This is Retro Sports Radio. Visit RetroSeasons.com for more sports history.
The New York Yankees faced the Kansas City Royals at Royal Stadium for Game 1 of the ALCS on October 9th, 1976.
This is the national broadcast of Game 1 in the Best of 5 series featuring announcers Ernie Harwell and Ned Martin.
Hello again from Royal Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri where CBS Radio Sports is pleased to present the first game of the American League Championship Series between the Kansas City Royals and the New York Yankees.
I'm Ned Martin along with Ernie Harwell and ready for the first pitch in just a few moments, which Larry Dural will make against his former ball club, the New York Yankees.
The series starting here will be a day game today, of course, a night game on Sunday tomorrow.
Then the series will tip to New York for a Tuesday night game and of course the National League supposedly will open tonight in Philadelphia where we understand that it's raining.
But it's not raining here. The weather is perfect. We're set for baseball between these two clubs and we'll be back right back after this word.
Okay, we'll be getting back to Ernie Harwell of the Detroit Tigers and Ned Martin of the Boston Red Sox for all the action of Game 1 of the American League playoffs in just a shuffle of moments.
As we mentioned the situation in Philadelphia hanging in the balance on the weather, we did get a late report from the National Weather Service just about 15 or 20 minutes ago
indicating that they feel by taking a look at radar weather, they feel that there's a possibility that that rain which is falling in Philadelphia right now may stop at about 6 o'clock Eastern Daylight Time.
That's in about five hours. Now they're thinking they might have two hours prior to the start of that game in which there will be no rain.
So we're just going to have to hang in there with it and see what happens.
Now, the manager, Sparky Anderson, from us is back in lefty Don Gullett to take to get Philadelphia Steve Carlton.
Anderson dropping a small long shell on Friday by saying he may not use the designated hitter if the Reds get into the World Series.
The umpiring crew and the managers have broken from home plate and here are the starting lineup for the first game of the championship series in the American League.
The C.R. Yankees playing center field and leading off Mickey Rivers. In left field, Roy White batting number two.
The catcher, Sermon Munson batting in the number three spot. The designated hitter today, Lou Pennella batting fourth.
Chris Shambliss is the first baseman batting number five. Greg Nettles at third base hitting sixth.
Elliot Maddux in right field batting number seven. Willie Randolph, the rookie second baseman batting eighth.
And the shortstop batting ninth, Fred Stanley. The pitcher for the Yankees will be James Augustus Catfish Hunter.
All the players of City Royals under manager Whitey Herzog. It'll be Amos Otis in center field in the lead off spot.
George Brett will be playing at third base batting number two. The designated hitter, Al McCrae batting third.
Lost by just a fraction of a percentage point in that American League batting race on the final day of the season.
Two is teammate Brett. John Laybury at first base batting number four. Al Cowan is the right fielder hitting in the number five position.
Tom Poquette in left field batting sixth. Frank White, the second baseman for the Royals batting number seven.
Donnie Freddy Potek at shortstop batting number eight. And the catcher for the Royals is Fuck Martina.
The pitcher, Larry Gura, with a 4-0 record this year and a 2.30 earned run average overall with duty both with the Yankees,
very limited duty, and with the Royals. The hunters earned run average incidentally 3.53.
17 and 15 on the year for Hunter and one and two this year against the Kansas City Royals.
The umpiring outfit goes like this. Larry Barnett will be not only Joe Brickman behind the plate.
Once Joe Brickman has given up as Barnett, but Barnett is umpiring at first base.
George Maloney is at second base. Bill Haller will call a play at third.
Down along the left field line will be Arch Frank. And the right fielder will be Larry McCaw.
So it's Brickman behind the plate, Barnett at first, Maloney at second, Haller at third, and the left field is McCaw in right.
The Royals stadium, Ewing Coughlin, the owner of the Royals is making a first pitch.
They're going to throw out two balls this afternoon.
Mark Martinez is catching them. There's Mr. Coughlin.
And now Mrs. Coughlin will throw out the second pitch.
And there's Mr. Coughlin who brought baseball back to Kansas City as a home-owned team.
The Royals stadium holds 40,762 and there aren't too many empty seats right now.
This is just down the line, 330 to the foul poles in left and right.
It moves out as the 12-foot wall curves around from foul pole to foul pole to the bullpen area
and past the bullpen areas in right and left center where it's 385 feet,
410 feet toward the deepest part of the field in deep right center and center field.
The wall is 12 feet high.
Beyond the wall, a big green bank with a Royals insignia and Royals and Yankees crest on the lawn
which was not only mowed out there but sprayed and painted.
The outfield on this artificial turf ball field is in perfect shape
as George Thoma has taken care of everything in perfect condition spot.
There's a big scoreboard in center field past the big bank where nobody has yet hit one in this ball park.
It goes close to 500 feet if you hit that scoreboard on the fly.
The bullpen in left field, the Yankee bullpen in the visiting bullpen in left, and the Royal bullpen in right.
And the first base dug up belongs to the home team here, the Kansas City Royals, the Yankees are at third.
Dick Hauser, the third base coach for the Yankees, moves out.
Oli Hower, the first base coach, as the Royals have already taken the field.
Defensively, they will have a battery of Larry Dora and Buck Martinez,
The first baseman, Big John Mayberry, second baseman, Frank White.
At shortstop, Freddie Hoteck, and at third base will be George Brett.
The left fielder, Tom Blokette, the center fielder, Amos Otis, and the right fielder, Al Cowan.
So we're set for baseball on a beautiful afternoon from Kansas City,
The first of a series between the Royals and the Yankees, the best out of five.
So two games will be played here, one, two, or three will be played in Yankee Stadium in New York starting on Tuesday night.
Right now, it's my pleasure to introduce one of the gentlemen of the game,
which is something to say at Oxford at some time.
A veteran of baseball broadcasting over the years in both leagues with the Giants, the Orioles, the Tigers.
Right now, one of the class people in baseball.
One of his poems is in the Hall of Fame at Cooperstown.
And a great pleasure for me personally to work with a longtime friend,
and the voice of the Detroit Tigers, Ernie Harwell.
Thank you, Ned Martin. I appreciate those kind words.
And hi, everybody, wherever you might be.
A special greeting to the Armed Forces radio listeners all around the world as we get ready for this classic here in Kansas City.
The weatherman has blessed us with beautiful weather.
Got a little bit of a breeze. It's blowing from the northwest at 14 miles an hour.
That means it'll be blowing across the field from the left field toward right.
We've got what the ballplayers refer to as a high sky, no clouds,
to form a background for those high pop-ups, the fly balls, and it might be a little tough.
Also, it's going to be very interesting to see how the Yankees play here on the Tarleton Surf,
which they are not very familiar with, but which is the ball surf for the Kansas City Royals.
The Yankees are favored in this series. The Royals say that they can win it.
So let's see. Larry Gura ready to sit. Nicky Rivers at the plate.
And the first pitch on the way, it's funny, George Baird, it is a foul ball,
rolling foul picked up by Martinez about 10 or 12 feet down the third base side.
The Rivers try to surprise him right off the start with a little block toward third base.
It was a good one, but it finally rolled foul.
George Brett coming over now to talk to Gura.
Gura is the left-hander from Arizona, one of the many graduates of Arizona State
who made it big in the Major League.
He had a 4-0 record this year, but no record at all, one and lost against the Yankees.
Rivers batting 286, and he swings and fouls it off on the screen right down below it.
Gura has a fast ball, he's not exceptionally fast.
He throws a slider and has an excellent change up.
The players say that he'll throw a change on his change.
Basically a control flipper, he has to pitch the spot.
Rivers waiting, the left hand about his feet, bonding ball to third.
Brett Dressett at the corner, long throw to first, not in time, it gets by Mayberry.
Rivers is taking second, Mayberry chases it all down,
and Rivers flies in safety at second base.
Brett hesitated for a moment, and then threw the first base.
He's got to pick off the fleet of Rivers, but he's through while I'm late,
and we'll wait for the official score of the decision.
It'll be an error and a single.
Probably that, he would have been better off just holding the ball.
I believe so, that hesitation you mentioned there, and he was,
why he did it, whether he couldn't get the ball out of his glove or not,
or whether he was waiting for Mayberry to come over to cover,
and John might have been wide of a bag enough.
So it's a break right off the bat for the Yankees, and Mickey Rivers has been making them all year.
And the ball was very close to the line.
It was not an easy play for Brett at all, but he'll be charged with an error.
Good boy, White, the switch batter batting 286th over the season, 14 homerun, 65 earned by the end.
Gerrard delivers a fast ball, high and outside on White.
Rivers with a single, taking second on the wild throw by third baseman Brett.
Well, the Yankees have an early threat going here in Kansas City.
Outfield is straight up on the right-hand batting White.
Gerrard delivers, it's a ball, then close the fast ball.
Rivers has 43 steals and the 50 chances, and he's the man to be reckoned with on the bases.
Most of the base stealers like to run on this part of the turf.
They feel they've got a better jump and a better start.
Outfield bunching up the middle on White.
Waiting, Gerrard on the left-hand's one of the plate, it's been too close.
3-0, the count on Roy, the Yankee veteran.
Brett is about even with the bag at third and wide up it slightly.
Patek and White have around second as much towards the bag.
Mayberry is playing wide at first base.
White digging in, spreads out.
See if he's taking a hitting on this one.
He's taking and it's outside, ball four.
Oh, the Yankees have two men on and nobody down, and Thurman Munson,
doubted by many as the most valuable player of the American League coming to bat.
That's a big, dirty right-hand batter ready to step in against the left-hand pitching of Jura.
Munson hits 3-0-2 for the season at 17 home runs and 105 runs batted in.
Oh, Gerrard in early trouble here against his old teammate, the Yankees.
Infield in double play depth on Munson, outfield around the left.
And Garra pitches if they fall out of play.
That one reaching the seat for the Nazanin.
Elton Howard is the first base coach for the Yanks, 6,000 coaching at third.
Beautiful day, bright and sunny.
The Yankees with an early threat.
They've got Rivers at second base.
They've got White at third.
That's the pitch. It's a breaking ball low, good stop by Buck Martinez to catch it.
Garra has floated pitching phase now with Munson at the back.
No score around the first inning. The Yankees have two men on and nobody down.
That's the kick, the pitch. It's a line shot to the field.
Rivers coming around third. That's where the ball is loaded.
And they're holding it third. The bases are loaded.
Ode is coming up quickly with that ball.
Shooting through the carton third. He picked it up and fired him with Jackson Martinez.
Rivers was held at third.
So we've got the Macy's, Water City, and a former Kansas City player, Lou Pennella, stepping up.
The game time, Cheperdee reading now 63 degrees here in Kansas City.
Bird has begun to throw already in the Kansas City bullpen, the right-hander.
Oh, there have been two singles with a walk-in between.
Also an error by Kansas City, and the Yankees have three men on and nobody down.
Here's Pennella, and he's clean and lifted.
There's that change up by Larry Garra.
Pennella pulled the trigger much too soon on that one.
Lou batted 281 during the season.
Had three home runs, drove in 38 runs.
Young man from Tampa waiting.
Here's the pitch to Pennella. He takes the strike from the outside corner.
Now, Gura gets the corner there with a fastball.
Now, the Scouts say that basically Pennella is a fastball hitter and a lowball hitter.
Now, the windup for the left-hander, the pitch he takes outside.
That's with the waste bit.
No score first inning.
The Yankees have a gigantic threat on against Kansas City.
They've loaded the bases with nobody down.
Munson at first base.
White at second.
Mickney Rivers at third.
One ball, two strikes out on Pennella, digging in waiting.
Now, the left-hander, Larry Garra, here's the windup in the pitch.
He swings and fouls it away.
That one off the middle of Martinez to Kesseth.
Pennella is rather hard to guard against in the outfield.
He'll hit to any of the fields.
Sometimes a bad ball hitter.
Rivers keeping an eye on Garra.
He'll be working off the windup here where the bases loaded and nobody out.
No score first inning.
Here's the motion, here's the pitch.
Pennella swings and there's a foul out of play.
End of the mezzanine and a man from Raytown will take care of that one.
That breeze here, that may be a fact.
It's going pretty hard.
Yeah, it is a left-to-right breeze and might help a ball hit down the right field line.
It's harder than we thought it was when we came out here.
Kansas City infields still playing back in double play depth.
As Garra goes to work again on the Pennella where the bases loaded.
The left-hander winds and delivers.
There's a cut in the middle.
That was a bad pitch.
It's like a high pass ball and Pennella goes down on strike.
Garra still in trouble now faces Chris Tamlitz, the left-hander batting first baseman.
He came to the Yankees, you'll remember, from the Cleveland ball club.
Had a fine year this year.
He batted 293, had 17 home runs and 96 runs right at end.
Tamlitz at one time had trouble handling the high pass ball.
There's a curve and tight on him.
Ball one to count on Chris.
The pitch is loaded for the Yankees, one man down, no score, first inning.
Otis is almost slightly in left center against Chris Tamlitz.
Now the motion of the pitch, he swings and powers it away.
That one back to the screen.
One and one.
That was a fast ball and tight on him.
Tamlitz says the only way he's learned to handle that pitch is to use his hands more.
Gora Munson is an expert at that, his teammate.
Getting the hands in even at the last split second.
Base is loaded, one out, Yankees threatening first inning.
Gora Wines delivers, Tamlitz swings to the bonding ball to third.
Brett Gloveson cuts his third, one there for the first.
Mayberry gets past Mayberry.
Rivers is scored.
Coming around third now is Munson.
He's headed home, here's a throw by Cowan for the plate.
And he scores against by a martini that's packed up by Gora.
And the Yankees score a couple of runs on the fourth count of the error.
And take the lead here in the opening inning, 2-0.
They end up with a man at second base and two men out.
And the batter will be Neville.
Quite a play there, Mr. Martin.
I imagine that would have to be a score.
The fielders score one run, bat it in, and an error on Brett,
which is his second of the inning.
And George has had more trouble this year with the throwing from third base.
He doesn't usually make that many.
He made quite a few errors this year.
The throwing bothered him.
He said earlier in the season that maybe it was because he was hitting so well
that he just lost concentration on his fielding.
So the Yankees who might have been out of the inning without a run now have two.
And Meadows, a tough hitter at the plate, left-handed about to the home run
seeing him in the American League with 32.
Swings and let's play fly ball to left field.
Both cats fighting the sun and the wind makes the catch and the inning is over.
But the Yankees take the lead as they get two runs on two hits.
There were two Kansas City errors, one man left for New York.
And in the middle of the first inning, it is New York 2 and Kansas City coming to bat.
We've gotten words from the National League on what the league intends to do
in the event of a rainout in Philadelphia or in the event of the further worsening weather conditions.
A Philadelphia Philly spokesman said the opening National League playoff game against the Reds
is expected to be played despite forecast of rain.
Bill Giles, the executive vice president of the club, said he had been in constant touch
with various weathermen and they indicate that the rain should stop by about 6 o'clock.
That's in about 4 hours and 45 minutes from now.
The Phillies have not had a game rained out all season.
National League president Chavsini, who will make the decision whether to play or not,
said at noon that as a result of the weather report, we don't plan to call the game until tonight,
meaning of course Saturday night.
He said that's the way we're planning unless the weather report gets turned around.
But I'll tell you one thing, it is not going to be Chavsini who's going to make the decision
whether to play or not.
It's going to be the played umpire because in a situation like this,
they always go ahead and authorize the umpire to make that decision for the league president.
The league president generally does not have the knowledge and the understanding
on how weather patterns work and how it affects the field of play.
He just says let the played umpire do it in my name and that's exactly what will happen Saturday night.
Two costly throwing errors by George Greb of Kansas City, the man at third base,
giving the Yankees a 2-0 lead here in the opening inning.
And there'd be a curious thing about those throws where they were both in about the same spot
and he really didn't have to hurry that one or he would have had a double play.
I feel sure the ball was sharply hit.
He was near enough to the bag to get the force out and enough to go over there
The first base to get the runner in shambles who was fast enough
but he hasn't blazing speed if he'd have a throw there where the inning would have been over.
Well, Catfish Hunter ready to go to work now and Otis after Greb and McRae
will be the first three Kansas City batters.
Whitey Herzog has made a change, moving Otis into the leadoff spot
and Whitey Sperius, he wants to get his three good batters right up there at the top
where they will have as many times as bad as possible.
Remember Bobby Bregan used to have the theory that he would lead off with his best hitter
because that man would come to bat more often than anybody else.
Well, here's Otis.
He's got a club record with 40 doubles this year.
He's hitting 279 for the season and Catfish delivers.
It's a breaking ball, ball one.
Hunter, a very fine professional.
He has excellent control and a good variety of pitches.
Not overpowering but he's got a lot of savvy.
If they fall outside on Amos, he's got at the bottom and took it.
Shoot it all on the royal leadoff man.
Nattles is fairly deep at third base at this moment.
Yankees lead through nothing.
They got two on the throwing errors by Brett in the opening inning.
Wind up by Hunter.
The pitch is funny. George heard Hunter off the mound.
He feels it. Here's the quarter first.
He is out.
Good play by Catfish.
Firing the ball over the chamble.
It's in time to get the speedy aim of Otis.
Batting second, number five, George Fletch.
Here's the American League batting champion, George Fletch, coming up.
He had a fabulous year.
Lived the league with a 3.33 mark at seven home runs, 67 runs batted in.
Young man who broke into this Kansas City lineup at the age of 20, back in 73.
There's a curve low on the Catfish ball one.
Mickey Rivers is very shallow in center field on the left-hand batting Brett, and he takes the strike.
Now Brett was only up to steal a lot following the series, caught him by the batting coach, Charlie Rowe.
Catfish goes into motion again.
Delivers his a bounding ball to his bird, knocked down by Neville.
He picks it up, throw to bird, got in.
He took the hit away from Brett.
So far Ernie, the book has been completely raw.
The Royals would out-defense the Yankees.
The Yankees might have some problems defensively, but there's two fine plays, one by Hunter and one by Eddell.
Here's Hal McRae now, who finished second to his teammate in the batting race, Brett.
He batted 3.32. Right-hand batting designated hitter takes the pitch in close.
Two nothing Yankees in the opening inning.
They jumped out in front early.
Right-hander Hunter delivers. McRae swings and fouls it on the screen.
Hal's not a power hitter. He had eight home runs over the season.
Seventy-three runs batted in.
He stands deep with his feet rather close together.
One of the few Royals who's had the championship series experience.
He swings and misses on a breaking ball, and the count is one and two.
Two off, over the arm of the Royals. They trail the Yankees, two nothing.
Rivers again playing very shallow, who's open right center on McRae.
Right-hand batter cuts and misses, and the inning is over.
The Royals go down one, two, three, and at the end of the first inning, it is New York 2, Kansas City nothing.
A number of college football games on tap, as you might expect on this Saturday.
Let's take a look and see where the ranked teams are playing.
In the East, Louisville is at second-ranked Pittsburgh.
Saturday night, Florida State plays at 17th ranked Boston College.
In the South, seventh-ranked Maryland is at North Carolina State.
Fourth-ranked Georgia plays at Mississippi.
In the Midwest, fifth-ranked Nebraska is at Colorado.
Eleventh-ranked Ohio State plays at Iowa.
Ninth-ranked Missouri is at Kansas State.
In the Southwest and far west, third-ranked Oklahoma plays at Texas.
That game will be broadcast later in the day over many of these same AFRCS stations.
Eighteenth-ranked Texas Tech is at 16th-ranked Texas A&M.
West Texas State is at 19th-ranked Houston.
Stanford is at sixth-ranked UCLA, and tenth-ranked Southern California is at Washington State.
Not scheduled, 12th-ranked Notre Dame, 13th-ranked Florida, 15th-ranked Arkansas, and 20th-ranked Tulsa.
CBS Radio Sports has written you play-by-play action in the American League Championship.
And there's more to come. The World Series starts October 16th, that's next Saturday.
And you'll hear exclusive radio coverage, play-by-play, of the 1976 World Series, right here on the CBS Radio Network station.
The Royals have made a lineup change. Jim Walford goes in to play left.
Cowan moves into center field, and the starting left fielder, Polk Schacht, goes in to play right.
All necessitated by an entry to Amos Mody.
He heard his ankle running out that spot on which he was tossed out by Hudders in the last half of the first inning.
Juno Bingley, Yankees lead the Royals in the opening game of the championship series, second inning, and it matters.
At the plate, batting 217 for the year, he swings and Polk get out of play. It'll be a high one that'll reach the seat back of first base.
Maddox is facing in right field. A fairly strange position to him, although he's played it before.
He was on the inactive list for a year and a half, and he's still somewhat hobbled with a leg injury.
No home runs this year. Three runs battered in for Elliott, and he taps the foul on a checked swing. That one back in the middle behind the plate.
Two strikes out on him.
Larry Gura had a tough time in that opening inning. Ran into a little turbulence as the Yankees picked up two on two hits dated by two errors by Brett.
There's a fastball outside. He wasted that one one and two of the count on Elliott Maddox.
Maddox, the Yankees, you remember from the Texas team, also been at Washington and Detroit prior to that.
And he swings and Polk it away. It'll be in the seat over on the first base side.
The outfield is playing around a right a little bit on Maddox, playing him with the ball.
Infield is very deep. They'll have a tendency here on the Texas turf to play a lot deeper than they do on natural grad.
Gura, the left-hander, kicks and deals. There's a bounding ball to short it. The pot-hick is over. He has it.
Here's a throw to Mayberry inside, and Maddox is up.
Well, pretty tough, that. Celebrating his 32nd birthday.
Causes are ill-matted. Here's Willie Randolph, the former National Leagueer.
Willie, one of the many Yankees who's been in the playoffs.
Named by the Yankees from the Pittsburgh Ball Club. Right hand about it.
It's 267 for the Seasons. Gura left-hands one up, and it's fouled away. That's his change-up.
Randolph, start of the swing, checks it, and then they ball it to bat Mericatay away.
Joe Brinkman getting a knee-base ball from the ball boy.
Outfield a little bit to the left on the right-hander batting Randolph.
He swings at a bounding ball wide a third, mixed up by Brett for the first.
Good play by George Grant, 20-years left, and short-hopping the hard-grounder.
Oh, there are two down. Nobody on for New York. Bailey threw nothing in the second inning.
And here's the shortstop, Brett Stanley.
Brett, Brett batting 238. From the Seasons start, he and Mason were alternating.
They were being put-tuned by manager Billy Martin. Stanley eventually won the job.
Right-hand batter waiting, and he takes the strike. That's the outside corner.
Something about this guy, he is knocked in 20 runs in a year. I think about 10 of them were against the Red Cubs.
He's tough in the clutch. It's a pitch outside on Stanley, and the count even on him at one-and-one.
Two-nothing, the Yanks have the lead. We're in the second inning.
Larry Dora, lines and pitches. There's a line shot, right field, base hit.
Hope Jett coming up on the rough side to field it. Stanley makes the turn, holes, with a long single down in the right field corner.
That'll give the Yanks their third hit. They've all been singled.
And here's the man who picked up the first one, Mickey Rivers.
Rivers finally starts the ballgame and beat it out.
Incidentally, when Ned Martin speaks to the Red Sox, he's an authority. He is the voice of the Boston Red Sox.
And has been for about 16 years. Here's a pitch to Mickey. He swings and misses.
Rivers was safe on the box. Then took second when Brett overthrew his first base.
Then the Yankees loaded the bases. Vanellas struck out.
Cambers hit into a fourth shot, but the throw by Brett left two runs in. That's how the Yankees got their two.
Here's a wide curve from Dora, and they count even one-and-one on Rivers.
Rivers had shoulder problems towards the end of the year, but they ended up subsided.
Two out, one on. The Yankees had two nothing.
Stanley with a short-mated first base. And the pitches are struck.
Ava Sotis is out of the game. They made an outfield change here with George about earlier because he sprained his left ankle.
He's a very valuable man, and he will be missed.
Here's the step by Dora, the left-hander ready, but Rivers, Rivers swings and misses on the changeup.
And the inning is over. Stuck him out.
The runs won it. No errors. One man left. And in the middle of the second inning, the score, New York 2, the Royals nothing.
Taking a look at other sports news, World Heavyweight Champion Muhammad Ali in an interview published on Saturday has left open the possibility of returning to the ring again despite his announced retirement.
But the 34-year-old Ali told a developed newspaper in Germany over the telephone that there would be no other World Championship bout for him.
He says, my decision to retire from boxing is definite, and that's it.
Ali says he's made lots of money with his manager, Herbert Muhammad, but he says, now I have made an end. He says I only work and live for my religion.
According to Ali, he said if he should enter the ring again, it would be for the sole purpose to financially support his black brethren, to support hospitals and help the poor and the old people of his religion.
He said if he could box again, and then only for all of us, he said there would be no other World Championship match for him.
He says that is definite.
Interesting point, though. How much money would he get just fighting a fight as opposed to how much would he get if he was fighting for the World Championship?
Thank you, Sue. The Kansas City Royals nothing. We're in the second inning here, the first game of the American League Championship Series.
Sometimes called the Playoffs Series, although officially the American League Championship Series.
And John Mayberry, who was a big home run producer last year, but then slumped off a little bit in his home run production, but still is always a threat.
He'll be leading off for the Kansas City Royals.
John's averaged 27 home runs and 94 runs out of any since he joined the Royals in 72.
Last year batted 232. Last year he had 13 home runs, but he still managed to knock in 95 runs.
Makes strong left hand better, and often they will shift on him, and that's what the Yankees are doing now. They're putting three infielders on the right side, and they're playing very deep on him.
Get this to the booze and it's the ball outside. A lot of the opposition pitchers will try to make Mayberry go to the opposite side.
And the pitch on the way, it's a strike, got the outside far.
Scouts say that he has trouble hitting the ball down and in. There's a ball outside.
Catch face with a tug of a cap. Now looking in to get the sign, Mayberry steps out of the batter's box. The Yankees have the lead here in the opening game. 2-0 in the second inning. Mayberry waiting.
Hunter delivers. Here's a swing and a miss.
In the outfield is White and left for the Yankees. Rivers instead of Madison Wright.
Here's the motion by Catfish Hunter. The pitch is swung on and fouled away. It's down on the third base side.
Going back to that first inning, if you like to keep the score and take a count of such things, Kamlet was recorded as having an RBI on the fourth out-flying error.
Here's a fly ball that's in the left field. White coming in, digging hard. He's there, makes the catch.
Soft, short fly to left, picked off by Roy White. Catfish Hunter has stepped down the first four Royals he's faced.
Now Ernie on the, in the workout yesterday, Billy Martin wanted to make sure that his outfielders got used to this sun field out here.
This time of day between 12 and 2, it's kind of rough out in left field. Not like the old Yankee Stadium days in September, but somewhat like it and you have to be a little careful.
Here's Cowan stepping in now. He batted 65 this year. Right hand batter swings and lifts the foul out of play. He'll be directly back in the play.
In the end field for the Yankees, Nettles is at third and got Stanley at short. Randolph at second. Kamlet at first base. Muntzer does the catcher.
Yankees lead 2-0 second inning. Here's a fly ball into short center field. Going back is Randolph. He's there and makes the catch. Stanley started for that one and then gave way to his second base from Randolph.
The ball just out past second base from short center. The Royal bats have not done anything yet against Hunter.
Tom Polkett has numerous operations and quite a few battles of the offenses around the organized baseball park. Stepping in now.
Polkett, on the first rookie, having hit 3-0-2. Having hit over 300 in Kansas City history. Lifts the ball outside. He batted 3-0-2 this season. Had a couple of home runs.
He was out almost a month. Ran into offense, chasing a fly ball against Chicago. Here's a fly hit foul in the seats down on the left field side. One and one, the count on Polkett.
Yankees 2-0 Royal Snubbing were in the second inning. Nobody on base. The pick is flung on, hit out the glove of Hunter. Here comes Randolph to pick it up.
Got it! Good play. It'll be Hunter to Randolph and Kamlet. And the side retard with no runs, no hits, no errors and nobody left. At the end of two innings, the score Yankees 2-0 Royal Snubbing.
Well, the big question in Philadelphia, will it be a green light or a stop sign for the Cincinnati Reds on the base pass or the second stadium?
The Reds and Phillies getting set to open a best of five series for the National League Cunnets. And the whole thing may hinge on the Reds runners and their base-stealing attempts.
The Reds-Phillies game following the early American League playoff opener, which you're listening to right now on the Parade of Sports.
Just a year ago, the Reds chased the Pirates out of the National League playoffs and stole everything but the smile on Katya Mani-Fanjian's face.
Mani, the original good humor man, retained that, but not much else. The Go-Go Boys of Cincinnati, second baseman Joe Morgan, right fielder Kenny Griffey and shortstop Dave Contestio, they're all fast and even more, specialist in base-stealing.
Obviously, the secret of base-stealing is to get the jump on the pitcher, and that, of course, is after you get on base.
And the Reds are very good at that. At Cincinnati, in the National League, was the top-hitting team, finishing at a 280-team batting average.
To come the Yankees to bat in the third, they have a 2-0 lead overall, you know. The story so far, the Yankees in the first inning taking the batting, out-crawling errors by George Brett, the Kansas City third baseman.
Combining with a couple of hits to the loft, they picked up two runs.
Joe Brickman, the plate umpire, has come out and said a word or two to the left-hand pitcher Larry Gura.
Gura will be pitching to Roy White, White walk in the opening inning.
Royos do not have a runner so far. That basically swanked them in both runs and hits.
And the Yankees have two runs and three hits, two twice. And he swings and fouls it away. It will be in the seats over on the first base side.
White just about the better and important service on this ball club.
Thirty-three years old, he takes the curve. It's been a little bit close. It missed the inside corner, one-and-one.
I feel a little bit to the left on him in the infield back.
And third baseman Brett just behind the bag and wide over the third.
White sometimes likes to mock. Here's the pitch. He takes the strike. That was a breaking ball in the inside corner, one-and-two on Roy.
White became a swifter very early. In fact, in his boyhood days, he was a swifter when he even started out.
He swings and hits a little pop fly off the first. Here comes Mayberry near the seats and he won't get it. It's just into the seat.
That ball not hit very high would have been a tough test for John even had it been available.
So White has stood up there with a one-two count on him.
Yanks two and the Royals something. We're in the third inning on a bright, sun-shiny day in Kansas City.
Jammed house here in the Royals stadium.
Noura ready to go to work again now. The left-handed of Axton Wyons for the booze. White swings to the bounding ball deep third. Brett backs up. Here's the call to Mayberry and dimes and White is out.
A lot of business, man, on that side of the infield for Kansas City.
I think those last two plays that Brett has made have helped him, especially the good one in hitting a goal on the staff hop when he made a good play.
And I think now he's straightened out his throwing and that would have to help him mentally.
I would think so because those first two were very tough on him.
Here's Munson. He had a single up the middle, his only chip. One of the real tough hitters in the make of those, Sherman Munson.
And from Kent State, swings that they bounding ball to short.
Patek is there. They throw to Mayberry in plenty of time and they are two down in the Yankee third inning.
That will bring up Lou Pennella. Lou being used by Billy Martin as the designated batter.
Billy has managed teams in the two-championship series, Minnesota and Detroit.
But each time his team lost in the playoff game.
First playoff, a material experience for Whitey Herzog. Here's a ball outside on Pennella.
Fast ball wide at the plate. First time up, he struck out.
At that time they were, the bases loaded and nobody down when he fanned.
Now Lou takes a curve in close from the left hander, Larry Gora.
Yankees two, Royals nothing. We're in the third inning.
Outfield around towards left and the infield very deep now on Pennella with two down and the bases empty.
So Gora goes into motion to the visit. A foul fly out of play back of first base.
That's the hander to Gora. He's settled down after that tricky first inning.
Lack of support cost him. Pennella waits on the next delivery.
Here it comes. He swings as a little looper in the short left field.
May drop in, Wolf was coming hard. Plays it on one hop and Pennella has a two out single.
The last two hits for the Yankees have come with two down.
And their first two in the opening innings came with nobody out.
Here's Chris Chambliss coming to bat now.
He hit into a fourth in the opening inning and that was the key play of the game so far.
After Brett had touched third for the fourth out of Roy White, he threw the ball wild past Mayberry and two Yankees scored.
And that's the story here in the early chapters in Kansas City.
Chambliss swings and fouls it away right down below. Strike one on Chris.
Here's a little Pennella, the runner's first base. Gora with a pretty good move to first.
Mayberry's not going to hold right on the bag with Pennella. He'll be between the runner and the base.
Here's a ball outside, one and one.
Chambliss is a close handskitter.
That feels right a bit. Here's the pitch on the way. He swings a bounding ball up the middle.
It's the pass. The second base from White in the center field. Pennella holds it second on the single.
Stroh comes in to play the pot back. He's in and grabs it. And the Yankees have a two out threat.
Runners at first and second and Greg Neville is coming to bat.
Neville's the home run team in the American League with 32.
He made the final out of the first inning. His only time is by the way when he's flying the left.
Neville's asking Joe Brickman, I believe, to move umpire Maloney over a little bit.
That's right. He's in the line of vision of the batter.
Oh, he's got a left-hander against the left-hander.
Outfield around towards White on Greg Neville. A goer delivers.
Swing and a miss on the fastball. This is the first Yankee home run champion since Roger Maris back in 1961.
But over the years the Yankees have had more than their share.
Now the set of the pitch. He swings and a bounding ball to second. White playing him deep.
The Yankees charges. Gloves it. They throw to Mayberry in the community.
No runs on the two hits. The 1-0 errors. The Yankees to the left.
We go to the last half to third. The middle of the third inning. The score. The Yankees to the Royals nothing.
Just one game in the National Hockey League on Friday night.
The New York Rangers over Colorado by the score of 5-3.
In the World Hockey Association, Indianapolis 4-3 over Minnesota.
Winnipeg beat Calgary 3-1. Birmingham 4, Houston 2.
Edmonton down, New England 2-0. And Phoenix outgunned Cincinnati 8-6.
In the National Basketball Association, and these are all exhibition games, Philadelphia 134, Boston 103, Buffalo 107, Washington 106.
Cleveland beat Detroit 100-95. And it was San Antonio 126, Atlanta 102.
In college football, Oklahoma's third ranked and defending national champion Sooners will take on our tribal 14th ranked Texas at Dallas.
One of the key football games Saturday. And of course we'll be keeping you right up to date with all of those games as the scores come on into us here at AFRCS in Washington.
Enjoying the playoffs? Well enjoy the World Series 2 with exclusive radio coverage from CBS Radio Sports.
Starting this Saturday on this CBS Radio Network station.
Frank White will lead it off for the Kansas City Royals. Catfish Hunter has set them down six in a row so far here in the bright sunshine in the Royals stadium.
Now the Yankees have a 2-0 lead.
Leading off to the Royals, number 20, right-handed Bonnie White.
Graduated from the Royal Academy, this is no more, but started to develop youngsters into Major League ballplayers and he's the only one who made it to the Major League.
Batting 2-29 for the year and White takes a flatter low and away from Catfish Hunter.
Ball one, the count on Frank White.
The Royals are still looking for their first hit. There's a foul back to the screen, one-on-one on White.
White in his third full season there with Kansas City. He was up just a short time in 73.
Benethenese leaning over the plate waiting on a 1-1 hit. He bounced the ball, it's foul back to the screen.
From the pretty tough pitch to the high and tight. And he bunted it but it went right back and on the screen.
Frank White grew up almost in the shadow of the Oro Ballpark here in Kansas City.
Over on Brooklyn Avenue, there's a ball outside, a wide curve and the count on White is 2-2.
Munson turns and says something to the plate umpire, Joe Brinkman.
The Yankees lead in this one 2-0, the Royals are batting in the third.
Catfish gets his sign from Munson, works again 2-2 third, one on a bounding ball to third.
Big hop for Nettles, Chloe Shambles, she's out.
Seven in a row, stepped down by Catfish Hunter.
And there's Freddie Potec, a service in the championship series with Pittsburgh.
Oh he came over here to Kansas City. First joined the Royals in 71.
Merciless wall player.
One out, here's a slider in for a strike.
Fred said today, yup I'm 32 but I can still outrun a lovely young guy. And he's telling his life.
There's a fly ball at the left, White backing up, he's there waiting, he has it.
And there are two down and the first eight have gone down in a row before Mr. Catfish Hunter.
Here's Bush Martinez, the catcher, who batted at 28 over the season.
Yank's got a couple in the opening in he.
And they're holding a 2-0 lead right now.
Martinez originally with a silly team.
In their organization, there's a strike call, Catfish mixing his pitches well to hit the outside corner with a slider.
Now the wind up by Hunter, the pitch on the way, it's a ball outside.
Chuck Diller coaches the third for KC, Steve Boris the first.
Now the motion, the pitch on the way, just a little foul ball in the air, back of first,
Jammer is chasing but he can't get it.
He's got a bit of a check swing, he didn't get much wood on that one.
One and two, they count on Martinez.
Catfish Hunter, one of the top pitchers in baseball, never pitched in the minor leagues.
In the long debate, the Tona Club, action 64 his first year but he didn't get into action.
Here's Grace Cardona-Ness, he struck him out and the five retired.
Once again, the Royals go down one, two, three, no runs, no hits, no errors and nobody left.
And at the end of three innings, it is Yankees to the Royals nothing.
We have some college football scores in from the East, Boston University and Massachusetts.
Massachusetts leading by the score of six to nothing, that's at the end of the first quarter.
And I thought we had another one in but I don't see it right now so we'll settle for that as our first college football score of the day.
Massachusetts leading Boston University by the score of six to nothing, that's at the end of the first quarter.
Elsewhere in the East, Pennsylvania is playing at Brown, Holy Cross is at Colgate, Princeton is at Columbia,
Cornell at Harvard, Army is taking on Penn State, Louisville is at second rank Pittsburgh, Connecticut is at Rutgers,
Tulane at Syracuse, West Virginia at Temple, Richmond is at Villanova and Dartmouth is playing at Yale.
That's a look at what's going on in college football in the East.
We'll take a look at the rest of the schedule for you the next time we get a chance.
Yanks main standing the way two nothing, they've got some perfect pitching from Catfish Hunter through the first three innings.
Step down the nine, loyalty space.
Meanwhile the Yankees picked up a couple off the left hand start of Kansas City, Larry Gora.
They got him in the first inning and a bunch single by Rivage, he took second on a throwing error by Brett, white wall.
The German think, German Munchen single a load of aces.
Then after Bonilla struck out, the gamblers took a ground ball to Brett, he took third for the ball count,
and they took him out of the inning but then overthrew at first base and two Yankee runs came home.
That's the story of the game so far.
Along with Ned Martin, this is Ernie Harwell in Royal Stadium.
And the batter for New York is Elliot Maddox.
One time University of Michigan star, bounced the short his first trip.
Gora delivers, he backs him off.
Inside fastball around the knees.
Yankees have five hits from the ball being single.
Kansas City has no hits.
Swing a fly ball to right, coming over Poquette, he there has it.
That's one away.
Willie Randolph, who has solidified this Yankee infield with some great second basing,
also done a good job on offense with his speed and with his fast.
Stepping in now for the New Yorkers.
He bounced to third his first trip.
Came to the Yankees, you'll remember, in the Doc Medics field.
Now left hander Gora pitches, there's a breaking ball over.
He's changed up on his curve and got that ball on the inside corner.
Right hander batting Randolph, waiting on a strike one delivery from the lefty Gora.
Here's the fastball hit to left field fairly deep.
Going back, whoa, but he's there and he makes the catch on the run towards finish.
Left field is very deep here and it is a tough home run part.
3.85, back to that left field alley and a high fence.
Here's Fred Stanley, the shortstop who weighed in with a single with two out in the second inning.
Two down in the Yankee fourth.
Yanks lead the Royals two-nil-nil-nil.
Gora fires, there's a line shot, it'll be up the alley, caved down by Cowan.
It's off his glove, it gets passed and he picks it up.
He's going for two and he rounds and holds it second.
Tough job to cut that ball off in the alley on this carton curve.
Cowan's got his glove on it and did very well to hold him to two.
It'll be a double the first extra base hit of the game.
On the supposedly light-hitting Stanley, the only man with two hits.
Mickey Rivers, he has a bump single and he's struck out.
Right up on top of the plate, batting in a crouch.
And he takes the ball outside.
That's a real crouch, the old summer cake crouch.
So, following in the batter's box, Rivers with that great speed is,
Brett has to come in a little bit closer third base,
and he swings as they drive to center field, coming hard as Cowan.
He has it and that's all for the Yankees in their fourth inning.
No runs, one hit, no errors, one man left.
And in the middle of the fourth, it's New York 2, Kansas City nothing.
Continuing with a look at what's on the schedule for college football,
7th ranked Maryland is at North Carolina State, Virginia Tech is at VMI,
Southern Mississippi is at Alabama, Berman at Appalachian State,
Tennessee taking on Georgia Tech, Georgia, 4th ranked in their latest poll is at Mississippi,
Kentucky is at Mississippi State, Clemson is at Wake Forest, Delaware at William & Mary,
and that's it on the day schedule.
At night in the South, the University of Chattanooga plays at Citadel,
Southern Illinois at East Carolina, Vanderbilt is at LSU,
Auburn at Memphis State, Duke at Miami of Florida, McNeese State is at Northeast Louisiana,
Nichols State at Northwest Louisiana, and Virginia is at South Carolina.
In the Midwest, Ohio University at Central Michigan, 5th ranked Nebraska at Colorado,
Arkansas State at Eastern Michigan, Ball State at Illinois State,
Northwestern is at Indiana, and Northern Illinois is at Indiana State.
Look at the rest of the Midwest and the Southwest and far West a little later.
Well, Mr. Katzmeister Cutter has perfectly done the job so far.
He has a pitch to nine Kansas City Royals, and he's set down nine in a row.
He's had two strikeouts. He struck off McRae, the third batter, in the first inning,
and he got Martinez on strike for the third out of the third.
Now he'll be facing a newcomer to the batter's box, Jim Walbert,
who came in to replace Otis in the batting order after Otis sprained his left ankle
running the first base in the first inning.
Look at the right hand batter.
He batted 249 for the season, stands very deep in the batter's box,
feet close together, and Catfish delivers a splatter on the outside corner.
Cutter has mixed his pitches very effectively, and his control has been perfect.
He deals. Here's a cut and a foul off the mid of Munson.
Joe Brinkman looking over that ball, but I think he'll keep it in play.
Rivers, the center fielder for the Yankees, plays very shallow on most of the hitters.
He's over in right center now on the right hand batting Wilford.
He's got a strike two count against him. Here's a pitch. It's a very wide splatter.
One ball and two strikes. Not a whole thing.
The batter might go for the bat pitch, but he'd have no part of it.
Now the motion by Catfish. He delivers very wide again.
Two to the count on Wilford.
Catfish so far has not thrown a whole lot of pitches.
Now delivers, and it's a tight call. He stood there and watched that one go by.
It's stuck him up. It'll be the third strikeout for Hunter.
The first one is going to call first strike.
Here's George Brett, who bounce to his counterpart third.
Neville's his only time at bat, the American League batting champion.
Left hand of batter, who will go to all the fields.
Nice easy swing up there for George, and he takes a wide one.
Two nothing, the Yankees lead. Kansas City is batting the fourth inning.
And Brett swings as they drive to center coming hard. Rivers can't get it, places it on one up.
And there is the first hit for Kansas City.
And it was a clean one. It's a typical Brett hit. A line drive almost second base.
It's a bit of vendetta in the Brett thing too. It's curious he's been so involved.
He gets the first hit. He made the two errors, but he wants to beat the Yankees badly because of their treatment, he said, of his brother, Ken Brett, whom he said they didn't give a real chance to before they traded him.
Here's Hal McRae, the designated batter, and he takes a strike.
And I was talking to Hal about what he would do between turns at bat as the D.H.
And he said, well, I'll keep busy. A lot of room around the clubhouse. I can run. I can swing the bat. I'll stay loose.
And he says, I'm used to it. I've had a season of it.
Strike one to Callum Hal. Run the ball, the pitch is swung on and missed. Throw by Muckin. In the second, he gives out second base.
Stanley, the shortstop covered, puts the bag on the in-clotting Brett after McRae tried to help out with a swing on the outside hit.
Brett tried to go around and come back with a hand grab of the bag, but the throw was right on the butt by Munson, who has a very quick release.
So there are two downs and two strikes on McRae.
Hunter, in the door, puts McRae steps out of the batter's box.
Catfish winds and pitches. It's a flat or low and away, one and two.
Formerly with the Cincinnati Reds, the young man who's one time to the L.A. lessons, Hal McRae.
He swings. There's a fly ball down in the corner and ref. It's barely deep. White coming over, fighting to win in the sun, and he can't hold it as the ball finally goes far.
That was a tough one.
Number one, he was looking up in the high sky.
Number two, the wind was coming in from left field toward right.
And third, he was very near the barrier, and he came across that foul line. He got his glove on the ball, but couldn't hang on.
All the official score says is a no play, which is the same as saying no error.
And McRae comes back to the plate. Two-nothing, the Yankees lead. The Royals are batting with two down and nobody on.
Here in Kansas City, the last half of the fourth, the pitch is fouled away, reached out on a breaking ball.
Bill Peffy of the Daily News in New York, Sid Warden of the Kansas City Star, are the official scorers.
Most veterans of the baseball journalism.
Here's the wind up in the pitch, swing, and there's a foul lifted out of play on the first base side.
Two-nothing, the Yankees, and they got those two in the opening inning.
Catfish Hunter on the mound for the Yankees, is allowed one hit.
Gura pitching for the Royals. He's given up a six.
Hunter delivers, swing, and a miss on a fastball, and he struck him out.
That's the fourth strikeout for Catfish. No runs, one hit, no errors, nobody left.
And at the end of the fourth inning, the score, New York 2, the Royals nothing.
Continuing with what's going on in the Midwest, 11th ranked Ohio State is at Iowa.
Utah is at Iowa State. Missouri plays at Kansas State. Missouri ranks ninth in the latest form.
Western Michigan is at Kent State. Michigan State is at top ranked Michigan. Illinois takes on Minnesota.
Eighth ranked Kansas is at Oklahoma State. Fresno State is at Wichita State.
And Purdue is at Wisconsin. One night game in the Midwest. Bowling Green is at Toledo.
In the southwest and far west, third ranked Oklahoma is at 14th ranked Texas.
18th ranked Texas Tech is at Texas A&M. Wyoming is at BYU.
Oregon and California. Washington at Oregon State. San Francisco State at Fullerton State.
And Colorado State at Utah State. At night, west Texas is at 19th ranked Houston.
Stanford is at sixth ranked UCLA. And 10th ranked Southern California is at Washington State.
So let's look at how some of the ranked teams are doing Saturday.
Yankees coming to bat on the fifth inning now, it'll be Roy White.
And they score the Yankees 2 to the Royals nothing. Let's pause 10 seconds for station identification.
This is the CBS radio network. This is the American Forces radio and television service.
Here's Roy White leading it off. He walked in the first inning when the Yankees got the two runs by which they lead.
And he bounced the third base when Brad is next in the third. When the fifth inning the Yankees had two nothing.
Quick batting White, swings and misses on a change up from the left hander Gora.
Long off his batting helmet, he's going so hard on that one.
Herman Munson waiting at the on deck circle and then it'll be Luke Vanellope about after him.
Gora, a wine kick so to this, here's a foul out of play off the bat of Roy White.
Roy a very determined young man. He suffered with polio when he was six or seven years old.
He came back from that disease to make it to the Major League.
Gora ahead of him with two strikes on Roy. Here's the pitch, he takes the wide one.
Martinez doing the catching this afternoon with the Royals.
Now Brett is backed up a little bit at third base with two strikes on the batter.
Left hander Larry Gora into motion delivers. Here's a swing and a fly ball lifted to the right going back.
Boquette, he's still going back. He's still going back and reaches up and makes the catch.
That ball got up in the breeze and took off and Boquette followed, almost misjudged it, but finally hung onto it.
One out in the fifth inning. The Yankees ahead of the Royals do nothing. Here comes Munson.
Herman with a single in that two-on-first inning. I feel a round of left on him.
Gora delivers, it's a strike call.
We said earlier a lot of people are counting Munson for the Most Valuable Player Award.
The catcher has been Most Valuable in the America League five times.
Mickey Coughlin of the Detroit Tigers, Yogi Berra three times, and Elton Howard once.
The Yankee catchers have dominated the Most Valuable Player Award as far as catchers are concerned.
The Monson may catch for the Yankees this year, the first they've had since Will Gehrig back in 39.
Now we're about ready to go again. Gora into action, delivers, and Munson swings as the world pop up to first.
Mayberry has it, and there are two away in the Yankee fifth inning.
Lou Pennella, who is in the blue man's house.
Lou not really getting booed, they're just saying, Lou, he's funny, you know, he says, where I go, the fans get on me,
whether it's New York or here where he used to play. He said, I don't mind him just razzling me, it's the personal stuff that I don't like.
He's one for two this afternoon, struck out in his single. There's an outside meta, kid. All one on Pennella. Yankees lead, 2-0 in the fifth inning.
Larry Gora, the Kansas City left-hander, delivers. There's a fly ball that'll reach the seats of the foul back in right field.
Swinging late on the Gora fastball, Gora changing up on his pitches so much.
You see, a lot of the Yankees are hitting the ball late. Getting ready for the 12 curve or the change up, and then he'll slip the fastball in on them.
Lou not quite ready, he steps out for a moment. Each of these pitches has had excellent control, only one walk in the game.
Gora rocks Roy White in the first finish. Waiting on a 1-1 delivery now is Pennella, spreading out of the plate. Here's the pitch.
He takes a fastball in close. 2-1, the counter and a loop. Brett is very deep at third now.
Cracked all the infielders are back on the Yankee designated hitter. Here's the windup from the pitch.
He swings on the bounding ball to left. It'll be a hit between Brett and Potec, fielded by left fielder Wolpert, rifle back into Potec.
The Yankees get their seventh hit. The first base is in the fifth.
Pick the singles and the doubles. And here is Shamless to come to bat. He's hit into fourth out and had a single.
That's the fourth straight hit the Yankees have had with two men out.
Their first two came with nobody out and set up the scoring chance. And they capitalized on that two runs and they lead 2-0.
Shamless has one for two off the left hander. Stand-abiding Chris Swington misses.
And looks like a breaking pitch high and away.
A time called at first base by umpire Larry Barnett for a moment. Now we're ready to resume action.
Strike one pitch. Shamless takes the fastball high.
Oh, Gorai has done a good job on the mound. No question about that.
He suffered by a lack of support. In the opening inning when the Yankees got their two runs.
Now ready to deal one and one on Shamless. Here comes, here's a foul out of play.
Swinging late on the fastball.
A lot of moaning and groaning when Shamless came to New York in a deal with the Indians.
But he won himself a spot and won the respect of his teammates and the Yankee fans.
The way he's delivered. For now over the lead at first base, one two pitch he goes.
Here's a swing and a miss. The inning's over.
No runs, one hit. No errors. One man left.
And at the end of the four and a half inning the score, the Yankees are two and the Royals nothing.
The American League championship series is one of the most recounted four series I'd say in history.
Each team, the Yankees and the Royals have had their countdowns checking just about everything about the opposition.
The Yankees back in the scouts headed by Bob Cox, the Syracuse manager, Gene Michael who is here in the role of the coach.
Jerry Walker, another scout and Bertie Kevitz, still another scout although Bertie did most of his scouting in the early part of the year.
And the Kansas City Royals in the scouting department against the opposition were represented by Gary Blalock, Al Diaz and the all-time big right-hand pitcher from Philadelphia, Mr. Tom Parrish.
And you can be sure that there are practically no secrets held from the opposition.
Don't forget, fans, starting next Saturday, October 16th, you'll hear the World Series action exclusive radio play-by-play right here on the CBS Radio Network station.
Wow, we've had a half a ball game here and it's been the Catholic under the Yankees so far with a 2-0 lead.
And Kansas City comes about in the last half of the fifth inning and one of my favorites in the broadcasting profession, the voice of the Boston Red Sox, Ned Martin, will take us along the rest of the way.
All right, Ernie Harwell, thank you. Good afternoon again, everybody. It has been Catfish Hunter forever so far out there.
Mayberry's...
He only hit a single by-bred in the fourth and they got him trying to steal. Mayberry takes a fastball outside, ball one.
In the four-inning, six. Putter has faced a minimum of 12 batters.
Mayberry flies to left his first time up and he sends a high drive to right field but not deep enough. Under it is Maddox. He's got it for the out and has won away.
Mayberry flies to Elliott Maddox who hardly had to move. Or to...oh, Kent, of course, is the guy who's going to be...
...played center field. Al Cowan, center fielder, coming up. He popped up his first time up.
Maddox and Wright, river at the center. White and left for the Yankees. Yankees leading to nothing.
Cowan's the right-handed batter. Does not have the long ball power as some of the other players on...there's not too many of course on the Royals ball club.
It'll hit the home run except Mayberry and Cajole Otis. The pitcher's outside to Cowan, ball one.
Cowan is one of the fine defensive right-fielders in the American League. Has an arm, very strong arm. He foul-kits one, the count is one ball, one strike.
He is rated right up there with Dwight Evans, the Boston Red Sox, as a defensive right-fielder in the American League.
Today, of course, after the injury to Amos Otis in the first inning, the brain-dackle that Otis received, Cowan is playing more or less unfamiliar center field.
He can run. One-one pitch to him, slices a foul out of play off to the right, toward the upper deck. A ball and two strikes.
Cowan's stole 23 bases this year. Hunter kicks and throws. Line drive toward right, Maddox goes toward the line, he's got it.
Went away to a few tricks with a line drive, but Elliott Maddox stayed right with it and has two put-outs this inning.
So there's two up and two down. As Hunter continues to work like a machine out there, he has not walked a man.
Tom Fokett came in to play right field after the outfield switch in the first inning.
He grounded out to the second baseman Randolph by way of Hunter, who deflected the ball out toward second.
Left-handed batter and a severe crowd sends a high drive toward left field, shallow.
White slips down the glass, looks into a tough sun and has it for the third out.
One-two-three go the Royals again, and after five innings of play, the score is the Yankees 2 and the Royals nothing.
We still don't have anything new on the weather in Philadelphia as far as the rain conditions for the game Saturday night between Philadelphia and the Cincinnati Reds.
That latest word, National Day President Chav Feeney says that as a result of the weather report, they do not plan to call the game until Saturday night.
He said that's the planning right now unless the weather report gets turned around.
It was raining throughout most of the morning in the Washington area, but it is beginning to clear up just a bit now.
So as a result, that may be up in the Philadelphia area clearing around six o'clock or so.
A storm that dumped nearly six inches of rain on Charlotte, North Carolina in 24 hours.
As for sportsman of Saturday's World Service Life 300 Mile Sportsman Auto Race, that race has been rescheduled for Sunday, October 17.
Officials of the Charlotte Motor Speedway say the annual National 500 Grand National Stock Car Race will go as scheduled on Sunday.
The Boston Bruins went into federal court to stop the Chicago Blackhawks from using defenseman Bobby Orr until the Bruins received compensation from the National Hockey League superstar.
The Bruins have also asked league president Clarence Campbell to ban Orr from playing until an agreement is reached.
The New York Rangers traded backup goalie Dunk Wilson to the Pittsburgh Penguins for cash and future considerations.
Wilson appeared in 20 games last season and had a 4.22 goals against average.
One game in the National Hockey League Friday night, the Rangers knocking off Colorado 5-3.
In the top of the sixth inning, the Yankee third baseman Greg Nettles will lead off. He is 0-2.
The Yankees leading in the game 2-0. They got their runs, one of them unearned in the first inning.
Nettles has ended two innings, ended the first and the first.
Gura's pitch is popped up foul out of play, coming back and no chance for Martinez.
Matter of fact, in the five Yankee innings at bat, Nettles has ended two of them.
Mickey Rivers has ended two and Shambler has won all left-handed hitters against the south wall, Larry Gura.
Gura has scattered seven hits.
There has not been a 1-2-3 inning for him, but the Yankees hold on to just those two runs.
The pitch to Nettles is slammed toward left field, but right there is Wolford. He's got it for the outs.
Nettles flies to left, there's one out of the sixth inning.
Elliott Maddux, 0-2 is up. He grounded the short and flies to right.
Beautiful ballpark as we've mentioned before, as anyone who has seen it or heard about it.
In this Harriette-Spruman complex, there's a bit of a crowd in it,
emphasizing city baseball, but there's country in the background.
Pitch to Maddux, slammed up the middle into center field, a base hit.
Maddux is on with a ground ball single into center.
Hit number eight for New York and number one for Maddux.
The Yankees have a runner on with one out this time, and Willie Randolph is up.
Randolph has grounded the third and flies fairly deep to left field.
The wind is still blowing left to right across wind, which holds the ball off hit toward left.
It's a chuck one. It failed the ball toward right field.
Off of that are White in the fifth inning, Roy White.
Folks have just managed to get it going back. Throw to first, not in time.
Randolph, who can handle the bat very well, can hit to the opposite field, can bunt for a surprise.
There's a can bunt for a base hit. It's got some speed.
Time's all. There's a wisp of paper.
Cruises in between the mound and home plate and out toward the third base. Dug out.
Beyond the bank out in the outfield is another huge bank up toward Route 70.
Here's the pitch. Fast ball hits the third. Brett has it.
Over the second one, the first double play.
Around the horn, five, four, three.
Hitting over, it goes from Brett to White to Mayberry.
That takes care of that. No runs for hits. Nobody left.
And in the middle of the sixth inning, the score is still Yankees 2 and the Royals nothing.
Okay, let's take a look at some college football scores.
North Carolina State leading Maryland at the end of the first period, 6 to nothing.
It's White 4-3, Clemson nothing.
Yale 6, Dartmouth nothing. Bucknell and Lehigh are scoreless.
Virginia Tech 3 is VMI nothing.
And those are first period scores in college football.
Elsewhere in college football, not really too much else to report as a lot of those Eastern games are in progress.
Massachusetts 6 to nothing over Boston University also at the end of the first period.
We gave you that score a little bit earlier.
David Graham has rallied from two strokes behind to beat Hale Irwin on the 38th hole for the Piccadilly World Match Play Golf Championship in Virginia Wade, England.
That should be Virginia Water, England. Graham evening the match with an eagle on the 33rd hole and a birdie on the 36th.
And he had to go two extra holes before winning the $42,500 first prize.
Gary Player beat Ray Floyd for third.
You're tuned to your CBS Radio Network station for Game 1 in the American League Playoffs.
That means you're tuned to the only radio spot for the World Series.
Starting Saturday, October 16, CBS Radio Sports brings you exclusive radio play-by-play coverage.
Follow the series on radio right here.
The crowd has come in. It's the largest ever to see a regular Major League Baseball game in Kansas City's history, 41,077.
The next one was 40,435 on August 9th this past year.
Yankees leading 2-0 behind Cash Bridge Hunter and we're ready to go.
In the bottom of the sixth, the pitch is outside and low to Frank White for ball one.
Frank White, the Royal Second baseman, grounded the third in the third inning.
Hunter, working on a one-hitter, pitches inside ball two.
The Kansas City fans waiting for anything.
They would cheer at each fly ball right now.
Hunter delivers and White takes a strike at the knee.
The waterfalls is a big bank of waterfalls out in the center and curving around from right center to center.
Bouncing ground ball to shortstop taken there by Stanley.
Fires in time. Night stop by Stamblin.
Chris had to lean over toward the home plate side of first base to dig that one out.
But dig it he did and White is out.
Short to the first, one away.
Fred Potech is up. Flies deep to left. His only time at bat.
Shortest man in the major leagues, five feet four.
What mighty is he, says. Good strong arm from shortstop.
The pitch to Fred is outside a ball.
One hit off, capture shutter, a single by Brett. Clean single in the fourth inning.
And he was a race try to steal or has not been any other baserunner.
Twins strike. Potech is not a good breaking ball hitter but he's improved since he first came up.
There used to be an out on the breaking stuff. Good fast ball hitter.
One one delivery to him and he swings at a high fast ball. That time he doesn't get it.
One ball two strikes. Yankees two and the Royals nothing. We're in the bottom of the sixth inning.
Sun splash day in Kansas City. It's up and away for a ball, two and two.
Mata reads the side from Munson.
It is. Foul ball on a slider away.
Freddy just getting a piece of it.
Infield has Dambler at first, medium deep.
Willie Randolph is shading the bag at second.
He's playing a deep second base.
Short stop is Fred Stanley in the third base and Greg Nettles.
Roy White, Mickey Rivers and Elliot Maddux left to right in the outfield.
They're pushed a bit toward right center on Potech.
Ground to third and Nettles has the easy hop.
Throws over the first, two down.
Potech ground into third.
And Hunter is just making it look awfully simple right now.
The 15 is struck out in the third.
The Yankee runs were in the first inning.
And two throwing errors by George Brett had a hand in it.
One of them of course for the one of the unearned runs.
The other one was considered an RBI single for Schamper.
Ground ball.
There's a foul back.
Actually the game should be nothing, nothing right now.
You don't three suppose a double play but that would have been one.
Had not Brett thrown it away.
One strike.
There it is.
Got the corner for a call strike and so in two.
The two strikes it.
A high fastball shown and one ball two strikes.
Martinez has a little power from the right side.
He's not a consistent hitter.
He's just a 228 on the regular season.
But he has done the bulk of the Royals catch.
One two delivery.
Lifts a high foul out of play.
Hangs in there with a one two count.
The game is not on the waterfalls and they play every picturesque way in the sunlight today.
We saw it last night in the stadium club and the lights behind it.
Very picturesque scene.
One and two to Martinez.
Strike three calls.
Good breaking pitch by Hunter.
He's out of there.
Martinez becomes the fifth strikeout victim for Cassidy.
Nothing across and at the end of six.
The score the Yankees two the Royals nothing.
Now for a brief news.
Okay let's take a look instead of some news.
Let's look at some football news and some scores.
We have some more first three scores for you.
Pittsburgh is leading Louisville 10 to nothing at the end of the first period.
Pittsburgh currently the nation's second ranked team Penn State 10.
Army nothing.
That's the first period score.
West Virginia really put into Tampa 21 to nothing at the end of the first quarter.
And Michigan and Michigan State in their traditional game.
And the Wolverines are leading it but not by much.
14 to 10 Michigan over Michigan State.
So that's a look at what we have in college football as far as some late scores.
In case you missed the latest UBI coaches ratings.
Michigan number one with 41st place vote.
And a comfortable lead over second ranked Pittsburgh which has two first place votes.
Oklahoma is third.
Georgia is fourth.
Fifth is Nebraska.
Sixth is UCLA.
Seventh is Maryland.
Eighth is Kansas.
Ninth is Missouri.
And tenth is Southern Gal.
Ohio State is 11th.
Notre Dame 12th.
Florida 13th.
Fourteenth is Texas.
And 15th is Arkansas.
Moving this game rapidly into the top half of the seventh inning.
The Yankees leading 2-0 over the Kansas City Royals.
Royals have predicted this will be a series of close low scoring ball games.
So far they've been right.
The Yankees have taken advantage of the errors in the first inning.
Nobody on the Royals side has been able to hit catfish under it all except Brett with the single.
And that's the simple part of this ball game.
It's as simple as that.
Silent movie so far for the Royals.
Fred Stanley up against Larry Dura.
Here's a high pop.
Right side, back goes Frank White, the second baseman, and he's got it.
Almost misjudged it with poquette behind him.
Winn doing a lot of things with the baseball.
Things get high in the air.
Stanley pops to the second base with Frank White in shallow right, really.
Mickey Rivers up, had a single and scored a run in the first inning.
He grounded to Brett near the third-base line but hesitated making the throw.
Then the throw was bad.
He went as a single and an error.
Rivers went to second and eventually scored.
The third ball popped up, foul ground, and Mayberry is there near the coaching box.
First he's got it.
Dura away.
Larry Dura has missed a fine ball game.
Make no mistake about that.
He has given up eight hits through and catfish has given up one.
That's what he's up against.
Plus the lapse behind him in the first inning and of course no attack for him.
He's out in a hurry in the seventh and Roy White is up.
Third ball on the corner called strike.
White usually hits more consistently from the left side.
The high ball hitter from the left side more often than the right.
Usually you figure left-handed hitters are low ball hitters.
But from the left side he goes for the high and more so.
Now there's something in his eye.
Yankee trainer comes out to check White and Martinez goes out to check with Dura.
Roy has cleared it up now.
Throughout the years, many people, and I guess he's kind of tired of it too,
saying Roy White is the most underrated player in the league.
Well I think he is but he knows what he can do.
There's a bouncer to second base.
Frank White picks it up on one hop, throws Roy out,
and it's a 1-2-3 inning for Larry Dura as he continues to shine.
Nothing across and in the middle of the seventh the score is the Yankees 2, the Royals nothing.
A spokesman for the Philadelphia Phil says Saturday night's opening nationally playoff game against Cincinnati
is expected to be played despite forecast of rain.
Executive Vice President Bill Giles says he's been in constant touch with various lettermen
and they indicate that the rain will stop by about 6 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time
and the game is scheduled for 8.15 p.m.
The Phil's have not had a game rained out all season.
The Saturday's game is postponed.
The series will be pushed back to Sunday and Monday.
The Kansas City Royals host the Yankees in the game they're listening to right now in the American League playoff.
Third ranked Oklahoma is favored to whip Texas in their annual shootout in the cotton ball,
but the emotions involved usually make the game unpredictable.
The coaches got into the act in the eve of the annual affair
with Texas coach Dale Royals charging that a former assistant coach at Oklahoma spied on longhorn practices.
Sooner coach Barry Switzer says that's ridiculous.
Home half of the seventh at Royals Stadium everybody's up and hoping for something from their ball club.
Catfish Hunter warming up rather not caring much just doing his job
and rather oblivious to the cheers and the exhorting of the Kansas City fans.
Hunter has picked a marvelous ball game.
Through six innings he has worked. He has faced a minimum of 18 hitters.
One hit garnered off in.
George Brett got it in the fourth and was out stealing.
That has been the Kansas City offense.
Jim Wolford is the first batter here in the seventh.
Lead off hitter taking the place of Amos Otis who sprained an ankle in the first inning
while trying to run out of punch.
A putt attempt by Wolford is fouled at the plate strike one.
Wolford playing in left field.
They shifted things around when Otis left the game moving college to center
and sending Colchett from left to right.
Wolford when he has been playing with the Royals this summer has been primarily left fielder.
Pretty good outfielder.
An in-fielders type arm though if you can run on him if he has to play something deep.
Right handed batter right now hitting 249 on the year.
Takes a breaking ball, a curve outside from Hunter.
One ball, one strike.
Yankees leading 2-0, seven minutes.
Fly ball right field, easy chance for Matta Key.
Holds the hand up says I've got it and takes it for out number one.
Wolford flies to right.
Hunter now has retired eight in a row since the single by Brett.
Yesterday, well it's japed as October 9th but 20 years ago yesterday
and I bet there's a lot of people who say they were there that maybe weren't.
Don Larson fits the perfect game in the World Series.
He beats Sal Magley in the Brooklyn Dodgers 2-0.
And of course one of the bright, the main moments of World Series history.
And Shirley Povitz for the Washington Post wrote in his lead.
Hell froze over, there were 30 Sundays in a month and Don Larson fits the perfect game in the World Series.
And a great lead.
There's a base hit to left field.
George Brett gets his second hit off Hunter and now the lead lead.
Man is on with one out in the seventh inning.
All right the Royal fans coming alive downstairs and all around us
as Brett lines the second Royal hit off Hunter in the left.
Brett got the other one singling the center.
But George has been the most involved Royal player this afternoon
except for pitcher Larry Gourault who's been well.
Now with this situation a 2-0 ball game of course, something like that happens
and the tying run comes to the plate.
Hunter has taken care of Al McCray easily, striking him out both times.
Once on the first and once on the fourth.
McCray bends way over at the plate.
Fouls the pitch off for a strike.
McCray finished the season at 332, one point behind teammate George Brett who's now at first base.
And McCray says he's out of here to last.
That last day of the season.
All over now.
Here's the pitch.
Little pop-up right side under it is Randolph and Willie Randolph
who backpedals and makes the catch lay out.
So Hunter continues to own McCray pretty well.
And now here is Mayberry.
Big John Mayberry, the home run enemy, Royal's order right now.
Fly to left and fly to right.
And here's the key man to my way of thinking in this series.
He has got to deliver and this is a good platform to deliver if he's going to get started on it.
A lot depends on this guy's big bat in this series.
Here's Hunter pitching to him.
High and away for a ball.
If you get the ball out over the plate to Mayberry he'll kill you.
He will chase the bad ball down and in.
He likes that pitch.
You throw him a strike there and he'll pull it to the right and hurt you.
If you make it a bad pitch he might chase it and get him that way.
Easy.
He swings with the outside high pitch for a ball.
Strike one. One ball, one strike.
Mayberry is the guy who came over from Houston a long time ago.
High and tight. A ball without his new opponent.
State honors. Report to security.
Hunter has given up his chair of home runs. He always does. He's a controlled pitcher.
But not this guy. The high pop-up third base play.
Hunter is straight nettle.
He's got it and catches.
Gets out of the inning. No problem.
No runs. One hit and one less.
And at the end of seven innings of play the score is the Yankees 2 and the Royals nothing.
Now the Yanks representing the East in the lead here to Navi.
Since the America League began its championship series in 1969, the East has won four seven times.
Baltimore knocked off Minnesota twice and then Oakland in their first three encounters, Oakland won three in a row.
Boston broke the tie last October by downing the A's.
Only three times though has the playoffs series drawn more than three games.
Oakland took the short, you remember, in five games in 1972.
And then they repeated in five games against Baltimore in 1973.
And then Baltimore stretched the series to four games against the A's in 1974.
And the first game considered most important by the two managers.
And right now the Yankees lead that first game at the end of seven to the Navi.
Remember, CBS radio sports is bringing you the play-by-play action in the America League championship.
And there's more to come. The World Series starts October 16th.
That's next Saturday, week from today.
And you'll hear exclusive radio coverage, play-by-play, of the 1976 World Series right here on this CBS radio network station.
This is Ed Martin along with Ernie Harwell at Royal Stadium in Kansas City.
The Yankees leading the Royals 2-0 on two runs in the first inning.
There are two innings to go. Larry Gura will face Munson, Cannella, and Stamford.
And the Royals have bullpen action now, left and right, Steve Mingori, the left-hander, and Mark Littell, the right-hander, throwing there in the bullpen, Justin Gates.
There was activity in the first inning. Doug Byrd was throwing when Gura got in early trouble.
The Yankees have left-hander Sparky Lyle throwing in their pen now.
Kermin Munson is one for three, singled and scored in the first inning.
Gura fires curveball, line towards short, taken in the air by Potec.
Right off his shoe top, Munson is out.
One away, right at the feet of Freddie, but he got it before it hit the ground.
The hitter, Lou Pennella, has had a good day. He struck out in the first, but has followed with two singles.
He is the designated hitter. He was talking yesterday.
He said, you know, my mother's got to be disappointed that I'm not playing right field tomorrow instead of D18.
And Munson was sitting on the bench and he said, well, how do you think the Royals feel?
They're kind of sorry you're not out there, too.
Lou is not going to emulate Al Kaline in right field, and he admits it, but he said, you know, I didn't have a bad year, defensively.
He played one good game against the Red Strikes, I know, but a hit away or a home run away.
Pitch is outside for a ball, and the count is 1-0 to Pennella, right-handed back.
Larry Gura.
And the pitch lands toward right field, but high enough for Potec to get under. He's got it.
And there are two away.
And Pennella's out, and Gura continues to pitch well.
Baseball people are in their infinite wicks. A lot of times we'll say to a guy who pitches this way, and maybe loses 1-0 or 2-0, he pitches just well enough to lose.
It makes a pitcher mad.
Here is Samplett. He is 1-3.
Had an RBI on the fielder's choice. The big play of the game in the first inning.
Then another run short on the error.
In the suing error by Brett. Pitches Huffman in for ball one.
Samplett had a single in the third, and he struck out his last time up.
Gura works.
Drives the right center field toward the gap. That may go through to the wall. It does.
If he played off the wall by Pocquet. Samplett has two. He's got a try for three.
Here comes a throw from Frank Whitey. Not in time. It gets behind Brett.
Backed up by Gura. And in his third with a triple is Chris Samplett.
Ned Pocquet a little slow getting that ball after he got up the gap.
And he seemed to be a little not so on about it.
And it cost him that extra base that Chambliss was able to save.
Samplett had the play in front of him too. He could see that this was being done a little slowly. So he dug for it.
It was a good relay throw from Frank Whitey.
But with the tangle there at third base, an eluded threat.
However Gura backed it up and defended the run. So there's another two out hit for the Yankees.
They now have nine hits. And that is their second extra base hit.
A double by Stanley. A triple by Samplett.
Nevada now is Nettles fly ball down the left field line. Let's see if it goes there. Foul it is.
How ball out of play. No chance for Wolford who had a long run as they were playing Nettles to goal.
Drake Nettles is one of the best fake hitters in the American League.
Certainly on the Yankees club. He'll hit that hanging curve ball or that's a fake hit a long way.
Got to pull it earlier. Then uppercut swing.
And you try to jam it. Try to get that ball with heart stuff up and in around the skin or the letter.
He's batting with two outs and the man at third.
Try to check his swing but can't out at the strike.
Nothing in two to Nettles.
Samplett at third with what could be an insurance run, an added insurance run for the Yankees.
He just joined us. The Yankees lead the Royals 2-0 in game one.
They got their two runs in the first inning.
Here it is.
There's a high and tight pitch to Nettles.
Then five for a ball. One ball to strike.
The base is loaded and one out. They got their run in the first inning.
Ground ball to third.
Then an error.
Fast ball. Strike three. Call.
He jammed him all right. Fast ball right in tight.
And Nettles ends an inning for the third time.
A strikeout number four for Larry Gura.
No runs. One hit. One left.
And in the middle of the eighth inning, the score is the Yankees 2-0 at the Royals.
After hand it to Larry Gura.
He has kept his team, the Kansas City Royals, in this game with some excellent thrust hitting.
After the Yankees got two in the opening inning, due to a couple of errors by Brett,
Gura had to settle down and got the job.
Although the Yankees have a hit total of nine, all but three of those hits have come with two men out.
And the Yankees got their first two runs in the opening inning when Mickey Rivers led up with a bunt single
with the back of him that throwing an error by Brett.
White walk. Bunt single to load the base.
And then with one out after another fan, the one out scammers, hit a ground ball to Brett,
he touched third for the fourth out, and then threw a wild first base and the two Yankee runs scored.
So that's what happened here in the Kansas City so far.
You're here to your CBS Radio Network Stadium for game number one of the American League playoffs.
So that means you're assumed to be the only radio spot for the World Series.
Starting Saturday, October 16, CBS Radio Sports brings you exclusive radio play-by-play coverage.
Follow the series on radio right here.
Here we go to the bottom of the eighth inning, and time running out.
And short on the Kansas City Royals who trail two-nothing.
Kansas Hunter has been magnificent. He's put two-hits shutout ball, and picked to only one batter over the minimum.
Markie Lyle and Dick Cidro, the left right-handed punch in the bullpen for the Yankees, are warming up.
First batter up for the Royals is Collins. He takes ball one inside.
Collins has flopped a second and lined the right.
Hunter has not walked a batter. He's given up two hits both to George Brett.
It's like scald at the knees on the outside corner. Hunter is just something out there.
He is not wasting any time between pitches.
He's around the corners with that slider. He's got everything right where he wants it.
It is.
Bowel ball back. One and two.
Up on the bank, we were telling you about in the last field, a couple of troopers, it seems, with horses were standing a little while ago.
It's quite a nice country setting around here. There's a farm with some cows passed from freeway.
There's a base that's the right field. That will go for two.
Bouncing around out there, played by Maddox, and in the second base, and trying for third now, is the runner Collins. He's got a triple.
Al Collins, who, as we told you earlier, can run, went right on around second base. That ball was hit into the corner.
It looked like a normal double in this ballpark, where you give the guy the corner and play it safe.
Elliott Maddox waited for it. By the time he'd gotten it, Collins had seemed in the third base ahead of the relay,
and it's a leadoff triple for Al Collins and the Royals, who have their first really big shot at Hunter here in the eighth inning.
The out, Tom Bochetta's up, and the slider is inside to him, ball one.
This is when you see Hunter monetize, pull his back, and become the pitcher that has netted him all the praise, all the money, everything that he's deserved.
There's that, it's inside, and the guy is doing nothing. Bochetta's grounded out and fly down.
Al and Kidrow, who had just taken a seat, now get up again in the bullpen and left.
The pitcher, Bochetta. Ground ball, right side, this will score a run.
Taken there by Randolph, throws the first for the out, but the Royals score. Two to one.
One batted in for Tom Bochetta, and now it's a one-run ballgame. Yankees two and the Royals one.
They get to the RBI with no money on base and one out now.
Frank White is scheduled up, but they're looking around, and there's going to be a thin-kitter.
I believe Whitey Herzog is going to go with Cookie Rohant. Cookie Rohant is in the on-deck circle,
The very popular second baseman here for the Kansas City Royals, a veteran of many seasons here and in the national league.
Welcome to the Fairborn. And into the Kansas City second baseman's race, number one, Cookie.
Billy Martin has come out to talk to Hunter Bunchman and the Georgetown Fred Stanley.
Cookie Rohant, the right-handed batter on the season, gets 2-42 in part-time play at second base.
No homers, 16 runs batted in, but a decided veteran. Ernie, a fellow who's in this kind of thing, I would go through too, I believe.
Yes, sir, you're right about that. I was thinking about the triple, that Cowan did.
It was a tough play for Elliott Maddison. Playing that corner over there, you have to sort of back off
and let the ball ricochet through you, but that could be off the close, and it gets by at the home run.
But it was a tough play either way, and the freebacker was a big hit.
Alright, here's Rohant, and Cookie takes the pitch outside for a ball.
The nearest thing that Rohant has been to this was when he was with Philadelphia,
when some of their good balls, Lutz, checked his swing and takes the strike.
He was with the 1964 Phillies who fell down in the final two weeks of the season
and lost the pennant to the St. Louis Cardinals. Rohant was in that pennant fight.
Takes a good breaking pitch for a strike and argues a little bit for the umpire Larry Barnett.
Rohant's last year to 254 is 271 the year before that, lifetime average of around 260.
In the dirt, two balls, two strikes. Yankees two, Royals one.
Bottom of the eighth inning at Royal Stadium.
Beautifully pitched game by Katz, Hunter, and Larry Gura.
Rohant batting for white, bowels it back to the screen.
Cookie has been the kind of particular leader of this club since he came over here.
He and Freddy Potec for years, for several years in this ballpark,
led the league in double plays around the second.
They're highly professional, telling us Rohant.
Two and two.
Hunter works. Bowel ball back, foils a breaking ball again.
Lyle and Cidro throwing in the bullpen. They had to let Lutel and Mengori up for Kansas City, but they've taken a seat.
Here's a 2-2 offering again. A little pop-up in the infield.
Dirt, basement, and metal comes into foul ground. He says, I've got it.
And Munson lets him have it for the second out.
So Rohant batting for white, fouls out the third. Two down.
Who's first up? Freddy Potec. Freddy Potec up, flies deep to left and's out of the third.
Red Sox, never did I think too much about getting him out in the course of several seasons,
except for throwing the breaking pitch, as we've mentioned before.
He'll hit the fastball on it, he's got a little power, but has learned to go to the opposite field well.
Dries court, short pass, short stop into left field.
Fred Stanley went over and looks as though he might get that, but it's just one of those taunts and serves Kim's handsets.
And Potec was on, will it do out single? He represents the tying run.
Mark Martinez scheduled up and he's not going to bat.
Jamie Horton. Yep.
Jamie Horton, who we saw a lot of this summer, in the third one's role,
for the Royals against the Reds.
He's the designated hitter.
A left-handed batter, Jamie Horton, who hits 2.46 with one over and 15 runs batting.
That's quite a name, Jamie Horton. It sure is.
And I think this fellow's a lot better hitter than the average he's ever met.
He meets the ball, he's one of the disciples of Charlie Lau, he goes to the opposite field a lot,
and basically he's a line drive hitter.
And as far as he's concerned, it would be a good story for him right here in this spot.
He's from Whittier, California, attended Whittier College.
Runner going, pitch out, throw to second by Munson, he is out at second base.
Munson threw low, but it was dug out beautifully by the shortstop Fred Stanley,
and Clark doesn't get a chance.
They tried to get the tying run down at second base, but Potek was outside of the deal,
and that's two that Munson has thrown out.
This one's two to six, and that takes care of that.
One run on two hits and nobody left, and we go to,
they were at the end of eight innings.
The score is the Yankees two and the Royals one.
We have some updates on the college football scoreboard.
A couple of teams that looked like they were not scoring as much as most people thought they would
in their first period have laid it on in the second period.
Penn State was leading Army 10-0 at the end of the first quarter.
At the half, at Penn State 31, Army nothing.
The Pittsburgh was leading Louisville 10-0.
The score ends on the first half.
Elsewhere in the south, we have some additional scores.
Bill Battle of Tennessee went out to Monday to held a news conference and said,
hey, look, lay off the team, let's try to get things scored away and go for a winning season.
A big game against Georgia Tech, and at the end of the first quarter, Tennessee 14, Georgia Tech nothing.
White 4, 3-0 over Clemson at the end of the first period.
Virginia Tech leads VMI 3-0, that's the first period score.
And North Carolina State leads seventh-rank Maryland 6-0.
That's at the end of the first quarter.
Two changes defensively for Whitey Herzog and the Royals.
Kuki Rojas remains in the game, plays second base.
And the new catcher is John Wathen, W-A-T-H-A-N, who got into 42 games and hit 286 for the Royals.
He is back of the plate now, replacing Martinez.
Rojas is second, and Wathen catching.
Top of the ninth.
The Yankees lead 2-1. Here's Elliott Maddux.
Doerr's curve ball is over, calls strike one.
Maddux, single his last time up, he's one for three.
Now the margin for the Yankees is an unearned run.
2-1 New York, we're at the top of the ninth in game one of the American League playoffs.
The championship series, here it is.
Fly ball, left center field, hit fairly well, but back forward is Cowan, now plays the wind and one-hands it for the outs.
Maddux flies through center.
And the center fielder Cowan, who plays that ball, marks the guy he replaces, Amos Odoos, who one-hands everything out there, and Cowan does too.
And one game this year in New York, it cost the Royals a game when Cowan tried to one-hand a ball to the wall, and two runs scored and it was a ball game.
Here's Randolph, ground ball foul, past third.
One strike, Willie Randolph has grounded the third, fly the left, and ground it into a double play.
Yankees two, Royals one, top of the ninth.
Here it is.
Hits outside, a change up by Gura.
Gura has scattered to hit, but has not had any of them troubling, except in the first inning.
Good pitch on the outside corner, and a beef by Randolph to Barnett.
A brief beef.
Nobody really has gotten on the umpire as much in this one, it's just been good pitching.
Fast ball, a little bit high to Randolph, two and two.
Randolph, named to the All-Star team as a rookie this year.
The two-two pitch.
Fly ball, center field, Cowan's after this one, flips down the glasses, cruises back deep and he's got it right at the edge of the warning patch, nearly 400 feet away.
Randolph with good wood on it, aided by a little bit of a wind, flies to center, two out.
Brett Stanley is two for three in this one, a single, a double, and a pop-up.
If you're looking to the Royal Ninth Inning, they will have Wathen, Wolford, and Brett scheduled up.
Larry Gurer kicks and throws, and misses a little bit outside for a ball.
Here it is.
Fast ball, pulled into right field, coming hard and making a trapped play as the right fielder, Pochette, had almost got behind him, and that would have been trouble.
It's a single by Stanley, his third hit.
Pochette came on, the ball was dropping in safety, and he had a ball on it, and he just got enough of the glove on it to stop it.
He trapped the ball, and it had gotten behind him.
Cowan was not over far enough to be behind him for the backup, and that would have gone a long way.
Impossible? Well, possibly, and inside the park over.
Here's Mickey Rivers, who's one for four, single and scored in the first inning.
Ten hits now for New York.
Strike swinging and an off-season.
Gurer has worked a ten-hitter and given up only one earned run.
But trails where it counts, two to one.
One strike to Rivers.
Bent way over at the plate. Take the fish outside of ball.
Gurer looks down for a time. Stanley off first.
It is. Strike swinging, he's out ahead of that one, too.
So the count on Rivers is one ball, two strikes.
Down the fifth.
The delivery. Ground ball to the left side.
Short stop, way to go to second, not in time. Everybody's safe.
Pochette played it the only way he could.
Brett went over to the left side, could not cut it off. It was by him.
Pochette, knowing Rivers is seed, couldn't go over to first for him.
He flipped to second, could not get Stanley, and it'll go as a base hit.
And in field hit for Rivers. He is two for five, and Whitey Herzog wants to talk to his battering.
He's got N'Gory and Lantel out of the bullpen.
The batter is Roy White, of course, who's a Twitter.
So much rather than to him right-handed and left.
Mickey Rivers on it for his base, and Stanley at second on the infield hits the short.
The Yankees were ready to try to put another run across or two to get an insurance pass going into the ninth inning bottom half.
White has walked and has grounded out twice and has flied out once, no for three.
Rivers at first, Stanley at second. White takes the pitch outside of all.
White is a smart hitter. He makes good contact, and he'll wait. He'll wait on a pitch well.
Infield deep, they need just one out.
Fly ball to left field, it's going to be trouble. It's going to be in there.
For a base hit, bouncing on one hop to Wolpert, a run score. Here comes Rivers to the plate, two runs score, and the Yankees make it four to one.
A double by Roy White, the clutch hit in this ball game, as he smashes a double down the left side to drive in two.
All this has happened with two outs, and that's going to be all for Larry Gura.
Why do you hear his dogs thinking maybe he could get wide out as a right-handed batter, not wanting to pitch to him as a left-handed hitter,
going one batter maybe too long, and Roy White, the underdog, doubles home two.
And that's going to be all for Larry Gura.
Gura leaves the ball game and gets a nice hand. He went nine and two-thirds innings, giving up a matter of 12 hits.
And four runs. One of the runners, he walked one, he took out four, and he's responsible for a base runner.
And coming in from the left field, the right field, both men, his right-hander, Mark Lichell.
On that it's Gura who pitched such a strong game. I had to weaken a little bit here in the ninth inning.
You know, it's the philosophy of some managers that they do not like to change catches in the late stages of a game.
A pitcher has his rhythm, he's going along fine, and a new catcher sometimes will not take him along on that rhythm.
Not blaming John Woffin, but sometimes things like that can happen.
And in this inning, managers have fly to center, Randolph fly to center.
And then Stanley, who has been the toughest hitter on the Yankees, single.
The rest of the follow-up is single, and then White gets two more Yankees runs in with a fly ball double down in the left field corner.
So country Lichell will be coming in to take over now. He's a hard-crowing right-hander, who this year won eight and lost four.
He made 60 appearances, and all of those were in relief except for one.
He did not have a complete game, and he had a total of six plays to his credit.
The Yankees are now sitting a lot prettier than they were before.
They've got the lead 4-1, and it's up to Lichell that's got to close the door against further Yankees scoring here in the first half of the night's inning.
Big, big hit for Roy White, and it doesn't surprise anybody because he's made a backroom in his career with the New York Yankees.
White came to this ballgolf just a year late until this year and had not faced his championship series glory or anything like it,
as the Yankees had some lean years after 1964, and White had come with them in 1965.
But now he's with it, and in this particular game at least, has made the most of it.
Sherman Munson is up one for four. White is second base, two outs, two runs in. The Yankees leading 4-1.
Lichell, a youngster who, as Ernie said, can really blow a float smoke. He shows as hard as any relief pitcher in the American League.
He was entrusted with a lot with this ballgolf this year as a rookie, but he came through nicely with a 16 save.
Working now to Munson. Little pop foul coming back, maybe some room now for Watson. Near the screen, no, it's on the screen.
Lichell, who maybe is a release pitcher of the year for a rookie in the American League,
is aware of the history this season of being up with his stuff when he first comes into the game, maybe because he's so strong.
As a fastball fails, sometimes fails out of the strike zone. That one failed, and Munson fouled it back.
Sherman going through all those manners and thrusting the arm out at home plate, wiggling the neck.
Fouls this one back, out of play, and the count is 0-2.
In game two, tomorrow night, Sunday night, Dennis Leonard, right-hander, will go for the Royals,
and he'll be opposed by what many consider the best Yankee pitcher of this year, Ed Figueroa, who made a big run at winning 20.
Right-hander, a short armor with good thinking stuff, just gets the job done.
0-2 to Munson's fastball up and in, one ball to the strike.
Yankees four, Royals one, we're in the bottom of the eighth.
Figueroa got the first two batters on fly ball to center, but then the single by Stanley opened it up.
Four rivers with the infield hit and white with the double.
The delivery, fastball, fouled off by Munson again, couldn't get the bat around, his batter play.
Sherman riding him up and in.
One of the pitches in the American League with the best success against Munson is then Mike Torres.
Now the open days, when he pitched for Baltimore, he pitched very effectively against Munson, and worked in that way.
Long look now, by Littell.
Here's the set, and the pitch, a ball outside.
Now, 10 seconds here for station identification, this is the CBS radio network.
This is the American Four-Tooth radio and television service.
You're listening to the voice of information for the American Four-Tooths at 790 and 1420.
Back at Royal Stadium, Munson the batter with a count of two and two.
Roy White at second base, two outs and the Yankees nice, and the Yankees leading 4-1.
Ground ball to shortstop, dug up by Proctech, fires across to Mayberry, Munson is out, and the side is retired.
But the Yankees do more damage in the night, they get two runs from three hits, they leave one.
And in the middle of the ninth inning, the score is the Yankees four, the Royals one.
Okay, last shot for Kansas City here in game one of this American League playoff game from Kansas City.
Just an important programming note because of the brevity of this baseball game,
I know that at 1930 GMT Saturday we're scheduled to join the Oklahoma football network for the Oklahoma-Texas football game.
And for all you stations planning to carry this broadcast, we remind you that we will not join that ballgame until 2000 GMT.
In other words, at 4 o'clock Eastern time, that's in about 58 minutes from now.
So we'll rejoin normal programming until that time if the ballgame ends before 1930 GMT.
So if the ballgame gets over where this game you're listening to right now, within the half hour,
we will not join the Oklahoma baseball network, football network for that football game for about another 57 minutes or so.
So that is part of the AFRTS contingency plan regarding this baseball game.
All right, we're moving now to the bottom of the ninth inning.
As Kestechana is three outs away from winning his fourth American League championship playoff game, the Yankees are leading four to one.
And Bob Simpson is going to pinch in.
Simpson, another of the catchers that the Royals have, will bat for John Woffin.
Bob Simpson batting left against Kestech Hunter.
Simpson is a quick hitter.
On the year, he hit 263 in 79 games.
Two homers and 25 RBI.
Hunter works and Simpson pulls the foul off to the left.
The Royals are down to their last three outs.
They fail by three runs.
Simpson up with Wolford scheduled next.
Kestech Hunter kicks and delivers.
Little ground ball, his foul outside of first.
The Yankees lead four to one.
That's the third base coach for the Royals.
Yankees leading four to one in the ninth of game one.
Hunter throws high and away.
Two strikes.
Hunter winds and throws and another foul ball.
It's time back on the screen.
We've had word from a Philadelphia.
The rain is letting up there.
The game probably will be played tonight.
And most of these CBS stations will take that game at 8.05 with Ralph Keiner and Jerry Coleman.
Two former home run hitters.
There's a high fly ball down into shallow left coming on Roy White.
And he makes the grab.
Sadly, the shortstop went back.
But White says, I've got to make kind of a shaky catch because the Sun is still tough out in left field.
One out in the Royals.
Jim Wolford is up.
He has been called out on strike and flied to right field.
He came on to play when Amos Otis, brain and ankle, running out of a punt in the first inning.
I don't know how old this will be for tomorrow.
The pitch is inside for a ball.
Right there, right off the bat, things went bad.
This was a bad first inning for the Royals all the way around.
One out pitch.
Wolford sends a fly ball to right center field.
Fairly deep, but Rivers tracked it down.
Gives way to his right fielder, Maddox, who makes the catch.
Elliott Maddox makes the put out.
And now the Royals have two outs in the ninth inning, trailing by a rerun.
George Gwett, who is accounted for two hits.
Paul Hunter, he has singled twice off him.
Two throwing errors in the first inning, paving the way to two runs.
One of them starts to then hit it.
Right now, that appears to be academic, although things may have been going differently.
Roy White, who had a nice inning, added a couple of the Yankees.
There's a called strike.
Brett the batter with two outs.
Al McCrae is on deck.
This one misses outside a ball.
Hunter working quickly.
Slipping victory, throws outside, the count is two and one.
Bits to Brett, foul back.
Two and two, there's two outs.
Hunter has been the money picture that everybody knows he is today.
He's been on top of the situation.
Kansas City run came in the eighth inning.
Caught a triple by Cowans and a ground ball by Fouquet.
Brett backs out a moment.
Hunter winds and throws, and there's a line at a left field, another hit for Brett.
One hopper to Roy White.
Brett is three for four.
He goes up the middle a lot into the opposite field.
They'll use all parts of the field.
And he has been a sweet swinger against Catfish Hunter.
So the Royals are still alive in the ninth inning.
And here's Al McCrae, and he's overdue against Hunter.
He has struck out White and popped up, as Catfish has handled him well.
McCrae would like to get on because the on deck hitter is a home run threat.
There's a punch, drawn the third base line, and fouls.
It started down the line and fouled round.
It appears that it might go back into fair territory, so Neville quickly got it.
Had he let that run and it's gone back to the line, it would have been a base hit.
McCrae's trying to get on just to provide two base runners and allow the tying run to come to the plate.
And the guy that has the most ability to hit one out of here is John Maynberg.
That was with George Brett getting three hits in his ball game.
That's the 30th game this season, counting in regular season.
He's had three hits or more.
He had some four hits games and five hits games, too.
Here's the big round line drive.
The third is caught and it's all over.
Greg Nettles fears the line drive off the bat of Harold McCrae, and the Yankees take game one.
Well hit ball by McCrae.
Had it been a little bit higher, it might have been an interesting another couple of minutes,
but it wasn't to be, and the Yankees takes the initial advantage in game one.
Okay, so the New York Yankees, four runs on 12 hits and nowhere to run five and none for Kansas City,
so New York has taken game one.