGIONAL #53:  Here's how the next "regional" in my endless single elimination tournament has shaped up going into the finals. Highlights have included 2016 Orioles' Chris Tillman easily outpitching Tom Seaver and the 1976 Mets; 1987 Pirates Doug Drabek shutting out the sorry swan song of the Mantle/Maris era 1966 Yankees; and injury replacement Caleb Joseph and his .174 batting average pulling off a successful squeeze play to "squeeze" the 2016 Orioles past the 1911 Reds 1-0 in the semifinals, relief ace Zack Britton getting the win in relief. The two surviving teams are interesting ones: The entire starting lineup for the 89-win Orioles has an "E" stealing rating (not sure I remember seeing that before), while the Bonds/Bonilla-led Pirates handled the regional favorite 1999 Reds in the semifinals and seem to me like a better team than their 80-82 record would indicate.

And it is the 2016 Orioles, seeded 2nd in this group, who prevail in a tight 3-2 win over the #6 seed 1987 Pirates. Kevin Gausman makes a solid effort for a 3rd straight shutout, but allows 2 runs on a Van Slyke triple in the 8th. A homer by Schoop is the biggest factor for the Orioles. Notes: this was the first regional win for any Orioles/Browns team, with many more storied versions of this franchise failing to make it this far.

REGIONAL #52:  Here's my next regional, featuring six good teams and two mediocrities--and the mediocrities seem to take these regionals quite often! Most interesting matchup in round 1 looks to be the World Champion '38 Yanks against the '20 White Sox, a 96-win team starring the Black Sox scandal players in their last appearances before they were banned from baseball forever.

The most anticipated matchup of round 1 lives up to its billing. The 1920 White Sox remnants jump out to a 3-0 lead, but starter Eddie Cicotte gets injured in the 5th (allegedly) and scrub reliever Hodge eventually gets rocked in the 8th, with Joe Gordon collecting a TR 1-6 FlyB 7-20 and rolls a 6 to put the 1938 Yankees in the lead 5-3. However, Eddie Collins drives in 2 with a double to tie it in the bottom of the 9th and sends the game to extra innings. In the top of the 11th, the Yanks load the bases with 2 out but Dickie Kerr gets Dimaggio to lineout to end the threat. In the bottom of the 11th, pinch hitter Bibb Falk triples with 2 out, and an exhausted Lefty Gomez once again surrenders a double to Eddie Collins, giving the Sox the 6-5 extra innings win. Of interest, none of the players banned in the scandal made any significant contribution to the Sox win.

In semifinal action, the 1954 White Sox down the 1951 Cardinals 8-3, with Billy Pierce allowing a HR to Musial in the 1st but settling down for the CG win. However, in the other semi, a crosstown showdown between the 1920 White Sox and the 1983 Cubs (Manager Lee Elia to disgruntled Cubs fans:  "get a job") doesn't go well for the Sox, with the Cubs and Ferguson Jenkins winning 7-4, Carmelo Martinez with a big blow for the Cubs. As a longtime Sox fan, it seems that the Cubs always win these Sox-Cubs matchups just to taunt me, with the Cubs getting every split roll. Of course, the finals are yet another such matchup, so Minnie Minoso and friends should be worried. The regional finals features the Revenge of the Sox, as the 1954 White Sox eliminate the 1983 Cubs 5-0, with Jack Harshman tossing a 5 hit shutout. Cubs starter Dick Ruthven was chased in the 5th, and the excellent Cub bullpen (Brusstar, Lefferts, Lee Smith, Bill Campbell) shackle the Sox, but it was too little, too late, as the terrible Cubs defense gave the unemployed Cubs fans plenty to boo about.

REGIONAL 51:  In round 1 of the latest regional of my endless single elimination tournament, the '87 Red Sox win behind Clemens and Sam Horn; Bob Gibson and the '66 Cards shut down the '95 Angels; the '24 Reds grind out 19 hits and no homers and Carl Mays doesn't bean any of the '50 Pirates to record the win; and in the highest profile matchup, the 103-win 2002 Yanks beat John Smoltz and the World Champion '92 Braves 8-4, with Giambi contributing a 3-run double to break the game open.

Semifinal game 1 turns out to be a classic Yankee-Red Sox battle. The Yanks start Roger Clemens to taunt Boston, as he had also started the round 1 game for the Red Sox. However, Clemens allows HRs to Sam Horn and Dwight Evans, but Boston starter Bruce Hurst can't seem to keep the Yankees off the basepaths, eventually allowing 15 hits. With the Sox loading the bases and threatening to add insurance runs in the 8th, Mariano Rivera comes in, just allowing a sac fly to Ellis Burks. The Yanks respond with 2 more runs in the bottom of the 8th, with Bernie Williams contributing his third and fourth RBI of the game, and the score is 7-6 entering the 9th. Rivera retires the Sox in order, and then the Yanks get runners on 1st and 2nd with one out in the bottom of the 9th. With no talent at all in the bullpen, the Sox stay with Hurst, and he fans Jeter and retires Ventura on a fly ball to preserve the 7-6 win for Boston. A number of these Yankee teams from this era have played in the tournament so far, and Jeter has just been useless for all of them!

The other semifinal game turns into a pitching duel between the Cards' Al Jackson vs. the Reds' Eppa Rixey. A 2- run HR by Edd Roush in the 6th off Jackson's card is all Rixey needs as the Reds gain the regional finals with a 2-1 win.

The regional finals start to test the back end of the rotation for these survivors, and that turns out to be bad news for Boston as Al Nipper gets rocked after throwing 5 one-hit innings. Calvin Schiraldi comes in to pour gasoline on the fire, and when the smoke clears the '24 Reds emerge as the regional winner with a 12-1 laugher. A Sam Horn solo shot provides the only Red Sox run, as Horn homers in all three games but it's not enough to offset Edd Roush's 4 RBI.

REGIONAL 50: Here is my next "regional" in my endless single elimination madness tournament of every Strat team I own. Some interesting matchups--one world champion, three 90 win teams including the runner-up to the 27 Yanks (stocked with many HOF players like Jimmie Foxx and Ty Cobb), three horrible 50 win teams, and one mediocre squad. I'm expected it to resolve to a match between the 84 Tigers and the 27 A's, but the winner of the crosstown Sox-Cubs game might have a shot at an upset.

In round 1, the 1984 Tigers dispose of 1973 SD 8 to 3, although the game was tight until a 3 run HR by Lance Parrish in the 9th. Tigers have all-1 up the middle defense (particularly impressive because I'm playing the basic game), but the Padres kept finding defensive weaknesses at the corners in HoJo and Darrell Evans.  Then it's the 1965 White Sox over crosstown rivals 1998 Cubs 7-3, led by a 3-run HR by Skowron in the 5th. Eddie Fisher strikes out 66-HR man Sammy Sosa to end the game. Mediocre 1961 Indians over terrible 1949 Browns 7-6 in a seesaw battle. Bubba Phillips draws a bases-loaded walk off Tom Ferrick in the 9th for the go-ahead run. Indians catcher John Romano homers for the second game in a row, as he also hit a solo shot for the 65 Sox in the previous game! Wrapping up round 1, 1927 A's breeze past 1956 A's 11-4. The '27 team had a remarkable 7 HOF players carded, and a HOF manager in Mack; the '56 team had one HOF player, a truly dreadful reliever named Tommy Lasorda. Lefty Grove gets the CG win, although Gus Zernial gave him some problems, with a HR and 3 RBI for the '56 version.

It's time for the regional semifinals, after no real surprises in the first round. Three teams with at least 90 wins survive....and then there's the '61 Indians. The World Champion '84 Tigers and their spectacular up-the-middle defense face the 95-win 1965 White Sox, who have an outstanding pitching staff and sneaky power from top to bottom of the lineup. Meanwhile, the Indians have to face the 1927 A's, the AL runner-up to perhaps the greatest team of all time. The Indians will try to match the A's seven HOFers with a lineup fronted by the likes of Tito Francona and Jimmy Piersall--not a promising matchup on paper, but anything can happen. Just ask the '27 Yankees, who lost in their regional finals to the 1982 Braves, 4-1!

In the semifinals, the '84 Tigers prevail in a close one over the 1965 White Sox, 3-1. The Tigers take a lead in the 5th with a Herndon solo HR, but the Sox tie it in the 8th with a sac fly from Floyd Robinson, off Willie Hernandez in relief of Petry. However, Hoyt Wilhelm fails to keep the game tied, allowing a 2 run HR to Howard Johnson in the top of the 9th. The Sox load the bases in the 9th but Hernandez finally buckles down, and Herndon chases down a Cater FLY X to record the final out.

For the other semifinal, seven Hall of Famers can't offset bad luck as the 1961 Indians send the 1927 A's back to storage, 4-0. The A's outhit Cleveland 7-5 but Barry Latman manages to get the clutch outs all game, striking out Al Simmons with the bases loaded in the 3rd. The A's weren't helped by injuries to Jimmie Foxx and starter Rube Walberg, or by Cleveland HRs from Francona, Essegian, and Vic Power. The plucky Indians go on to face the formidable Tigers in the regional final. Oh, interesting trivia on this game: '27 A's first baseman Jimmy Dykes was the manager for the '61 Indians!

And the winner of the regional is.....the 1961 Indians! The top seeded 1984 Tigers jump to a 4-0 lead after 2 and it looks like it's going to be a rout. However, Cleveland starter Gary Bell settles down and pitches 7 shutout innings with just 4 hits. Meanwhile, Milt Wilcox, who had been cruising with a 2 hit shutout, falls apart in the 7th, and Aurelio Lopez comes in to preserve a one-run lead. However, in the 8th Lopez blows it, allowing a 2 run homer to Willie Kirkland off Lopez' card, and the '61 Indians pull off yet another upset, 5-4, to claim the regional....despite being the 5th best team among the 8 according to the ELO ranks.

SUPER-REGIONAL D:   This grouping of eight regional winners was played out several years ago, and represented the survivors of a fourth 64 team bracket matching regional winners #25 through #32.  These 64 teams included some of the most storied squads in history, including the 1961 M&M boys Yankees, the record-setting winning 1954 Indians, the Charlie Finley A’s, a couple of Koufax-era Dodgers pennant winners, the Big Red Machine, the Whiz Kids, Walter Johnson’s Senators, and the Boys of Summer Brooklynites.  In total, there were 17 different pennant-winners among the initial teams, tying it with Super-Regional B for the most loaded group of 64 thus far.  Three of those legendary teams remain alive at the beginning of super-regional D:  the 111-win 1954 Indians, the infamous 1953 Brooklyn Dodgers, and the Big Red Machine of 1976.   In addition, there were three teams that came oh-so-close:  the 1969 Cubs who collapsed to give the Mets their first pennant, the 1976 Royals who just couldn’t ever get past the ALCS, and the 1978 Red Sox, who ran into Bucky Dent at the end of the season.    Again, the first round of the super-regional is the 4th game for these teams, meaning that these teams are having to go deep into their rotations for a #4 starter. The ELO ranks of the 8 remaining teams forecasts the Red Machine as a slight favorite over the ‘54 Indians in the finals, but indicate that all six of the aforementioned teams have a reasonable shot, with entries from the Cards and the Senators looking like longshots.

Round Four

The 93-loss 1978 Cardinals entered their round four game against the 1969 Cubs as underdogs, but they had defeated three straight top 500 teams to get this far and weren’t intimidated, as demonstrated by a Jerry Morales solo homer in the 3rd to give them first strike.  However, the Cubs erupt for three runs in the 5th against Aurelio Lopez and from there Dick Selma quiets the Cards to give the Cubs the 5-2 win.   In what looks like a huge mismatch, the 1976 Reds and Gary Nolan face the 1967 Senators and chase Nats starter Barry Moore early, courtesy of a Johnny Bench 3-run shot.  The Reds take a 4-1 lead into the bottom of the 9th, but Nolan can’t get any out, neither does Pedro Borbon, but finally Rawly Eastwick comes in to retire the side and preserve a 4-3 win.  

It was testimony to the greatness of the starting rotation for the 1954 Indians that they were able to send out a Hall of Famer like Bob Feller in round 4, but the 1976 Royals were no slouch in that department either with Dennis Leonard getting the start.  As it turned out, neither was particularly sharp; a Vic Wertz homer in the 2nd gave Feller a 3-0 lead, but the Royals chipped away at the lead with a 2-run blast from John Mayberry in the 6th and then KC’s Tom Poquette leaves the lights on for two baserunners at home plate with a 3-run shot in the 7th that puts the Royals up for keeps in the 6-5 victory.  The matchup between the 1953 Dodgers and the 1978 Red Sox is also a slugfest, with homers by Carlton Fisk, Dwight Evans, and George Scott not being enough to overcome the Dodgers 14-hit attack against Bob Stanley, and the Bums pull out the 7-5 win to move on.

Round Five

It’s the 102-win 1976 Reds trying to machine out the 1969 Cubs, with Bill Hands going against Pat Zachry, and from the beginning it’s obvious this one will be contested.  The Cubs put up a run in the top of the 1st with a Ron Santo RBI single, but the Reds rap out three straight hits to set up a bases-clearing double from Tony Perez in the bottom of the inning to take a 3-1 lead.  The teams trade runs in the 2nd and 3rd, but in the 4th the Cubs offense comes alive, with Jim Hickman homer and a 2-run single from Billy Williams leading the Cubs to a 6-4 lead.  George Foster drive one in for the Reds in the 7th but at that point the machine runs out of gas and the Cubs defy the doubters to deliver the 6-5 win and a berth in the super-regional final.

The other round five game is less hard-fought, as the 1953 Dodgers assert their muscle against the 1976 Royals and knock KC starter Marty Pattin out of the game in the 4th.  Homers from George Shuba and Roy Campanella lead the way for the Bums, and although KC’s game four hero Poquette manages to drive in a run, it’s the only one the Royals can manage as Russ Meyer completes the 6-hitter and the Dodgers cruise to a 6-1 win, their first game in the tournament that wasn’t decided by one or two runs.

Super-regional D final

The final game saw the 1969 Cubs and their ace Fergie Jenkins going against the legendary 1953 Dodgers, who went with swingman Bob Milliken on the mound.  Both teams have something to prove here, with the Cubs and their September collapse paired with the Dodgers failure to best the hated Yankees in the Series, and a super-regional victory here may represent some measure of redemption, as this tournament rewards teams who win when it counts.  The Cubs take a 1-0 lead in the top of the 1st on an Ernie Banks RBI single, but in the 4th Pee Wee Reese comes up big with a leadoff homer that rattles Jenkins, and by the time he regains composure and records the third out the Dodgers lead 4-1.  In the 4th Cubs DH Willie Smith responds with a solo homer, but Carl Furillo matches that in the 5th for the Dodgers and from there on out there are few hits to be had.  Thus, the Dodgers take their sixth straight game and the super-regional with the 5-2 win, cementing their status for me as one of the all-time great teams.  

REGIONAL #49:  According to the ELO ranks, the top team in this group was the ‘63 Twins who were a couple of years from winning an AL pennant after decades of futility as the Senators.  Among their competition was an Orioles team who similarly had reached respectability after transitioning from the hapless Browns.   Finally, there were two Dodgers teams that were only two years apart that would face each other in the first round; although neither of those teams were pennant winners, they did capture the NL in the season between the two entries here.  Despite the good rankings of these four teams, it turned out that the victors would instead emerge from a much more unlikely seed.

The 1957 Giants took a quick lead in the bottom of the 1st on a 2-run homer by Hank Sauer to give Ruben Gomez the lead, and although the 1954 Red Sox managed to the game in the top of the 7th, a Don Mueller RBI single provided the difference as the Giants survived the 4-3 win.  The sibling rivalry game between the 1980 Dodgers and the 1982 Dodgers turned out to hinge on Fernandomania, as Valenzuela tossed a 6-hitter for the 6-2 win for the 1982 squad, with the only 1980 runs both coming on Dusty Baker solo homers.  The 1963 Twins broke open a tie with the 1972 Indians in the top of the 9th with a 2-run Harmon Killebrew homer to escape with a 4-2 win.   Finally, the 1993 Mets managed to squeak past the 1961 Orioles for the 3-2 upset, Todd Hundley’s 2-run double in the 5th putting the Mets ahead to stay.

In the first semifinal, the 1957 Giants jump to a 6-0 lead over the 1982 Dodgers after two innings courtesy of homers from Willie Mays and Valmy Thomas, but the Dodgers fight back to narrow the lead to 6-4 before the Giants drive Jerry Reuss to the showers en route to an 8-5 win, Antonelli recording the win.   In the other semi, the 1993 Mets continue their upset ways as they ride homers from Jeff Kent and DH Jeromy Burnitz to down the 1963 Twins 6-1, with Sid Fernandez tossing a 4-hitter, a Killebrew solo HR being the only real flaw in the gem.  

Thus, the 103-loss #8 seeded 1993 Mets make the finals to face the #6 seed 1957 Giants, with both teams playing well over their ranking in the tournament thus far.   The Giants take a lead in the top of the 1st on a Ray Jablonski solo homer, but Eddie Murray singles home a run in the bottom of the inning to tie it up.  Danny O’Connell adds another solo shot for the Giants in the 3rd, but that lead only lasts until Mets SS Tim Bogar finds a HR result on Stu Miller’s card for a 3-run blast.  From there, Mets starter Bret Saberhagen exerts control and the longshot Mets win the regional as the #8 seed, becoming the second straight lightly-regarded 1993 team to do so.

REGIONAL #48:   No pennant winners in this batch, with the ELO favorite being a 2006 Twins team that won 96 games and the AL Central but were quickly dispatched in the postseason.  The other main competitors were from quite different eras, with a Pirates squad from the 70s and an Indians team from the 40s.  The remaining teams were not terrible, but largely mediocre with pretty similar undistinguished rankings.

The first round game between the 1983 Royals and the 1973 Pirates began as a pitching duel between the Buc’s Bob Moose and KC’s Kevin Appier, but a Dave Parker solo homer gives Pittsburgh the lead in the 5th and from there Stargell, Hebner and Richie Zisk pound away and Moose completes the shutout in the 7-0 win.  The 1993 Reds punish 1948 Cubs’ starter Johnny Schmitz with 6 hits and four runs in the top of the 1st and coast from there to a 4-1 victory; meanwhile, the regional favorite 96-win AL Central champ 2006 Twins ride Johan Santana’s 3-hitter backed by solo homers from Luis Castillo and Torii Hunter to shut out the 1999 Cardinals, 2-0.   Finally, the 2012 Marlins jump to a lead on a 3-run homer from Omar Infante, and Mark Buehrle hangs on long enough to be relieved by Steve Cishek to save a 4-3 win over the favored 1941 Indians.

In the semifinal round, the 1973 Pirates and Dock Ellis take a 2-0 lead on solo homers from Parker and Zisk, but the 1993 Reds come back to tie it up and then take a lead in the bottom of the 8th on a 2-run shot from Reggie Sanders.  Zisk knocks in another run in the 9th but it’s not enough and the Reds gain the finals, hanging on to the 4-3 win.  The semifinal between the 2006 Twins and the 2012 Marlins proves to be a slugfest, with the Twins jumping to a 3-0 lead in the top of the 1st on a 3-run homers by Justin Morneau, but the Marlins grab the lead 5-3 by the end of two as Giancarlo Stanton hits homers in each of the first two innings.  However, from there the Twin offense is relentless and a parade of Marlins relievers can’t turn off the spout as Minnesota marches to the 14-6 win.

That sets up a final matchup between the #1 seeded 2006 Twins and the #6 seed 1993 Reds, a 73-89 team that got manager Tony Perez fired in midseason.  The Twins take a 1-0 lead on a Michael Cuddyer solo blast in the 2nd, but the Reds score two unearned in the 3rd against Twins starter Boof Bonser.  A 2-run homer by Twins DH Mike Redmond give the lead back to Minnesota in the 6th, but Kevin Mitchell responds immediately for the Reds with a two-run double in the top of the 7th, and Reds starter Tim Pugh hangs on to complete a 6-hitter and give the Reds the 4-3 upset and the regional win.  

REGIONAL #47:  The top seed in this group was the 2004 Yankees, who won 101 games and the AL East, and led the ALCS three games to none before getting beat four in a row by the wildcard Red Sox.  The ELO ranks picked the Yanks to take the finals against the Mariners, who had never won a regional, but other competition for the Yankees looked like it might arise from the winner of the Tigers/White Sox first round matchup.

In that first round matchup between the 2003 White Sox and the 1949 Tigers, the Sox score two quick runs in the bottom of the 1st on RBI from Maggio Ordonez and Carl Everett, but then Tiger starter Virgil Trucks settles in and the Tigers chip away against Esteban Loiaza to pull out a 4-2 win, Don Kolloway contributing two key RBI singles.   The top seeded 2004 Yankees get overconfident against the #8 seeded 1957 A’s and decide to also start Loiaza, recently acquired from those White Sox, and he manages to lose his second outing in a row, with the A’s pulling off the huge 5-4 upset behind two future Yankees, Ralph Terry with the start and Hector Lopez with a 2-run double in the 4th that gives the A’s the lead.  The 1968 Mets ride the arm of Tom Seaver, who tosses a 5-hit shutout to make short work of the 1978 Cubs, while the 1997 Mariners pour it on against the 1958 Pirates, with homers from Russ Davis and Paul Sorrento and two RBI from Ken Griffey Jr. leading the M’s to the easy 8-2 win.

In the semifinals, the 59-94 1957 A’s continue their improbable run, downing the 1949 Tigers and Hal Newhouser 4-2 on a Gus Zernial homer and a 2-run double from Vic Power, Ned Garver getting the win for KC.  The other game proves to be a see-saw battle between the 1968 Mets, still one year away from their miracle season, and the 1997 Mariners, with Jerry Koosman and Jamie Moyer getting the starts.  The Mets take a 1-0 lead on a solo HR by Ed Charles in the 2nd, but Paul Sorrento matches that to tie the game in the third;  the Mets push two across in the 4th but the M’s get one back in the bottom of the inning ad get another in the 7th to once again tie the game at 3-3.  In the top of the 9th, Moyer falls apart and a 2-run single from Bud Harrelson puts the Mets on top 5-3, but Griffey Jr. leads off the bottom of the 9th with a homer and a walk and an error brings up Edgar Martinez with the tying and winning run aboard.  Edgar delivers the clutch single and the Mariners walkoff with a 6-5 win.

That brings up a final between the #8 seed 1957 A’s and the #3 seed 1997 Mariners, a 90-win team that captured the AL West and were now favored to take the first regional for that franchise.   However, the A’s didn’t get this far for nothing, scoring three runs in the 1st and adding runs in the 2nd and 3rd to chase Seattle starter Jeff Fassero and the 5-1 lead.  However, the Mariners aren’t giving up, and a Griffey homer and a pair of RBI singles from Roberto Kelly ultimately narrow the KC lead to 6-5 after eight.  Zernial provides KC an insurance run in the top of the 9th, and it proves to be needed as another clutch hit from Edgar Martinez narrows the lead back to one, but Martinez gets stranded at second as A’s starter Jack Urban hangs on to clinch the 7-6 win for the A’s, giving them the bracket crown and the distinction of being the worst-ranked team thus far to win a regional.

REGIONAL #46:   This bracket boasted two pennant winners from the West Coast, and the luck of the draw was such that they would have to face each other in the first round.   The survivor of that matchup would have good squads from the Yankees, Twins, and Red Sox to contend with.  The ELO rankings predicted that the Bash Brothers A’s would triumph, besting the 2008 Yanks in the finals, but according to the rankings there really wasn’t a bad team in this bunch, so anything could happen.

The marquee matchup of the first round between the two pennant winners, the 1978 Dodgers and the 1989 A’s, started off strong for Oakland with a 2-run double from McGwire in the bottom of the 1st, and the other Bash Brother, Jose Canseco, added a solo shot in the 3rd against Don Sutton to make it 3-0.  In the top of the 5th, a two-run homer from Dusty Baker narrowed the score to 3-2, but the A’s responded in the bottom of the inning with a hit barrage to reassert their lead, and Mike Moore handles LA from there for a 6-3 win.  In other action, Jim Lonborg and the 1971 Red Sox handle the 1951 White Sox 8-3, with Reggie Smith driving in four; the 1924 Cardinals and Jesse Haines down the 1981 Braves 5-2, with a two-run blast from Bob Horner being Haines’ only real mistake; and the 2008 Yankees and the 2008 Twins play the longest game of the tournament, a 31-inning marathon that saw the Yankees tie the game in the top of the 9th with a Bobby Abreu 3-run homer, and then nobody could score until injury replacement wunderkind Cody Ransom hit a 3-run homer in the 31st to give NY the 7-4 win in a game that saw three injuries and countless pitchers.

In the semifinals, double from Tony Phillips and Rickey Henderson spot Dave Stewart and the 1989 A’s a 4-run lead in the 2nd, but the 1971 Red Sox rally back with a three-run homer from George Scott and a Yaz RBI single in the 7th tie things up.  Rickey then knocks a 2-run homer in the top of the 9th, and although the Red Sox put up a run against Gene Nelson in the bottom of the 9th, Eckersley comes in to notch the save and push the A’s in to the finals with the hard fought 6-5 win.  Meanwhile, Jim Bottomley leads the 1924 Cardinals over the 2008 Yankees and their exhausted bullpen and injury stricken lineup for a 5-2 win.

That sets up a final between the #1 seed 1989 A’s and the #7 seeded 1924 Cardinals, with Bob Welch pitching for Goliath against David’s Leo Dickerman.  It’s hardly a pitcher’s duel, as the A’s lead 10-0 after three innings, and even though McGwire gets injured for three games, the onslaught doesn’t stop there.  By the 7th the A’s lead 15-4,  but Bottomley rallies the Cards for a 5-run inning which is a nice gesture but too little, too late and the A’s glide to the regional title with the 16-9 win–although the injury to McGwire is going to be costly for them in their superregional matchups. 

REGIONAL #45:  The top ranked outfit in this batch was the 1993 Braves, who won 104 games but were upset in the NLCS to deny them a pennant.  Interestingly, the lone pennant winner in the bunch, the 1996 Yankees, were only the #3 seed here, but they not only won the AL but beat a similar Braves team in the Series.  Holding down the #2 seed was a Reds team at the end of the Big Red Machine days, and along with them there were pairs of teams from the Royals and the Cardinals who were both matched against each other in the first round.

In the Battle Royal, the 1984 Royals defeat the 1970 Royals 3-1 as RBI singles from Frank White and Steve Balboni put the ‘84s up to stay in the 3rd.  The ‘70s threaten in the 8th, pushing up three singles to load the bases and send Mark Gubicza to the showers, but Dan Quisenberry comes in to shut things down and preserve the win.  The 1977 Reds jump on Andy Pettite to stake Tom Seaver to a 5-0 lead after three innings, and that’s all Tom Terrific needs to coast to a 5-2 win over the 1996 Yankees.  The Battle of the 90s Cards goes to the 1990 Cardinals, as Bob Tewksbury tosses a 5-hitter against his 1995 Cardinals brethren with Lee Smith coming on to lock down the 9th in a 3-1 win.  Finally, the 1981 Indians make short work of the regional favorite, the 1993 Braves, as Miguel Dilone homers and Cleveland chases John Smoltz in the 4th inning en route to a 6-1 win.

In the semifinals, the 1977 Reds see their Machine ground to a halt in front of Bud Black, who twirls a 5-hit shutout and homers by Willie Wilson, Steve Balboni, and Darryl Motley rock Paul Moskau as the underdog 1984 Royals push on to the finals with a 5-0 win.  In the other semifinal, Pedro Guerrero hits two homers and the 1990 Cardinals jump out to a 7-3 lead over the 1981 Indians, but Cleveland fights back and Omar Oliveres has to hang on to finish out a 9-7 win for the Cards.

The final game is thus between the #4 seed 1984 Royals and the #6 seed 1990 Cardinals, with both teams having reserved strong pitchers for the game:  Bret Saberhagen against John Tudor.   Both starters are sharp, and the game is a scoreless tie until Willie Wilson singles in a run in the 5th to give the Royals a 1-0 lead.  Bye-Bye Balboni follows with a 2-run homer in the 6th, and that’s all Saberhagen needs as he completes a 6-hit shutout to give the Royals the 3-0 and the regional crown.  With two homers and six RBI in the three games, Balboni is named regional MVP for the Royals, who may have only gone 84-78 but did win the AL West, only to be swept in the ALCS.