Wilmington Morning News - October 16, 1980
Game 2: Phillies double their fun
By Rod Beaton, Staff Correspondent
PHILADELPHIA – Mike Schmidt's double scored Bake McBride with the winning run, capping a four-run, eighth-inning rally that lifted the Phillies to a 6-4 victory in game two of the World Series last night at Veterans Stadium.
The Phillies have won the first two games in the best-of-seven championship of major league baseball. Game three will be played tomorrow night in Kansas City, followed by game four and game five, if necessary, there over the weekend.
The Phillies' pitcher tomorrow will be Dick Ruthven, 17-10, going against the Royals' Rich Gale, 13-9.
Steve Carlton started for the Phils last night, and he struck out seven in five innings, but yielded six hits. His teammates turned four double plays while he was on the mound, tying a World Series record.
Ron Reed pitched the ninth inning for the Phillies, earning a save.
Phillies in driver’s seat
By Ray Finocchiaro, Staff Correspondent
PHILADELPHIA – Del Unser didn't leave all his pinch-hitting magic in Houston after all.
Unser, whose two doubles sparked the Phillies to the National League pennant Sunday night in the Astrodome, did it again at Veterans Stadium last night in the heady excitement of Philadelphia's first World Series in 30 years.
This time Del doubled to start a four-run rally that buried Kansas City 6-4 and left the Royals in a 2-0 hole with three games about to begin in Royals Stadium tomorrow night when Dick Ruthven squares off against the Royals' Rich Gale.
And the Royals realize that 26 of the previous 33 clubs who swept the first two games of the World Series went on to win the whole thing.
"This isn't just a 15-year itch, it's more like a 30-year itch," said the well-traveled Unser, now in his second stint with the Phils. "I didn't know about the World Series till I was 5, but I've been fascinated by it ever since. This is a great feeling. This team has the confidence because we've done it before and now we expect it."
The Phils' comeback made a winner of Steve Carlton, who struggled all evening and was lucky to escape without a loss. Walks, a bugaboo of the entire staff, almost proved Carlton's downfall last night, though Phils' manager Dallas Green blamed baseballs "slick as ice" for costing Carlton the feel of his deadly slider.
But the stirring rally, a club trademark since the incredible series with Houston, made believers of the sellout crowd and pushed the confident Royals in a shell, especially since the fireworks came against their top reliever, Dan Quisenberry.
Bob Boone began the Phils' eighth with a walk and Unser, batting for Lonnie Smith, hit a double to the gap in left center to score the gimpy Boone, still favoring his sore left foot.
"I hit a pretty good sinker," Unser said. "It was the same kind I hit off Kent Tekulve, who throws like Qui-senberry, to beat Pittsburgh with a blooper over the shortstop's head.
"I was fortunate to hit that ball with the good part of the bat. I could've popped it up very easily. It's tough to pull a guy like that."
Unser went to third on Pete Rose's chopper to first and scored when Bake McBride, the home-run hero of Tuesday night's game, hit a chopper over second baseman Frank White's head to tie the game 4-4.
Mike Schmidt, reawakening after a forgettable playoff series, doubled against the right-field wall and McBride sped around the bases. This time third base coach Lee Elia sent him home and McBride slid past catcher John Wathan, who couldn't control White's short-hop throw in time to make a tag.
"Anytime you see Schmidty going to right like that, you know he's staying with the ball," said Rose. "He's going to get some hits now because he's relaxed."
Keith Moreland added an insurance run when he singled Schmidt home.
Carlton lost his shutout bid in the sixth when the Royals scored on Manny Trillo's throwing error to cut the Phils' lead to 2-1.
But three walks, resulting in three runs, in the seventh almost proved to be Carlton's – and the Phillies' – undoing.
But for the four-run rally, the fact that the Phillies tied a pair of double-play records – shortstop Larry Bowa starting three and the team completing four – would've been little consolation.
The victory, however, set off a wild celebration of fans and Phillies, anxious for the Series to resume In Kansas City tomorrow night.
"When you're two down, it's not very good," said KC Manager Jim Frey. "We plan to take them one at a time. We plan to do better at home."
Results-wise, the Royals couldn't do much worse.
"We're gonna approach the third game just the Royals, one game at a time, said Green. "We're not cocky going in there."
A peek in the Phils' clubhouse indicated otherwise, but no matter.
Carlton struggled in the first six innings, putting 12 men on base and getting out of one jam after another with either a strikeout or a Bowa-started double play.
Carlton fanned eight Royals in the first six innings, including leadoff hitter Willie Wilson three times.
Bowa, meanwhile, tied a World Series record by starting three double plays.
George Brett, playing despite a painful hemorrhoid condition, and Hal McRae singled with two out in the first Inning, but Carlton got Amos Otis on a force-play grounder.
In the second, Willie Aikens walked and Frank White reached base with two out when Bob Boone couldn't handle the third strike, which also happened to be a wild pitch. But Wilson struck out for the second time on the frigid night.
In the third, Brett and McRae encored their singles-act with one out this time, but Otis hit into a 6-4-3 double play.
And so it went.
"I know one thing and that's Lefty is a tired pitcher, very tired," said Bowa. "He's thrown a lot of pitches this year (and 159 in eight innings last night) but he's carried us. If it weren't for him and Schmidt and Tug (McGraw), we might not have been here."
The game was scoreless through the Royals' fifth, even though Kansas City had stranded seven baserunners and the Phillies had yet to put a runner on base. But things changed quickly in the bottom of the inning.
Moreland, a late addition as the Phils' designated hitter when an intestinal virus sidelined Greg Luzinskl, ended Gura's perfect-game bid. Moreland hit a chopper to the edge of the outfield turf that shortstop Washington grabbed and fired to first with a midair pirouette worthy of Nijinsky. But the lead-footed Moreland still beat the throw – by a step – and the crowd of 65,775 cheered the Phils' first baserunner.
"I was just fortunate to beat it out," Moreland said after the game. "I'm not the fastest man in the world, probably the slowest in the league.”
No matter. A few moments later there were two men on after Garry Maddox roped a double down the left field line, sending Moreland to third. That brought up NL playoff MVP Manny Trillo and the experts figurd Frey would order an intentional walk.
He didn't and Trillo hit a sacrifice fly to the warning track in right to end the scoreless tie and move Maddox to third. Bowa hit Gura's next pitch on a line to left, scoring Maddox. Bob Boone kept the inning alive with a walk, but Lonnle Smith flied to right for the final out.
The Royals got an unearned run in the sixth after Otis singled to center and Wathan walked. Aikens hit a chopper to Trillo, who inexplicably threw it past first baseman Rose for an error, allowing Otis to score and sending Wathan to third with nobody out.
But Carlton quickly regained control, striking out Cardenal and coaxing Frank White, the AL playoff MVP, to hit into KC's third double play of the night.
The Royals took a 4-2 lead in the seventh, scoring three times as the struggling Carlton seemingly lost sight of the plate. Lefty walked the bases loaded, with a pair of stolen bases thrown In for good measure, and all three recipients of the free passes scored.
Otis made It a 3-2 game when he doubled past the diving Schmidt's glove.
Schmidt comes to life in time to boost Phillies
By Hal Bodley, Sports Editor
PHILADELPHIA – He had been snoozing ever since the Phillies won the National League Eastern Division championship on Oct. 4 in Montreal.
But last night, the sleeping giant awoke. He came to life snarling and flailing his bat.
The Phillies, obviously a team of destiny, have again risen from defeat and today they are leading the best-of-seven World Series 2-0.
Mike Schmidt, who had just five singles in the best-of-five National League Championship Series for a disappointing .208 batting average, came to life last night, ripping a screaming double that drove in the winning run in a three-run eighth inning that sent Kansas City reeling 6-4.
This is only the third World Series the Phillies have played in and the first time in their not-so-proud history they have won two games. Against the Boston Red Sox in 1915, the Phils won the first game, then lost four in a row. In 1950, they went quietly in four games.
But this team, the team few thought would even win the division let alone the National League pennant, has established itself as a team refusing to give in to any lead.
Just when you expect these Phillies to fold, they find a way to pick themselves up and salvage the moment.
Last night, with 65,775 customers wondering what was wrong with Steve Carlton, the Royals capitalized on the great left-hander's wild-ness to wipe out a 2-1 Philadelphia lead to go ahead 4-2 in the seventh.
In the eighth, with the fans screaming for another Philadelphia comeback, the Phils scored two runs to tie. Then, with Bake McBride on first, Schmidt ripped a double to right-center, with "Shake 'n Bake" zooming around the bases to give the Phils a 5-4 lead. Moments later, designated hitter Keith Moreland singled Schmidt in and it was 6-4.
"People have been asking me all week how I am swinging the bat," said Schmidt. "I told a reporter tonight that when I started swinging it well, there would be no doubt."
Schmidt, the odds-on choice to win the National League Most Valuable Player Award, had only an infield single in Tuesday night's opener, but last night even though he grounded out twice, he sent a murmur of hope through the stands with two awesome foul balls. In the sixth, he singled, then delivered his booming double in the eighth.
"I don't think I will ever forget that hit," said Schmidt. "This is my first World Series and that hit on Tuesday was important, but this double meant an awful lot to my team."
When asked what has turned the Phillies around, Schmidt said there was never any doubt in the team's confidence.
"Before, we were not able to win games like the one we pulled out tonight," he said. "Getting through that pressure' series with Houston left us tired, but we were confident. We were rolling when we came into this series.
"I told everyone that before this series was over that I would be hitting the ball hard. I didn't say I would be hitting home runs, but I said I would be making good contact."
The long foul balls did not mean anything, but Schmidt admitted the two fouls helped him.
"When you are having problems, anytime you can drive the ball, it helps your confidence. I think that is what helped me tonight."
Schmidt said there is no way the pressure of the World Series can equal what the Phils went through the last two weeks of the season plus the playoffs.
"And even when Steve Carlton is at his worst, he still keeps us in ball games," said Schmidt. "That was the case tonight. He struggled all the way, but even when it was 4-2, we were still in the game because we know we can come back."
Carlton, who led the National League with 24 victories, never got in a good groove. He allowed 10 hits and his six walks were magnified even though he struck out 10.
Aside from Carlton's natural talent, his ability to concentrate is his forte. In Saturday's crucial game against Houston, Carlton had to sit on the bench and wait while the umpires debated the controversial call on Garry Maddox' chopper back to the mound. When Carlton returned to the mound, he never regained his composure.
That was the Royals' strategy.
Billy Connors, who was a pitching instructor in the Phils' minor-league system for several seasons before joining Kansas City as a coach, helped plot last night's strategy.
"We wanted to disrupt his rhythm," said Connors. "We had batters stepping in and out of the box, doing everything we could to keep him from getting in a pattern. Everybody knows this about Carlton. We do the same thing with Tommy John. The thing about Carlton tonight was that he was susceptible to what we were doing."
Phils' Manager Dallas Green did not agree.
"That was not the problem," said Green. "The trouble tonight were the balls. That is why he was struggling. They were as slick as I have ever seen them. The umpires admitted the balls were as slick as ice. They said, 'Dallas, these things are just like ice.' Lefty has to have a good feel of the ball to throw his slider. When he couldn't get the feel, he was in trouble. I am going to protest the balls to the commissioner."
"But even with that," said Schmidt, "Carlton kept us in the game and we are two games up. We still have our work cut out for Us, but I think we have shown the world what kind of a team we have."
Series drama lifts Moreland to star’s role
By Rod Beaton, Staff Correspondent
PHILADELPHIA – They get charged up for Texas-Oklahoma football games in subtle ways, like bonfires that resemble the London blitz and pre-game talks as fervent as any backwoods preacher's.
That wouldn't sell in major league baseball. Not even before a World Series game.
Just don't let on to catcher Keith Moreland of the Phillies. He has been through a few Texas football weekends, with Darrell Royal, no less.
The name Royal brought out the best in Moreland again. He got pumped up for the big one last night, just like old times.
This time it wasn't Hook 'em Horns, it was flail 'em Phils, and Moreland contributed two singles and a key run batted in to help fire the Phils to a 6-4 victory over the Kansas City Royals in Game Two of the World Series.
In the clubhouse afterwards, Moreland looked ready to take on a tackling dummy. Instead he tackled a horde of reporters.
"If we win this thing, I'm gonna retire," vowed the 26-year-old redhead, a well-carved 6-feet, 200-pounds even.
Recognizing the look of shock as the horde scribbled it's scoop, he grinned and said, "Naw, just kidding. I've been wanting to do this since I was a little kid. I'll want to do it again."
Until last night, he had few chances to do anything in the postseason excitement. Manager Dallas Green opted to go with the expertise and defensive prowess of Bob Boone, also reborn at the plate. Moreland settled for one at-bat and an RBI in two playoff games.
He got right into the huddle last night. Greg Luzinski contracted an intestinal virus and the designated hitter's chores fell into Moreland's hands, the ones that collared so many running backs for the Longhorns in '74.
"I don't know if the two hits had anything to do with being DH," said Moreland, referring to a fifth-inning single, after which he scored the Phils' first run, and his RBI base hit in the eighth.
That screamer to center, arcing over a drawn-in infield, scored Mike Schmidt with an insurance run and capped a stunning, four-run rally.
"That's a big play," said Moreland, uncharacteristically immodest. "That way we go two up and if the lead-off runner gets on, they can't bunt him over."
Moreland stung the ball in all four of his at-bats, lining to left and grounding sharply into a double play the two times he was retired.
"I like DH'ing," he said. "It gets me into ballgames. It'd probably help my career."
He didn't hurt his career with a .314 average in a 62-game rookie season. His enthusiasm charged up an often lethargic team and won him recognition on a highly-unofficial "All-Hustle Team," named by a national publication.
"We just got that feeling," he shouted. "That's the expression of the year. Maybe some times in the season we didn't pull together, but we sure did in September.
"In the last month the ball games we feel we should win, we're winning. The guys who aren't playing are into it. John (Vukovich) and Dallas are getting the guys on the bench into it."
Moreland almost got in trouble before the game started.
"I went out to the bullpen to help with warm-ups," he said, a DH not content to yawn on the bench while the fielders did their duty. "I didn't know a (DH) wasn't allowed to warm up the pitchers."
He found out and came back to the dugout. Dan Quisenberry, the Royals' reliever, would have preferred Moreland had stayed with the bullpen crew. Moreland completed the Phils' surprising assault on the AL Fireman of the Year. Furthermore, he told his teammates what to expect from the underhanded righty.
"I faced him m the minors," said Moreland, recalling days at Oklahoma City when "Quiz" pitched for Omaha in the American Association. "I told them (teammates) most of the time his ball moves in on right-handers, away from lefthanders."
Moreland feels he has moved his foot into his mouth too often, including a comment during the season that the National League East race was between the Phils and Expos. All that did was inspire the Pirates to sweep Moreland and Co.
"I've been opening mouth too often," he said. "I'll just open it once more to say we'll win it."
Bowa says Phils all-for-one bunch key to winning
By Anne Squires, Staff Correspondent
PHILADELPHIA – No one has been touting the Phillies' all-for-one attitude more these days than onetime malcontent shortstop Larry Bowa. And after yet another come-from-behind victory last night in Game Two of the World Series it was more of the same from Bowa's corner.
"It hasn't been just one guy doing it for us anymore," he said. "We just feel like we have the confidence to come back and win it in any situation now. Hey, listen, when you come from behind on a guy like Nolan Ryan you gotta figure you can do it with anybody."
That "anybody last night was Kansas City ace reliever Dan Quisenberry, who gave up a walk and four hits in the Phillies' four-run, eighth-inning rally.
"We knew Quisenberry was tough," said Bowa. "But the side-arm delivery is not an unorthdox one for us. We've got (Pittsburgh reliever Kent) Tekulve in the National League. Actually, I think Tekulve throws harder."
What is becoming harder is to speculate how the Phils are going to pull it out this time.
"We are making it. difficult," agreed Bowa. "But in the past when we used to fall behind, we’d wind up getting kicked. Now the tables are turned. We wait and we come from behind.
"What I think it is is that Dallas (Manager Green) has gotten everybody involved. It's no longer, let the eight starters and the pitcher do it. (DH Keith) Moreland got a big hit tonight, (Lonnie) Smith's been playing, (Marty) Bystrom... Everybody feels a part of it. When it comes to the eighth inning everyone feels like they can do something."
Although Bowa was not part of the Phils' big inning last night he did contribute to the Phils initial charge in the fifth.
Moreland hit a one-out single to deep short and center fielder Garry Maddox followed with a double into the left-field corner with Moreland stopping at third. Second baseman Manny Trillo flied to Jose Cardenal in right, scoring Moreland and sending Maddox to third. Bowa came through with an RBI single to left and the Phillies took a 2-0 lead off the seemingly unflappable Larry Gura.
A game that looked like it had the makings of a Phillie fallout, suddenly took on a new face.
"We've been getting some breaks," said Bowa. "And every time we get down now, we start saying, 'let's do it again, let's do it again. We were just as lively when we up 2-0 as we were when we were down 4-2. 1 tell you what, I'd rather be in our position than in their's.
"But we've got a long way to go. And we're heading into their ballpark, but they're down two nothing, so they'd better get on the stick. We proved to them that we won't quit, but they won't quit either.
It seems like things are going the Phils' way now, but as Bowa was quick to remind all within earshot last night, it wasn't always that way.
"Ever since we got swept by the Bucs in August," said Bowa quietly, "it's been different. We were six games out after that series. We got our butts reemed out and that hit home a little bit. That was Black Sunday. After August 10th we had to win on the road and at home, or else. Now we have the best record in the National League on the road.
And they're headed out this morning for the most important road trip of the year.
George Brett
KC star hoping minor surgery will put him back into lineup
By Rod Beaton, Staff Correspondent
PHILADELPHIA – The painful hemorrhoids that drove Kansas City third baseman George Brett from Game Two of the World Series last night at Veterans Stadium were to be treated in a minor surgical procedure early this morning (about 5 a.m., EST)
Brett, the American League batting champion with a .390 mark, left the game after the Royals had finished hitting in the sixth inning. He was replaced by Dave Chalk.
Brett's hemorrhoids were to be lanced at St Luke's Hospital in Kansas City as soon as the team arrived in Kansas City and he could be transported to the hospital. The Royals flew out of Philadelphia immediately after last night's 6-4 loss to the Phillies.
According to Kansas City Manager Jim Frey, Brett developed the painful swelling over the weekend in New York during the American League Championship Series. Brett reported it was his first experience with hemorrhoids.
Before last night's game, Frey and Brett consulted with team physician Dr. Paul Meyer and an unnamed Philadelphia proctologist.
"The question was, if he didn't play, are we sure it'd be better, or would it be the same problem Friday," said Frey. "They (the doctors) told me they couldn't be sure.
"The decision was mine, so I wrote his name on the card."
After Brett had gone 2-for-2 and walked once and handled four chances flawlessly he came out of the game. The Royals trailed 2-1 at the time.
‘Big guys’ tune out fans’ favorite broadcasters
By Anne Squires, Staff Correspondent
PHILADELPHIA – All over the Delaware Valley Tuesday night, Phillies' fans were frantically flipping their radio dials searching for the familiar voices calling the play-by-play of their favorite, now National League champion Philadelphia Phillies.
No such luck, they ultimately discovered.
The big guys, i.e., NBC-TV and CBS Radio, came rolling into Veterans Stadium for Game One and it's going to be their show until It's all over.
For veteran Channel 17 and KYW radio sports broadcasters Harry Kalas, Richie Ashburn, Andy Musser, It is a big disappointment. And area fans seem to be feeling the loss, too.
"I've gotten wires, phone calls from all the newspapers and the stadium's switchboard operators tell me the lines have been jammed with people calling and asking why we are not doing the Series,'' said Ashburn, before last night's game.
"It's nice to know that you have that kind of relationship with your fans but it's still disappointing.”
According to Ashburn and Channel 17 executive producer Steve Silverman, this Is the first time in 18 years (barring illness and other unforeseen circumstances) that Richie has not worked a Phillies' game. For Kalas, it's been 10 years behind the mike for the Phils.
"There's really not much to the story," said Silverman from the first base line booth the WPHL crew has been exiled to for the duration of the Series. "NBC has the TV rights and CBS bought the radio rights and we're not allowed to do any broadcasting. It's as simple as that."
Up until two years ago the network that owned the broadcast rights to the World Series would have a guest commentator from each of the home teams as a part of the regular broadcast crew. But that practice has been discontinued.
"I was contacted for that job in 1977," said Kalas, "but of course the Phillies didn't make it and then they stopped doing it.
"It's terribly frustrating to have covered a team for so long and then have them reach the pinnacle and not be able to do it. I think at least locally we should have been able to broadcast, but there was nothing we could do. I will tell you, though I'm getting awfully antsy up here not being able to call a play.”
Ashburn likened the experience to a seemingly universal frustration.
"It's sort of like wining and dining a woman all night and bringing her home and having her say 'see ya later', he said.
But it's something we can't control. It's very hard because it's been such an emotional last month and then you're out of it. I understand the networks have to do their job. I'm sure it's nothing personal on their parts.
"But it's very different sitting up here," Ashburn continued. "Someone makes a great play and you want to say something. Trouble is with these guys," he said gesturing toward Kalas, Silverman, Musser and McCarver, "nobody ever pays any attention to you. Maybe they never did."
Well, apparently Delaware Valley Phillie fans did and do, judging from their response to the Channel 17 blackout.
"Bill Giles (Phillie publicity director) said he'd bring the problem up at the winter meetings, said Kalas, "but of course that doesn't do us much good now."
Friends follow Renie Martin’s World Series exploits
By Jack Ireland, Staff Writer
DOVER – Excitement and pride are the two words to best describe how the family and many close friends of Renie Martin felt yesterday about the Dover High product's pitching performance for the Kansas City Royals in the first game of the World Series against the Phillies on Tuesday night in Veterans Stadium.
Martin, the promising right-handed rookie pitcher, hurled four solid innings in relief of starter Dennis Leonard, allowing one run on five hits as the Phillies posted a 7-6 victory. This is the first time ever a Dover native has played in a World Series and the entire city was naturally buzzing over the excitement yesterday.
"I think once Renie got his poise and realized where he was, he really got down to business," said his father, Paul Martin, who watched the game from his home tn Dover with his wife Marjorie and 1 1-year old son Timmy. "We went out to both of the championship playoff games in Kansas City last week against the Yankees, but I just made up my mind to stay home for the Series. Emotion-wise, I just can't take it. It was quite an experience.
"I drove up to Philadelphia on Monday and brought Renie home for the night after the team workout. We gave him a good home cooked meal. He understands whv we are not there.
"I think Renie set his destiny many years ago. Except when he was actually out playing baseball, in his spare time he was always throwing a ball or something. Renie always had the desire and has taken care of himself physically. I think after the first two or three batters he faced, he did a commendable job for what he is – and that's a rookie. It was really great."
Martin's alma mater, Dover High, was filled with excitement yesterday.
"We're very proud of him and the whole school is happy," said Patrick Lynn, Dover High principal. "That's all every-body is talking about. Renie is a great person and was alwa vs very dedicated. As a player he should be proud of himself. We're proud of him and his family."
Martin still lives in Dover during the offseason, and one of his closest friends is Mike Andras, who he played baseball with at Dover and the University of Richmond. Andrus, son of Wesley football coach Bob Andrus, was also a standout football player who had a tryout with the Chicago Bears.
"I'm very proud of Renie and pleased with his performance in the World Series," said Andrus, a sales representative for a Smyrna business. "I'm a Phillies fan, but I was pulling for him all the way. Renie and I are very close and went to school together from kindergarten through college. I signed with the Chicago Bears and Renie was drafted about a week later. Renie's gone a heckuva lot further than I have. I wish I could have gone farther.
"There was never any question in my mind that he would make it to the majors. He pursued it and has a great career ahead of him. It couldn't happen to a nicer guy, either."
“I’ll tell you what, I saw Renie pitch five or six times at Richmond and he's completely different now," said Bob Andrus, who went to last night's second game after receiving tickets from Martin. "In those days he seemed big, and would throw the ball past you. You could always see he had the potential and now he has developed a good curveball. Renie is quite a competitor and I think he showed he belongs there. He never got excited and showed his poise."
As a junior at Dover, Martin was a shortstop and pitcher under Coach Larry Ginsbury as the Senators won the the state championship in 1972. As a senior, Martin led the Senators to the state final before losing to Claymont.
"It was lust great to see him again on national television," said Ginsburg, who is now the head football coach at Woodbury (N.J.) High. "My whole family was pulling for him, but we had mixed emotions. We were rooting like hell for him, but we really like the Phillies. I was really glad Renie did well and the Phillies still won."
Ginsburg said he did notice right away that Martin has changed his pitching motion a great deal from his high school days.
"The only difference I can see in him is his motion," said Ginsburg. "Maybe it's because they want to make him a reliever, but he's almost quick pitching. I have followed his progress and I can't understand why he walks so many. He had such great control in high school and sometimes seems to have trouble walking people now. Maybe it's the motion."
Pat Knight, Wesley sports information director and long-time sports enthusiasts in lower Delaware, says Martin is the first Dover native he ever remembers in a World Series.
"The thing that impressed me was his poise," said Knight. "Even when he was in trouble he kept his poise."
The one major complaint from Paul Martin was the way NBC sports announcers Joe Garaglola, Tony Kubek and Tom Seaver mispronounced his son's first name time and time again on Tuesday.
“I gave him that name and it seems like they spell it and mispronounce it all the time," said Martin. "His name is Renie and not Rennie. I wish everybody would get that straight."
If the young Martin continues pitching like he did Tuesday night for the rest of the 1980 Series, his family won't have to worry about a thing.
Play-by-play
Associated Press
PHILADELPHIA – Play-by-play of Game Two of the 1980 World Series between the Philadelphia Phillies and the Kansas City Royals:
Royals First
Steve Carlton's first pitch of the game was a swinging strike. Willie Wilson struck out on a pitch in the dirt and had to be thrown out by Catcher Bob Boone. U.L. Washington grounded to Larry Bowa at shortstop. George Brett bounced a single up the middle. Hal McRae, the designated hitter, singled to right, Brett stopping at second. Amos Otis bounced to third baseman Mike Schmidt, who tossed to Manny Trillo covering second.
No runs, two hits, no errors, two left.
Phillies First
Larry Gura’s first pitch was ball. Lonnie Smith flied to Otis in center. Pete Rose flied to Otis. Bake McBride popped to Brett at third.
No runs, no hits, no errors, none left.
Royals Second
John Wathan popped to Rose at first. Willie Aikens walked on a 3-1 pitch. Jose Cardenal took a third strike. Frank White struck out, but the pitch was in the dirt and White was safe at first, with Aikens moving to second. Wilson struck out.
No runs, no hits, no errors, two left.
Phillies Second
Schmidt grounded to Brett. Keith Moreland, the designated hitter, flied to Wilson in left. Garry Maddox struck out.
No runs, no hits, no errors, none left.
Royals Third
Washington took a third strike. Brett singled to center. McRae singled to left, Brett stopping at second. Otis grounded into a double play, Bowa to Trillo to Rose.
No runs, two hits, no errors, one left.
Phillies Third
Trillo filed to Otis, Bowa popped to Brett in foul territory. Boone filed to Otis.
No runs, no hits, no errors, none left.
Royals Fourth
Wathan filed to McBride in right. Aikens singled to center off Carlton's leg. Cardenal grounded into a double play, Bowa to Trillo to Rose.
No runs, one hit, no errors, none left.
Phillies Fourth
Smith struck out. Rose flied to Otis. Maddox hit a soft liner to White at second, the 12th batter retired in a row.
No runs, no hits, no errors, none left.
Royals Fifth
White grounded to Bowa. Wilson struck out. Washington singled up the middle. Brett walked on four pitches. McRae struck out.
No runs, one hit, no errors, two left.
Phillies Fifth
Schmidt grounded to Brett. Moreland got the Phillies' first hit, an infield single that Washington fielded but couldn't make the throw in time. Maddox doubled down the left field line, Moreland stopping at third. Trillo hit a sacrifice fly to Cardenal in right, scoring Moreland with the first run of the game, with Maddox going to third. Bowa singled to left, scoring Maddox. Boone walked on a 3-1 pitch. Smith flied to Cardenal.
Two runs, three hits, no errors, two left.
Royals Sixth
Otis singled to center. Wathan walked. Aikens chopped to Trillo, who threw the ball past Rose for an error, with Otis scoring, Wathan going to third and Aikens holding first. Score is 2-1 Phillies. Cardenal struck out. White grounded into a double play, Bowa to Trillo to Rose.
One run, one hit, one error, one left.
Phillies Sixth
Dave Chalk is now playing third base for Kansas City. Rose flied to Cardenal. McBride walked. Schmidt singled to center, McBride stopping at second. Moreland grounded into a double play, Washington to White to Aikens.
No runs, one hit, no errors, one left.
Royals Seventh
Wilson walked. Washington sacrificed, Carlton to Trillo covering. Wilson stole third. Chalk walked. Chalk stole second after Carlton attempted pickoff. McRae walked, loading the bases. Otis doubled down the left field line, scoring Washington and Chalk, Royals lead 3-2. Wathan hit a sacrifice fly to Maddox, McRae scoring for a 4-2 Royals lead. Rose cut off the throw to the plate and Otis was trapped between second and third base for the third out.
Three runs, one hit, no errors, none left.
Phillies Seventh
Dan Quisenberry now pitching for Kansas City. Maddox grounded to Chalk. Trillo grounded to Washington. Bowa grounded to White.
No runs, no hits, no errors, none left.
Royals Eighth
Aikens struck out. Cardenal filed to McBride against the right field wall. White singled to left. Wilson hit an infield single off Rose's glove. Washington struck out.
No runs, two hits, no errors, two left.
Phillies Eighth
Pete LaCock replaced Aikens at first base. Boone walked. Del Unser doubled to left-center, scoring Boone to make it 4-3. Rose chopped a grounder to LaCock unassisted, Unser moving to third. McBride chopped a single to right, scoring Unser to tie the score. Schmidt doubled to the wall in right and took third as McBride beat the throw home to make it 5-4 for Philadelphia. Moreland lined a single to center to score Schmidt for a 6-4 Phillies lead. Gross grounded into a double play, Washington to White to LaCock.
Four runs, four hits, no errors, one left.
Royals Ninth
Gross moved into left field and Unser look over in center. Ron Reed replaced Carlton on the mound. Darrell Porter pinch hit for Chalk and looked at a called third strike. McRae bounced a single to center. Otis bounced into a force play at second, Bowa to Trillo. Wathan struck out.
Philadelphia won 6-4.
No runs, one hit, no errors, none left.
Sports briefs (excerpt)
Compiled from Dispatches
Dixon picks Phils
Jeane Dixon, America's No. 1 psychic, has predicted the Phillies will win the World Series against the Kansas City Royals.
"I really believe the Phillies will do it," she said in Philadelphia, hours before the Phils downed Kansas City 7-6 in the first game of the Series.
Confessing she "knows little about baseball," Mrs. Dixon said she couldn't give a game-by-game rundown because she "hasn't meditated on each game to do that I'd have to meditate on the individual team members and I have to earn a living..."
Mrs. Dixon said she began picking up Phillies' vibes about a week ago and when she arrived here they came in a "heavy wave."
Despite the good vibrations from the Phillies, she cautioned, "I'm not saying to place any bets. I could be wrong."
Those simple joys, thrills of baseball ideal for its stars
By Ralph S. Moyed
The needs of a major league baseball star are simple.
Pete Rose listed some of them when he signed the contract that brought him from the Cincinnati Reds to the Philadelphia Phillies two years ago. After the signing, someone suggested that Rose might wish to celebrate with a spiritous beverage.
Rose declined the drink, saying he likes to do just three things: Make money, play baseball and share quiet moments with a woman. Actually, he used fewer words to describe his third need.
To know that baseball players are uncomplicated men with simple needs might help fans understand the hostility of some members of the Phillies team to their teammates, their manager, their fans, the furnishings in their locker room and sportswriters.
A hit, a stolen base, a run scored, some cheers from the grandstand, a victory in a World Series game and a few gopher-balls from sportswriters last night, and shortstop Larry Bowa, perhaps the most hostile of the Phillies this season, was doing what he hadn't done in weeks: He was talking amiably to the press.
Why now, and not last week or last month? Simple. The fans weren't booing Bowa last night. The fans no longer were "animals," as he had called them in one of his frequent outbursts against the Phillies management, the press and the customers who ultimately pay him a quarter-million-dollars a year to hit, catch and throw a ball. The fans, he said, "were very positive, even when we were down 4-0."
That Bowa is talking in the locker room again may seem a small matter to those people who don't stay awake to watch the entirety of baseball games until about the end of September and can't recall much of what kept them awake a couple of weeks after the end of the World Series that is, most American baseball fans. But Bowa's turnabout was regarded by reporters as an event second in importance only to the outcome of the first game of the series.
Further, to the men and women in the Phils' locker room last night, who wins the World Series this month will excite as much interest as who is elected president of the United States next month. Considering the political choices, the baseball freaks might have the edge in the values department.
To the fans who can't supply Ramon Aviles' slugging average without checking the records, the champions of the National League are something of a mystery. Who are these guys, some of whom make almost as much in a summer as a crooked congressman can pocket in a year, who snub fans who wait in the cold for them at the airport?
Most of the players come from small towns, don't have much in the way of education and don't get their forensic skills tested by many of the writers who cover the game.
Mike Schmidt, for instance, gets paid for hitting home runs, and during the regular season did it rather regularly. So far in the post-season games, however, he hasn't hit any and seemed to be striking out every time a long fly to the outfield might have scored a run.
That was on the mind of each of a, dozen reporters who clustered around him in the locker room last night, talking about the Phillies' pitchers and the Kansas City Royals' batters – everything but Schmidt's trouble hitting the long ball. It was five minutes before one guy summoned up the courage to use the words "long ball" in the presence of the National League slugging champion. The reporter did that only after saying what a great job Schmidt did last night by getting two walks and a hit.
Some of these champions are really very young. The pitcher who won last night's game, Bob Walk, for instance, is 23 but could pass for a teenager. He says he listened to the last World Series on a radio while pumping gas for $3.75 an hour at a service station in Newhall, Calif.
Commenting on the Royals, who hit him for three home runs, he said, "They showed me a lot of power."
Bob Walk's profundity was matched by some of his older, more experienced teammates.
Greg Luzinski, who was the designated hitter in last night's game and got on base only when he managed to get into the way of a Royals pitch, said not playing in the field actually hurt him at bat. "I was too strong, too pumped up."
Bowa went Luzinski one better, offering an alibi-in-advance. Last night, the team played errorless baseball. But there's always today. "The field's awfully bumpy," said Bowa. "The Royals were complaining. Football's wrecked it."
Catcher Bob Boone, who went to Stanford, on how much his injured foot hurts him: "I have some pain in it, but not enough to keep me out of the World Series."
Soon I thought I knew why some of the Phils' players do what they do. It doesn't require a great deal of intellect to throw, catch and hit a baseball, and whatever Power allocates individual resources to humans hasn't given many members of the Phillies resources that aren't required to play baseball.
We seem to be in no imminent danger of losing a potential Nobel Prize-winner to the National Pastime.
Ralph S. Moyed's column appears each Tuesday and Thursday in The Morning News and in the Sunday News Journal.