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.
It took three and a half games, but Baltimore’s offense finally exploded in the 1980 championship series.
The end result of the fourth game was a 12-3 victory by the Orioles in Veterans Stadium to even the best of seven affair against the Philadelphia Phillies.
Phillies starter Steve Carlton was dominant through four innings. He gave up a single in the first to John Lowenstein and fanned five before things would go in the wrong direction in the fifth.
Greg Luzinski‘s two-run homer off Baltimore starter Steve Stone had the Philadelphia fans ready for their team two take a 3-1 lead in the series, but it wouldn’t happen as the Orioles would send 11 batters to the plate and score six times to oust Carlton.
Doug DeCinces led off the fifth with a solo homer for and Gary Roenicke followed with a double as the Orioles began to stir things up.
After Carlton retired Rich Dauer and Rick Dempsey on ground outs, Mark Belanger‘s infield single put runners at first and third to set the stage for Al Bumbry.
Bumbry’s RBI single tied it at 2-2 before Carlton walked Lowenstein to load the bases. Ken Singleton ended Carlton’s day with a two-run single that gave the Orioles a 4-2 advantage.
Kevin Saucier was called in from the Phillies bullpen by manager Dallas Green and it turned out to be the wrong move as he gave up RBI singles to Eddie Murray and DeCinces, who picked up his second hit of the frame. Saucier ended the inning as he got Roenicke to pop out.
Both teams added a run in the seventh.
Bumbry and Lowenstein had back-to-back triples for the Orioles, while Bob Boone‘s sacrifice fly produced Philadelphia’s final tally.
In the eighth, Lowenstein had his third hit of the game with a RBI single off Dickie Noles.
The Phillies added four more runs in the ninth off Noles and Lerrin LaGrow. Roenicke tagged a two-run blast off Noles before Bumbry’s two-run triple off LaGrow capped the contest for the Orioles.
In game five, the Phillies will have rookie Marty Bystrom (1-0) on the mound as they wrap up the contests in Veteran’s Stadium. Scott McGregor (0-1) gets the ball for the Orioles.
Championship Series Schedule
Game 1 – Philadelphia 8, Baltimore 1
Game 2 – Philadelphia 9, Baltimore 2
Game 3 – Baltimore 3, Philadelphia 0
Game 4 – Baltimore 12, Philadelphia 3
Game 5 – Baltimore (McGregor, 0-1) at Philadelphia (Bystrom, 1-0)
Game 6 – Philadelphia (Ruthven, 0-1) at Baltimore (Palmer, 1-0)
# Game 7 – Philadelphia (Carlton, 1-1) at Baltimore (Stone, 1-1)
# if needed