Allentown Morning Call - October 3, 1980
Phillies gain share of first place
By Gordon Smith, Associate Sports Editor
PHILADELPHIA – It isn't often presidential visits are upstaged by athletics, but such was the case in the "City of Brotherly Love" last night when there was dancing in the streets following the Phillies' 4-2 pressure-cooker of a victory over the Chicago Cubs.
Just a mile or so from Veterans Stadium, "Jiminy Peanuts" was headlining a $l,000-per-plate fund-raising dinner. But the wieners and hot pretzels consumed at the Vet beat any rubber chicken at the Fairmont Hotel bash.
The final battle lines were drawn. It's win two of three in Montreal starting tonight, or it's into a hearse for the Phillies, for a ride to catacombs to join such infamous brothers in Phutility as the 1964, 1976, 1977 and 1978 teams – pinstripe predecessors who should have won but didn't.
“Fasten your seatbelts, ladies and gentlemen. This isn't over by a long shot,” shouted Tug McGraw, who shared pitching heroics with rookie winner Bob Walk.
It's the quarterfinals, now," continued the always enthusiastic Phillies relief pitcher. "Nothing that happened before matters. We're beginning to brew a mighty offense again. I feel good things are coming our way."
The game was a nail-biter.
It would be a bad throw by Cubs' third baseman Steve Dillard on a ground ball by Mike Schmidt that opened the floodgates in the Phillies' eighth.
Pete Rose began the inning with a single, chasing relief pitcher Bill Caudill, who had come on in the seventh in place of starter Randy Martz.
Usually overpowering Bruce Sutter took over. It looked like he'd again be the supreme commander, as he fanned Bake McBride.
But Schmidt's shot to third was played poorly by Dillard and thrown worse in an attempt to force Rose at second. Rose came all the way around, and Schmidt got to second. Schmidt scored on a single by Greg Gross, who had replaced Greg Luzinski for defensive purposes in the eighth.
So the Phillies had fattened a 2-1 lead to a 4-1 margin, and only the bottom half of the Cubs' batting order had to be silenced. But Schmidt returned the Cubs favor with a throwing error of his own, allowing leadoff batter Jerry Martin to reach first.
Leftfielder Jim Tracy smacked a double off McGraw, scoring Martin. But the "Tug McGraw Show" wasn't about to be preempted.
Exciting the 23,806 fans with his self-psyching antics on the mound, McGraw retired pinch-hitter Dave Kingman on a grounder to third; forced pinch-hitter Cliff Johnson to fly out innocently to center, then reared back and fired smoke past pinch-hitter Carlos Lezcano, setting him down on strikes as the Vet Stadium crowd went berserk.
The game's first score went to the Cubs in the first inning when Ivan DeJesus walked, stole second, and scored on a Bill Buckner single to center.
After a 1½-hour rain delay the game resumed at 9:30. Schmidt's 46th home run (a career season record) tied the score in the fourth. It would be the only interruption until the seventh inning in a brilliant pitching duel between Walk and Martz.
In that seventh, Del Unser doubled and scored on a Keith Moreland single to give the Phils a 2-1 lead.
Walk, who had not had a good September, pitched out of three nightmares. He allowed a one-out triple to Mike Tyson in the second inning, but retired Mike O'Berry on a pop fly to Bowa, then struck out Martz.
In the fourth, Larry Bittner stroked a leadoff single for the Cubs. But Martin lined out to Schmidt and Walk fanned Jim Tracy and Tyson.
It looked like the Cubs would take a lead in the seventh, when Tracy stroked a leadoff triple. Again, however, Walk was equal to the challenge. He grabbed a high chopper off the bat of pinch-hitter Jesus Figueroa and tagged him, holding Tracy at third. He whiffed O'Berry, then ended the threat by getting pinch-hitter Scott Thompson on a fly ball to McBride to right.
Dick Ruthven is scheduled to start tonight for the Phillies in Montreal against Scott Sanderson.
"I'll tell you one thing," began an obviously relieved and relaxed Phillies' Manager Dallas Green. "We have played pretty darn good baseball with our backs to the wall. We're confident of the task ahead of us. The kid (Walk) pitched a super game. In the last two nights, everybody has come through at one time or another offensively."
"The big one is tomorrow (tonight)," said Pete Rose. “I'm glad we're facing Sanderson at night. He's easier to see under the lights.
"Our bench was very noisy and up ' tonight," Rose continued. "I personally think, us being an offensive team, that we have the advantage on the road (Phillies have won 19 of the last 25 road games.) The reason is we get to bat nine times, for one, and we also get the opportunity to grab the early lead."
Phillies gain share of first
PHILADELPHIA (AP) – Rookie Keith Moreland's run-scoring single in the seventh inning helped Philadelphia to a 4-2 victory over the Chicago Cubs last night and sent the Phillies to Montreal for the final three games of the season tied for first with the Expos in the National League East.
The Expos were idle yesterday.
The Cubs took a 1-0 lead on winner Bob Walk, 11-7, in the first inning when Ivan DeJesus walked, stole second and scored on Bill Buckner's one-out single to center.
The Phillies tied it in the fourth off Chicago starter Randy Martz when Mike Schmidt ripped his 46th home run of the season. Nine of his last 12 home runs have either tied a game or put Philadelphia ahead.
The Cubs had a good opportunity in the ' second when Mike Tyson tripled to right with one out but was left as Mike O'Berry popped out and Martz struck out. The Cubs also botched a chance in the seventh when Jim Tracy opened with a triple and was stranded.
Walk was replaced in the eighth by Tug McGraw, who worked out of another jam in that inning and earned his 19th save although Mike Vail hit a run-scoring double in the ninth.
Bill Caudill, 4-6, was the loser in relief of Martz.
The Phillies got their final two runs in the bottom of the eighth on a single by Pete Rose, a three-base error by Steve Dillard at third base on Schmidt's grounder and a run-scoring single by Greg Gross.