PRELIMINARY ROUND
Series #157
1964 St. Louis Cardinals (93-69) vs 1995 Houston Astros (76-68)
After 18 years the 1964 St. Louis Cardinals climbed the mountain again and this time did defeating and ending the dynasty of the mighty New York Yankees. The Cards were a young talented team that would continue to win big for the rest of the decade. Ray Sadecki won 20 games for the club with a 3.68 ERA and 2 shutouts in 220 innings but the best arm on the team belonged to Bob Gibson. Gibson went 19-12 with a 3.01 ERA in 287 innings striking out 245 batters and intimidating countless more. Gibson was only getting better as the season went on. Curt Simmons went 18-9 with a 3.43 in a good season with 3 shutouts and a 1.156 WHIP proving that he made the most of his chances. Ernie Broglio rounded out the four man rotation but started only 11 times for a 3.50 ERA as Roger Craig was also in the mix starting 19 times with a nice 3.25 ERA as he was happy to be out of New York. Barney Schultz had 14 saves and a dominant 1.64 ERA proving how valuable he was as a multi inning closer. Bob Humphreys was also a good asset in middle relief while Ron Taylor and Mike Cuellar had a hard time defining a role on the team. The offense was paced by third baseman Ken Boyer who had quite a season. Boyer hit .295 with a .854 OPS with 24 home runs and 119 runs driven in. Right next to Boyer was shortstop Dick Groat who played every day and hit .292 with a .706 OPS. Groat scored 70 runs and drove in 70 runs and also handled the infield very well. Julian Javier was at second hitting just .241 with 65 RBI and not much pop in his bat. Javier was primarily on the field for his glovework. Bill White was at first and the 30 year old left hander drove in 102 runs with a 123 OPS+ and 92 runs scored. White was an underrated star for this team. In the outfield was the fast dynamic duo of Curt Flood and Lou Brock. Brock stole 33 bases and hit .348 taking everyone by surprise. He had 9 triples and 81 runs scored in just 103 games. Brock was a world-beater all the way around. Flood was maybe the best centerfielder not named Willie Mays and hit a nice .311 with 97 runs scored. He had not mastered the art of the steal and had an OBP of only .356 making him of less value then Brock. Mike Shannon played in just 88 games and hit .261 with 43 RBI as Charlie James had 52 hits when the regular was out. Young talented catcher Tim McCarver was a star behind the plate and hit a good .288 with a .743 OPS. McCarver struck out just 44 times and was one of the smartest players for his age in the league. Carl Warwick and Bob Skinner were also outfield options but both had OPS marks under .700. Bob Uecker was on the team and played in 40 games hitting his expected .198. The Cardinals infield played just about every inning of every game and no real utility man was needed on the roster. A good Astros team awaits these Champions but the quality is there to make them clear favorites.
Houston was beginning to build a winner in the National League even as the 1995 season was a down one for them. The biggest issue with the club was still their pitching abilities and their team numbers should have been a lot better playing in the spacious Astrodome. No one on the roster won more than 10 games as Shane Reynolds was likely the best of the bunch ending with a 3.47 ERA and only allowing 15 home runs in 189 innings. Reynolds struck out 8.3 per nine and overall put together a nice season without the support. Doug Drabek did not bring back his best days and went 10-9 with a high 4.77 ERA in 31 starts. Drabek had a 1.40 WHIP and an ERA plus of just 81. Greg Swindell was another veteran in the rotation also going 10-9 with a 4.47 ERA and a 4.44 FIP. Swindell allowed 21 home runs and had to be careful with his command as his velocity was down from his prime. Mike Hampton at only 22 years old made 24 starts with a nice 3.35 ERA and 115 strikeouts showing some real promise for his age. Darryl Kile went 4-12 with a 4/96 ERA in 21 starts and was still trying to find his way in a lot of ways. Overall the rotation had the experience but did underachieve. Todd Jones was the closer with 40 saves and a 3.07 ERA and was helped along by Dave Veres who went 5-1 in relief with a spotless 2.26 ERA. Dean Hartgraves and Jim Dougherty rounded out the pen and Doug Brocail did everything including starting seven games and ended with a pedestrian 4.19 ERA. Mo one on the roster drove in 100 runs but Craig Biggio scored 123. Biggio was the heart of the team in many ways and hit .302 with 33 steals and a .406 OBP. He even managed 22 home runs with 77 RBI and a 142 OPS+. Jeff Bagwell was the other Killer B who hit 21 bombs with 87 RBI but ended with a .290 average. He struck out 102 times but held his OBP at a good .399. Luis Gonzalez was in left but was not where near the power hitter he would become. Gonzo hit six home runs in 56 games and ended with a .258 average making him an afterthought. Brian Hunter was in center for 78 games and hit .302. Hunter was a great overall athlete of course and stole 24 bases but hit just two home runs. Drek Bell drove in 86 runs and hit an impressive .334, the best of his career. Bell was another good all-around player with limited power but a 126 OPS+ and 200 total bases. Dave Magadan at 32 got most the work at third base hitting .313 with a .428 OBP making him valuable. Orlando Miller fit in at short but hit .262 with 36 RBI in 92 games. Tony Eusebio was the everyday catcher and he hit .299 with a 109 OPS+ proving he was one of the better hitting catchers in the game. James Mouton and John Cangelosi played a lot in the outfield and Cangelosi had a .850 OPS and was excellent with 21 steals. Mouton stole 21 with 18 doubles and a good contributor. Derrick May hit .301 as the good hitting bench went a long way with the likes of Ricky Gutierrez and Milt Thompson playing limited but effective roles. Many think the Astros can give the Cards a good series, especially if their pitching can come through.
Game 1 At Sportsmans Park
Rain 59
1995 Astros...................2
1964 Cardinals..............1
WP: S. Reynolds (1-0) LP: B. Schultz (0-1) S: M. Henneman (1)
HR: None
POG: Shane Reynolds
1995 Astros Lead Series 1-0
The 1995 Astros played small ball and drove in a run in the 9th inning that would break a 1-1 tie when Tony Eusebio broke for home on a ground ball to short. Shane Reynolds and Bob Gibson delt for 8 innings with Gibson allowing no earned run but Reynolds struck out 5 and walked only one. Gibson was pulled after 8 and the Astros took advantage then allowing Mike Henneman to close the game and give them the lead in the series.
Game 2 At Sportsmans Park
Clear 74
1995 Astros..................7
1964 Cardinals.............5 (11 inn)
WP: T. Jones (1-0) LP: C. Simmons (0-1)
HR: None
POG: Dave Magaden
1995 Astros Lead Series 2-0
Tony Eusebio hit a clutch two run home run off Curt Simmons in the 11th inning to lift the Astros to a second victory and the catbirds seat in the series. St. Louis was down two in the bottom of the 8th but had rallied after Ray Sadecki had a tough start and put his team in a hole early as Houston scored three in the first. Todd Jones get the win for the Astros and Dave Magadan had three hits, an RBI, and 2 runs scored.
Game 3 At the Astrodome
Indoors
1964 Cardinals....................3
1995 Astros........................12
WP: D. Drabek (1-0) LP: R. Craig (0-1)
HR: C. Biggio (1), D. Drabek (1), K. Boyer (1)
POG: Doug Drabek
1995 Astros Lead Series 3-0
It was a party atmosphere at the Astrodome as the home team scored 12 runs in the first four innings after Roger Craig and the Cardinals were ambushed. Craig Biggio hit a three run home run in the second while Doug Drabek almost took the roof off the dome with a grand slam home run in the 4th. Drabek otherwise had an easy night of it going nine innings while walking none and whiffing 9. The Astros have stunned the favorite Cardinals and game four will show if this St. Louis team can muster any sort of heart, or be swept.
Game 4 At Astrodome
Indoors
1964 Cardinals......................13
1995 Astros.............................0
WP: R. Taylor (1-0) LP: M. Hampton (0-1)
HR: None
MVP: Mike Shannon
1995 Astros Lead Series 3-1
Mike Shannon and Tim McCarver each went 4-5 and the Cardinals belted out 19 hits and took advantage of four Astros errors to cruise to their first win of the series and avoid the sweep. Seven runs in the second inning including a pair of RBI triples. one by Ken Boyer and one by Julian Javier set Mike Hampton to the showers early and in an embarrassing display, Jeff Bagwell made three errors. Houston is still in a good spot but for sure will want to close the series at home, but to do so will have to get past Bob Gibson.
Game 5 At Astrodome
Indoors
1964 Cardinals....................3
1995 Astros.........................6
WP: S. Reynolds (2-0) LP: B. Gibson (0-1)
HR: None
POG: Shane Reynolds
It all came down for the champion Cardinals as Bob Gibson failed to win again, and the Astros behind Shane Reynolds end this series. The biggest moment of the game came in the 5th when Jeff Bagwell ripped a double to score two runs and break a deadlock for good. Reynolds won his second game and struck out six going the distance allowing three but shutting out the Cardinals for the final 5 innings. Craig Biggio went 3-4 and ended the series with a ,350 average.
1995 Houston Astros Defeat 1964 St. Louis Cardinals 4 Games To 1
Series MVP:
Dave Magadan
(.474. 5 R, 3 RBI, .565 OBP, 1 2B, 1.092 OPS)