Editor’s note: The 1980 Tournament games are being played with Strat-o-Matic cards and dice. The designated hitter will be used for any games involving American League teams. 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.
St. Louis broke open a tight contest in the fifth inning on the way to a 9-1 victory over the San Francisco Giants in the opening round of the 1980 National League Tournament.
The Cardinals scored four times in the fifth to oust Giants starter Vida Blue.
Keith Hernandez had a two-run single to to put the Cardinals on top before George Hendrick added a RBI double.
Tom Griffin replaced Blue on the mound and a sacrifice fly by Ted Simmons made it 4-0.
A lack of control by St. Louis starter Pete Vuckovich led to the only run by San Francisco in the sixth.
Vuckovich walked Jack Clark, Darrell Evans and Terry Whitfield to begin the frame.
John Littlefield was called from the St. Louis bullpen and he was greeted by a sacrifice fly by Milt May. The threat ended as Mike Ivie struck out and Johnnie LeMaster hit a fly ball to left.
The Cardinals had a power surge to add two more runs. Hendrick hit a solo homer in the seventh and then Garry Templeton had a blast in the eighth.
Griffin gave up a double to Simmons in the top of the ninth, which led to Gary Lavelle getting the call from Giants manager Dave Bristol to finish the inning.
Unfortunately for Lavelle, he surrendered a three-run double to Tony Scott as the Cardinals added to their advantage.
Vuckovich (1-0) went five innings to get the win, while Littlefield recorded 12 straight outs to earn a save.
Hendrick led the Cardinals with three hits, while LeMaster topped the Giants with a pair of doubles.
1980 AL Tournament
First Round Pairings and Results
(1) New York Yankees (103-59), bye
(8) Oakland Athletics 8, (9) Minnesota Twins 2
(13) California Angels 11, (4) Milwaukee Brewers 4
(5) Boston Red Sox 9, (12) Toronto Blue Jays 3
(2) Baltimore Orioles (100-62), bye
(7) Cleveland Indians 10, (10) Texas Rangers 8
(14) Seattle Mariners 6, (3) Kansas City Royals 1
(11) Chicago White Sox 5, (6) Detroit Tigers 1
Second Round Pairings
(8) Oakland Athletics at (1) New York Yankees
(13) California Angels at (5) Boston Red Sox
(7) Cleveland Indians at (2) Baltimore Orioles
(14) Seattle Mariners at (11) Chicago White Sox
1980 NL Tournament
First Round Pairings and Results
(1) Houston Astros (93-70), bye
(9) St. Louis Cardinals 9, (8) San Francisco Giants 1
(4) Montreal Expos (90-72), bye
(12) Chicago Cubs (64-98) at (5) Cincinnati Reds (89-73)
(2) Los Angeles Dodgers (92-71), bye
(10) San Diego Padres (73-89) at (7) Atlanta Braves (81-80)
(3) Philadelphia Phillies (91-71), bye
(11) New York Mets (67-95) at (6) Pittsburgh Pirates (83-79)