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Not many picked the Cardinals to win it all in 1982.
National sports publications and the wire services had St. Louis pick to
finish anywhere from second to fourth in the National League East.
Questionable pitching and definite lack of power said the experts.
While they weren't too far wrong in the power shortage, the Cardinals finished the
year with the fewest home runs of any team in the majors in 1982.
But the pitching staff was another story and the Card's position in the standings
at year end was yet another story. It began on March 1st when 43 players
reported to spring training. By April 5th, Whitey Herzog had pared the team down to
its 25-man limit and anticipation was high. Things didn't start out as Card
fans would have liked. St. Louis opened their season with three losses in their
first four games. With catcher Gene Tennesse and third baseman Ken Oberg
fell on the disabled list, fans were already starting to wonder. Then came an
April 11th game with the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Bucks led the Card 6-5 in
the bottom of the ninth. With two outs and a man on, Julio Gonzalez was called
on to pinch hit. There's a shot into left center and that may tie the game.
He goes to the wall and roof, runs third base. He will score. Gonzalez heads for third base.
They hold him up there. We have a tie game. 6-6 with two out in the bottom of the ninth.
He found the gap. Then Dane Orge gave the team the lift it needed.
Two balls and a strike. Orge trying to win it. First and third, two out. Bottom of the ninth.
Tied 6-6 the pitch. Swing and on, ground ball, base hit. It's over. It's over.
And so is the losing streak.
On the ground, through the hole, in the left, 7-6 Cardinals. Dane Orge did it.
The Cardinals were off and running. They would not lose the game in the next 13 days.
April 15th, the cards were clinging to a 1-0 margin over the Cubs when Julio Gonzalez
came to the plate with the bases loaded.
Base hit in the right field. One run is in. Here comes Porter.
He's going to score in the Cardinals lead 3-0. He snaps out a second and Orge is saved.
He makes a magnificent slide. And first, getting back into second base.
The final 6-1 victory was the team's fifth consecutive win, lifting the Redbirds into first place
for the first time in 1982. Four days later, the Cardinals showed the determination that would
prove to be a trait of this team. Four times the Philadelphia Phillies held a lead over St. Louis,
and four times the Cardinals battled back. Down 5-3 in the bottom of the ninth, the Cardinals
trimmed the lead to 5-4 on a George Hendrick RBI single. With two out and runners at first and second,
rookie David Green came to the plate. Reed comes to the plate. Swing and a base hit to right.
Here's Hernandez trying to score. Throw home. He is safe. The runners are at second and third.
And we're tied 5-5. The kid did it.
Two innings later, it was Green again, with men at first and second. The runners lead away.
Here's the pitch. And a swing and a line drive. Base hit. Right center. Here's Hernandez. Eight in a row.
A week later, the Cards were in Philadelphia. Down 3-0 at one point. They fought back to tie the game
at four and then took command in the eighth inning. With Orr, Jobrikfell, and Lonnie Smith on base,
pinch hitter Orlando Sanchez responded.
The Cardinals trying to grab the lead for the first time today here in the eighth inning and win their 12th in a row.
Base had loaded one out, one and one to Sanchez. He wants to hit the ball somewhere.
Swing and a ground ball to short. The play will be to first base. A run scored. The Cardinals have the lead.
5-4 as Green fled across the plate. An RBI single for Sanchez and the shortstop Franco had only the one play.
The Cardinals went on to win 7-4. It was their 12th win in a row, a number that matched the club's longest streak since 1943.
St. Louis was now on top of the National League East by three and a half games.
But all good things must come to an end. The next night, April 25th, Steve Carlton broke out of an 0-4 start
and Philadelphia handed the Cardinals an 8-4 loss, the first of three straight losing efforts.
There would be six losses in the next 11 games, but the Cardinals were still in first on May 8th
when the National League's Western Division leaders, the Atlanta Braves, came to town.
In a seesaw battle before a capacity crowd, the Cards pulled out an 8-7 win. Not at its 7 in the bottom of the 9th,
Lonnie Smith let off the inning with a walk and then a lead by Lonnie. He's going! The pitch out! The throw! No! Stolen base!
Ozzie Smith was up next and he caught everyone by surprise. Here's a pitch to Ozzie. Bunch!
And there goes the runner to third, the play to first. Safe! The ball gets away! Here's the runner trying to score!
He is safe! And the Cardinals have won a thrilling game before 50,000 people!
The throw got away from the first baseman and Lonnie Smith kept pumping.
Once again, Lonnie and Ozzie Smith teamed up to be the catalysts for the 1982 Cardinals.
Seven days later, the same teams met in Atlanta for another thriller.
Carrying a 3-0 lead into the ninth, the Braves suddenly found the game tied.
The Cards forced extra innings. In the tenth, Obergefell scored from second on a mishandled bunt
and the Cards had their first lead of the game. Next up was Lonnie Smith.
Cardinals who tied it in the ninth have gained the lead here in the tenth inning.
The camp comes to the belt and to the plate. Swing and a high fly ball down the line, maybe a home run.
It curves and it is a home run. It hits the foul screen and the Cardinals get three more and lead 7-3.
Seven pitchers had been used in the game and it was Bob Forge who came in to save the game for the Cardinals
when Souter tired in the bottom of the ninth. It was Forge's first save in his eight-year career.
The Cardinals headed to the West Coast, a trip that in the past had been unkind to them.
It didn't take St. Louis long to get things in motion in the Bay Area for their May 24th game with San Francisco.
The Cardinals scored once in the second on an RBI triple for Mike Ramsey who was filling in for the injured Tom Herr.
Ozzie Smith added to the lead with an RBI single in the fourth and then Willie McGee,
the quiet rookie who had been called up to replace the injured David Green, opened the floodgates by connecting on an offering by giant starter Rich Gale.
Gale checks, kicks the pitches. McGee a line drive into right field, back, back, back, over the right fielder's head.
Off the wall, one run in, here comes Ramsey, here comes Ozzie Smith. They missed the cutoff man.
Three runs score and over to third goes Willie McGee in a flash.
Joaquin Andohar shut out the Giants that night and the Cardinals 6-0 success started them on a three game sweep of San Francisco
and that boosted the Cardinals West Coast record to 6-3.
It was comeback time again on May 30th when San Diego came to Bush Stadium.
The Pondres held a three run edge after 8-1-2, but the Cardinals rallied for three in the bottom half of the ninth.
San Diego scored two in the top of the tenth.
With two outs in the bottom of the tenth, Henrik singled the left trying to get things started.
Next up, Lonnie Smith.
Lonnie Smith with one swing could tie it. He waits.
Here it comes, runner going, swing and a ground ball, fair pass third into the corner.
Henrik comes around third base to score.
There's Lonnie Smith stopping at second with a tying run, it's five to four.
Then it was Mike Ramsey's turn.
Tying runs at second two out, a ball and a strike to Ramsey.
Here it comes to Mike. Swing and a base hit up the middle.
The game's tied. Lonnie Smith scores, it's five-five.
After Gonzalez was hit by a pitch, San Diego brought in reliever Floyd Schiffer to face Dane Orridge.
Ramsey takes his lead off second to pitch.
A shot in the center, it's going to be a hit. Here comes Ramsey, six-five, St. Louis, unbelievable.
Dane Orridge ends it with a hit to center.
The cards get three in the ninth, three in the tenth, and beat San Diego six to five.
It all happened with two outs some day.
The Redbirds like coming from behind so much that they did it again the next night against San Francisco.
Trailing three to one in the fourth, the Cardinals sent 15 men to the plate and exploded for 10 runs in the inning.
Ozzie Smith, McGee, and Tito Landrum each drove in two runs in the assault, and the Giants fell 11 to six.
A milestone was passed four days later when the Dodgers were in town.
Pitcher Bob Forch threw a complete game 5-2 victory to record the 100th victory of his career
and give the Cardinals a five-and-a-half game lead over Montreal.
Their biggest lead since the season began.
Consistently strong pitching performances like this one were being turned in almost daily by Cardinals starters.
Without them, the Cardinals certainly would not have been on top.
The Cardinals played some whitey ball in Montreal on June 8.
Using the hit-and-run, stretching singles into doubles, and stealing bases as they had all season,
the team attempted to break a 3-3 deadlock in the 12th inning.
It was time to entertain the Canadian fans.
Ozzie Smith let off with a walk and took second on a sacrifice.
With one out...
Two-and-two to Willie McGee.
Ozzie Smith walked. He's been butted down to second. He's there with one out and the 2-2 pitch.
On the way, swing, and there's a line drive into right. It is fair into the corner.
The run scores. The Cardinals regain the lead. There goes Willie for third with one out.
He is safe. McGee hit the chalk out in the right field corner to regain the lead for the Cardinals 4-3 on a walk and a triple.
Ken Obergefell brought home what proved to be the game winner on a play that became a Cardinal trademark in 1982.
The infield is in squeeze play and Obergefell bunts it. The squeeze play works and the Cardinals have another run.
Obergefell's out at first. For the second time tonight, the Cardinals worked the squeeze play.
The squeeze play was used time and again by the running Redbirds, but never as effectively as in Montreal where it gave St. Louis its fifth run in a 5-4 victory.
The next 20 days were trying ones for the Cardinals. They won only 6 of 17.
And after a June 28th loss to the Phillies and Steve Carleton, they found themselves in second place by two-tenths of a percentage point.
The next night, the Birds set things straight by snapping the Phillies' eight-game win streak with a 15-3 pounding.
The teams traded runs in the first before the Cards took the lead for good in the second.
With runners at second and third, Lonnie Smith was hoping to sting his former teammates.
The Cards need a two-out hit from Lonnie Smith. There it is, a line drive into center field, one run home.
Here comes Ozzie. The throw is terrible, and Lonnie Smith stops it first and the Cardinals lead 3-1.
The Cardinals added three more runs in the fifth with some help from Hendrick's two-run double.
One inning later, the Redbirds extend their lead when Hernandez took the ball downtown.
He's won for three of the night at a double in the first inning. Bats here with runners at first and third and hits the first one.
A high fly ball to left field, it is going deep, it is gone for a three-run homer over the left field wall,
right at the 3.71 mark by Hernandez, his third of the year, and the Cardinals have a 10-1 lead.
The bases were loaded in the eighth when Hendrick closed out the scoring with a tremendous blast.
A pitch to Hendrick with a base that loaded, a long one is a grand slam for George Hendrick.
Way back up into the seat, that makes it 15-1. Hendrick reached out and poked it way up into the seat.
He has now driven in four, six, seven runs tonight.
George's third career grand slam pushed the Cardinals back into first place, but it didn't last long.
The name at the top of the standings changed three more times as the Cards and Phillies jockeyed for possession of the lead.
And when the All-Star break began on July 12th, it was the Phillies on top of the division and the Cardinals in second place.
Cardinal fans were able to watch two of their favorite players in action at the All-Star game,
with both Ozzie and Lonnie Smith being elected to represent the National League.
In the eighth inning, the All-Star fans were treated to an outstanding defensive display by Ozzie Smith.
With two on and two out, the American League was threatening to erase the National League's 4-1 lead,
but Ozzie saved the day. He took a hit away from Lance Parrish and showed the baseball world what Cardinal fans already knew.
In the field, little Ozzie is the greatest.
The Cardinals spent 26 of their next 28 games in second place, proving that even in a championship season,
there are disappointments and barriers on the road to victory.
The night of August 2nd was perhaps the epitome of such frustration.
Playing Pittsburgh at Busch Stadium, the cards came from behind to send the game into overtime a 2-2 tie.
Eight innings later, the game was over.
24 Cardinal runners were stranded in the 17-inning game.
Four hours and 55 minutes after the contest began, Jim Cott, who had valiantly held off the Pirates for six innings of relief,
gave up two runs on a single, a walk, and a triple, and the Cardinals lost 4-2.
But the mark of a good team is the ability to bounce back, and the cards were a resilient bunch.
They turned around and handed the box a loss the next night,
and were on the winning side in six of nine games following that early morning loss to Pittsburgh.
The ninth game of that stretch was against, who else? The Pirates.
All three of the Redbird runs came in the fifth inning that night.
There were runners at second and third when Lonnie Smith stepped up to the plate.
Two on, one out. Second and third. Baumgarten works from the stretch.
He's there now, kicks and pitches, change up line drive, base it into left center, and that'll score both runners.
Smith comes in to score. Here comes Andahar, cards lead, 2-0.
Fourteen consecutive days in second place was enough.
The 3-2 win jumped the Cardinals back into first, and started a five-game victory streak in their next six attempts.
It looked like the team would add another win the next night, August 20th, when the Giants were in town.
After six, the cards had a 7-0 advantage over the Giants, and all was well.
But someone forgot to tell the Giants they couldn't play hardball with the Redbirds.
A seven-run, seven-thinning blitzkrieg by the Giants left the cards reeling,
and a certain victory turned into an 8-7 loss.
Once again, the team's fiber was tested, and once again, they bounced back.
Leading the Giants 6-5 in the sixth inning the next evening,
Lonnie Smith scored what proved to be the winning run in a subsequent 7-6 St. Louis win.
Long went into left field off the bat of Smith. Overdiving is the left field. He can't get it. It goes off the wall.
Lonnie digs for second. He's around second. He's around third. They're going to try to score him.
Here's the throw. He is safe. It's an inside-the-park home run.
Many fans, and broadcasters too, if the truth be known, left the ballpark on Saturday night,
thinking that inside-the-park home run was as exciting a scoring play as the Cardinals had produced all year.
No one knew what was in store for them the very next afternoon.
The Cardinals and the Giants each collected four runs in regulation on Sunday,
and were still dead even when David Green came to the plate in the bottom of the 12th.
Having left 10 men on base in the previous six innings,
Cardinal fans were beginning to have flashbacks to the August 2nd loss to Pittsburgh.
They crossed their fingers. The bases were loaded with catcher Glenn Brummer, the leading runner at third.
But there were two outs and two strikes on the batter.
Brummer's the big runner. He's at third. Two down. Sax jam. Lavelle at the belt.
Checks. Brummer's stealing home. He is safe, and the Cardinals win.
Brummer's stalled home. The dugout comes out and they congratulate him. You wouldn't believe it.
Glenn Brummer steals home, and now the Giants are out arguing about the call.
The umpire never called the two-strike pitch.
Glenn Brummer engraved his name in the minds of Cardinal fans and trivia buffs that day,
and also typified the heads-up aggressive brand of baseball played by Whitey's Redbirds.
Four days later, the Cardinals moved their show to the West Coast.
With a slim two-game lead over Philadelphia, every game was oh so important.
Having split two games with the Padres, it fell to Doug Baer to hold off San Diego in the rubber game on August 29.
Baer pitched Brogdon in relief, striking out seven in three and a third innings of scoreless baseball.
Souter came in to preserve the 5-3 St. Louis victory, and the Cardinals headed north to Los Angeles.
Fernando Valenzuela was pitching for Los Angeles in the series opener,
knowing that the Cardinals had beaten him only once in five attempts.
Pitted against him was Cardinal rookie John Stupor, who had made his Major League debut just three months earlier.
Will wonders never cease?
The unflappable Stupor got himself in and out of jam after jam for seven and two-third innings,
and then stepped aside to let Souter nail down his 30th save as the Cardinals eased by Fernando 3-2.
The next night, the Cardinals surprised the Dodgers with four first-inning runs.
It watched as Los Angeles retaliated with four of their own in the seventh, plus one more in the eighth.
With one out in the ninth, Tito Landrum drilled an RBI single to tie it at five.
Four innings later, Kelly Parris, seeing action in his first Major League game,
single to start the ball rolling what proved to be a lucky 13th.
After advancing to second on a sacrifice, Parris waited as Ozzie Smith looked for the two-out hit.
Three-two pitch with the runners going. Ozzie swings and hits it hard to second, and it's booted.
Here's the runner trying to score. He does as Sacks holds the ball.
Sacks kicked the backhand stop. Kelly Parris kept running and slid home.
Sacks had a play at the plate but never did throw.
The Cardinals stood their ground in the bottom half of the inning, giving them a 6-5 win
and a 4-2 West Coast record as they hit the trail to play the San Francisco Giants.
There was trouble in Candlestick Park, where the cold winds added to the chill left by three straight
San Francisco victories. The only warmth generated by the Cardinals came in the second game
of the series on September 4th, when Lonnie Smith burned a path around the diamond
by stealing five bases in nine innings to tie a modern National League record.
No time to pout about those three defeats though, as it's home to St. Louis to face the threatening
Montreal Expos. The Cards won two of three in the Crucial Series, almost unbelievably
escaping with two 1-0 victories. Darned if the Redbirds didn't turn right around and lose
two of three to the last place New York Mets. The St. Louis lead had been whittled down to one half game.
Now is the stuff of which penned races and baseball legends are made, as it was on to Philadelphia
for a head-to-head confrontation with a team that was nipping at the Cardinals' heels.
It was Carlden and Forge in the first game on September 13th, and both were sharp.
Each pitcher went the distance, giving up only three hits, but Carlden struck out 12,
and the Phillies managed to edge by the Cardinals two to nothing and move into first place by a half game.
The next night, it was Stupor versus Cruco. There was no scoring until the fourth,
when Darrell Porter straddled the plate after a George Hendrick walk.
Porter along went into right, way back, way back, and Darrell Porter has just hit a two-run homer
to put the cards on top. A one-ball, two-strike delivery, Cruco took a little off, Porter timed him,
and he puts the cards on top with his ninth home run of the year.
The game wasn't over yet. In the bottom of the eighth, the Phillies loaded the bases,
creating an incredible clash between baseball's premier relief pitcher, Bruce Souter,
and one of baseball's best hitters, Mike Schmidt. The count went to 2-2.
Souter brought it home again, and Schmidt swung. And what could have been the turning point of the entire season,
Souter fielded a ground ball and threw a home to start a 1-2-3 double play.
That play seemed to haunt the Phillies the next night, as they were shot out by Induhaar, and the Cardinals 8-0.
Then the bright lights and glitter of the Big Apple were beckoning at the next stop on the journey,
but Cardinal thoughts were on the pennant race. The Phillies were still lurking one-and-a-half games
behind the first-place Cardinals, and St. Louis was facing a backbreaking schedule,
five games to play in three days against the Mets.
To make matters worse, the first game of the weekend series was pushed into extra innings
after Eric Rasmussen had held off the Mets for seven innings.
But Willie McGee saw to it that the game would not be a long affair.
McGee waits. Allen checks and fires. Curb ball. Line drive into center field.
Here comes Mookie Wilton. He dies. He can't get it. It goes by him.
Here comes Hernandez into score. It's 3-2. Henry goes to third. McGee into second.
Willie McGee with a key double to put the cards on top.
The 3-2 extra inning victory propelled the Cardinals to a 7-1 shellacking of the Mets in the nightcap that evening.
Momentum was clearly on the Cardinals' side. They swept the next three games with the Mets
and headed triumphantly home, having achieved a 7-1 record on the road in the heat of a pennant race.
But more important than that, in a span of seven days, St. Louis had gone from one-and-a-half game out of first place
to four-and-a-half games on top. With 13 games remaining, it was home sweet home to meet the Phillies again on September 20th.
The Cardinals won their eighth straight game that night by a 4-1 score.
The much maligned pitching staff had given up only seven runs in that eight-game period to put the cards in the catbird seat.
The late-season winning streak ended the next night as it began.
Carleton struck out 14 this time, and the Cardinals went down 5-2 to Philadelphia.
But the Phillies were on the verge of elimination. The Cardinals could taste the champagne now.
September 22nd, going into the bottom of the eighth, Pittsburgh and St. Louis had one run each.
Then Steve Braun connected for the sixth hit in his last eight pinch-hit appearances.
It was a double, and it sparked a Cardinal rally. Moments later, with Landrum running for Braun, Tom Herr was up.
With one out, Landrum at second. The pitch to Tommy Herr. Line drive bakes it into left field.
Here comes Landrum around third. Here comes the throw. He is saved!
The Cardinals lead 2-1. Down to second base goes Tommy Herr.
A 2-1 victory, a 5-1 half-game lead, and just 10 games remaining.
The Cardinals lost to Pittsburgh the next night, but their lead was still 4-1 half-games, and the magic number was six.
Chicago was in town on the 24th, and things were not at one in the eighth.
When Gene Tennis came to the plate with the bases loaded.
Gene Tennis with the bases loaded and one out.
What will it be? A grand slam or a double play or something in between?
Herr is at third, Hernandez at second, and Hendrick at first, and Tennis is batting for Porter, who drove in the first Cardinal run.
He bats against Willie Hernandez, and the first pitch is coming.
Swing and a fly ball into deep right. Durham's gonna catch it. We're gonna have a play.
There's the catch. Herr's trying to score. The throw, he is saved!
What an argument we had.
And Morland's all over the plate umpire. Morland swears that he tagged him, and he certainly had the ball, but the Cardinals lead 2-1.
St. Louis added another run and won that game, and now the lead was back up to 5-1 half-games.
The next night, Joaquin Andojar threw his third three-hitter of the year, and the Cubs were beaten by a 5-1 score.
The Magic number was now three with eight games left. The Cardinals lost 6-1 to the Cubs on the 26th, but the Phillies lost also, reducing the Magic number to two.
There was a lot to think about the next day on the long flight from St. Louis to Montreal, where the Cardinals had won only two of seven games in 1982.
September 27th, and Dave LaPointe was on the mound for the Cardinals, but the game that loomed as quite a battle was over almost before it began.
After doubling the left with one out in the first, Ken Obergefell scored in a single by Dane Orge.
Darrell Porter was up next, and he drew a walk, turning things over to Willie McGee.
Willie McGee against Bill Gullickson, the pitch coming.
Swing and a fly ball into left center, Dawson on the run, on the run, on the run, he can't get it.
The ball goes to the wall, two runs score, McGee makes circle the bases, they bring him around third base.
He's trying to score, the throw home, he is safe.
And inside the park home run, and the Cardinals lead 4-0.
That was all the scoring that was needed. LaPointe gave up two runs before being lifted in favor of Souter.
With the Phillies having lost to the Cubs that night, a save by Souter would clinch the division championship for the Cardinals
for the first time since the divisions were established in Major League Baseball in 1969.
Players and fans alike hung on the edge of their seats as they watched Souter work.
The Cardinals leading by the score of 4-2.
They are one out away from being the division champs for 1982.
And then will be playing at home next week against the Western Division winner of the pitch, a ground ball to third.
Obergefell has it, that's it, the Cardinals have won it by the score of 4-2.
And that one is for Mr. Bush, for Butch Gatkeman, for Ken Boyer, for all of the Cardinal fans who have been so loyal this year,
setting an all-time home attendance record.
And the Cardinals have won it here tonight.
It was a fitting ending to the season, what with Bruce Souter picking up his 36th save of the year.
The Cardinals bullpen led by engine number 42 was the difference between a fourth place finish and a first place finish for the Cardinals.
Besides Souter, outstanding support came from Doug Baer and the ageless one, Jim Cott,
extricated the team from many a tight spot, as did John Martin and Jeff Lottie.
Overall, Cardinal relievers won or saved more than half of the team's 96 victories.
And you can't say enough about the Cardinals' front line pitching.
Up until the time they won the pennant, the team never lost more than three games in a row,
and they posted the second best earned run average in the National League.
Joaquin Andujar was overpowering down the stretch,
recording 29 and two-third consecutive scoreless innings and a 1.64 ERA during seven straight wins.
Bob Fource started the season with five straight wins and went on to his best campaign since 1977.
John Stupor called up from Louisville after the season began, displayed maturity beyond his years and tremendous determination to win.
Steve Muirai had the team's second longest individual win streak with six in a row.
And Dave LaPointe, the card's only left-handed starter, extended his record of never having had a losing season in professional baseball.
Questionable pitching staff, the critics had said six months earlier.
Well, Cardinal fans knew otherwise, and now the only question remaining was,
which team would St. Louis meet in the National League playoffs?
It came down to the final day of the season, October 3rd, but the Cardinals finally got the answer.
The Atlanta Braves pulled out the National League West title by one-half game on that Sunday, and the Cardinals knew their opponent.
The first game was scheduled to begin on Wednesday, October 6th,
but rain halted the game with Phil Necker on the Braves leading Joaquin Andujar and the Cardinals 1-0 in the bottom of the fifth.
So the next night, they tried game one again.
This time was Bob Fource on the mound.
The dean of the Cardinals' staff was making his first ever start in postseason play.
Fource pitched perhaps the finest game of his career that night.
He walked none, struck out six, gave up three hits, and shut out the high-powered Braves 7-0.
But what Cardinal fans will remember most of this game was Willie McGee and the inside-the-park home run that almost was.
Next pitch from Perez. Swing and a ground ball. Fair pass first, down into the left field corner.
He'll get two. He may get three.
Right fielder gets...can I get the ball? He may circle the bases. They bring him around.
He stops for no reason at all at third base, and he's there with nobody else.
For no reason at all, he stopped at third base, and the right fielder, Claude L. Washington, didn't even have the ball out in the right field corner.
McGee was redeemed moments later when he scored on a sacrifice fly by Ozzie Smith.
Here's the pitch. Swing and a fly ball to deep center field. That will score the run. Murphy makes the catch.
Here comes McGee. A throw. Too late. St. Louis leads one to nothing.
That was all the scoring that was needed, but the Cardinals didn't stop.
They put on an awesome display in the sixth inning by sending 11 men to the plate and putting things out of reach for the Braves.
St. Louis set a National League Championship Series record that inning with six singles.
Those hits, combined with a walk, a sacrifice fly, and a hit batsman, led to five Cardinal runs.
A rainout of game two on Friday night allowed Phil Negros another day of rest, enabling him to take the mound on Saturday night with his baffling knuckleball.
The Cardinals took an early lead when Ken Obergefell scored from third on a wild pitch in the first inning.
The Braves took a two-to-one lead in the third when a three-base error with a man on base allowed batter Rafael Ramirez to round the bases on what should have been a single.
The Braves picked up another run in the fifth, but they would get only two more hits in the game.
Sixth inning. After singling to right, Keith Hernandez scored on a Darryl Porter double to move the Cardinals within one run.
Two innings later, with Gene Garber pitching, the Cardinals scratched out a run in typical whitey ball style.
Not much power, but very effective. First up, Darryl Porter.
Hernandez is grounded out here in the eighth. The 3-2 pitch is coming to Porter.
Ball four. And the tying run is on. The pitch was inside.
The batter is George Hendrick, the leading home run hitter for St. Louis this year.
That was the fifth walk given to the Cardinals to go with their six hits.
And a battle now between Garber and Hendrick. Well, what will it be? A double play or a home run or something in between?
The Braves can get the double play if they can get the ground ball. Royster guards the third base power line to guard against the extra base hit.
And they play Hendrick to pull just a little. Outfielders are really spread out. Porter is not fast.
The pitch swing and a ball up the middle is a hit. Porter makes the turn. He's gonna go to third.
The throws into second. First and third one out.
The tying runs at third. The lead run at first. And who's up?
The fellow who committed the error earlier that allowed Atlanta to get the extra run. He has struck out three times.
Willie McGee. After three pitches, McGee was facing a two-strike count and in danger of striking out for the fourth time in the game.
McGee is just a rookie. He's an excitable sort. And he's gotta be beside himself at the moment wondering what in the world
this veteran relief pitcher is gonna serve up there. Garber's not gonna groove it for him.
He'll try to get McGee to chase a bad ball. The one-two pitch is on the way.
And a bouncing ball over the pitcher's head. Shortstop gets it. Tags a man. But the tying run scores.
Three-three. McGee is on. You should have seen him hit that ball.
He did everything but strike out as he drove home the tying run. Three-three here in the bottom of the eighth.
The inning ended and Bruce Sutter came into face Atlanta. Result, three up, three down.
Now it was up to David Green, Tommy Herr, and Ken Obergefell to send the fans home happy.
After singling to left, Green was sacrificed to second, setting the stage for Obie, who had gone six out of ten against Garber in 1982.
Strike one to Obergefell. A hit would win it for St. Louis and put them up two games to nine.
Garber trying to send it into extra innings. Winning run at second, one out. He spins but does not throw. Back to second base.
And some of the uninitiated yell, Bok. A single by Green, a sacrifice by Herr, and the pitch to Obergefell.
Swing and a shot to right center field. Butler's on the move. He cannot get it and the winning run scores.
The Cardinals have won the game four to three and they lead two games to nine.
Butler, the center fielder, came within an eyelash. Within an eyelash of making a game-saving catch.
He didn't get it. The Cardinals won it and they're in the spot to sweep.
And I repeat, how they could have pitched to Obergefell is beyond me, but that's not my concern.
Both teams traveled to Atlanta that night for Sunday's game. The Braves had fought off adversity all season and they were determined to do it again.
But the Cardinals came up flying high in game three, wanting to end things quickly and get back to St. Louis.
Second inning, Keith Hernandez had singled and Darrell Porter walked when George Hendrick let his bat do some talking.
The pitch to Hendrick. Swing and a line drive, base hit and a right. Hernandez will score. Porter goes on to third without a play.
St. Louis leads one to nothing here in the second.
Next up, wondrous Willie McGee.
Ball on the count, the pitch coming. McGee swings and a shot to right center.
That ball's a base hit and that ball goes to the wall. It's already two to nothing.
Here comes Hendrick to score. The throw to the plate, they may get him.
He is safe and it's three to nothing and McGee ends up at third base.
It was Ozzie Smith's turn to make a contribution.
There's a base hit up the middle by Ozzie Smith.
Willie McGee is home to make it four to nothing.
And the fans are all riled up here in Atlanta.
A four run rally and still nobody out and that's going to be all for Rick Camp as Joe Torre comes out of the dugout.
The Cardinals and the Braves each added two more runs before Souter was called on to put the victory on ice.
Souter laboring to get that final out.
His pitch, a swing and a fly ball to deep center.
Willie McGee is under it and so's Lonnie Smith.
It's caught by Lonnie Smith and that's a pennant winner for the St. Louis Cardinals.
The Cardinals win 6-2 and eliminate the Atlanta Braves in three games in a row.
So St. Louis, the team that did not have enough power to win, swept three games from the team which led the National League in home runs.
And it was the Cards who headed on to their 13th World Series to meet the Milwaukee Brewers.
Once more it was power versus speed.
The Cardinals' 67 home runs looked mighty weak when compared to Harvey's Wallbangers Major League leading 216 round trippers.
But then again the Cardinals left the Brewers flat footed when it came to stealing bases, having been successful on 200 thefts to Milwaukee's 84.
The sellout crowd of 53,000 at Busch Stadium was buzzing with excitement on Tuesday, October 12th
after August A. Busch Jr. had circled the field on a hitch pulled by the magnificent Clydesdales.
As things turned out, that was the best performance St. Louis fans saw all evening from their hometown favorites.
It was one of those nights when nothing went right.
The Cardinals were blank 10-0 by Mike Caldwell and the Brewers had won the first game.
But there were some bright spots for St. Louis.
Darrell Porter, the MVP in the playoffs, continued his torrid hitting with a double and a single to account for two of the team's three hits that night
and leave it to Whitey Herzog to put the evening in perspective.
He summarized it best when he said, I'm glad we didn't have to play a double header.
Game two started out much like the first game with the Brewers taking an early 3-0 lead.
Cardinal fans were both nervous and quiet.
That is until Tommy Herr generated some excitement with two out in the third.
Willie McGee was at third when Herr took charge.
Mowder stays even with the base at third, everybody else straight away, infield, outfield.
Sutton will work from the windup.
Looks at third, rocks back, brings it home.
Tommy Herr swings and hits a long one into right center.
Back, back, Charlie Moore on the run.
He can't get it, it bounces, one hop and a ground rule double into the seats in right field.
So Tommy Herr digs in for a little muscle and he gives the Cardinals the first run of the 1982 World Series with a two out double in the right center.
Ken Albrechtfell was up next and gave the fans more to cheer about.
With two outs, Herr gets a big lead from second base.
Sutton checks and pitches, line drive, past the diving second baseman in the right field.
Herr scores as Charlie Moore can't come up with it cleanly and it's now a 3-2 ball game.
The Brewers added one more run in the fifth to make the score 4-2.
One inning later, the Cardinals got even for the first time in the World Series.
Albrechtfell singled with one out and stole second.
George Henrik followed by drawing a walk from Don Sutton to set the stage for Porter.
The Milwaukee defense was playing Porter to pull the ball to right field, but he double crossed them.
One ball, two strikes. Here's the pitch, the runner goes off first, the pitch went on, hit to left.
It's a base hit and it may tie the game. One run scores, Henrik crosses the plate, a double for Porter.
It's 4-4, the throwing gets away, there goes Porter for third base and he's safe over there.
The score was still tied at 4 in the bottom of the eighth.
With one out and a runner at first, it was none other than Darrell Porter,
the bespectacled country boy who looks a bit like Superman, who kept the rally alive.
He's swinging the hottest bat among the Cardinal players.
Here's the next one, swing and a line drive, base hit into center field.
Henrik will stop at second base and Porter continues his hot, hot hitting.
He hit a bullet up the middle.
Lonnie Smith walked on seven pitches and now it was pinch hitter Steve Braun's turn to face Pete Ladd.
With the bases loaded and a three ball, no strike count.
He'll take 3-0 now and Pete Ladd is going to have to come in there or the Cardinals will take the lead on a bases loaded walk.
The infield is in for the play at the plate.
And that's a sign of Bruce Suter.
Brown will take, here's the 3-0 pitch.
Ball four, he walked in and the Cardinals lead 5-4 as Henrik trots in from third.
Listen to the crowd.
It was up to Bruce Suter to secure the Cardinals' first World Series win in 1982.
Following followed John Stupor, Jim Cotten, Doug Baer to the mound, Suter was forced to face the top of the Brewer batting order.
After giving up a bun single to Paul Molitor, things were tense with Robin Yowent at the plate.
But one play changed the whole complexion of the inning.
A lead by the runner, there he goes, the pitch swung on and missed, the throw he is, out is Tommy Herr, took it out of the dirt and made the tag.
Molitor started it with a bun single, the throw by Porter was in the dirt but that did not deter Tommy Herr, he dug it out and tagged him out.
And Yowent took a strike.
And Suter tries to protect the one-run lead. Fate has decreed that this be a close game.
Here's the next one to Yowent, there's a swing and a miss like two. Suter trying to save it for himself and the Cardinals.
And the crowd loved it.
Suter got the last outs in the 5-4 game and St. Louisans bid farewell to their heroes who left for Milwaukee tied at one game apiece.
Game three and the world discovered rookie sensation Willie McGee.
It's doubtful anyone ever turned in a World Series performance better than the one put on by McGee in Milwaukee.
The Friday evening game started as a pitchers duel. Pete Vukovich faced only 13 batters in the first four innings, Joaquin Andujar just 14.
Each team had a single hit until the Cardinals rolled out the barrel and had some fun in the fifth.
With one out, Lonnie Smith doubled and moved to third when designated hitter Dane Orge reached safely on an error.
Now it was time for Willie.
Vukovich checks on the runners, brings it home, McGee, oh and into right field, way back goes Moore, way back, way back.
Willie McGee has just hit a three run homer and put the Cardinals on top.
Two innings later Lonnie Smith generated the type of excitement that followed him everywhere this year.
Swing and a fly ball into right center field, that ball may not be caught, that ball is to the wall, it's going to be two and he's going to try for three with one out.
He continues to run, the throw to third, he is safe, the ball gets away, into the dugout, Lonnie Smith scores and it's four to nothing.
Later in the same inning McGee served notice that his third inning blast was not a fluke.
Now he swings and hits it down the line and right, that's going to go, adios and it is five to nothing.
Willie's second homerun of the game.
It wasn't just Willie's offensive output that impressed baseball fans, Paul Molitor, the Brewers first batter in the game, came out swinging.
And another three, two pitches coming, swing and a fly ball to center, Willie McGee way back, 400 feet away, that ball is caught by McGee at the 4-0-2 mark and he did it easily.
Well I've seen the game change Jack, with plays like that the momentum just kills you and Willie McGee as soon as that baseball was hit turned his back and he went easily to the 4-0-2 mark, leaped up and he robbed Molitor of a homerun.
That ball may have been over the wall, it was very close Jack, maybe a foot from leaving the ball park.
And on its 4-0-2 mark, didn't think McGee long to get back there did it, whew, he can play.
Then in the ninth with the Brewers threatening to rally while Bruce Souter was pitching, it was McGee again who quieted the roaring Brewer fans.
Ogilvie is on base, nobody out.
The outfield plays this batter as a rank pull hitter and a fly ball to deep left, this one is at the track and McGee jumps in, he caught it, he caught it high up above the fence, for the out and the runner back to first.
And McGee is doing everything to become the star of this game and perhaps the third.
McGee made a brilliant catch earlier, hit two home runs during the game, went to the left field wall and jumped above the railing, took a home run away from Gorman Thomas and keeps it a 6-2 game.
The Cardinals walked away from the third game with a victory and a 2-1 lead in games and a new national hero.
But the victory cost them too, back in the seventh inning with Joaquin Andujar coasting on a two-hit shutout, Ted Simmons hit a shot that made Cardinal fans cringe.
Andujar steps off the rubber and goes to the rosin bag.
He is eight outs away and the Cardinals lead 5-0 in the seventh pitch to Simmons, swing up the middle, hit Andujar on the leg and he is hurt, that's a hit and Andujar is hurt.
He might have been, may have been, oh he really hurt.
Hit him in the knee, Jack I believe.
I think this one got him on the knee, whereas the ball in Atlanta hit him on the leg.
This may have gotten him on the knee and the trainer Gene Giesemann goes out.
And Andujar is really in pain.
X-rays were negative but only time would tell whether the tough Dominican would be able to pitch again in the series.
It was cold in Milwaukee on October 16th for game four, but the sun was out and shining on the Cardinals, or so it seemed for six innings.
The birds were off to a five-to-one lead and it appeared that everything was going the Cardinals way.
In the second inning, Tommy Herr set a World Series record on an unusual scoring play with Willie McGee at third, Ozzie Smith at second.
Mousas looks in, gets a sign, Tommy Herr, waives the lumber across the platter.
He's set, so is the pitcher.
Here's the three-two delivery.
We ain't gonna pop up into center field.
Back goes Thomas, the ball keeps carrying, carrying, carrying.
It'll get the run home easy.
The ball goes all the way to the track.
He falls down.
They're gonna try to send Smith home.
Here comes the throw!
He is safe!
A sacrifice fly with two RBI.
With plays like that, it was obvious that St. Louis was destined to take a three-two lead in games, but then disaster.
With one out and nobody on base and the last of the seventh, pitcher Dave LaPoint ran to first to take a throw from Keith Hernandez.
They're deep everywhere for Ben Ogilvie.
Thirty-four homers he hit this year, swings, grounds, a bad hop, great play by Hernandez.
The pitcher covers, drops the ball, and he's safe at first pass.
An easy play.
Once Hernandez got the bad hop, he gave the pitcher LaPoint a good toss, and he simply dropped the ball.
That opened the floodgates, and the Brewers went on to score six unearned runs and notched a seven-to-five win.
The series was tied again, two games each.
What can you say about game number five?
It was a game in which the Cardinals collected 15 hits, but scored only four runs.
The key to the game may have been in the seventh, when the Cardinals were trailing the Brewers three-to-one.
There were two on and two out when Darrell Porter made his bid to tie the game.
Big gap down the left field line. He's burned this club once already like that.
Here's the one-one delivery. Darrell Porter, ground ball, into right field. Great diving stop by Cooper.
He throws the first and he gets Porter, and he saves the game.
There have been two runs that were taken away from the Cardinals on diving stops by the infielders.
This one by Cooper, earlier Gantner did it on a base hit by Hendricks.
That was a labeled base hit, but the inning is over.
The Milwaukee defense was outstanding, proving that Harvey's wall bangers were more than just a bunch of good hitters.
The 6-4 Cardinal loss meant that St. Louis would return home down in games three to two in the best of seven series.
But history was on the Cardinal's side.
Only 12 of 47 teams had ever come back from 3-2 deficits to win the fall classic, and St. Louis accounted for three of those comebacks.
In addition, seven of the 12 previous Cardinal World Series had gone the distance, seven games,
and St. Louis was the victor in six of seven of those series.
Perhaps tradition and history would work in favor of the Cardinals.
With Gantner backs against the wall, the Cardinals turned to John Stupor.
When he took them out on Tuesday, October 19th, Stupor became only the 14th rookie to record two starts in a World Series.
Stupor threw his first pitch at 7-21 that night, and his last one, five hours later, at 12-21.
In between were two hours and 21 minutes of game action, and two hours and 39 minutes of rain delays.
Many minded the delays, however, since it was the Brewers' parade that got rained on and not the Cardinals.
Second inning, the Cardinals took a 1-0 lead after Dane Ords doubled and scored when Willie McGee reached first safely on an error.
Tommy Herr was up next to face Don Sutton.
He's got five hours now, and Tommy Herr, it's a long one into right field. Way back, way back, off the wall. McGee's around seventh. He digs for third. Here's the throw home. McGee is safe at home.
And the Cardinals lead two to nothing, and Tommy Herr has just hit the farthest ball we've seen in it all year. He missed a home run by about two feet.
Two innings later, it was Darrell Porter's turn to put things out of reach for the Brewers.
Now it's Porter's job, as it was Obergefell's earlier, to pull the ball, move the runner over somehow. Preferably drive him home.
The pitch to Darrell. Swing, and a long one into right field. Way back, and McGee out.
And the Cardinals lead four to nothing. It just got over the wall, hit the concrete color, came back on the field, and the Cardinals fans are crazy wild.
That wasn't all the fans had to cheer about in the inning. Dane Ords did his part to keep the noise level high.
There's nothing doing in the Milwaukee bullpen in case you're wondering. They're sitting pretty still, leading three games to two.
Trailing in this game, four to nothing, fourth inning, and a swing, and a line drive. Base hit into the right field corner.
Looks like another double for Dane Ords. The ball gets away from the right fielder. Ords goes for third. He is safe at third base with nobody out.
At that point, Dane's slugging percentage was 929 in the World Series, and he was on his way into the record books as the World Series' most successful designated hitter.
The fourth inning still wasn't over when Tommy Herr stood at the plate with one out, and Ords at third.
Ball wind up. Squeeze play. Herr bumps the ball. It works. The throw to first. He's out. Five-nothing Cardinals.
Several hours later, after two lengthy rain delays, the game was winding down with the score 13 to nothing in favor of St. Louis.
Stupor had courageously resumed where he left off, and was three outs away from being the first rookie to hurl a World Series shutout.
But, understandably, he tired in the top of the ninth, gave up a double, a single, and a wild pitch, and watched a Milwaukee runner cross the plate.
In this game, Stupor allowed only two walks and four hits on his way to a 13-1 sixth-game victory.
They kept the Cardinals in the World Series by evening the action at three games each. Not bad for a rookie.
After six months, 162 regular-season games, three playoff games, and six World Series games, the championship of the 1982 season boiled down to one game.
The rest of the year didn't amount to a thing anymore. Everything was riding on these last nine innings of play.
Much to the delight of Cardinal fans, Joaquin Andujar was declared ready and able to pitch.
There was no scoring in the first three innings, but in the top of the fourth, the Brewers tried to change that.
Robin Yacht was at first with one out, and Cecil Cooper at the plate.
One on one out for Cecil Cooper. And the pitch, coming. Swing and a ground ball, base hit into right, and the runner will go on to third.
Hendrick's throw is close, but out at third base! He threw him out! And the batter stays at first.
Hendrick threw a one-bounce strike over there. I didn't think he had a chance, but the ball came perfectly to Oberknell, and he hanged him out.
So much for that challenge. The Cardinals didn't waste any time in mounting an attack of their own.
Willie McGee led off the bottom of the fourth with a single. Tommy Herr followed with another hit to set things up for Lonnie Smith.
There's no score in the bottom of the fourth. And the pitch to Lonnie is coming.
Swing and there's a ground ball to deep short. It's a base hit and a run. Scores! The Cardinals lead one to nothing.
The lead didn't last long. The Brewers tied the game in the top of the fifth, then tacked on two more runs in the sixth to take a 3-1 advantage.
Time was running out on the Cardinals. They had nine more outs to play before the season would come to an end.
It was the bottom of the sixth when the Cardinals' number four and five batters took charge. The bases were loaded with one out for Keith Hernandez.
The Cardinals hit the base and loaded one out in a 3-1 count. They're roaring here. Here's the pitch. Swing and a line drive into right center.
That ball is a hit. That ball is a hit and the score is tied. The other man to third. Safe. We have a 3-3 game on a hit by Hernandez.
And George Hendrick was next.
White knuckle turn. If he could rip one, he could give the Cardinals a quick three-run lead. McClure from the belt to the plate.
Swing and a ground ball. Base hit to right. The Cardinals take the lead. Hernandez stops at second. It's four to three.
For two innings, the Cardinals protected their slim one-run lead. Then in the bottom of the eighth, they delivered a crushing blow to Milwaukee's comeback hopes.
With runners at first and second, Darrell Porter was showered with cheers one more time after he got the better of Brewer reliever Mike Caldwell.
Caldwell to the belt. The left-hander delivers. Swing and a line drive into right. That's a hit. Lonnie Smith scores without a play.
The other man to third. He's safe. It's five to three. Porter has pumped some air into the Cardinals' leading margin.
Steve Braun then drove in the final run of the season for the St. Louis Cardinals.
Here's the pitch. The runner goes off first. A swing and there's another hit by Braun in the center. A run scores. It's six to three for the Cardinals.
Now it was up to Souter to get three more outs. Just three more and the trophy belonged to St. Louis. The count began. Souter versus Ted Simmons.
Swing and a ground ball. Souter has it. Goes to first. Out at first. One gone. Two outs. A way.
Souter versus Ogilvie. Ogilvie grounds the ball to Tommy. Nice going Tommy. Out at first. Two out. Two out. One out away.
Darrell Porter was backing up the play behind first. He races behind the plate. Souter can't wait to get back up and pitch to Gorman Thomas.
And finally the Cardinals were one strike away from victory. Souter from the belt to the plate. A swing and a miss. And that's a winner. That's a winner.
A World Series winner for the Cardinals. Porter throws his mask into the air. The players converge around the mound. The Cardinals have won the game six to three.
The Cardinals have won the National League pennant and the Cardinals have won the 1982 World Series.
Let's celebrate good times. Come on. Let's celebrate.