REGIONAL #152: This group was one of the weirdest draws in tournament history and it was colored Dodger Blue, as it featured three pennant-winning Dodger squads from three very different eras. That certainly seemed to stack the odds in favor of the Dodgers, although it was unfortunate that three of their great teams would have to fight it out in the same regional. However, I thought they’d have some good competition, such as a ‘62 Tigers team from right after their famous AL runner-up squad, an Angels team from a few years after their finalist squad from the previous regional, and an Expos team that might be a factor. There was also a pandemic Pirates team that like all 2020 squads could be a wild card because of all the wild cards from that season. Two of the Dodgers pennant winners were on a collision course for the semifinals, and I guessed the more modern 2017 version would take that battle over the ‘49 version and then triumph in the final over the ‘88 Dodgers, barring any heroics from Kirk Gibson. The ELO ranks agreed with that prediction, with the 2017 squad having a season ending ELO placing them in the top 100 teams of all time, although the 1949 version was just out of that range.
First round action
The 1988 Dodgers won 94 games, the NL, and a memorable World Series; they had NL MVP Kirk Gibson anchoring the lineup and NL Cy Young winner Orel Hershiser (23-8, 2.26) on the mound. However, they faced a very dangerous 1997 Expos team, who might have only gone 78-84 but had their ace Pedro Martinez (17-8, 1.90) ready to go; Pedro was also the NL Cy Young winner and despite the great season from Hershiser, Martinez was probably the best pitcher in the regional. As such, a pitching duel was to be expected, although Hershiser’s defense lets him down in the 3rd when a single past 2b-3 Steve Sax ultimately turns into a run on a passed ball from C-1 Mike Scioscia, and the Expos lead 1-0. They add another run in the 4th on doubles from Vlad Guerrero and Mike Lansing, and that’s looking like plenty because the Dodgers can’t do a thing against Martinez. When Scioscia converts a SI* 1-15 to lead off the 9th, it’s only the second hit of the game for LA and only the second baserunner–the first coming when Steve Sax led off the first inning with a single past Lansing. Scioscia is wiped out in a double play, Sax goes down and the Expos win 2-0 behind the 2-hitter by Pedro; he only faces 28 batters, and struck out 14 of them. Hershiser only allows 6 hits, but it’s not good enough in this matchup as Dodgers pennant-winner #1 goes down and Kirk Gibson can only limp back into storage.
The 1991 Angels saw their ‘88 version go down in the finals of the previous regional, but this squad was a better team, going 81-81 and adding elder statesmen like Dave Winfield and Lance Parrish and starting Mark Langston (19-8, 3.00) who was 6th in the Cy Young vote that year. That could be overkill against the 2020 Pirates, who were a uniquely bad team going 19-41 in that pandemic season, and although there were a couple of interesting low AB wonders on the bench, they only had 3 guys in the starting lineup with an OBP over .300 (the highest being .326) and their mandatory starting pitcher, Trevor Williams (2-8, 6.18) allowed 15 homers in 55 IP, with a card that reflected that ratio. The Pirates hope that Williams can last until the 6th, but he loads the bases with nobody out in the bottom of the 1st and yields a 2-run single to Gary Gaetti before ending the inning. In the 3rd, the Pirates lose 1B Colin Moran to injury for the tournament, but can bring in .359 hitter Phillip Evans as a replacement which softens the blow. Another bright spot for the Pirates is that Williams settles down, primarily by having the Angels roll on their own cards, and he gets through 5 innings and is only down 2-0, so the Pirates bring in the less dangerous card of Nik Turley to try to keep it close. And the Pirates then tie it up in the 7th, courtesy of an RBI triple from PH Anthony Alford, who then scores on an error by 1B-2 Wally Joyner. Evans then raps an RBI single and the Pirates take the lead and Langston takes a shower, replaced by Bryan Harvey who had been brilliant for the Angels in the previous regional. Not so much here, as he issues a walk to load the bases and then gets taken yard by Bryan Reynolds for a grand slam and the Anaheim Stadium crowd begins to head to Disneyland. The exodus pauses in the bottom of the inning when Luis Sojo rips a double past inept Pirates RF-4 Gregory Polanco to score Parrish, and then Dave Gallagher smashes another double and the Pirates lead is cut to 6-4. In the 8th, the Pirates relieve with another Nick, Tropeono, but he gets victimized by Bucs fielding as well with a 2-base error from SS-3 Kevin Newman and then a double to Lee Stevens allowed by CF-3 Alford, who stayed in the game as a defensive replacement. At that point, a rattled Tropeono grooves one to Lance Parrish, who deposits it in the grandstands for a 2-run shot and suddenly the Angels are back in the lead and Tropeono is yanked for Richard Rodriguez, who finally ends the inning. That takes us to the 9th, where the Angels seek to preserve Harvey and bring in Mark Eichhorn to try to protect the one-run lead. That he doesn’t, as the second batter Adam Frazier converts his own HR 1-12; Rodriguez sets down the top of the Angels order in order and we head to extra innings. Eichhorn is flawless in the top of the 10th, and in the bottom of the frame Joyner leads off with a double but then Rodriguez records two quick outs. Up steps Lance Parrish, and it’s a 1-5 roll, HR 1-15/flyB for the game; split roll is a 14 and Parrish’s second homer of the game is a walk off for the wild extra-inning 9-7 victory for the Angels.
Winners of 104 games and the NL, losing the Series to the trashcan-banging Astros, the 2017 Dodgers looked like a team that deserved their top seeding in this regional: deep starting pitching, strong bullpen, and an offense where seven guys in the starting lineup hit more than 20 homers. Clayton Kershaw came in 2nd in the Cy Young voting, but because Kershaw had a bit of a problem with the longball the Dodgers instead went with Alex Wood (16-3, 2.72) for round one; Wood came in 9th in that Cy Young balloting and led the league in winning percentage. The Dodgers faced the 1962 Tigers, who were no slouch either, going 85-76 but having all eight regulars in double digit HRs, and a DH in Vic Wertz who would easily be good for 20 over a full season. The Tigers would send Hank Aguirre (16-8, 2.21) to the mound in what looked like the best round one matchup in the group. The Tigers strike in the bottom of the 2nd with three hits, one a squib RBI single from Norm Cash, but they leave the bases loaded and only get the one run. The Dodgers take the lead in the top of the 4th on a Yasiel Puig 2-run homer, and in the 6th they add another run on 2-out back-to-back doubles from Yasmani Grandal and Curtis Granderson. In the 9th, Corey Seager gets an RBI single off Aguirre’s card and the latter is pulled for Terry Fox, but Cody Bellinger drives in another on a fielder’s choice and Wood takes a four run lead into the bottom of the 9th. It’s quickly reduced as Dick Brown leads off with a homer, but Wood recovers and retires the next three to secure the 5-2 win and these Dodgers move on. Worthy of note: the ‘62 Tigers used here were the die-cut advanced versions that were printed probably around 1989; the original Basic-only 1962 version of the team is the only original Strat team I am lacking. Anybody have one to swap??
The 97-57 1949 Dodgers won the NL with good seasons from many of the classic players from those teams such as Robinson, Reese, Furillo, Hodges, and Campanella. Boasting excellent fielding as well, the pitching was a little thin but Don Newcombe (17-8, 3.17) was solid at the top of the rotation. They faced the 1992 Astros, who were a team that seemed fortunate to go 81-81 (indeed, their Pythagorean projection was for 74 wins); aside from before-their-prime versions of Biggio and Bagwell, there wasn’t much to brag about, although swingman Mark Portugal (6-3, 2.66) seemed to give them their best shot against the Dodgers. In the bottom of the 2nd, the Dodgers roll Portugal’s HR 1-10/DO twice in a row (no skidders, I use a dice tower!) and while Duke Snider misses the split, Gil Hodges converts it and it’s 2-0 Brooklyn. However, it’s a brief lead as in the top of the 3rd the Killer B’s sting with a 2-out rally involving a Biggio RBI double and Bagwell singling Biggio home to tie the game. The Dodgers recapture the lead when Campenella leads off the 4th with a triple and scores on a Snider fielder’s choice, and they pick up an insurance run in the 6th with a Hodges RBI single. The Astros cut it back down to a one-run game when Luis Gonzalez scores on a PH single from Bennie Distefano, and they threaten in the 8th with runners on 1st and 3rd with one out, but with nothing in the pen Newcombe comes through and gets out of the jam. A leadoff single by Furillo in the bottom of the inning and Houston, which does have a bullpen, brings in Xavier Hernandez who retires the side, but it’s to no avail as Newcombe sets the Astros down in the 9th and the Dodgers survive with a 4-3 win.
The survivors
The same franchise but nearly 70 years and a continent apart, this semifinal matched the 2017 Dodgers and Clayton Kershaw (18-4, 2.31) and the 1949 Dodgers with Preacher Roe (15-6, 2.79) to see who would carry the Dodger banner forward. The 2017ers load the bases in the top of the 1st with two out for Austin Barnes, who rolls his HR 1/DO and misses the split but clears the bases on the resulting double and the modern squad jumps to an imposing lead. The 49ers then nail Kershaw for three straight hits to lead off the bottom of the 1st, including an RBI single from Jackie Robinson who promptly steals second, but a highlight reel catch from Yasiel Puig in RF holds Brooklyn to just one run. The 2017 team loads the bases once again in the 2nd, and a walk and a fielder’s choice makes it 5-1 in favor of Los Angeles, but in the 3rd the 2017s lose 2B Logan Forsythe for the remainder of the regional to injury. That seems to take the wind out of the sails for LA, and in the bottom of the 7th Brooklyn again rattles off three straight hits against Kershaw, the third being a pinch hit RBI single for Tommy Brown, and Kershaw and his gopher ball tendencies are pulled for Brock Stewart, expected to be the first in a succession of LA relievers. Stewart promptly allows a single off his card, but 1-15 Marv Rackley is cut down at the plate on an ill-advised attempt to score, and Brooklyn gets only one run on four hits in the inning. Stewart is sharper in the 8th, and in the 9th Puig finds Roe’s solid 4-5 HR result for a 2-out, 2-run shot that provides comfortable padding for the bottom of the 9th, and LA brings in Brandon McCarthy to mop things up. He isn’t much of a janitor, as he gets two outs and then two singles and a walk load the bases for Gene Hermanski; he walks and now Jackie Robinson is at the plate as the tying run. LA stops messing around and summons nearly unhittable closer Kenley Jansen, but Robinson squibs a Single* and the bases are still loaded and now Carl Furillo is at bat as the winning run. But Jansen bears down, whiffs Furillo and Los Angeles wins the battle of the Dodgers 7-4 and moves to the finals for a Freeway battle against the Angels.
The regional final matched the top-seeded 2017 Dodgers against the #5 seed 1991 Angels, who had a similar squad win regional #148 and another reached the final of the previous bracket. The Angels would trot out tournament workhorse Chuck Finley (18-9, 3.80), who contributed wins to both of those aforementioned California successes, to face Rich Hill (12-8, 3.32) of the Dodgers, who still had 2B Forsythe out to injury and had some wear on the bullpen. The Dodgers, who tend to live and die by the home run, get a 2-run shot from Curtis Granderson in the bottom of the 2nd to take the lead. In the top of the 3rd, the Angels get one back when Wally Joyner singles in Luis Polonia, but Chris Taylor leads off the bottom of the inning with a homer and it’s now 3-1. Another 2-run shot from Granderson in the 4th and that’s it for Finley, as in desperation the Angels bring in closer Bryan Harvey to try to get back into the game. A solo homer from Joyner in the 5th makes it 5-2, and Harvey holds the Dodgers until Lance Parrish can hit a 2-run homer off Hill’s card in the 8th to make it a one run game, and Brandon Morrow comes in from the LA pen. Harvey is toast by the 8th and Mark Eichhorn comes in to try to keep it close; he does so, and so it’s Morrow vs. the top of the Angels order in the 9th in a one-run game. The inning begins with Dodger SS-2 Corey Seager making a 2-base error on a Polonia grounder, and the Dodgers bring in closer Kenley Jansen to try to keep the runner from scoring. He walks Dave Gallagher, and Joyner grounds out with the runners advancing, so the tying run is on 3rd and the go-ahead on 2nd with one away. Jansen strikes out Dave Winfield, and the game is up to Gary Gaetti–but he grounds out and the Dodgers pull off the nail-biter with a 5-4 win to capture the 9th regional win for the franchise.
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