Gorman Thomas

Brewers Lose, Down 2-1

Cardinals 6, Brewers 2
Cardinals now lead World Series 2-1
Box Score | Season Schedule

MILWAUKEE — I should have felt good about the fact that the Brewers were leaving St. Louis tied at a game apiece. After all, they say that all you need is one in that situation. But there was something about losing a game that should have been won that bothered me. I had a bad feeling that, even though the Brewers had stolen home field advantage, losing that second game would haunt them.

Exhibit A is tonight’s game. Back in Milwaukee, in front of the home crowd, you’d expect the Brewers to go up two games to one. Particularly with the leading American League Cy Young candidate, Pete Vuckovich, on the mound.

But things didn’t go as planned in this 6-2 loss to the Cardinals. Vuke only allowed six hits in 8 2/3 innings. He didn’t allow a single hit to the first three batters in the Cardinals’ lineup, and the top five went a combined 1-for-19. You’d expect that this would be the reflection of a win, in a typical game. But this game was not typical.

First and foremost, Joaquin Andujar owned Brewers batters. While Harvey’s Wallbangers haven’t been owned consistently of late, they certainly haven’t been banging walls with regularity either. But Andujar kept the bats silent all night long.

It wasn’t until a Ted Simmons liner knocked Andujar out of the game in the seventh that the Brewers’ offense started to see life. His rocket struck Andujar in the right knee, and the pitcher writhed in pain on the ground until he was finally replaced.

“I was just glad it didn’t get Andujar in the head or some place where it would hurt him real bad,” said Simmons. “You don’t say, ‘Wow, I knocked him out of the game. Oh goody for us.’ It’s not like that at all. You hope the guy isn’t hurt.”

It certainly wasn’t “goody for us.” The Brewers squandered a major opportunity that inning, loading the bases on four Cardinals pitchers before closer Bruce Sutter ended the inning on a Charlie Moore pop-out caught on the top dugout step.

The Brewers would finally break through on a two-out, two-run homer by Cecil Cooper in the eighth. But other than that, nothing.

That doesn’t mean we let Vuke off the hook. He’s supposed to be our Cy Young candidate, after all. And when you are supposedly one of the best pitchers in the American League, you should be up to any challenge. Well, he lost his last big game of the regular season to the Orioles. He lost one game to the Angels in the ALCS and got no decision in the other. And today, he lost again.

But it wasn’t the top of the order that got to Vuke. It was the bottom. And most specifically, it was rookie Willie McGee. In a scoreless game in the fifth, McGee hit a three run homer. McGee, if you did not know, had four regular season home runs. But because of his bomb, the Brewers were down 3-0.

McGee then came to bat again in the seventh. The result? Another homer to give the Cardinals a 5-0 lead. It’s tough to explain.

“A guy hits four home runs all year,” Vuke would say, “you won’t expect him to hit two in a game. But he did.”

McGee wasn’t done torturing the Brewers. With Oglivie on first after an error by Keith Hernandez, Gorman Thomas launched what appeared to be a home run to center field. But McGee raced back, leaped at the wall, and pulled it back in.

Ridiculous.

The Cardinals scored their last run when Vuke pitched around light-hitting Ozzie Smith with the bases loaded and walked in a run in the ninth.

“I tried to get him to fish inside. He didn’t fish,” explained Vuke.

Unacceptable. Why in the world do you need to get a guy with no bat like Smith to fish? Just throw him a strike, Vuke. He can’t hurt you. It’s painful.

Honestly, I don’t know who needs to pay for this loss. Pete Vuckovich is certainly at the top of the list. I’m tired of defending him as a Cy Young caliber pitcher when he can’t pitch close to that caliber in the postseason. That said, we’ve been drooling over this offense all season long, and they are giving us little to be excited about of late.

Paul Molitor, who had five hits in Game 1, went 0-for-4 in Game 3. Robin Yount, the likely regular season MVP, went 0-for-3. Ben Oglivie went 0-for-4 to lower his postseason average to .111. Gorman Thomas went 1-for-4 and actually raised his postseason average to .115.

Oh, and the defense committed three more errors leading to two unearned runs.

It’s frustrating. It’s frustrating to know how fortunate this team is to be in the World Series right now considering how poorly they’ve played overall. And it’s frustrating to sense that if they’d play even average baseball, they’d be up three games to none. But instead, they’re down two to one.

But I’m just a passionate, overreacting fan. Sure, it’s just one game. And they may win the next three. But it’s painful to watch the Brewers under perform, and they did so in every facet of the game on this night.

What do you think? Is it too early to panic?

Brewers Blow Lead, Game 2

October 13 2 Comments

Cardinals 5, Brewers 4
World Series now tied 1-1
Box Score | Season Schedule

Don Sutton allowed four runs with two outs.

ST. LOUIS — Up one game to none on the Cardinals, the Brewers had a chance to stomp on their opponents’ throats with a win before going back to Milwaukee for two, maybe three games. Instead, they blew such an opportunity by blowing a three-run lead and falling to the Cardinals 5-4 tonight.

With the series tied at 1-1, now it will be three games in Milwaukee.

Early on, it appeared the Brewers would continue the dominance that led to a 10-0 opening win on Tuesday by whooping on starter John Stuper. Charlie Moore hit an RBI double in the second inning, and two more runs were scored in the third on a Robin Yount groundout and Ted Simmons‘ second homer of the series.

All was going the Brewers’ way. After two and a half innings, Milwaukee had scored three runs, and the Cardinals had yet to touch home plate in the series. Don Sutton had yet to allow a baserunner. But then, with two down in the third, Tommy Herr smacked an RBI double and Ken Oberkfell laced a single to right just out of reach of a diving Jim Gantner to make it a 3-2 game.

There are moments in a series that immediately strike you as pivotal. This was one of those such moments. If Sutton gets that third out, the Brewers hold a 3-0 lead and maintain their stranglehold of the series. Instead, the Cardinals score their first runs and gain confidence.

The Brewers would score one more run on a Cecil Cooper single in the fifth to make it a 4-2 Brewers lead. But the Cardinals kept battling.

Porter’s two-out, two-run double in the sixth was a crushing blow.

Again with two down, former Brewer Darrell Porter hit a two-run double down the left field line that tied the game in the sixth. Why was the third out so difficult to secure? It cost the Brewers this game.

By all accounts, Pete Ladd was the Brewers’ MVP of the ALCS, and they needed him in a key spot of a tie game in the eighth. With one down, Bob McClure had put two Cardinals runners on. To this point, Ladd had retired all 10 batters he had faced in the playoffs.

The World Series may be a different story. Ladd delivered a letters-high fastball on a 3-2 count to NL MVP candidate Lonnie Smith, the first batter he faced, that was called a ball to load the bases.

“Did you see the big smile on my face heading down to first?” a knowing Smith asked after the game.

Ladd then walked the second batter, journeyman Steve Braun, on four pitches to bring in the go-ahead and eventual winning run.

“It rattled me,” Ladd admitted. “It shouldn’t have. This is not the time to get rattled. But it did rattle me. I was upset, not at myself but at the umpire.”

Inexplicable. But understandable, considering Ladd is an untested young pitcher. Rollie Fingers would have been perfect in this position.

Oh, yeah. So wasn’t Rollie available?

“Rollie was well enough to pitch,” said Kuenn, “and no, I didn’t consider using him. I’ve used Rollie when we’re ahead, not in tie situations or when we’re losing.”

It’s starting to sound like a bluff, Harvey. This is when the Brewers needed their best pitcher on the mound. And Rollie’s comments didn’t help verify Harvey’s claim.

“I couldn’t have pitched today,” said Fingers. “I’m a little stiff from not pitching for a month, not from the injury. It’s like the fifth or sixth day of Spring Training.”

I came into this hoping the Brewers would win one of two in St. Louis. After yesterday’s win, I wanted two but didn’t need it. I was fine with a loss here.

But not like this. The Brewers had this game. The Cardinals scored four with two outs and the final was a gift. The Cardinals didn’t win Game 2, the Brewers lost it. And that’s not how you win a World Series.

“Of course we would have liked to have won two,” said Kuenn, “but I’m not worried.”

Apparently not. Or you would have used Fingers.

On the bright side, Cecil Cooper had three hits to break out of his playoff funk. Gorman Thomas, however, went hitless to drop his playoff batting average below .100.

At some point, we may need to accept that Gorman simply isn’t himself on one leg. If Thomas isn’t going to hit, you don’t lose anything by putting Marshall Edwards out there. Or you can roll the dice by putting Moore or Oglivie in center and Mark Brouhard in one of the corners. I love Gorman, but he’s half of a player right now.

What do you think? Should the Brewers bench Gorman Thomas? And how big was this loss?

Brewers Crush Cardinals

October 12 1 Comment

Brewers 10, Cardinals 0
Brewers lead World Series 1-0
Box Score | Season Schedule

Mike Caldwell pitched a complete game shutout

ST. LOUIS — The Brewers came into Game 1 of the World Series against the St. Louis Cardinals wanting to change some bad habits. In both the ALCS with the Angels and quasi-playoff series with the Orioles to end the season, the Brewers lost Game 1. On the road, they lost both games 8-3.

Oh, they changed. They changed in a big way. The Brewers squashed any doubts about how power might fare against speed in a truly dominating 10-0 win over the Cardinals in front of their home fans.

It was a huge win for the Brewers. It set a tone that they will be in control of this series from the beginning. And by winning the first game in St. Louis, the Cardinals already have their backs up against the wall. A second loss tomorrow, and you can pretty much chalk up a championship for the Brew Crew.

Gotta admit, I wasn’t particularly confident about this game. Not only due to the team’s recent history and that the game was in St. Louis, but that Mike Caldwell was on the mound.

Sure, Caldwell won 17 games this season, and was this team’s iron man throwing 258 innings. But he also looked gassed as a result, losing the second game against the Orioles and that first game against the Angels. Over his previous two starts, Caldwell went a combined 10 innings pitched, allowing 12 earned runs on 13 hits. He was a human pinata on the mound.

But Harvey Kuenn has pushed all of the right buttons this season, and he saw that his veteran hurler wasn’t right. Caldwell was skipped in the rotation in favor of Moose Haas for Game 4 of the ALCS, and maybe all he needed was some rest. He certainly looked well rested tonight.

Caldwell pitched a complete game shutout, allowing only three hits and one walk to the baffled Cardinals batters. Two of those hits were in the eighth inning, so his dominance over those other eighth innings was truly remarkable.

“Right at the start,” said catcher Ted Simmons, “he was throwing it right on the outside corner and he was painting the black.”

The Cardinals never had a chance.

But the Brewers brought an all-around attack to Game 1. They committed four errors as a defense in Game 5 of the ALCS and eight total in the series. But their glovemen sparkled in the field on this day without a defensive misstep.

Paul Molitor set a World Series record with five hits.

And of course, you can’t talk about the Milwaukee Brewers without mentioning their offense, though they’ve admittedly been absent over the course of much of the past couple of weeks. They came after the Cardinals with 10 runs on 17 hits, never letting up until the final bell. The Brewers scored four in the ninth just for good measure.

One of the issues with the Brewers of late has been early scoring. The opposition has been taking the early lead, often leading to a Brewers loss (the team scoring the first run has won eight of the last 10 games). The Brewers put two on the board in the first inning today, thanks largely to a Keith Hernandez error with two outs, and never looked back.

Paul Molitor was the team’s star on offense, setting a World Series record with five hits, all singles. Three of the hits never made it out of the infield and another was a broken bat job.

“It’s the first time I have had three infield hits in a game,” said Molitor. “It wasn’t pretty.”

No, but they’ll look like line drives in the history books.

Robin Yount nearly matched him, collecting four hits, including a double. Before Molitor had broken the World Series record for hits in a game in the ninth, Yount and Molitor had each tied the old record with four.

“I had no idea,” said Yount. I’m still not swinging the bat that well. The ball just happened to go where the fielders weren’t.”

The top two batters have led the Brewers’ offense all season long. On this day, they went a combined 9-for-12 with two runs scored and four RBI. An incredible performance.

While others certainly contributed on offense (Ted Simmons, Charlie Moore and Jim Gantner all had two hits), there is reason for concern once you peel away the numbers. Offensive stars Cecil Cooper, Ben Oglivie and Gorman Thomas went a combined 1-for-12, and all hit close to .100 during the postseason. These three must get going for the Brewers to be successful in this series.

Despite all of their flaws, the Milwaukee Brewers are in prime position to win this World Series. Win Game 2, and all they need to do is win two of three at home. It’s that easy.

Know Thy Enemy

October 12 1 Comment

FingersSI — Can Rollie return? It could make the difference in the Series.

ST. LOUIS — We know the Tigers. We know the Sox, both Red and White. We know the Yankees, the Orioles and the Angels. We know those teams are not as good as the Milwaukee Brewers, American League Champions for 1982.

But what about the St. Louis Cardinals? What do we know about the Crew’s newest enemies and champions of the National League?

We know they went 92-70 to win the NL East and swept the Braves in the NLCS. (Seriously, how cool would it have been to kick the snot out of the Braves, the team that broke Milwaukee’s heart after the 1965 season?)

The Cards won’t bludgeon you to death as they were last in the NL in home runs (67). But they were second in batting average (.264) and first in on base percentage (.334). They have excellent team speed (200 stolen bases led the league by 35), excellent defense and above average pitching.

Thanks to the powerful KMOX, upon which Jack Buck’s voice rolls like thunder across the plains, the Cards have fans across the deep South and as far west as Colorado. The 50,000-watt mega-station has fascinated generations of Cards fans. While the Cardinals faithful have been rewarded with eight World Series titles, they’ve been waiting longer than Brewers fans as the Cards haven’t won a championship since 1967. Not as bad as the Cubs (1908) or those cheaters on the South Side (1917), but long enough.

So, the scene is set. Game 1 is tonight in the Gateway City at the cookie-cutter craphole with plastic grass known as Busch Stadium.

Lineups will be forthcoming, but let’s look at the potential positional matchups for the series.

FIRST BASE
Cecil Cooper vs. Keith Hernandez

Hernandez is one of the finer first basemen in either league. He hit .299, walked 100 times and drove in 94 runs. He’s won four straight Gold Gloves. He’ll probably win a fifth this season. Crew fans know Coop, a hero for driving in the two runs to win Game 5 of the ALCS. Cooper is more of a run producer than Hernandez, driving in more than 100 (121) for the third time in four seasons and has won two consecutive Silver Slugger awards. His .313 average and 32 dingers aren’t half bad either. He’s not the defensive wizard Hernandez is, however.

Advantage: Push.

SECOND BASE
Jim Gantner vs. Tommy Herr

Herr, the Cardinals’ leadoff hitter, hit .266 and struck out (56) almost as often as he walked (57). He isn’t much of a table setter, but Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog has stuck with him at the top of the order most of the season. Gantner is all guts and guile. It is interesting, though, Gantner, who bats ninth in the Brewers’ order, hit .295 and had one more hits (132) than Herr this season. Gumby doesn’t walk much, but then again, what Brewer does? Both can hold their own on defense.

Advantage: Gantner

SHORTSTOP
Robin Yount vs. Ozzie Smith

Smith is the best defensive shortstop of his generation and gathers Gold Gloves like he does routine grounders. In his first season as a Card, he vacuumed the Busch Stadium carpet like a Hoover, committing only 13 errors. Yet, he can’t hit a lick (.248) and has power to no fields. And then there’s Yount. He isn’t the fielder Smith is, but then Smith couldn’t lift Robin’s bat. We’re talking about the American League MVP here, people. His season was historic. The Kid is The Man.

Advantage: Yount

THIRD BASE
Paul Molitor vs Ken Oberkfell

Oberkfell hit .289 from the eighth spot in the lineup. He doesn’t walk much, he doesn’t steal much, he doesn’t hit for power. Molly is “The Ignitor,” led the American League with 136 runs and is one of the best base runners in all of baseball. Oberkfell made only 11 errors at the hot corner, while Molly made 29, but his bat more than makes up for his deficiency in the field.

Advantage: Molitor

LEFT FIELD
Ben Oglivie vs Lonnie Smith

Smith led the National League in runs, stole 68 bases and hit .307. He is the engine for St. Louis’ small ball attack. Former Brewers and now Mets manager George Bamberger (Bambi!) has this to say about Smith: “You must keep him off base. A walk, a single or an error is as good as a double for him, because he is a prime base-stealer.” Duly noted. Oglivie can mash (34 homers in ’82) and drive ’em home (102), but doesn’t hit for average (.244), didn’t hit well against the Angels and has bruised ribs.

Advantage: Smith

CENTER FIELD
Gorman Thomas vs. Willie McGee

This position (and left field as well) show the yin and the yang of this World Series matchup: Harvey’s Wallbangers vs. Whitey’s Speed Demons. We all love Stormin’ Gorman, his disheveled look and his complete lack of regard for his body, which he throws around the outfield with abandon. Which is why he’s hobbled by a bum knee heading into the series. He hits homers (his 39 tied for the AL lead this season), he drives in runs (112) and strikes out a lot (143). McGee, a switch-hitting rookie, walks faster than Thomas runs and when McGee runs, watch out. He’s lightning on the paths and stole 24 bases in 36 attempts. What’s scary is he’s still learning the game.

Advantage: McGee

RIGHT FIELD
Charlie Moore vs. George Hendrick

Both men have powerful arms. You can ask Reggie Jackson’s about Moore’s. Hendrick can hit. Moore barely can.

Advantage: Hendrick

CATCHER
Ted Simmons vs. Darrell Porter

Simmons broke in with the Cards, who traded him — along with Pete Vuckovich and Rollie Fingers — to the Brewers before the ’81 season. You can imagine how much he wants to win this series. He can hit with power from either side of the plate, but may be the slowest human being ever. Porter is a former Brewer who handles pitchers well and can get hot, but normally he won’t set the World (Series) on fire.

Advantage: Simmons

PITCHING

Neither team has a dominant strikeout artist like a Nolan Ryan or a mesmerizer such as Steve Carlton, but they both have adequate rotations. Joaquin Andujar and Bob Forsch each won 15, the most on the Cards. Andujar was the better of the two with a 2.47 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP. Vuckovich led the Crew with 18 wins and Caldwell won 17. Caldwell was a horse with 12 complete games. Don Sutton was a great late addition to the rotation and should help the Crew. The bullpens are adequate, but the Cards have the advantage with Bruce Sutter over Pete Ladd, despite Ladd’s ALCS heroics. There are rumors that Rollie Fingers may — may — be available for the World Series.

Advantage: If Fingers can pitch, Crew; if not, push

OFFENSE

Speed vs. power. Running from station to station or jogging around the bases after a three-run homer. These are as different as two offenses get. The Cards hit 67 home runs all season. Robin Yount and Cecil Cooper combined to hit 61. The thing about the Crew is they have power (216 homers) and speed at the top of the lineup (Molly had 41 steals). They can pretty much beat you every which way.

Advantage: Brewers

DEFENSE

The Brewers aren’t exactly ham-handed in the field, but they’re not the Cardinals. Few teams are. Granted, it’s easier to pick clean a grounder off of turf, but then again, balls get through more quickly on the plastic grass. The Cardinals’ range is far better than the Brewers. Ozzie Smith and Keith Hernandez anchor a stellar defensive infield and the outfielders have great speed.

Advantage: Cardinals

MANAGERS
Harvey Kuenn vs. Whitey Herzog

Again, depends on which style you prefer. Herzog pushes buttons. Kuenn let’s ’em play. As much as I like, nay, love Harvey, in the World Series, you probably need someone who can make a shrewd move or 10.

Advantage: Herzog

BEER
Miller and Pabst vs. Budweiser

Like we’d pick anything else. Plus, Miller Lite commercials are the best.

Advantage: Milwaukee

CONCLUSION

We’re Brewers fans, of course, and we want the Crew to capture its first series win. But will they? We say yes. With comparable pitching and a quick-to-score, and downright frightening offense, Harvey’s Wallbangers will bring Milwaukee its first world championship since 1957 in six games.

Quotes from the American League Champs

October 10 Leave a Comment

The following quotes were taken by the Milwaukee Sentinel on the field and in the clubhouse following the Milwaukee Brewers’ 4-3 win over the California Angels today to advance to the World Series. Recap of the game can be found here.

Cecil Cooper on seventh inning hit: “When I walked up there all I could think about was getting another chance. You have to go up there thinking about staying under control, going the other way. I thought I might see (left hander Andy) Hassler in that situation.”

Cecil Cooper: “I’m just so excited I got a base hit and we won. It took me away from being a goat.”

Cecil Cooper: “For a minute I thought it would be caught because when you hit line drives they have a tendency to hang, especially with the wind blowing in like it was. I was motioning for it to go down. It got down.”

Jim Gantner on scoring go-ahead run: “I think I flew most of the way home. When Cecil walked up there, I had a feeling he was going to get a hit and I knew I was going to score from second. I had already made up my mind that I was going to score.”

Bob McClure on Marshall Edwards’ eighth inning catch of Don Baylor fly ball: “I thought it was out when he hit it. I just stood on the mound and said stay in, stay in and then I saw it go in his glove.”

Marshall Edwards: “I knew I had to jump. You know how tall I am.”

Harvey Kuenn: “We haven’t done things easy all year and that was just another example of it.”

Pete Ladd, who saved the game: “Pure ecstasy. I don’t ever think I’ve ever jumped for joy like that when I saw the ball hit Cecil’s glove. I didn’t care who was up in that situation. I wanted the ball in that kind of an opportunity. I’ve faced (Carew) three times now, and I’ve gotten him out three times. I’m sure in the future he’ll get his hits off me, and that’s fine – as long as he didn’t get one in that situation.”

Charlie Moore on his throw to nail Reggie Jackson at third in the fifth inning: “It turned out to be a big play because it kept them from scoring another run. Inside I was cheering myself on.”

Bob McClure on throwing one pitch to Reggie Jackson in the eighth: “I wasn’t even trying to get him to hit into a double play. I was trying to get a strikeout and see what would happen to the next hitter (Lynn). But it worked out.”

Paul Molitor: “I think what happened today typifies t he character of this team. Today was a great example. We were down, but not out. We came back.”

Pete Vuckovich, on if the Brewers are invincible: “That’s a heavy word. There are too many good teams and good players for anyone to be invincible. But we’re a very confident team. I’m so proud to be a part of this unit.”

Cecil Cooper on tagging Bob Grich with an empty glove: “I didn’t argue. I knew I had made a bone headed play. I simply panicked. Realized I couldn’t reach him with the ball in my bare hand, so I tried to do it that way. I turned to Bobby at first base and told him I screwed up. And I told the guys when I got to the dugout, ‘Just give me another chance to redeem myself.'”

Bud Selig, on comparing this win to final day win against Orioles: “I don’t know. Last weekend was gut wrenching. I’ve never been filled with such anxiety. I called it an ordeal. That’s what it was.”

Bud Selig, pointing to swarming fans on the field: “Look at that scene. That makes it worth it. It’s like living a dream.”

Paul Molitor: “One of the more gratifying things has been playing for Mr. Selig. Some of it goes back to Baltimore last week when he told us ‘win or lose’ he was proud of us. That’s why it was so great to go full cycle and win it for him.”

Harvey Kuenn, on his pick for ALCS MVP (Fred Lynn won it): “Why, I would have to pick Pete Ladd. And why would you have to say why?”

Pitching coach Pat Dobson on Ladd: “When he came here (July 15) he was a one pitch pitcher. He had no slider. But he’s very easy to instruct. He learned the slider and it’s helped him 100%. It’s a pitch he needed for his career.”

Rollie Fingers on Ladd: “What he did was no surprise to me. If he has his control you know he’ll be ok. This just goes to show you that one guy doesn’t win it for you.”

Don Sutton on Harvey Kuenn: “The man is like a conductor of an orchestra. He can’t play a single instrument but he sure blends everyone else together. He’s much like Walter Alston. He doesn’t believe people come to watch manager’s manage. He believes they come to see the players play.”

Harvey Kuenn: “Words can’t express how I feel. I’ve had a lot of thrills in this game, and this is the biggest of my whole life. This is a club molded of 25 guys and coaches. Everybody loves everybody else. They don’t care who gets the winning hit or who’s the winning pitcher as long as we win.”

Ben Oglivie: “We knew we couldn’t give up. We knew we had to be stalwart. We’ve had to fight a continuing battle all year. This club always battles.”

Gorman Thomas: “I could care less about my knee right now. I’m going to go out and get smoked tonight.”

Charlie Moore on his dance in right field: “I couldn’t stand still. I guess when you’ve never been there before, you don’t know how to react. I guess I kind of reacted stupidly. But there are no regrets. Not one regret.”

Brewers are World Series Bound!

October 10 2 Comments

Brewers 4, Angels 3
Brewers win ALCS 3-2
Box Score | Season Schedule

Brewers fans storm the field after Game 5 win

MILWAUKEE — Down two games to none just a few days ago, the Brewers had little hope of a World Series. Today, as I stand on the County Stadium infield with Pete Ladd‘s cap in my hand, the fans finally trickling back into the stands, we can say it: The Milwaukee Brewers are American League Champions.

Yes, after yet another heart-stopping, come-from-behind performance on Sunday, the Brewers beat the Angels 4-3 to advance to the World Series against either the Atlanta Braves or St. Louis Cardinals (the Cardinals lead two games to none and play tonight in Atlanta).

Declaring that baseball is a “game of inches” may be cliche, but today’s pennant deciding game was a prime example. There were several plays and non-plays, bounces of chance and clutch displays of amazing skill that led us to this celebratory stage. The game may have lasted three hours and one minute, but it was boiling over with memorable moments to last a lifetime. Let’s break it down…

Defense Early
Poor defense could have played the Brewers out of the game early, committing four errors in the first four innings.

With one out in the first and a runner on second, Reggie Jackson hit a liner at Molitor, who made a nice diving catch. However, Molitor then tried to make a quick throw to second to double up Downing, but no one was covering and the throw hit Downing on the helmet. The errant throw allowed Downing to move to third. The next batter, Fred Lynn, continued to destroy Brewers pitching by hitting a line drive base hit into left field that Oglivie misplayed. His error allowed Lynn to move to second. While allowing Lynn to move up wasn’t damaging (he would not score), Oglivie may have had a shot at Downing at home if not for the combination of the two errors. Frankly, the Brewers were lucky to allow only one run in the first.

With a runner on second and no one out in the fourth, Bobby Grich laid down a bunt towards first. Cecil Cooper picked it up, pulled the ball out of his glove and tagged Grich, who was moving into foul territory to avoid the tag. The problem was that Cooper was holding the ball in his bare hand and tagged Grich with an empty glove. Grich was initially called out, but after the Angels complained, home plate umpire Don Denkinger reversed the call and California had runners at the corners with no one out. Cooper did not tag Grich, this is true. The actual question is whether Grich ran outside of the baseline to avoid the tag. Regardless, it was ruled a sacrifice and an error on Cooper.

It would be a costly error. After Foli popped out to Cooper for the first out, Bob Boone executed his second squeeze bunt of the series to score DeCinces from third. While Boone would be safe on the play, it’s unlikely the Angels attempt a squeeze bunt had Grich been tagged out, making it two outs with Boone at the plate and a runner on third.

That said, it again could have been worse. Brian Downing grounded into an inning ending double play to keep the score at 3-1 Angels.

Defense Later
That double play in the fourth was the start of a new Brewers defense in this game. Up until that point, Milwaukee’s glovemen appeared content to throw the game away. From that poing forward, they did all thew could to save it.

The next big, game saving play came in the fifth. With one down and Reggie Jackson at first, Fred Lynn hit a bouncing ball over Cecil Cooper for a hit. Charlie Moore charged it down the first base line, and made a perfect throw on a line straight into Molitor’s glove without a bounce to nail Jackson. It was an unbelievable throw for the second out of the inning. Don Baylor, the next batter, would get another base hit that would have scored Jackson to make it a 4-2 game. Instead, the Angels did not score, and it remained 3-2. The Angels would have other opportunities to test Moore’s arm throughout the game, and each time they would pass.

The biggest play of the game was made by the most unlikely of heroes. Gorman Thomas is noticeably hobbled by a sore right knee, and it is affecting his play at the plate and in the field. With the Brewers up 4-3 in the eighth, Harvey Kuenn decided to lift Gorman from the game in favor of the speedy Marshall Edwards. The move would pay off almost immediately.

With one down, Don Baylor tested the new fielder with a rocket into the gap in left center. Edwards raced back to the track, leaping and crashing into the wall. The ball would have hit the top of the wall, but instead rested comfortably in the young center fielder’s glove. Doug DeCinces would then connect on a base hit into right that undoubtedly would have scored Baylor. Edwards saved a run.

Between these two plays, the Brewers defense saved at least two runs in spectacular fashion. Without either play, it would likely have been a different conclusion.

Molitor’s Baserunning
Paul Molitor led off the first inning with a line drive base hit into left field. Off the bat of any other hitter, it’s an automatic single. The ball was not in the gap, but was one that Downing charged head on. Molitor, though, was thinking two bases as soon as he hit it. The grass wet from rain, the ball slowed on its way to Downing and Molitor took second easily. Robin Yount then moved Molitor over to third on a ground out.

With one down, Cecil Cooper hit a ground ball to Doug DeCinces at third. DeCinces was distracted by Molitor at third and faked him back to the base before throwing a ball in the dirt to first. Molitor’s presence on third caused the throwing error, and there were runners on the corners and one out. If Molitor had been on second, he would have stayed there with the grounder to the left side, and Cooper is undoubtedly thrown out for the second of the inning.

Then, with one down instead of two, Ted Simmons hit a sacrifice fly that scored Molitor. Molitor’s single that turned into a double not only kept the number of outs to one instead of two, but it allowed him to get to third sooner to be in position for the sacrifice fly. That run was entirely thanks to Molitor.

Missed Opportunities
While the defense began turning things around in the fourth, the offense would not cooperate when given the opportunities in the middle innings. Missed opportunities at the plate — and an unfortunately placed grounder — nearly cost this team the game.

With Molitor and Gantner on 1st and 2nd and no outs in the 3rd, Robin Yount hit a smash right at Doug DeCinces at third, who was a step away from the bag. DeCinces quickly stepped on third and fired to second for a double play. Grich was taken out on a slide by Molitor, but otherwise it was very close to a triple play. It was a well hit ball, but it resulted in two outs and a runner on first. The Brewers would not be able to score in the third, and remained down 2-1.

In the fifth inning and the Angels leading 3-2, Cecil Cooper came up in his first clutch opportunity with two down and runners at first and second. Cooper struck out, and the Angels remained in the lead.

Oglivie Homer
Ben Oglivie didn’t play in Saturday’s game. The decision was likely two fold: Oglivie had gone 1-for-11 in the ALCS, and he injured his ribs in a collision with the wall on a Fred Lynn double in Game 3. The switch to Mark Brouhard for Game 4 proved to be one of the most ingenious moves of the series, as the back-up outfielder would key the Brewers win.

Oglivie returned to the lineup today, and he took several awkward swings that would lead observers to believe that his sore ribs were affecting his play. However, with one down in the bottom of the fourth, Oglivie hit a Bruce Kison changeup over the right field wall to make it a 3-2 game.

The run was crucial for an offense having trouble scoring. It kept the Brewers close and made the eventual win possible.

Relief Pitching
In a series with an unending list of story lines, the emergence of the Brewers bullpen is near the top. It was this group that struggled so mightily during the past couple of months, giving away several leads and wins along the way. But relief pitching was this team’s shining star in the ALCS.

With one down in the seventh, Brewers starter Pete Vuckovich walked Rod Carew. Harvey Kuenn summoned lefty Bob McClure, who induced a Reggie Jackson inning-ending double play on his first pitch. McClure would then cruise through the eighth, aided significantly by Edwards’ play in the outfield.

McClure would give up a lead-off single to Ron Jackson in the top of the ninth with a one run lead. Pete Ladd then came on to replace McClure. Bob Boone bunted over the runner for the first out, and Ladd got the final two batters to ground out to end the game.

The Brewers bullpen allowed one earned run on only five hits in 10 2/3 innings in this series. Pete Ladd was the poster boy of relief success, retiring all 10 batters he faced and striking out five. The impressive performance of the bullpen was a big reason this team is advancing to the World Series.

Clutch Hitting and Lucky Bounces
With one down in the seventh, Charlie Moore hit a jam shot that was falling into no-man’s land behind the pitcher’s mound. Bobby Grich dove and caught it on the bounce. The attempt was correctly called a trap, to Grich’s dismay, and Moore was safe on an infield single. But had Grich caught the ball, there would have been two down.

Gantner then hit a single and Molitor popped out into foul territory. Again, had Grich made the catch, the inning would have been over. Instead, Robin Yount was up with a man on first and two down. Yount took a very close pitch for ball four that could have conceivably been called either way, and Cecil Cooper was then up with two down and the bases loaded.

Had Grich made that catch or a ball been instead called a strike, this inning was over. Instead, Cooper came up and laced a two-RBI single into left to take a 4-3 lead. It was the biggest hit in the history of this franchise. But a hit that needed assistance to be possible.

Destiny
Is baseball a game of inches? Damn right it is. I recognize that had several bounces gone a different way, the Brewers’ season would be over. I also recognize that the incredible skill displayed by the defense (after a bad start) and bullpen as well as some very clutch baserunning and hitting led to this win. The Brewers earned every bit of the American League Championship.

But with each big play that leads to another jaw-dropping win, it’s becoming clear that the Brewers aren’t just a good team. They are a great team. And a team of destiny.

Your American League Champion Brewers will face either the Braves or Cardinals in the World Series on October 12, though it may start later depending on the completion date of the NLCS.