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06-20-2006, 04:50 PM
June 20, 1969
Shea Stadium
Flushing, NY
A Friday night game in Shea likely would’ve brought a large crowd out no matter who New York was playing. But the fact the defending NL Champion St. Louis Cardinals were in town, and had their ace Bob Gibson on the hill, had Mets fans scrambling to the park more than 54,000 strong.
Coming off back-to-back NL pennants, including the 1867 World Series win over Boston, the Cards found themselves struggling in 1969. It was the first year of the split East-West divisions in the majors, and St. Louis entered this contest with a 31-32 record and in fourth place, 9½-games behind the front-running Chicago Cubs. Red Schoendienst’s club had gotten off to an oh-&-three start on the season and stood 6-games below .500 on May 11.
The Redbirds needed a win that night to get back to .500 and start putting pressure on the Cubs. And they were counting on Gibson to pitch them to that victory. Gibson came into the game with a 9-3 record, and had dubya’s in each of his last three starts.
In his second year at the helm of the Mets, Gil Hodges had his squad above .500 with a 33-27 record, 6-games in back of the Cubs and good enough for second place in the NL East. Hodges had been relying on the Big 3 in his rotation up to that point – Tom Seaver, Jerry Koosman and Gary Gentry. He would rely on that trio all season long, in fact. But for this game, Hodges had a young right-hander going up against the great Bob Gibson.
After being swept in Houston towards the end of May, Hodges had tinkered with his rotation a bit and stopped using Tug McGraw and Jack Dilauro in swing roles between the pen and rotation. Don Cardwell and Jim McAndrew were, in essence, the 4-5 starters in the Mets’ rotation. But the Mets had a bunch of doubleheaders on their slate, already playing four up to this date, with two more coming up in the next week and a total of 22 on the season. So Hodges needed an effective sixth arm for the mix.
The arm he chose happened to be the right arm belonging to one Lynn Nolan Ryan. The fireballer would make just his second start of the season in this game, and first since early May. He was 2-0 with a save at this point in 1969, having last pitched three days earlier in relief during a doubleheader in Philadelphia.
Ryan retired the first two batters he faced, Lou Brock on a grounder and Curt Flood swinging. Vada Pinson then stroked a single to left to bring Joe Torre to the plate for St. Louis. Playing first in this game, Torre smoked a ball into the left field corner with the speedy Pinson heading for home. But shortstop Bud Harrelson’s relay throw from left fielder Cleon Jones beat Pinson to the dish, and Mets catcher Jerry Grote applied the tag to get Ryan out of 1st-inning trouble.
Perhaps fired up about the inning-ending play at the plate, New York went to work with their bats immediately. Tommie Agee doubled to right and Ken Boswell reached on an infield single that Cardinals shortstop Dal Maxvill fielded but could not make a throw. Wayne Garrett, the next batter, popped one into foul territory that Gibson got a glove on but couldn’t hold. It would prove decisive.
Gibson would lose Garrett on ball four, and Cleon Jones followed with a single that plated both Agee and Boswell, sending Garrett to third. Art Shamsky, whose left-handed bat got the start in right over Ron Swoboda, lifted a sac fly to left that brought Garrett home to make it 3-0. Ed Kranepool would single Jones to third and steal second to give the Mets hope of a really big inning off Gibson. But Grote struck out in front of an intentional pass to Harrelson, and Ryan flied out to end the inning as New York batted around.
Tim McCarver led off the top of the second with a walk off Ryan, but two infield groundouts and a strikeout later, any thoughts of the Redbirds mounting a quick rally off Ryan were dashed.
Agee and Boswell would team up again in the bottom of the second. A leadoff single by Agee fronted a Boswell triple to give New York a 4-0 lead. Gibson once again walked Garrett, but Jones’ fly ball to Pinson in right turned into a doubleplay as Boswell was tagged out at home trying to score. That play seemed to energize Gibson who would retire 11 of the next Mets he faced and limit New York to just two hits the rest of the game.
Armed with a 4-0 lead, Ryan kept the Cards off the board until the fifth. Maxvill led off the frame with a walk and moved to third on an infield single by Brock after Gibson fouled out. Garrett fielded the dribbler by Brock and should have held the ball instead of throwing to first. The errant throw allowed Brock to also take second.
Flood brought Maxvill home with a single and Pinson’s sac fly sent Brock plateward to cut the Mets’ advantage in half, 4-2.
Ryan left the game for a pinch-hitter in the bottom of the sixth, and McGraw came on in relief. Gibson, the first batter Tug faced in the top of the seventh, bashed a McGraw offering over the left field fence to make it 4-3.
But McGraw would settle down after that, and the Gibby homer would be the only hit he would allow for the rest of the game. McGraw struck Torre out leading off the Cards’ eighth, then struck out the side in the ninth to preserve the win. The last batter Tug would face that evening was none other than Gibson who Schoendienst left in to hit for himself despite St. Louis trailing by a run.
Shea Stadium
Flushing, NY
A Friday night game in Shea likely would’ve brought a large crowd out no matter who New York was playing. But the fact the defending NL Champion St. Louis Cardinals were in town, and had their ace Bob Gibson on the hill, had Mets fans scrambling to the park more than 54,000 strong.
Coming off back-to-back NL pennants, including the 1867 World Series win over Boston, the Cards found themselves struggling in 1969. It was the first year of the split East-West divisions in the majors, and St. Louis entered this contest with a 31-32 record and in fourth place, 9½-games behind the front-running Chicago Cubs. Red Schoendienst’s club had gotten off to an oh-&-three start on the season and stood 6-games below .500 on May 11.
The Redbirds needed a win that night to get back to .500 and start putting pressure on the Cubs. And they were counting on Gibson to pitch them to that victory. Gibson came into the game with a 9-3 record, and had dubya’s in each of his last three starts.
In his second year at the helm of the Mets, Gil Hodges had his squad above .500 with a 33-27 record, 6-games in back of the Cubs and good enough for second place in the NL East. Hodges had been relying on the Big 3 in his rotation up to that point – Tom Seaver, Jerry Koosman and Gary Gentry. He would rely on that trio all season long, in fact. But for this game, Hodges had a young right-hander going up against the great Bob Gibson.
After being swept in Houston towards the end of May, Hodges had tinkered with his rotation a bit and stopped using Tug McGraw and Jack Dilauro in swing roles between the pen and rotation. Don Cardwell and Jim McAndrew were, in essence, the 4-5 starters in the Mets’ rotation. But the Mets had a bunch of doubleheaders on their slate, already playing four up to this date, with two more coming up in the next week and a total of 22 on the season. So Hodges needed an effective sixth arm for the mix.
The arm he chose happened to be the right arm belonging to one Lynn Nolan Ryan. The fireballer would make just his second start of the season in this game, and first since early May. He was 2-0 with a save at this point in 1969, having last pitched three days earlier in relief during a doubleheader in Philadelphia.
Ryan retired the first two batters he faced, Lou Brock on a grounder and Curt Flood swinging. Vada Pinson then stroked a single to left to bring Joe Torre to the plate for St. Louis. Playing first in this game, Torre smoked a ball into the left field corner with the speedy Pinson heading for home. But shortstop Bud Harrelson’s relay throw from left fielder Cleon Jones beat Pinson to the dish, and Mets catcher Jerry Grote applied the tag to get Ryan out of 1st-inning trouble.
Perhaps fired up about the inning-ending play at the plate, New York went to work with their bats immediately. Tommie Agee doubled to right and Ken Boswell reached on an infield single that Cardinals shortstop Dal Maxvill fielded but could not make a throw. Wayne Garrett, the next batter, popped one into foul territory that Gibson got a glove on but couldn’t hold. It would prove decisive.
Gibson would lose Garrett on ball four, and Cleon Jones followed with a single that plated both Agee and Boswell, sending Garrett to third. Art Shamsky, whose left-handed bat got the start in right over Ron Swoboda, lifted a sac fly to left that brought Garrett home to make it 3-0. Ed Kranepool would single Jones to third and steal second to give the Mets hope of a really big inning off Gibson. But Grote struck out in front of an intentional pass to Harrelson, and Ryan flied out to end the inning as New York batted around.
Tim McCarver led off the top of the second with a walk off Ryan, but two infield groundouts and a strikeout later, any thoughts of the Redbirds mounting a quick rally off Ryan were dashed.
Agee and Boswell would team up again in the bottom of the second. A leadoff single by Agee fronted a Boswell triple to give New York a 4-0 lead. Gibson once again walked Garrett, but Jones’ fly ball to Pinson in right turned into a doubleplay as Boswell was tagged out at home trying to score. That play seemed to energize Gibson who would retire 11 of the next Mets he faced and limit New York to just two hits the rest of the game.
Armed with a 4-0 lead, Ryan kept the Cards off the board until the fifth. Maxvill led off the frame with a walk and moved to third on an infield single by Brock after Gibson fouled out. Garrett fielded the dribbler by Brock and should have held the ball instead of throwing to first. The errant throw allowed Brock to also take second.
Flood brought Maxvill home with a single and Pinson’s sac fly sent Brock plateward to cut the Mets’ advantage in half, 4-2.
Ryan left the game for a pinch-hitter in the bottom of the sixth, and McGraw came on in relief. Gibson, the first batter Tug faced in the top of the seventh, bashed a McGraw offering over the left field fence to make it 4-3.
But McGraw would settle down after that, and the Gibby homer would be the only hit he would allow for the rest of the game. McGraw struck Torre out leading off the Cards’ eighth, then struck out the side in the ninth to preserve the win. The last batter Tug would face that evening was none other than Gibson who Schoendienst left in to hit for himself despite St. Louis trailing by a run.