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The San Francisco Giants faced the Houston Astros at the Astrodome for a Monday night
game on April 17, 1972.
The Giants were managed by Charlie Fox and had been an excellent team for over a decade.
Unfortunately, throughout the 1960s, the Cardinals and Dodgers were just a little bit better.
The Giants went to the World Series in 1962 but finished in second place in five of the
next nine seasons.
They finally broke through in 1971 under Fox in his first full season as a manager, but
lost in the NLCS to the Pirates.
At the start of the 1970s, the Astros were still no better than an average team.
They had finally broke free of the seven straight 90-plus lost seasons that launched the franchise
and had managed to finish in the middle of the NL West for the three straight seasons
under manager Harry Walker.
This audio recording is from the San Francisco Radio broadcast featuring announcers Lon Simmons
and Bill Thompson.
Dirkker was 12 and 6 last season, we say, and had to sit out a lot of the year because
of bad arms.
He's 12 and 6 lifetime against the Giants.
Dirkker wasn't able to pitch after August 8th last year.
At one time, he had a 10 and 1 record in 1971 but came in with a bad arm.
He can throw hard.
He's still a very young man.
He's just 25 years old.
He's now in Houston.
He was born in Hollywood, California.
Been with Houston ever since 1964.
They didn't have a curfew for him when he first joined the ball club.
They just changed his diapers late in the evening.
He was just a baby when he came over to Houston and he stuck around with him.
He delivers to Willie Mays who hits the first pitch to shortstop, Metzger, the first base,
and Mays is retired for the first out.
So Willie went for the first pitch.
They have each of the first two games of the season and grounds out to shortstop.
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Keto 20s, well that left-handed, has a switch batter against Durker.
Jakeskins side, well for a ball, one and all, Mel Stunner behind the plate.
Durker has a lifetime record of 83 wins and 68 losses.
High fly ball, the right field, wind, drifting back, waiting for this one, and Keto is out
number two.
Durker is 6'4", 210 pounds.
He will face now Kenny Henderson.
Kenny didn't get a hit last night, but he got a run across the plate when he struck
out on a pitch that hit the dirt, bound it away for a while pitch that allowed Mays to
score from third.
Pitch to Henderson.
Swung on, line drive to center field.
Cedeno was there and makes the catch.
Three pitches for Durker, four pitches.
He delivered one bad one to 20s, but four pitches and he retires the side.
No run, no hits, no errors, no one left on.
And as we go to the bottom of the first to score, the Giants nothing and Houston coming
to back.
John Cumberland who won nine and lost six for the Giants last year is out there on the
mound, 25 years old as John.
Wanted a belated happy birthday to Giants trainer Leo Hughes who was 39 two days ago.
Forgot to wish him a happy birthday.
And now John Cumberland, he always said John is 25, he will not be 25 until May 10th of
this year.
Trying to make him too old for his time here as he delivers to Metzger and it's outside
for a ball.
Metzger turned around as if to sacrifice, to bunt rather.
Metzger is switch batter.
He'd have a little tough time sacrificing being as he's the lead off batter.
He was going to try to bunt, test Kingman.
Now he takes the second pitch high for ball two.
It's been a long time for Cumberland to be on the mound.
Of course it has been for all the pitches as far as that goes.
John relies on his control.
He's behind two and oh here.
Gets a strike in at the knees and it's two and one.
The Giants defensively, Henderson in left maze and center, Bonds in right.
Kingman at third, Spire at short, Wontes at second, McCovey at first and Healy doing the
catching.
Cumberland's two one pitches, high ball three.
He's behind three and one.
The Giants dropped behind three to nothing in the first inning last night.
It came clawing back to win it ten to six yesterday afternoon.
All right.
It looked like it was night.
Strike call three and two.
Full count for the lead off man Metzger.
Three two pitch, bounded slowly to the left side.
Kingman charged in front of shortstop.
His throw in time and Metzger is retired for out number one.
Kingman moving very quickly to his left in front of Spire to field that ball and throw
out Metzger.
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Cesar Cedeno.
Right hand batter against Cumberland.
Bluffs the buck, takes low for a ball.
And Kingman came sailing in as Cedeno hitting three seventy five as three hits and eight
trips against Giants pitching.
That is all that he's faced in the regular season.
Kingman playing even with the back of the outfield backed up.
Cedeno has power.
Blind drive to left field coming over is Henderson.
He makes a one handed catch just above the shoot off.
That was a bullet hit into left center field and Henderson rushing over to his left.
Caught that one just above his shoot off for the second out of the inning.
And now Jim Winn who is greeted in different fashion by different folks.
Right hand batting right fielder takes outside for a ball one and all.
Jim has become a very controversial figure in Houston.
One oh pitch.
Ball two.
Cumberland turns that one over.
Down low and it's two and all.
Rogers lead Atlanta one to nothing after an inning.
Cleveland beat Boston four to nothing that one to finals.
Looping liner to left field for a base hit.
Winn has his first base hit of the season.
And he singles over the head of Chris Spire to left.
The first hit of the ball game and Lee May.
Close to deliver the power for the Astros this year.
Hitting three seventy five as three hits and eight trips.
Right hand batting first baseman.
After five innings New York and Baltimore are nothing nothing.
High fly ball down the left field line.
Henderson coming over near the line.
Drifting into foul territory makes the catch and the side is retired.
May flies out.
No runs on a hit.
No errors on a runner left on.
At the end of one.
The score the Giants nothing and Houston nothing.
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Willie McCovey leads off the second for the Giants.
Willie has two hits and nine trips.
One of his hits was about a mile.
Up in the right field seat the two run homer in the opening game and Larry Ducker delivers
to McCovey.
Fastball bounded up the middle.
Metzger is playing directly behind second.
He has it throws the first and the Covey is an easy out.
Five pitches now is all that Ducker has delivered and he has recorded four outs.
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Bobby Bond three hits and seven trips two doubles.
He was on base five times last night.
Three hits he was hit and he was walked.
Four times Ducker delivers the body.
One on line drive to center but Sedaniel will get this one.
He does.
Is the second out the Giants are going to get this one over in a hurry one way or another.
That is six pitches now and five outs recorded.
As Dave Kingman comes to the plate.
Kingman four hits and nine attempts.
One double one triple one home run.
Six RBI.
Hit for the cycle last night even though he didn't know what it meant.
Take the high fastball for a ball.
So Kingman didn't go for the first pitch.
One and oh.
Two down base and then.
I feel well around to the left.
They can't get deep enough when Kingman hits one on the fat part of the bat.
Ducker taking a long look.
Now the tall right hander deals off to Kingman.
Swung on it missed and it's one and one.
Breaking pitch he didn't get.
The slowest leads Philadelphia three to nothing.
It fills batting in the bottom of the third.
We're in the top of the second inning.
Nothing to nothing.
Two down.
Bases empty.
Kingman with a one and one count.
Straight away stamp.
Kingman bends over from the waist and waits for Ducker's one one pitch.
Low for ball two.
Ducker slipped and fell that time.
One hit in the game.
The Astros have that two out single by Wynn off Cumberland the first inning.
Raider the third baseman guarding the line and playing back deep.
Press the infield back up and as we set the outfield roll around to the left and very
deep.
Three thirty down the line.
Three seventy eight in the power alley.
High fly ball.
Very high.
But short and right center as Wynn and Cedeno converge and it's Cedeno that makes the catch
for the third out.
No runs.
No hits.
No errors.
No one left on.
And they go to the bottom of the second.
The score is the Giants nothing and Houston nothing.
So watch the Giants.
Bob Watson up here bounds one on one off to Kingman whose throw is letter perfect to Willie
McCovey and Watson is retired for out number one.
Watson was a guy that Sam McDowell had trouble getting out last night.
He had a home run a three run shot and two singles.
Third baseman Doug Raider now.
Right hand batting third baseman.
Having one twenty five he takes ball one.
Raider closed stance deep in the batter's box swings and misses the breaking pitch and
it's one on one.
Raider has one hit and eight tries.
Now Fran Healy will go out and talk to Cumberland.
One down bases empty.
Giants and Houston in the bottom of the second.
Nothing nothing.
Giants have won the first two games of the series.
One one pitch.
Swung on and missed he changed up on him and threw him a skew ball and Raider didn't get
it.
He was way out in front.
That's a ball and two strikes.
One and two count.
And field backs up now in the outfield deep.
One two pitch.
Fast ball outside it's two and two.
Cumberland is not afraid to challenge hitters.
He walks out there with all the confidence in the world.
John's two two offering.
Swung on and foul and that one winged Mel Steiner the home plate umpire.
Count stays at two and two.
Buddy Hank and the first base coach for Houston and Saldy Parker over third.
Joey Amalfatano is coaching at first for the Giants tonight and Johnny McNamara at third.
Two two count.
And Cumberland's pitch.
Fast ball outside at full count three and two.
McNamara and Amalfatano are certainly great for the Giants.
Not only are they sound baseball men but they also each possess a fine sense of humor and
they're good keeping the ball club loose keeping them happy.
Three two pitch.
Check swing fouled off to the right.
Stays at three and two.
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The bounding ball to the left side.
Kingman to his left field.
It in front of Spire throws perfect.
Out number two.
It is remarkable to see this big fella at third base move around as quickly as he does.
He has good actions over there and he moves in at all that time to get that sharp chopper
off the bat of Raider and throw him out easily.
Kingman has a good strong arm.
He can rifle the ball.
As we said great quickness for a big guy.
Tommy Hilton now.
Take the curve low.
The right hand batting second baseman.
Helms hitting 286 with two hits for seven tries.
Ground ball sharply hit to the hole.
Up with it's Spire.
Long throw.
Got him.
He gunned him down with that throw.
And the side is retired.
Spire took his right arm off and put a rifle on his shoulder and gunned down.
Helms at first.
No runs.
No hits.
No errors.
No one left on.
The score is nothing nothing.
The Giants home this weekend.
Hope you'll be out joining us out there and see San Francisco in action.
There are tickets available.
The Giant Box Office at Campbell Stick Park opens from nine until five each day this week.
More than 50 Ticketron offices around Northern California.
Also the Giant Ticket offices.
We'll give you the addresses of those later on but we're set to go with the top of the
third inning and to tell you about the action Bill Thompson.
The first runner is Fran Healy.
Right into batting catcher, leaps it off.
Healy one hit and eight traps.
Fran's lost two as he faces it on hard hit balls.
Jerker's lead up and swung on and missed strike one.
Healy hitting seventh in the order.
Then shortstop Chris Spire and pitcher John Cumberland.
0 and 1 to count on Healy.
Healy shaded a bit to the left.
Jerker comes back to play the hole one.
Foul on the ground back at the plate.
Jerker in front 0 and 2.
You know Bill there's an interesting thing.
I think it's the tail end of the order's turn to win the ball game tonight.
Because the top of the order won it the first night.
The middle part won it last yesterday afternoon.
I'll drink to that.
Yeah I'll bet.
The 0-2 pitch on its way.
Just outside a slider missing.
A ball and two strikes on Healy.
Jerker taking a bit of time.
Now looks to Johnny Edwards for a sign.
Right enter kicks and throws one-two.
Healy checks and takes high.
Two-one-two to count on Fran Healy.
Jerker taking a lot of time in doing this.
Now checks and throws two-two.
Let up, checks swing, rower up the middle.
Fielded by Helms behind second.
Throw is in time as May was nearly pulled off the bag at first base.
Healy on a check swing and a rower back past Jerker.
Helms was pulled a bit towards second base.
Had to go a couple of steps to his right to make the play and did.
Healy for the first out.
Chris Spire, switch batter, batting left-handed.
Chris still looking for his first hit.
0-7 in the first two games.
Raider crowds him on the surface third.
Jerker to the plate.
Jerker in front of the plate, Edwards out as it throws to first.
Out number two is again May was nearly pulled off the bag with that throw.
Pitcher John Cumberland.
Cumberland left-handed pitcher, right-handed batter and John swinging the bat very well
in spring training.
Jerker to the plate.
Sliders a strike.
Pick up the inside part of the plate.
0-1 on John Cumberland.
Two outs, bases empty.
Top of inning number three.
Giants nothing, Astros nothing.
The 0-1 pitch.
This is low.
Jerker questioning the call by Mel Steiner.
A 1-1 count.
Slay away defense by the Astros.
Swing and a miss by Cumberland.
A high fastball.
Jerker in front of the ball and two strikes.
Right-hander's one-two pitch.
A bit too high.
Jerker, Edwards again not too happy with that call.
Two-and-two count on John Cumberland.
Jerker into the motion.
A 2-2 pitch on its way.
Outside ball three.
So Jerker, for the first time in a ball game, goes to a 4-count on a batter.
Jerker's called time and tied his shoe.
That's the first of the 1972 season.
3-2 pitch.
Foul back off Edwards' glove.
The count remains of three balls and two strikes.
Cumberland slightly closed hands.
About even with the plate.
Again the 3-2 pitch.
Ground ball is short.
Metzger on a good hop.
His short of May.
Right on target.
Hop number three.
Again in the third.
The Giants go in order.
No runs.
No hits.
No Houston errors.
No runners left on it.
The end of two-and-a-half.
The Giants nothing.
The Astros nothing.
Catcher John Edwards to lead off for Houston.
Edwards left at a batter.
Bouting eighth in the order.
Then pitcher Larry Dirkert and shortstop Roger Metzger.
Cumberland's pitch grounded to first base.
It's foul.
Heeled by McCovey outside the line.
Edwards got the opening game of the series and went one for three.
Giants shade Edwards a bit to the left field with May is playing at the left center.
Henderson fairly close to the line.
Cumberland misses inside for ball one.
A one-one count.
A one-one pitch.
Cumberland misses low ball two.
Two-and-one count on Johnny Edwards.
Cumberland kicks and throws.
Ground ball to first base.
McCovey fielded on a tricky hop.
They raised for the bag.
McCovey wins it.
Out number one.
The ball took a bad hop.
McCovey stayed with it.
Makes the unassisted putout for the first out.
We'll pause for station identification.
This is the Golden West Radio Network.
When you want to hear the sounds of the city, listen to the Gene Nelson show, 8 to midnight,
right here on KSFO San Francisco.
It's the sound of the city.
Richard Lurie Dirkert right end of batter.
Takes high ball one.
Dirkert major league batting average of one and 31.
Has three home runs.
He's got some kind of yellow check-in to cover all of them.
Ground ball up the middle.
A high chopper's fire behind second.
Hazardous throw and plenty of time for out number two.
Dirkert just jogged down the line.
Casters go to the top of the order.
The shortstop, Roger Metzger.
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Metzger, hope for one, down to the third and ending number one.
Cumberland misses high, ball one.
Metzger switch batter, batting right-handed.
Kingman at third, McEvee at first, shortened up to guard against the punt.
Metzger takes a strike in the outside corner.
A one-one count with two outs, bases empty, bottom of the third.
Giants nothing, Astros nothing.
Cumberland's one-one delivery.
Breaking ball, get high near the left field.
Henderson drifting back and towards the line.
Kenny with plenty of room.
Makes the catch to retire the side.
For Houston in the third, no runs, no hits.
No Giants here, no runners left.
At the end of three, full.
The Giants nothing and the Astros nothing.
Kenny number four, Dirkert, retired nine in a row.
John Cumberland nearly matched that.
The Astros just one base runner.
Wins two outs single in the first inning.
The Giants back at the top of the order.
The center fielder, Willie May, second there's Montino Pauwani from left fielder, Ken Henderson.
May is grounded to short on the first pitch of the game.
Outfield deep.
Jim Winn really getting May's all the right field line.
Winn better than 90 feet off the line, both towards right center.
Dirkert to the plate.
May's bluffs the bunt, takes high ball one.
Dirkert checking signs with his catcher, Johnny Edwards.
Saw right under, kicks and throws.
May's lines one.
Helms backhand to him.
One hop goes to first and gets him.
May's in a line shot up the middle.
Tommy Helms to his right.
Backhand to the ball on the first hop.
Spahnman made a good throw to first base to cut down May's for out number one.
Pauwani's flying to right in inning number one.
Rader in on the turf at third.
Dirkert kicks and fires.
Fast ball loop to left center field.
Sedeno on the run, now slows up and makes the catch for out number two.
The two outs and the bases empty, Kenny Henderson will be the Giants batter.
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Ken Henderson lined to Sedeno in center field in inning number one.
Kenny batting left-handed against the right-hander, Lily Dirkert, who switches a lead-up that swing on a miss strike one.
0-1 count on Henderson.
Rader now playing back even with a bag at third.
Press the defense right-hander onto the right.
Out to a back-up, a swing and a miss on a curve, strike two.
Dirkert in front, O-1-2, two outs.
Dirkert at the inning number four.
Giants nothing and the Astros nothing.
Dirkert checking signs.
Okay, this one from Edwards.
Cranks up for the O-2 pitch.
Fast ball is outside, ball one.
A one-and-two count.
Dirkert again taking a bit of time between pitches.
Now into the motion with a one-two pitch to Henderson.
Foul back off the fist.
So we'll drop back on the screen, direct him back at the plate.
And go bounding back down to the playing field.
Now remains the ball on two strikes.
Dirkert ready.
So is Henderson, a one-two pitch.
Oh, strike three.
Slider on the outside corner.
Dirkert gets his first strike out.
He's now retired twelve in a row.
The Giants fourth, no runs, no hits, no Houston errors.
No runners left at the end of three and a half.
That's nothing. The Astros nothing.
Bottom of inning number four, the Astros at the two, three, and four spots in the order.
Center fielder Cesar Sudeno.
Right fielder Jim Winn and first baseman Lee May.
Sudeno right-handed batter.
The line drive, the left field, in inning number one is Kenny Henderson.
Made it much better than average play on.
Kenny, racing towards left center, reaching down and picking him just off the turf.
Pemberlund's pitch, low ball one.
Jerry Royce has just joined the Houston Ball Club today.
He's being acquired and traded from St. Louis.
Loosing out in the right field, bullpen.
One out pitch. Sudeno takes just outside ball two.
Dodgers leading Atlanta three to nothing after three.
Philadelphia and St. Louis tied three-three.
Drive down the left field line, it'll hook foul back into the seats.
Phillies are batting in the bottom of the fifth inning in that one.
The American make clear one beat Boston four to nothing.
Baltimore batting in the bottom of the seventh.
Orioles and New York Yankees scoreless.
Left-hander John Cumberland's two-one delivery.
Ground ball right side, 20s, I think we're far to his left.
Short hop, the throw, then gets him.
Good play by Tito.
Right fielder Jim Winn, a looping single to left field in inning number one.
Winn, the only baserunner, that's far in the ballgame.
We're in the bottom of the fourth, one out.
Cumberland's fifth.
Check swing and a base hit to right field.
Bond throws back in.
Winn falling away from the pitch.
Had the ball hit the bat.
The Winnies was pulled all over to our second base.
The ball scooted into right field for a base hit.
The Winn is two for two.
He has the two hits in the ballgame.
Here's first baseman Lee May, who fouled out to Henderson.
In inning number one, May, big right-handed batter.
Giants pull a defense well around to the left.
Winn is going.
They've got him picked off, and he's blocked his call.
Winn breaking from first base.
Cumberland started to throw to first and stopped, and that became the block.
John knew what he wanted to do.
He wanted to back off the mound and run at Winn, but he had made a motion to throw, and it'll go as the block.
That was a proper call.
Winn moves up to second in the scoring position.
Cumberland set.
Blaney's trying to keep Winn close at second.
Breaking pitch, a checked swing.
We'll wait for the umpires to go.
Two in the dirt, dug out by Healy.
Two and nothing count.
Two and 0 to count on Lee May.
Cumberland checks second base, comes to the plate 2-0.
Fast ball as it calls back.
That one just above the knees.
Cumberland in on the count at two and one.
Blaney's right at second base.
Winn with a pretty good lead.
Cumberland comes to the plate, high fly ball to left field.
Routine play for Henderson who jogs in, gets towards the line, and makes the catch for out number two.
Goes quickly towards second base.
Winn is back in.
Left fielder Bob Watson.
Down to the third in inning number two.
Watson, a right-handed batter.
Winn at second, two outs.
Bottom of the fourth.
Giants nothing, Astros nothing.
Now it's Spiers turn to try to keep Winn close at second.
They got him picked off between second and third.
Defeated third.
Kingman chasing him back towards second.
Lobbs to Pawenny who tags him out.
Winn tried to pull a delayed steal on Fran Healy, and Healy wouldn't be tricked.
Fran saw what Winn was up to, and Winn, Healy in place of throwing the ball back to the pitchers,
Winn thought he would.
As he was breaking for third, Healy rifled a throw to Kingman.
Kingman chased Winn back towards second, two to Pawenny who made the tag.
So the play goes two to five to four to retire the side.
For Houston in the fourth, no runs, one hit.
No Giants errors.
No runners left on it.
The end of four.
The Giants nothing and the Astros nothing.
Four in total.
The Giants absolutely nothing.
The Astros no runs, two hits, no errors.
Rating number five, Lon Simmons.
Willie McCovey to lead off for the Giants, and the Astros go into that shift to,
although Metzger doesn't go to the right of second base.
He's almost directly behind second.
Rader about 30 feet off the line, maybe 35 and playing back deep.
Elms on the outfield grass.
The second baseman will let up as a strike to McCovey.
The outfield deep and around to the right.
The Giants do not have a hit in the first four innings.
The Astros have two, both by the same man, Jim Winn.
So it's been a defensive battle and good defensive plays on each side.
Elms robbing Mays of a base hit.
McCovey takes a fastball that jams in for strike two.
Dirk are busting the fastball in on his fifth, and McCovey started to go, checked,
fell out of there, and hit strike two.
McCovey, Bonds, and Kingman.
The Giants are really going to score some runs in the heart of this batting order with Henderson, McCovey, Bonds, Kingman, Healy.
Mays and Pointy's leading off.
It's going to be a pleasure to watch, and you can watch them starting next Friday night at Candlestick.
Pitch outside for a ball, one and two.
Big weekend at Candlestick, Friday night against Houston, Saturday afternoon, and then a bat day on Sunday.
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That's autographed by Giants players when you enter the ballpark.
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One-two pitch to McCovey.
Inside and low for two and two.
Durker with a good fastball, good breaking pitches.
He is difficult.
You can't sit on the fastball all the time, because once he gets you looking for the fastball,
he puts the slider curveball in there, and you're in trouble.
You're in trouble even if he doesn't, with the fastball that he has.
Two and two count to McCovey, leading off the Giants, fifth inning, a nothing-nothing ballgame.
And Durker is one for the two-two pitch.
Ball three, tried to jam him with the fastball again, but got it inside a bit too much that time.
And McCovey has a full count of three and two.
Giants without a baseman over the first four innings.
Helms and Metzger each making good plays to keep the Giants off the bases.
Helms made two better than average plays.
Three-two count to McCovey.
And Durker winds for the full-count pitch.
A high chopper at foul that was off his foot.
Off his foot or off the catcher, I don't know.
I think it probably hit something behind the plate anyway, other than the ground or the plate.
And the count stays at three and two.
Joey Amalfadano giving McCovey lots of room.
He is well behind the first base.
Kosting back's almost in the Houston dugout.
The dugout is the safest place to be unless they let you wear catcher's equipment.
Three-two pitch foul back.
And a fastball inside again.
Trying to run that fastball in tight on McCovey and get it up high in the strike zone.
After four innings, the Dodgers three Atlanta nothing.
After five innings, the bottom of the sixth, Philadelphia has tied St. Louis at three and three.
In the American League, Baltimore leads the Yankees three to nothing after seven.
Cleveland beat Boston four to nothing.
Three and two to McCovey leading off the Giants fifth, a nothing-nothing ballgame here in Houston.
Three-two pitch, a let-up high ball four.
The Giants have their first base runner.
McCovey draws a base on balls.
Dirkert gets his first strikeout and his first walk back to back.
The strikeout to end the fourth, the walk to open the fifth.
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Bobby Bonds flying to center his first time on base all five times last night.
Dirkert pitching from the stretch for the first time.
Down goes Bonds.
Boy, he ripped that fastball right under Bobby's chin, ball one.
McCovey at first, nobody up.
Giants and Houston nothing-nothing top of the fifth.
The Giants leave here tonight, go to San Diego.
For Tuesday night, Wednesday night, and Thursday night.
And then back home for the home opener at beautiful new Candlestick Park on Friday night.
1-0 pitch to Bonds.
Drive to right field.
Wynn chasing this one down, going towards the line.
He'll get there, makes the catch.
McCovey had gone halfway and gets back in the first base.
Bonds just didn't quite hit behind that one far enough.
He hit behind the ball all right, but Wynn was able to get over it and makes the catch.
For the first out, McCovey had to retreat the first.
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Dave Kingman, 0-1.
He flied to center his first time.
Dirkert, McCovey leading at first.
May plays behind him, not holding.
McCovey on line, drives down the left field line.
It is in for the base.
McCovey goes to second.
He'll round second and head for third.
The throw coming into third.
He's going to be out at third base.
Watson from the corner and left field with a perfect throw to Raider and McCovey trying for third.
Kingman moved up to second, but it will just be a single for Kingman.
It's a single for Kingman.
They flashed a double up on the board for Kingman because he is on at second base,
but you can't give him a double because McCovey, the runner in front of him, didn't advance to third.
He was thrown out at third.
So it's only a single for Kingman.
And McCovey cut down from the left fielder to the third baseman.
Kingman breaks the no-hit string by Larry Dirkert with a base hit here.
And McCovey cut down by an excellent throw.
We've seen some fine throwing in this series.
Hitch is lower to Fran Healy for a ball.
Unusual in the fact that the players were off so long,
you would not think that their arms would be ready after the layoff.
But Henderson threw out a runner at the plate.
Padano threw out a runner at third.
And now Watson has thrown out a runner at third.
And Watson is a fellow not expected to have that good an arm.
He is not rated as having one of the finer throwing arms.
Kingman leads at second as Healy takes the breaking pitch up high for a ball.
You know, we make a lot about Kingman's quick actions at third base,
the fact that he is six feet six inches.
But the way big men are moving in basketball now,
it's probably going to see a lot more big men in the infield of baseball
because they have the quick action.
Two-o pitch is low for a ball.
Three-and-oh, how would you like to have an infield with Thurman and Chamberlain and Jafar?
You'd have to have a homerun to get it out of the infield.
Of course, I don't know how they hit.
They'd have a fabulous strike zone, wouldn't they?
Three-and-oh count to Healy.
First base open, Kingman at second.
Top of the fifth, nothing-nothing.
Dave with the first hit of the ball, game for the Giants.
Three-o pitch is high, ball four.
Dirkker gave him an off-speed pitch on three-and-oh.
He was not really worried about first base, putting Healy on there.
The first base open and Spire up.
He doesn't expect Spire to hit the ball out.
He had a chance of hitting it out.
The walk is the second by Dirkker, and Spire looking for his first base hit of the season.
Switch batting this year and batting left-handed.
Kingman at second, Healy at first.
Pitch in the dirt, blocked by Edwards.
Good save, and it's ball one.
And Dirkker looks as though he might be tiring here in this fifth inning.
He certainly hasn't had to throw too many pitches up to this inning.
The Giants, in fact, he had retired the first five men on only six pitches.
Gadfield, only medium deep against Spire and slightly to the left.
Kingman at second with good speed.
Healy with fair speed at first.
Healy gets the big lead, so does Kingman.
Base, oh no, off the leg of Dirkker.
Spire digging for first.
He's in, and they're safe all the way around.
That was a base hit up the middle, but it hit Dirkker on the leg and rolled over to May at first base.
And Dirkker is injured.
That was a shot up the middle.
It hit Dirkker on the shin, his left shin, kicked directly over to Lee May.
May made a dive for the ball before he could get up and get back to first.
Spire had it beaten out for a base hit.
But Dirkker's leg keeps the Giants from scoring a run.
As Kingman went to third and had to hold, Healy is at second base, and Spire is at first.
Dirkker seems to be all right now.
He may throw one or two to see if his leg is okay, but he doesn't appear to be in any pain.
That hit him right on the shin and bounded directly to May.
Kingman would have scored had it not bounded directly at an infield.
As it was, Spire barely beat May to the first base bag.
And now John Cumberland, the pitcher, will be the batter.
Dirkker defends the Giants with his shin bone.
Kingman at third, Healy at second, and Spire at first.
That ball appeared today right back to the middle.
I didn't think there was no way Dirkker was going to get his glove on the ball.
He got his leg on it.
Pitch to Cumberland, his low for a ball, one and all.
John grounded out to short.
Cumberland not a total loss at the plate with a bat, and as Bill mentioned,
he was hitting the ball pretty hard this spring, batting right-handed, even though he pitches left-handed.
Spire leads at first, Healy from second, Kingman from third.
Fouled away, and Cumberland is upset with himself.
He got a slider out over the plate and fouled it off.
That's about as good a pitch as he's probably going to get the hit of us, Dirkker.
Between the belt and the letters and right out over the middle of the plate.
McDowell drove in a run to help himself.
In last night's game, Cumberland could get the Giants off in front of this one with a base hit.
Either a base hit by Cumberland or a Houston mistake.
One-on-one count to Cumberland, two down.
Swing and a miss, and it's one and two.
H-Card now with two hits. The Giants have their two hits in this inning.
Now the fact that McCovey was thrown out of third base becomes a very big play.
Dirkker winds the one-two pitch.
Line down the right field line, but it is going to be a foul at all.
Oh, with that it created some confusion.
Cumberland was just a little bit too far behind on that one.
As they drove it down the right field line, it hit in the seat.
The seat's jut out only about five feet from the line.
Cumberland almost dropped that one in there.
That would have been a passing shot down the line that would have scored at least two and probably three.
Dirkker gets a chance to take a deep breath,
and Cumberland comes back mumbling about the fates that prevented Allen from being a fair ball.
Base is loaded. Top of the fifth, two out.
Dirkker's one-two pitch to Cumberland.
They hit up the middle.
Coming in to score is Kingman.
Coming around third is Healy.
The throw comes for the plate.
It will not be in time.
Healy scores and the Giants lead it two to nothing.
They're hanging in their tubs and drill the single to center to put the Giants out in front two to nothing.
Kingman is becoming one of the Giants' cheerleaders.
Each time that he is headed for home plate, he is doing patty cake.
He applauds the action as he crosses home plate.
Well, it's good to see enthusiasm like that,
and I hope you'll be out to join us Friday night at Candlepick to see that enthusiasm.
Willie Mays up here now. Spire stopped at second base.
Cumberland is at first. Two runs in. The Giants lead two to nothing.
Mays robbed of a base hit he had last time. He is 0 for 2.
He looks for his first base hit. No, he has one hit this season and an RBI.
Hitches up high for a ball. Drove in a run in the first game.
1-0 count to Mays.
Cumberland at first.
Gioia Malvatano talking to him.
Mays, the first baseman playing back deep so Cumberland can get a pretty good sized lead.
Helms playing over fairly near second will keep Spire pretty close.
Swing and a foul, Mays.
More interested in catching his batting home at that time as he fouls the ball off.
Funny stuff, I from under batting him.
A bat was a slider away from Willie. He wasn't going to be able to pull that ball.
He was going to have to go to right field with it, and he was trying to pull it and foul it off.
Giving Mays all the right field line as Wynn plays almost 90 feet off the line.
Count of a ball and a strike.
Giants in front 2-0 as Cumberland singles drives in two.
Mays bonds at the third and Rader will tag third if the Giants are retired on the force out.
Giants send seven men to the plate for two runs on three hits.
No errors and leaves two men stranded.
We go to the bottom of the fifth and it's San Francisco 2-0 Houston.
John Cumberland who's driven in the two runs of this ball game to give himself a 2-0 lead.
He's out of the mound.
Want to say hello to, let me tell them to get my picture taken, I'll take the glasses off.
Want to pass along happy birthday which is to Kathy Albrecht.
Her dad Ben from Langendorf is here visiting us in the booth tonight.
Line drive to center field off the bat of Bob Watson in for a base at Mays.
He fielded on one off and throws in.
And that is hit number three for the Astros, they open up with a single.
Doug Rader will be the batter now.
Kathy is 17 and a Giants fan.
So far this has been a pretty good year to be a Giants fan.
Right hand batting Rader against Cumberland.
Pitch is hit deep to left center, that one's got a chance and it is gone.
Cumberland didn't wait too long after driving in the Giants two runs.
He serves up a home run and a single here and it's all tied up at two and two.
This stadium last year gave up only 45 home runs.
Cumberland now working to Tommy Helms, it takes one in the dirt for a ball.
So far the Giants have hit three home runs in this series and Houston has had three home runs.
So there have been six home runs hit in the first three games with the third one not over yet.
Helms lines one to right center field, Bonds on the move, he's got it.
Fine running catch by Bobby Bonds but they're keying off on Cumberland here in the bottom of the fifth.
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Suddenly we get some action in this one.
There had been action all defense up until the fifth inning.
The Giants scored twice and now Houston is tired of those left-hand batting Johnny Edwards.
Takes inside for a ball. One down, two in.
Steve Stone starts throwing in the Giants, both in.
1-0 pitch, Edwards piles it off and it's 1-1.
This has been quite a fifth inning for Cumberland.
He drives in two with a single and then is greeted by a solid single and a home run.
Each club with a runner thrown out on the bases may have erased an even bigger inning.
1-1 pitch, swung on amidst a high flat ball.
Of course you can't tell, but Wynn was on base, at second base with Watson up and then was picked up,
dragging the delayed steal.
Watson leads off the next inning with a single and Raider hits the home run.
1-2 pitch, curveball lined to center.
Mays is there waiting, two men are down.
And Larry Dirkker will be the batter.
Well this is something that certainly can happen a lot early in the season.
The pitcher, Cumberland and Dirkker, both doing along well in command until the fifth inning,
but the pitcher can come apart very quickly after not having been on the mound for a long time.
Neither Dirkker nor Cumberland, of course, has seen any pitching duty for quite a while.
First pitch, bounding ball to 20.
Second hop, closed to first, side retires.
And here in the fifth, two runs, two hits, no errors, and no one left on.
At the end of five, the score, the Giants two and Houston two.
Change the oil regularly.
And if you have any doubt as to how often that should be, stop in at any one of the 20.
After three innings, the Dodgers three, Atlanta nothing.
That's, they're a little behind him, that's a correction.
Well they had it up here three to nothing all the way, it's in the bottom of the fifth inning now.
Atlanta batting, LA leading three to nothing.
Top of the sixth inning, Ceto 20 leads off against Dirkker, batting left handed, line drive, base hit, left field.
Going over is Watson, fields and throws into second.
Ceto with a big wide turn, goes back to first.
First they couldn't buy a base hit.
Now each club has four.
And Kenny Henderson, who has lined out and struck out, is the batter.
Another switch batter, batting left handed against Dirkker with 20, lead at first base.
Spect, a look, and the pitch to Henderson.
High for a ball, one and oh.
Out of one and oh.
Greater, even with the bag at third and playing about 15 feet off the line, the rest of the infield short, but a throw to first, 20 is back in.
The outfield has to play Henderson deep.
The infield short and for the double play, so it gives Kenny a little more leeway in case he happens to drop one in between them.
A throw to first and 20 is a gamut back.
This outfield not quite as big to cover as it used to be, but there's a lot of territory here.
330 down the line, 378 to left and right center, and 400 straight away center.
Henderson takes low for a ball.
Count two balls, no strike, Kenny Henderson batting, nobody down, 20 is at first.
Dirkker looks at Tito, inching away from first base, the pitch is high to Henderson from all three.
Dirkker may, as we mentioned last inning, tired there, he looks like he's struggling a bit now.
I don't imagine Harry Walker or Jim Owens will waste too much time, and they don't.
Jim Ray is going to hustle down to start loosening up for Houston.
Outfield, backed up even deeper now, with a three and oh count to Henderson.
Three oh pitch, that's a strike at the knees, he didn't put it right down the middle.
He hit it about knee high again, of course there was very little chance that Kenny was going to be swinging
at that three oh pitch with McCovey due up next.
20 away from first, nobody down, three one count, stretch for the pitch.
There goes 20, the pitch is grounded slowly, foul.
Tito running, and he will go back to first base, it's a full count on Henderson.
Charlie Fox is certainly not afraid to send the Giants running, even though McCovey is waiting his turn on deck.
In fact, if you can get those infielders moving around, you get a chance of getting a ball through the infield,
and that is Charlie's strategy here.
20 is with good speed, Tito might be able to steal it anyway.
Deeper in the stretch for the three two pitch.
20 goes again, the pitch is popped up, playable, foul, and Tito will get back to first base.
May coming in under this one and makes the cut, Henderson retired as 20 goes back to first.
Darrell Evans is homered with a man on in the fifth for Atlanta.
They've narrowed the gap to at least three to two against the Dodgers.
Who's pitching for the Dodgers tonight?
Bill Singer is pitching for the Dodgers.
Willie McCovey, grounded out and walks.
One is at first with one down, the Giants and Astros tied at two and two.
Bobby Bonds on deck, we're in the top of the sixth, each club with four hits.
Dirkker and Cumberland dueling tonight.
Big out there, got behind on Henderson three and oh and got him.
Line drive base hit right field, 20s may try for third, went up with the ball, Tito's going for third.
A throw across the diamond will be cut off and 20s is in at third base.
McCovey really hung out a rope on a line drive single to right.
20s went to third, McCovey at first and Bobby Bonds will be the batter.
As I mentioned, big out for Dirkker was getting Henderson after being behind three and oh.
Now he has to face Bobby Bonds.
Edwards has gone out to talk to Dirkker.
Lee May looks over at the dugout.
Harry Walker might be telling May to stall for some time so Jim Ray can get ready.
Now May motions that he will play halfway, it means he'll play behind McCovey at first base.
He will not stand at the back.
Lee plays at third, McCovey at first, Bonds the batter.
Bonds has lined up and flied up.
Door tight two and two, the Giants out hitting after is now five to four, Dirkker a bit uncertain.
Looking in for the sign, now up into the stretch as McCovey gets his lead at first and 20s away from third.
The pitch to Bonds, swung unbounded to third base.
Rader goes to the plate and they've got Tito in a run down.
Tito goes to third, Rader misses the tag, no he tagged it, he missed the tag but 20s stepped outside of the baseline.
And Tito throws his batting helmet and Tito is thrown out of the game by Chris Pellicutis.
Pellicutis said that 20s was out of the baseline as he jumped away from Rader's tag.
Pellicutis was right there and said that he stepped out of the line, the base pass.
20s threw his batting helmet and that quickly Pellicutis threw 20s.
So the Giants now have McCovey at second, Bonds at first, 20s in the clubhouse and Kingman at the plate.
That is a fielder's choice, went from five to two to five.
And Tito is out of the ballgame.
Bonds at first, McCovey at second.
That is the only play that Tito has.
He has to break for the plate on that ball because there was double play possibility.
Tito has to go for the plate to break up the double play.
And he almost got back safely to third.
Dave Kingman up here now, one for two, flat out and single.
Fouled it away, strike one.
Dave Kingman had a rip at that, fouled it off, and it's an 0-1 count.
So the double play goes from Rader to Edwards to Rader to Pellicutis.
Tito was thrown out twice on one play.
One strike pitch, Bounds up there, blocked by Edwards, good save.
McCovey holds at second and Bonds at first.
Dirk is really struggling here and getting a couple of breaks that have helped bail him out.
Been able to...
Pellicutis, I'm almost certain, threw him out.
Tito is still in the dugout, as Bill Thompson says, but I thought that Pellicutis threw him out.
Swing and an F-strike, too. Maybe he didn't.
Maybe he just motioned her out, but he sure went with the right arm when Tito threw the batting oven.
Had he Tito, I didn't understand him.
One and two counts at Kingman. Two down, two on, Giants and Astros tied at two and two, top of the sixth.
I feel really deep and around to the left for Kingman.
Zirker's pitch, high for a ball that's two and two.
Zirker might be pitching his last inning here.
He was not scheduled that. He was made to last out in the last inning, but as much as he's been struggling,
it might be a fact that he would be gone from the game if he gets out of this inning.
A copy away from second, Bonds from first, the pitch to Kingman.
Popped up.
That should be it. It's Lee May, the first baseman, waits for this one.
Makes the catch and Zirker does get out of the inning.
No runs, two hits, no errors, and two runners left on.
And at the end of five and a half, the score is the Giants two and Houston two.
Top of the order for Houston against Cumberland, Metzger, Cedeno, and Winn in the bottom of the sixth.
Metzger bluffs the Bunt, takes a strike, going one.
Remind you that Friday night is opening night at Candlestick Park.
Steve Stone starts to work in the Giant Bullpen.
Again, line drive down the right field line is foul, and it's strike two.
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Pitch to Metzger, fastball just inside, good pitch.
One and two, zip code for Candlestick Park in San Francisco, 94124.
Box seats are four and a half, reserve seats three and a half.
Pitch low, ball two, two and two.
Door tight here at two of feet.
We're in the bottom of the sixth.
Cumberland drove in two in the fifth.
Raider hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the fifth.
A two-two pitch to Metzger, high and outside for ball three.
Cumberland got in front of Metzger, all in two, now has gone to the end of the string at three and two.
His three-two pitch fouled away.
Metzger took a late swing at that ball and just tried to chop at it, fouled it off.
Metzger to Daniel and win the top of the batting order for Houston in the bottom of the sixth.
Two runs five hits, no errors for the Giants.
Two runs four hits, no errors for Houston.
Ball four, he walked in.
Cumberland gives up his first base on balls.
He comes to the leadoff batter, and Cedeno is lined out and grounded out, will be the batter.
Healy goes out to talk to Cumberland.
Speyer comes in to say something to him.
Antito, what he's not thrown out of the game, he's in their second base.
He comes out there.
I thought that Tela Koudis had certainly thrown him out.
He made a motion with his arm, but he must have just been being emphatic about the fact that Tito was out of the baseline.
Of one, he remains at second base.
I hope you will excuse me for not mentioning that Tito was back in there at the start of the inning.
But he is in the ball game, and he was not thrown out by Tela Koudis.
Even though Tela Koudis made the emphatic gesture when Tito threw his helmet.
Ground ball to 20s at second base.
He will have to go to first.
They had to hit and run on.
Metzger was going.
It was a perfect double play ball except for one thing.
Metzger was running, and Tito had no chance to feed Speyer for the force out.
Metzger moves up to second as 20s throws out Cedeno from four to three.
Now Jim Winn, who's two for two, is up there.
Winn is single to left and single to right.
Score tied at two and two, bottom of the sixth.
Cumberland doing a long look at the sign.
Now takes his stretch.
His pitch high for a ball, one and oh.
Winn and then Lee May.
Metzger is in the outfield very deep for a win.
Metzger getting a lead.
20s playing over close to second.
They might try to pick Metzger off.
The pitch to Winn is outside for a ball, two and oh.
Two and nothing count to Winn.
Metzger moves away from second base.
Cumberland glances back, comes to the plate.
Winn grounds one to the left side.
Throw Kingman into left field.
As he went to his left, he couldn't feel it.
He's going to third and oh, now Henderson comes running into the infield with the ball.
As he started to throw, Winn bluffed for second.
Metzger had to go to third.
He went back to second because Kingman going to his left to field that ball.
Metzger didn't know whether it would go through.
It did go through for a face-in.
Metzger wound up at third.
Winn is safe at first.
His third hit, Charlie Fox comes out to talk.
Steve Stone has been throwing the bullpen.
It might be all for Cumberland with the right-hand batting Lee May up here,
although he has flat out swiped against Cumberland.
The Fox decides to make a change or stays with Cumberland.
That was a bullet to the left side.
Kingman, do or you don't, going to his left.
The ball was by him in the left field.
But Metzger could not score because he headed back for second
as Kingman was moving towards second base to try to field the ball.
Fox will stay with Cumberland in this spot.
The Giants needing a double play ball here.
May is the big man now with runners at first and third and only one out.
Metzger at third.
Winn at first.
Cumberland pitching to the powerful Lee May.
John takes the stretch, his pitch to May outside for a ball.
A crucial spot here.
The Giants have turned over double plays.
Behind Melch, out of the bases loaded, they got one in the first game.
Now they could use one with runners at first and third and one down.
High ball two.
Cumberland behind two and O to Lee May.
Baltimore has defeated the Yankees, four to nothing.
Winn leads from first, Metzger from third.
A two-O pitch, top foul out of play and it's two and one.
Each club with five hits.
Metzger getting a fair size lead at third as Kingman is playing deep.
Line drive base hit, left field.
Going over to Phelan as Henderson.
Winn will hold it second as Henderson throws in Metzger's score.
And Houston leads it by a score of three to two.
That may be all for Cumberland now as Fox is up on top of the digout steps.
And here comes Charlie and that will be all for Cumberland.
Steve Stone will be the Giants pitcher now.
Cumberland runs into trouble here in the sixth inning.
So we mentioned about running before.
In this inning, the Astros set up the inning by having Metzger run.
Because Sadano had a perfect double play ball, but with Metzger running on the pitch,
he was able to get to second.
Before the Giants could try for the double play, they got the one out.
Rather than erasing two, they got just one.
And Winn and May following with singles.
Getting a run and sending Cumberland to the showers.
It was not an unimpressive performance by Cumberland, however.
He fits very well.
Ran into difficulty here in this sixth inning.
Had he been pitching in either of the first two games, he would be ahead.
Steve Stone will make his first appearance of 1972.
Cumberland goes five in a third inning.
He's given up three runs, is responsible for two runners on there.
In touch for six hits. He didn't strike out anyone.
He walked one batter.
Stone will be pitching to Bob Watson with one down and two on.
Stone had a brilliant spring last year and started out all right with the Giants.
Rounded up with a five and nine record.
Lost his confidence in the middle of the year and didn't go too much to his fastballs.
Tough year for the young man last year because, as I say, he had a real good spring and a fine start.
Had a couple of shutouts. Shutout the Pittsburgh Pirates, two to nothing.
Can do that.
He had to do a pretty good job.
He threw the ball very good this spring.
And now he is out here working really.
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Now ready to go. Stone pitches to Bob Watson. Runners at first and second.
A broken bat base hit to right field.
Coming in to score is Wynn going to third.
And in at third base is May as Watson hits the first hit.
And I believe he broke his bat on that one, but he got it through the right side for a base hit and it's four to two.
Seven hits for the Astros now. That one just swiped by McCovey.
And Doug Rader hit a two-run homer his first time.
Second time up tonight.
Last time at bat. We'll be up here.
Ron Bryant and Jerry Johnson throwing the bullpen to the Giants.
On the bottom of the sixth. Runners at first and third.
Stone delivers to Rader. Breaking pitch high and outside for a ball. One and oh.
Here's standing in front for the first time. Four to two.
Stone's stretched. The pitch to Rader. High fuss ball for a ball. Two and oh.
And this was Steve's problem last year. Getting behind on the hitters. His control.
He has good stuff. If he can get out in front of it, he's got a chance.
He's behind two balls, no strikes. He didn't have too much of a chance to get out in front of Watson.
Watson hits the first pitch.
Drop up on the infield. Plotty's going back to short right to make the catch.
The runners will hold. And Rader pops up for the second out.
That'll bring on Tommy Helms. We'll pause for station identification.
That's the Golden West Radio Network.
When you want to hear the sounds of the city, listen to the Terry McGovern Show.
Four to eight right here on KSFO in San Francisco. It's the sound of the city.
Tommy Helms batting with runners at first and third. Jim Ray starts to throw on the bullpen again for Houston.
Stone lobs the throw to first.
Helms, the seventh man to bat in the inning as Houston has scored twice to take a four to two lead.
The pitch to Helms. Line foul to the right. Look out. Strike one.
Steve getting his pitches up here and Helms was behind on that pitch.
He got it by him, but it was still up where he hit it solidly, but he fortunately hit it foul.
May at third. Watson at first.
Two men down. Stone and relief for starter John Cumberland.
Peer ball bounded to short. Big hop is fired. Throws behind him to 20s covering and the side is retired.
In the sixth. Two runs on three hits. No errors and two runners left on.
And at the end of sixth, the score is Houston four and the Giants two.
The city. Well, we mentioned about Tito 20s. We thought he'd been thrown out by Chris Palakoutis.
And they ruled with change that a player is not automatically ejected if he throws his batting helmet.
But the Empire can find the player. And that is apparently what happened.
Chris Palakoutis will recommend a gift that has to be a recommendation to the league office.
He defined a hundred dollars for throwing his helmet, but he stayed in the game.
Seven-penning. Here's Biltzoff.
Fran Healy leading off for the Giants. Takes a breaking ball inside ball one.
Chris Spire in the on deck circle and a pitching spot due to bat third.
Jim Ray continues to throw in the bullpen for Houston as Larry Jerker comes to the plate one-oh.
Slider good on the outside corner. A one-one count.
Astros defense around to the left. Godfield backed up. Jerkers one-one pitch.
Line drive. Base hit. Right field. Over to field at one.
Healy turns it first and holds it a single edge.
Fran Healy gets a solid base hit to right field to open up the top of the seventh.
Chris Spire will be the batter.
Tonight's game is being brought to you by Chevrolet's 1972 SARS, Ames Beer, and Colgate's Dollar Savers.
Spire thrown out by the catcher in the third inning and a dribbler in front of the plate.
Had an infield hit and a step. A shot off Jerkers leg.
Healy is grounded out and walks his two previous steps.
Healy with a short lead, May playing a step off the bag. Spire takes low and away, ball one.
Bryant and Johnson continue to throw in the giant ball pen.
Jerkers into the set position. Healy away from first. One-oh pitch.
Swung on and missed. Jerkers took something off the breaking pitch and had Spire out in front.
A one-one count. Spire batting left-handed against the Houston right-hander.
Infield double play deep. Outfield, shading Spire, and a bit to the left.
Watson really guarding the line in left field.
The one-one pitch. Fast ball is a called strike on the outside corner. Jerker in front, one and two.
Stone in the on-dack circle. Jim Howarth is also at the back rack.
Healy a lead. A one-two pitch to Spire. Just outside at closed pitch.
Jim Jerker trying to get the outside corner with that fast ball and just missed with it.
Jerker and Spire, a count of two and two.
Healy is shortly to first. Jerker looks there, comes to the plate to do. Spire fouls it back.
Jerker, duds at the bill of the cap. Steps on the river and looks to Edwards for a dime.
Healy getting his lead at first. Two-two pitch. High fly ball to center field.
So Daniel drifting into left center has plenty of room and makes the catch for out number one.
Healy halfway to second, he's reached the first.
Steve Stone will not bat and Jimmy Howarth will be a pinch batter.
Howarth, pinch batter in the opening game of the series and drew a base on balls.
Howarth left-handed batter.
Either Bryant or Johnson will be called under the giant pitching in the bottom of the seventh.
Stone went two-thirds of an inning.
The four Houston runs charged the giant Cumberland.
Howarth left-handed batter heads up towards the plate. Healy at first now with one out.
The Astros leading four to two in the top of the seventh.
Jerker taking a lot of time.
Not a right-hander is ready.
Switch to Howarth.
Fast ball on the outside corner for a called strike.
Jerker plantles at first base, now it's set.
He'll want that.
Bounded foul, the right strike two.
Jerker quickly in front of Howarth, O-1-2.
O-1-2 count on pinch batter Jimmy Howarth.
Healy away from first.
The O-2 pitch, high on outside.
A ball and two strikes on Howarth.
Right-hander Jim Ray throwing in the Houston bullpen.
Ron Bryant has stopped throwing for the Giants, so has Jerry Johnson, so we still don't know which one is going to be coming in.
Switch to Howarth.
Inside a slider missing, about halfway between the belt and the nays.
A two-and-two count.
Jerker reading signs from catcher John Edwards.
Healy with his lead.
Two-two pitch, swing on and miss.
Strike three.
Jerker gets his second strike out as he gets to the pinch batter Jim Howarth.
With a second out here in his benefit, Willie Mays will be the batter.
Mays grounded the short in the first, was robbed of a base hit, a great play by Tommy Helms in the fourth, and grounded into a fourth out in the fifth.
Willie over three.
Healy moves away from first.
Jerker's pitch.
Inside a fastball, ball one.
Infield and outfield, around to the left, and deep.
May playing off the bag at first.
Healy leads away.
Jerker to the plate.
Breaking ball, low outside, ball two.
Two-and-nothing count.
Jerker behind on Mays.
Two balls, no strikes.
Right under Sewell pitch to Mays.
Ball three, outside.
Now Jerker behind three balls and no strikes.
On deck for the Giants, second baseman Tito Buenid.
Now Edwards calls time and shots back to the mound.
Edwards heading back behind the plate.
Mays waiting outside the batter's box, now steps back in.
Three-and-nothing count on Willie.
Healy at first, two outs, top of the seventh.
Astros four, the Giants two.
Three-oh pitch.
Call strike.
On a three-and-nothing count, Jerker went to a breaking pitch,
and it was just barely above the Mays.
Mays disputing the call.
Three-and-one count.
The three-one pitch.
One-run and missed, strike two.
Mays with a big rip, a fastball up around the letter.
Now four-cats, three balls, two strikes.
And with two outs, Healy can be moving from first base with the pitch.
Healy with his lead.
He goes.
Pitch is one-run and missed, and the side is retired.
Jerker gave up the lead-off single to Healy,
then came back to get three batters, striking out Howard and Mays.
For the Giants on the seventh, no runs on one hit.
No Houston errors, one runner left on.
We go to the bottom of the seventh, and the Astros lead at four to two.
Brian Bryant comes on to do the pitching for the Giants.
As John Cumberland went five in a third inning, Steve Stone two-thirds of an inning.
Bryant, last year with the Giants, won seven, lost ten.
Making his first appearance in 1972.
Healy's short at second base.
Catcher John Edwards will lead it off for the Astros.
Jim Barr and John Morris for the Giants.
Morris the left-hander, Barr the right-hander.
Bryant and Healy, halfway between the mound and the plate, getting together on time.
Edwards will stand in.
Tonight's attendance here in Houston, 10,638.
1-0, 638.
Edwards grounded the first in the third inning, lying the center in the fifth.
Left-hander batter.
Bryant's first pitch on its way.
Misses.
Outside ball one.
Gary Dirkert will follow.
On the top of the order, first half, Roger Metzger.
1-0 pitch.
Fast ball foul straight back on the screen.
A 1-1 catch.
A 1-1 pitch by Bryant.
Ball strike, a fast ball just above the knees.
And Edwards shakes his head and walks the way, home plate.
A 1-2 count.
The Astros catcher Johnny Edwards.
Left-hander against left-hander.
Bryant into motion, kicks and throws.
Call strike three, a fast ball right down the middle.
Bryant strikes out the first man he picks.
That's the first strike out for the Giants pitchers in the blog, eh?
Dirkert will leave the contest after going seven innings.
Jim Stewart will be a pinch batter.
Report is that Dirkert told manager Harry Walker that he was tiring,
the shoulder was getting tired.
Stewart will be a pinch batter.
Giants pitch.
Fast ball, a call strike to the outside corner up around the letters.
Two, blue on inside.
Dirkert under the dirt by Healy, a ball and a strike.
A 1-1 pitch.
Call strike two, fast ball, belt high on the inside corner.
Stewart, disagreeing with that call.
Bryant and Scott, a ball and two strikes.
Round of the plate.
Fast ball, foul, kicked into Healy's glove, strike three.
So Bryant struck out the first two batters in his face, Edwards and Stewart.
That's the Astros shortstop, Roger Metzger.
Grounded the third in the first, flied to left in the third, walked and scored a run in the sixth.
Metzger, switch batter, batting right-handed.
Bryant's pitch.
Fast ball a bit too high, ball one.
A 1-0 delivery.
Call strike.
Bryant's 1-1 pitch.
Foul away to the right, back into the seats.
Bryant in front of Metzger, 1-2.
Bryant wanders around in back of the pitching mound, clubbing up the new baseball.
A 1-2 count on Metzger, two outs from the bottom of the seventh.
The Astros in front, 4-2.
A 1-2 pitch.
High fly ball, short center field, Mays waiting.
Waiting makes the catch and the side return.
For Houston in the seventh, no runs, no hits, no giant errors, nobody left.
The end of seventh parole, the Astros four and the Giants two.
New pitcher for the Astros, to tell you about him and for the play-by-play, Lon Simmons.
Jim Ray, who pitched in yesterday's ball game, went an inning in the third,
a four-run on two hits and struck out three, will face 20, Henderson and McCovey,
Dirkert with his shoulder tightening up, went seven innings, allowed two runs on six hits.
Right-hander Jim Ray against Tito, who has one hit and three drives.
26, a fast ball up the knee, strike one.
Kenny Anderson said that Ray turns the ball over a bit every once in a while.
He threw a curve ball and screw ball.
Pretty good fast ball.
Two hits, grounded to first base.
May has it on an easy chance, steps on first out number one.
One man down, Henderson is 0 for 3 tonight.
Kenny had a tough night at the plate last night after getting two hits in the opener,
batting left-handed against Ray.
Ray struck Kenny out in the fourth inning yesterday.
The ball got away from the catcher on a wild pitch and the Giants got a run on it.
Henderson takes the breaking bits for a strike, going one down, bases empty, top of the eighth,
the Giants trailed 4-2.
One strike offering to Henderson, popped up into short center,
going back to the second baseman, Helm, now it is Metzger, the shortstop,
and Metzger makes the catch.
Henderson popped up for the second out.
And Willie McCovey will be batting with nobody on the bases.
McCovey tonight has grounded out, walked and singled.
After seven innings, the Dodgers lead 3-2 over Atlanta.
In the bottom of the ninth inning, Philadelphia batting, trailed St. Louis 5-3.
Ray's pitch to McCovey is a strike at the knees, 0-1.
In the American League, identical scores, four wins.
Baltimore beat the Yankees 4-0 and Cleveland beat Boston 4-0.
A one-strike pitch fouled away and Ray is in front of McCovey, 0-2.
Four runs, seven hits, no errors for Houston.
Two runs, six hits, no errors for the Giants.
The Giants leave immediately after this game for San Diego.
Tuesday night, Wednesday night, and Thursday night in San Diego,
and then back home for the Friday night opener at Candlestick Park.
Ground ball off to the chest of Ray, charging in as Metzger,
he gets it, throws the first, not in time, McCovey has a base hit.
That was hit right back through the middle, and it hit off Ray's chest.
He's all right.
The infield playing back deep for McCovey, they couldn't get to the ball
before he'd legged it out for an infield hit.
And now Bobby Bonds, who's 0-3, will be the batter.
This would be a good spot for Bobby to break into the home run column this year.
Brett Gladding starts throwing in the bullpen for Houston.
Two down and McCovey at first base.
Ray takes the stretch for the pitch to Bonds.
Low for a ball, 1-0.
Yesterday Bonds batted against Ray and singles.
Giants down by 2, McCovey at first.
Two men out.
Jim Ray takes the stretch for the pitch to Bonds.
It lays off a breaking pitch.
It's low for ball 2, 2-0.
Gladding must have fallen in love with one of the writers down here.
He called him a fat half-blind pitcher.
Unless Gladding wrote it himself, he'd have to be mad at somebody.
2-0 pitch.
Ball 3, too low.
Bonds looks now, Johnny McNamara, the third base coach.
3-0 count to him, McCovey at first.
Ray delivers 3-0.
A strike on the inside, 3-1.
He didn't really pick up much of the strike zone with that one.
3-1 strike count.
Bonds the batter, McCovey at first.
Giants down by 2, each club with 7 hits.
Houston leads 4-2.
3-1 pitch.
Driven up the middle, Helms backhands it, turns through,
Demetski got him at second base.
Helms has made 3 outstanding plays.
A pack of 10 will keep you in send-off smiles for two whole weeks.
And that big yellow face can turn even an ordinary sandwich and apple lunch into a real occasion.
Stop in and begin collecting Happy Day lunch bags today.
You get a pack of 10 free with any gasoline purchase at all standard stations and almost all Chevron dealers.
And when you run out, stop in along the Chevron way for more 10 packs of Happy Day lunch bags.
Your kids will get more than a lunch out of them.
Ron Bryant, little pitch to the number 2, 3, and 4 spots in the batting order.
Giants scored two runs in the top of the fifth as Cumberland, single with the bases loaded,
to drive in two to put San Francisco in front two or nothing.
But Rader hit a two-run homer off Cumberland in the bottom of the fifth to tie it up.
And then the Astros scored two more in the sixth.
That's the way it is now, is we're in the bottom of the eighth inning, 4-2.
Houston in front of the Giants.
And Ron Bryant, the third giant pitcher, delivers to Cesar Cedeno, takes a fastball high, ball one.
Tommy Helms has certainly been the defensive man tonight for Houston.
Pitcher's a strike at the knees and it's one-and-one.
Ball on a strike count, one-one pitch, fastball, strike two on the inside.
Bryant pumping those fastballs in there.
Out of one and two, fastball cut foul to the right.
Bryant could make a big difference in this giant pitching staff.
Bryant is capable of stepping into a starting position or a sometimes starter,
and as a relief, whatever, if he's capable of pitching the way everybody has predicted he's able to.
Bounding ball on one hop to Kingman, long throw in timeout number one.
Bryant can pitch as he has here.
Of course, nobody can be that perfect all the time, but if he can pitch anywhere close to it,
then he can make a difference in this giant pitching staff.
Jim Winn, who is three for three.
One down, bases empty, four to two, Houston leads in the bottom of the eighth.
Fastball misses for ball one.
Don't give up.
If you recall last year, the giants were in eighth and ninth inning ball club.
They came roaring back.
Pitch outside for a ball when it's two and oh.
Healy goes out to talk to Bryant.
He is behind Winn, two balls and no strike.
Here's two oh pitch.
Ball three.
First time Bryant shows a little weakness as he gets behind Winn, three balls and no strike.
There was one out and nobody on.
Locked him on four pitches.
Bryant gives up his first base on balls.
Winn has a perfect night and Lee May, who has one hit in three tries, is about it.
Winn fly to left twice and single to left to drive in a run.
Bottom of the eighth inning was one down.
Jim Winn has a big lead at first.
Bryant's curve goes right on by Healy to the screen and Jim Winn may have pulled up Lane.
He goes to second.
He looked as though he might have pulled a muscle.
I guess he's all right.
He reached for his hip as he tried to go to second base.
I guess he's okay.
That was a curve ball that hit the dirt and bounded back to the screen.
Winn is on at second base.
That was a wild pitch charged to Bryant.
The sooner that brag about wronging, it's in trouble.
Curve is a strike this time and it's one and one.
Ball on a strike to Lee May, a runner in scoring position at second with one out.
Bryant looks back at Winn at second base, one-one pitch, slow curve high for a ball.
Somebody must have had a home run for the Dodgers, Willie Davis did with a man on in the eighth inning.
So the Dodgers lead five to two over Atlanta with that top of the eighth still going on.
Here it's four to two, Houston.
Bryant behind them, a count two and one to May.
Slow curve, line drive to center.
Mays can't get it.
It's a front and front base hit.
Coming into score is Winn.
And May has driven in the fifth run of the ballgame.
Curve ball out over the plate.
May has reached out and hit a line drive to center field.
Making it now five to two ballgame and Bob Watson will be the batter.
A walk and a wild pitch across Bryant a run.
May is at first with one out.
Eight hits now for Houston.
Bob Watson takes a strike.
That's all good.
Giants will have Dave Kingman to lead off the ninth inning.
They're down by three now and they'll be at the tail end of batting order.
Fastball inside for a ball and it's one and one.
May at first base.
He's driven in two runs tonight.
Watson is driven in a run.
He has two hits.
He has five hits in the last two nights.
Fastball brushes him back and it's two and one.
Giants get two runs in the fifth.
Houston has scored twice in the fifth, twice in the sixth, and once here in the eighth inning.
May leads away at first base.
Bryant behind two and one to Watson.
Two-one pitch popped up foul.
It will be out of play.
Count is two and two to the Houston left fielder.
John Morris and Jim Barr throwing the Giants both in.
Bryant in the stretch for the two-two pitch.
On the way to Watson.
Ball three gets by Haley and going to second is May.
That will be ruled a passball.
Haley couldn't hang on to that low inside fastball.
And it's a passball that moves May into scoring position.
A three-two count to Watson.
Houston in front five to two, threatening to add more.
Bryant trying to stop him here so the Giants will only be down by three going to the top of the ninth.
Long look by Bryant has the sign.
May leads away from second base.
The three-two pitch.
Swung on and fouled.
He threw him a breaking pitch on three and two, and Watson just got a piece of it.
Giants willing to gamble there and almost got away with it because Bryant threw a pretty good curveball.
Watson was full but just got a piece of it.
Three-two pitch.
High passball he walked in.
Give up his second walk.
Charlie Fox heads for the mound.
That may be all for Bryant with the right-hand batting Doug Rader due up here.
We'll pause for station identification.
This is the Golden West Radio Network.
When you want to hear the sounds of the city, listen to the Dan Sorkin Show from 10 to 1 right here on KSFO in San Francisco.
The sound of the city.
The call has gone to the bullpen for Jim Barr.
Bryant goes two innings, has allowed a run, has given up, I'll take that he has gone an inning and a third.
And gives up one run on one hit as responsible for two runners on there struck out two and walked two.
Jim Barr makes his first appearance of the year.
Jim was struck on the back of the right hand by a line drive Thursday pitching batting practice.
But he's able to work, he and Kingman on the same USC Championship Bowl Club in 1970, their NCAA champion.
Last year Barr was one and one with the Giants, 3.6 to earned run average in 17 games, 35 innings.
He was six and three with Phoenix.
Big right-hander.
He and Don Perithers went to the same high school.
And Linwood, Barr at 6-3, 2-0-5.
Pitched to Doug Rader with one out and two on and Houston leading 5-2 in the bottom of the eighth.
The Giants for the first time in danger of losing in this 1972 season.
Barr to try to get them out.
The Giants will have a tough task of it in the top of the ninth.
Rader, the batter with May at second and Watson at first.
Rader has a home run tonight in three-fifths.
He tied the score in the fifth with a two-run shot off Cumberland.
Takes a strike, a breaking pitch good, it's 0-1. Rader wasn't too sure of that.
Right-hander Jim Barr, the fourth Giant pitcher.
Outside and low for a ball, it's one and one.
Cumberland started, he went five and a third.
Stone went two-thirds.
Bryant an inning and a third.
And now Jim Barr in the bottom of the eighth with a run-in, two runners on and one out.
Look back at second and May, Watson leads from first, a breaking pitch low and outside, ball two.
Barr behind two and one.
Outfield straight away and backed up for Rader.
Good pitch to him, bowled away, good fastball and it's two and two.
Barr evens the count, two balls, two strikes.
Two games in the American League.
Today Cleveland beat Boston four to nothing, Baltimore beat the Yankees four to nothing.
St. Louis leads Philadelphia five to three going to the bottom of the ninth inning,
but St. Louis has made three pitching changes in that ninth.
Dodgers lead five to two over Atlanta, the Dodgers batting in the top of the eighth.
Count two and two to Rader.
Runners at first and second with one down and Barr goes into the stretch,
looks back at May at second base, looks again, comes to the plate, two and two.
Just a bit low and it's a full count, three and two.
Not that much speed on the bases, but they might send the runners here.
Kingman playing back deep at third with Rader up here will have to be alert.
May might be going now.
Runners lead, they don't go, three, two, pitch, line drive, they hit, right field,
that one heading for the wall, Bond can't cut it off, two runs will score,
and Rader will head for third, he has himself a triple.
Rader with four RBI's now, those, the three runs in the inning all charged to Bryant,
and it's a seven to two Houston lead with Rader at third.
It is Houston tonight getting the long ball.
As Tommy Helms will be up, the Giants bring the infield in,
a pitch to Helms, swung on, filed away, strike one.
Rader went with that pitch and hit a line drive down the right field line,
Bond's trying to cut it off, couldn't do it, it went all the way to the wall,
and two runs came in to score on the triple by Rader.
Far pitching from the windup, the one strike pitch bounded the shortstop,
Spire will hold Rader at third, throws to first, Helms is retired for the second out.
And Johnny Edwards will be the batter.
Now Charlie Fox comes out again, this might be off the bar with the left-hander,
Johnny Morris throwing the bullpen, it is, Fox is going to go for John Morris.
This is as good a place as any to bring Morris in to see what he can do.
Charlie may need him to get a left-hand batter out occasionally,
or maybe get more than that out, and with the Giants trailing seven to two
and a left-hand batter up here, might just as well find out what Morris can do.
In spring draining he showed a fine arm, a good sinking fastball.
Barr goes to third of an inning, gives up a hit, a triple to Rader, and drives in two runs.
Things have fallen around the Giants' ears here in this eighth inning,
and John Morris acquired in a trade with Milwaukee that sent two minor league pitchers to Milwaukee.
In the spring Morris was a non-roster player, he was on the Phoenix roster,
and pitched his way onto the ball club.
John has been around for a while, he doesn't wake up for a two o'clock feeding, he's 30 years old.
Last year with Milwaukee he won two and lost two.
His overall Major League record in 1965, 1968, he was with Baltimore.
Started his baseball career in 1960.
Six-one, 198 pounds, he lives in Milton, Delaware.
Chuck, would you like a Delaware punch?
Johnny Edwards, a left-hand batting catcher, to face the left-hander John Morris in the eighth inning.
Seven to two, Houston Leeds, outhitting the Giants nine to seven.
Raiders at third with two men down, and Morris, left-hander delivers to Edwards a fastball high, ball one.
A one-out pitch, fouled away, and it's one-on-one.
The Giants are looking for every bit of pitching they can get.
Charlie Fox, every time somebody goes out there has an eagle eye on him to see if maybe the next man that comes to the mound is going to be the one who is going to be the surprise, or the guy that does the job for him.
The one-one pitch, swung on and missed that sinking fastball on its one and two.
A ball and two strikes to count.
Edwards, the batter, Raider at third.
Three runs in in this eighth inning, seven to two, Houston Leeds, the Giants.
Swing and a miss, it gets by Healy, but he picks it up, looks at the runner at third, then throws the first and just gets Edwards.
Healy must have been crossed up by Morris on that pitch because he walked in with Morris talking to him, but Morris comes in to strike out the left-hander.
It's three runs on one, two hits.
No errors, and one runner left on.
After eight innings, the totals, the Astros seven runs, nine hits, no errors, the Giants two runs, seven hits, and no errors.
Philadelphia and St. Louis.
Philadelphia scored a run in the bottom of the ninth, but St. Louis hung on with grim determination to win it five to four.
The Cardinals five runs, 11 hits, and no errors.
Philadelphia four runs, nine hits, and one error.
Santorini the winner, he's one and one.
Horner the loser, oh and one.
And a good crowd in Philadelphia, 38,182.
A large crowd, I don't know if it was a good crowd or not, it might have been the same bunch that's there all the time.
So 38,000 there.
After eight innings, the Dodgers led six to two over Atlanta, and now Moda has hit a home run with a man on in the ninth with the Dodgers.
So they lead at least eight to two.
The Giants trailed seven to two.
Top of the ninth, Dave Kingman, Fran Healy, and Chris Spire, the first three to face Jim Ray.
Trailing by five, nothing the Giants can't handle.
We'll see if they do.
Kingman, who has one hit and three trips, and has scored a run, will be the batter.
He got the first hit of the game for the Giants in the fifth inning.
Kingman against right-hander Jim Ray.
Outfield deep into the left infield, backed up.
Pitch to Kingman, strike.
Flider on the outside, it's oh and one.
Watson, barely in the ballpark, the left fielder, he's almost to the warning path in left field.
One strike count to Kingman.
Strike two called, another slider, this one caught the inside corner.
And Ray is quickly in front of Kingman, oh and two.
Houston right-hander deals off oh and two, outside for a ball.
Seven runs, nine hits, no errors for Houston.
Two runs, seven hits, no errors for the Giants.
Ray's one and two pitch.
Fly drive to Rader, a ball hit right on the nose, but in the third baseman's glove.
Kingman hit it on the nose, but he hit it to Rader for out number one.
And now Fran Healy, the Giants, have just two outs left of them here in the top of the ninth.
Hits to Healy, it's a strike, oh and one.
Healy has grounded out, walked and singled.
Ray's pitch, curve low and wide for one and one.
Giants go to Houston.
Carruthers scheduled a pitch for the Giants against Tom Phoebus.
Go to San Diego, they're in Houston.
Go to San Diego tomorrow, foul ball back, and it's one and two.
Tom Phoebus for San Diego and Don Carruthers for the Giants.
That's tomorrow night.
Have any idea what time of broadcast time it's just?
Just when we get there?
Seven ten.
Seven ten, broadcast time.
Bounding ball is short, two easy hops, broken back.
Metzger throws the first and Healy is retired.
Two men down and Chris Spire is the Giants' last hope.
Down by five with two men out, the base is empty.
Alan Gallagher comes out in the on deck circle to act as a batter in case Spire gets on.
And most of the Houston fans figure that it's all over and they start heading for the exit.
Spire bluffs the bunt, takes low for a ball, one and oh.
One oh pitch, fast ball strike.
Ball and a strike.
Yeah, the Giants have to be happy coming in here to Houston and taking the first two games of the series anyway,
even if they lose this one.
This has been a place where they've really had trouble winning.
Strike crawled on Spire, started to swing, tried to check, fell away from the plate,
and Mel Steiner said he swung at the ball on Spire.
Question that, but it's still a strike and it's one and two.
Now the Giants down to their last strike.
One two pitch, just outside for two and two.
So with one strike left and five runs behind, what a story this would make.
Two and two, count to Chris.
Ball three, full count.
Three and two.
The Giants still with a little life there.
Jim Ray pitching to Chris Spire batting left-handed.
Three two pitch, struck him out swinging.
And Ray closes it out.
No runs, no hits, no errors, no one left on.
The Houston's win at seven to two and we'll be back with the final totals in just one minute.
I'd like to talk to you guys about your wives, about something they might be missing.
No, don't worry, I'm not going to be a marriage counselor here.
Drop in a little touch of humor there.
I just want to remind you that your wife may not have a Bank of Merit card of her own.
You know how useful your Bank of Merit card is to you.
Well, if your Bank of Merit card is useful to you, it can be just as useful,
maybe even more so, to a woman.
Say, for instance, she gets into an emergency situation with a car when you're not around.
A Bank of Merit card could really come in handy.
Or what about the end of the month when you want to know where all the money went?
If she had used a Bank of Merit card, she'd have a written record of all her purchases.
And think about how you can cut down on the time it takes to write all those separate checks.
Add it all up and see if you don't agree that your wife should have a Bank of Merit card too.
Bank of Merit card, think of it as money, his and hers money.
Totals on tonight's game, Houston 7 runs, 9 hits and no errors.
The Giants 2 runs on 7 hits and no errors.
The winning pitcher, Larry Dirkert, and the losing pitcher is John Cumberland.
Now this is Lon Simmons for Bill Thompson, our producer Chuck Suggs,
reminding you to stay tuned for the Giants Clubhouse, which follows,
inviting you to be back with us tomorrow night for the Giants-Padres game from San Diego, broadcast time 7-10.
Our network engineer today was Bob Murrell.
The final score again, Houston 7, the Giants 2.
So fans, that concludes another Giants baseball broadcast.
Tonight's game was brought to you by Chevrolet, who reminds you highway safety begins at home.
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This has been another sports presentation of the Golden West Radio Network.
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Giants Clubhouse is next with Lon Simmons and Bill Thompson.
A wrap up of today's game, scores of other games, and interviews with today's outstanding players on KSFO in San Francisco.
Time for Giants Clubhouse brought to you by Langendorf Bread, the nutritious bread with Grow, Grow, Goodness, and by Heald Colleges, specializing in career education since 1863.
I'm quite sure the Giants would have settled for two out of three in Houston before they arrived in Houston.
Of course they wouldn't have settled for two out of three at the start of the ninth ballgame because they already had the two.
And it looked as though they might get three when John Cumberland drilled a single to score two runs in the fifth inning and put the Giants out in front two to nothing.
It seemed as though Larry Dierker, the starter for Houston, was tiring a bit.
But the Houston's came right back in the bottom of the second on a two-run home run by Doug Redd, who retired at two and two, then took the lead in the very next inning on a walk to Metzger, an infield out by Sedeno, and probably the key to the ballgame right there.
Metzger was running. Sedeno had a double play ball to 20s. But Teo could only go to first base because the fact that Metzger was running, he was in at second, and there was no chance of a double play.
Then Jim Winn and Lee May followed with singles. That was all for starter Cumberland.
Steve Stone came in. Bob Watson singled a right field off Stone to drive in another run. And it made it a four-to-two ballgame.
Houston picked up three more in the eighth inning, this time against Ron Bryant, a walk to Jim Winn after one was out.
Lee May's single, a walk to Bob Watson, and a wild pitch. And then Jim Barr replacing Bryant and a triple by Rader to drive in two more runs.
Rader with a home run and a triple to drive in four of the seven Houston runs. Seven runs, nine hits, no errors for Houston.
Two runs, seven hits, no errors for the Giants. Larry Durker, the starter, who went seven innings.
The winner, Jim Ray, gets a save, going two innings, giving up just one infield hit.
The Giants used Cumberland, the loser, Stone, Bryant, Barr, and Morris in tonight's ballgame.
Bill Thompson will be introducing his special guest when we return in just one minute.
Now here's a pitch that all you dads out there won't want to miss. Langendorf is offering free tickets for kids 14 and under to the April 28th game between the Giants and Montreal.
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Now here's Bill Thompson.
Our guest this evening is Bob Watson, the Houston left fielder, and Bob who had a big day against the Giants yesterday with a three-run home and two other base hits, and then had a couple of base hits again tonight that certainly helped out in the Houston win.
Bob, I think it has to be a good one for you guys to finally win that first one.
Right, Bill. You know, you grow along the season, you lose the first couple, and then you start to wonder if you're going to win one, you know, and then that first one's out the way, and then you know you're on your way.
I think another thing, too, you know, that writers are forever bringing up what's happened in past years, and they talk about the fact that the Houston Bulldogs in several years has gotten off to horrendous starts.
Right, you know, they're always bringing up, you know, we were going, I think the first month, a couple years, we won only four games out of 30, you know, and so there's a little pressure on you a little bit, you know, at the start of the season, but I think it's about good we have now, and we're high-spirited and everything, and we're going to show the people that we can play baseball.
The broad game tonight looked like the first four innings that neither team was ever going to score.
Yeah, well the pitchers are a little ahead of us right now a little bit, I think, but surprisingly the way the Giants won the bat the first night and yesterday, you know, after the layoff, I think they're going to make a good showing, and I think myself and Doug and Tommy Hilms are swinging that pretty good on our ballclub.
I was going to say, it's almost unbelievable, I don't know if you were putting a writer on there, something about the starts you've had in three previous years, was that really official, that bad a start?
Well, it's official, my first year starting with the ballclub, 69, I took it something like 0 for 21, and then next year 70, 0 for 28, and then last year 0 for 32, and after I get past that first week of playing, then I catch fire and I end up hitting it for the month like 340 or something.
Sometimes a guy can be playing at Oklahoma City if he's started by right, couldn't he?
Yeah, I was really lucky to stay around here, but I was hitting the ball harder at the time, I just couldn't buy a hit, I just couldn't buy a hit at all.
Well, but over a period of time, again speaking of writers, there's been a bum rap attached to your throwing arm, but in this series you made an outstanding throw to second base the other night on Murat Shah, when he hit a ball in the corner, in fact it was a very, very close play, I believe Homestead had him out, and you made a great throw on McCovey tonight at third base. Was the bum rap thing a fair thing about your arm, is it improved now or what?
Well, I had a very serious arm injury, I ran into a brick wall and I completely dislocated it, I had an operation where they cut four inches off the lead tendon, and this was in 66 and it's been coming back ever since, and this winter I did a lot of arm exercises with weights, certain contractions they have around it. I went to screen training and I couldn't believe it, I was really throwing the ball well and it's still with me and it feels like it's getting stronger each day.
You were originally a catcher, right?
Yeah, and then I hurt my shoulder trying to catch a foul ball and ran into the seats and I've been to first base in the outfield, and that's where I'm going to be I guess.
I was going to say, it seems like now you've found a home in left field because I played you there most of the time last year, now you're opening the season here this year.
Well, I think last year I played about half and half first in left field and then Aquian Lee May started sensing me in left field now because he could play first and he really is the ball game.
The acquisition of these two guys, Tommy Helms and Lee May, certainly you had a fine second baseman here before and Joe Morgan was a very fine ball player, but Tommy Helms in tonight's ball game made three outstanding defensive plays.
I think that's one thing they wanted to have Tommy for the double play and while Lee May has not hit the long ball he drove in key runs again tonight.
Right, Tommy Helms, he's a little bit better defensive than Joe is, he has a better arm.
Joe didn't have the great throwing arm for a second baseman, but Tommy Helms has a great arm and he can surprise you, he can get the key base hit, he can hit behind the runner and Lee May is of course going to hit a lot of home runs for us.
They moved the fence in here, that's how they helped me out a little bit yesterday. So these two guys are going to help our ball club really a whole lot.
That takes having a guy like Lee May in the lineup, that has to help you and Doug Rader too, the fact that you don't feel the pressure of having supply power, you've got a guy with an established power, you can go into your own thing.
Right, the last couple of years they put me in a four slot you know and I've had been noted for hitting home runs, I'm more like a line drive hitter and a lot of writers and a lot of fans were on me, how come you don't hit the home run.
And last year I let this ball club be hitting and they got to a point where they were pitching around me and now they can't really do that so to say because they've got Zadina, Wynn, May and Rader and they can't pitch around one particular guy.
I think Rader was hampered quite a bit last year with a bad shoulder or something wasn't he?
Yeah he had a dislocated left shoulder and it really hampered his swing and I think just about every time he swung it popped out and I think half the season he just hung them up and they had to operate on it.
You used the statement the fact that you're a high spirited ball club and as you know you have a good ball club, that must be a pretty good feeling in your part because you do have a set lineup and you have established starting pitches and you apparently have a good ball club too.
Right, I think this ball club the way it's going now has a really good chance to make a showing in the National League and we want to challenge the Giants this year.
We started off really poor a little bit last year, we lost tough games out in San Francisco the first road trip and I think that turned us around for the whole season and we just want to play a good ball and show the fans that we can make room for the National League West.
I think this Western Division everybody keeps saying it but I don't think there's any doubt about it unless something sort of strange happens it should be a very tough race.
I think it's going to finally race, you can't really sense it, the Giants have an excellent chance of repeating but also you've got the Dodgers have a good ball club, the Reds, the Braves and ourselves and you can't count out San Diego because they're winning some ball games now and they've got some young players over there and Nate Cobra is hitting the ball good.
I think that San Diego Broncos, you've got a pitcher from your Broncos, the Brad Roberts over here and only goes and doesn't go yesterday and he says a shout out from his first time.
Right, Bill Gryffie, young right-hander throws the ball real hard. I think we had to give him up to get Dave along with his other kid Darrell Thomas and another left-hand pitcher Mark Schaeffer. I think Dave Roberts is going to really help our ball club out, he's an excellent left-hander.
It has to be also I imagine reassuring for all the young of the ball club to see Larry Dirkert who was on the disabled list at the end of last year to come back and pitch so well tonight.
Yes, we're really pleased the way Dirkert showed tonight.
With Roberts and Dirkert and of course Don Wilson who's coming up a fine year and then there's young fellow Jerry Royce that you've got in the Cardinals, he could help a great deal too.
Yes, that's how our balances are starting pitching now with two lefties and three righties and so one team can't distract your line up against us on those certain days.