Game 4 April 15th, 1976 - St. Louis at Pittsburgh

Jim Rooker got the call for game 4 for the Bucs and Jim is most notably remembered as pitching game 5 of the 1979 World Series when the Pirates were down 3 games to 1.  The pirates won game 5 and the rest is history.  Jim Rooker was originally an outfielder and was converted to a pitcher.  Here is a video of Steve Blass as he recalled Rooker coming up through the minors.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibPkzLiRqwg.  The cardinals continued to pound the ball in this game as they scored 6 runs off Rooker but only 2 were earned.  Lou Brock provided the big blow as he hit a 3 run homerun off Rook to give the redbirds a 4-0 lead.  Rooker was pulled after only going 3 2/3 innings and Larry Demery was brought in to keep the game close.  Larry pitched 3 1/3 scoreless innings and the pirates only trailed 6-4 after 7 innings.  Dave Giusti came on in the 8th inning and once again the pirates bullpen gave up late runs to let the game get out of hand.  Bake McBride hit his second pinch hit homer in as many days and the pirate faithful booed him as he trotted around the bases.  Giusti gave up 3 runs and that is how the game ended as the Cardinals swept the 2 games winning this one 9-4.  The cardinals are now batting .324 for the season while the Bucs are batting a paltry .234.  Pete Falcone won his second game of the season to improve his record to 2-0.  The Pirates will remain home for 3 games against their arch rival the Mets and 2 more against the fightin phils.

1976 Real Life 4-0  9-3

1976 Replay    2-2  4-9

 

Mendoza watch:  Mario went 0 for 1 in his first at-bat of the season as a pinch hitter. 

 

Apr 15, 1976                  1 2 3   4 5 6   7 8 9      R  H  E
1976 St. Louis 4-1            0 4 1   1 0 0   0 2 1      9 12  0
1976 Pittsburgh 2-2           0 1 0   3 0 0   0 0 0      4  6  3

St. Louis      AB  R  H BI  W  K   Avg    Pittsburgh     AB  R  H BI  W  K   Avg
Brock LF        5  2  2  3  0  0  .375    Parker, D RF    4  0  0  0  0  1  .118
Templeton SS    5  0  1  0  0  0  .435    Oliver CF       4  0  1  0  0  0  .188
Hernandez 1B    4  1  0  0  1  0  .150    Zisk LF         2  1  0  0  2  0  .267
Crawford RF     4  1  1  1  1  1  .385    Stargell 1B     3  1  0  0  1  3  .143
Simmons, T C    5  1  1  0  0  1  .263    Robinson,B 3B   4  1  2  0  0  0  .500
Mumphrey CF     3  1  2  0  0  0  .545    Sanguillen C    4  1  2  2  0  0  .529
 McBride PH-CF  1  1  1  1  0  0  .600    Stennett 2B     4  0  0  2  0  0  .063
 Tyson PH-2B    0  0  0  0  1  0  .222    Taveras SS      4  0  1  0  0  0  .267
Kessinger 2B    3  1  1  1  1  1  .375    Rooker P        1  0  0  0  0  1  .000
 Rudolph PH     1  0  1  1  0  0 1.000     Demery P       1  0  0  0  0  1  .000
 Harris, V PH-C 1  0  0  0  0  0  .500     Helms PH       1  0  0  0  0  0  .000
Cruz, H 3B      4  1  1  2  1  0  .235     Giusti P       0  0  0  0  0  0  .000
Falcone P       3  0  0  0  0  1  .200     Hernandez P    0  0  0  0  0  0  .000
 Hrabosky P     0  0  0  0  0  0  .000     Mendoza PH     1  0  0  0  0  0  .000
 Anderson,M PH  1  0  1  0  0  0  .286                   33  4  6  4  3  6  .234
 Solomon P      0  0  0  0  0  0  .000
 Curtis P       0  0  0  0  0  0  .000
               40  9 12  9  5  4  .324

St. Louis                      IP  H  R ER  W  K   Ct   S   B    ERA  BF     EPC  Stf
Falcone W(2-0)                6.1  5  4  4  2  4  116  72  44   3.77  26 115(116)
 Hrabosky H(1)                0.2  0  0  0  0  1   11   7   4   0.00   2   30(29)  --
 Solomon                      1.0  0  0  0  1  1   19  12   7   0.00   4   75(75)
 Curtis                       1.0  1  0  0  0  0   13  11   2   0.00   4   80(75)   -
                              9.0  6  4  4  3  6  159 102  57   3.20  36

Pittsburgh                     IP  H  R ER  W  K   Ct   S   B    ERA  BF     EPC  Stf
Rooker L(0-1)                 3.2  8  6  2  2  0   72  45  27   4.91  22 125(133)
 Demery                       3.1  0  0  0  0  4   44  34  10   0.00  11   70(75)
 Giusti                       1.1  3  3  3  1  0   30  18  12   8.10   8   30(31)
 Hernandez                    0.2  1  0  0  2  0   21  10  11   3.00   5   25(22)   -
                              9.0 12  9  5  5  4  167 107  60   4.50  46


StL: McBride hit for Mumphrey in the 8th
     Anderson,M hit for Hrabosky in the 8th
     Tyson hit for McBride in the 9th
     Rudolph hit for Kessinger in the 9th
     Harris, V hit for Solomon in the 9th
     Tyson moved to 2B in the 9th
Pit: Helms hit for Demery in the 7th
     Mendoza hit for Hernandez in the 9th

  E-Stargell 2(2) Taveras(1)
 2B-Mumphrey(1) Templeton(1) Robinson,B(2) Sanguillen(1)
 3B-Crawford(1) Sanguillen(1)
 HR-Brock(1) Cruz, H(1) McBride(2)
 SB-Brock(5)
 CS-Brock
 BK-Solomon
LOB-St. Louis 7 Pittsburgh 5
 DP-Pittsburgh 1
GWRBI-Cruz, H


Game MVP:Lou Brock

Three Rivers Stadium, Time 3:38,  57ø,  5mph Out to RF

Apr 15, 1976           1 2 3   4 5 6   7 8 9      R  H  E
1976 St. Louis         0 4 1   1 0 0   0 2 1      9 12  0
1976 Pittsburgh        0 1 0   3 0 0   0 0 0      4  6  3

1976 St. Louis         Ab1            Ab2            Ab3            Ab4            Ab5
1 Brock LF           1>G43            HR           4>S              E3,B1          G64/fo,B1
2 Templeton SS         D              G43            SB2 G53        CS2(26)G43     Fs8
3 Hernandez 1B         E3,23,B1     3>W              F8           7>G63          9>G53
4 Crawford RF          G463/dp        Fs8            T,2H           K              W
5 Simmons, T C       2>E6,B1          S,12           G63            K              F9
6 Mumphrey CF          D,13           S,23,12      5>G43
   McBride PH-CF                                                  8>HR
   Tyson PH-2B                                                                     W,12
7 Kessinger 2B         W              S,3H,23,12     K              G63
   Rudolph PH                                                                      S,2H,13
   Harris, V PH-CF                                                                 Fs8
8 Cruz, H 3B           G43,23,12,3H   G12            L4             HR             W,12
9 Falcone P            G13            G43          6>K
   Hrabosky P
   Anderson,M PH                                                    S
   Solomon P
   Curtis P
                       Ab6
1 Brock LF
2 Templeton SS
3 Hernandez 1B
4 Crawford RF
5 Simmons, T C
6 Mumphrey CF
   McBride PH-CF
   Tyson PH-2B
7 Kessinger 2B
   Rudolph PH
   Harris, V PH-CF
8 Cruz, H 3B
9 Falcone P
   Hrabosky P
   Anderson,M PH
   Solomon P
   Curtis P

1976 Pittsburgh        Ab1            Ab2            Ab3            Ab4
1 Parker, D RF       1>F9             L8             F8             K
2 Oliver CF            F8             Fs8            S            8>P3
3 Zisk LF              L6           4>W              F8             W
4 Stargell 1B        2>W              K            6>K              K
5 Robinson,B 3B        D,13/13        S,12           L7             BK,12 F7
6 Sanguillen C         L1             T,2H,1H        D            9>Fd8
7 Stennett 2B          G53,3H         G43,3H         G53            P6
8 Taveras SS           P5             P5           7>G43            S
9 Rooker P           3>K
   Demery P                         5>K
   Helms PH                                          G43
   Giusti P
   Hernandez P
   Mendoza PH                                                       G54/fo

St. Louis        IN    OUT
Falcone          AB1-1 AB3-8
Hrabosky         AB3-9 AB4-1
Solomon          AB4-2 AB4-5
Curtis           AB4-6 End

Pittsburgh       IN    OUT
Rooker           AB1-1 AB3-4
Demery           AB3-5 AB4-5
Giusti           AB4-6 AB5-4
Hernandez        AB5-5 End

Game 3 April 13th, 1976 - St. Louis at Pittsburgh

The Pirates returned home after a 2 game road trip in front of a packed house for their home opener.  John Denny started for the Redbirds while Jerry Reuss got the call for the hometown bucs.  The game started out good as Reuss wiggled out of a jam in the first inning by inducing a double play with runners on base.  The game remained scoreless until the 3rd.  The cardinals scored 2 runs on 4 hits and had a quick 2-0 lead.  The cardinals added 2 more runs in the 4th as they continued to play small ball with hits and stolen bases.  The pirates finally scored in the bottom of the 4th as Richie Zisk clubbed his 3rd homerun of the season to tie for the league lead.  Reuss settled down until the 7th and then got pulled in favor Bob Moose making his first appearance of the season.  This is where the game got out of hand.  Moose trying to keep the cardinals off the board gave up 6 hits and was charged with 4 runs as the cardinals now led 9-2.  A dejected Bob Moose was quoted after the game and said "I just didn't have my best stuff and everything I threw they hit."  The cardinals added one more run in the 9th with a Bake McBride homerun off Ramon Hernandez.  The redbirds pounded out 19 hits and seemed to have baserunners on every inning.  John Denny pitched a complete game to get the victory.  Jerry Reuss suffered his first loss.  On a bright note, Manny Sanguillen went 3 for 4 and is now batting .538 after 3 games. 

1976 Real Life 3-0  14-4

1976 Replay    2-1  2-10

Apr 13, 1976                  1 2 3   4 5 6   7 8 9      R  H  E
1976 St. Louis 3-1            0 0 2   2 0 0   5 0 1     10 19  2
1976 Pittsburgh 2-1           0 0 0   1 0 1   0 0 0      2  8  0

St. Louis      AB  R  H BI  W  K   Avg    Pittsburgh     AB  R  H BI  W  K   Avg
Brock LF        6  1  3  3  0  0  .368    Parker, D RF    4  0  0  0  1  1  .154
Templeton SS    6  0  4  1  0  0  .500    Oliver CF       4  0  1  0  0  0  .167
Hernandez 1B    5  0  2  0  0  1  .188    Zisk LF         4  1  1  1  0  0  .308
Crawford RF     5  1  2  1  0  0  .444    Stargell 1B     4  1  1  0  0  1  .182
Simmons, T C    3  1  1  0  2  0  .286    Sanguillen C    4  0  3  1  0  1  .538
Mumphrey CF     4  2  3  0  0  1  .500    Hebner 3B       4  0  1  0  0  1  .200
 Anderson,M PH- 1  0  0  0  0  0  .167    Stennett 2B     4  0  0  0  0  0  .083
Kessinger 2B    3  2  1  2  1  0  .400    Taveras SS      4  0  1  0  0  1  .273
 Tyson PH-2B    1  0  0  0  0  0  .222    Reuss P         1  0  0  0  1  1  .000
Cruz, H 3B      4  2  2  2  0  0  .231     Moose P        0  0  0  0  0  0  .000
 McBride PH     1  1  1  1  0  0  .556     Kirkpatrick PH 1  0  0  0  0  0  .000
 Harris, V 3B   0  0  0  0  0  0 1.000     Hernandez P    0  0  0  0  0  0  .000
Denny P         3  0  0  0  0  1  .000     Moreno PH      1  0  0  0  0  0  .000
               42 10 19 10  3  3  .331                   35  2  8  2  2  6  .250

St. Louis                      IP  H  R ER  W  K   Ct   S   B    ERA  BF     EPC  Stf
Denny W(1-0)                  9.0  8  2  1  2  6  134  90  44   1.00  37 110(105)   +
                              9.0  8  2  1  2  6  134  90  44   3.00  37

Pittsburgh                     IP  H  R ER  W  K   Ct   S   B    ERA  BF     EPC  Stf
Reuss L(0-1)                  6.0 12  5  5  2  2  122  84  38   7.50  31 125(130)  --
 Moose                        1.0  6  4  4  0  0   31  22   9  36.00   9   75(75)
 Hernandez                    2.0  1  1  1  1  1   31  20  11   3.86   7   25(32)   +
                              9.0 19 10 10  3  3  184 126  58   4.33  47


StL: Anderson,M hit for Mumphrey in the 8th
     Tyson hit for Kessinger in the 8th
     Tyson moved to 2B in the 8th
     McBride hit for Cruz, H in the 9th
     Harris, V moved to 3B in the 9th
Pit: Kirkpatrick hit for Moose in the 7th
     Moreno hit for Hernandez in the 9th

  E-Hernandez(1) Templeton(1)
 2B-Cruz, H(1) Kessinger(1) Stargell(1)
 HR-McBride(1) Zisk(3)
 SB-Brock 2(4) Mumphrey(1)
 SH-Denny 2
LOB-St. Louis 10 Pittsburgh 7
 DP-St. Louis 2 Pittsburgh 2
GWRBI-Brock


Game MVP:Lou Brock

Three Rivers Stadium, Time 3:33,  55ø

Apr 13, 1976           1 2 3   4 5 6   7 8 9      R  H  E
1976 St. Louis         0 0 2   2 0 0   5 0 1     10 19  2
1976 Pittsburgh        0 0 0   1 0 1   0 0 0      2  8  0

1976 St. Louis         Ab1            Ab2            Ab3            Ab4            Ab5
1 Brock LF           1>G63            S,3H           S,3H,2H        S              G43,23
2 Templeton SS         S              SB2 S,23       F9             SB2 S,23       S,3H
3 Hernandez 1B         S,12           P4           5>F8             K              S,13
4 Crawford RF          G463/dp        S,3H,13        P6           7>S              F8
5 Simmons, T C       2>L5             Fd8            W              S,12         8>W
6 Mumphrey CF          K            4>S              S,12           S,23,12
   Anderson,M PH-CF                                                                G643/dp
7 Kessinger 2B         G13            SB2 W          G64/fo         D,3H,2H,13
   Tyson PH-2B                                                                     G13
8 Cruz, H 3B         3>D              Fd7,12       6>Fd9            S,3H,2H
   McBride PH                                                                    9>HR
   Harris, V 3B
9 Denny P              B24,23         L4             G43            B54,12         K
                       Ab6
1 Brock LF             G53
2 Templeton SS         G43
3 Hernandez 1B
4 Crawford RF
5 Simmons, T C
6 Mumphrey CF
   Anderson,M PH-CF
7 Kessinger 2B
   Tyson PH-2B
8 Cruz, H 3B
   McBride PH
   Harris, V 3B
9 Denny P

1976 Pittsburgh        Ab1            Ab2            Ab3            Ab4            Ab5
1 Parker, D RF       1>K              W              P4             F7             G3u
2 Oliver CF            S              P3             G43          8>G13
3 Zisk LF              P6           4>HR           6>P6             E6,B1
4 Stargell 1B          K              D              E3,B2          F9
5 Sanguillen C       2>K              S,23           S,23,3H        S,12
6 Hebner 3B            S              K              G63,23         P6
7 Stennett 2B          G643/dp        G643/dp        G63          9>L9
8 Taveras SS         3>F8           5>G43          7>K2u            S
9 Reuss P              K              W
   Moose P
   Kirkpatrick PH                                    G63
   Hernandez P
   Moreno PH                                                        G43,12

St. Louis        IN    OUT
Denny            AB1-1 End

Pittsburgh       IN    OUT
Reuss            AB1-1 AB4-4
Moose            AB4-5 AB5-4
Hernandez        AB5-5 End

Game 2 April 11th, 1976 - Pittsburgh at Philadelphia

The Pirates looked to sweep this 2 game series just like they did in real life during the 1976 season.  Bruce Kison started game 2 and Jim Kaat pitched for the Phillies.  In real life, Steve Carlton pitched for the Phillies and Kison went for the Bucs.  Dave Parker led off with a single and then Al Oliver took Kaat deep to give the Bucs a quick 2-0 lead.  The Pirates would tack on 2 more runs in the 1st highlighted by a Bill Robinson double.  Jim Kaat would settle down but exit in the 6th.  Mike Schmidt hit his first homerun in the 4th for the Phillies which was a mammoth shot into the left field stands.  Richie Zisk led off the 6th with a homer off Kaat and then 2 batters later Bill Robinson homered to chase Kaat.  Bruce Kison was cruising with a 6-1 lead but surrendered 2 runs to the Phillies in the bottom of the 6th.  He gutted it out and escaped damage by striking out Bob Boone.  Tug McGraw was brought in for some mop up duty in the 8th and gave up 2 runs but only 1 was earned as Bobby Tolan committed an error to allow a pirates run.  Richie Zisk homered again in the 9th off McGraw for his second homerun of the game.  This was a 2-run shot to give the pirates a 10-3 lead and that is how it ended.  Bruce Kison picks up his first win and Jim Kaat suffered his first loss.  Ironically, the real score was 8-3 in favor of the pirates and this game almost came out identical.  This series was played h2h with Brandon Hayes and it was a fun series. 

1976 Real Life 2-0  8-3

1976 Replay    2-0  10-3

 

 

Apr 11, 1976                  1 2 3   4 5 6   7 8 9      R  H  E
1976 Pittsburgh 2-0           4 0 0   0 0 2   0 2 2     10 12  0
1976 Philadelphia 0-2         0 0 0   1 0 2   0 0 0      3  8  2

Pittsburgh     AB  R  H BI  W  K   Avg    Philadelphia   AB  R  H BI  W  K   Avg
Parker, D RF    4  2  2  0  1  0  .222    Bowa SS         4  1  1  0  0  0  .111
Oliver CF       5  1  1  2  0  1  .125    Cash 2B         4  1  1  0  0  0  .222
Zisk LF         5  3  3  3  0  0  .333    Luzinski LF     4  0  1  1  0  2  .375
Stargell 1B     3  0  0  0  1  2  .143    Schmidt 3B      3  1  1  2  0  2  .167
 Moreno PR      0  1  0  0  0  0  .000    Maddox CF       4  0  1  0  0  1  .250
 Kirkpatrick 1B 0  0  0  0  1  0  .000    Johnstone RF    3  0  0  0  1  0  .000
Robinson,B 3B   5  3  4  1  0  0  .500    Boone C         3  0  1  0  1  2  .429
Sanguillen C    5  0  2  2  0  0  .444    Tolan 1B        3  0  1  0  1  1  .333
Stennett 2B     4  0  0  1  0  1  .125    Kaat P          2  0  0  0  0  0  .000
Taveras, F SS   4  0  0  0  0  0  .286     Twitchell P    0  0  0  0  0  0  .000
Kison P         3  0  0  0  0  1  .000     Oates PH       1  0  1  0  0  0 1.000
 Giusti P       1  0  0  0  0  0  .000     McGraw P       0  0  0  0  0  0  .000
               39 10 12  9  3  5  .260     Schueler P     0  0  0  0  0  0  .000
                                           McCarver PH    1  0  0  0  0  0  .000
                                                         32  3  8  3  3  8  .242

Pittsburgh                     IP  H  R ER  W  K   Ct   S   B    ERA  BF   EPC Act Stf
Kison W(1-0)                  7.0  8  3  3  1  6  110  76  34   3.86  29   110 109
 Giusti                       2.0  0  0  0  2  2   38  21  17   0.00   8    35  39
                              9.0  8  3  3  3  8  148  97  51   1.50  37

Philadelphia                   IP  H  R ER  W  K   Ct   S   B    ERA  BF   EPC Act Stf
Kaat L(0-1)                   5.1  6  6  5  0  3   80  60  20   8.44  23   110 119
 Twitchell                    1.2  1  0  0  1  2   25  16   9   0.00   6    70  75
 McGraw                       1.2  5  4  3  2  0   48  28  20  16.20  12    40  39  -
 Schueler                     0.1  0  0  0  0  0    4   2   2   0.00   1    30  27
                              9.0 12 10  8  3  5  157 106  51   6.00  42


Pit: Moreno ran for Stargell in the 8th
     Kirkpatrick moved to 1B in the 8th
Phi: Oates hit for Twitchell in the 7th
     McCarver hit for Schueler in the 9th

  E-Bowa(1) Tolan(1)
 2B-Robinson,B(1) Luzinski(1)
 3B-Parker, D(1)
 HR-Oliver(1) Robinson,B(1) Zisk 2(2) Schmidt(1)
 SF-Schmidt
 SH-Bowa
LOB-Pittsburgh 5 Philadelphia 7
 DP-Pittsburgh 1 Philadelphia 2
GWRBI-Oliver


Game MVP:Richie Zisk

Veterans Stadium, Time 3:24,  61ø, Light Rain,  15mph Right to Left

Apr 11, 1976           1 2 3   4 5 6   7 8 9      R  H  E
1976 Pittsburgh        4 0 0   0 0 2   0 2 2     10 12  0
1976 Philadelphia      0 0 0   1 0 2   0 0 0      3  8  2

1976 Pittsburgh        Ab1            Ab2            Ab3            Ab4            Ab5
1 Parker, D RF       1>S              Fd9            F7             W              T
2 Oliver CF            HR             K              F9             G6u3/dp        P3
3 Zisk LF              S            3>P4           6>HR           8>L5             HR
4 Stargell 1B          K              G43            K              W
   Moreno PR
   Kirkpatrick 1B                                                                  W
5 Robinson,B 3B        D,13/13        G53            HR             S,12           S,12
6 Sanguillen C         G43,3H,23    4>G63            S              S,2H,13        Fs8
7 Stennett 2B          G6/e6,3H,B2    F9             K              E3,3H,12,B1
8 Taveras, F SS        G53            G63            G6u/fo         G4u3/dp
9 Kison P            2>F7           5>F7           7>K
   Giusti P                                                       9>F9

1976 Philadelphia      Ab1            Ab2            Ab3            Ab4            Ab5
1 Bowa SS            1>G63            B54,12       6>S              Fs8            G13
2 Cash 2B              G53            G63            S,12           G13
3 Luzinski LF          G43          4>K              D,2H,13/13   8>K
4 Schmidt 3B         2>K              HR             Fd7,3H/SF      K
5 Maddox CF            K              G53            S,23           G63
6 Johnstone RF         W              G43            L4           9>L5
7 Boone C              K            5>S              K              W
8 Tolan 1B           3>S              G643/dp      7>K2u            W,12
9 Kaat P               G46/fo,B1      P2
   Twitchell P
   Oates PH                                          S
   McGraw P
   Schueler P
   McCarver PH                                                      P6

Pittsburgh       IN    OUT
Kison            AB1-1 AB4-2
Giusti           AB4-3 End

Philadelphia     IN    OUT
Kaat             AB1-1 AB3-5
Twitchell        AB3-6 AB4-2
McGraw           AB4-3 AB5-5
Schueler         AB5-6 End

Game 1 April 10th, 1976 - Pittsburgh at Philadelphia

The Pirates picked John Candelaria to pitch the season opener instead of Doc Medich who was the original starter.  I have always been a fan of the Candy Man and he was one of my favorite pitchers for the Pirates.  I loved how he would sling the ball across his body and he was very deceptive.   The Phillies countered with their ace Steve Carlton.  This series was played head to head with Brandon Hayes.  The game started out with neither pitcher giving an inch and it was a pitchers duel until the 5th inning.  The game was scoreless and Manny Sanguillen led off with a sharp single to left for the pirates.  Frank Taveras came up with one out and singled up the middle.  John Candelaria walked to load the bases.  Steve Carlton was in a big jam with Dave Parker up.  Carlton was able to strikeout Parker and looked to escape the jam.  He lost his control to the next batter Al Oliver and walked in the game's first run.  Richie Zisk gounded out to end the inning.  The Pirates would strike for more against Carlton in the 6th.  Manny Sanguillen started the rally again with 2 outs with a single.  Rennie Stennett then stroked a double off the left field wall to score Sanguillen.  Frank Taveras singled sharply to drive home Stennett and the Candy man roped a double into the gap to drive home Taveras.  The pirates led 4-0 and that was more than enough for the candy man.  Candelaria ran into some trouble in the 8th as he loaded the bases with 1 out.  I decided to bring in Larry Demery and he struck out Dick Allen.  The next batter Bob Boone hit a routine grounder to second and reliable Rennie booted it to give Philly it's first run.  Brandon pinch hit for Ollie Brown with Jay Johnstone and I countered with Ramon Hernandez.  Johnstone grounded out to end the inning.  Kent Tekulve pitched the ninth inning to get his first save of the season.  I was torn between bringing in Bob Moose or Tekulve and I decided that Tekulve will be my main closer until he starts blowing saves.  I will be posting the real life record and the replay record after each game.  I will also post the real score and replay score.

1976 Real Life 1-0  5-4 (11)

1976 Replay 1-0     4-1

Apr 10, 1976                  1 2 3   4 5 6   7 8 9      R  H  E
1976 Pittsburgh 1-0           0 0 0   0 1 3   0 0 0      4  7  1
1976 Philadelphia 0-1         0 0 0   0 0 0   0 1 0      1  8  0

Pittsburgh     AB  R  H BI  W  K   Avg    Philadelphia   AB  R  H BI  W  K   Avg
Parker, D RF    5  0  0  0  0  3  .000    Bowa SS         5  0  0  0  0  1  .000
Oliver CF       3  0  0  1  2  0  .000    Cash 2B         5  0  1  0  0  1  .200
Zisk LF         4  0  0  0  0  2  .000    Luzinski LF     4  1  2  0  0  1  .500
Stargell 1B     4  0  1  0  0  2  .250    Schmidt 3B      3  0  0  0  1  0  .000
Robinson,B 3B   3  0  0  0  0  0  .000    Maddox CF       4  0  1  0  0  0  .250
 Hebner PH      1  0  0  0  0  1  .000    Allen, D 1B     4  0  2  0  0  1  .500
 Helms 3B       0  0  0  0  0  0  .000    Boone C         4  0  2  0  0  0  .500
Sanguillen C    4  2  2  0  0  1  .500    Brown RF        2  0  0  0  1  1  .000
Stennett 2B     4  1  1  1  0  0  .250     Johnstone PH-R 1  0  0  0  0  0  .000
Taveras SS      3  1  2  1  1  0  .667    Carlton P       1  0  0  0  0  1  .000
Candelaria P    2  0  1  1  1  1  .500     Martin, J PH   0  0  0  0  1  0  .000
 Demery P       0  0  0  0  0  0  .000     Garber P       0  0  0  0  0  0  .000
 Hernandez P    0  0  0  0  0  0  .000     McCarver PH    1  0  0  0  0  0  .000
 Moreno PH      1  0  0  0  0  0  .000                   34  1  8  0  3  6  .235
 Tekulve P      0  0  0  0  0  0  .000
               34  4  7  4  4 10  .206

Pittsburgh                     IP  H  R ER  W  K   Ct   S   B    ERA  BF   EPC Act Stf
Candelaria W(1-0)             7.1  7  1  0  2  5  127  85  42   0.00  30   125 124  -
 Demery                       0.1  1  0  0  1  1   20  13   7   0.00   4    75  75
 Hernandez H(1)               0.1  0  0  0  0  0    3   1   2   0.00   1    25  24
 Tekulve S(1)                 1.0  0  0  0  0  0   16  12   4   0.00   3    35  38
                              9.0  8  1  0  3  6  166 111  55   0.00  38

Philadelphia                   IP  H  R ER  W  K   Ct   S   B    ERA  BF   EPC Act Stf
Carlton L(0-1)                7.0  7  4  4  3  8  134  94  40   5.14  31   125 133
 Garber                       2.0  0  0  0  1  2   32  21  11   0.00   7    35  38
                              9.0  7  4  4  4 10  166 115  51   4.00  38


Pit: Hebner hit for Robinson,B in the 8th
     Helms moved to 3B in the 8th
     Moreno hit for Hernandez in the 9th
Phi: Martin, J hit for Carlton in the 7th
     Johnstone hit for Brown in the 8th
     McCarver hit for Garber in the 9th

  E-Stennett(1)
 2B-Candelaria(1) Stennett(1) Boone(1)
 SB-Taveras(1)
 SH-Carlton
LOB-Pittsburgh 6 Philadelphia 9

GWRBI-Oliver


Game MVP:John Candelaria

Veterans Stadium, Time 3:42,  65ø

Apr 10, 1976           1 2 3   4 5 6   7 8 9      R  H  E
1976 Pittsburgh        0 0 0   0 1 3   0 0 0      4  7  1
1976 Philadelphia      0 0 0   0 0 0   0 1 0      1  8  0

1976 Pittsburgh        Ab1            Ab2            Ab3            Ab4            Ab5
1 Parker, D RF       1>P3             G43            K              K              SB3 K
2 Oliver CF            P3           4>W              W,3H,23,12   7>P2             L8
3 Zisk LF              K              G46/fo,B1      G63            K
4 Stargell 1B        2>S              K            6>P3             K
5 Robinson,B 3B        Fs7            G54/fo         P6
   Hebner PH                                                      8>K
   Helms 3B
6 Sanguillen C         K            5>S              S              G31
7 Stennett 2B          G64/fo         L7             D,1H           G43
8 Taveras SS         3>G31            S,12           S,23,3H      9>W
9 Candelaria P         K              W,23,12        D,2H
   Demery P
   Hernandez P
   Moreno PH                                                        G53,12
   Tekulve P

1976 Philadelphia      Ab1            Ab2            Ab3            Ab4            Ab5
1 Bowa SS            1>K              P4             Fd7            Fs8            G43
2 Cash 2B              K              Fs9          6>S            8>P6             G63
3 Luzinski LF          S            4>Fs7            K              S
4 Schmidt 3B           L4             P2             G14/fo,B1      W,12
5 Maddox CF          2>G53            P6             F8             S,23,12
6 Allen, D 1B          S            5>F8           7>S              K
7 Boone C              Fd9            S              D,13/82        E4,3H,23,12,
8 Brown RF             F9             W,12           K
   Johnstone PH-RF                                                  G63
9 Carlton P          3>K              B54,23,12
   Martin, J PH                                      W
   Garber P
   McCarver PH                                                    9>G43

Pittsburgh       IN    OUT
Candelaria       AB1-1 AB4-3
Demery           AB4-4 AB4-7
Hernandez        AB4-8 AB4-8
Tekulve          AB4-9 End

Philadelphia     IN    OUT
Carlton          AB1-1 AB4-4
Garber           AB4-5 End

Mendoza Line

Have you ever heard of the Mendoza line?  That phrase was given to Mario Mendoza because he rarely hit above .200.  Any hitter who hits around 200 or below is coined as reaching the Mendoza line.  His nickname was Elegante which means elegant and smart.  He sure was one smart dude but he couldn't hit a lick.  It will be interesting to see how Mario hits in Action PC as compared to real life in 1976.  Mario played in 50 games hitting .185 with zero homeruns and 12 ribbies.  He scored 6 runs and struck out 15 times.  I can't see myself using him as a pinch-hitter and about the only time he will play is for defensive purposes.  He is better defensively than Frank Taveras.  As we progess during the season, I will keep everybody updated on how Mario is doing.  So far, I have played 2 games and Mario didn't appear in any games yet.  Here is some interesting trivia about Mario Mendoza:

• His limited hitting prowess generated one of the more famous phrases in baseball, Hitting above/below "the Mendoza Line"
• He was elected into the Mexican League Hall of Fame (Hall FAMA), the “South of the Border” equivalent to Cooperstown.

You would think that Mario would be a good bunter but he received a zero bunting rating.  Those were the days when you kept a weak hitter on your roster just for defensive purposes.  That really doesn't happen with modern day players.

Real Life 1976 Pittsburgh Pirates Season

The real life 1976 Pirates were managed by Danny Murtaugh.  They finished the season with 92 wins and 70 losses.  Tragically Danny Murtaugh passed away after the 1976 season.  The great Pirates teams from the seventies continued their winning tradition but failed to win the division title finishing second to the Phillies.  The Pirates started out hot winning their first 5 games and also had a 10 game winning streak during the season.  Here is a link to the 1976 season results http://www.fanbase.com/Pittsburgh-Pirates-1976/schedule.  Here are some notable transactions that occurred during 1976.  

• June 8, 1976: Bob Long was drafted by the Pirates in the 24th round of the 1976 Major League Baseball Draft.^[5]
• July 2, 1976: Albert Williams was released by the Pirates.^[6]
• September 8, 1976: Ramón Hernández was purchased from the Pirates by the Chicago Cubs.^[7]

^{The biggest highlight of the season came when John Candelaria pitched a no-hitter against the Dodgers and I vividly remember watching the game on television.  Here is the boxscore:}
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/PIT/PIT197608090.shtml

The Pirates last day they were in first place during the 1976 season was April 25th.  Here is the Pirates record month by month for the season. 

Month by Month
Split	W	L	RS	RA	WP
April	8	8	64	72	.500
May	17	11	108	102	.607
June	16	10	133	116	.615
July	15	15	154	150	.500
August	16	13	110	94	.552
September	17	13	129	96	.567
October	3	0	10	0	1.000

^{Here is what the Pirates uniforms looked like in 1976}

Here is the Pirates roster from 1976:

1976 Pittsburgh Pirates roster
Roster
Pitchers 17 Doug Bair 45 John Candelaria 44 Larry Demery 31 Dave Giusti 36 Ramón Hernández 25 Bruce Kison 30 Rick Langford 32 Doc Medich 38 Bob Moose 41 Jerry Reuss 19 Jim Rooker 27 Kent Tekulve		Catchers  5 Duffy Dyer 14 Ed Ott 35 Manny Sanguillén Infielders  3 Richie Hebner 15 Tommy Helms 23 Ed Kirkpatrick 11 Mario Mendoza 12 Craig Reynolds  7 Bob Robertson  8 Willie Stargell  6 Rennie Stennett 10 Frank Taveras		Outfielders 46 Tony Armas 37 Miguel Diloné 18 Omar Moreno 16 Al Oliver 39 Dave Parker 28 Bill Robinson 22 Richie Zisk		Manager 40 Danny Murtaugh Coaches 43 Don Leppert 42 Don Osborn  2 José Pagán  4 Bob Skinner