Editor’s note: How good were the 1975 Cincinnati Reds? The best way to end the speculation is to challenge the team with a 162-game season against some great teams. This is a series that will include each game played with the Strat-o-Matic cards and dice, while hoping to reach the 108-54 record that the Reds had that season. Game stories will be published periodically on Press Room Pass through out the year. What’s your predicted victory total?
Montreal’s Steve Renko used his arm and a big bat to help the Expos to a 7-1 victory over the Cincinnati Reds at Riverfront Stadium.
Renko left the mound with two outs in the eighth, but the hard work had already been finished as Dale Murray got the final four outs to give the Expos the victory. Renko gave up seven hits with six strikeouts, while allowing a solo homer by Tony Perez in the seventh.
The Expos took a 2-0 lead in the top of the second on a RBI double by Pepe Frias and a sacrifice fly by Renko.
Mike Jorgensen blasted a two-run homer off Gary Nolan in the third and the Expos led 4-0.
Nolan (11-8) was done after giving up two hits to begin the fifth as Frias added a RBI for Montreal in the inning. It was 5-0 after Frias connected for a single off Reds reliever Clay Kirby.
In the sixth, Cincinnati’s Clay Carroll took over the pitching duties and with two outs Renko smacked a solo homer to make it 6-1.
After the Reds picked up a run in the seventh thanks to Perez, it was Renko’s second sacrifice fly of the affair in the eighth that ended the scoring.
In the middle contest of the three-game set, the Reds send Fred Norman (10-9) to the mound to face Montreal’s Woodie Fryman.
National League Standings
(Records involve games only with Reds)
East Division
1971 Pirates (3-2)
1969 Mets (7-5)
2016 Cubs (3-4)
1975 Expos (3-7)
1967 Cardinals (1-4)
2008 Phillies (2-10)
West Division
1954 Giants (7-4)
1975 Reds (71-43)
2017 Astros (5-8)
1957 Braves (4-7)
1981 Dodgers (5-9)
1975 Padres (3-11)