ALDS: '32 A's Sweep '61 Tigers in 3

[GAME 1 - Shibe Park - PHA 4, DET 3 - 10 inn] - A's up 1 game to 0
Lefty Grove and Jim Bunning were tasked with controlling two star studded lineups. Giving up 3 runs in regulation to either of these lineups is nothing to be ashamed of. Bunning tired and was replaced by Fox who yielded a walkoff homer to Al Simmons in the 10 with one out to put the A's up 1 game to 0 in this ALDS.

[GAME 2 - Shibe Park - PHA 5, DET 4] - A's up 2 games to 0
The second game was a bit more high scoring than the first, but again the results were the same. Philly was able to best Detroit by 1 run and go up 2 games to none in this best of 5 series. Both starters (Don Mossi - Det and Al Freitas - PHA) were barely pedestrian. Detroit tied the game at 4 apiece when Norm Cash singled home Jake Wood in the top of the 7th. Sadly for Motown, future HOF'er Al Kaline hit into a DP prior to Cash's at bat and took his squad out of the big inning. The Mackmen answered back with a run of their own in the bottom of the inning when their HOF'er, Jimmie Foxx, blasted one deep into the night. Detroit threatened in the 9th and ace Lefty Grove was called on to get 1 out and save the game. The loss put the Tigers on the brink of elimination.


GAME 3 - Tiger Stadium - PHA 2, DET 1] - A's win series 3 games to 0
For 5 innings Walberg (PHA) and Foytack (DET) dueled in the sun and did not allow a run. The 6th inning saw all the scoring on the day, when Rube Walberg led off the inning with a single. After McNair flew out to Bruton in center, Mule Haas walked to put runners on 1st and 2nd with oue out. Jimmie Foxx lined out to Boros at third and the Tigers looked to be out of it until Al Simmons struck again. Instead of a homer, Simmons doubled into the gap in left center to score both Walberg and Haas. Walberg was able to make both of those runs stand up as he led the A's to a victory and series sweep. Detroit scored their lone run in the bottom of the 6th, when Jake Wood led off the home half of the inning with a solo home run. Bill Bruton followed Wood's homer with a single, but never came around to score. Detroit threatened again in the 8th when pinch hitter Morton led off with a double, but the next two batters (Wood and Bruton) failed to advance him. Kaline walked in an obvious attempt to pitch around him, but Norm Cash...who had been oh, so clutch all season, fanned to end the inning. Walberg had little trouble with the Tigers in the 9th as he went the distance.

'Fraid-Knott...Halos tie up series, force Game 5

[GAME 4 - Fenway Park - LAA 6, BOS 4] - Series tied 2 apiece.
Up 2 games to 1 and looking to close out the series on their home turf the Red Sox went to game 1 winner Ellis Kinder. The Halos countered with Bart Colon, who would be making his first appearance in the series. From the outset Kinder did not look sharp on short rest. The Angels struck first with 2 in the vistors half of the second. Darin Erstad doubled home Anderson and Izturis singled Erstad home with 2 outs. Juan Rivera's solo shot off of Kinder put the Angels up 3-0 in the 4th, but Boston posted 2 of their own that inning to make it 3-2. Doerr doubled home Williams, who again walked and advanced on a passed ball charged to Molina. Al Zarilla singled home Doerr, but could not score on Birdie Tebbetts 2 out blooper. Chone Figgins hit a solo shot with one out in the 5th to put the Halos back up by 2. Heading into the bottom of the 9th LA-Anaheim was up 6-2. A Dom DiMaggio solo shot and back to back doubles by Stephens and Doerr made it interesting, but K-Rod came on in the 9th to close it out and send the series back to the West Coast all knotted at 2 apiece with a decisive game 5 looming.

Will they ever Vern ? Boston goes up 2 games to 1

[GAME 3 - Fenway Park - BOS 5, LAA 4] - Red Sox lead series 2-1
The Angels drew first blood in the opening stanza when Cabrera doubled and Garrett Anderson singled him home with a clutch two out knock off of Joe Dobson. Boston struck back with 2 in the second when Billy Goodman and Dom DiMaggio had clutch 2 out RBI singles as well. The Halos went up 3-2 by posting 2 in the 4th when Bengie Molina and Adam Kennedy had RBI singles. Not to be outdone the Bosox touched Angel starter John "hard luck" Lackey for 3 runs to take a 5-3 lead. Vern Stephens, who time and time again has had to hit after Williams has walked, had a 2 out single to plate Goodman and DiMaggio. Doerr followed it up with an RBI single to score Williams who was again intentionally passed. The Angels made it interesting by scoring a run in the 7th. Mel Parnell was brought on to get the final 2 outs in the 9th and he did just that by fanning Figgins and pinch hitter Jerry DaVanon.

O-Yeah ! - Angels tie series at 1 each

[GAME 2 - Angel Stadium - LAA 7, BOS 3] - Series Tied 1-1
Red Sox starter Mel Parnell had nothing as the Angel offense came to life. Down 1-0 in the 4th the Angels posted all 7 of their runs in a 4 inning span. Starter Jarred Washburn kept his record unblemished as he went the distance and scattered 3 runs. Orlando Cabrera's 1 out triple knocked in 2 in the 5th to put the Angels on top and get the offense rolling. Cabrera was the catalyst in the 7th innning as well when he singled, stole second and scored on Chone Figgins triple.

Kinder-locked...Boston wins opener

[GAME 1 - Angel Stadium - BOS 5, LAA 1] - Boston up 1-0
Ellis Kinder was tossing goose eggs until the Angels scored a solo run in the 7th. Paul Byrd was not as lucky as he yielded 4 of Boston's 5 runs. The Sawx scored 3 big runs in the 3rd and never looked back. Ted Williams was given and intentional pass with 2 outs to load the bases. Vern Stephens followed him with a line shot single to left to score Johnny Pesky and Billy Goodman. For good measure Bobby Doerr singled home Williams. Kinder went the distance to notch the win. Angels reliever Ervin Santana left the game with tightness in the shoulder after throwing only 5 pitches in the 7th.

Atlanta - Montreal Division Playoff Series

Braves Ride Maddux Gem to 1-0 Series Lead over Expos

Greg Maddux went the distance scattering 7 hits over 9 innings earning a 2-1 win. Steve Rogers pitched a strong game as well, allowing only 2 runs, but was tagged with the loss. Larry Parrish opened the scoring with a solo homerun in the 2nd to give the visitors from the north an early lead. Atlanta tied the game in the bottom of the 3rd when Chipper Jones brought home Curtis Pride with a 2-out single. From there Maddux and Rogers locked horns keeping both teams off the scoreboard until the bottom of the 8th. Keith Lockhart lead of the inning with a double and Chipper was intentionally walked to set up a double play. Rogers did get a groundball to third base from Andres Galarraga but it was only hard enough to get the force at 2nd. With runners on the corners Javy Lopez stroked a singled scoring Lockhart and putting the Braves ahead 2-1. However, Montreal didn't go quietly in the 9th. With 1 out in the 9th Parrish came up again and singled, giving him 3 hits on the day. Maddux then finished off his performance getting Ellis Valentine to ground to shortstop. The home team turned the 6-4-3

DP to end the game and take a 1 game lead in the series.

Atlanta Wins 6-5 in 11 Innings, Takes 2-0 Series Lead

Tom Glavine and Bill "Spaceman" Lee squared off in Game 2 in Atlanta. Montreal tallied singled runs in the 1st and 2nd innings to take a 2-0 lead. The Braves answered with a run in the 3rd and 3 more in the 4th to take a 4-2 lead. Another run in the 6th pushed the home team to 5-2 lead. But with Glavine tiring in the 7th the Expos put runners on 2nd and 3rd with one out. Alan Embree then uncorked back-to-back wild pitches, the first one scoring Dave Cash from 3rd and moving Duffy Dyer from 2nd to 3rd, and the second bringing home Dyer to cut the Braves lead to 5-4. Larry Parrish led off the 8th with his 2nd HR in as many days and tying the game at

5-all. The game stayed tied until the 11th inning when Andruw Jones led off with a single but was quickly erased when he was caught stealing. The other Jones boy, Chipper, then sent the home team up 2 games to none with a solo homerun off of Elias Sosa. Kerry Ligtenberg got the

win in relief. Gerald Williams and Javy Lopez joined Jones and Parrish in the homerun column.

Expos Take Game 3 in 12 Innings, 4-3, Series Now at 2-1

The series moved north of the border and Montreal fought to 4-3 win, scoring with 2 out in the bottom of the 12th. Denny Neagle and Rudy May hooked up for 8 innings with both pitchers bringing good games to the ballpark. Each team scored once in the 2nd inning but just as with the first two games in the series both teams settled in and the score was tied 1-all going to the bottom of the 7th. The homestanding Expos got the crowd on it's feet when Andre Dawson singled to lead off the inning and then stole 2nd. With one out, Ellis Valentine laced a single into LF. Dawson rounded third but Gerald Williams threw a strike to Perez and nailed Hawk at the plate. With 2 out, Neagle looked like he might wriggle off the hook but Gary Carter turned on a pitch and deposited it in the LF seats to give the Expos a 3-1 lead. Woodie Fryman took over for May in the 9th and struck out Michael Tucker to lead off the inning but then walked Tony Graffanino. Javy Lopez was brought in to pinch hit for Neagle and drove a Fryman pitch into the seats to tie the game at 3-all. The 10 and 11th innings were scoreless with each team trading a couple of hits. In the bottom of the 12th the Braves defense let them down. Ozzie Guillen booted a Dawson groundball and Parrish then bunted him to 2nd. Valentine was intentionally passed to

set up the doubleplay. Gary Carter then struck out and with the Atlanta bullpen getting thin starter Kevin Millwood was brought in to face Tony Perez with 2 outs. Millwood was ineffective in the relief role, walking Perez to load the bases. Warren Cromartie then slapped a single through the infield to score Dawson and give the Expos the win. David Palmer got the win pitching 2 good innings in relief and Russ Springer was saddled with the loss.

Montreal Wins Game 4 Easily 9-1, Forces Game 5 in Atlanta

The hometown Expos got to Braves starter John Smoltz early and then posted a 5-spot in the 6th inning to cruise to a 9-1 victory. Jerry White led off the bottom of the 1st with a walk and two batters later Larry Parrish hit his 3rd homerun of the series to give Montreal an early 2-0 lead. Eddie Perez hit a solo homerun in the 2nd but that would be all the offense the

visiting Braves could muster. Most of the Expos lineup contributed in the 6th inning sending all nine men to the plate. The big blow was a bases loaded, 2 out triple from the bat of Ellis Valentine. After scoring 5 runs in the 6th the Expos added 2 more in the 7th. With a 9-1 lead after 7 innings everyone started preparing for the journey back to Atlanta for game 5. Dan Schatzeder got the win for Montreal pitching 6 innings, 3 walks, 3 strikeouts, 1 hit and 1 run. Smoltz was ineffective and took the loss giving up 7 earned runs in 6 innings.

Atlanta Squeaks by Expos 3-2 in Game 5 and Take Series

With 3 of the 4 games being 1-run affairs and the series finale featuring a rematch of game 1 starters, game 5 had the earmarks of a classic. It didn't disappoint. Greg Maddux took the hill for the Braves and Steve Rogers started for the Expos. Warren Cromartie lead off the game with a single and with one out the red hot Larry Parrish stepped to the plate. He quieted the hometown fans with a long drive into the leftfield seats for his 4th homer of the series, giving the Expos a 2-0 lead. The Atlanta bats were silent until the 3rd inning when Walt Weiss led off with a walk and light-hitting 2B Keith Lockhart tied the game with a 2-run homer. Maddux wasn't partularly sharp the first 4 innings, allowing 6 of his 7 hits, and loading the bases in the 4th before striking out his counterpart Rogers to escape any damage. In the bottom of the 4th Javy Lopez singled and Ryan Klesko, who has struggled all season, doubled to put runners on 2nd and 3rd. Andruw Jones grounded out to shortstop scoring Lopez on the fielders choice and giving the Braves a 3-2 lead. Rogers give up another single but struck out Maddux and retired Weiss on a comebacker to end the inning. Now with the lead Maddux was determined to make it stick. He set down 12 straight batters before none other than Parrish singled with 2 out in the 8th to break the streak. Mad Dog then struck out Carter to end the inning. The Braves however were having no better luck with Rogers. Mr. Rogers walked Klesko

to start the 8th and struck out Andruw Jones before giving way to Woodie Fryman. The Braves countered with pinch hitter Eddie Perez to face the left-hander but his grounder to SS and a 6-4-3 DP sent the game to the 9th with Atlanta holding a slim 3-2 lead. With relievers warming in the bullpen Maddux finished what he started, retiring Dawson, Perez, and Valentine, allowing the hometown fans to celebrate and the Atlanta manager a huge sigh of relief.

Greg Maddux earns MVP honors with 2 wins, 18 IP, 15 K and a 1.50 ERA. Larry Parrish recieves honorable mention batting .400 with 4 HR and 6 RBI. --submitted by Terry Priest--

KOD7 Regular Season MVP's

KOD7 Post Season Award Winners

1. AL MVP - Ted Williams 1949 Boston Red Sox
2. AL Cy Young - Lefty Grove 1932 Philadelphia A's
3. NL Cy Young - Bill Lee 1979 Montreal Expos
4. NL MVP - Roy Campanella 1951 Brooklyn Dodgers