Editor’s note: The 1960 Tournament games are being played with Strat-o-Matic cards and dice. Injuries will only be used during the game when they occur. For this tournament, the rules include a three-man pitching rotation using the best lineups available.
A second straight walk-off victory had the 1967 St. Louis Cardinals grabbing the championship trophy in the 1960s Diamond Gems Tournament.
Orlando Cepeda hammered a two-run homer in the bottom of the 10th inning sending the packed house of Cardinals fans in Busch Stadium into a wild frenzy after a 6-4 victory over the 1969 New York Mets.
Lou Brock singled off Mets reliever Tug McGraw to begin the frame. After Brock swiped second, McGraw got Curt Flood on a pop out and fanned Roger Maris to bring Cepeda to the plate.
With the knowledge that on-deck batter Tim McCarver‘s walk-off sacrifice fly in the semifinals punched the Cardinals ticket to the title affair, Mets manager Gil Hodges decided to let McGraw pitch to Cepeda. It turned out to be a decision Hodges would regret.
As loud as the Cardinals fans were at the end of the contest, they were the exact opposite in the top of the first inning as the Mets tagged St. Louis starter Bob Gibson with three runs to begin the game. Tommie Agee and Bud Harrelson both singled before Gibson struck out Cleon Jones. Donn Clendenon‘s three-run bomb silenced the crowd.
In the fourth, the Cardinals got on the scoreboard against Mets starter Tom Seaver as Brock singled, stole second and came home on a single by Flood to make it 3-1. St. Louis took a 4-3 lead in the sixth as Cepeda smacked a two-run triple and McCarver brought him home with a sacrifice fly.
Heading into the top of the ninth, the Cardinals were three outs away from celebrating when the Mets came to life against Gibson. With one out, Wayne Garrett singled before Jerry Grote was retired on a fly ball. Ken Boswell singled, which had Cardinals manager Red Schoendienst pacing in the dugout.
Hodges selected Art Shamsky to pinch-hit for Seaver and the lefty delivered a clutch single to tie the game. Ron Willis replaced an angry Gibson to record the final out.
Joe Hoerner (1-0) tossed a perfect top of the 10th to pick up the victory for the Cardinals. Gibson allowed nine hits and struck out six during his time on the mound.
McGraw (0-1) suffered the loss as he worked out of a jam in the bottom of the ninth before giving up the game-winner in the 10th. In his eight innings, Seaver gave up four hits and fanned seven.
Championship Game
1969 New York Mets at 1967 St. Louis Cardinals (10)
Semifinals
1969 New York Mets 2, 1960 Pittsburgh Pirates 1
1967 St. Louis Cardinals 6, 1967 Boston Red Sox 5 (15)
Second Round Results
1960 Pittsburgh Pirates 4, 1961 New York Yankees 2
1969 New York Mets 3, 1968 St. Louis Cardinals 0
1967 Boston Red Sox 9, 1965 Los Angeles Dodgers 5
1967 St. Louis Cardinals 5, 1966 Baltimore Orioles 4
First Round Results
1961 New York Yankees 12, 1962 New York Mets 2
1960 Pittsburgh Pirates 3, 1969 Baltimore Orioles 0
1969 New York Mets 3, 1961 Cincinnati Reds 0
1968 St. Louis Cardinals 3, 1963 Los Angeles Dodgers 2
1967 Boston Red Sox 2, 1968 Detroit Tigers 1
1965 Los Angeles Dodgers 6, 1962 San Francisco Giants 0
1967 St. Louis Cardinals 2, 1961 Detroit Tigers 1
1966 Baltimore Orioles 2, 1965 Minnesota Twins 1 (11)