The NL No-Free Agency Assn

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The Atlanta Braves tied the series at 2-2 with a dramatic 6-5 win in 11 innings. The Mets scored three in the top of the 11th to break a 2-2 tie. Ken Boswell drew a bases-loaded walk. Duffy Dyer followed with a two-run single to make it 5-2. Tug McGraw came on for the save, but had nothing in the tank. McGraw walked the first four men he faced and the score was 5-3. Orlando Cepeda drove in a run with a single to bring the score to 5-4. Bob Didier's RBI ground out tied the score at 5-5. The Braves then won the game on Felix Millan's infield single. McGraw was charged with four earned runs in only 1/3 of an inning. Atlanta's Julio Navarro picked up the win in relief.

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The Atlanta Braves head back to New York with a 3-2 lead in the series following a 6-3 victory in game five. Darrell Evans' 5th-inning grand slam off Tom Seaver broke a 1-1 tie. Winning pitcher Phil Niekro singled in a run in the 6th to make the score 6-1. The Mets tried to rally in the 8th, scoring twice off Niekro. Cecil Upshaw pitched the 9th and earned the save for the Braves.

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Jerry Koosman and Tug McGraw shut down the Braves on only two hits in a 2-0 win in game six. The Mets scored both their runs in the second off losing pitcher Ron Reed. Ken Boswell had an RBI single. Bud Harrelson's RBI groundout capped the scoring.

Atlanta will send George Stone against the Mets' Gary Gentry in the seventh and deciding game.

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The Atlanta Braves are champions following a 3-2 victory over the New York Mets in game seven. The game was tied 2-2 with two outs in the top of the 7th. Braves catcher Bob Didier's grounder to second was misplayed by Ken Boswell, allowing Hank Aaron to score the eventual winning run. The Mets had taken a 2-0 lead on RBI singles by Art Shamsky in the 3rd and Bud Harrelson in the 4th. Atlanta cut the lead to 2-1 on Darrell Evans' RBI single in the top of the 5th. In the decisive 7th, Mets' starter Gary Gentry, obviously tiring, walked two of the three batters he faced. Nolan Ryan came out of the bullpen and promtply walked the first two men he saw, forcing in a run and tying the score. Ryan struck out Gil Garrido, before inducing the fateful grounder to Boswell.

As for the postseason awards, the MVP formula has definitely been tweaked. St. Louis' triple crown winner Dick Allen (never a media favorite) DID NOT win the award. The Braves' Hank Aaron, who finished third behind Allen and Willie McCovey in the major hitting races, walked off with the trophy.

As expected, Atlanta's Jim Nash won the Cy Young Award.

Odd postscript: Dick Allen also won the triple crown in my 1972 American League version of the No Free Agency/ No DH assn. Voters were a little more kind to him, as he DID pick up the MVP that year. It makes me wonder what kind of stats Allen could have put up in real life had he not experienced the racism he surely was subjected to in the minor leagues and early in his career. I bet he'd be a sure hall-of-famer if his career had started in the mid 70's instead of the mid 60's.

[motnahp]

After a holiday break, the assn. is back in action. Through the All-Star Break of 1971:

In a tight NL East race, the NY Mets and St Louis are tied at 46-42. Philly is one GB and Pittsburgh is 3 GB. In the West, San Fran is 58-30, leading Cincy by 5 1/2 games, LA by 7 and Atlanta by 7 1/2.

Joe Torre leads the batting race at .323. Richie Hebner is 2nd at 3.17. Willie Stargell leads in HR with 24. Johnny Bench, Bob Robertson and Hank Aaron all have 21. Bench leads with 65 RBI. Stargell has 64 and Aaron has 61.

Tom Seaver has the lowest ERA at 1.49 (10-4). Ray Sadecki is 1.71 (6-2) and Gaylord Perry is at 1.75 (15-4). Perry's 15 wins leads the league. Bill Singer is closest at 13-4 (2.56). Seaver leads in Ks with 136. Singer & Fergie Jenkins both have 125.

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1971 regular season complete:

NL_EAST_____W_____L_____GB__________NL_WEST_____W_____L_____GB
PITTSBURGH__85____77____---__________LOS ANGELES__100___62____---
NEW YORK___84____78_____1__________ATLANTA_______94___68_____6
ST. LOUIS____83____79_____2__________CINCINNATI____91___71_____9
PHILADELPHIA_82___80_____3__________SAN FRANCISCO_90___72____10
MONTREAL____70___92_____15__________HOUSTON_____65___97____35
CHICAGO_____64___98_____21__________SAN DIEGO____64___98____36

Joe Torre took the batting title at .328, with Hank Aaron second at .312. Willie Stargell led the league in homers with 39. Johnny Bench and Bobby Bonds had 36. Stargell also led in RBI with 116. Bench had 110 and Tony Perez drove home 109.

Tom Seaver led in ERA with 1.54 (19-6). Gaylord Perry was second with a 1.94 (20-9). Bill Singer had the most wins at 22-8 (2.26), followed by Perry's 20 and Seaver's 19. Seaver also led in strikeouts with 231. Singer had 229 and Fergie Jenkins ended up third with 221.

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Game One: Bob Moose (13-10, 2.86) vs Bill Singer (22-8, 2.26).

The underdog Pirates took the series opener 2-1 behind Bob Moose's 8 scoreless innings. Moose allowed only 4 hits, while striking out 8. Gene Alley drove in the game's first run on a groundout in the sixth inning. The Bucs plated an insurance run in the ninth on Bob Robertson's RBI single. The Dodgers rallied in their half of the ninth, loading the bases with no outs against Pirate reliever Luke Walker, but could manage only a Dick Allen RBI single before Walker retired the side.

This game was played in frigid (for LA) conditions, 41 degrees at game time with a stiff, 15 MPH breeze blowing in.

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Game Two: Dock Ellis (10-6, 2.63) vs Don Sutton (15-10, 3.00), with a more reasonable temp. of 67 degrees.

Los Angeles evened the series at a game apiece with a 3-1 victory over Pittsburgh. Duke Sims gave the Dodgers a 2-0 lead with his bases-loaded 2-RBI single in the bottom of the first. Pittsburgh cut the lead in half with a Richie Hebner SAC-FLY in the third. Sims then followed Willie Crawford's sixth-inning triple with an RBI single.

Don Sutton allowed only one run on three hits in 6 IP. Jim Brewer pitched a 1-2-3 9th for the save. Pittsburgh starter Ellis allowed only three hits and two unearned runs in 5 IP.

We now head to Pittsburgh and cold weather for the next three games.

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Game Three: Al Downing (17-10, 2.95) vs Steve Blass (11-10, 2.83).

The weather was cooler, but the Pirate bats provided the heat in a 7-0 win for Pittsburgh. Steve Blass shut out LA on five hits. The Pirates opened the scoring in the bottom of the first on Richie Hebner's RBI single and a bases-loaded walk to Gene Alley. Roberto Clemente's three-run homer in the second built the lead to 5-0. Bob Robertson added a two-run shot in the sixth to account for the final tally. LA starter and losing pitcher Al Downing allowed 5 earned runs in five innings. The Pittsburgh infield helped Blass by turning four double plays.

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Game Four and a matchup of rookie right-handers: Doyle Alexander (11-7, 3.70) vs Bruce Kison (13-8, 3.28).

The Pittsburgh Pirates are one win away from the title following a 4-3 victory over the Dodgers. Manny Sanguillen's two-run homer in the sixth gave the Pirates a 3-2 lead. They increased the lead to 4-2 on Roberto Clemente's SAC-FLY in the seventh. LA's Duke Sims smacked an RBI triple in the 8th to cut the lead to 4-3. Pittsburgh's Luke Walked allowed the first two Dodgers to reach base in the ninth, but was helped by yet another Pirate double play. Winning pitcher Bruce Kison allowed only two runs over seven innings.

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Game Five: Singer vs. Moose.

The LA Dodgers defeated the Pirates 4-1 in 12 innings. LA led 1-0 going into the bottom of the 8th, before Bob Robertson tied the game at 1-1 with his RBI single. The Dodgers broke the tie in their half of the 12th. Bill Sudakis drove in the go-ahead run with a single. Willie Crawford followed with a two-RBI single. Bob O'Brien picked up the win in relief, while Dave Giusti allowed all three runs and took the loss.

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Game Six: Ellis vs Sutton.

Sutton, O'Brien and Brewer combined to shut out the Pirates on six hits in a 1-0 Dodger win. Willie Davis' lead-off homer in the bottom of the first provided the lone run. The teams head for a Game Seven with Steve Blass opposing Al Downing.

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The Pittsburgh Pirates are champions after a 3-1, 15-inning victory in Game Seven.

LA's Steve Garvey opened the scoring with a pinch-hit SAC-FLY in the bottom of the 8th. Dodger closer Jim Brewer was greeted in the 9th with a Willie Stargell triple. Stargell scored on Bob Robertson's fly ball to knot the score at 1-1.

In the top of the 15th, Robertson drove in the game-winner with another SAC-FLY. Manny Sanguillen added an insurance run with an RBI single. Luke Walker recorded the save in the bottom of the 15th.

Bobby Bonds (.292, 36, 93) took league MVP honors. Bill Singer (22-8, 2.26) won the Cy Young Award.

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Through the All-Star Break of 1972 and it looks like the Pirates are on their way again. The Bucs lead the East at 58-30. The Mets are 6 back and the Cubs are 8 back.

In the West, Los Angeles sits at 52-35, 1 1/2 up on Cincinnati and 6 up on San Fran.

Pittsburgh's Al Oliver leads the batting race at .324, with Pete Rose at .323. Hank Aaron leads in both HR and RBI with 24/56. Nate Colbert is right behind him in both with 22/53.

Reliever Dick Selma leads in ERA with 1.40 (6-4). Dock Ellis is second at 1.66 (6-5). Another reliever, San Fran's Jerry Johnson leads in wins at 12-5 (5.06). Don Sutton is 10-6 (2.32). Bill Singer has 116 K's, followed by teammate Sutton's 115.

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The Mets caught fire in August, took over the East lead, and held off Pittsburgh late. Final standings for 1972:

NL_EAST_____W___L___GB_________NL_WEST_____W___L___GB
NYM________100__62__---__________LA_________91___71___---
PITT________98___64___2__________SF_________85___77____6
CHC________93___69___7__________CINN_______80___82___11
STL_________73___89__27__________ATL________73___89___18
MONT_______72___90__28__________SD_________72___90___19
PHA________68___94__32__________HOU________67___95___24

Atlanta's Dusty Baker won a tight batting race. Baker and Pete Rose went into the season's final day with Rose up .3068 to .3064. Rose went 1-for-4 to finish at .30650. Baker went 2-for-5 and ended at .30721. Hank Aaron captured both the HR and RBI crowns with 43/107. Nate Colbert finished 2nd with 35 HRs. Willie Stargell and Johnny Bench tied with 101 RBI.

Pittsburgh's Nelson Briles captured the ERA title with 2.05 (15-8). Bob Gibson was 2nd at 2.22 (13-12). Reliever Jerry Johnson (18-8, 4.87) and Atlanta starter Ron Reed (18-10, 2.44) tied for the most wins. Bill Singer fanned 217 to lead in Ks, with Steve Carlton 2nd at 203. Carlton did not approach his real-life 27-10 mark for a last-place club. He was an average 14-14, 2.44.

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Game One: LA sends Bill Singer (16-12, 2.30) against New York's Tom Seaver (16-5, 2.89).

Tom Seaver and Tug McGraw combined on a one-hitter as the Mets blanked the Dodgers 1-0. The duo combined for 8 strikeouts and allowed two walks. The Dodgers' only hit was a second-inning single by Willie Crawford.

The game's only run was scored in the bottom of the second. Bill Sudakis drew a one-out walk, advanced to second on Willie Mays' groundout, then scored on a Jerry Grote single. The Dodgers' pitching was excellent, as well. The combo of Singer and Tommy John allowed only two hits in eight innings, striking out six and walking one.

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Game Two: Sutton (14-12, 3.17) vs. Koosman (10-8, 2.56).

The Mets belted three home runs and outlasted the Dodgers 7-5. New York opened the scoring in the bottom of the first on Bill Sudakis' solo shot. Los Angeles grabbed the lead on a Willie Crawford three-run homer in the third. The Mets answered with four of their own in the third on Ken Boswell's RBI triple, a Rusty Staub RBI single and a 2-run homer by John Milner. New York added two more in the 6th on Willie Mays' solo homer and Bud Harrelson's RBI single. Mets' starter Jerry Koosman was one out away from a complete game when pinch-hitter Billy Grabarkewitz reached on Boswell's error. Willie Davis followed with a two-run homer, cutting the Met lead to 7-5. Tug McGraw then came on to record the final out and earn the save.

The teams travel to Los Angeles for Game Three, with the Mets' Gary Gentry (14-10, 3.04) opposing LA's Claude Osteen (13-9, 2.45).

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The Los Angeles Dodgers cut their deficit in half with a 1-0 win over the Mets. Claude Osteen, Pete Richert and Jim Brewer combined to limit the Mets to only three hits.

Bill Russell drove in the game's only run with a two-out triple past the glove of Mets' rightfielder Rusty Staub in the bottom of the sixth. Russell's triple plated Dick Dietz, who led off the inning with a single. Gary Gentry scattered seven hits and five walks in seven innings, as he took the loss for the Mets.

In Game Four, Jon Matlack (8-6 2.65) will be opposed by Al Downing (15-10, 3.04).

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The LA Dodgers evened the series at two games apiece with an 11-2 drubbing of the Mets. Bill Russell's bases-clearing triple sparked a 5-run first inning. The Dodgers also scored 5 runs in the third inning, capped by a two-run Bill Buckner single. Al Downing went the distance for the Dodgers, allowing only a John Milner two-run homer in the fourth. Mets' starter Jon Matlack went two-plus innings, allowing eight earned runs on six hits and five walks. Steve Garvey added a solo homer for LA.

It will be Seaver vs. Singer in Game Five.

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The LA Dodgers went up 3 games to 2 over the Mets with a 7-2 victory. Bill Russell tripled twice and drove in four runs to spark the Dodger attack. Wes Parker drove in two with a single and Dick Dietz added a solo homer for LA. Bill Singer and Tommy John combined to hold the Mets to five hits.

Game Two starters Sutton and Koosman match up again as the series shifts back to the east coast. The home team has won all five games thus far.