On October 21, 1982, Andujar proved to be exactly that, pitching seven innings to lead the Cardinals to a 6-3 win over the Milwaukee Brewers in Game 7 of the World Series. Just five days earlier, Andujar was writhing on the ground in agony after Cecil Cooper smashed a ground ball back up the middle and struck Andujar in the leg. Andujar was removed from the game and taken to the hospital, where x-rays were negative.

However, by the time the Cardinals had wrapped up a 13-1, rain-delayed victory in Game 6 to force the decisive seventh game, there was little doubt that manager Whitey Herzog would hand the ball to his ace with the world championship on the line.

“I told my teammates before the game that nobody was going to beat me today,” Andujar said. “I told them, ‘You’d better keep the champagne handy because we’re going to be drinking it.’”[1]

“I was afraid if I didn’t give him the ball, I’d be one dead manager,” Herzog joked.[2]

Andujar had received treatment on Monday, October 18, during the Cardinals’ off day ahead of Game 6, but on Tuesday he declined treatment and told the team he was ready for Game 7.

“I’ll give it my best tomorrow,” he said. “I’ve been hit on the knee before and never missed a start.”[3]

“I’m sure he’s going to have some tenderness and soreness there, but this is the seventh game of the World Series,” Cardinals trainer Gene Gieselmann said. “I was having my doubts, but when he came in yesterday (Monday), I thought he had a pretty good chance of pitching.”[4]

Andujar already had won Game 3 of the NLCS against the Braves and Game 3 of the World Series, when he held the Brewers scoreless with just three hits allowed in 6 1/3 innings.

Milwaukee countered with former Cardinal Pete Vuckovich. Vuckovich had gone 18-6 with a 3.34 ERA during the regular season on his way to the American League Cy Young Award, but by the time he took the mound for Game 7, it had been a month since his last win. After dropping his last two starts of the regular season, Vuckovich had taken the loss in Game 2 of the ALCS and received a no-decision in Game 5 against the Angels.

In his World Series Game 3 start against the Cardinals, Vuckovich went 8 2/3 innings, but allowed two home runs to Willie McGee in a 6-2 St. Louis victory.

This time around, Vuckovich worked in and out of trouble as the Cardinals stranded six baserunners in the first three innings. In the second inning, Tom Herr drew a walk between singles from Dane Iorg and Ozzie Smith. With the bases loaded, Vuckovich got Lonnie Smith to fly out to right field, ending the threat.

An inning later, Keith Hernandez walked and George Hendrick singled before Vuckovich retired Darrell Porter and Iorg to maintain the scoreless tie.

The Cardinals finally broke through in the fourth. McGee and Herr singled to start the inning, and Lonnie Smith scored McGee on an infield single to give St. Louis a 1-0 lead.

It proved to be a short-lived advantage, as Ben Oglivie hit Andujar’s first pitch of the fifth inning over the right-field wall to tie the score, 1-1.

The Brewers took the lead an inning later. Jim Gantner led off the inning with a double, and Paul Molitor followed with a bunt down the third-base line. Andujar pounced on the ball but threw wildly to first base, allowing Gantner to score and Molitor to advance to second. Robin Yount followed with an infield single that advanced Molitor to third base and Cecil Cooper brought Molitor home with a sacrifice fly to left field.

Trailing 3-1, the Cardinals answered with two runs in the sixth inning. With one out, Ozzie Smith singled and Lonnie Smith doubled down the left-field line.

“That was the big hit of the ballgame as far as I was concerned,” Molitor said. “You just get the lead and all of a sudden you look up and you see the tying run at second base with one out.”[5]

With runners at second and third, Brewers manager Harvey Kuenn turned to his bullpen. In 5 1/3 innings, Vuckovich had allowed 10 hits and walked two.

“I get paid to take the ball when they give it to me and give it back when they ask for it,” Vuckovich said, before admitting that he had tears in his eyes after being removed from the game.[6]

Left-hander Bob McClure didn’t demonstrate Vuckovich’s ability to dance out of danger. McClure walked pinch-hitter Gene Tenace to load the bases before Keith Hernandez hit a two-run single into the right-field gap to tie the score. The next batter, George Hendrick, followed with an RBI single to give the Cardinals a 4-3 lead.

Afterwards, Brewers catcher Ted Simmons pointed to that inning as the turning point.

“They got the big hits,” the former Cardinals all-star said. “They deserved to win. We got the lead and we couldn’t hold them.”[7]

Andujar closed out his day with a strong seventh inning. With two outs, Charlie Moore reached on an infield single, but Andujar got Gantner to bounce a ground ball back to him for the final out. With the inning over, Andujar – as he often did when he made big plays – made a “shooting” gesture at Gantner.

In response, the Brewers second baseman shouted, “You’re a hot dog,” twice at Andujar. The Cardinals’ pitcher had to be restrained from Gantner by home-plate umpire Lee Weyer.

“When I repeated to him my hot dog comment, he came at me,” Gantner said. “People like him who like to dish it out should learn to take it. I respect him as a pitcher, but that’s all.”[8]

Andujar, who called Gantner “a smart man,” suggested afterward that Gardner was attempting to goad him into a fight.[9] Regardless, Andujar’s day was done after allowing just two earned runs and seven hits over seven innings. With a one-run lead, Herzog handed the ball to Bruce Sutter for the final two innings.

“This was the big one, and I was going to be a hero or goat, but I wanted to be the one out there pitching,” Sutter said. “That’s been my job all year long.”[10]

Acquired in a December 1980 trade with the Cubs, Sutter had led baseball with 36 saves that season.

“For my money, there’s nobody I’d rather have out there than Bruce Sutter,” Cardinals pitcher Jim Kaat said. “Even when he was struggling this year, when the fans were hollering boos instead of ‘Bruce,’ I said that I don’t care how many he loses, I can’t think of another pitcher I’d rather have on the mound with a one-run lead.”[11]

It couldn’t have gone to plan any better. Facing the top of the Brewers’ lineup in the eighth, Sutter retired Molitor, Young, and Cooper in order.

“He’s the main man on that ballclub,” Molitor said. “Take away him and they are not better than a lot of other clubs. They are not a team you expect to come from behind. If you get them down, you can keep them down, but if they get the lead, it’s usually, ‘See you later.’”[12]

In the Cardinals’ half of the inning, they added a pair of insurance runs as Darrell Porter and Steve Braun each hit RBI singles off Brewers reliever Mike Caldwell. Ahead 6-3, Sutter got Simmons and Ben Oglivie to ground out before striking out Gorman Thomas to clinch the Cardinals’ first World Series championship in 15 years.

Ironically, Sutter’s historic strikeout didn’t come on his best pitch – the split-finger fastball. Instead, after Thomas fouled off four split-finger fastballs, Sutter turned away from the pitch that had made him a future Hall of Famer.

“I had a three-run lead and nobody on, so I gave him a fastball,” Sutter explained. “I just wanted to throw it down the middle.”[13]

When Thomas swung and missed, Porter threw off his mask and charged the mound, knocking Sutter off his feet in the postgame celebration.

“You couldn’t think of a better ending to the World Series,” Iorg said. “The best reliever in baseball against the best-hitting team in baseball. Your best against their best.”[14]

It marked Sutter’s third save of the postseason.

“I don’t think it will really hit me until this winter,” Sutter said. “I’ll be sitting up there on a deer stand and I’ll start yelling. I won’t get any deer, but I’ll have a good time.”[15]

Porter, who already earned NLCS MVP honors against the Braves, was named the World Series MVP after going 8-for-28 with a home run and five RBIs in the Fall Classic.

“Hoo-ee, I’ve been to two county fairs and a goat roast and I ain’t never seen nothin’ like this,” he said as observed the postgame celebration.[16]

Hendrick, another candidate for World Series MVP honors, missed the celebration. Instead of returning to the clubhouse with his teammates, he exited the field through the gate in right field and went straight to his car in the parking lot.

“The next day I called him up and said, ‘Where were you?’” pitcher Bob Forsch recalled. “He said, ‘I just wanted you guys to enjoy it. I was listening to the celebration in my car while I was driving home.’”[17]

[1] John Hughes, “Herzog’s genius was the difference,” Wisconsin State Journal, October 21, 1982.

[2] Rick Hummel, “Cards’ Goal: Bury Brewers With Wounded Knee,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 20, 1982.

[3] Rick Hummel, “Cards’ Goal: Bury Brewers With Wounded Knee,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 20, 1982.

[4] Rick Hummel, “Cards’ Goal: Bury Brewers With Wounded Knee,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 20, 1982.

[5] Bill Brophy, “Season of miracles ends,” Wisconsin State Journal, October 21, 1982.

[6] Neal Russo, “Brewers Credit The Cardinals, And Vuckovich Takes The Blame,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 21, 1982.

[7] Ed Wilks, “Simmons Remained At The Front In Class,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 21, 1982.

[8] Neal Russo, “Andujar Style Is ‘Hot Dog’ To Gantner,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 21, 1982.

[9] Neal Russo, “Andujar Style Is ‘Hot Dog’ To Gantner,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 21, 1982.

[10] Mike Smith, “A Ring For Sutter’s ‘Split Finger,’” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 21, 1982.

[11] Mike Smith, “A Ring For Sutter’s ‘Split Finger,’” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 21, 1982.

[12] Bill Brophy, “Season of miracles ends,” Wisconsin State Journal, October 21, 1982.

[13] Mike Smith, “A Ring For Sutter’s ‘Split Finger,’” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 21, 1982.

[14] Mike Smith, “A Ring For Sutter’s ‘Split Finger,’” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 21, 1982.

[15] Mike Smith, “A Ring For Sutter’s ‘Split Finger,’” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 21, 1982.

[16] Kevin Horrigan, “It Was The Time For Series Victory,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 21, 1982.

[17] Bob Forsch with Tom Wheatley (2013), Tales from the St. Louis Cardinals Dugout, New York; Sport Publishing, Page 31.

The post 1982 World Series Game 7: Andujar, Sutter clinch the title first appeared on STLRedbirds.com.

After he hit two home runs to lift the Cardinals to a 6-2 win in Game 3 of the 1982 World Series, however, he returned to the clubhouse and found himself confronted with something perhaps even more nerve-wracking for the 23-year-old San Francisco native than anything that could happen on the field – a crowd of reporters surrounding his locker.

“I got in by my locker and I turned around to face the media and I’m thinking it’s going to be Rob Rains and another guy, but I’m looking around and it’s three rows deep of media, and it’s like, ‘Oh boy,’” McGee said. “All of a sudden it hit then what you’re really into.”[1]

The Cardinals and Brewers had split the first two games of the World Series as Milwaukee picked up a blowout 10-0 win in Game 1 before St. Louis bounced back with a 5-4 win in Game 2. For Game 3, the series moved to Milwaukee, where both teams’ aces would make their debuts.

For the Cardinals, that was 29-year-old right-hander Joaquin Andujar, who had gone 15-10 with a 2.47 ERA in 265 2/3 innings. Acquired in a trade with the Astros in 1981, Andujar’s wins, innings, and ERA all represented career bests. That success had continued in the NLCS, where Andujar held the Braves to two runs over 6 2/3 innings in a 6-2 Game 3 victory.

The Brewers countered with that season’s American League Cy Young Award winner, Pete Vuckovich. A former Cardinal who had gone 39-31 with a 3.21 ERA in three seasons with St. Louis, Vuckovich was dealt to the Brewers in the trade that also sent Rollie Fingers and Ted Simmons to Milwaukee for David Green, Dave LaPoint, Sixto Lezcano, and Lary Sorensen.

Vuckovich had pitched the best baseball of his career since the trade, leading baseball with 14 wins in the strike-shortened 1981 season. After finishing fourth in the Cy Young voting that year, he pitched even better in 1982, going 18-6 with a 3.34 ERA in 223 2/3 innings.

In the ALCS against the Angels, Vuckovich took a Game 2 loss after allowing four runs in eight innings. In Game 5, the Brewers earned the 4-3 win but Vuckovich received no decision after allowing three runs over 6 1/3 innings.

With Game 3 of the World Series, the 6-foot-4, 215-pound right-hander hoped to get back on the winning track.

Both pitchers cruised through the first four innings. Milwaukee leadoff hitter Paul Molitor led off the bottom of the first with a blast to center field, but McGee made a leaping catch to prevent an extra-base hit.

The Brewers’ only other threat came in the fourth inning. After Andujar walked Charlie Moore, Jim Gantner doubled to put runners at second and third with one out. However, Andujar got out of the jam by striking out Molitor and getting Robin Yount to ground out and end the inning.

The Cardinals broke the scoreless tie in the top of the fifth. With one out, Lonnie Smith doubled into the left-field gap and Dane Iorg reached on an error. On the first pitch he saw, McGee launched a high slider over the right-field wall to give St. Louis a 3-0 lead.

Two innings later, the Cardinals struck again when Smith tripled and scored on a throwing error by Gantner, the Brewers’ second baseman. With two outs, McGee homered again, sending a changeup over the right-field wall to give St. Louis a 5-0 lead. With the blast, McGee became just the third rookie to hit two home runs in a World Series game.[2]

After hitting four home runs during the regular season, McGee had three playoff homers.

“I’d like to know what Willie McGee eats for breakfast,” Vuckovich said. “I don’t know if it’s Wheaties or what, but gosh dang, he just jumped all over me.”[3]

Both of McGee’s home runs came on offspeed pitches, which the Brewers’ scouting report had indicated was the best way to attack the rookie outfielder. In Game 2, Milwaukee threw McGee nothing but offspeed pitches and he went 0-for-4.

“We gave him the slow stuff they told us to throw,” Simmons said after McGee’s two-homer performance. “What can you do? It worked the other night, but they don’t give you a written guarantee with those scouting reports.”[4]

Andujar pitched into the seventh inning, retiring Cecil Cooper on a fly ball to center field before Simmons smashed a ground ball into Andujar’s leg. Andujar rolled on the ground, writhing in pain.

“I don’t know what I was thinking, but the pain was driving me crazy,” Andujar said.[5]

“It was pretty clear he was in pain,” Cardinals third baseman Ken Oberkfell said. “I’ve seen him get hit before and he never went down.”[6]

Andujar was removed from the game and taken to the hospital for x-rays, which showed no fractures.[7] On short notice, Herzog called upon Jim Kaat to warm up.

When play resumed, Kaat struck out Ben Oglivie for the second out of the inning but allowed a single to Gorman Thomas. He was then replaced with Doug Bair, who walked pinch-hitter Don Money.

With the bases loaded and seven outs remaining in the game, Herzog turned to Bruce Sutter. Sutter retired Charlie Moore on a pop-up to end the threat.

“I was trying to keep from going seven outs with him, but the game was on the line,” Herzog explained.[8]

One inning later, Cooper got the Brewers on the scoreboard with a two-run homer that cut the Cardinals’ lead to 5-2. St. Louis added an insurance run in the top of the ninth after George Hendrick reached on catcher’s interference, Iorg doubled, and McGee was handed an intentional walk. With the bases loaded and two outs, Ozzie Smith worked a five-pitch walk to give Sutter a 6-2 lead heading into the bottom of the ninth.

After Keith Hernandez uncharacteristically misplayed a ground ball to lead off the inning, McGee made his second defensive gem of the game when he climbed the left-center field wall to rob Thomas of a home run.

“I don’t know of anybody who ever played a better World Series game than he did tonight,” Herzog said. “If he didn’t make that catch in the ninth, Mr. Sutter could’ve been in trouble.”[9]

On the NBC game broadcast, Joe Garagiola made it clear that McGee was his unofficial MVP of the game.

“If anyone votes for anyone other than Willie McGee, I’m leaving,” he said.[10]

Garagiola wasn’t the only one who noticed McGee’s performance.

“He is catching the ball the way Mays would and hitting the ball the way Stargell would and accepting the attention as gracefully as McCovey,” Rick Bozich wrote in the Louisville Times.[11]

Vuckovich took the loss for the Brewers after allowing four earned runs on six hits and three walks.

“I don’t think I’ve thrown a six-hitter all year,” said Vukovich, drinking from a bottle of Yugoslavian plum brandy sent to him by fans. “I’ve been behind hitters all year long. I’ve been walking people all year long. So I get the hit total down and get the walk total down, and what do I have to show for it? Some guy who hits four homers all year long, for crying out loud, dings me twice, and I’ve wound up putting us in a hole.”[12]

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[1] STLSportsPage. “Willie McGee being interviewed by Rob Rains of STLSportsPage.Com at Gateway Grizzlies Game 5-116.” YouTube, YouTube, 16 May 2016, www.youtube.com/watch?v=GjoNw_aiyNU. 

[2] Ron Rapoport, “Willie’s Image Has New Glow,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 16, 1982.

[3] Mike Smith, “Vuckovich’s ‘Best’ Didn’t Allow For McGee Factor,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 16, 1982.

[4] Mike Smith, “Vuckovich’s ‘Best’ Didn’t Allow For McGee Factor,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 16, 1982.

[5] Rick Hummel, “Wondrous Willie Puts Cards One Wing Up,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 16, 1982.

[6] Kevin Horrigan, “Andujar Has ‘Tough’ Luck,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 16, 1982.

[7] Kevin Horrigan, “Andujar Has ‘Tough’ Luck,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 16, 1982.

[8] Rick Hummel, “Wondrous Willie Puts Cards One Wing Up,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 16, 1982.

[9] Milton Richman, “Wonder-Worker Willie Has Those Brewers On Run,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 16, 1982.

[10] Rob Rains and Alvin A. Reid (2002), Whitey’s Boys: A Celebration of the ’82 Cards’ World Championship, Chicago: Triumph Books, Page 74.

[11] Rick Bozich, “Baseball has new Mr. October and Willie McGee is his name,” Louisville Times, October 16, 1982.

[12] Mike Smith, “Vuckovich’s ‘Best’ Didn’t Allow For McGee Factor,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 16, 1982.

The post Willie McGee homers twice in Game 3 of the 1982 World Series first appeared on STLRedbirds.com.

Sutter had a contract with the Cubs for the 1980 season, but the agreement included a clause that allowed him to renegotiate that year’s salary.^[1] With the contract negotiations hovering in the background, trade rumors began to swirl around Sutter.

They began with reports in December 1979 that a Phillies scout had approached Kennedy with an offer that included pitchers Larry Christenson and Tug McGraw and outfielder Greg Luzinski for Sutter. The Chicago Tribune hinted that Kennedy responded by asking the Phillies to add Mike Schmidt to the deal,^[2] and Kennedy later clarified that the Phillies had not offered a package of players but instead offered Luzinski in a one-for-one trade for Sutter.

“We certainly aren’t going to make that deal,” Kennedy said.^[3]

With spring training looming in February 1980, the Cubs and Sutter went to arbitration to determine his salary for the season. Going into the hearing, Sutter asked for $700,000 while the Cubs countered with an offer of $350,000.^[4] The arbitrator, Thomas G. Christenson, could only select one figure or the other. In the end, he sided with Sutter.

“I didn’t want to go to arbitration,” Sutter said. “I was willing to call it off at the last minute, and when I went in and asked for $700,000, I never dreamed I would get it.”^[5]

By the end of March, the Cubs had reportedly received a wide variety of offers for Sutter’s services. According to those reports, the Dodgers had offered third baseman Ron Cey, outfielder/infielder Derrel Thomas, and catcher Joe Ferguson, though Kennedy disputed this report and insisted that Dodgers vice president Al Campanis had called simply to ask for the opportunity to bid on Sutter if a deal became imminent.

The Astros reportedly offered pitcher Joaquin Andujar and outfielder/first baseman Cesar Cedeno, and the Cardinals were believed to have offered Kennedy’s son, catching prospect Terry Kennedy; infielder Ken Oberkfell; and relief pitcher Mark Littell. Kennedy was particularly annoyed by the report regarding the Cardinals’ offer and denied that such an offer had ever been made.^[6]

Ultimately, the Cubs held onto Sutter for the 1980 season, though the shutdown closer, who saved a league-high 28 games with a 2.64 ERA, represented a luxury on a 98-loss Cubs team.

“There’s no doubt Sutter is on the market this fall,” said Expos manager Dick Williams. “Everybody has heard that, everybody knows that. The Cubs are looking for the best offer and, believe me, when it comes to that, there are a lot of teams that are going to have their names up on the wall in the Cub offices.

“From what I hear, the deal isn’t going to involve just Sutter. It will be him and others for several players; it will be a tremendous package. This is one guy who can take a strong team to a pennant. He has one heck of a great pitch. There isn’t anything like it in baseball today. The one thing I’m not sure of, though, is the salary. I wonder if the team that gets him will have to pay him 700 grand or more.”^[7]

In November, Cubs general manager Bob Kennedy said he had heard from several teams inquiring about Sutter’s availability, but a few had been frightened off by Sutter’s salary expectations.

“We need young talent, especially a second baseman and a third baseman, and if we can get young players like that, we’ll trade one of our name guys,” Kennedy said.^[8]

Brewers general manager Harry Dalton, who felt his team was just a few pieces away after finishing third in the American League East in 1980, believed Sutter was destined to become a St. Louis Cardinal.

“We’ve made a good offer to the Cubs,” he said, “but every time we talk to them, it’s like Kennedy’s eyes kind of glaze over and he isn’t hearing what we’re saying. I think it’s just a question of time before they put together the pieces of a Sutter deal with the Cardinals.”^[9]

In St. Louis, Whitey Herzog had just taken over general manager duties and was working quickly to rebuild a roster that had gone 74-88 to finish one spot ahead of the Cubs in the National League East. To transform the Cardinals’ fortunes, he was seeking an elite closer and had two in mind – Sutter and the San Diego Padres’ Rollie Fingers.

Herzog’s desire for Sutter was so well-known that Kennedy was driving into the office on Dec. 3 when a news flash came on the radio to say that a deal between the Cardinals and Cubs was nearly complete. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch was reporting that the Cardinals were sending Leon “Bull” Durham, an infielder (either Ken Reitz or  Oberkfell), and a minor leaguer to the Cubs in exchange for Sutter. When Kennedy got to Wrigley Field, he called Herzog to chastise the Cardinals’ general manager about tampering.

“I didn’t mention Sutter’s name,” Herzog told Kennedy. “I just said we wanted a top relief pitcher and that I hoped to have him by Friday.”^[10]

In Herzog’s autobiography, White Rat: A Life in Baseball, he wrote that Kennedy had been seeking three of the Cardinals’ top prospects: Durham, second baseman Tom Herr, and outfielder Ty Waller. Ultimately, Bob Kennedy and Herzog compromised, with Durham, Reitz, and Waller headed to Chicago in exchange for Sutter.^[11]

The deal would hit a snag, however, when Reitz, who had a no-trade clause, refused to sign off.

“I thought about it and I ain’t going to Chicago,” Reitz said.^[12]

Herzog spoke to Reitz’s agent, Larue Harcourt, regarding the deal and Harcourt recommended to Reitz that he accept the trade. Additionally, the Cardinals gave Bob Kennedy, who had been the Cardinals’ farm director when Reitz was in their minor-league system, permission to speak to Reitz.

“He wants me to be a regular and I’d hit in the heart of their lineup,” Reitz said of his conversations with Kennedy. “It’s a hard decision for me because he’s done a lot for me.”^[13]

As the Cardinals and Cubs worked to convince Reitz to accept the trade, the Brewers continued to lurk in the background. According to reports, they had offered third baseman Jim Gantner and left-handed pitcher Mike Caldwell, but the Cubs wanted second baseman Paul Molitor included in any deal.^[14]

When Kennedy arrived in Dallas for the winter meetings, he told reporters he was optimistic that Reitz would change his mind regarding the trade.

“Don’t count us out on getting Reitz,” he said. “I think it was a matter of his pride being hurt by the fact the Cardinals wanted to trade him, but he didn’t sound anywhere near that negative Saturday.”^[15]

Herzog wasn’t about to allow Reitz’s indecision to delay his rebuild. On December 7, he signed Darrell Porter, his former catcher with the Kansas City Royals, as a free agent. The following day, he traded Terry Kennedy, John Littlefield, Al Olmsted, Mike Phillips, Kim Seaman, Steve Swisher, and John Urrea to the Padres for Fingers, Bob Shirley, Gene Tenace, and a player to be named later (Bob Geren).

On December 9, the Cubs and Cardinals finally completed the Sutter deal when Reitz agreed to a $150,000 payment to approve the trade, with $75,000 coming from each team.^[16] At the time the trade was completed, Sutter was out hunting and staying in a cabin with no telephone. Reached at the family home, Sutter’s wife Jayme had just one question for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reporter who called for a comment regarding the trade: “Are they going to keep Rollie Fingers too?”^[17]

Herzog admitted that he was unlikely to keep both future Hall of Famers in his bullpen. When asked which he would keep, his answer was simple.

“In my eight years of managing, I’ve never had a reliever like Sutter,” he said.^[18]

In Chicago, the loss of Sutter was softened by the acquisition of Durham, who hit eight homers and drove in 42 RBIs in 330 plate appearances in St. Louis in 1980. Durham would go on to play eight seasons in Chicago, eclipsing 20 home runs five times and making two all-star appearances.

“The Cardinals have a chance to win the pennant with Bruce, but we have to rebuild and he couldn’t win the pennant for us,” Kennedy said.^[19]

Nonetheless, the Cubs’ optimism regarding Durham’s future couldn’t match St. Louis’s excitement for Sutter. A few days after the trade was completed, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch declared that, “St. Louis has the Arch, the zoo, and the Muny Opera, assets of incalculable worth, but now it’s got something really valuable. It’s got Bruce Sutter’s game-saving arm.”^[20]

“I didn’t come here for recognition,” Sutter said. “I didn’t come here to be the highest-paid player. I came here to help the team and to win.”^[21]

In another interview, he said, “The ballclub I’m going to is going to be a winner and that matters more than anything. All the other stuff, you can have. I’ll get just as many saves in St. Louis as I did in Chicago. Only difference is they’ll mean more.”^[22]

With his time in Chicago at an end, Sutter had mixed feelings about the experience. On the one hand, he had spent the past eight years with the organization, transforming himself from a low-level fastball/curveball pitcher with dim prospects for a major league future into the game’s top relief pitcher. Along the way, he’d met Fred Martin, who had made the single greatest impact on his career of any coach he would ever work with, and spent four seasons working with pitching coach Mike Roarke, who would prove more effective than anyone in assisting Sutter with his mechanics.

On the other hand, Sutter found himself questioning Chicago’s commitment to excellence.

“It was getting depressing,” he said. “I never felt like they wanted to win. The salary negotiations and some of the things they did … I never got the real sense that they were trying to win … and I’m an optimist. There were a lot of problems, a lot of griping, a lot of excuses last year. Guys would never admit to making mistakes. They always would blame someone else.”^[23]

While Sutter credited the Cubs for making a good trade, he was left with a bad taste in his mouth regarding how the team handled the news after the deal was finalized.

“Bob Kennedy didn’t talk to me until a week after I got traded,” he said. “He had my phone number. I missed a whole day of hunting waiting for him to call, and then the first thing that came out (in the media) was he said they wanted to get rid of my salary. That made me mad. They gave me a little slap in the face as a going-away present and I didn’t appreciate that. That’s all Mr. Wrigley needs is another $100,000. What are they going to do, put $100 bills out there at second base and in center field?”^[24]

On December 12, Herzog traded Fingers, Ted Simmons, and Pete Vuckovich to the Brewers for David Green, Dave LaPoint, Sixto Lezcano, and Lary Sorensen. With Fingers in Milwaukee, Herzog sent a clear signal that Sutter was his closer.

Now all that remained was to complete the step that had created such animosity between Sutter and the Cubs – his contract. However, whereas the Cubs were hesitant to sign Sutter to a long-term deal, Herzog and the Cardinals were eager to lock the big right-hander down.

In January 1981, Sutter and the Cardinals agreed to a four-year, $3.5 million contract. Per the agreement, Sutter would earn $975,000 the first two years and $1.55 million each of the last two years. In addition, Sutter would receive a $125,000 bonus for winning the Rolaids Fireman of the Year Award, an $82,000 bonus for placing second, or a $41,000 bonus for placing third.^[25]

“I never thought I’d make that kind of money,” Sutter said. “When you’re growing up, the money wasn’t the same as it is now. The money is just unbelievable.”^[26]

For Herzog, the cost was worth having the man he considered to be the best reliever in baseball residing in his bullpen.

“This signing gives our bullpen the kind of quality and stability we need,” he said. “We know what kind of job Bruce can do.”^[27]

Sutter went on to save 127 games for the Cardinals, leading the league in three of his four seasons with the birds on the bat. While he helped St. Louis win the World Series in 1982, his best season may have been his final season with the Cardinals in 1984, when he saved 45 games with a 1.54 ERA. He placed third in the Cy Young and sixth in the National League MVP voting that season.

After the 1984 season, Sutter signed a six-year contract with the Braves that paid him $4.5 million and placed another $4.8 million into a deferred payment account that would pay him $1.3 million per year for 30 years after the contract expired. Sutter pitched two seasons in Atlanta, saving 26 games to give him an even 300 for his career before a torn rotator cuff ended his career.

In 2006, Sutter was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. That September, his number 42 was retired by the Cardinals.

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[1] Dozer, Richard. “Cubs sign Krukow; Foote Next?” Chicago Tribune, 12 Feb. 1980.

[2] Dozer, Richard. “Cubs reject Luzinski, 2 Phillie pitchers for Sutter,” Chicago Tribune, 7 Dec. 1979.

[3] Edes, Gordon. “Cost of Sutter.” Chicago Tribune, 11 Dec. 1979.

[4] Nidetz, Steve. “Sutter victory worth $700,000.” Chicago Tribune, 25 Feb. 1980.

[5] Nightingale, Dave. “Sutter relieved to escape pressure of Cub ‘stupidity.’” Chicago Tribune, 27 July 1980.

[6] Dozer, Richard. “Cubs hear a clamor for Sutter.” Chicago Tribune, 28 March 1980.

[7] Nightingale, Dave. “Sutter and his pitch probably will split,” Chicago Tribune, 10 Oct. 1980.

[8] Nightingale, Dave. “Cub stars on block: Kennedy,” Chicago Tribune, 13 Nov. 1980.

[9] Nightingale, Dave. “Cub stars on block: Kennedy,” Chicago Tribune, 13 Nov. 1980.

[10] Jones, Dave. “A Sutter suitor,” Chicago Tribune, 4 Dec. 1980.

[11] Herzog, Whitey & Horrigan, Kevin (1987). White Rat: A Life in Baseball. New York, N.Y.; Harper & Row Publishers, Inc., 127-128.

[12] “Cardinals’ Reitz refuses to go to Cubs in Sutter deal,” Chicago Tribune, 6 Dec. 1980.

[13] “Cardinals’ Reitz refuses to go to Cubs in Sutter deal,” Chicago Tribune, 6 Dec. 1980.

[14] “Cardinals’ Reitz refuses to go to Cubs in Sutter deal,” Chicago Tribune, 6 Dec. 1980.

[15] Nightingale, Dave. “Kennedy still pursuing Sutter deal with Cards,” Chicago Tribune, 7 Dec. 1980.

[16] Nightingale, Dave. “Getting Durham in Sutter deal has Kennedy gloating,” Chicago Tribune, 10 Dec. 1980.

[17] Hummel, Rick. “Reitz Harbors No Resentment,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 10 Dec. 1980.

[18] Nightingale, Dave. “Getting Durham in Sutter deal has Kennedy gloating,” Chicago Tribune, 10 Dec. 1980.

[19] Nightingale, Dave. “Getting Durham in Sutter deal has Kennedy gloating,” Chicago Tribune, 10 Dec. 1980.

[20] Barnidge, Tom. “‘I Came Here To Win’ – Sutter,” St. Louis Post Dispatch, 14 Jan. 1981.

[21] Barnidge, Tom. “‘I Came Here To Win’ – Sutter,” St. Louis Post Dispatch, 14 Jan. 1981.

[22] Verdi, Bob. “Penny-pinching Cubs make Sutter sad,” Chicago Tribune, 16 Dec. 1980.

[23] Hummel, Rick. “Bruce Sutter,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 18 March 1981.

[24] Hummel, Rick. “Bruce Sutter,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 18 March 1981.

[25] Hummel, Rick. “Sutter Near $1 Million A Year,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 27 Jan. 1981.

[26] Hummel, Rick. “Sutter Near $1 Million A Year,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 27 Jan. 1981.

[27] Hummel, Rick. “Sutter Near $1 Million A Year,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 27 Jan. 1981.

The post How Bruce Sutter was traded to the Cardinals first appeared on STLRedbirds.com.

On September 4, 1982, Smith did exactly that, tying a modern-day National League record with five stolen bases in a 5-4 loss to the Giants. Smith, whose five steals came against four different pitchers, said he was inspired to tie the record when Giants reliever Jim Barr hit him with a pitch in the sixth inning.

“He hit me on purpose and it spurred me on,” said Smith, who already had two stolen bases prior to the at-bat.[1]

One day earlier, Bruce Sutter suffered a rare blown save when Chili Davis led off the 10^th inning with a triple and scored on a Darrell Evans sacrifice fly, giving the Giants a 3-2 win. Despite the loss, the Cardinals held the National League’s best record at 76-57 and led the Phillies by 2 ½ games in the NL East.

To get them back on the winning track, the Cardinals turned to rookie left-hander Dave LaPoint, who was 7-3 with a 3.66 ERA heading into the contest. The Giants countered with Mark Dempsey, a 6-foot-6 right-hander out of Ohio State University who was making the only start of his major-league career.

Dempsey lasted just 2 2/3 innings. In the first inning, Smith doubled to right field, then scored on a single by George Hendrick. Willie McGee led off the second inning with a solo home run that made it 2-0.

“I was getting a few pitches up, and I was getting too far behind the batters,” Dempsey said. “I got behind on Willie McGee, for instance, and I didn’t realize he has that much power.”[2]

In the third, Smith singled to right and then stole second before Keith Hernandez followed with a single. Hendrick added a single of his own but Davis threw Hernandez out at the plate. After Darrell Porter walked, Giants manager Frank Robinson called on Mike Chris to retire McGee and end the inning.

In the fifth, Smith started yet another rally, this time leading off with a walk before he stole second and advanced to third on a throwing error by Giants catcher Bob Brenly. Hernandez hit a sacrifice fly into center field that scored Smith to give the Cardinals a 4-0 lead.

The Giants began their comeback in the sixth. To that point, LaPoint had held San Francisco to just three hits over five innings. However, Davis led off the inning with a bunt single and Jack Clark followed with an RBI double to left.

An inning later, Giants shortstop Guy Sularz scored on a throwing error by Porter, who was attempting to throw out Jim Wohlford as he stole second base.

With a 4-2 lead, the Cardinals turned to their bullpen for the final five outs. Doug Bair recorded the final out of the seventh, then struck out the side in the eighth. In the ninth, Bair retired Duane Kuiper on a ground ball, but with one out, Jeffrey Leonard singled to center.

Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog inserted 43-year-old veteran Jim Kaat to face 38-year-old Joe Morgan, but Morgan won the match-up with a single into left. Once again, Herzog called upon Sutter with the game on the line, and once again, the Giants scored the game-winning run against the Cardinals closer.

After Sutter got Davis to ground out for the second out of the inning, Herzog came to the mound to ask Sutter if he wanted to walk Clark to face Reggie Smith. Sutter chose to face Clark instead.[3]

The strategy didn’t work.

On the first pitch he saw, Clark launched a three-run homer approximately 425 feet[4] to left field, giving the Giants the 5-4 victory.

“I don’t know if I’ve ever hit a ball harder – it was gone,” Clark said.[5]

It was indeed, though Herzog admitted that Sutter didn’t throw a bad pitch.

“Clark hit a darn good pitch – it was down,” he said.[6]

Sutter was not comforted by Herzog’s words after allowing his second walk-off hit in as many days.

“It’s never a good pitch when it ends up out of the park,” he said. “Clark is a great hitter. You try to keep it down and hope he hits it into the ground.”[7]

Smith finished with three hits and three runs scored to go along with his five stolen bases. In addition to his first-inning double, third-inning single, and ninth-inning single, he also walked and was hit by a pitch. In the ninth inning, Smith stole both second and third, but was left stranded when Porter grounded back to the pitcher for the final out of the inning.

Smith’s performance upped his batting average to .319 with a .392 on-base percentage and 62 stolen bases.

He stole six more bases to finish the season with 68 stolen bases while batting .307/.381/.434. In addition to making an all-star game appearance, Smith placed second to Dale Murphy in the National League MVP voting.

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[1] Nick Peters, “Giants stun Cards in ninth,” Oakland Tribune, September 5, 1982.

[2] Terence Moore, “Giants win on Clark’s dramatic HR,” San Francisco Examiner, September 5, 1982.

[3] Nick Peters, “Giants stun Cards in ninth,” Oakland Tribune, September 5, 1982.

[4] Terence Moore, “Giants win on Clark’s dramatic HR,” San Francisco Examiner, September 5, 1982.

[5] Nick Peters, “Giants stun Cards in ninth,” Oakland Tribune, September 5, 1982.

[6] Nick Peters, “Giants stun Cards in ninth,” Oakland Tribune, September 5, 1982.

[7] Nick Peters, “Giants stun Cards in ninth,” Oakland Tribune, September 5, 1982.

The post Lonnie Smith ties NL record with five stolen bases: 9/4/1982 first appeared on STLRedbirds.com.

“It’s hit me that I’m in the big leagues, but in a way it hasn’t,” the 24-year-old said after making his debut just two years after the Cardinals drafted him in the seventh round of the 1982 June Amateur Draft. “I mean, I’m standing here in Busch Stadium, which I’ve heard so much about all these years, and I’m standing here with all these players I’ve heard so much about. I was a Dodger fan for years and Dusty Baker was everything to me. So I walk into the hotel when I get here and the first guy I see is Dusty Baker.

“This is all kind of wild. If you don’t get nervous for your first big-league game, there’s something wrong with you.”[1]

Pendleton had been called up to the majors earlier that day after Willie McGee was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a hamstring injury. With McGee out of the lineup, Andy Van Slyke, who had committed seven errors in 30 games at third base, returned to the outfield. That left third base open for Pendleton, who was hitting .297 with four homers and 44 RBIs in 91 games at Triple-A Louisville.

A California native, Pendleton had played at Oxnard College for the first two years of the program’s existence before transferring to Fresno State and earning All-America honors with a school-record 98 hits in 1982.

Once drafted, Pendleton continued his success, batting .320 in Rookie League Johnson City before getting called up for 20 games at Class A St. Petersburg. In 1983, the Cardinals called Pendleton up to Class AA Arkansas, where he batted .276.

“They’ve got a 30-foot fence down there with a 50-foot protective screen on top of it because an interstate runs by the park, and Terry cleared it a couple of times,” said Cardinals first base coach Nick Leyva, who managed Pendleton in Arkansas. “He’s the type of kid you call a gamer.”[2]

Pendleton was certainly a gamer in his debut as he went 3-for-5 with a walk, an RBI, and a run scored in a thrilling 8-4, extra-inning comeback win over the Giants at Busch Stadium. The contest pitted a pair of young left-handers against one another as the Cardinals started 24-year-old rookie Ricky Horton and the Giants countered with Atlee Hammaker, a 26-year-old southpaw who was coming off an all-star season in 1983.

Jeffrey Leonard got the Giants on the scoreboard first with a solo home run – his third in four at-bats that season against Horton – to lead off the second inning. After Bob Brenly and Joel Youngblood each flied out, Pendleton got his first defensive chance, diving for a sharply hit ground ball by Giants catcher Steve Nicosia and throwing him out to end the inning.

In the Cardinals’ half of the second, Pendleton took his first big-league at-bat and singled with one out. He advanced to second on a balk, but Hammaker struck out Darrell Porter and Chris Speier to strand him in scoring position.

Baker made it 2-0 in the third inning with an RBI single, but the Cardinals answered in their half of the inning when Lonnie Smith doubled and advanced to third on an error. The next batter, Tom Herr, scored Smith on a ground ball to the shortstop to cut the Giants’ lead in half.

With runners on first and third and one out in the fifth inning, Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog called on Jeff Lahti to replace Horton. Lahti got out of the jam with no damage, but couldn’t hold the Giants again in the sixth, as Dan Gladden hit a bases-loaded single to score two more runs and give the Giants a 4-1 lead.

They would prove the Giants’ final runs of the evening.

The Cardinals’ rally began with two runs against reliever Jeff Cornell in the bottom of the sixth. Smith and Herr led off the inning with back-to-back doubles, and with two outs, Pendleton collected his first major-league RBI with a single that scored Herr.

From there, Herzog called on his bullpen to keep the game close. Neil Allen threw 1 2/3 scoreless innings and Bruce Sutter threw scoreless eighth and ninth innings.

In the bottom of the ninth, Smith hit a one-out single, then stole second on Giants reliever Greg Minton, advancing to third base when Nicosia’s throw bounced into center field. Herr’s third RBI of the night came on a one-out single that tied the game 4-4 and sent it into extra innings.

The Cardinals’ bullpen continued to stand tall. Ralph Citarella retired Youngblood, Nicosia, and Brad Wellman in the 10^th inning, and Dave Von Ohlen worked around two singles with the help of Van Slyke, who threw out San Francisco’s John Rabb at the plate.

Finally, with the bases loaded and two outs, Darrell Porter hit a walk-off grand slam in the bottom of the 11^th to win the game.

“I’ve hit a lot of balls that I thought were gone in this park and they weren’t, so I was really just hoping it was over (the right fielder’s) head,” Porter said.[3]

Smith finished the game with four hits and three runs scored. Herr totaled three hits, as did Pendleton.

“The kid was something,” Herzog said. “I wish to hell he’d won it for us. That would’ve been a fitting climax.”[4]

A day later, after Pendleton had one of just two Cardinals hits in a 10-0 loss to Orel Hershiser and the Dodgers, Herzog added, “You might see him for the next 10 years.”[5]

Even there, Pendleton exceeded expectations, going on to play 15 major league seasons. He played seven seasons in St. Louis, helping the Cardinals capture the National League pennant in 1985 and 1987 and winning the Gold Glove Award in 1987 and 1989.

Ahead of the 1991 season, Pendleton signed a free-agent deal with the Braves and went on to have the best seasons of his career. In 1991, he led the league with a .319 average and 187 hits, capturing National League MVP honors with 22 homers and 86 RBIs. The following season, he hit .311 with 21 homers and 105 RBIs, placing second in the MVP vote, claiming his third Gold Glove, and making the lone all-star game appearance of his career.

After playing with the Marlins, Reds, and Royals, Pendleton retired following the 1998 season. He finished his career with a .270 batting average and 1,897 career hits and played in five World Series. Beginning in 2002, Pendleton served as a longtime coach for the Braves, including roles as hitting coach, first base coach, and bench coach through the 2017 season.

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[1] Mike Smith, “New Bird Pendleton: A ‘Gamer,’” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, July 19, 1984.

[2] Mike Smith, “New Bird Pendleton: A ‘Gamer,’” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, July 19, 1984.

[3] Mike Smith, “Cards’ Pendleton A Hit In Debut,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, July 20, 1984.

[4] Mike Smith, “Cards’ Pendleton A Hit In Debut,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, July 20, 1984.

[5] Rick Hummel, “Broken Wrist Puts Ozzie On DL,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, July 20, 1984.

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