Apologies for not having video footage of this game – I actually do, but the quality is really, really poor. There are a few issues with video recording that I'm still working through.
Anyway, on to the recap, and with the league leaders hooking horns, it's time for a special edition of Baseball Tonight...
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Karl Ravech: Welcome to a special edition of RBI Baseball Tonight. I'm Karl Ravech, and I'm joined by Harold Reynolds and Peter Gammons. As we near the All-Star break, two teams in the Fantasy RBI League have pulled away from the pack – the Nimrods and the Stiffs. The Nimrods could pull into a tie for the lead as they played host to the undefeated Stiffs.
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Peter Gammons: This had a lot of big-game hype, and boy did it ever live up to it.
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KR: Well, let's get straight to the highlights. The Stiffs took a 1-0 lead in the second on Bob Brenly's RBI double. Now it's the top of the third, Hrbek and Joyner lead off with back to back singles. Jose Canseco at the plate and he crushes the ball...right at Bill Madlock at second, who fires to our own John Kruk...
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Harold Reynolds: Fatty...
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KR: to double up Hrbek at first. So, with two outs, Fernando Valenzuela gets John Morris to pop up to left field. An easy play for Tom Brunansky except....BOP, right off of his head!
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HR: It looks like he lost it in the sun. I know exactly what happened here – Brunansky's used to playing indoors, just like I was. He's not used to looking into the sun. That can make it tough to field. Of course, something like that never happened to me, because I had cool flip-up sunglasses.
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KR: So instead of being out of the inning, a suddenly tired Fernando has to face Jack Clark, and when Jack Clark's at the plate, good things happen. He rips a double to left – two runs score, and the floodgates opened up. Peter, you could just see that Fernando was gassed at this point.
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PG: Fernando flew in from Mexico, where he was pitching in a Mexican Southern Pacific Mid-Winter League game, and landed just before the first pitch. Plus, he threw more than 30 pitches in the first three innings. So you could see why he would be tired. Although, it's not like he had a tendon dangling from his ankle or anything...
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KR: Whatever the case, it would come back to haunt him. Brian Downing would single to knock in Clark, and then Bob Brenly again comes through, this time with a two-run shot. And just like that, it's 6-0.
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HR: And here, you got the feeling that maybe the rout would be on. This is usually where the Stiffs put people away.
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KR: But in the bottom of the third, Gary Gaetti would respond with a solo shot, and that seemed to wake up the Nimrods' bats. Five straight singles would lead to two more runs, and they would have the bases loaded with one out. But Bobby Ojeda would reach back and strike Bill Madlock out and get Kruk...
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HR: Tubby...
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KR:...to ground out to first to end the threat. Still, they closed the gap to 6-3, and you could see some confidence growing. But top of the fourth, and again a fielding mistake by the Nimrods opens the door. Bobby Ojeda leads off the inning with a weak grounder to second. It's fielded by Madlock, who throw to first, and Will Clark is?
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HR: Off having a smoke a guess...
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KR: Ojeda goes to second and brings up Hrbek...and he knocks to into the right field bleachers. Next batter is Wally Joyner – same result. Home run, and suddenly it's back to a six-run lead.
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PG: You can see from this shot of the owners' box that Nimrods owner Ultimate7 was not happy with the decision to leave Fernando in as long as they did.
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KR: But he'd be happier in the bottom of the fifth. One on for Tom Brunanaky, who redeems himself with a big home run. With two outs, Madlock doubles and he's knocked home by your friend, Harold, John Kruk.
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HR: He muscled that hit through on sheer girth.
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That brings up reliever Rick Reuschel, who hits a little grounder to second that...
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HR: Oopsie!
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KR: Did you just say "Oopsie?" Anyway, it gets past Grich at second, and then it gets past Canseco in right. As Limp Bizkit might say, it kept rollin', rollin', rollin' all the way to the wall as Reuschel scores an inside the park homer.
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PG: Are you still looking for a catchphrase. Because even I know that's terrible, and I don't even know what a Limp Bizkit is...
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HR: I hear you know a lot about a limp something else though...
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KR: Easy Harold, remember the FCC...Anyway, five runs score in the inning, and it's suddenly just a one-run lead for the Stiffs. But they would come back with a run each in the sixth and seventh. So it's the top of the eighth, Stiffs lead 11-8. Canseco doubles, and John Morris, who had been hitless until that point, comes through with a double to knock him home. Then, Jack Clark cleans house with a big fly – a two-run shot.
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PG: I talked to several big league GMs today, who all say that Jack Clark has the best swing in the game. They all think he would make an excellent hitting coach someday.
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KR: We'll keep that in mind. Downing would add a solo shot, and the lead is back up to 15-8. Again, you think maybe the Nimrods can come back again, but you don't expect something like this! The first five batters in the inning hit doubles, then Tim Lauder adds a single...
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HR: Slacker!
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KR: Now it's 15-13 with two on and one out for pinch-hitter Bill Doran, who hasn't done much all year...until now, when he whacks a three-run shot, and unbelievably, the Nimrods have a 16-15 lead! Then, after a Gaetti single, Andre Dawson adds a two-run shot, and going to the ninth, the Nimrods suddenly have an 18-15 lead.
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HR: This game was not for the faint of heart, and it wasn't for fans of defense and pitching, either.
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KR: So the Stiffs in a position they had never been in – trailing in the ninth. Could they respond against closer Jesse Orosco? How about a solo shot for pinch-hitter Chris Speier to lead off the inning? Hrbek follows up with a double, and then Joyner singles – but the throw to third is wild, and Hrbek scores – Joyner to third. Peter, as a Red Sox fan, tell us, did this look like a choke to you?
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PG: What? World Series ring, bitch. Choke on that!
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KR: Umm, well put, Peter...
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HR: DAMN! That was straight up gangsta sh...
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KR: FCC, Harold. Back to the action as Canseco doubles to knock in Joyner to tie the score. Morris singles, which brings up Jack Clark, who again delivers with a ringing single that scores Canseco with the go-ahead run. They have a chance to break it open now with two on and no outs. But Uncle Jesse uses his 67 years of experience to get out of it, striking out Downing and getting Brenly and Spilman to fly out. Still, the damage had been done.
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HR: We're watching the game, and after they failed to add to their lead with no one out, I said, "That's not going to be enough!"
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KR: That's funny, I remember that you were referring to the cheese you were putting on your nachos as we were watching the game when you said that. At any rate, bottom of the ninth, Tom Henke is out of the pen and it's the last chance for the Nimrods. Brunansky greets him with single on the first pitch, which brings up Tim Laudner....
Voice of John Miller: ..and of course, I didn't think I could eat a Monster Burger either, but I was...and there's a shot by Laudner, deep into left center field. Back, to the wall, and...it's a home run for Laudner. And the Nimrods have won the game 20-19, and I don't believe what I just saw! I don't believe it!
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KR: An amazing victory for the Nimrods as they climb into a first place tie with the Stiffs, but they right now have an edge in the head-to-head tiebreaker. As we sign off, we'll leave you with the box score of the game. Remember, we'll be back next week to announce the All-Star rosters. Thanks for joining us.
The Stiffs (5-1)
Batting:
Hrbek: 4-6, HR, 2B, 2 R, 2 RBI
Joyner: 4-6, 2 HR, 4 R, 2 RBI
Canseco: 3-6, 3 2B, 2 R, RBI
Jo. Morris: 2-6, 2B, 2 R, RBI
J. Clark: 4-6, HR, 2B, 3 R, 5 RBI
Downing: 3-6, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI, K
Brenly: 4-6, 2 HR, 2 2B, 2 R, 4 RBI
Grich: 1-5, 2B
(t9) Spilman: 0-1
Ojeda: 0-3, R, K
(b5) Cox: 0-1
(t9) Speier: 1-1, HR, R, RBI
Pitching:
Ojeda: 4 1/3 IP, 11 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 2 K
Cox: 2 2/3 IP, 9 H, 7 R, 7 ER
Robinson: 1 IP, 7 H, 6 R, 6 ER
Henke (L 2-1): 0 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER (Faced two batters in the ninth)
The Nimrods (5-1)
Batting:
Gaetti: 4-6, HR, 2 2B, 3 R, RBI
Sheridan: 2-6, 2B, 2 R, RBI
Dawson: 6-6, HR, 2 2B, 4 R, 3 RBI
W. Clark: 3-6, 2B, R, 2 RBI, K
Brunansky: 4-6, HR, 2B, 3 R, 4 RBI
Laudner: 4-6, HR, R, 2 RBI
Madlock: 1-5, 2B, 2 R, RBI, K
Kruk: 1-4, R, RBI
Valenzuela: 0-1
(b8) Garner: 1-1, R
(b4) Wilson: 1-1, 2B
(t5) Reuschel: 1-1,HR, R, 2 RBI
(b7) Leonard: 0-1
(b8) Doran: 1-1, HR, R, 3 RBI
Pitching:
Valenzuela: 4 IP, 11 H, 9 R, 6 ER, K
Reuschel: 3 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER
Kerfeld: 1 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 4 ER
Orosco (W 3-0): 1 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 2 ER, K
BAH HAH!! Awesome!
epic
This thread made my day, in many ways. One wouldn't think I'd be so concerned about by RBI WATCH Fantasy team, yet I am.
Then missed the Monster Burger comment the 1st time (because I was just following the game). Go back to reread it and have to leave my desk because people are starring at me for laughing.
Nice work USC.
What a game.... Andre Dawson 6-6, impressive...
A bit bummed that Spilman didn't come through, but he'll be back. Oh yeah, he will be back...
The suspense was unreal. What a game.
Great job, usc. Keep rollin' rollin' rollin'.
Forgotten in all the late-inning heroics is the performance of Reuschel out of the pen. Two runs allowed over three innings of work AND a two-run inside-the-park home run. Without him steadying things after Fernandomania got rocked, this game would have been called before The Nimrods had a chance to stage their late inning comback.
Big Daddy, nice work
Also great to see that my 2 genius special Stiffs substitions (Kruk and Sheridan) went 3-10, yet I won despite my tinkering.
Yeah, what was the deal with that? I was really suprised to see Kruk for Garner - Nails had been big for you all season.
I was testing some stuff, thought that Lefties would hit Ojeda better, in one of my Sim games Sheridan hit 2 shots off Ojeda.
shit. that sucks. can you switch morris and brenley in the lineup for next week. again great job fight on. i was devastated.