Allentown Morning Call - June 7, 1980
Phils outlast Cubs and the rain, 6-5
By Jack McCallum, Call Sports Writer
PHILADELPHIA – Rookie Bob Walk, a stopgap measure until a starting pitcher falls from the sky to join the Phillies' rotation, stayed around just one batter too long last night in a rain-delayed game at Veterans Stadium.
The Phillies held on for a 6-5 win over the Cubs as Tug McGraw retired the side in the ninth, getting the first two outs on strikeouts.
Rain delayed the start of the game 41 minutes and it was called again for 37 minutes in the bottom of the first.
By the time the delay was called with third hitter Bake McBride at the plate, however, the Phils had already gotten Walk a 1-0 lead off junkballer Mike Krukow on Lonnie Smith's leadoff single and Pete Rose's double to left-center. And things got worse for Krukow when McBride stepped back in 37 minutes later.
Krukow walked McBride but struck out Mike Schmidt for the first out of the inning. But Greg Luzinski followed with a double to right-center to score Rose and. after Keith Moreland walked, Larry Bowa doubled to score Luzinski.
Actually, the Phillies should have had another run in there, too, but McBride elected to take a scenic pace when he took off from first on Luzinski's long double. He got a nice view of the terrain around second base but was thrown out at home a few seconds later.
A Schmidt sacrifice fly after a Smith double produced the Phils' fourth run in the fourth and they sent Krukow to the showers – the inside showers – with two more runs in the fifth with a two-out rally.
Manny Trillo started it with a triple and Krukow then walked Walk, a mistake for which Little Leaguers are benched. Smith, who is perhaps being showcased by the Phils for a possible trade, then tripled both men home.
Walk, who had been wild in both of his other two starts (both no decisions). was not bothered by the walk last night. It was the extra base hit that finally got him.
With the 6-2 lead in the top of the sixth, he gave up a leadoff double to Larry Biittner before getting Dave Kingman on a popup. But Mike Vail singled up the middle and former Phil Jerry Martin scored Biittner with a single to cut the lead to 6-3.
Pitching coach Herm Starrette came to the mound at this point but manager Dallas Green elected to stay with Walk. It paid off momentarily as Walk got Steve Ontiveros on an infield grounder but catcher Tim Blackwell hit a long triple to left-center to score both Vail and Martin and cut the Phillie lead to 6-5.
Green called for Kevin Saucier at this point. Walk leaving with a 10 hitter but no walks. Saucier got pinch-hitter Ken Henderson on an infield grounder to end the inning. Ron Reed then took over in the seventh.
Walk, who like Dan Larsen is up from Oklahoma City because of injuries to Larry Christenson and Nino Espinosa, showed a lot of guts in the first inning. Ivan DeJesus (double) and long-time Phillie-killer Mike Tyson (single) led off the game with hits but he retired Biittner (popup) and Kingman and Vail (both strikeouts) to leave both runners stranded.