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Brewers 1982

Brewers 1982

Covering the Milwaukee Brewers throughout the 1982 season, in real-time, as it would have happpened.

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Ernie Whitt

The Doctor is Out, Brewers Lose

August 15 Leave a Comment

Blue Jays 3, Brewers 2
Brewers now 68-48 (1st by 4.5 games)
Box Score | Season Schedule

1982 Donruss Doc Medich
Doc Medich made his unimpressive Brewers debut.

MILWAUKEE — The Milwaukee Brewers couldn’t wait to get rid of Randy Lerch. He was removed from the rotation after a start on July 30. He made his last relief appearance on August 2nd. After a pretty decent spot start as part of a double header on August 12th, Lerch was sold to the Montreal Expos. Today, Doc Medich made his debut as Lerch’s replacement.

The verdict? Not impressive. He allowed only two runs through 5 1/3 innings, but the Blue Jays had six hits and walked six times. As a veteran arm, Medich is supposed to stabilize the bullpen. So far, not so good.

The play of the game was in the Brewers’ half of the sixth inning. After Ned Yost led off with a single, Paul Molitor came to the plate. He squared to bunt, pulled the bat back and slapped it down the third base line. Rance Mulliniks made a nice play to stab the ball and throw to second for the force. Damaso Garcia turned and fired to first. First base umpire Larry Barnett called him out. Manager Harvey Kuenn busted out of the dugout to argue the clear mistake, but to no avail. There were two outs and no one on.

Robin Yount then launched his 20th home run of the season over the left field wall. It was a solo shot to tie the game at two instead of giving the Brewers a 3-2 lead.

Jim Slaton, who relieved Medich in the top of the sixth, was terrific. For the first 2 2/3 innings of relief, Slaton didn’t allow a baserunner. Then, with Rollie Fingers unavailable with a sore pitching elbow, Slaton walked Alfredo Griffin to lead off the ninth. After a sacrifice bunt and a flyout, Ernie Whitt hit an RBI single with two outs for the eventual game winning run.

After winning the first three games of a five game series with the Blue Jays, the Brewers blew the final two. Suddenly, there are questions. Is Doc Medich the answer? Though Fingers’ injury is not thought to be serious, can this team win without him?

“At this point, we’ll stay with what we have,” Kuenn said in regards to the starting rotation. “You never can tell. Maybe we’ll make another deal.”

Only players with the team before August 31st are eligible for the postseason, so if a deal is going to be made it needs to be made soon. After seeing Medich today, one needs to be made soon.

The good news is that Fingers received a cortisone shot and is expected to be back for the Oakland series, which starts on August 17 following a day off.

Game Notes: The Boston Red Sox beat the Baltimore Orioles to pull back to within 4 1/2 games of the Brewers in the AL East. … Damaso Garcia was picked off for the third time in the series. … In the sixth inning, Cecil Cooper recorded a single, his 1,000th hit as a member of the Brewers. … Prior to the game, Jerry Miodzik of Port Edwards was named the winner of the Rollie Fingers Look-Alike Handlebar Mustache Contest. Fingers picked the winner from 11 finalists, and there were more than 600 entries from across the state. … Gorman Thomas hit his 32nd home run of the season.

Filed Under: Game Recap Tagged With: Alfredo Griffin, Blue Jays, Cecil Cooper, Damaso Garcia, Doc Medich, Ernie Whitt, Gorman Thomas, Harvey Kuenn, Jim Slaton, Ned Yost, Paul Molitor, Rance Mulliniks, Randy Lerch, Robin Yount, Rollie Fingers

Harvey’s Wallbangers Return in 7-4 Win

August 3 Leave a Comment

Brewers 7, Blue Jays 4
Brewers now 60-44 (1st by 1 game)
Box Score | Season Schedule

Rollie Fingers
Rollie Fingers shut the door with three nearly perfect innings.

TORONTO — The Brewers have scuffled of late, winning only six of their last 15 games coming into today. They needed an old fashioned “Harvey’s Wallbangers” revival. They got it.

Milwaukee got off to a quick start in the first inning as Robin Yount singled home Paul Molitor and Cecil Cooper homered off the right field foul pole for his 21st of the season to make it 3-0.

“I finally hit a ball hard,” Cooper, who had the top part of his right shoe cut off to relieve pressure on his ailing big right toe, said after the game. Coop isn’t the only one who has struggled with the bat of late.

This is a team, not too long ago, that was ahead of the record-setting pace of the 1961 New York Yankees for most home runs in a season. Entering today’s game, though, the Brewers had smacked only two long balls during the previous seven games. That changed today.

Following a 61-minute rain delay in the bottom of the first inning, Pete Vuckovich kept the Blue Jays scoreless for the first three innings. In the bottom of the third, catcher Ted Simmons launched his 16th home run of the season to make it 4-0 Brewers. Then Jim Gantner and Paul Molitor hit back to back RBI singles in the fourth to knock Jim Clancy from the game and make it a 6-0 Brewers lead.

Things got a little sticky for Vuke in the bottom of the fourth when the Blue Jays reached on five consecutive singles to make it a 6-3 game. Vuke survived, though, and was solid the rest of the way.

Paul Molitor capped the Brewers’ scoring in the top of the 7th with a solo home run to make it 7-3, and Blue Jay Ernie Whitt added one more Toronto run with a solo homer of his own in the bottom of the inning.

If it seems like Whitt has given Vuckovich trouble this season, you’re right. In 138 1/3 innings this season, Vuke has allowed only four home runs, but two of them were to Whitt. “He’s like Babe Ruth against me,” Vuckovich laughed.

Vuke was able to laugh because the Brewers held on for a full-team win. Closer Rollie Fingers took the mound in the 7th and pitched three scoreless innings, allowing only a bunt single, to collect his 24th save of the season, requiring only 29 pitches to do it.

Now that the Brewers are once again combining home run power with solid pitching, are Harvey’s Wallbangers back? “I hope it stays this way for the next month,” Kuenn said. “It kind of reminded me of June and July [when everything went right].”

The Red Sox split a double header with the Orioles, giving the Brewers a one game lead in the AL East.

Game Notes: Vuckovich had to be removed after the sixth inning because he was fatigued due to an 11-inning start against the Indians last time out.

Filed Under: Game Recap Tagged With: Blue Jays, Cecil Cooper, Ernie Whitt, Jim Clancy, Jim Gantner, Paul Molitor, Pete Vuckovich, Robin Yount, Rollie Fingers, Ted Simmons

Brewers Win Big on Opening Day

April 9 Leave a Comment

Box Score | Season Schedule

Ben Oglivie
Ben Oglivie came up big on Opening Day

TORONTO — I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a bit worried.

There’s no reason I should have been worried. The Blue Jays are an historically terrible franchise. The Brewers are one of the best teams in the American League, if not in baseball. But this is based on last season’s results.

We’ve waited six months, and when you wait six months you tend to drive yourself crazy. Did the Brewers make the right moves? Are they good enough to take the AL East? Might last season have been a mirage? What if they don’t get off to a good start? [Read more…] about Brewers Win Big on Opening Day

Filed Under: Game Recap Tagged With: Ben Oglivie, Blue Jays, Cecil Cooper, Ed Romero, Ernie Whitt, Jim Gantner, Larry Hisle, Mark Bomback, Pete Vuckovich, Robin Yount, Ted Simmons

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