New York Daily News - August 16, 1980
Phils rip 16 hits, Mets 8-0
By Frank Brown
The Phillies sparkled and the Mets fizzled on Fireworks Night at Shea last night. Pete Rose collected the 3,500th hit of his 18-year career, Larry Christenson and Tug McGraw combined on the six-hitter that handed the Mets their first shutout since June 21, and the Phillies extended their third-place lead to 4½ games over New York with an 8-0 triumph that wasn't even as close as the score indicated.
The thing the Mets did best was dress quickly and leave – just as they had left 40,436 spectators with only one thing to cheer: The fireworks exhibition that showered the darkened ballpark in color after an evening owned by the Phillies' blue and red.
Rose, Lonnie Smith and Larry Bowa had three hits apiece in the 16-hit attack that gave the Phillies 30, along with 16 runs, for the first two games of this five-game set. The total devastation the Phillies wrought left today's return of Craig Swan to bring some of the magic back.
STILL AWAITED, of course, is the intangible that will bring the spark back to New York's bats; the Mets managed just five hits in their 8-1 loss Thursday night and only six in last night's debacle.
"We're going to have to just fight our way out of this," said manager Joe Torre. "Pitching is the thing that's done us in – nothing else – but we haven't been hitting the ball."
The Phillies sure have been. And they did it last night in support of Christenson, who was making his first start since bone chip surgery on his right elbow disabled him on May 26.
The Mets have a new addition to their disabled list as well. With Swan coming off the DL to make his first start since July 16, another pitcher, Ed Glynn, has been put on it because of a skin infection on his left foot.
And speaking of feet, the Mets managed to last as far as the second inning before getting off on the wrong one.
MARK BOMBACK, who had beaten the Phillies twice, had won his last three starts and had stopped Mets losing streaks with seven of his nine victories, started his own downfall by handing Garry Maddox a one-out walk in the second.
Larry Bowa's single sent Garry to third, whence he scored when Bob Boone's dribbler changed direction and squibbed off the glove of second baseman Doug Flynn.
Christenson came to the plate seeking a sacrifice that would move the runners up, but found himself at second base – and ahead 3-0 – when third baseman Elliott Maddox threw wide to first. Flynn, covering the bag, got his glove on the ball but couldn't prevent further damage.
A single by Smith sent Christenson to third and, though Smith was cut down attempting to steal second. Rose collected the first of his three singles to deliver Christenson and more than assure the triumph.
An eighth-inning homer by Manny Trillo and an RBI single by George Vukovich made it 6-0, and the Phils added two ninth-inning runs on a sacrifice fly by Trillo and an RBI single by Maddox.
A pair of hits by Flynn, who snapped an 0-for-10 streak with his first one, and a ninth-inning triple by Steve Henderson were the only notable achievements for the Mets.
The rest of the night belonged to Rose, who finished with 3,501 hits – just 14 fewer than Tris Speaker, who holds fourth place on the all-time list.