Editor’s note: Tournament games are played with Strat-o-Matic cards and dice. Three-man pitching rotations will be used for starting pitchers. Injuries are in-game only during this single elimination event.
The offense for the Boston Red Sox got rolling late on the way to a 7-2 victory over the Baltimore Orioles in the second round of the 1972 Strat-o-Matic Tournament.
With the win, the Red Sox are set to travel to Detroit to face the Tigers in the third round.
Carlton Fisk topped the Red Sox with three hits including a solo homer in the fifth inning off Baltimore starter Pat Dobson that broke open a scoreless affair.
Boston added two more runs in the sixth to build a 3-0 advantage thanks to a RBI singles by Reggie Smith and Rico Petrocelli as Dobson’s day came to an end.
In the seventh against Doyle Alexander, the Red Sox picked up a run on a RBI single by Tommy Harper and then added another on an error.
Baltimore finally got on the scoreboard against Boston starter Luis Tiant as Paul Blair knocked in a run with a triple and than scored on a single by Bobby Grich.
The Orioles weren’t finished as Boog Powell doubled off Roger Moret, but Bob Veale came on to fan Don Baylor to end the inning.
The Red Sox posted their final runs in the bottom of the eighth against Grant Jackson.
Dwight Evans tripled to bring home Fisk who had doubled. A pinch-hit double by Andy Kosco scored Evans.
Tiant (1-0) allowed four hits with three walks and five strikeouts to get the win, while Dobson (0-1) was tagged with the loss as he gave up five hits with a walk and seven strikeouts.
Marty Pattin gets the start for the Red Sox in Detroit as the Tigers counter with Joe Coleman.
1972 Tournament Schedule
Third Round Pairings
NL East Bracket
(2) Chicago Cubs at (1) Pittsburgh Pirates
AL East Bracket
(2) Boston Red Sox at (1) Detroit Tigers
Second Round Results and Pairings
NL East Bracket
(1) Pittsburgh Pirates 2, (4) St. Louis Cardinals 1
(2) Chicago Cubs 9, (6) Philadelphia Phillies 1
AL East Bracket
(1) Detroit Tigers 2, (5) Cleveland Indians 0
(2) Boston Red Sox 7, (3) Baltimore Orioles 2
AL West Bracket
(5) California Angels at (1) Oakland A’s
(3) Minnesota Twins at (2) Chicago White Sox
NL West Bracket
(4) Atlanta Braves at (1) Cincinnati Reds
(3) Los Angeles Dodgers at (2) Houston Astros
First Round Results
NL East Bracket
(1) Pittsburgh Pirates, bye
(4) St. Louis Cardinals 5, (5) Montreal Expos 3
(6) Philadelphia Phillies 3, (3) New York Mets 0
(2) Chicago Cubs, bye
AL East Bracket
(1) Detroit Tigers, Bye
(5) Cleveland Indians 7, (4) New York Yankees 0
(3) Baltimore Orioles 4, (6) Milwaukee Brewers 0
(2) Boston Red Sox, bye
AL West Bracket
(1) Oakland A’s, Bye
(5) California Angels 1, (4) Kansas City Royals 0
(3) Minnesota Twins 3, (6) Texas Rangers 0
(2) Chicago White Sox, bye
NL West Bracket
(1) Cincinnati Reds, Bye
(4) Atlanta Braves 4, (5) San Francisco Giants 1
(3) Los Angeles Dodgers 4, (6) San Diego Padres 2
(2) Houston Astros, bye