Allentown Morning Call - September 16, 1980

There’s room for Tug, Sparky in same bullpen

By John Kunda, Executive Sports Editor

There is no truth to the rumor, friends, that Sparky Lyle brought 40 copies of "The Bronx Zoo" along with him for distribution among his new teammates, the Phillies. 

Heaven forbid. 

The Phils got Lyle for his left arm. not for his humor, candor or literary skills. Who knows, though, by the time the hectic stretch run ends, he might have a briefcase full of notes for a start on a new "Philadelphia Story." 

Give Paul Owens and Dallas Green credit for the acquisition. Lyle has cost them a good buck, but what the heck, missing the World Series all these years has cost the club a good buck, too. 

Some say there isn't room for Lyle and Tug McGraw in the same bullpen. Relief pitchers are moody guys, you know, and when you get two Number Ones, the moods change almost as quickly as the weather. 

Lyle went through this with the Yankees. He wasn't tickled when George Steinbrenner shelled out all that money for Rich Gossage. Mind you, Lyle was making a half-million dollars at the time, yet he wanted more money. 

"If they can give Gossage that kind of money," he said at the time, "they can do it for me." 

Well, the Yankees didn't do it for Lyle. Instead, they sent him to Texas. 

The last thing the Phils need in the closing weeks of the season is an intra-bullpen issue. The competition will be fine, but the club doesn't need a Lyle-McGraw personality clash.

Manager Green insists that Lyle wasn't brought to Philadelphia because of dissatisfaction with McGraw's performance. McGraw's 17 saves is an adequate statistic. 

Besides, baseball people have said for years that a contending team can't have enough pitchers in September. Yes, there is room for Lyle and McGraw. 

Green added to that. "McGraw is the only one reliever I can close with confidence, "he said. "The others have been sporadic and inconsistent. These last 20 days of the season, we have to be consistent." 

Green is hoping, too, that the incentive of being in a penannt drive will bring the best out of Lyle. One thing that can be said about the former Yankee star is that he can handle the heat of a pennant race. He's been there before. 

However, the book on Lyle is that he needs work – he has to pitch to be effective. "I can't sit around," he said. "I have to pitch." 

In his heydays with the Yankees, Lyle would pitch well over 100 innings a season. In the 1977 championship season, he pitched 137 innings, posted a 13-5 record, got credit for 26 saves – all en route to the Cy Young Award.

Lyle worked 95 innings for Texas last year en route to a 5-8 record. He couldn't understand the lack of activity, especially on a team like the Rangers, who aren't noted for their strong starters.

He has worked in 49 games this season and had only eight saves. 

"That (hard work) has always worked for me," Lyle said in one of his opening-day speeches in Philadelphia. "I've seen it happen. It's the only thing I can go on. It's something I just didn't make up." 

Lyle blamed the Texas mangement for the inactivity. At 36, he said, "they thought I was too old." 

Lyle was 33 when the Yankees won in 1977, the year that Lyle seemed to pitch in every game. He was at his best in the American League championship series with Kansas City. 

One particular game – the fourth – comes to mind quickly. Lyle was called in in the fourth inning to protect a one-run lead. He did it by shutting out the Royals on two hits for the next 5⅓ innings. 

The pressure was binding because if the Royals had scored a couple of runs, the Yankee season would have been over. The story didn't end there. 

The next night, in the deciding playoff game, Lyle faced four batters and got four outs. The Yankee offense took the cue and rallied for three runs in the ninth.

Lyle was a major factor in the success of that season. 

Could he do it for Philadelphia in 1980? Only time will tell, but it must be reassuring for Dallas Green that he's got another strong arm in the bullpen. 

Move over, Tug McGraw, there's plenty of room for you and Sparky Lyle.