MLB Greatest Games #20: 1979 Cubs vs Phillies

with Tom Verducci I'm Bob Costas and welcome to the first installment of what we think will be a terrific series on MLB network as we reveal what our panel has decided and it wasn't easy are the top 20 games of the last 50 baseball seasons the countdown begins tonight with number 20 and Tom this one is a rarity for the list a regular-season game a regular-season game Bob but not just another regular-season game this one is as crazy as it gets [Music] well Tom all of those images come from unforgettable and glorious games but now as larry bowa joins us and we flashback to May 17th 1979 glorious might not be the word that comes to mind first well you're talking about day baseball at Wrigley Field it doesn't get any better than that unless the wind is blowing out which it was and it was howling out I remember taking batting practice and you know I just look at my bubblegum card I didn't hit homeruns I was hitting balls in the seats I remember Greg luzinski was standing next to me and I said this has a chance to be a wild game today and behold and it was its number 20 on the list and people will soon see why the day before the Phillies had won 13 to nothing Steve Carlton had a no-hitter into the 6th inning you got tossed from the game so already it's kind of a wild series yeah I got tossed on a ball and strike it was it was one of those games where we had replacement umpires and nothing against a replacement umpires but you get to appreciate the big League umpires once once they came back but the strike zones were all over the place you had no idea and you know in the heat of the moment I think he rang me up on a pitch and I went crazy and I got tossed and the next day happened to be a very good day for me and the Phillies let's take a look at the Philly lineup eventually Larry Bowa would find himself in a cub uniform but for now he's hitting second behind bake McBride at that time one of the fastest men in baseball Pete Rose hitting third Mike Schmidt who would have 45 home runs that year is in the fourth spot unser Maddox Boone Rudi maoli at second base and Randy lurch is on the mound and mr. lurch had been complaining prior to this outing that he wasn't getting enough support can you guys yeah well we talked about the baseball gods he pitched two games previously it fits pretty good didn't get a decision on one and got a loss on the other and after the second game he pitched he said it'd be nice if we could score some runs when I'm on the mound and so you know when everyday players read something like this you take it to heart so nothing was said and his next start was going to be on this 23 22 game so we bat around we put seven spot up and as I'm going by him as everybody knows I can get my little digs in I said to him I said hey Randy you think that's enough for you today and he smirked at me and he says yeah I'll take seven and you're gonna find out what happened not close to enough not even close here's the lineup that Randy lurched faced for Chicago Herman Frank's was Chicago's manager he didn't finish the season Joey Amalfitano eventually replaced him Danny Ozark started this season as the manager needed one division titles with your Phillies but eventually he got the boot and Dallas Green replaced him as the Phillies manager a lot of interconnections because eventually you'd be with the Cubs Green would be back in the front office with the Cubs a lot of stuff going back and forth here but for now on May 17th of 79 there's the lineup and the pitching pairing lurch came in at 2 & 2 Dennis lamp at 3 you know you see their respective er AAS they're about to go up way up this game if you weren't there and you try to explain to somebody they would say there's no way that happened but that's one of those games where I knew from the first inning on even though we got 7 I knew that wasn't gonna be enough no matter who was pitching Carlton could have been on the mound and we'd probably had trouble trouble that day but that wind was howling out and you're gonna see what Dave Kingman did that Wrigley Field it's unbelievable ok now as we take you through the game we'll be alternating between the original broadcast of Jack Brickhouse and Lou Boudreau and highlights with our own commentary mixed in we start logically enough top of the first it all looks innocent enough here's Dennis lamb got the glasses got the mustache got a certain look going looks a little bit like Bobby Valentine's disguise when he tried to sneak back in after he was tossed out of that game not only were there a lot of runs in this game Bob there's a lot of mustaches in this game tight pants mustaches a lot of hair and before this game started we had a meeting but what we wanted him to do we said sinker ball pitcher make him get the ball up and he got a lot of balls up in the first inning so here's bake McBride at the top of the lineup the Cubs former Cardinal the first pitch sets a tone right out of the gate if the ball is up that's a good sign when you're facing a guy like lamp because when that sicker ball is working there's a lot of ground ball outs they might have noticed there too you see some white lines moving across the field that's actually the remainders of a soccer field outline the Chicago sting of the Old North American Soccer League actually played soccer at Wrigley and I'm guessing Larry the condition of the field was not as pristine as we think about today's yeah I'll tell you what I hear guys do played about in fields they had to play on this one day the second pitch of the game you're the hitter there's Dave Kingman who was somewhat better with the bat and with the glove a futile dive McBride probably could have scored but with nobody out he stops at third and you opened the game with a double right another ball that was up in the zone and right then you know I said you know just to myself we've got our big boys coming up and you're gonna see what happens here because we had a very good offensive line up in the 70s and early 80s what happened to your helmet there Larry Petros hit into a fielder's choice so there's one out the only man as it turned out that lamp would retire of the seven many-faced and here's Schmidt take a guess as to what's going to happen and that ball Center cut a little bit in and he got his arms out there and he really didn't crush it because Kingman thought he had it I got a bead on it but the wind just took it and when those big guys hit him they're gonna go and I thought Schmidty was gonna have an unbelievable day he had a decent day but I thought he was gonna have one of those four maybe five home run days he hits a lot of fly balls there he did have a four home he did Wrigley Glee on another I guess he did yes he did all right so it's three to nothing at this point and here's del unser at the plate and he was filling in for lose in ski Lozinski had either an ankle or a hamstring and he didn't play that that's a day you don't want to be exactly exactly if you look at these pitches that everyone is up in the zone this is his first start he was on the DL or something yet he missed a couple start got a blister on his hand right so this is his first start after missing the company alright so unser with a head and here comes Gary knotek's to the plate one of the great defensive outfielders not a bad hitter he laces a shot to left Kingman's playing deep because the wind is blowing out it drops in front of him Jack Brickhouse is toward the end of his career as the Cubs announcer Harry Caray would come over from the White Sox in a couple of years Jack had been there Chicago institution for a long time and we're going to bring the sound up as Bob Boone comes to the plate that's here that's way back there but she goes Wow [Applause] June for the fillory 19 Philadelphia following the Cubs in the very first inning I'll take it we're feeling pretty good about ourselves right there Bob Boone second home run of the campaign tuck brings out Herman of course that means laughs was here's Dennis lamps line as Donny Moore comes in right lamp 1/3 of an inning six hits six runs two homers down six nothing take a shower see now he can go have dinner on Rush Street because this is gonna be a long game and he's gonna be long gone before this game gets the final out now Randy lurch is actually a pretty good hitting real good hitter real good hitter and he'll show you right here [Applause] [Laughter] good once it got up in the air forget it here's a ball low and away low on a hitter hits it out to the opposite field and he's feeling real good about himself right now so it's already 7 nothing Phillies Cubs are yet to bat they're coming up in the 1st and a whole lot more runs are gonna be scored before we put this one to bed Plus we'll take a look at one of the craziest swings if you call it that that you've ever seen you're watching MLB's 20 greatest games on MLB Network back in studio 42 Bob Costas with Tom Verducci and Larry Bowa who played in game number 20 in our countdown of the 20 greatest games of the last 50 years you saw the Phillies score 7 runs in the top half of the first Boas double was part of it Dennis lamp has been chased Randy lurch takes to the mound with a 7 run cushion and the first man he faces is a Vonda hey-zeus of the Cubs Ron haters who in the seventh inning yesterday broke up Carlton's no-hit four four nine so this is right after you just told right we have enough runs for you exactly if he yeah he'd give me a little smirk you know and he said you know in other words yeah I hear you and you know what happens here and all fairness to Randi you haven't anything like that where everybody bats around you're sitting on the bench or a little bit stiff now you go out and you say hey I got seven runs to work with let me just groove a couple in here and get a hit well they were ready to swing the bats and they start grooving too many in there and before you knew it the beginning came right back at us so now here's Mike Vale at the plate and he used to crush left-handers goes the opposite way and the Cubs down by seven have two men on and right there you know I mean both those balls are Center cuts and you know when you playing shorter second you could tell usually when two guys on just missing good movement depth on his breaking ball these balls had nothing on them then obviously Buckner comes up here and gets a flare of the right feel that drops in front of everybody so you saying to yourself hey it's gonna be one of those Wrigley Field days with the wind blowing out but little did we know it was gonna be this kind of game and here is Kingman he's hitting 279 9 home runs 24 RBIs 2 for 7 in the series so 7 to 1 toys way back that ball went way back but that was probably the shortest one he hit during the day you're gonna see some a little bit farther before the day is over that's a big man right there and when he gets when he gets the ball in the air and the wind's blowing out forget it so it's 7:00 to 4:00 now still feeling all right I mean you feel okay but now you've got people warming up and you're saying boy guy on the roof was getting ready to catch it better bring up the center fielder Jerry Martin say if Jerry Martin following the Kingman home run and lurch given a seven run lead it's now down to three Martin's one of several guys in this game who wound up playing for both teams right he had been a Philly than a cub DeJesus was in the trade with Monsanto and Sandberg exactly later became a Philly as you became a cub Martin with the double to right-center and at this point Danny Ozark is thinking I got to get into my bullpen in the first inning see that's that's where you have the luxury and even even today as we speak when you have your big boy going the day before you don't have to go to the bullpen little did we know we had to go to a lot guys in the bullpen today but if you had a bad pitch of the day before you'd be in trouble there that was a no-no right there flipping the ball to Danny that never you have to wait for your manager just hand him the ball and he heard about that after the game so when I know is Larry during that first inning we didn't see it there but Pete Rose went to the mound during that sequence in the first he was falling behind the hitters and he's telling me says go at these guys challenge him you got seven runs to play with and then before he got out of the inning here's the former Royal Doug Byrd greeted by a Ted Sizemore hit and he's another guy that played with the Phillies former Cardinal as well seven to five and now it's getting a little long out there you get a little disgusted as an infielder you're saying let's go well you've got the pitcher due up not today especially a reliever [Applause] [Music] [Applause] now you know you're in a dogfight well here is where the pitching kind of tightens up because more did not score right from blurred so it's seven to six we made some pitches after one I think Donnie Moore had less than a hundred career plate appearances but he had a lifetime batting average of 281 he could swing the bat a little bit he could swing the bat a little bit I mean that's the first for me you know even reverting back to coach and I never seen first inning a pitcher at a home run and the other pitcher had a triple in the first inning we've now moved ahead to the top of the third and here's Gary Maddox to open the inning off against Donnie Moore this tells you what kind of day it was because as they said earlier you have to play deep because the winds blowing out so if you just get fisted on a ball or hit a ball off the end of the bat it's gonna drop because you have to you have to respect the wind so they're all playing on the warning track more or less well I think there's 50 total hits in this game and you're absolutely right what do you do you have to play back because the winds carrying the ball but as we'll see throughout this game a ton of bloop it's it really here and Maddox got an unbelievable jump on that ball you see it was half way before right off the bat it looks like maybe it's a pop fly left feel but he knows Kingman has to place so far deep in left field exactly he's running as soon as the ball comes off exactly so the Phillies now have an eight to six lead and this is what you really don't want to see if you're the opposing manager here as bad as the winds blowing you walk the relief pitcher a picture up come on come on I think Herman Frank said something else the Cubs dugout at that point I think at one point in this inning jack said this game is not exactly a connoisseurs delight so here's bake McBride turn the lineup over again and here's another another grouper hit I mean we hit some balls hard but we also we flared it feel in there also and here you are at the plate again I imagine you saw a fair number of fast balls that season with McBride on base he can run and rose and Schmidt coming up behind you hey Bob let me tell you that's an ideal place you're gonna get fast balls no matter what I'm not a home run hitter they're gonna say here get on base if you want to hit it hit it you know I got a lot of fast balls and there's one right there right down the middle a legit line drive no bloob then I got that one alright so the bases are loaded now and Pete Rose is going to come up and this was the season where he first joined the Phillies big contract listen to the boos there's Pete [Applause] he was buried because everyone thought he took the money I'm just glad he came to our team because he's the guy who put us over the hump this guy's a doubles machine believe me doubles doubles doubles and there you have to remember he turned 38 years old during this season and you watch him in this game playing as if he's 28 years old the energy he played in 163 games this year led the league in on-base percentage I've seen him play hurt I've seen him play with a hamstring that he could hardly walk on he would go out he would post every day I mean you talk about a competitor this guy's the best right boylar decides to hold up a third as Rose doubles and we got ourselves a real marathon today little did we know that's still not enough and poor Jack Brickhouse is working alone yeah exactly what are urine Andy's is being called in the scores 11 to 6 we're only in the third inning he's saying himself when am I gonna get to visit the restaurant there's a high fly left that's pretty beef back there that's going back the winds got it back she goes home Ron oh boy the seventeen mile an hour wind fitted for Mattox and that's his second home run in two days go now all three more come in [Applause] pedro shaking hands with it the score at this point is 15 to 6 feeling good bob boone comes up afterwards and somebody's got to pay and he was the guy who paid he got drilled and in it but they did it the right way through below his waist and it was a purpose pitch they're saying hey you know what you guys again too many hits we're frustrated you're having fun you're laughing over there take this back with you and that's how they played the game then something else about this game there are a lot of guys whose appearance in this game seems innocent enough Donnie Moore but history would involve him in one of the epic games in 1986 when he was with the Angels Willie Hernandez comes into this game as the third cub pitcher and he's just another guy in 1979 but in 1984 he's the siyoung and MVP winner when the Tigers win at all amazing actually three pitchers came into this game well would later get the last out of a World Series willie hernandez grow tug mcgraw and bruce sooner exactly right it's amazing that when we do talk about these greatest games obviously context the game itself means a lot but the quality of the players involved in the game you look back on this game star players who went on to really big things and you saw how managers use their bullpen there was no I'm only pitched in the eighth inning I only pitched in the ninth inning as you see this game unwind you'll see our closer coming in in the fifth inning and that's how the game was if you felt you had to win that game he would bring somebody in Danny would bring somebody in it didn't matter what your role was your role was when the phone answers when the phone rings answer it and I'll tell you who to bring in now you'd have agents calling up the general manager saying what are you go banging my guy in the fifth inning I'm not sure they want it to come into this one I know Doug didn't you had Willie Hernandez and Donnie Moore all gave up career highs and runs in the same game I didn't know they crazy Wow well nothing much happened in the bottom of the third which is hard to believe there was this Willie Hernandez who we just mentioned had replaced Donnie Moore in the top of the third and since neither manager was going to completely burn his bullpen and go to a pinch hitter in this situation Hernandez gets a chance to bat and that's why we have to show you this this was one of the funniest at-bats I've ever seen play around and fell flat on his face it's the swing of the day because he hit Boone but Larry the count is owing to your weight he's not even called out he's actually completed the swing he caught little blocks for help well he got four strikes and it still wasn't enough and that picture kind of symbolizes the whole day and the Cubs plight at that point he was embarrassed because the next day I remember he was talking to everybody about the game and he says how'd you like my bat and I went cloth that was terrible really he says the only gift two or three a year okay just to take stock of the situation after three Chicago trails 15-6 it would actually get worse for the Cubs before it got better this is MLB's 20 greatest games number 20 the Phills and the Cubs from 79 at Wrigley back after this well one of the real hard-nosed players in this game of pro basketball John Menzel to the Bulls down welcome to the booth glad to be here this aren't you glad you're not pitching well I'll tell you what I used to do a little pitching in my days and I'd pray like that wouldn't want to pitch on a day like today took questions quickly John number one who do you think the Bulls will graph well I'll tell you what Jack that's an awful confusing topic at this point of the year evidently a Los Angeles has come to terms with Magic Johnson that leaves a Larry Bird for us if Boston doesn't sign him but magic can't sign you know until the draft and maybe if Larry Bird comes out maybe I'll take him so it's really confusing at this point do a few were drafting would you take one of those two for definitely they're both going to be superb all pars okay good luck John and welcome to Wrigley Field thank you very much well the Bulls never got Larry Bird this game does however include Doug bird's so you have to be content with that as we heading out of a fourth inning after a bake McBride flyout Larry Bowa comes up against Willie Hernandez I'm feeling pretty good right now I got three hits you know we're winning big the only thing I'm saying now the way as many a bats time I'm gonna have three four eleven turn around to the right side now with Hernandez in there base hit the sharp ground ball well right now the line score for the Phillies is seven zero eight which is the area code of Cook County Illinois that's pretty I don't know if you're thinking you're heading for record territory here Larry but it's almost like you know you don't have enough runs I know I know I know that for a fact I knew we didn't have enough runs just because of the way the game was unfolding and then we just kept pecking away battling and scrapping so here's one more Rose doubles his second double of the game you score sixteen six that's a 10 run cushion now normally Bob you you're taking out your regulars at that time you know you're saying hey let's give these guys a blow these are all day games and everything not the case not the case at all was there any conversation at all with you there was hen yeah Danny Ozark was saying if we get a couple more runs they said let's was thinking about taking a couple guys out and he's going to get himself another double right here maybe three see who's Gary Maddox another little bloop but it winds up being a double because the outfield is playing so deep and it is now seventeen to six Phillies didn't score again in the top of the fourth to the bottom of the fourth look who's up Biggio the first time he came up he gave the folks a real thrill because he got the key blow when a six run comeback inning [Applause] Philadelphia 17 the Cubs sex [Applause] look across the street on Waveland Avenue boy he had 48 home runs that year 1979 to lead the National League he struck out 131 times I think now that was a monstrous total that was embarrassing back in the day dozens of guys dozens strikeout more than that in a given season now I mean Arizona had five or six that had more than that and 48 home runs back then was also a monster - exactly you're absolutely right about the players and the fans the concession stands were empty when Dave Kingman came to the plate Ellen you did not want to miss he might strike out but he might hit one 500 exactly that's pretty well here way back there [Applause] Percy [Applause] [Music] [Applause] 17:9 top of the fifth bake McBride another turn at bat I'm telling it felt like we hit every inning swing ground ball base hit into right field this is Lou Boudreau now I think it has a base see there's another thing they did back then is pitchers pinch ran Nino Espinosa Spinoza's pinch right now if you pinch around a pitcher now it seems like you're up the play every inning it's only the fifth inning I got one of these little bloopers here I remember this one yep the fact I thought was a foul ball and the wind blew it back and so hard that field is what the balls bounce like [Music] noses do put the flaps down I don't know how he kept the helmet on him in that case you didn't know it's interesting it your ball rolls into the bullpen and your closer is warming up in the bullpen in the fifth inning ton McGraw you'll watch as the ball rolls into the Phillies unheard of Danny Ozark has his closer up in the fifth inning of a 21 to nine game daddy said I'm winning this game no matter what he said I'm bringing my big boys in it doesn't matter and as we watch this unfold that didn't work out too good either so we're in the fifth it's now 18 to 9 swing ground ball to his left to the shortstop bassist Bob Wilson picks it up Kim and this time DeJesus bobbles and I think that's the first time I've been on her Shaffer by Pete so it's 19 denies Sue's by the way I lost track was that blooper your fourth hit or your fifth fourth fourth it was my fourth in Mike Schmidt had walked ahead of uncertain centerfield Martin is there Jerry Martin makes the catch as you tagged and scored and see how hard and safe a third look at Rose this is really my most but most means here right now this games out of hand and he's tagging up on a ball this in left-center field and and here yeah I mean Martin has a good arm in fact he's shot for me because I sort of slowed down there and if he's out there I might not have scored so and watch Rose on this play as well but when he tags up I mean he's going to score easily look at this now you so you would have scored anyway because there was only one out right run on the earlier one oh that's the second because another sacrifice why that's 21:9 the intensity that he brought in a game if you think about it at that time a 21 22 921 9 is a meaningless game and he's playing like it's one to nothing for two to one and that's why he was such a great player I mean he didn't leave anything out there coming up Dave Kingman goes deep very deep and Pete Rose's again in rare form on MLB's 20 greatest games all right so it's the bottom of the fifth and the Phillies lead the Cubs 21 to 9 and at this point with a let me do the quick calculation a 12 run lead at this point Danny Ozark says give me my closer unbelievable I mean everybody was shocked I looked at Schmidty I looked at P no one oh you got to be kidding me but there's a story behind this believe me you know every time we would fly into Chicago Tugg hated pitching it Ridgely field and he would always say when we got off the bus to go to the hotel he said see you guys in three days offense take over because I don't want any part of this ballpark he would love to go out after after a ballgame have a cocktail or two you know Doug was very outgoing great person on a baseball team he had a great career in the big leagues and but he hated Wrigley Field you know when you talked about Tugg liking the nightlife it reminded me of a quote of his and I think it came after the Mets won the World Series or in a World Series and someone asked him what he did with his World Series share and he said most of it I spent on wine women and song and the rest I wasted that's mean this guy would have a good time no matter where we were at but day games especially day games after night games and all-day games at Wrigley they didn't really it was a bad combo for Tug to the bottom of the fifth tugs on the mound 12 run League a swimmer now watch Buckner as he could he'll say something like I said I think you do have enough yep that's exactly what he said because I was ripping her first I said I think we got enough because I don't know he believed it and he says I don't think you have enough so actually before we picked it up they had played it a run to make it 20 right 10 then the grand slam makes it 21-14 and now here's Kingman who's already hit to right and if this is the one I think it is if it's the one that goes to that house this is a bomb no may not have had his best stuff but he hadn't lost his mind he walks him okay it was a 3-2 pitch now he's got to face Martin with two out it's going and you can kiss at the with a two-run home run now start getting a little frustrated now you know you're saying how many runs do we need to get come on let's get somebody out and it comes to a point now where you start you go in the dugout every day you go let's go keep battling we got to get more runs let's go we talked about the umpires obviously the bringing around fires were on strike and I felt watching this game Larry that you definitely saw a different strike zone in this game and I think it may have contributed to some of the hits in this game anyway I agree I agree that the umpiring wasn't real good good play by you here but not quite no you're right the umpires had suffered it I'm sure those pitchers knew they had to throw it down in the middle for it to be called a strike so change their philosophy a little bit and how they're gonna attack hitters and the regular umpires would come back just two days late right right so that was Steve Dillard reaching base where in the bottom of the sixth now after a seven run cub fifth it is 21 to 16 and this ball doesn't appear to be hit that well but the wind pushes it right further out and de hazers has a double and and again Danny Ozark bringing in Ron Reed who was our setup man so he used his closer and his setup man real early in the ballgame so you know he wanted to win this game badly - RBI ground outs make it 21 18 bases are clear Kingman [Applause] hit the other one ha that was in Milwaukee it hit the front porch of the third house across Waveland Avenue [Applause] there's a Batson is unreal Kingman's third home run of the ball game a standing ovation and let me tell you it's now 21 the night gene and I'm losing my voice first let go now watch the White House behind the wall the ball will come down and go beyond the White House right there at bout there's the youngster running to see the kid running down the steps it's unbelievable and watch Petey's he gets frustrated too Kingman's got three homers it was 21 9 there's Rose bantering with the fans by the guys it's 21 to 19 and you know the proximity with those fans every any would come in and you'd hear people say is that enough is that it they were just getting on us getting on us and the finally Pete started yelling back yeah we enough we got enough don't worry about it Kingman hit home runs in 25 different parks it's almost like those signs you know Washington slept here now people have to understand that ball cleared Waveland Avenue mm-hmm right street there Kenmore it goes three or four houses down exactly it's a long long way it's now 21 19 and up next the Cubs come all the way back as this crazy game gets even crazier you're watching number 20 on our countdown of MLB's 20 greatest games of the last 50 seasons we going out of the seventh inning of this ballgame Jack Brickhouse back with you once again 2119 the Phillies over the Cubs at this point there's the catcher Bob Boone [Applause] that's pretty well hit deep to right-center look out that's gonna bring in another run and Boone is gonna wind up on second base now come on let's don't come this close and then give him that big lead again so Bob Boone's RBI double in the top of the seventh puts the Phillies up 22 19 remarkably neither team scores in the bottom of the 7th or the top of the eighth go figure then in the bottom of the 8th Ron Reed gives up two singles to the first two batters he has to face and then up comes Bill Buckner with two on and nobody out runners on first and third all right here's Buckner he is the tying run there's a well hit fall off center field [Applause] 20 to the 20 WGN television 9 Chicago is 5 o'clock and who could care less none of us Thompson's now on third base two out and the batter is Jerry Martin well I don't have to tell you that Jerry would like to make that trade pay off here there's a ground ball up the middle of it okay Thompson [Applause] is in scoring position very mark you know now you're starting wondering maybe maybe we're not meant to win this game believe me this base hits occur and they kept battling back scrapping and clawing 22 runs Larry it could be very easy for that other team to say you know what this is getting old let's take it on in there's a ground ball [Applause] the game is tied at 22 now I'm looking at the box score lurch obviously is not eligible for the victory less than a third of an inning Doug bird even though he gave up eight hits and four runs pitched three and two-thirds tug mcgraw came in pitched two thirds of inning gave up seven runs then read as you saw blew the lead so this is one of these official scores discretion things I would guess the Doug bird bird to be the winner yeah bird with if they didn't tie it bird probably would have had to be had to be yeah you got to give it to somebody right do you have to right there we'll give it to burn a moot point out because it's tied at 22 in the top of the 10th Bruce Souter is on the mound for the Cubs he would be the saw Young Award winner that year he had 37 saves that led the league suitors already pitched one scoreless inning but he's got a face Schmidt now here comes Mike Schmidt the nationally bleeding home run hitter I pitch to Schmidt that's a good point there's a high flight I left look out now look out it's gone it's a home run by Schmidt oh brother Mike Schmidt just got in his second home run of the day and now the Phillies leading this ball game by a score of 23 to 22 I think you have to pitch this Schmidt this is Bruce Souter out here he's pretty much unhittable at that point but it's only 1 for 16 against him I'm not saying walk him on purpose but I'd been bouncing four pitches he got a the Gunther was coming up next so Schmitt book ended the game he had a homer in the first he has a homer now with two out on the top of the 10th that makes the score 23 to 22 now rawly Eastwick is gonna try to protect that lead going to the bottom of the 10th he has already hurled a scoreless inning of relief but the Cubs have Buckner and Kingman coming up as the first two hitters and each has already had a huge game Buckner has a grand slam a number of other hits Kingman has three home runs one thing about Eastwick he didn't care who he was they sue I don't even know if he knew who was hitting me he was that relaxed on the mound well think about Larry this game both teams have batted 16 17 times until Eastwick came into this game without their side being retired in order and finally in the bottom of the ninth and now here we are the 10th no one's yet got on base against Raleigh's yeah you suck that was good movement on that pitch it was a sinker down in a way made Buckner reach a little bit he had some movement on his pitches that made Buckner 4 for 7 with seven RBIs and Kingman goes down swinging and you hold your breath as soon as that but bats moving forward you say please don't put it in play no for Homer game here's Steve out of arrows last hole we've been looking for this guy for four and a half hours he's got his cap in his back pocket like the old Little League days I remember that but you follow the cap you place your back pocket looks so cool have you got on base make the exchange [Applause] there's a check swing fair ball and that's it the ball game is over as Mike Schmidt throws out on him errors on a check swing patrols fair down the third-base side oh boy a pretty flat finish no runs no hits no errors nobody left and a very sad finish to one of the greatest games anybody has ever seen anywhere and there you have it a four hour and three minute mark into some kind of history now after this game Larry did in the clubhouse that tiny tiny Clubhouse and over glee field do you have a sense that you just took part in one of the greatest games ever we knew it was one of those games that you'd look back on when you're retired and say that's the unbelievable game and we were a little bit giddy in there it was a long game guys were frustrated during parts of that game but it all turned out good anytime you get a W it doesn't matter if you win twenty-three twenty-two or two to one a wins a win and we all went out to dinner that night and we came back the next day and played another day game when we come back a look at the box score from this game may 17 1979 and also Jack Brickhouse will attempt to wrap it up and make some sense of it from the booth at Wrigley number 20 on our list of MLB 20 greatest games wraps up after this if they continue to play games like this I don't think anybody be able to finish the season the players are the fans of the broadcast is there anybody our hearts won't be able to take it for Philadelphia 23 runs on 24 hits two men two errors and 14 men left on Eastwick gets the win he's one and O and for the Chicago Cubs 22 runs 26 hits I can't believe I'm reading these things okay I cam listening to myself say these figures and I don't believe it 22 runs 26 hits two errors seven men left on the loser suitor one and one time to the game four hours and three minutes pay to tennis 14,000 592 total in the ballpark 15,000 725 who I guarantee you will never forget this game well in the immediate aftermath Brickhouse is incredulous 31 going on 32 years later we still can't believe it's incredible 97 total bases in this game an all-time record since 1900 only one of the game had more runs and that was the Cubs against the Phillies in Wrigley in 1922 is a 26 to 23 game let's take a look at not exactly the box score but the lineup bake McBride had three hits Larry you went 5 for 8 Rose had 3 hits Schmidt had only two hits but they were both home runs right Maddux was putting together a tremendous day and then hurt himself sliding into second base and Greg gross had to run for him but he was four for four right while he was in there Boone 3 for 4 with a homer lurch hit a homer and retired one batter he'll talk about that home right he's probably still talking about it on the Cubs side what a day for Buckner 4 for 7 had a homer the Homer was a grand slam seven RBIs all three of Kingman's hits were homers six RBIs and the homers were all Titanic especially the last one they were bombs and it didn't matter if the wind was blowing it could have been blowing in all three of those are home runs I mean he crushed all of them you may have played in more significant games but I'm wagering you never played in a crazier game than this no that's that's his crazy game as ever even going back to Little League I've never been in a game like that where the bottom line is there they kept challenging us we get way out they come up and we kept adding on they come up we kept adding on they come up they never quit and I take my hat off to that team because you know it's very easy I don't care if the winds blowing or not you're down 11 12 13 runs you're saying let's get out of here we got a game tomorrow let's start swinging to the first pitch and but they kept battling and battling but it's a game that I'll never forget neither will we Larry thanks a lot tom that's number 21 down 19 to go join us next time for number 19 on our countdown of the 20 greatest games of the last 50 seasons here on MLB Network you

Channel: cacable7

Views: 10,357

Rating: 4.8356166 out of 5

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Id: qMEiNcEQi7Q

Length: 44min 50sec (2690 seconds)

Published: Sat Mar 28 2020

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[u/shadow_spinner0]

This specific YouTuber uploaded numerous MLB Network episodes of Prime 9 and MLB Baseball Seasons now is starting the MLB Greatest games series that aired on MLB Network I believe in 2010.