BALTIMORE 10, MINNESOTA 6 IN MINNESOTA
Date: Saturday, October 3.
Batting stars: George Mitterwald was 3-for-4 with two runs and two RBIs. Tony Oliva was 3-for-4. Harmon Killebrew was 2-for-5 with a home run and two RBIs. Cesar Tovar was 2-for-5.
Pitching stars: Stan Williams pitched three shutout innings, giving up two hits and a walk. Ron Perranoski struck out two in a scoreless inning.
Opposition stars: Brooks Robinson was 3-for-3 with a double. Boog Powell was 2-for-5 with a home run and two RBIs. Elrod Hendricks was 2-for-5 with two runs. Mike Cuellar was 1-for-2 with a grand slam. Don Buford was 1-for-3 with a home run and two walks. Dick Hall pitched 4.2 scoreless innings, giving up one hit and striking out three.
The game: The Twins got on the board first. Tovar led off the first with a single, was bunted to second, and scored on a Killebrew single. The Orioles took the lead in the second, however. One-out singles by Hendricks and Robinson put two on, and Dave Johnson was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Mark Belanger hit a potential double play grounder, but a throwing error by Danny Thompson allowed two runs to score and put Baltimore up 2-1. The Twins tied it in the second when Mitterwald singled, went to third on Thompson's double, and scored on a squeeze bunt by Jim Perry.
But the roof fell in in the fourth inning. Frank Robinson and Hendricks led off with singles, and a sacrifice fly by Brooks Robinson put the Orioles ahead again. Singles by Johnson and Belanger loaded the bases, and Mike Cuellar--Mike Cuellar--hit a grand slam to make it 7-2 Baltimore. Buford followed with another homer, and with two out Powell homered, making the score 9-2.
The Twins tried to battle back. In the bottom of the fourth Mitterwald singled, went to second on an infield grounder, and scored on a Tovar single. Killebrew led off the fifth with a home run, followed by an Oliva doubled. Brant Alyea walked, a ground out moved them to second and third, and Mitterwald delivered a two-run single to cut the lead to 9-6.
But that was as good as it would get. The Orioles added a run in the sixth when Hall singled, went to second on a walk to Buford, and scored on Powell's single, making it 10-6. The Twins got only one hit in the last four innings.
WP: Hall (1-0).
LP: Perry (0-1).
S: None.
Notes: Thompson was at second base in place of Rod Carew. Bob Allison pinch-hit for Bill Zepp in the fourth inning. Frank Quilici went to second in the sixth inning as part of a double switch. Jim Holt pinch-hit for Williams in the eighth. Carew pinch-hit for Quilici in the eighth. Holt stayed in the game in center field, with Tovar moving to second base.
Neither starting pitcher fared well. Perry pitched 3.1 innings, giving up eight runs (seven earned) on eight hits and a walk and striking out one. Mike Cuellar pitched 4.1 innings, allowing six runs on ten hits and a walk and striking out two.
These losses to the Orioles were almost as frustrating as the losses to the Yankees would be thirty-some years later. You lose because Mike Cuellar, of all people, hits a grand slam. Cuellar hit seven home runs for his career and had a lifetime line of .115/.128/.171. And he hits a grand slam. Incredible. It's really to the Twins credit that they continued to fight and battled back as well as they did. I mean, I know that's what they're supposed to do and what they get paid to do, but still, giving up that grand slam, and then seeing two more home runs that same inning, had to be really disheartening.
It was a different time, and that plays into it, but I still think you can question using one of the two best relievers, Williams, for three innings in that situation. Yes, you never want to give up on a playoff game, and back then, they still might bring Williams back in the next game. But still, burning one of your two best relievers in a game that, let's face it, the odds are against you coming back to win doesn't make much sense.
But, tomorrow's another day, and the Twins would try to get the series back to even.
Record: The Twins trailed the best-of-five series, 0-1.