Tuesday, November 11, 2014

NL Shuts Out AL to Take '82 All-Star Game, 6-0

MONTREAL -- Charlie Hustle beat out a bobbled grounder in the first inning, eventually coming around to score the first and only run the National League would need to dominate the American League, 6-0, in a 1982 APBA All-Star Game replay.

Pete Rose got the Nationals started in the third inning as well, slapping a lead-off single and scoring on another single by hometown favorite Gary Carter. The pair of runs earned Rose the game's MVP award at Stade Olympique before 59,057 fans.

Montreal starter Steve Rogers got the win, pitching two scoreless innings. He set the tone early, striking out Oakland's Ricky Henderson to start the game. Boston starter Dennis Eckersley took the loss, after allowing Rose to score the unearned run in the bottom of the first inning.

The NL all-stars outhit the AL 13-2. LA outfielder Dusty Baker went 2-for-2, including a double and drove in two runs. Also smacking doubles for the National League were Lonnie Smith, John Stearns and Bob Horner.

A pair of double plays by the NL helped keep the American League from mounting any kind of comeback, as all they could muster were a pair of singles by Carlton Fisk and Paul Molitor. Only one American League runner, Henderson, reached second, after stealing the base following a walk in the third inning.

In succession, Fernando Valenzuela, Phil Niekro, Steve Carlton, Greg Minton and Steve Howe followed Rogers in shutting out the Americans. Howe struck out Hal McRae to end the game in the top of the ninth.

The Brewers, who lead the majors in victories with a 55-30 record at the break, were well-represented. Cecil Cooper started the game at first base, with Robin Yount at shortstop. Yount walked in his first at-bat, giving the AL its first base runner. Ben Oglivie grounded into a double play in the fifth inning while pinch-hitting for Brewer hurler Pete Vuckovich. Molitor went 1-for-2, striking out in addition to his sixth-inning single.

Vuckovich struggled in two innings of work, giving up two runs on four hits after relieving Eckersley. Bullpen ace Rollie Fingers fared a bit better, getting out of the seventh inning after allowing the run-scoring double by Stearns.

Molitor and Vuckovich were added to the AL squad after their outstanding performance for Milwaukee over the first half of the season.

The Brewers will continue their drive to the team's first American League pennant when they resume play against the Chicago White Sox at Comiskey Park.

Here are the latest stats from the Brewers replay

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Sunday, November 9, 2014

Brewers Reach 55 Wins by '82 All-star Break

With a 13th-inning walk-off three-run home run by Gorman Thomas, the Brewers cruised into the 1982 all-star break with an 8-5 win over the Braves and a 55-30 record.

The Brewers closed the first-half of this APBA baseball season replay on a two-game win streak, defeating the Braves for the second straight day. Jim Slaton earned his eighth victory with three innings of scoreless relief.

Meanwhile, fans voted shortstop Robin Yount and first-baseman Cecil Cooper into the starting lineup for the American League all-stars. They will be joined in Montreal by teammates Paul Molitor, Ben Oglivie, Pete Vuckovich and Rollie Fingers.

The Brewers' league-leading offensive attack has been led by the one-two punch of Molitor and Yount. Molitor already has tallied 74 runs, 17 home runs, 24 stolen bases and a .337 batting average. Likewise, Yount has piled up MVP numbers including a .354 batting average, 57 runs, 66 RBI, 29 doubles and 14 home runs.

While Cooper started the season slowly, the all-star is now batting .312 with 58 RBI and 13 home runs.

The Brewers have already crushed 115 home runs, led by Oglivie with 22. Thomas and designated hitter Don Money have added 15 homers apiece. Money also is batting .325 and has driven in 46 runs in the cleanup spot.

With his 12-2 record, Vuckovich leads a pitching staff that has a combined 3.30 ERA. Among the starters, Moose Haas is 9-4; Randy Lerch stands at 7-4 and Mike Caldwell is even at 6-6. In addition to his eight wins, Slaton has compiled three saves while pitching mostly in relief.

Fingers, the all-star and future hall-of-famer, has four wins to go along with his 15 saves.

To this point, the Brewers have compiled a 28-14 record at home and are 27-16 on the road. The Brew Crew has amassed a 16-9 record so far in interleague play. (The AL Brewers' schedule was tweaked to include 48 interleague games, four against each of the 12 National League squads.)

This Brewers team, my favorite all-time, started quickly in this replay, sweeping the Blue Jays and winning their first five games. They built up a 12-5 record in April, followed by a 20-9 record in May. They went 17-11 in June and are 6-5 so far in July.

Among the season highlights so far:

April 9 -- The Brewers opened the season with a 10-0 win in Toronto on opening day. Vuckovich tossed the day one shutout. The offense included three-run homers by Yount and Thomas and a two-run shot by Molitor.

April 21 -- Money hits a two-run walk-off home run to down the Blue Jays 3-2. Buck Martinez had hit a solo homer in the top of the ninth to put Toronto ahead.

April 22 -- For the second straight day, the Brewers win 5-3on a two-run walk-off home run, this time by Oglivie in the bottom of the 10th inning versus the Blue Jays.

April 28 -- Second-baseman Jim Gantner led off the bottom of the ninth inning with a game-typing solo home run. Later in the inning, Cooper drove in Yount with the winning run. The Brewers hit four homers in the game, a 7-6 win over the White Sox.

May 1 -- Oglivie hits a pair of home runs in a 9-1 win over the Twins. Vuckovich throws a six-hitter.

May 2 -- Roy Howell hits a two-run homer in the 13th inning for a 4-3 win over the Twins.

May 6 -- The Brewers destroy the Cardinals 11-1 as Vuckovich gets another complete game win.

May 9 -- Gantner is the hero again, hitting one to the wall to drive in a pair of runs for a 6-5 win in the bottom of the 11th inning against the Twins. Gantner went 3-for-5 with a double, home run and four RBI.

May 15 -- Haas shuts out the Cubs 6-0, defeating hall-of-famer Fergie Jenkins.

May 23 -- Money hits a pair of homers in a 10-2 blowout of the Mariners. Molitor and Thomas also hit round-trippers.

May 27 -- Cooper and Money hit back-to-back homers to defeat the Angels 3-2 in Anaheim. Vuckovich gets the win, with a save by Fingers.

June 2 -- Oglivie's two-run homer in the 11th inning propels the Brewers to a 3-1 win over the Astros in the Astrodome.

June 8 -- Every batter in the lineup gets at least one hit in the Brewers' 7-1 win over the Orioles. Lerch gets the win.

June 9 -- Thomas gets a walk-off bases-loaded walk to defeat the Orioles 6-5. The free pass was the third in a row by O's reliever Tim Stoddard.

June 18 -- Yount and Cooper go a combined 8-for-9 with five runs, four RBI and four doubles in an 8-6 win over the Tigers.

June 19 -- Haas shuts out the Tigers on three hits for a 1-0 win at old Tiger Stadium. Oglivie hit a solo home run in the ninth inning against his former team for the only score.

June 23 -- The Crew scores seven runs in the bottom of the first inning off Mike Morgan on their way to a 9-1 win over the Yankees.

July 4 -- The Brewers complete a three-game sweep of the Red Sox with an 8-2 win on Independence Day.

July 7 -- Molitor hits a leadoff home run as the Brewers pound the Padres 13-6. Yount scored three runs and drove in five with a double, triple and a home run.

July 9 -- The Expos rally to score three runs, including two off Fingers, in the ninth inning to drop the Brewers 4-3. D'oh!

July 11 -- The Brewers pound out 19 hits in a 12-3 victory over the Braves, including a triple and a home run by Yount, who scored two and drove in five.

Note: Check out the Brewers' up-to-date stats here.

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