Total Baseball (1994 Edition)/Total_Baseball_1994_Edition_Creative_Multimedia_1994.iso/dp/0000/00007.txt

Text File | 1994-02-14 | 91KB | 1,260 lines

$Unique_ID{BAS00007}
$Pretitle{}
$Title{The History of Major League Baseball:  Part 3}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{
Voigt, David Q.}
$Subject{History Histories Baseball Major League Leagues Expansion Era MLPA
Expanding Majors Sixties Seventies}
$Log{}

Total Baseball:  The History


The History of Major League Baseball:  Part 3

David Q. Voigt


The Expansion Era Begins, 1961-1968

     In this turbulent decade of American history, major league baseball's
tradition-breaking expansion ranked as one of the lesser social disturbances.
A time of massive social unrest, the strident sixties saw most established
institutions targeted by would-be reformers. Sparking the fires of unrest
were the assassinations of the Kennedy brothers and Martin Luther King, the
great black civil rights leader. In the wake of these tragedies came storms
of protest demonstrations supportive of increased freedom for individuals and
for oppressed minorities. But as the decade wore on, the major focus of the
protests centered on the nation's involvement in the Vietnam War. This
country's latest struggle against the spread of international Communism began
in the mid-1960s and lasted until 1973. An unpopular war, the Vietnam
involvement consumed over 50,000 American soldiers' lives, polarized the
nation into factions embattled over the morality of the war, and ended in a
political and military defeat. Moreover, the violent protests against the war
spilled over into other social institutions. Thus demonstrations and protest
movements by black Americans aimed at securing civil rights and economic
betterment erupted at times into urban riots. And among other discontented
minorities, many women organized into protest movements and demanded economic
and political equality. At this time the widespread consciousness-raising
appealed to many Americans, who supported such slogans as "Freedom Now" and
affected new lifestyles in social relations, speech, clothing, and hairstyles.
And by the end of the decade such supporters included numbers of major league
ballplayers, who sought relief from long-established paternal controls imposed
upon them by baseball law and custom.
     Meanwhile, other forces of change were reshaping the nation and its
national game. In this decade the nation's population soared past 200
million, with nearly half that number concentrated in some thirteen sprawling
urban regions. Thus even as major league owners embarked upon an initial
expansion course in 1960-1961, these new demographics portended further
expansion of the two leagues along with the possible relocation of teams now
situated in deteriorating urban areas.
     Nevertheless, amidst all the disturbing changes the nation's economy
continued to prosper. Although they were sapped by continuing inflation, the
average wages of all workers rose to an annual figure of $8,000 by the end of
the decade. As a result, annual spending for recreation rose to $18 billion,
with television viewing continuing to reign as the most popular leisure
outlet.
     The continuing popularity of televised sports programs, now shown in
color with ever-improving visual effects, was a boon to professional sports.
While baseball profited from this popular medium, so did half a dozen rival
sports. Among these, professional football expanded rapidly under the impetus
of hefty national TV contracts which clubowners shared equally. By occupying
most of the major urban regions, pro football now threatened baseball's pre-
eminent position among the nation's favorite team sports. Indeed, in 1967
professional football's Super Bowl outscored the World Series in television
ratings.
     In stark contrast to pro football's bold expansionist course was major
league baseball's limited expansion movement of these years. Baseball's
initial expansion took place over the years 1961-1962 and was primarily an
attempt to undercut the threat of the rival Continental League. Under this
expansion, each major league added two teams and upped its seasonal playing
schedule to 162. A significant departure, the addition of eight more games to
playing schedules would drastically affect statistical comparisons of seasonal
performances. Moreover, each new franchise owner paid $2 million, which was
divided among the eight established clubs of each major league, and also
participated in an expansion draft, which was used to enable the owners to
stock their teams with players. But since established teams were permitted to
withhold their best twenty-five players from the pool of eligibles, the new
owners were forced to purchase unprotected cullings.
     Under these procedures, the AL took the first expansion plunge in 1961.
That year the AL added the Los Angeles Angels and a new edition of the
Washington Senators. At the request of owner Cal Griffith, the original
Senators relocated to Bloomington, Minnesota, where they became the Minnesota
Twins. The furor evoked by that breakaway move forced AL owners to admit the
new Washington Senators. It was an unwise move, as the franchise languished
under weak ownership and poor attendance. In 1972 the Senators moved to
Arlington, Texas, where they fared better as the Texas Rangers. Nor did the
AL Angels fare well in Los Angeles, where they were upstaged by O'Malley's
Dodgers. However, this well-financed team found prosperity when it was moved
to nearby Anaheim in 1965.
     For its part the NL did better under its 1962 expansion. That year the
NL occupied Houston, where the Colt .45s occupied temporary quarters while
awaiting the construction of their new all-weather indoor Astrodome Stadium.
When the Astrodome opened in 1965, this expansion team took on a new identity
as the Houston Astros. Meanwhile, as part of a deal which allowed the AL to
occupy the Los Angeles territory, the NL reoccupied the New York area by
admitting the New York Mets. Although the Mets lost 120 games in their first
season of play, the team was generously supported by suffering fans, who
rejoiced in the return of NL baseball to the Gotham area. After playing its
first two seasons in the old Polo Grounds, the Mets moved into newly built
Shea Stadium, located in Queens.
     Thus did the major leagues move into their first phase of expansion. But
each passing season underscored the inadequacy of the ten-club format. Like
the twelve-club NL of the 1890s, the ten-club array of the 1960s produced too
many losers each season. Annual attendance was disappointing. By 1968,
overall major league attendance topped that of 1960 by only 3 million
admissions. And added to the problems of this phase of expansion were two
controversial franchise shifts. In 1966 the NL's Milwaukee Braves abandoned
that city for Atlanta, and in 1968 the AL's Athletics departed Kansas City for
Oakland, California, where they poached upon the territory of the NL Giants.
Each of these breakaway moves aroused protests from fans of the abandoned
sites, and each prompted lawsuits which affected future expansion moves.
     Meanwhile major league teams continued to face a growing shortage of
playing talent. At most schools and colleges, where baseball now ranked as a
minor sport, scouts complained that major sports like football and basketball
were getting the best athletes. With the minor leagues shrinking alarmingly,
major league owners in 1962 adopted a remedial Player Development Plan. Under
this scheme, the minor leagues were reclassified, and each major league team
agreed to subsidize at least five minor league teams. And to equitably
distribute the limited supply of young prospects, the majors in 1965 adopted
the radical plan of an annual free agent (rookie) draft. Under its
provisions, each major league club in turn picked from a nationwide pool of
high school and college prospects. Thus except for prospecting in foreign
countries, the annual rookie draft ended the long and colorful era of
free-enterprise scouting in America.
     Along with the prevailing national mood of liberation for oppressed
groups, the chronic player shortage helped to kindle reformist sentiments
among this generation of major league players. More pampered and better
trained, doctored, and defended than past generations of players, players of
this decade demanded improved salaries, pensions, and working conditions. In
these years player disdain for traditional authority was rife, and this was
candidly spelled out in revelatory books, including bestsellers authored by
pitchers Jim Brosnan and Jim Bouton. And in a precedent-shattering move in
1966, Dodger pitchers Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale, acting on the advice of a
lawyer, staged a successful joint holdout for hefty salary increases. That
same year, player representatives strengthened the moribund Major League
Players Association (MLPA) by successfully engineering the election of Marvin
Miller, an experienced labor negotiator, to serve as the Association's
executive director. Landing Miller proved to be a master stroke for the
players' cause. By rallying the players and by invoking federal labor
relations laws, Miller forced the clubowners to recognize and to bargain
collectively with the MLPA. During his seventeen years as executive director,
Miller negotiated five Basic Agreements, or labor contracts, which wrung from
owners unprecedented concessions and benefits. The Basic Agreements of 1966
and 1969 increased pension benefits and raised minimum salaries along with
other gains. Thus by 1970 average player salaries, which totaled $17,000 in
1965, rose to $25,000. At the same time some twenty players were being paid
annual salaries of at least $100,000 a year. But Miller's greatest coup of
this decade was to win the solid support of major league players behind the
MLPA. And by the end of this decade, major league umpires also won
recognition and bargaining rights under their newly formed Major League
Umpires Association.
     Among the deserving recipients of increasing salaries were the growing
numbers of black players in major league uniforms. By the end of the sixties,
well over a hundred black Americans and scores of Latin Americans were playing
in the majors. What's more, their offensive production made a reality of the
prevailing Afro-American protest slogan that "black is beautiful."  In these
years black hitters dominated major league offenses. In the NL, black stars
won seven homer titles, as many MVP awards, and six batting titles. And in
the AL, blacks won three batting titles and three MVP awards. Among the
reigning black superstars, Willie Mays of the Giants was voted Player of the
Decade by The Sporting News; indeed, Mays posted a remote threat to overtake
Ruth's lifetime homer mark, and at the end of his career he had powered 660
homers. But by the end of the decade more observers were touting Braves'
outfielder Hank Aaron's chances of bettering Ruth. Meanwhile at this time,
Frank Robinson became the first player to win an MVP Award in each major
league, and outfielder Roberto Clemente of the Pirates won three NL batting
titles.
     Sparkling alongside such stars were white prodigies like Roger Maris, who
blasted 61 homers in 162 games in 1961, to set a new seasonal mark for homer
production; or Carl Yastrzemski, who won an AL Triple Crown; or Pete Rose, who
broke in as a rookie in 1963 with the Cincinnati Reds and would later break
Cobb's lifetime total of 4,191 hits.
     Indeed, such offensive performances occurred despite the hitting famine
caused by the dominant pitchers of this era. Abetting the hitting famine was
the rule that expanded the strike zone for the 1963 season. But improved
coaching techniques, improved gloves and defensive strategies, and, above all,
the astute deployment of specialized relief pitchers tolled on hitters of the
era. As a result, pitching ERAs averaged 3.30 in this era, and in 1968, the
notorious "year of the pitcher," hurlers combined to produce an overall ERA of
2.98, which was the lowest earned run mark in nearly forty years. Not
surprisingly, the impact of such virtuosity on hitting was traumatic. In 1967
major league hitters averaged .242, and in 1968 batting bottomed to a nadir of
.237. It was that puny mark which prompted remedial action by the rules
committee, whose members voted to narrow strike zones and lower pitching
mounds for the 1969 season. Such medicine broke the hitting famine, but while
it lasted star pitchers made the most of their skills. In 1968 Cardinal ace
Bob Gibson posted a 1.12 ERA and fanned a record 35 batters in three
appearances in the World Series that fall. That same year, Denny McLain of
the Tigers became the first hurler in over thirty years to break the 30-game
victory barrier with a 31-6 performance; and Don Drysdale of the Dodgers
posted a record 58 consecutive shutout innings. Moreover, in this decade
fifteen pitchers would go on to join the ranks of the twenty all-time
strikeout leaders.
     However, many observers blamed the dominant pitching for lowering
seasonal attendance marks in these years. From a record of 15 million in
1966, NL attendance slipped to 11.7 million in 1968, "the year of the
pitcher."  Nevertheless, annual NL attendance consistently bettered that of
the AL; overall NL attendance of this era topped that of the AL by 16 million
admissions. But a major factor accounting for NL attendance strength was the
greater number of new ballparks in the senior circuit. In this decade, seven
of the ten newly constructed parks were occupied by NL teams. Of these, nine
were publicly financed, but the privately financed Dodger Stadium now
attracted the lion's share of NL attendance.
     But rising television revenues dispelled some of the anxieties over
falling attendance. By 1967, revenues from local and national television
contracts rose to $25 million, with no sign of abating. On the other hand, by
urging more night games, by raising the value of major league franchises, by
making celebrities of players, and by the presence of television entrepreneurs
in the ranks of club owners, television was reshaping the game. To some
alarmists, television's influence was menacing. In 1964 the sale of the
Yankees to the powerful CBS Network fed fears of excessive television
influence. However, such fears were allayed by the declining fortunes of the
Yankees under CBS management and by the 1973 resale of the team to private
interests.

Campaigns of the Sixties:  The AL, 1961-1968

     By first expanding to ten teams in 1961, the AL led the NL both in
attendance and in hitting. But when the NL followed suit in 1962, the AL was
annually worsted in both categories. And when the hitting famine ravaged the
major leagues late in this era, except for their leadership in homer hitting,
AL batters suffered more.
     To add to AL woes, the Yankees continued to monopolize pennants and
overall attendance. Four more victories over the years 1961-1964 extended the
Yankees' latest consecutive string of pennants to five, during which time the
New Yorkers attracted 40 percent of the league's attendance. However, the
latest Yankee surge was marred by losses in their last two World Series
appearances. And in the wake of their loss to the Cardinals in the 1964 World
Series, the Yankees collapsed suddenly and ignominiously. Thereafter, another
twelve seasons would pass before a Yankee team again rose to the top of the
league. But if rival clubs welcomed the tyrant's fall, they also discovered
the draining impact of a weakened Yankee club on AL attendance.
     In the AL's first expansion campaign, the 1961 Yankees powered their way
to an 8-game win over the Tigers. With Roger Maris bashing a new seasonal
record of 61 homers and Mantle poling 54, the Yankees unleashed a record
seasonal team barrage of 240 homers. Maris also led the league in RBIs with
142, and Mantle knocked in 128. Ace pitcher Whitey Ford's 25 victories led
the league's hurlers and reliever Luis Arroyo's 29 saves was tops in the
league. While some observers blamed the Yankee power explosion on the
expansion draft, which supposedly weakened pitching staffs around the league,
the Yankees had no trouble downing the NL champion Reds in six games in the
1961 World Series.
     In 1962 the Yankees won again, beating the Twins by 5 games.
League-leading .267 batting and pitcher Ralph Terry's league-leading 23
victories spearheaded the attack. The switch-hitting Mantle's .321 batting
topped the team, but this time around the Maris-Mantle slugging combination
tailed off to a more modest 63 homers and 189 RBIs. Then, in a seven-game
struggle that was drawn out by unprecedented rain delays, the Yankees defeated
the Giants in the 1962 World Series. In the dramatic final game, Terry
pitched a 1-0 shutout, but second baseman Bobby Richardson gloved a screaming
liner by Giant slugger Willie McCovey to save the Yankee victory.
     In retrospect the Yankee glory years ended with the 1962 victory. With
Mantle sidelined much of the 1963 season, the Yankees batted only .252, but
still romped to an easy 10 1/2-game victory over the hard-hitting Twins.
Superb pitching by Ford (whose 24 wins led the league) and by Bouton (who won
21 games) sparked the drive. But in World Series play the Yankees were swept
by the Dodgers. Still, the Yankees mounted one last winning effort in 1964.
Rallying from six games back in the late going, the team overtook the White
Sox and Orioles to win by 1 game over the White Sox. Mantle's last great
batting effort (.303-35-111) powered the team, and Ford, Bouton, and Al
Downing combined for 48 pitching victories. But it took a nine-game winning
streak in September, highlighted by the pitching of rookie Mel Stottlemyre, to
turn the trick. However, the Yankees again fell in World Series play, this
time losing to the Cardinals in seven games.
     In the wake of that loss, like the wonderful one-hoss shay, the aging
Yankees collapsed "all at once and nothing first."  In 1965 the team sank to
sixth place and in 1966 they finished last. The suddenness of the team's
collapse was reflected in AL attendance figures; in 1965 AL attendance lagged
5 million behind that of the NL. Into the breach left by the faltering
Yankees rushed other contenders, but no team held the heights for more than a
single season. First to reach the top were the Minnesota Twins, who won the
1965 race by 7 games over the White Sox. Outfielder Tony Oliva topped all
hitters with .321 batting and paced the team's league-leading .254 hitting.
Aging slugger and future Hall of Famer Harmon Killebrew hit 25 homers.
Pitcher Jim "Mudcat" Grant's 21 wins led all pitchers; Jim Kaat won 18, and
reliever Al Worthington won 10 and saved 21. But for a third consecutive time
the NL prevailed in World Series action, as the Twins lost to the Dodgers in
seven games.
     The AL ended its string of World Series losses in 1966, and with this
victory the league's teams weaned themselves of Yankee dependence. Indeed,
over the preceding eighteen seasons no AL team but the Yankees had won a
world title. In exorcising that bugaboo, the Baltimore Orioles began by
dispatching the Twins by 9 games. Outfielder Frank Robinson keyed the team's
.258 batting assault with league-leading .316-49-122 hitting. The performance
won Robinson a Triple Crown and placed him in the records as the first player
ever to win an MVP Award in both major leagues. Infielders Brooks Robinson
and John "Boog" Powell combined to drive in 209 runs, and the Oriole bullpen
corps saved 51 games to make life easier for the young starting pitchers. But
in the 1966 World Series three of these pitching prodigies--Jim Palmer, Wally
Bunker, and Steve Barber--hurled consecutive shutouts as the Orioles swept the
favored Dodgers.
     The rising Orioles were destined to become the AL's winningest team of
the next 20 years, but in 1967 they slumped to sixth place, which opened the
door of opportunity to yet another contender. In a close race the Boston Red
Sox won their first pennant since 1946 by edging the Tigers by a game. In
winning the Red Sox overcame the loss of promising young outfielder Tony
Conigliaro, who suffered a career-threatening beaning; at the time of his
accident, Conigliaro had 20 homers and 67 RBIs. But future Hall of Fame
outfielder Carl Yastrzemski won a Triple Crown on .326-44-121 batting to front
the team's league leadership in batting (.255) and homers (158). Pitcher Jim
Lonborg's 22 wins led the league and reliever John Wyatt saved 20 games. But
like their forebears of 1946, the 1967 Red Sox lost to the Cardinals in a
seven-game World Series encounter.
     In the last year of the ten-club format, the AL race produced the weakest
seasonal hitting of this century. As the Red Sox faded, the Detroit Tigers
won by 12 games over the reviving Orioles. Although batting a mere .235 as a
team, the Tigers led the league in homers, paced by outfielder Willie Horton,
who slugged 36. And considering that the best hitting team in the league that
year, the Oakland Athletics, batted .240, the Tigers' offensive was
proportionately respectable. Moreover, the Tigers boasted pitcher Denny
McLain, who won 31 games and lost 6 with a 1.96 ERA. Matched against the
Cardinals in the 1968 World Series, the Tigers lost three of the first four
games. But pitcher Mickey Lolich won two of the next three, to spark the
Tigers to a dramatic comeback victory. It was Detroit's first world title
since the war year of 1945.
     As the year of 1968 ended, the owners voted to join with the NL in
expanding the circuit to twelve teams beginning in 1969. Mercifully for
beleaguered batters, the owners also accepted a rules committee proposal to
penalize pitchers. Thenceforth in both major leagues the strike zone would be
narrowed and pitching mounds would be lowered.

Campaigns of the Sixties:  The NL, 1962-1968

     Although the NL expanded a year after the AL took the first step, the
senior circuit was quick to reassert its offensive superiority. In its brief
seven-season span as a ten-team circuit, the NL won four of the seven World
Series encounters and seven of eight All-Star Games. Moreover, in six of the
seven seasons NL batters topped AL batters in hitting and in stolen bases.
And although the AL was better-balanced competitively in this era, as the
Dodgers and Cardinals were monopolizing six of the seven NL races, attendance
at NL games far surpassed AL attendance.
     In 1962 the NL opened its first season as an expanded circuit, with most
teams drained of their reserve strength by the expansion draft. In the
ensuing campaign, the Dodgers and Giants staged a torrid race. But a late
September losing streak by the Dodgers enabled the Giants to draw even at the
close of the playing season. To settle the issue, the fourth postseason
playoff in NL history was scheduled, with the Dodgers astonishingly involved
in all of them. And when Dodger relief pitchers blew a 4-2 lead in the ninth
inning of the decisive third game, the Dodgers lost a playoff for the third
time. For their part, the Dodgers were led that season by pitcher Don
Drysdale, whose 25 wins led all pitchers, and by outfielder Tommy Davis, whose
.346 batting and 153 RBIs led all NL hitters. But the hard-hitting Giants led
the league in batting (.278) and in homers (204). Superstar Willie Mays led
the Giant attack with .304 batting, 141 RBIs, and a league-leading 49 homers.
Fellow outfielders Felipe Alou and Harvey Kuenn topped the .300 mark, and
first baseman Orlando Cepeda weighed in with .306 batting, 35 homers, and 114
RBIs. Pitcher Jack Sanford won 24 games, and Juan Marichal and Billy O'Dell
combined for 37, while reliever Stu Miller saved 19. However, the Giants lost
a seven-game World Series duel to the Yankees.
     Thereafter the Dodgers and Cardinals divided the remaining six NL
championships of this era. In 1963 the Dodgers won by 6 games over the
Cardinals. The team batted a modest .251, but Tommy Davis batted .326 to
notch his second straight NL batting title, and shortstop Maury Wills batted
.302 and led the league in stolen bases with 40. What really counted was the
pitching, as the staff's 2.85 ERA was the league's best. That year lefty
Sandy Koufax began a four-year skein of mastery that would propel him into the
Hall of Fame. The ace's 25 wins and 1.88 ERA topped all hurlers, and reliever
Ron Perranoski's 21 saves was the league's second best mark. In the 1963
World Series, the team's dominant pitching limited Yankee batters to a
.171 batting average as the Dodgers swept to victory.
     Dodger pitching again topped the league in 1964, with Koufax winning 19
and leading all hurlers with a 1.74 ERA, but poor hitting consigned Alston's
men to sixth place. In a hotly contested five-team race, the Phillies led the
pack by 6 1/2 games with 12 games remaining on the schedule. But ten
consecutive losses dropped the Phillies into a second-place tie with the Reds.
The Phillies' swoon opened the gate for the Cardinals, who won 28 of their
last 30 games. This brilliant stretch drive enabled the Redbirds to eke a
one-game victory over the Phillies and Reds. The Cardinals' league-leading
.272 batting made the difference. Infielders Bill White and Ken Boyer
combined for 45 homers and 221 RBIs, and outfielder Curt Flood batted .311.
But the timely acquisition of outfielder Lou Brock from the Cubs was decisive.
Brock batted .348 in 103 games for the Cardinals and his 43 stolen bases
ranked just behind Wills' total. And starting pitchers Bob Gibson, Ray
Sadecki, and Curt Simmons combined to win 57 games. Yet so unexpected was the
Cardinal victory that team manager Johnny Keane had signed a midseason pact to
manage the Yankees the following year. The situation raised eyebrows when the
Cardinals squared off against the Yankees in the 1964 World Series, but
lame-duck Keane led the Cardinals to a seven-game victory over the Yankees.
     In the wake of Keane's departure, the 1965 Cardinals dropped to seventh
place. Into the power vacuum rushed the Dodgers, who gained the high ground
and held it for two seasons against determined opposition from the Giants.
Each Dodger victory was a near thing; in 1965 the Dodgers edged the Giants by
2 games, and the following year by 1 1/2. In winning the 1965 pennant, the
Dodgers batted a skimpy .245, with nary a .300 hitter in the regular lineup.
But once again the Dodger pitching was superb; lefty Koufax won 26 on a 2.04
ERA, to top all NL hurlers, and Don Drysdale added 23 wins. And it was
Koufax's shutout pitching in the seventh game of the World Series which led
the team to victory over the Twins.
     Over the winter Koufax and Drysdale staged an unprecedented joint holdout
for salaries that were commensurate with their worth to the team. The two
aces won salaries in the $100,000 range although these were grudgingly granted
by owner O'Malley. But with Dodger home attendance topping the 2 million mark
for the past eight seasons, such salaries were affordable. And in the case of
Koufax, it was money well spent. In the close race of 1966 the lefty won 27
games with a 1.73 ERA, both league-leading figures. Drysdale slipped to
13-16, but reliever Phil "the Vulture" Regan saved 21 games. Such heroics
were needed as the team batted only .256 with only Tommy Davis, in limited
duty, topping the .300 mark. And in the 1966 World Series, the team's poor
batting tolled as they were swept by the Orioles.
     At the close of the 1966 campaign, the chronic arthritis in Koufax's
pitching arm forced the ace to retire at the peak of his career. Thus
disarmed, the weak-hitting Dodgers fell from contention. Not so the
Cardinals, who perched atop the NL for the next two seasons as they twice
drubbed the perennial bridesmaid Giants. In 1967 the Cardinals won by 10 1/2
games, and in 1968 they won by 9. With Gibson sidelined for much of the 1967
season, the Cardinal bullpen responded by leading the league in saves. At bat
the Cardinals hit .263, with Flood batting .335 and first baseman Orlando
Cepeda batting .325 and driving in a league-leading 111 runs. Outfielder Lou
Brock weighed in with .299 batting, and his 52 stolen bases led the league.
In the 1967 World Series, Brock's .414 batting and seven stolen bases, and
Gibson's three pitching wins and 26 strikeouts, highlighted the Cardinals'
victory in the seven-game struggle with the Red Sox.
     The following year a healthy Gibson won 22 games with a league-leading
ERA of 1.12. In support of the black ace, pitchers Nelson Briles, Steve
Carlton, and Ray Washburn combined to pitch 46 victories. Offensively,
Brock's 62 steals led the league and Flood batted .301. As a team the
Cardinals batted only .249, but in this "year of the pitcher," when overall NL
batting stood at .243, it was enough. In the 1968 World Series, Gibson fanned
a record 35 batters, but Flood's misjudging of Jim Northrup's fly ball in the
seventh game allowed the Tigers to break through and complete their memorable
come-from-behind victory.
     As the curtain descended on the 1968 season, the major league owners now
embarked on a second phase of expansion that would usher in a rich era of cash
and glory for the major league game.


The Expanding Majors, 1969-1980

     As the stormy sixties drew to a close, the nation united in applauding
the successful moon landing by American astronauts in the summer of 1969. And
if the strident countercultural protests lingered into the new decade, they
lost their steam when the Vietnam War ended in 1973. The nation still had to
weather a major political storm in 1974, when the Watergate scandal forced the
resignation of President Richard Nixon, but the passing of that crisis marked
the ending of the era of social turbulence. By then, a conservative reaction
was ascendant and was marked by such themes as religious and patriotic revival
and continuing fears of Communist expansionism.
     In retrospect, mounting economic problems turned public attention from
social protests to the harsh realities of earning a living. In 1973-1974 the
nation suffered its worst economic recession since the thirties. A
frightening accompaniment to the recession was mounting "stagflation"--a
combination of inflation and rising unemployment. Indeed, by the end of the
seventies an estimated 24 million Americans were living at or near the poverty
level. To cope with the problem, millions of wives and mothers entered the
labor force. As a result, the nation's birthrate declined sharply over the
years 1973-1979. Nevertheless, abetted by the falling death rate, the
population continued to grow; from a level of 204 million in 1970, the
population reached 226 million by 1980.
     The trend toward dual-income families in this era translated into rising
incomes (albeit, inflated dollars) for most Americans. Nor did rising prices
for consumer goods dampen the people's ardor for leisure and recreational
pursuits. By the end of the decade, annual spending for recreation reached
$40 billion. And because watching televised sports maintained its status as
one of the most favored leisure outlets, the popularity of major team sports
like baseball increased. For major league club owners of this era, this
translated into heftier profits from television sources and surging attendance
at the turnstiles.
     Happily for major league baseball interests, such increasing prosperity
followed hard after its latest expansion movement. In 1968 major league
owners voted to add two teams to each league, thus increasing the 1969 major
league membership to twenty-four teams. Under the new format, which imitated
professional football's earlier and successful experiment, each league was
realigned into six-team Eastern and Western Divisions. The 162-game seasonal
schedule was retained, with each team playing its intradivisional opponents
eighteen times and outsiders twelve times. At the close of a season, the new
format called for the two divisional winners in each league to meet in a
best-of-five-game playoff series to determine the league championship.
Afterward, the champions of each league would meet in the usual World Series
competition to determine the ultimate winner.
     Supporters of this revolutionary new format touted its successful
precedent in pro football and its competitive advantage over the recent
ten-team system. Proponents also counted on the lure of each season's
divisional races to sustain public interest; after all, such races would
return four winners each season instead of two. Furthermore, a divisional
winning team got to fly a pennant even if it subsequently lost out in the
league championship playoffs. Finally, with six teams competing in each
division, the worst any team might do was finish a season in sixth place. It
was nice sleight-of-hand logic, and it worked.
     Events speedily demonstrated the wisdom of such logic. For their part,
baseball fans welcomed the new format once they got used to the new teams with
their strange-sounding totems, including the presence of a Canadian team, the
Montreal Expos, in the major league ranks. In the NL, the Expos joined the
Eastern Division along with the Cardinals, Cubs, Mets, Phillies, and Pirates;
in the NL's Western Division, the San Diego Padres were grouped with the
Astros, Braves, Dodgers, Giants, and Reds. For its part, the AL installed its
two new teams in its Western Division. There the newcoming Kansas City Royals
and Seattle Pilots vied with the Angels, Athletics, Twins, and White Sox.
However, this made for a perennially stronger Eastern Division, where the
established Indians, Orioles, Red Sox, Senators, Tigers, and Yankees were now
arrayed.
     For the privilege of obtaining one of the new franchises, each newly
admitted NL owner paid $10 million and each new AL owner paid $5.6 million;
these initiation fees were divided as a windfall among the established clubs
of each league. To stock the new teams with players, another expansion draft
was held in each league. The latest draft allowed the new owners to purchase
unprotected cullings from the rosters of established teams. And like the
first expansion draft, this latest one placed the newcomers at a competitive
disadvantage. In the NL the Expos and Padres long languished in their
divisional cellars, and neither entry won a divisional pennant in this era.
But such was not the case with the AL's newcoming Kansas City Royals club. In
their first campaign the Royals finished fourth, and over the years 1975-1980
the Royals won four divisional races and a league championship. But on the
other hand, the AL's new Seattle Pilots turned out to be a financial disaster.
After finishing last in the AL West in 1969, the bankrupt club was sold to
Milwaukee interests. There the Brewers prospered, but the relocation had the
AL pulling NL chestnuts out of a legal fire. For having earlier allowed the
Braves to abandon Milwaukee, the NL faced a menacing lawsuit (State of
Wisconsin v. Milwaukee Braves), which was quashed by the AL's decision to
relocate the Pilots. But in abandoning Seattle, the AL soon incurred a
lawsuit by Seattle interests, a threat that the AL deflected by admitting a
new Seattle team, the Mariners, in 1977. That year the AL's unilateral
expansion move added two new teams, which raised the league's membership to
fourteen clubs while that of the NL remained the same. In addition to the
newly admitted Mariners, who joined the Western Division, the AL then added
the Toronto Blue Jays to its Eastern Division. This precipitous move resulted
in an unbalanced major league format which exists to this day; moreover, since
1977 AL teams have annually played a skewed 162-game schedule.
     However, this mini-expansion ploy and another bold move of this era
enabled the AL to gain parity with its NL rival. Indeed, drastic measures
were needed to restore the AL's attendance deficit, which, over the years
1970-1976, lagged some 24 million admissions behind that of the NL. In an
early effort to regain parity, AL owners in 1972 allowed the moribund
Washington Senators to move to Arlington, Texas, where they played as the
Texas Rangers in the league's Western Division. And to balance that move, the
Milwaukee Brewers were relocated in the Eastern Division.
     But the most controversial of all AL parity measures was the league's
1973 unilateral adoption of the designated hitter rule. An experiment that
was successfully pioneered in the minors, the rule allowed a designated hitter
to bat in place of a pitcher in a team's lineup. It must be admitted that the
designated hitter rule helped to remedy the AL's chronic problem of weak
hitting. Only the year before, overall AL batting had averaged an anemic
.239. In 1973, with AL teams playing designated hitters, the seasonal batting
average rose to .259. Thenceforth AL batting averages always surpassed
seasonal NL figures. But the NL stubbornly resisted the innovation, and over
the years 1973-1985 the use of designated hitters in World Series competition
was limited to alternate years.
     Meanwhile, the AL quest for parity was aided by a spate of new ballparks.
Early in this era the NL opened five new parks. Belatedly, the AL followed
suit, with four new parks and a major refurbishing of Yankee Stadium completed
over the years 1972-1977. A new feature of some of the new parks, which
affected fielding and batting, was the use of artificial playing surfaces. At
the present time, ten major league parks are equipped with artificial playing
surfaces. In the NL, where the Houston Astros pioneered in artificial
surfacing in 1965, the Phillies, Pirates, Cardinals, Expos, and Reds now use
artificial surfacing. In the AL, the Mariners, Royals, Twins, and Blue Jays
now play home games on synthetic turfs.
     Along with new parks, other innovations such as promotional giveaways and
expanded concession sales and in-park entertainments contributed to soaring
attendance at major league games in this era. After holding at 30 million
admissions annually over the years 1973-1975, annual attendance at major
league games soared to 43 million by 1980. But if rising attendance
stimulated rising revenues, so did television. By 1980 income from national
and local TV contracts accounted for 30 percent of baseball's $500 million in
revenues of that year. Indeed, throughout the decade baseball's income from
national network TV (which all clubs shared) increased steadily. From $17.5
million in 1971, such contracts returned $27.5 million in 1980. In 1980 this
translated into a $1.8 million annual windfall for each team. And considering
that such contracts covered only World Series games, league championship
playoff games, the annual All-Star Game, and selected weekly and weekend
games, such figures were impressive.
     Indeed, major league owners might have wrung much more money from network
TV sources had they not hewed to the policy of allowing clubs to contract
individually with local TV stations. In 1975 local TV revenue totaled $31
million, and by 1980 this figure had nearly doubled. However, local TV income
was unevenly distributed, which tended to favor some clubs over others. Thus
clubs situated in more lucrative local television markets got the lion's share
of this source of revenue. Still, at the close of this era local TV markets
represented the fastest-growing segment of the television industry.
     Nor was television income an unalloyed blessing. In this era some
critics charged baseball owners with selling out to television interests when
they permitted nocturnal broadcasts of World Series games. But the popularity
of such games was evinced when an estimated 75 million TV fans witnessed the
dramatic seventh game of the 1975 World Series. But if this demonstration of
the game's popularity silenced some critics, others inveighed against the
medium's impact on other areas of the game. Among such criticisms was the
charge that TV was transforming ballplayers into highly paid and pampered
celebrity entertainers.
     Certainly player salaries in this decade soared to heights undreamed of
by past generations of players. Even allowing for the bugaboo of inflation,
the spiraling salary trend was dazzling. At the outset of this era, both a
$100,000 salaried player and a $1 million total player payroll were
exceptional. In 1971 player salaries averaged $34,000. But thereafter the
average rose to $52,000 in 1976, to $90,000 in 1978, to $100,000 in 1979, and
to an astonishing $185,000 in 1980. By 1980, indeed, payrolls of $10 million
were common and were defended by director Marvin Miller of the Players
Association, who noted salaries amounted to less than 20 percent of revenues.
     Truth to tell, much of the credit for enriching players of this era
belonged to Miller. By threatening to lead his united players in a strike in
1969, Miller was able to negotiate a second Basic Agreement, which raised the
minimum salary, increased the pension fund, and won for players the right to
use agents in bargaining for salaries with owners. Then when this contract
expired and negotiations for a new Basic Agreement bogged down in 1972, the
Players Association staged a thirteen-day strike which shortened that season's
playing schedule by forcing the cancellation of games. In the aftermath of
that strike, Miller negotiated a third Basic Agreement, which won for players
the right to arbitrate their salary disputes. In retrospect it was this
important concession that really fueled the spiraling salary trend.
     In 1975 the players scored another major coup, when the
Messersmith-McNally case was decided in their favor. That year Dodger pitcher
Andy Messersmith refused to sign his 1975 contract and, after playing the
season under his former contract, claimed his right to free agency under the
existing reserve-clause procedure. Messersmith's appeal (along with that of
pitcher Dave McNally, who chose to retire after the 1975 season) went to a
three-member arbitration panel which upheld the players' claim by a 2-1 vote.
Professional arbiter Peter Seitz joined with Miller in supporting
Messersmith's appeal against the negative vote cast by owners' representative
John Gaherin. Certainly the implications of this "Seitz decision" were
far-reaching. The decision effectively circumvented the long-established
reserve clause which had recently been tested by player Curt Flood (Flood v.
Kuhn) before the U.S. Supreme Court. At the time, in 1972, the court rejected
Flood's appeal by a 5-3 vote, but the court's ruling suggested that the
players might overturn the reserve clause by means of collective bargaining or
by legislation. The Messersmith decision was the outcome of collective
bargaining. And when the owners failed to overturn the Seitz decision on a
legal appeal, they staged a lockout of spring training camps in 1976, claiming
that the latest Basic Agreement had expired with no new labor contract in
place. However, a compromise reached by the embattled players and owners
allowed the 1976 playing season to open on time. And over the following
summer, negotiations produced a fourth Basic Agreement, which conceded free
agency to six-year veterans. The latest Agreement instituted an annual
re-entry draft procedure which enabled qualifying players to auction their
services anew. As compensation for losing a veteran player in one of the
re-entry drafts, an owner received an extra choice in the annual rookie draft.
Thus over the years 1976-1980, some owners bid high prices for the services of
veteran free agents. And in turn the gains scored by players in these annual
drafts helped to boost the salaries granted by players who opted for salary
arbitration procedures.
     The combination of re-entry draft bids and salary arbitration awards
resulted in spiraling salaries and produced a new breed of player plutocrats.
In the first re-entry draft of 1976, outfielder Reggie Jackson received a
five-year contract worth $2.93 million from Yankee owner George Steinbrenner.
In 1979 the Houston Astros plucked pitcher Nolan Ryan from the re-entry draft
by giving the hurler a $1 million annual contract. That same year outfielder
Dave Parker wrung a five-year pact worth $900,000 annually from his Pittsburgh
owners to dissuade him from entering the re-entry draft. Thus it was hardly
surprising that when the fourth Basic Agreement expired in 1980 the owners
determined to halt the salary spiral. Among their demands, owners wanted a
veteran player in compensation for a player lost via the re-entry draft. And
when negotiations broke down, the threat of another player strike darkened the
1980 season. But in the nick of time a compromise between the embattled
groups postponed the debacle for a season.
     Meanwhile, the plutocratic players basked in a suntime of cash and glory.
As television celebrities, players of this era stood as a breed apart from
those of past generations. More glamorized by television exposure, far more
wealthy, and more pampered, some players now indulged in illegal drugs to the
point of self-abuse. At this time baseball's growing problem of drug abuse
mirrored a national epidemic of drug abuse which was one of the unhappier
legacies from that decade of self-involvement, the embattled sixties.
     Yet another survival from that feverish era was the hirsute appearance of
many players of this decade. In addition to wearing gaudier uniforms, many
players now sported long hair, mustaches, and beards in the fashion of
nineteenth-century players. Formerly a symbol of social protest in the
sixties, such hirsute appearances now became a widespread affectation of
American males. Although some clubs opposed the trend, owner Charles Finley
of the Oakland Athletics encouraged it by paying his players $300 apiece to
grow facial hair. Once established, the trend spread widely among players and
continues to this day. But appearances aside, this breed of players was more
pampered, better doctored and trained, and more ably defended than any of
their forebears. Indeed, lesser-paid managers were now hard pressed to
discipline their charges. Moreover, players of the seventies were less easily
replaced. In this era the total number of minor leaguers competing for big
league jobs averaged about 3,000 in any season.
     Continuing the trend of the last two decades, blacks and Hispanics
predominated among the splendid performers of these years. In 1974 the number
of black major league players peaked at 26 percent, but the figure leveled off
at 20 percent by 1979. By then, Hispanic players comprised 10 percent of the
major league players. As before, blacks and Hispanics continued to lead the
majors in stolen bases, with superstar Lou Brock of the Cardinals setting a
new seasonal mark of 118 thefts while en route to shattering Ty Cobb's
lifetime total of 892 bases stolen. In 1974, Hank Aaron broke Ruth's lifetime
homer mark and went on to set a new lifetime mark of 755 clouts. But in
toppling the Babe's record, Aaron went to bat 3,965 more times than the great
Yankee slugger. And when Willie Mays retired in 1973, his lifetime total of
660 homers ranked third on the all-time slugging list; behind Mays in the
fourth position was Frank Robinson, who retired with 586. And in this decade,
Aaron, Al Kaline, Mays, Brock, and Roberto Clemente joined the 3,000 hit club,
while Rod Carew captured seven AL batting titles, including four in a row over
the years 1972-1975. Moreover, in these years twelve black and Hispanic stars
won MVP Awards, and pitchers Bob Gibson and Juan Marichal hurled their ways
into baseball's Hall of Fame. Finally, it was fitting that the leading player
celebrity of this era was Reggie Jackson, a slugging outfielder of mixed black
and Hispanic parentage. Widely acclaimed for his homer clouting, Jackson's
seven homers in two World Series appearances with the Yankees won him the
sobriquet of "Mr. October" and a short-lived "Reggie" candy bar was named for
him.
     Although they were justly rewarded and celebrated for their feats on the
playing fields, black players still faced lingering forms of discrimination.
At this time studies showed that black players had to be better-than-average
players to make it into the majors. Thus there were few marginal black
players on team rosters; moreover, teams were fearful of playing too many
black players in a game lest it affect attendance. And retired black players
seldom found jobs in baseball as field managers or in top administrative
posts. However, Frank Robinson became the first black manager to be hired
(and fired)--hired by the Cleveland Indians in 1975, fired in 1977--and a few
token black umpires also debuted in this era.
     At the end of this era, The Sporting News chose the versatile white star
Pete Rose as the recipient of its Player of the Decade Award. It was well
deserved. In this era, Rose won a pair of NL batting titles and led the
league in total hits four times. In 1978 the Cincinnati infielder, who was
dubbed "Charlie Hustle," tied the NL's consecutive-game hitting record by
batting safely in 44 consecutive games. That same year Rose joined the
3,000-hit club and continued his relentless drive to topple Ty Cobb's lifetime
record of 4,191 hits.
     White stars also predominated among pitchers of this era. In these
years, Gaylord Perry, Tom Seaver, Phil Niekro, Don Sutton, and Steve Carlton
hurled themselves to ultimate memberships in the exclusive 300-victory club.
Carlton, Seaver, Perry, Sutton, and Nolan Ryan also were compiling strikeout
totals that would later eclipse Walter Johnson's all-time mark. But with
pitching ERAs now hovering above the 3.50 mark each season, managers continued
to rely on specialized relief pitchers to bail out starters. Most prized were
rally-busting short relievers like Mike Marshall of the Dodgers. In 1974
Marshall appeared in a record 106 games; by winning 15 and saving 21, Marshall
won both the NL's Cy Young and Fireman of the Year awards for his efforts.
Other acclaimed short relievers included Rollie Fingers of the Athletics, who
won three Fireman of the Year awards, while saving 244 games. Fireballing
Goose Gossage thrice led the AL in saves, and in 1978 he fanned 122 batters in
his role as Yankee fireman. Sparky Lyle, who pitched for four different clubs
in this era, saved 230 games. And late in this era, Bruce Sutter saved 133
games in five seasons with the Cubs.
     With pitchers now penalized by a narrower strike zone and lowered mounds,
such heroics were needed to cope with the batting resurgence. Offensively
teams plied the big-bang tactic with gusto. At this time AL teams regained
their power advantage and outhomered their NL rivals in eleven of the twelve
seasons. Of course, the AL's 1977 mini-expansion made this a foregone
conclusion. In the first year of that expansion, AL sluggers hammered a
record 2,013 homers. By then, hitters in both leagues were swinging at
cowhide-covered balls instead of the traditional horsehide-covered spheres.
But this necessary innovation failed to produce the overall batting surge
forecast by alarmed pundits. Except for the AL's unilateral adoption of the
designated hitter rule, there were no significant rule changes in these years;
most rule changes addressed statistical compilations. And at this time the
major league policy of subsidizing the minor leagues was working. With each
team spending at least $1.5 million a year to finance up to five minor league
teams, by 1977 the minor leagues were stabilized at 17 leagues and 121 teams.
     Internally the major leagues were mightily affected by the shift in the
balance of power toward players and umpires. The powerful Players Association
upset the power balance, as did the Major League Umpires Association. Indeed,
umpires had long endured poor pay and job insecurity. But umpires of the
1970s had come a long way since the single-umpire system of the nineteenth
century. Not until 1911 did both major leagues adopt a dual-umpire system for
every game and the 1930s first saw both major leagues employ three-man crews
to work regular season games. By the 1969-1980 era, four-man crews worked
each seasonal game and crews for postseasonal games numbered six. More
important, the Major League Umpires Association (MLUA) now became a powerful
bargaining agency. After winning collective-bargaining rights in 1970, the
MLUA waged a successful strike in 1979, a walkout that lasted until mid-May.
When the strike ended, the umpires could celebrate a major victory. Among the
concessions they wrung from owners was a maximum salary of $50,000 for
twenty-year veteran umps, hefty increases in expense allowances, safeguards
against arbitrary dismissals, guaranteed pay for forty-five days in the event
of a player strike, and--wonder of wonders--a two-week paid vacation. How the
late Bill Klem, who earlier in this century worked each game behind the plate
for sixteen seasons, would have welcomed that concession!  What's more,
umpire Ron Luciano became a minor celebrity and, in company with others,
became the author of books.
     Against such power blocs, the owners now deployed their power committees
and hired negotiators. As for Commissioner Bowie Kuhn, he continued to occupy
what by now was largely a ceremonial post, one mainly responsive to the wishes
of the owners. In 1979 Walter O'Malley's death removed a powerful figure from
the owners' camp. In passing, O'Malley left his enormously profitable
franchise as his chief legacy; by 1977 the Dodgers were valued at $50 million,
twice the value of most franchises. Thus as the decade of the 1980s dawned,
baseball owners were challenged to find a new leader of O'Malley's stripe and
new tactics to restore the balance of power in their favor.

Campaigns of the Seventies:  the AL, 1969-1980

     Upstaged by the NL in the first two expansion moves, the AL was forced to
take drastic measures to gain parity with the NL in attendance and offensive
performances. To this end such measures as new park construction and
franchise shifts contributed, but most decisive were two bold unilateral moves
whereby the AL adopted the designated hitter rule in 1973 and undertook its
mini-expansion in 1977. By these strokes the AL ensured its perennial
domination, both at bat and at the turnstiles.
     But if AL leaders expected the new divisional format of the 1969
expansion move to produce competitive balance, they were disillusioned.
Indeed, throughout this era pennant monopoly was the rule in both AL
divisions. Over the twelve campaigns of 1969-1980, the Orioles and Yankees
dominated the Eastern Division, while the Athletics and Royals ruled the West.
By winning six Eastern Division races and finishing second four times, the
Orioles now reigned as the winningest team in the majors. For their part, the
reviving Yankees won four Eastern races, which left but two for outsiders to
divide. In the AL West, it was much the same story. There the Oakland
Athletics won five races, the Kansas City Royals won four, and the Minnesota
Twins won two--leaving only one for an outsider to claim.
     In the first expansion season of 1969, the Baltimore Orioles asserted
their balanced power, which made them the most victorious major league team of
this era. Under sophomore manager Earl Weaver, the Orioles stormed the
Eastern Division, their 109 victories lapping the runner-up Tigers by 19
games. It was the first of three consecutive Eastern titles for the Birds,
with top-ranked pitching the key to each success. In 1969 the Oriole staff
was the league's best, with Mike Cuellar (23-11) and Dave McNally (20-7)
setting the pace. At bat the Orioles were powered by first baseman Boog
Powell (.304-37-121) and outfielder Frank Robinson (.308-32-100). In the
West, meanwhile, the Twins were winning the first of two consecutive titles.
Victors by 9 games over the Athletics that year, the Twins led the league in
batting and relief pitching. Offensive standouts included Rod Carew, whose
.332 hitting topped the league, and Harmon Killebrew, whose league-leading 49
homers and 140 RBIs won the veteran slugger the MVP Award. But when the
divisional titlists squared off in the first American League Championship
Series, the Orioles brushed the Twins aside in three games. The sweep gave
the Orioles a fourteen-game winning streak to take to the World Series. But
after winning the opening game against the New York Mets, the Orioles
surprisingly lost the next four.
     In 1970 the crestfallen Orioles came back nearly as strong and downed the
Yankees by 15 games to repeat as Eastern champs. Once again manager Earl
Weaver's pitching corps was the league's best. Starters Mike Cuellar and Dave
McNally each won 24 and Jim Palmer won 20. At the plate the Orioles batted
.257, with outfielder Merv Rettenmund's .322 leading the team batting, and
Powell (35-114) and Frank Robinson (25-78) supplying the power. In the West,
the Twins also repeated, again topping the Athletics by 9 games and again
leading the league in hitting and relief pitching. This time the team batted
.262, but Killebrew (41-113) again powered the club. An injury to Carew
limited his play, but even so the infielder batted .366. Taking up the slack
this year were outfielders Tony Oliva (.325-23-107) and Cesar Tovar, who hit
.300. However, when the Twins met the Orioles in LCS play, they were again
swept. And this time the Orioles went on to score an avenging victory in
World Series play. In crushing the Reds in five games, the Orioles blasted
fifty hits; the star Oriole performer was future Hall of Famer Brooks
Robinson, who batted .429 and dazzled the Reds with his brilliant fielding at
third base.
     It was a glorious victory for the Orioles, but astonishingly this
well-armed team would not win another world title in this era. In 1971 the
Orioles captured a third straight Eastern title by thrashing the Tigers by 12
games. It was a vintage season for Baltimore, which could boast
league-leading hitting and pitching, including a quartet of 20-game winning
pitchers in Cuellar, McNally, Palmer, and Pat Dobson. Offensively, outfielder
Rettenmund (.318) fronted the team's .261 batting attack, and Powell, Frank
Robinson, and Brooks Robinson powered the assault with a combined 70 homers
and 283 RBIs. In the West, the fading Twins now yielded to the surging
Oakland Athletics, who notched the first of five consecutive Western titles in
1971. In matching the Orioles' victory total of 101 games, the Athletics
crushed the expansion Kansas City Royals by 16 games. For the A's, rookie
pitcher Vida Blue won 24 games with a league-leading 1.82 ERA, and Jim
"Catfish" Hunter won 21. Hunter's nickname was hung on the hurler by the
team's flamboyant owner, Charley Finley, who also tried unsuccessfully to get
Blue to change his first name to "True."  Offensively, the A's lacked a .300
hitter, but third baseman Sal Bando (24-94) and outfielder Reggie Jackson
(32-80) provided power aplenty. But when the Athletics met the Orioles in LCS
play, they were swept by the Orioles. It was the third consecutive LCS sweep
by the Orioles. However, the Orioles lost a seven-game World Series struggle
to the Pittsburgh Pirates, led by MVP Roberto Clemente.
     In the wake of that loss, the Orioles fell from the top, and the balance
of power now shifted to the West, where the volatile Athletics won the first
of three consecutive AL championships. In the strike-shortened season of
1972, the A's won the Western title by 5 1/2 games over the Chicago White Sox.
Left fielder Joe Rudi batted .305, and first baseman Mike Epstein and
outfielder Reggie Jackson combined for 51 homers as the A's rolled up 93 wins
to head the AL. Moreover, the pitching staff was the league's best; Hunter
and Ken Holtzman combined for 40 victories, and reliever Rollie Fingers won 11
and saved 21 games. In the East the strike-shortened schedule enabled the
Tigers to eke a half-game victory over the runner-up Red Sox by dint of
playing and winning one more game than the Bostonians. Manager Billy Martin's
Tigers batted a mere .237, with no .300 hitter among the regulars, but lefty
Mickey Lolich's 22 wins fronted the league's second-best pitching corps. In
LCS play the weak-hitting Tigers held out for five games before succumbing to
the A's, who went on to defeat the Reds in a seven-game World Series struggle.
With slugger Jackson sidelined by an injury, unheralded catcher Gene Tenace
took up the offensive slack. Tenace batted .348 and won three World Series
games with timely hits.
     Over the next two seasons, the Athletics continued their winning ways,
twice downing the Orioles in LCS play and twice defeating NL contenders in
World Series action. In 1973 the garishly clad A's defeated the Royals by 6
games in the West. Jackson's league-leading 32 homers and 117 RBIs powered
the team, which also got superb pitching from Hunter (21-5), Holtzman (21-13),
Blue (20-9), and reliever Fingers, who saved 22 games with a 1.92 ERA. That
year the Orioles returned to the top in the East by downing the Red Sox by 8
games. In this first season under the designated hitter rule, the Orioles
were paced by DH Tommy Davis, who batted .306 and drove in 89 runs. Palmer
headed the pitching staff, which was the league's best, with a 22-9 mark;
Cuellar won 18; and McNally and young Doyle Alexander combined for 29 wins.
In the aftermath the Orioles battled the A's in a tense LCS matchup which went
the full five games before Hunter's shutout pitching decided the issue. Then,
in World Series action against the New York Mets, the Athletics rallied from a
3-2 deficit to land a second world title. Home runs by Reggie Jackson and
Bert Campaneris settled the issue in Game Seven.
     In 1974 the Athletics won a third consecutive World Series banner, a feat
thus far unmatched under the major leagues' divisional format. In winning the
Western race by 5 games over the Texas Rangers, the light-hitting (.247) A's
were backed by the best pitching corps in the majors. Hunter's league-leading
25 wins and 2.49 ERA led the staff, who also got 19 wins from Holtzman, 17
wins from Blue, and 18 saves from the redoubtable Fingers. Although lacking a
.300 hitter, the team was powered by Bando (22-103), Jackson (29-93), and
outfielder Joe Rudi (.293-22-99). In the East, the Orioles won a fifth
divisional flag by 2 games over the Yankees. League-leading fielding and
sturdy pitching from Cuellar (22-10), McNally (16-10), and Ross Grimsley
(18-13) carried the Orioles. In LCS competition the A's lost the opening
game, but swept the next three to claim the league pennant. Pitted against
the Dodgers in the World Series, the bickering Athletics, who squabbled among
themselves and with their owner, nevertheless downed the Dodgers in five
games. It was the A's third straight World Series victory, and astonishingly
the team's bullpen saved or won all twelve of the games won by the Athletics
in their remarkable three-season skein.
     But the 1974 league championship was the last by an Athletic team until
1988. Years of bickering between the players and owner Charley Finley wore on
the team, and the loss of pitcher Hunter to the Yankees was a crushing blow.
Hunter's loss was Finley's fault; after Finley reneged on the terms of
Hunter's contract, Hunter sought arbitration, and the ruling allowed the
pitcher to become a free agent. Nevertheless, in 1975 the A's won the Western
title for a fifth straight year as they outlasted the Royals by 7 games.
Despite the loss of Hunter, the team's pitching was the league's second best.
Blue won 22 games, Holtzman 18, and Fingers won 10 and saved 24. Offensively,
outfielder Claudell Washington led the team with .308 batting, and Jackson
drove in 104 runs and hit a league-leading 36 homers. However, the league's
power balance now shifted eastward, where the next five AL champions would be
crowned. First of the Eastern powers to emerge were the 1975 Red Sox, who
defeated the Orioles by 4 1/2 games. The team's pitching was mediocre, but
hefty .275 batting bolstered the assault. Rookie outfielder Fred Lynn's
.331-21-105 hitting won him both Rookie of the Year and MVP honors, but
outfielder Jim Rice (.309-22-102) came close to matching Lynn's production,
while DH Cecil Cooper and catcher Carlton Fisk each topped the .300 mark. In
the LCS faceoff, the Red Sox ended Oakland's domination with a three-game
sweep. But in World Series action, the Red Sox lost an epochal seven-game
struggle to the Cincinnati Reds.
     Boston slipped to third in 1976, as another power rose in the AL East.
After a twelve-year hiatus, the Yankees regained the heights and held the high
ground for the next three seasons. For the Yankee renaissance much of the
credit belonged to the team's wealthy and erratic owner, George Steinbrenner.
After purchasing the team from the CBS Network in 1973, Steinbrenner boldly
promised Yankee fans a pennant within three years, and in 1976 his words rang
true. Moreover, the timing was propitious. In 1976 the team returned to its
newly refurbished Yankee Stadium after spending two seasons at Shea Stadium in
Queens. Under equally brash manager Billy Martin, whom Steinbrenner would
fire and rehire five times, the Yankees romped over the runner-up Orioles by
10 1/2 games. League-leading pitching, including 53 wins from starters
Hunter, Dock Ellis, and Ed Figueroa, and a league-leading 23 saves from
reliever Sparky Lyle eased the way. The team's .269 batting effort was led by
outfielder Mickey Rivers, who batted .312, catcher Thurman Munson's .302 and
105 RBIs, and third baseman Graig Nettles' league-leading 32 homers.
Meanwhile, the surging Kansas City Royals were breaking Oakland's stranglehold
in the West. In downing owner Finley's decimated A's by 2 1/2 games, the
Royals matched the .269 batting mark of the Yankees. Third baseman George
Brett's .333 topped the league's hitters, but DH Hal McRae was only a point
behind at .332, and his 73 RBIs bettered Brett's total. The 1976 victory was
the first of three straight Western titles by the Royals, who became the first
of the AL's 1969 expansion teams to win a divisional pennant. In LCS play the
Royals and Yanks battled for five games before first baseman Chris Chambliss
won the pennant for the Yankees with a ninth-inning homer in the final game at
Yankee Stadium. However, the Yankees were no match for Cincinnati's powerful
"Big Red Machine," which swept to a four-game victory in the World Series.
     Over the winter Steinbrenner strengthened his team by acquiring slugger
Reggie Jackson in the re-entry draft. Jackson responded by batting .286 with
32 homers and 110 RBIs as the Yankees edged the Orioles by 2 1/2 games in the
1977 Eastern race. Overall the team batted .281, with Rivers' .326 batting
leading the team, Munson weighing in with .308-18-100 stickwork, and Nettles
driving in 107 runs on 37 homers. Young Ron Guidry (16-7) led the starting
pitchers, with Figueroa winning 16, newly acquired Don Gullett winning 14, and
reliever Lyle saving 26. In the West, meanwhile, the Royals repeated as they
downed the Texas Rangers by 8 games. The Royals batted .277, with outfielder
Al Cowens (.312-23-112) leading the team, Brett batting .312, and McRae adding
21 homers and 92 RBIs. The Royal pitching staff was the league's best; Dennis
Leonard won 20 games to lead the league, Paul Splittorff won 16, and the
bullpen posted a league-leading 42 saves. In another LCS donnybrook, the
Yankees edged the Royals in five games to land a second consecutive AL
pennant. And in World Series action the Yankees trounced the Dodgers in six
games. For the Yankees, the highlight came in the final game at the Stadium,
when Jackson slugged three homers. In the afterglow of the victory, a candy
bar was named for Jackson, who also wore the sobriquet of "Mr. October" for
the remainder of his colorful career.
     In an unforgettable encore performance, the Yankees repeated in 1978
after staging one of the most storied comebacks in baseball history. During
much of the turbulent campaign, the Yankees trailed the slugging Red Sox.
Midway in the campaign Steinbrenner sacked the volatile Martin for
insubordination and replaced him with Bob Lemon. Under Lemon, the Yankees
recuperated from a spate of injuries and crushed the Red Sox in two series to
gain a tie by the season's end. In the sudden-death playoff game for the
Eastern title, pitchers Ron Guidry and Goose Gossage held off the Red Sox,
while homers by Jackson and shortstop Bucky Dent capped a 5-4 victory at
Fenway Park. That year the Yankee pitchers posted a league-leading 3.10 ERA;
Guidry's 25 wins (he lost only 3) and 1.74 ERA were the league's best, and
Gossage won 10 and saved 27 games. Outfielder Lou Piniella's .314 batting led
the team, which was powered by Jackson (27-97), Nettles (27-93), and Chambliss
(who drove in 90 runs). Meanwhile, the upstaged Royals were winning a third
consecutive Western title, this time by 5 games over the California Angels.
With no .300 hitter in the regular lineup, the Royals batted .268; outfielder
Amos Otis led the hitters with .298-22-96 batting. Starting pitchers Leonard
and Splittorff combined for 40 victories, and reliever Al Hrabosky saved 20 as
the Royals compiled the league's second-best pitching record. But the Yankees
toppled the Royals in four games in LCS play. When World Series play began,
the Yankees lost the first two games to the Dodgers, but then swept the next
four games to cap a legendary campaign with a second straight world title.
     Although Steinbrenner continued to spend heavily on free agents, the 1979
Yankees fell to fourth place in the Eastern Division. By winning 102 games,
manager Earl Weaver led the Orioles to an 8-game win over the second-place
Milwaukee Brewers. League-leading pitching, paced by Mike Flanagan's 23-9
effort, led the Orioles, whose offense was powered by first baseman Eddie
Murray (.295-25-99) and outfielder Ken Singleton (.295-35-111). While the
Orioles winged to the top in the AL East, the California Angels ended the
Royals' Western reign by scoring a 3-game victory. The Angels' victory ended
years of frustration for owner Gene Autry, who had spent $15 million on
playing talent since 1961. In 1978 two of Autry's recent acquisitions paid
off as Rod Carew batted .318 and Don Baylor won the MVP Award for his
.296-36-139 production. But the Angels' pitching corps compiled a vulnerable
4.34 ERA, and in LCS play the Orioles dispatched the Angels in four games.
But the Orioles now faced their old Pirate tormentors in the World Series. In
an eerie repeat of their 1971 matchup, after leading by three games to one in
this 1979 encounter, the Orioles lost to the Pirates in seven games.
     As the era ended, the Yankees rebounded to edge the Orioles by 3 games in
the East. In the close race, Steinbrenner's latest re-entry draft
acquisitions, infielder Bob Watson and pitcher Rudy May, made the difference.
May won 15 games, and his 2.47 ERA led the league; Tommy John won 22, Guidry
won 17, and the fireballing Gossage saved 33 games in relief. Watson's .307
batting led the hitters, but Jackson batted .300 and his 111 RBIs came with a
league-leading 41 homers. This year, however, the Yankees were outmatched by
the Royals. Rebounding to win the Western Division by 14 games over the
Athletics, the Royals batted a league-leading .286. Brett's .390 batting,
which included 24 homers and 118 RBIs, was the best batting mark in the majors
since 1941. Outfielder Willie Wilson batted .326 and catcher-outfielder John
Wathan batted .305. Pitcher Leonard won 20, and a Yankee castoff, lefty Larry
Gura, won 18, with relief ace Dan Quisenberry saving 33 games to tie Gossage
for the league lead. In LCS play the Royals, who had feasted on the Yankees
during the season, swept the New Yorkers. In the wake of that loss, owner
Steinbrenner sacked manager Dick Howser, despite the 103 victories the Yankees
had compiled under Howser's leadership. By then, the Royals had lost to the
Phillies in six games in the 1980 World Series. Thus the era ended with the
NL boasting two straight World Series triumphs which the senior circuit would
extend to four in the early 1980s.

Campaigns of the Seventies:  the NL, 1969-1980

     In this era the NL also failed to achieve the competitive balance
envisioned by its 1969 expansion. Over the twelve NL campaigns of these
years, both divisions were ruled by powerful dynasties. In the East, the
Pirates won six races, the Phillies four, and the Mets two. In the West, the
Reds won six races, the Dodgers three, with the Braves, Giants, and Astros as
single-season winners.
     Yet it was one of the league's lesser powers, the New York Mets, who made
a rousing success of the first NL campaign under the new divisional format.
Like the moonwalking American astronauts of that summer, the Mets also
realized an "impossible dream," and their unlikely triumph became the sports
story of that memorable year in the nation's history. In a baseball version
of Horatio Alger's rags-to-riches yarns, the forlorn Mets shook off the
effects of their horrendous 394-737 won-loss record, which the team had
painfully compiled over seven zany seasons of NL play, and won the 1969
Eastern Division race by 8 games over a cocky Chicago Cub team. What's more,
the Mets turned the trick by winning 38 of their last 49 games, mostly due to
good pitching. Young Tom Seaver's league-leading 25 victories and Jerry
Koosman's 17 headed a pitching staff whose 2.99 ERA ranked second in the
league. However, a puny .242 team batting average, fronted by outfielder
Cleon Jones' .340-12-75, afforded little hope against the Western champion
Atlanta Braves, winners by 3 games over the Giants. For the Braves, who led
the NL in fielding, Hank Aaron's .300-44-97 batting, and Rico Carty's
.342-16-58 effort in limited action, excelled. Pitcher Phil Niekro won 23 and
Ron Reed won 18 as the staff turned in a 3.53 ERA. But in the NL's first
League Championship Series, the impotent Mets turned tartars; scoring 27 runs
in three games, they swept the favored Braves. However, the Mets appeared to
be ludicrously mismatched against the versatile Orioles in the following World
Series. But after losing the opening game, the Mets swept the Orioles in the
next four games to realize their "impossible dream."  In the afterglow, an
outpouring of "Metomania" swept the country, and a dozen hastily written books
celebrating the team's victory were churned out.
     But the following year the powerful Pittsburgh Pirates ruthlessly
banished any hopes of a continuing competitive balance in the NL East. Over
the next six seasons, the Pirates captured five Eastern pennants, including
three in a row over the years 1970-1972. In 1970 the Pirates baptized their
newly occupied Three Rivers Stadium by downing the Cubs by 5 games and raising
their first divisional flag. The Pirates batted .270, with Roberto Clemente
hitting .352 and catcher Manny Sanguillen batting .325. With a 3.70 ERA,
their pitching was shaky, but reliever Dave Giusti saved 26 games. Coincident
with the Pirates' rise, another power moved to the top in the West as the
Cincinnati Reds, now ensconced in their new Riverfront Stadium, scored a
crushing 14 1/2-game win over the runner-up Dodgers. At the plate the Reds
matched the Pirates' batting, while leading the league in homers with 191.
Catcher Johnny Bench's 45 homers and 148 RBIs led all sluggers and won him MVP
honors. Infielders Pete Rose (.316) and Tony Perez (.317-40-129), and
outfielder Bob Tolan (.316) added to the hit parade which was needed to
bolster the pitching staff. The team's starting pitchers completed only 32
games, which inspired the bullpen to compile a league-leading 60 saves. And
yet the staff's 3.71 ERA was only a point above that of the Pirates. In the
LCS that year, the Reds swept the Pirates, but then the Reds fell to the
avenging Orioles in the 1970 World Series.
     The following year manager Danny Murtaugh led his Pirates to a 7-game win
over the Cardinals in the NL East. At the plate the Pirates upped their
batting to .274 as Clemente (.341) and Sanguillen (.319) maintained their
pace, while outfielder Willie Stargell's league-leading 48 homers powered the
team's league-leading 154-homer assault. In the West, poor pitching consigned
the Reds to fourth place, leaving the field to the Giants and Dodgers. After
leading most of the way, the Giants faltered in the stretch, but hung on to
win by a game over the Dodgers. League-leading fielding buoyed the Giants,
who batted only .247. Outfielder Bobby Bonds' .288-33-102 was the best
effort by a regular. Future Hall of Fame pitcher Juan Marichal and Gaylord
Perry combined for 34 victories as the staff's 3.33 ERA came close to matching
the Pirates' mark of 3.31. In LCS play the Pirates lost the opening game, but
swept to victory. And when matched against the Orioles in the World Series,
the Pirates lost the first two games, but then rebounded to win in seven. The
Pirate victory triggered a spate of destructive riots in Pittsburgh, but any
fears by city fathers of future riots to come were banished by the
shortcomings of the Pirate teams.
     Although the 1972 Pirates romped to an 11-game victory over the Cubs in
the East, another six seasons would pass before the Bucs won another NL
pennant. Future Hall of Famer Roberto Clemente batted .312 and notched his
3,000th career hit as the Pirates matched their .274 batting mark of 1971.
Outfielder Al Oliver batted .312 and infielder Richie Hebner batted .300,
while Stargell powered the attack with 33 homers and 112 RBIs. Led by
starting pitcher Steve Blass (198) and reliever Giusti (22 saves), the
pitching staff posted a 2.81 ERA. In the West, meanwhile, the Reds rebounded
to win by 10 1/2 games over the Houston Astros. The acquisition of infielder
Joe Morgan strengthened the Reds, who also got another MVP performance from
Bench. The catcher's 40 homers and 125 RBIs led the league, and infielder
Rose batted .307. But the pitching staff completed only 25 games. The best
effort by a starter was Gary Nolan's 155 mark, but the bullpen, led by Clay
Carroll's league-leading 37 saves, saved 60 games. In LCS action the Reds
rallied from a 21 deficit to win the league pennant in five games. In the
decisive game, played in Cincinnati, the Reds won 43. In the ninth inning of
that game, Pirate reliever Bob Moose wild-pitched the winning run home. But
when the Reds faced a 31 deficit in the World Series, their rally fell short
as the Athletics hung on to win the world title in seven games.
     Over the winter, Clemente's tragic death while on a mercy mission to
Nicaragua was a crushing blow to the Pirate cause. Even so, the 1973 Pirates
hung close, finishing third in a weak Eastern Division. On the strength of a
lackluster 8279 record, the Mets edged the Cardinals by 1 1/2 games.
Offensively the Mets batted a meager .246 with only 85 homers, but Seaver's
1910 pitching and league-leading 2.08 ERA and reliever Tug McGraw's 25 saves
compensated. In the West the Reds outlasted the Dodgers by 3 1/2 games to win
the divisional pennant. Led by Rose's league-leading .338 hitting, the Reds
batted .254 and hit 137 homers. Perez batted .314-27-101, Morgan batted
.290-26-82, and Bench drove in 104 runs. The Reds also led the league in
stolen bases and fielding, and the pitching staff ranked fourth, just behind
the Mets. Not surprisingly, the Reds were touted as LCS favorites, but the
Mets edged them in five games to emerge as the NL's standard bearer in the
World Series. Astonishingly the Mets took a 32 lead in the first five Series
games against the Athletics. Had they hung on to win with their puny seasonal
record, it would have gone into the record books as a quirky record. But the
A's quashed this prospect by snagging the final two games to win the 1973
World Series.
     As the impotent Mets faded in 1974, the Pirates rose again to win the
next two Eastern races before yielding to the rising Phillies. Unsurpassed
.274 team batting boosted the Pirates to a thin 1 1/2-game win over the
Cardinals in the East. Outfielders Richie Zisk (.313-17-100), Al Oliver (.321
and 85 RBIs), and Stargell (.301-25-96) powered the team, whose pitching staff
posted a 3.49 ERA. But the league's balance of power was shifting westward,
where the Dodgers and Reds would monopolize the next five NL pennants. In the
1974 Western Division race, the Dodgers defeated the Reds by 4 games. Backed
by the most durable infield in baseball history, in Steve Garvey, Dave Lopes,
Bill Russell, and Ron Cey, the 1974 Dodgers batted .272. First baseman
Garvey, who would set an NL record in consecutive games played, led the
assault that year with a .312-21-111 performance which won him MVP honors.
Outfielder Jim Wynn added 32 homers and 108 RBIs. Pitchers Andy Messersmith
and Don Sutton combined for 39 wins to head the league's top-ranked pitching
staff, but reliever Mike Marshall won the pitching honors with his 15
victories and 21 saves. What's more, fireman Marshall appeared in a record
106 games. In the LCS playoff the Dodgers dispatched the Pirates in four
games, but the Dodgers lost the World Series to the Athletics in five games.
     It was the third consecutive Series victory for the Athletics, but the
powerful Cincinnati Reds reversed the trend in 1975-1976. Dubbed "the Big
Red Machine," the perennially pitching-poor Reds got only 22 complete games
from their starters in 1975, but the team's crushing offense buried the
runner-up Dodgers by 20 games. Heading the team's .271 batting offensive was
second baseman Joe Morgan, who won MVP honors for his .327 batting and 94
RBIs. Third baseman Rose and outfielders Ken Griffey and George Foster topped
.300 at bat, and first baseman Tony Perez and catcher Bench drove in a
combined 219 runs. In the East the Pirates beat the Phils by 6 1/2 games to
win a second straight divisional title. The Pirates batted .263 and led the
league in homers. Outfielder Dave Parker (.308-25-101) and first baseman
Stargell (.295-22-90) powered the team, and catcher Manny Sanguillen batted
.328. And the pitching staff's 3.02 ERA bettered the Reds. But the Reds
swept the Pirates in LCS play and went on to beat the Red Sox in a tense
seven-game World Series classic. In the final game at Boston the Reds
overcame a 30 Boston lead. Morgan's single in the ninth inning provided the
margin of victory as the Reds won 43. The victory was the Reds' first World
Series triumph since 1940.
     Nor did they stop there. The following year, as the NL celebrated its
hundredth anniversary, the all-conquering Reds downed the Dodgers by 10 games
in the West on the strength of league leadership in batting, homers, RBIs,
stolen bases, and fielding. Morgan's .320-27-111 batting won the infielder a
second straight MVP Award, Rose batted .323, and the outfield of Griffey
(.336), Cesar Geronimo (.307), and George Foster (.306) all topped the .300
mark. Foster's 121 RBIs led the league, and the bullpen fronted by Rawly
Eastwick led the league in saves. In the East it was the Phillies' misfortune
to have to face this wrecking crew in LCS play. That year the Phillies
finally won an Eastern title, the first of three consecutive victories, all
coming at the expense of the Pirates. In 1976 the Phillies trounced the
Pirates by 9 games. Slugging third baseman Mike Schmidt led the league in
homers with 38 and drove in 107 runs, and the outfield of Jay Johnstone, Garry
Maddox, and Greg Luzinski all topped the .300 mark, with Luzinski batting in
95 runs. Steve Carlton (207) headed a pitching staff that bettered the
mediocre Reds' staff, but otherwise needed the 36 saves posted by the relief
corps of Ron Reed, Tug McGraw, and Gene Garber. The LCS matchup between the
Reds and the Phillies was a foregone conclusion which the Reds decided with a
sweep. The Reds then went on to sweep the Yankees in the World Series to
become the first NL team since 1922 to win back-to-back world titles.
     But the Big Red Machine blew a gasket in 1977. The loss of ace pitcher
Don Gullett to the re-entry draft (and the Yankees) and a dubious trade which
sent first baseman Perez to the Expos created weaknesses that not even the
midseason acquisition of pitcher Tom Seaver from the Mets could assuage.
Nor could Foster's herculean batting, which produced a league-leading 52
homers and 149 RBIs together with a .320 batting average. As the
pitching-poor Reds faltered, the Dodgers brushed them aside to win the Western
title by 10 games. League leadership in homers (191) and pitching buoyed the
Dodgers. A successful arm operation gave a new life to lefty Tommy John,
whose 20 victories led the pitching staff. Offensively, outfielder Reggie
Smith's .302-32-87 led the attack, with outfielder Dusty Baker and infielders
Garvey and Ron Cey each topping the 30 mark in homers. Meanwhile, the
Phillies repeated in the East, their 101 victories leading the league and
topping the runner-up Pirates by 5 games. The Phillies led the league in
batting at .279. Outfielder Luzinski's .309-30-130 was his best effort, and
Schmidt again powered 38 homers while driving in 101 runs. Carlton led the
pitchers with 23 victories, and Larry Christenson's 196 mark was his best in
the majors; moreover, the bullpen's 43 saves topped the league. Still, the
Dodgers defeated the Phillies in four games in the LCS. However, the Dodgers
got their comeuppance from the Yankees, who won the 1977 World Series in six
games.
     Although the victory margin for both teams was skimpier, the 1978
divisional races repeated the scenario of the previous year. In the West the
Dodgers repeated by edging the Reds by 2 1/2 games. Once again the pitching
staff was the league's best (3.12 ERA). Starters Burt Hooton, Tommy John, Don
Sutton, and Doug Rau won 66 games, and reliever Terry Forster saved 22. Garvey
headed the team's .264 batting attack with .316-21-113 stickwork; and Cey,
Reggie Smith, and Rick Monday combined for 71 homers to head the team's
league-leading homer barrage. In the East the Phillies won for a third
straight year, but by a skimpy 1 1/2-game margin over the Pirates. Luzinski's
35 homers and 101 RBIs paced a weak .258 batting assault; and Carlton (with 16
wins) and Dick Ruthven (with 13 wins), and relievers Ron Reed and McGraw led
the Phils' pitching staff, which was the best in the Eastern Division, but a
far cry from the Dodgers' mark of 1978. In LCS play the Dodgers again
trounced the Phillies in four games, but again the Dodgers fell to their old
Yankee nemesis in six games.
     As the decade waned, the Pirates returned to power in the East by edging
the runner-up Expos by 2 games. It was the sixth Eastern title of this era
for the Pirates, who batted a lusty .272 but whose mediocre pitching staff
depended heavily on its superb bullpen headed by Kent Tekulve, who appeared in
94 games and saved 31. Third baseman Bill Madlock's .328 batting led the team
along with Parker (.310-25-94) and Stargell, whose 32 homers helped drive in
82 runs. At the same time in the West, the Reds also won their sixth
divisional title of the era, beating the Astros by 1 1/2 games. With Rose
gone by way of the re-entry draft, his replacement Ray Knight batted .318 and,
along with outfielders Griffey (.316) and Foster (.302-30-98), paced the
team's .264 batting. Seaver's 16 victories led the team's mediocre pitching
staff. The two rival dynasties met for a last time to date in LCS play with
the Pirates sweeping the Reds. In World Series action the Pirates fell behind
the Orioles three games to one, but swept the last three games for a stunning
victory.
     In 1980 the Phillies ended a thirty-year drought by winning an NL
pennant. Goaded by manager Dallas Green, the Phillies won 21 of their last
28 games to eke a 1-game victory over the Expos in the East. An MVP
performance by slugger Schmidt, who hit 48 homers and drove in 121 runs,
powered the Phils, who also got .309 batting from outfielder Bake McBride, and
.282 batting and inspired leadership from the transplanted Pete Rose. Lefty
Carlton's 24 wins led the league and won him the Cy Young Award, and Dick
Ruthven won 17, while bullpen stalwart Tug McGraw saved 20 games. In the West
the Dodgers and Astros finished in a dead heat as the front-running Astros
lost their last three games to the visiting Dodgers. But in a sudden-death
playoff for the Western Division title, Joe Niekro pitched the Astros to a 71
victory over the Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. The Astros got .309 hitting from
outfielder Cesar Cedeno, and the team batted .261, but the punchless offense
produced only 75 homers. But the Astros' pitching staff was the league's
best. Joe Niekro won 20 games, Nolan Ryan won 11, and Vern Ruhle won 12.
Ruhle's pitching compensated for the loss of power pitcher J.R. Richard, who
had compiled a 104, 1.89 record when he sustained a career-ending stroke. In
LCS play the Phils and Astros battled through five games, with the rebounding
Phillies scoring two extra-inning victories in Houston to land the pennant.
Thus emboldened, the Phillies went on to beat the Royals in a six-game World
Series tussle. It was the Phillies' first world championship in the club's
ninety-seven-year history as an NL team.
     But in the season after Philadelphia's momentous victory, which saw the
local police deploying mounted troopers and guard dogs to restrain the
delirious Philadelphia fans, the major leagues were staggered by a crippling
player strike.