Playoffs, playoffs, playoffs. Every game here featured at least one team bound for the postseason or one desperately trying to force their way in.
#Birmingham Black Barons @ Detroit Wolverines, Game 1
The matchup between Birmingham's
Alejandro Peña and Detroit's
Hal Newhouser was supposed to be a pitching duel, and while it started that way, things got out of hand in the bottom of the 4th when Detroit rocked Peña for 6 runs on an RBI single from
Hank Greenberg, a 3-run shot from
Oscar Gamble, and a 2-run homer from
Ed Bailey. But the Black Barons made a comeback, keyed by a 3-run dinger from
Curtis Granderson and a 2-run double from
Eddie Mathews. That gave Birmingham a 7-6 lead heading into the bottom of the 8th.
Bruce Chen has been quite reliable for Birmingham all season, but Detroit touched him for 2 runs on a single from
Al Kaline to take the lead. But
Mike Henneman, the league leader in saves, couldn't hold the 8-7 advantage, giving up a 2-run shot to Mathews in the top of the 9th. Birmingham's closer,
Juan Rincón held it down in the bottom of the inning, keeping Birmingham's postseason drive alive.
BBB 9 (Bedrosian 4-2; Rincón 26 Sv; Merkcer 3 H; Chen 1 B Sv) @ DET 8 (Henneman 2-7, 6 B Sv; Lolich H 7; Schmidt 1 B Sv)
HRs: BBB - Granderson (18), Mathews (25); DET - Gamble (28), E. Bailey (9).
Box Score
#Houston Colt 45's @ Wandering House of David, Game 1
George Gore hit 2 homeruns, including a walk-off blast in the bottom of the 12th inning to secure a 10-8 victory for the House of David. Gore finished the day with 3 hits and 5 RBIs. Houston was unable to pull out the victory, despite out-hitting the House of David, 17-10, led by 3 hits each from
Jimmy Wynn and
George Brett.
Houston took the lead with 4 runs in the 8th, keyed by a 2-run triple from
Pete Hill and RBI doubles from
Andrés Galarraga and Brett, but
Ernie Banks tied it up in the bottom of the inning with a 2-run single. Each team scored in the 11th (Houston on a double from
Tony Gwynn, the House of David on
Elrod Hendricks' 36th homerun of the season), setting the stage for Gore's heroics in the 12th.
HOU 8 (Hartley 1-2; Howell H 4; Wagner 9 B Sv) @ HOD 10 (Jenkins 4-6) [12 Innings]
HRs: HOU - Brett (7); HOD - Rizzo (14), Edmonds (18), Gore 2 (5), Hendricks (36).
Box Score
#Memphis Red Sox @ Brooklyn Royal Giants, Game 2
Brooklyn left it late, but preserved their slim post-season hopes by scoring 2 in the bottom of the 9th to beat Memphis, 4-3. The Red Sox tallied a run in the 2nd, 3rd, and 5th to take a 3-0 lead, including the resurgent
Sammy Sosa's 7th homerun for his new team. Memphis'
Len Barker was sailing along until the bottom of the 5th when Brooklyn's
Germany Smith--a surprising source of power for the Royal Giants--went deep with
Al López on base to make it a 1-run game.
Both bullpens were solid into the 9th, with
Tim Wakefield and
Jon Lester for Memphis and
Orel Hershiser and
Fernando Valenzuela for Brooklyn each keeping the score 3-2 Memphis. Then, in the bottom of the 9th,
Roy White greeted Memphis'
Heath Bell with a homerun to tie the game. White's blast was followed by singles from
Ron Cey,
Frank Isbell, and pinch-hitting
Matt Holliday, giving Brooklyn a walk-off victory.
MEM 3 (Bell 9-5, 3 B Sv; Wakefield 4 H; Lester 2 H) @ BRK 4 (Gagne 6-5)
HRs: MEM - Sosa (7); BRK - Smith (6), White (17).
Box Score
#Chicago American Giants @ Portland Sea Dogs, Game 4
This game featured 2 playoff teams, and held some storylines to keep a watch on as we move into the postseason.
For Portland, who scored 6 runs in their final 2 innings,
Gavvy Cravath shows no sign of slowing down since his mid-season acquisition. In this game, Cravath had 3 hits and 3 RBIs. The key here is the efficiency of the Sea Dogs, who scored 7 times on 12 singles (a bit of an oddity for a team that is 3rd in the league in homeruns and top-half in extra base hits overall). For Chicago, the bullpen continues to be a bit of a worry, as neither
Hoyt Wilhelm nor
Ken Sanders were effective in this one after a decent start from
David Price.
CAG 4 (Wilhelm 5-5, 2 B Sv) @ POR 7 (Miller 11-6; Porterfield 7 Sv)
HRs: none.
Box Score