“Starting pitchers use 300 wins as a measuring stick for the Hall of Fame,” Cardinals manager Joe Torre said. “For him to get 300 saves means he’s been a part of 300 victories. You might just put that in the same category. He’s right up there.”[1]

The 6-foot-6, 250-pound Smith took an unlikely path to 300 saves and the Baseball Hall of Fame. Born in northern Louisiana, Smith’s favorite sport was basketball and he didn’t play baseball until his junior season. Nonetheless, his strong right arm stood out, and no less an authority than Negro Leagues legend Buck O’Neil scouted him. Upon O’Neil’s recommendation, the Chicago Cubs selected him in the second round of the 1975 draft.

Smith made his major-league debut as a 22-year-old in 1980 and soon emerged as the heir apparent to Sutter in Chicago. In 1983, he posted a 1.65 ERA and led the league with 29 saves. He saved at least 31 games in each of the next four seasons. After he saved 36 games and was named an all-star for the second time in his career in 1987, the Cubs traded him to the Boston Red Sox for Al Nipper and Calvin Schiraldi.

Smith pitched two-plus seasons in Boston, saving 60 games before he was traded to the Cardinals on May 4, 1990, for Tom Brunansky. By the time he arrived in St. Louis, he already had saved at least 25 games for eight consecutive seasons.

“He’s been durable for a guy who throws as hard as he does,” Torre said. “What has helped Lee is the fact that he pitched in places like Chicago and Boston. He’s had to learn to pitch, not just be a thrower.”[2]

Smith agreed.

“Pitching in Chicago is the best thing that ever happened to me, especially someone my height,” Smith said. “I had to learn to keep the ball down. In Wrigley Field, you’ve got to make good pitches even when the count is 0-and-2.”[3]

In St. Louis, Smith picked up saves faster than ever. After saving 27 games for the Cardinals in 1990, Smith entered 1991 with 265 career saves. By late August, he found himself on the cusp of 300. With saves in six consecutive appearances, including a scoreless ninth inning to cap off a 2-1 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers on August 23, Smith entered the series finale against the Dodgers on August 25 with a 2.47 ERA.

“The other guys (in the bullpen) are the unsung heroes,” Smith said. “I wouldn’t be having the year I’m having if it weren’t for guys like Scottie (Scott Terry). Everywhere else I’ve been, I’ve had to come in and pitch 2 to 2 1/3 innings, but here, I know I’m just going to be used for one inning or one situation most of the time. That’s because Joe has the confidence to use the other guys. They’ve been tremendous.”[4]

Torre used the same formula ahead of Smith’s 300^th career save.

The Cardinals and Dodgers exchanged runs in the first inning as L.A.’s Darryl Strawberry grounded out to score Brett Butler and St. Louis’s Todd Zeile hit an RBI double to tie the game.

The Cardinals took the lead in the third inning after rookie starting pitcher Rheal Cormier and Ozzie Smith each singled. Zeile scored Cormier on an infield single to give St. Louis the 2-1 lead.

Cormier pitched into the sixth inning. After retiring the first two batters of the frame, Strawberry hit a line drive that struck Cormier on his left arm. Cormier left the game immediately (though x-rays after the game were negative[5]), and Torre turned to Willie Fraser to face the switch-hitting Eddie Murray. Murray grounded out to end the inning.

“I thought it was broken,” Cormier said. “It felt like it was real bad. I knew I had to come out.”[6]

Zeile led off the bottom of the sixth with his second ground-rule double of the game. After Dodgers starting pitcher Tim Belcher intentionally walked Milt Thompson to get to Rex Hudler, the “Wonder Dog” made him pay, hitting a line drive to right field to score Zeile.  Catcher Tom Pagnozzi followed with a sacrifice bunt that scored Thompson and extended the lead to 4-1.

Butler hit an RBI single in the seventh to score the Dodgers’ second run of the game, but Ozzie Smith answered with an RBI that gave the Cardinals a 5-2 lead.

The Dodgers threatened in the eighth as Mitch Webster and Strawberry each singled against Cardinals reliever Bob McClure. McClure got Murray to bounce into a 5-4-3 double play, but after he walked Gary Carter, Torre called upon Cris Carpenter. Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda countered with pinch-hitter Kal Daniels, who grounded out to end the inning.

With a 5-2 lead heading into the ninth inning, it was Lee Smith’s opportunity to make history. He opened the inning by retiring Lenny Harris on a ground ball, then got pinch-hitter Stan Javier to fly out to shallow left field.

With two outs, however, Brett Butler and pinch-hitter Mike Scioscia each singled. With Webster at the plate representing the tying run, Lee Smith induced an infield fly that he caught himself for the 300^th save of his career.

“It’s another save,” he said. “I don’t worry too much about those things right now. After the season I might look at the statistics, but right now I don’t look at it too much. The important thing is we won.”[7]

Cormier earned the second win of his career, allowing one run over 5 2/3 innings. He also went 2-for-2 at the plate.

“He did a helluva job,” Torre said. “He throws strikes. He’s not afraid to come inside and challenge people. He keeps that guy close at first. He’s a little bulldog.”[8]

Zeile and Ozzie Smith each finished with three hits and Hudler added two.

Lee Smith’s outstanding season proved to be arguably the best of his 18-year major-league career. After leading all of baseball with a career-high 47 saves, he placed second to Tom Glavine in the Cy Young Award balloting and was eighth in the National League MVP vote.

In 1992, Lee Smith saved 43 games with a 3.12 ERA. Once again, he was named an all-star and finished fourth in the Cy Young voting. On April 13, 1993, he became baseball’s career saves leader, passing Jeff Reardon with his 358^th save. Smith saved 43 games with a 4.50 ERA that season before the Cardinals traded him to the Yankees on August 31 for Rich Batchelor.

In four seasons in St. Louis, Lee Smith saved 160 games with a 2.90 ERA. He retired in 1997 with 478 saves and remained baseball’s saves king until Trevor Hoffman passed his career total in 2006.

Lee Smith was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2018 by the Today’s Game Committee.

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[1] Dan O’Neill, “Smith Hits Milestone: 300 Saves,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, August 26, 1991.

[2] Dan O’Neill, “Smith Hits Milestone: 300 Saves,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, August 26, 1991.

[3] Dan O’Neill, “Smith Hits Milestone: 300 Saves,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, August 26, 1991.

[4] Dan O’Neill, “Cards Win Quietly 2-1,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, August 24, 1991.

[5] Dan O’Neill, “Team Torre ‘Tees Off’ On LA,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, August 26, 1991.

[6] Dan O’Neill, “Cards’ Cormier Gets A Break – Bone Not Fractured,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, August 26, 1991.

[7] Dan O’Neill, “Smith Hits Milestone: 300 Saves,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, August 26, 1991.

[8] Dan O’Neill, “Team Torre ‘Tees Off’ On LA,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, August 26, 1991.

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For good measure, Lankford also stole a base and scored four times.

“It’s a great feeling,” he said. “It’s something I’ll always remember.”[1]

Heading into the game, Lankford had already established himself as one of the National League’s top rookies. With seven home runs, 58 RBIs, 70 runs scored, and 35 stolen bases, Lankford joined the Astros’ Jeff Bagwell and the Pirates’ Orlando Merced in the Rookie of the Year race.

“He won’t win the award, but he might turn out to be the most exciting player of the bunch,” Cardinals manager Joe Torre said. “As far as all-around ability, speed, and excitement, he doesn’t have to take a back seat to anybody.”[2]

He certainly didn’t take a backseat to anyone on this day. In the bottom of the first, Lankford jumpstarted the Cardinals’ offense with a double down the left-field line. After stealing third base, he scored on another double off the bat of third baseman Todd Zeile. One inning later, Rex Hudler gave the Cardinals a 2-0 lead with his first and only home run of the season. It was Hudler’s first game back since banging his head against a retaining wall while making a diving catch two days earlier.

“I think it knocked my swing back in order,” he said.[3]

Lankford opened the third inning with a single. He advanced to third on a double by Ozzie Smith, and Zeile drove him home again with a sacrifice fly to center field.

Lankford and the Cardinals chased Mets starting pitcher Pete Schourek from the game in the fifth. With one out, Lankford hit a ground ball past Mets first baseman Mickey Sasser and into the right-field corner, one of a major-league-leading 15 triples he hit on the season.

Smith hit a double off Sasser’s glove to score Lankford, and two batters later he scored on an RBI single by Zeile, who collected his second hit and third RBI of the evening. Felix Jose followed with an RBI triple. Schourek left the game with the Mets trailing 6-0.

“I didn’t have any breaking ball today and they were waiting for the fastball,” Schourek said. “I made three good pitches to Lankford and he got three good hits.”[4]

New York finally got on the scoreboard against rookie righthander Rheal Cormier in the seventh after Howard Johnson led off with a double and Mark Carreon drove him home with a single to left field.

Batting leadoff in the bottom of the seventh, Lankford knew he was a home run away from the cycle. After Whitehurst fell behind 2-and-1, Lankford launched the fourth pitch he saw 412 feet over the center-field wall.[5]

“I was thinking about it when I came up, but when I try to hit home runs, I have a tendency to pull the ball,” Lankford said. “I was just thinking about hitting the ball back up the middle. I didn’t want to get too anxious. It was just one of those days where everything you do goes right.”[6]

The last Cardinal to hit for the cycle was Willie McGee, who accomplished the feat against the Cubs in 1984. The last Cardinals rookie to do it was Cliff Heathcote in 1918.[7]

Gregg Jefferies hit an RBI single in the ninth inning to score the Mets’ second run of the game, but Cormier retired the next two batters to claim the first complete-game win of his career. He scattered nine hits and a walk while striking out four.

“It was hot out there and I was getting tired, but I was trying to get the manager not to notice,” Cormier said. “It helped to score the runs early; I could just throw strikes, pump the fastball, and hope people hit the ball at somebody.”[8]

Lankford’s cycle came one day after he drove in both runs in the Cardinals’ 2-1 win over the Mets.

“I’ve been real impressed with Lankford,” New York manager Buddy Harrelson said. “Now I guess I have to say I’m overly impressed. All of his hits were solid. He’s been a real standout this season.”[9]

Lankford finished his rookie campaign with a .251 batting average to go with nine homers, 69 RBIs, and 44 stolen bases. He finished third in the Rookie of the Year balloting behind Bagwell and Merced.

Lankford went on to play 12 ½ of his 14 major-league seasons with the Cardinals, spending a year and a half in San Diego after he was traded to the Padres for Woody Williams in 2001. After missing the 2003 season due to injury, he returned to St. Louis to play his final season at age 37.

In 1,580 games with the Cardinals, he hit .273 with 1,479 hits. As of 2022, he ranked in the top 10 in franchise history in doubles (339, 10^th), home runs (228, fifth), RBIs (829, 10^th), and stolen bases (250, eighth). He was inducted into the Cardinals Hall of Fame in 2018.

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[1] Dan O’Neill, “Cards Ray-cycle Mets 7-2,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, September 16, 1991.

[2] Dan O’Neill, “Cards Ray-cycle Mets 7-2,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, September 16, 1991.

[3] Dan O’Neill, “Cards Ray-cycle Mets 7-2,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, September 16, 1991.

[4] R.B. Fallstrom (Associated Press), “Rookie hits for cycle to sink the Mets, 7-2,” Post-Star, September 16, 1991.

[5] R.B. Fallstrom (Associated Press), “Rookie hits for cycle to sink the Mets, 7-2,” Post-Star, September 16, 1991.

[6] Dan O’Neill, “Cards Ray-cycle Mets 7-2,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, September 16, 1991.

[7] Dan O’Neill, “Cards Ray-cycle Mets 7-2,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, September 16, 1991.

[8] Joe Ostermeier, “Rookies lead Cards past Mets 7-2,” Belleville News-Democrat, September 16, 1991.

[9] Joe Ostermeier, “Rookies lead Cards past Mets 7-2,” Belleville News-Democrat, September 16, 1991.

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At 35 years old, Pedro Guerrero had just completed his third season on the Busch Stadium Astroturf, and the wear and tear had begun to impact his numbers. In his first season with the Cardinals, Guerrero earned an all-star game berth with a .311/.391/.477 batting average/on-base percentage/slugging percentage and his 42 doubles led the National League. In 1990, the native of San Pedro de Macoris, Dominican Republic, saw his numbers dip but remain respectable, as he hit .281/.334/.426 with 13 homers and 80 RBIs. However, in 1991 he hit just 21 extra-base hits in 115 games.

At season’s end, Cardinals general manager Dal Maxvill made it clear that he didn’t intend to bring Guerrero back.

“Pete understands the whole situation,” he said. “He was beat up virtually all year and there’s his age, defensively, trying to play first base on artificial turf.”[1]

 California Angels first baseman Wally Joyner was an option, though he ultimately signed a four-year, $18 million deal with the Kansas City Royals. Outfielder Danny Tartabull also was on the market, but he signed with the New York Yankees for more than $5 million per season. On Nov. 20, Maxvill announced that the Cardinals had no intentions of pursuing Joyner, Tartabull, or fellow free agent Bobby Bonilla.

“After tons of meetings we have decided that we are not going to bid on any major free agents,” Maxvill said. “This doesn’t mean we are out of the free-agent market completely, forever. Just these three top dogs who are going to command $4 to $6 million a year for five years.”[2]

Five days later, on Nov. 25, the Cardinals announced that they had traded 25-year-old right-handed pitcher Ken Hill to the Montreal Expos for Andres Galarraga.

Between 1988 and 1990, the 6-foot-3, 235-pound first baseman from Caracas, Venezuela, averaged 24 home runs and 87 RBIs. In 1988, he earned his first all-star appearance and Silver Slugger Award, and in 1989 and 1990, he was recognized with a Gold Glove.

In 1991, however, Galarraga struggled. After arthroscopic knee surgery, Galarraga batted just .219 with nine homers and 33 RBIs in 400 plate appearances. A midseason groin pull limited his at-bats and his effectiveness. Suddenly the big first baseman’s tendancy to strike out (he led the league in strikeouts in 1988, 1989, and 1990) weren’t offset by his power stats. Even more importantly, his $2.65 million salary was now expendable for the cash-strapped Expos.

 “If Galarraga has a normal year, we don’t get him for Ken Hill,” Maxvill said.[3]

Rex Hudler, who played alongside Galarraga in Montreal, loved the move.

“Ozzie Smith should be doing a triple backflip right now,” he said, “and Todd Zeile should be too. He is going to make a big difference at first base. I’m sorry Kenny Hill won’t be here, but it’s a great pickup for the club. Galarraga’s liable to go off next year. He needs a change of scenery. You bring in the walls, which he doesn’t even need, and bring him to this town and he’ll have a great year.”[4]

Cardinals pitcher Bob Tewskbury also noted the Gold Glove awards Galarraga had earned in 1989 and 1990.

“Defensively, he helps us immediately,” Tewksbury said. “He’s as good as anybody with the glove. With his bat, it might be a gamble, but a change can make a big difference.”[5]

St. Louis Post-Dispatch columnist Bernie Miklasz immediately questioned the move, wondering why the Cardinals gave up a pitcher with Hill’s potential to replace one declining first baseman for another.

“We all have been impatient with Hill’s progress, but he’s young and capable of rolling up a sequence of monster seasons,” Miklasz wrote. “This is the danger: Hill is still on the way up; Galarraga has been on the way down.”[6]

Miklasz also wondered why Galarraga’s numbers were declining at age 30 when he should be in the prime of his career. “The theories,” posited Miklasz: “He got fat. He swings at too many pitches, especially sliders away. He can’t catch up with a fastball on his fists. A procession of meddling Montreal batting instructors destroyed his swing and confidence. He is a sensitive, emotional person who couldn’t cope with the criticism in gloomy Montreal – the place where careers go to die.”[7]

Galarraga admitted that he had been frustrated by the criticisms he received from both the Expos and their fans.

“I’m angry that the fans in Montreal booed me so much and forgot what I’d done before,” he said. “Didn’t they know I was hurt? And then management talking about my weight all year the way they did … putting pressure on me when they knew I was the weight I always was.”[8]

Expos third baseman Tim Wallach said that the Olympic Stadium boos also played a part in Galarraga’s performance.

“He took it very hard,” Wallach said. “I still think he’s got a lot of good years ahead of him. I think just being able to get out of Montreal is going to be the best thing for him. He’s a sensitive guy, and you could tell he was hurting a lot.”[9]

Cardinals manager Joe Torre said it was clear in watching Galarraga play the previous season that he was attempting to guess which pitch was coming. Torre said he went through a similar yearlong slump after he won the National League MVP Award in 1971.

“I don’t think any more things could have gone wrong for him and the Expos than they did last year,” he said. “If he plays to his capabilities, he could be every bit the offensive player Bonilla is. This is an excellent ballpark for him and, with the fences being moved in, it will help him.”[10]

Hill was not the Expos’ first choice. Dan Duquette, making his first trade as Montreal’s general manager, initially asked for left-handed pitcher Rheal Cormier, a French-speaking native of New Brunswick, Canada, whom the Expos felt their fans would embrace as one of their own. Montreal Gazette columnist Pat Hickey noted that based on each players’ stats, the Cardinals’ insistence on trading Hill instead of Cormier worked to the Expos’ favor.[11]

“I’m not happy. I’m not unhappy,” Hill said. “I’m shocked, but I know it’s business.”[12]

Hill gave the Expos a hard thrower who recently had developed a forkball and begun to improve his sometimes erratic control. In 1989, Hill had walked 99 and struck out 112 in 196 2/3 innings. The following year, he walked 33 and struck out 58, and in 1991 he struck out 121 while walking 67.

“It also gives us some capital to play with,” said Duquette, noting that Hill made just $180,000 in 1991. “We’re more flexible now and can go after a run producer or bullpen closer, either in the free-agent market or from another club.”[13]

One possibility Duquette suggested was Guerrero. “He’s the type of player who could help our ballclub,” he said.[14]

Nonetheless, Expos ace Dennis Martinez was unimpressed by the trade.

“Is that all they got?” he asked. “I bet he will bounce back in St. Louis. Hopefully they will let him go his own way. The Expos wouldn’t let him do that. They just kept talking about his strikeouts.”[15]

Ironically, despite Maxvill’s indication that Guerrero would be playing elsewhere, he ended up joining Galarraga on the Cardinals’ roster in 1992. St. Louis offered Guerrero salary arbitration, knowing that if he declined the offer the Cardinals would receive two draft picks as compensation. Instead Guerrero, who had been seeking a multiyear contract, accepted their one-year offer to play left field.

“We have all spring to see what we’re going to look like defensively. We’ve got to get better offensively,” Torre said. “You’ve really got to throw out the stuff after he got hurt last year. Right before he broke his leg, he looked like he was coming around.”[16]

Neither Guerrero nor Galarraga would have the bounce-back season the Cardinals hoped for in 1992. Injuries once again plagued Guerrero, who started just 38 games due to neck, shoulder, and ankle injuries. Despite their initial plans to play him primarily in left field, he made just 10 starts there, with 28 coming at first base. He hit just .219/.270/.295 with one home run and 16 RBIs.

It was his final season in the big leagues. In 1993, Guerrero split his season between the Sioux Falls Canaries of the Northern League and the Carros de Jalisco of the Mexican League. He played for the Canaries again in 1994, then played for the California Angels’ Double-A affiliate in Midland, Texas, in 1995 before retiring.

Galarraga had a strong spring training performance in 1992, but broke his wrist in the second game of the season. He ended up playing in 95 games for St. Louis and posted similar numbers as he had in 1991. In 325 at-bats with the Cardinals, he hit .243 with 10 homers and 39 RBIs. During the season, Maxvill explored restructuring Galarraga’s contract to feature a low base salary with incentives for the 1993 campaign, but Galarraga preferred seeing what might be offered on the open market.[17] After the season ended, the Cardinals chose not to pick up the $3 million option year on his contract and Galarraga became a free agent.

That offseason, he signed with the expansion Colorado Rockies. At Coors Field, Galarraga immediately unleashed his potential, batting .370 with 22 homers and 98 RBIs in his hitter-friendly home ballpark. In five of the following six seasons, he finished in the top 10 of the National League MVP voting.

 While Galarraga didn’t pan out for the Cardinals, Hill went 41-21 with a 3.04 ERA in three seasons with Montreal. In 1994, Hill went 16-5 with a 3.32 ERA (ironically, the highest ERA of his three seasons with the Expos) and placed second in the National League Cy Young Award voting behind only Greg Maddux.

The following year, Hill returned to the Cardinals but went just 6-7 with a 5.06 ERA before he was traded to the Cleveland Indians for prospects David Bell, Rick Heiserman, and Pepe McNeal.

Hill retired in 2001 after a 14-year career that included stops in Texas, Anaheim, Tampa Bay, and Chicago (White Sox).

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[1] Rick Hummel, “Quick Shop: Cards Covet Few Free Agents,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, November 12, 1991: C1.

[2] Rick Hummel, “Top Free Agents Aren’t In The Cards,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, November 21, 1991: D1.

[3] Rick Hummel, “Cards Acquire Galarraga,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, November 26, 1991: C1.

[4] Dan O’Neill, “Acquisition Of Galarraga Is A Hit With Cardinals,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, November 26, 1991: C4.

[5] Dan O’Neill, “Acquisition Of Galarraga Is A Hit With Cardinals,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, November 26, 1991: C4.

[6] Bernie Miklasz, “A Live Arm For Dead Bat?” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, November 26, 1991: C1.

[7] Bernie Miklasz, “A Live Arm For Dead Bat?” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, November 26, 1991: C1.

[8] Jeff Blair, “‘Scapegoat’ Cat off to Cards,” Montreal Gazette, November 26, 1991: C7.

[9] Rick Hummel, “Cards Acquire Galarraga,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, November 26, 1991: C4.

[10] Rick Hummel, “Cards Acquire Galarraga,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, November 26, 1991: C4.

[11] Pat Hickey, “Figures say Expos come out winners,” Montreal Gazette, November 26, 1991: C1.

[12] Rick Hummel, “Hill Surprised, Unhappy By Expos Trade,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, November 26, 1991: C4.

[13] Jeff Blair, “‘Scapegoat’ Cat off to Cards,” Montreal Gazette, November 26, 1991: C1.

[14] Rick Hummel, “Cards Acquire Galarraga,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, November 26, 1991: C4.

[15] Jeff Blair, “‘Scapegoat’ Cat off to Cards,” Montreal Gazette, November 26, 1991: C7.

[16] Rick Hummel, “‘Left Fielder’ Guerrero Accepts Cards’ Offer,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, December 20, 1991: D1.

[17] Rick Hummel, “Van Slyke, Bonds Quiet At The Plate,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, October 7, 1992: D4.

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