KOD 13 - Tier A Playoffs - Game 5 ALCS - An Instant Classic

10/22 - GAME 5 - Oakland Coliseum
Morris vs McCatty
A's 5, Tigers 4 (12 inn)
Seldom do these decisive series finales live up to their pre-game hype.  This game not only lived up to the hype, it exceeded it.  Each team had numerous chances to put the game away or scrape themselves up from the depths of despair.  If you love drama, read on, because this one has more plot twists than a classic Seinfeld episode minus the laughs.

Rickey Henderson led off the bottom of the first with an infield single that only his blinding speed could beat out.  He proceeded to steal second and take third on a throwing error by catcher Lance Parrish, then score on a sac fly by Armas on a ball that an infielder could have gone back on and caught.  Simply put, Rickey stole this run with his legs and his ability to play Billy Ball to the hilt.  Thanks to the throwing error Morris gives up an unearned run that would never have scored if Henderson had just gotten to second.  The bottom of the second sees the A's nickle and dime Morris for 2 more runs to make it 3-0.  After DH Cliff Johnson struck out looking, Jim Spencer singled then went to third on a perfectly executed hit and run by catcher Mike Heath.  Billy Ball was again put into action.  Picciolo bunted home Spencer and moved Heath into scoring position.  Bill Ball strikes again.  Rickey singles with 2 outs to score Heath and hand McCatty a 3-0 lead after 2 innings.  Morris, being the great competitor that he is throws up zeros for the next 5 innings keeping his team in the game.  Detroit gets one back in the top of the 4th, when they load the bases with nobody out.  McCatty emulates Morris by gutting it out and limiting the damage to 1 run on a Tom Brookens single.  Neither team scores again as the game heads into the 9th and the A's need 3 outs to clinch the AL pennant.

McCatty starts the 9th looking for 3 more outs and a complete game series clinching shutout.  Al Cowens grounds out to second for the first out.  Pinch hitter Ron Jackson singles up the middle.  Fahey pinch hits for Hebner and hits a blast that Murphy catches at the base of the wall for the second out.  Oakland is now one out away from clinching the AL Pennant.  Lou Whitaker hit a slicing 1 hopper that handcuffs defensive replacement Wayne Gross at third base to put runners on 1st and 2nd with 2 out.  Up steps Alan Trammell, who just like Morris, has somehow been skipped over for Cooperstown honors.  Oakland has rookie Dave Beard all ready to go after warming up in the pen, but sees that McCatty still has some octane left in the tank and leaves him in to face "Tram".  McCatty's first pitch came right down Broadway and Trammell lined it into left center.  Henderson, who has speed to burn, made a mad dash for the ball, but there was no way that he could have caught hit with his two feet still firmly touching the Oakland Coliseum turf.  Rickey made a split second decision to dive for it and came up short.  The ball rolled to the wall and when all the dust cleared Trammell was standing on third base having hit a game tying triple.  A minion of Monday morning quarterbacks could second guess Henderson's wisdom to dive, but none of them have Rickey's speed and none of them have made that play before in their sleep like he has.  If he doesn't dive the ball probably still gets through and Trammell has a 2 run double and the game is still tied.  McCatty knew his day was done as Beard came strolling in from the pen.  Kirk Gibson flies out weakly to Armas in right and this game now heads to the bottom of the 9th tied at 3-3.  Jim Spencer singles to lead off the inning against Tiger reliever Dave Tobik.  The next three Oakland batters would ground into force plays, so the game headed to extra innings with momentum firmly in the hands of the visiting team from Motown.

Lefty Tom Underwood came on board to pitch for Oakland in the top of the 10th and set the Tigers down in order.  In the bottom of the inning Oakland got a 1 out single from Dwayne Muphy, who then stole second, but could not score because Armas popped out to third and Gross swung at a curve in the dirt for strike 3.  Underwood set the Tigers down in order again in the top of the 11th, and the A's went weakly as well in the bottom of the frame.  Whitaker, grounded out weakly to short to start the top of the 12th, but Trammell struck again by launching a double to right center that could have easily been another triple if not for the gold glove effort by Muphy to cut the ball off before it got to the wall.  Underwood then runs the count to 3-2 on Gibson who looked at a called strike 3 on a changeup.  Take Gibson's cap and exchange it for a golden sombrero with this being his 4th K of the day.  With two outs and a runner on second Underwood has the matchup in his favor facing lefty batter Steve Kemp.  Underwood pushes his advantage even further by getting Kemp in a 1-2 hole.  The 4th pitch was supposed to be a waste pitch down in the dirt.  It was low, but not low enough as we all know lefties are notoriously good low ball hitters.  Kemp is not exception to the rule, and he turns on the ball and hits a screeching liner to right center that Tony Armas had to lay out for.  The ball went off the heel of Armas's glove and rolled away from him.  Kemp easily trots into second and Trammell easily trots home to give the Tigers a 4-3 lead.  You could now hear a pin drop on the turf at the Oakland Alemeda County Coliseum if it wasn't for the foul mouthed cursing coming out of Oakland's manager's truck driver mouth.  Only 3 innings prior the A's had this pennant all wrapped up with a 3-0 lead in the 9th.  Now 3 innings later they pissed it all away (sorry for the vulgarity).  The Tigers now had 3 outs to go and this improbable comeback pennant would be theirs.  Aurelio Lopez returned to the mound to start the bottom of the 12th with a chance to be the unlikely game 5 winner.   Picciolo leads off the inning by hit a blast to left center on a hanging 1-1 slider.  Al Cowens drifts back and safely catches the ball on the warning track.  Credit this out to the huge cavern called the Oakland Coliseum.  Joe Garagiola commented on NBC's broadcast that Piccolo's shot would have been a homer in Tiger Stadium.  Tony Kubek responded glibly, "We're not playing in Tiger Stadium, so all it is is a long out".  Tiger manager Tom Davis had seen enough as his heart sunk and his palms were sweating until Cowens caught the ball.  He was taking no chances with the final 2 outs, so he went to his close Kevin Saucier to face Rickey Henderson.  Time and time again we see a guy being the goat in one inning and a hero in the next.  Henderson came to the plate needing to make something happen, having felt like he blew the game in the 9th with his errant dive on Trammell's liner.  Rickey, who has full support of his manager to play Billy Ball at any time layed down a surprise bunt for a base hit.  Substitue third baseman, Mick Kellher, who replaced the sure handed Brookens, charged the ball and barhanded it.  He threw a one hopper to Whitaker, who was covering first, but the ball bounced off of Lou's abdomen and Rickey was standing safe at first.  With one out and Rickey on 1st Mickey Klutts was called on to pinch hit for Dave McKay.  Saucier had Kutts in a 1-2 hole, but couldn't put him away as Klutts lined a single threw the hole just out of the reach of both Trammell and Kelleher to put runners on the corners with one out.  Shooty Babitt was brought in to run for the slow footed Klutts.  Dwayne Muphy came to the plate.  The lefty vs lefty advantage was firmly on Saucier's side, but Detroit's close was wild and he walked Muphy on 5 pitches to load the bases for Tony Armas.  Arms immediately finds himself in an 0-2 hole, but battles back to 3-2.  With the count full Saucier throws a fastball on the hands of Armas who could not get the bat head out in front of it.  The ball contacted the bat just below the trademark and started lofting in the neighborhood of shallow left center.  Trammell went back, Kemp and Cowens came hustling in.  The hang time on this blopper was almost no existant, so the ball fell safely onto the turf.  Henderson scored easily from third.  Babitt, who got a late jump because he thought Trammell had a shot at catching the ball, now had to get on his horse to score.  Kemp who was charging picked up the ball and threw it home with every bit of armstrength he could muster.  Babitt beats the throw by a split second as Parrish's tag is late.  Oakland scores 2 miraculous runs playing Billy Ball and clinches the franchises second KOD-AL Pennant and their manager's 8th KOD pennant.
A's win series 3-2