King of the World: Barry Bonds Chases Sadaharu Oh

[Garrett Garlits]

Now we begin the resims, Chronological order isn't as important as giving Bonds a chance to hit as many home runs as possible, so we'll start with the year in which he played the fewest games at 102: 1999,

The first game that Bonds didn't play in that year came on April 18 against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Bank One Ballpark in Phoenix. Without Bonds, the Giants were soundly beaten 12-3. In the sim, he'll be playing left field and batting second, which is where his replacement Stan Javier batted in real life. Russ Ortiz will start for the Giants against the Snakes' Armando Reynoso,

The fireworks began in the very first inning. After center fielder Marvin Benard lined a leadoff double into the right field corner, Bonds smacked a 1-2 pitch from Reynoso over the wall in center for homer Number 780 and a 2-0 Frisco lead. Right fielder Ellis Burks made it back-to-back with a tape-measure homer over the wall in left center to make it 3-0. After two out, third baseman Charlie Hayes doubled into the left field corner and scored on catcher Brent Mayne's double into the left center power alley.

Bonds made it two for two after two out in the second with a bloop single to right, but was stranded at first when Burks grounded to Tony Batista at second.

The Giants extended their lead to 5-0 in the third when Hayes' RBI single cashed in second baseman Jeff Kent, who had doubled down the left field line,

The visitors made it a laugher with four more runs in the fourth. Bonds stroked a seeing-eye single to right center for his third hit of the day. Back-to-back walks to Burks and Kent loaded the bases, and first baseman J.T. Snow's double off the wall in right cleared the bases and extended the Giants' lead to 8-0. Greg Swindell relieved Reynoso and got the first two outs of the inning by striking out Hayes swinging and retiring Mayne on a shallow fly to right, but shortstop Rich Aurilia lined a single to right center that brought Snow home with the Giants' ninth run,

The D-Backs began what would be a spirited comeback in the bottom of the fourth when right fielder David Dellucci's single to right scored former Giant Matt Williams, who had led off with a bloop double to left center and moved to third on left fielder Luis Gonzalez's single to left.

Bonds struck again in the top of the fifth when he got all of Swindell's one-one fastball and parked in the right field upper deck for home run Number 781 to increase the Giants' lead to 10-1.

The Snakes scored twice more in the bottom of the fifth. With one out, second baseman Jay Bell singled to left. He moved to second with two out on a wild pitch by Ortiz, Walks to Williams and Gonzalez loaded the bases, and Batista stroked a two-run single that scored Bell and Williams to make it 10-3.

The home squad scored three more times in the bottom of the sixth. Catcher Damian Miller doubled over Benard's head in center, Tony Womack batted for Swindell and singled to right to put runners at the corners. After Finley struck out swinging, Bell's fly ball down the left field line chased Bonds almost into the corner before he made the catch. Miller easily scored Arizona's fourth run. Back-to-back walks to first baseman Travis Lee and Williams loaded the bases, and Gonzalez's single up the middle scored Durazo and Lee to cut the Giants' lead to 10-6.

Bonds batted for the fifth time in the top of the seventh and was finally retired on a grounder to third.

The Snakes scored another run in the last of the seventh. Miller singled to right center with one out, Greg Colbrunn batted for reliever Bobby Chouinard and singled to left center to put runners at the corners, and Finley's double to right brought Miller home to make it 10-7.

The Giants finally got a run back in the top of the eighth when Hayes hit a 2-0 hanging curveball from reliever John Frascatore over the left center field wall to give them an 11-7 lead,

The D-Backs scored one last run in the bottom of the eighth. Williams lined a leadoff single to right but was forced by Gonzalez. After Batista's fly to deep right center was caught by Benard for the second out, Andy Fox (batting for Frascatore) singled to right to put runners at the corners, and Miller's single to left scored Gonzalez to bring the Snakes to within 11-8.

Bonds had a final at-bat in the top of the ninth; he flew to Womack in right, The D-Backs sent Williams to the plate with runners at the corners and one out, but Giants closer Robbie Nen got him to ground into a 6-4-3 game-ending double play. Final score: Giants 11, D-Backs 8.

Bonds was the Player of the Game; he finished four for six with two home runs, three runs scored, and three runs batted in. That gives him thirty-six homers and eighty-six RBIs for the season so far, and 781 homers for his career. He is now nineteen homers away from eight hundred and eighty-seven behind Oh. (Note: I decided not to assign Bonds any homers hit by others in real life, so he has nineteen fewer homers than he did in my last post.) He has ninety-seven hits in 361 at-bats for a batting average of .269.

Final totals: Giants 11-16-0, Diamondbacks 8-17-0.

W- Ortiz (19-8)
S- Nen (38)
L-Reynoso (9-7)

HR- SF: Bonds 2 (36), Burks (32), Hayes (7)

LHR (Lost Home Runs)- SF: Aurilia (21)
ARZ: Gonzalez (25), Gilkey (7)

Here are the updated standings in the National League West:

Diamondbacks: 99-63
Giants: 87-75- 12 GB
Los Angeles Dodgers: 77-85- 22 GB
San Diego Padres: 74-88- 25 GB
Colorado Rockies: 72-90- 27 GB

Next: To be determined.

Thoughts?

 

[Garrett Garlits]

It's Wednesday, June 2, and the Giants are facing the Phillies in the third game of a four-game series at Veterans Stadium. Russ Ortiz is pitching for the Giants. while Paul Byrd pitches for the Phillies. The Phils won the actual game, 7-6. Bonds is in left field and will bat seventh, as his replacement F.P. Santangelo did in real life.

Let's examine Bonds' at-bats first:

In the second inning, he walked.

In the third, he was intentionally walked,

In the fifth, he grounded to first.

In the seventh, his line drive was caught by Phillies pitcher Steve Montgomery.

In the eighth with the Giants leading 4-3, Marvin Benard beat out a bouncer to short for a leadoff infield single, then stole second. Walks to Bill Mueller and J.T, Snow loaded the bases. Jim Poole came out of the Philly bullpen to face Jeff Kent and struck him out swinging, but he hung a 1-1 curveball to Armando Rios, who lined a bullet down the right field line and over the wall for a grand slam, his eighth home run of the year. The Giants now led 8-1.

Later in the inning, Bonds doubled to left center, but was stranded at second,

Bonds finished one for three with two walks, one of them intentional, He's now batting .260 (115-443) with forty-two home runs and 108 runs batted in. He's now walked ninety-one times, which would have tied him for ninth in the National League if I'd been keeping the stat throughout the year,

Note: The only stats I'm keeping for sure in this timeline are batting average, home runs, and runs batted in, For anything other than that, Bonds had to finish in the real-life National League top ten for me to track it. The three categories that fir that criteria in 1999 were stolen base percentage (I missed that one, but Bonds has only stolen one base in two tries that I can remember in the sims, so it couldn't have changed much), situational wins added (far too sabermetric for my old-school tastes), and at-bats per home run (I just ran that one, and he's gone down a tenth of a point, from 10.4 to 10.5).

Now let's run down the rest of tonight's game action:

In the top of the first with one out, Mueller doubled to right. Snow followed with a single to right that scored Mueller and gave the Giants a 1-0 lead.

In the top of the fourth with one out, Benard doubled off the wall in center. Phillies starting pitcher Paul Byrd hit Mueller in the forearm with a pitch to put two men on, and Snow's single to right brought Benard home to give the Giants a 2-0 lead. Mueller went to third on that hit and scored on Kent's double into the left center power alley to make it 3-0, Snow stopped at third and came home on Rios' sacrifice fly to center to extend the Giants' lead to 4-0.

The Phils got on the board for the first time in the bottom of the fifth. Catcher Gary Bennett drew a leadoff walk, A wild pitch by Ortiz moved him to second, but Russ got the next two outs when shortstop Desi Relaford's liner was caught by Kent at second and Byrd struck out swinging. A passed ball charged to catcher Brent Mayne moved Bennett to third, and Gary scored when center fielder Kevin Sefcik beat out a bouncer to second for an infield single.

In the bottom of the eighth with two out and the Giants leading 8-1, left fielder Ron Gant walked, Abreu then ended Ortiz's evening by hitting his 0-1 hanging slider into the left field bullpen for his twenty-first homer of the year. a two-run shot that made our final score Giants 8, Phillies 3.

Final totals: Giants 8-13-0, Phillies 3-7-0.

W- Ortiz (20-7)
L- Byrd (14-12)

HR- SF: Rios (8)
PHI: Abreu (20)

Note: Abreu also hit a home run in the actual game.

Rios was named Player of the Game for the second time this week. He was two for four with a grand slam and five RBIs. In his past two starts, he's six for ten with three home runs, five runs scored, and nine runs batted in.

DS- PHI: Gomes (18)

LHR- SF: Mayne (1)

Here are the updated standings in the National League West:

Diamondbacks: 99-63
Giants: 90-72- 9 GB
Dodgers: 77-85- 22 GB
Padres: 74-88- 25 GB
Rockies: 71-91- 28 GB

In the East:

Braves: 104-58
Mets: 96-66- 8 GB
Phillies: 76-86- 28 GB
Expos: 66-96- 38 GB
Marlins: 64-98- 40 GB

In real time, the Giants were 32-21 and led the Diamondbacks by a game and a half in the NL West.

Next: The Giants and Phillies finish their four-game series at The Vet on Thursday, June 3. Shawn Estes will pitch for the Giants, while Curt Schilling takes the ball for the Phils.

Thoughts?

 

[Garrett Garlits]

It's Monday, April 21, 1986, and the Pirates are opening a two-game series against the Mets at Shea Stadium. Rick Rhoden will make an emergency start for the Pirates on just two days' rest because scheduled starter Larry McWilliams is ill. Rick Aguilera takes the ball for the Mets. Bonds is in center field and batting second, as his replacement Joe Orsulak did in real life. The Mets won the actual game, 6-5.

Let's examine Bonds' at-bats first:

In the first with one out, he drew a walk, then stole second and third. Johnny Ray followed with a double off the wall in center to bring Barry home and give the Bucs a 1-0 lead. Sid Bream's lined single to right brought Ray home to make it 2-0, and Mike Brown's single to left put runners at the corners. Tony Pena followed with another single to left; Bream scored, and it was 3-0 Pittsburgh. Brown went to third on the hit, and Jim Morrison bounced into a force play that eliminated Pena but allowed Brown to score the fourth Pirates run.

Sammy Khalifa's single to left put two men on again, and Rhoden topped off the inning by lining a single to left center. Morrison scored, and the visitors led 5-0 after a half.

In the second with the Pirates leading 5-2, Bonds lined a double off the wall in left. Ray's line drive was caught by Mets third baseman Ray Knight for out number one. Bream flew to Kevin Mitchell in center for the second out, with Bonds moving to third. Brown was next, and his base hit to right scored Bonds to extend the Pittsburgh lead to 6-2.

In the third with the Mets leading 8-6, Morrison stroked a leadoff single to left. Khalifa's base hit up the middle put two men on, but he was forced by reliever Bob Walk. Morrison moved to third on the play, and he scored when left fielder R.J. Reynolds forced Walk. Bonds and Ray each walked to load the bases, but Mets reliever Bruce Berenyi struck Bream out swinging to end the inning with the bases loaded. After two and a half innings that took two hours and seventeen minutes to play, the Mets led the Pirates 8-7.

In the fifth with the Mets leading 11-7, Reynolds walked with two out, Bonds' single to right center put runners at the corners, and Bonds stole second to put two runners in scoring position, but Ray's fly to Mitchell in shallow right center ended the inning.

In the seventh with the Mets leading 12-8, pinch hitter Billy Almon (batting for Walk) beat out a bouncer to third for an infield single , but was forced by Reynolds. Bonds lashed a triple high off the wall in left to bring R.J. home and make it 12-9. Bonds subsequently scored on Ray's single to left to cut the Mets' lead to 12-10,

In the ninth with the Mets leading 15-10, Reynolds led off with a base hit to right center against closer Jesse Orosco. Bonds' bouncer to second moved R.J. to second, and Ray's fly to right moved him to third. Brown's single to left center cashed Reynolds in to make it 15-11, and with runners at first and third and two out, Mets manager Davey Johnson called on Roger McDowell to face Pena. Tony grounded the first pitch he saw right back to McDowell, who threw to Keith Hernandez at first to end the game after four hours and eleven minutes. Final score: Mets 15, Pirates 11.

Now let's look at the rest of the game action:

The Mets countered the Pirates' five-run first by scoring two of their own. Mitchell smacked Rhoden's first pitch off the wall in center for a leadoff double. Second baseman Tim Teufel's single to right put runners at the corners, and Hernandez's single to right brought Mitchell home and put the Mets on the board. Catcher Gary Carter was next, and he doubled into the right center power alley to bring Teufel home and make it 5-2.

It was 6-2 Pittsburgh when the Mets went to work in the last of the second. Shortstop Rafael Santana led off with a triple off the top of the center field wall that missed being a home run by less than a foot. Not wanting to use a man off of his bench so early in what figured to be a long slugfest, Johnson used Berenyi, who was coming in to pitch anyway, as the pinch-hitter for Aguilera. Bruce poked Rhoden's one-strike pitch into left field for a bloop base hit that scored Santana with the third New York run, He was forced to hold at first when Bonds ran down Mitchell's fly ball in the left center power alley for out number one, but Teufel lined the first pitch he saw past Reynolds in left and all the way to the wall. Berenyi made his way home, and this was a 6-4 game, Meanwhile, Teufel pulled in at second with a double.

After Hernandez flew to Bonds in left center for out number two, it was a clearly tired Rhoden against catcher Gary Carter, who hit Rick's 2-0 curveball over the wall in right center for his twenty-fourth home run of the season to tie the game at six.

Amazingly, Pirates manager Jim Leyland chose to stick with Rhoden even though Walk was just about ready in the Pirates' bullpen. He soon regretted that decision, as right fielder Darryl Strawberry's bloop dropped on the left field line for a double. Foster slapped a base hit by Rhoden and up the middle to score Strawberry and give the Mets a 7-6 lead, and that was finally all for Rick. Knight greeted Walk with a double off the wall in left to score Foster, and the Mets led 8-6 after two,

The Mets added a run in the bottom of the third. Mitchell led off with a base hit to left, but he was forced by Teufel. Walks to Hernandez and Carter loaded the bases, and Strawberry's fly to right brought Teufel home to increase the Mets' lead to 9-7.

The Mets added a pair of runs in bottom of the fourth. Santana walked with one out and was bunted over to second by Berenyi. Mitchell was next, and he hit Walk's 2-1 fastball over the left center field wall for a two-run homer to make it 11-7. It was Mitchell's thirteenth home run of the season.

The home squad added a twelfth run in the bottom of the fifth. Hernandez led off with a base hit to right. Carter's lined single to left center put runners at the corners, but Strawberry was retired on a fly to Bonds in shallow right center and Foster on a fly to Reynolds in shallow left. It was up to Knight to bring Hernandez home from third, and he did so with a base hit to right to increase the Mets' lead to 12-7.

The Pirates scored a run in the top of the sixth, Bream led off with a bouncer to second that was muffed by Teufel, allowing Sid to reach. Mets reliever Rick Anderson got the next two outs, as Brown popped to Santana at short and Pena struck out swinging. But Bream stole second, and Morrison stroked a base hit to left center to bring Bream home and cut the Mets' lead to 12-8,

The Mets scored their last three runs in the bottom of the seventh. With one out, Carter and Strawberry drew back-to-back walks. Foster was next, and he destroyed Walk's last pitch of the night, sending it three rows deep in the left field stands for a three-run homer that gave the Mets a 15-10 lead. It was his seventeenth homer of the year.

Final totals: Mets 15-21-1, Pirates 11-17-1.

W- Berenyi (3-2)
S- McDowell (23)
L- Walk (9-7)

HR- NYM: Carter (24), Foster (17), Mitchell (13)

Note: Carter also hit a home run in the actual game.

Foster was named Player of the Game. He was two for six with a home run, two runs scored, and four runs batted in.

DW- McDowell (13-9)
DL- Clements (1-4)

LHR- PIT: Morrison (24), Brown (1)
NYM: Knight (9)

Bonds was three for four with three runs scored, three stolen bases, and an RBI. He's now batting .230 (127-551) with twenty-one home runs and sixty-eight runs batted in. He's now stolen forty-eight bases, which ties him with the Dodgers' Mariano Duncan for fourth in the National League.

Next: The Pirates host the Phillies in Game 3 of a four-game series on Saturday, April 26. Charles Hudson will start for the Phils, while Bob Kipper takes the mound for the Bucs.

Thoughts?

 

[Garrett Garlits]

It's Wednesday, May 28, 1986, and the Pirates are hosting the Braves in the final game of a three-game series at Three Rivers Stadium. David Palmer will pitch for the Braves, while Bob Kipper goes to the hill for the Pirates. Bonds is in center field and will lead off, as his replacement Joe Orsulak did in real life, The Pirates won the actual game, 4-3.

Let's examine Bonds' at-bats first:

In the first, his fly to deep left was caught on the warning track by the Braves' Terry Harper.

In the third, he struck out swinging.

In the sixth, he grounded to short.

In the eighth, he grounded to short.

In the ninth, Mike Brown and Tony Pena began the inning by drawing back-to-back walks against Braves closer Gene Garber. Third baseman Bill Almon was next, and he yanked Garber's 1-1 slider down the left field line and over the wall for a game-tying three-run homer, his fifth of the year.

Garber's evening was finished, and Paul Assenmacher came out of the Atlanta bullpen to face Jim Morrison, who was batting for shortstop Rafael Belliard, Jim stroked a single up the middle to keep the inning alive, but Garber struck out Mike Diaz (batting for reliever Cecilio Guante) and retired Bonds on a fly to right thanks to a leaping catch at the wall by the Braves' Billy Sample that saved a walk-off two-run homer. Left fielder R.J. Reynolds was next, and he served Garber's 3-1 pitch into right center for a base hit. Center fielder Dale Murphy's throw home was too late to nab an incoming Morrison at the plate, and the Bucs had completed their 4-3 comeback win.

Now let's look at the rest of the game action:

In the top of the third, catcher Ozzie Virgil hit Kipper's 0-1 fastball into the second row of seats in right center field for his fifteenth homer of the year. The Braves led 1-0 after two and a half.

In the top of the sixth with one out, Sample lined a single to right. He moved to second on third baseman Rafael Ramirez's bouncer to his counterpart Almon and scored on Murphy's single to right center to extend the Atlanta lead to 2-0.

In the top of the ninth, Murphy grounded a leadoff single to left center, but first baseman Bob Horner grounded into a 4-6-3 double play. Harper walked to keep the inning alive, and shortstop Andres Thomas lined a double down the left field line to bring Harper home and give the Braves a 3-0 lead.

Final totals: Pirates 4-8-0, Braves 3-6-0.

W- Guante (5-4)
L- Assenmacher (6-5)

HR- ATL: Virgil (15)
PIT: Almon (5)

DW- McWilliams (3-10)
DS- DeLeon
DL- Palmer (11-9)

LHR- ATL: Harper (6)
PIT: Pena (9)

Bonds was hitless in five at-bats. He's currently batting .231 (136-588) with twenty-five home runs and seventy-nine runs batted in. He's struck out 150 times, which is still sixth in the majors, eight behind the Mariners' Danny Tartabull for fifth.

Next: We move ahead to Wednesday, July 9, when the Pirates take on the Padres in the final game of a three-game series at Jack Murphy Stadium. Mike Bielecki will pitch for the Pirates, while Andy Hawkins gets the ball for the Padres.

Thoughts?

 

[Garrett Garlits]

It's Wednesday, April 13, 1988, and the Pirates are hosting the Phillies in the second game of a three-game series at Three Rivers Stadium. Shane Rawley will start for the Phillies, while Brian Fisher takes the ball for the Pirates. Bonds is in left field and will lead off, as his replacement John Cangelosi did in real life. The Pirates won the actual game, 7-0, As we begin again, Bonds is batting .277 (160-577) with twenty-six home runs and sixty-six runs batted in.

Let's begin by examining Bonds' at-bats:

In the first, he led off with a double. Second baseman Jose Lind followed with a base hit to right center that brought him home and gave the Pirates a 1-0 lead.

In the third, he led off with a single to right, Lind's line-drive single to left center put runners at the corners, and a walk to center fielder Andy Van Slyke loaded the bases. Third baseman Bobby Bonilla grounded to his counterpart Mike Schmidt, who threw to the plate for the force on an incoming Bonds. Right fielder Darnell Coles flew to Phil Bradley in shallow left for the second out, and first baseman Randy Milligan struck out swinging to end the inning.

In the fifth with the Pirates trailing 6-1, Bonds drew a leadoff walk. Lind's base hit to left center put runners at the corners. and Van Slyke's double off the base of the wall in right scored Bonds to cut the Philly lead to 6-2. Bonilla was next, and his seeing-eye single to left center brought Lind and Van Slyke home to bring the Bucs within 6-d.

Bruce Ruffin, who started this game in real life, replaced Rawley and got the first two outs of the inning, as Coles flew to Milt Thompson in shallow center and Milligan bounced to Schmidt at third. The latter play moved Bonilla to second, and he scored on catcher Mike LaValliere's single to right center. The Bucs trailed 6-5 after five.

In the sixth, Bonds flew to shallow right center.

In the eighth, he singled to left center with two out, but was forced by Lind to end the inning.

In the ninth with the Phillies leading 8-5, Van Slyke led off with a single to right center against Phils closer Steve Bedrosian. Bonilla walked to put two men on, but Coles' popup was caught by Schmidt for out number one. Sid Bream batted for Milligan and walked to load the bases. LaValliere's fly to right was deep enough to score Van Slyke and make it 8-6. but it was also the second out of the inning.

The Buccos' last hope lay with R.J. Reynolds. who was sent up to bat for shortstop Al Pedrique, After working the count full and fouling off three more of Bedrosian's best pitches, R.J. lined a double off the wall in left center. Bonilla and Bream scored to tie the game at eight, and Three Rivers was rocking despite an attendance of less than ten thousand (9,825). Mike Diaz batted for reliever Jeff Robinson and beat out a bouncer to second for an infield single. which moved Reynolds to third with the winning run and gave Bonds the chance to be a hero. But all he could offer was a lazy fly to left. Bradley crossed into foul territory to make the catch, and we were headed to extra innings.

In the twelfth, Cangelosi batted for reliever Scott Medvin and singled to right. Bonds flew to shallow left center for out number one, but Cangy quickly stole second, Lind's foul pop was caught by first baseman Von Hayes for out number two, but Van Slyke beat out a bouncer to third for an infield single. It was Bonilla's turn to try for a walkoff, but reliever Mike Maddux struck him out swinging to end the inning.

In the fourteenth with one out against reliever Todd Frohwirth, Bonds lined a single to center. Lind was called out on strikes for out number two, but a walk to Van Slyke moved Barry into scoring position and brought up Bonilla, who grounded to short to end the threat.

By the bottom of the sixteenth, it was 12:54 AM in Pittsburgh, and the Phils had just scored twice in the top of the inning to take a 10-8 lead. There were no more available pitchers in the Philly bullpen, as the next night's starter (Don Carman) had been sent back to the team's hotel to rest and the previous night's starter (Kevin Gross) had already been used as a pinch runner. There was only one unused player of any sort left: supersub Greg Gross, who was weak from the flu. Having no other choice, Phillies manager Lee Elia sent him out to the mound and, according to his postgame press conference, "prayed like hell that (Greg) would at least find the plate,"

Amazingly, despite his hardest pitch barely touching seventy-five miles an hour on the radar gun, Greg shut down the Bucs one-two-three to earn his first (and only) major league save. Rafael Belliard, who was playing short in Pedrique's place, flew to left. Reynolds, who had replaced Coles in right field after a double switch in the tenth, grounded to short for the second out, and Bonds' popup was squeezed by Hayes for the final out. Final score at exactly 1AM after sixteen innings and five hours and twenty-five minutes of play: Phillies 10, Pirates 8.

Now let's see how the rest of the runs were scored:

In the bottom of the second with the Pirates leading 1-0, Schmidt drew a leadoff walk. Hayes' double off the wall in left moved him to third, and catcher Lance Parrish lined a base hit to left center that scored Schmidt and Hayes to give the Phils a 2-1 lead. Right fielder Mike Young's bloop fell in left center field for a double, and Parrish was able to score when Van Slyke's throw to the plate went up the first base line.

Pirates pitching coach Ray Miller tried to halt the Phils' momentum with a mound visit, but it didn't work. Shortstop Steve Jeltz followed with a single to right center that brought Young home to make it 4-1. Rawley bunted Jeltz over to second, but Steve has to hold there when second baseman Juan Samuel grounded to short for the second out, A walk to Thompson put two men on, and Bradley's bloop single to left center scored Jeltz with the fifth Philly run.

Manager Jim Leyland came out with the hook for Fisher, and Vicente Palacios was called on to face Schmidt. The future Hall of Famer lined the first pitch he saw into right for a base hit that brought Thompson home and extended the Philly lead to 6-1. Hayes' shallow fly to Bonds in left mercifully retired the side.

In the eighth with the Phils clinging to a 6-5 lead, Schmidt drew a leadoff walk. Hayes grounded down to his counterpart Milligan, who couldn't find the handle. By the time he fielded the ball cleanly, Hayes had already reached, and Milligan was charged with an error. Parrish lined a single to center to load the bases, and Young lined a double off the wall in left. Schmidt and Hayes scored, and the Phils led 8-5.

In the top of the sixteenth, Hayes drew a leadoff walk against reliever John Smiley, then stole second. Parrish's fly to left chased Bonds back to the wall before he could make the catch, which allowed Hayes to move to third. Young walked to put two men on, and he was able to move to second when Jeltz grounded to third for out number two,

With the pitcher's spot due up, Elia had to choose between Greg and his other available position player. fellow reserve outfielder Bob Dernier. One would pinch-hit, while the other would pitch the bottom of the sixteenth. Greg volunteered to pitch, which he'd done the previous year in a mop-up role. Thay left Dernier to bat for Frohwirth, and he slapped a base hit past a lunging Smiley and into center field for a base hit. Hayes and Young scored the eventual winning runs. Dernier was thrown out trying to steal second to end the inning.

Final totals: Phillies 10-14-0, Pirates 8-20-1.

W- Frohwirth (2-2)
S- G.. Gross (1)
L- Smiley (13-12)

DW- Fisher (7-10)
DL- Ruffin (6-9)

Bonds was four for eight plus a walk and scored twice. He's currently batting .280 (164-585) with twenty-six home runs and sixty-six runs batted in.

He's tied with Brett Butler of the Giants for the lead in runs scored in the National League with 107. They're tied for sixth in the majors, two behind the Twins' Kirby Puckett for fifth.

He's now drawn seventy-five walks,

His OPS is now .362, which is out of the National League top ten.

He has ninety-nine singles. The National League top ten starts at 121.

He now has thirty-three doubles, which moves him into sole possession of sixth place in the National League, two behind a tie for fifth between the Braves' Dale Murphy and the Expos' Hubie Brooks.

His slugging percentage is now .491. He's ted with the Reds' Eric Davis for sixth in the National League.

His current OPS is .853. He's in sixth place in the National League, seven points behind the Reds' Kal Daniels and the Dodgers' Kirk Gibson,

Here are the updated standings in the National League East:

Mets: 101-59
Pirates: 88-74- 14 GB
Expos: 81-81- 21 GB
Cubs: 77-85- 25 GB
Cardinals: 75-87- 27 GB
Phillies: 66-95- 35.5 GB

Next: The Pirates host the Cardinals on Sunday, June 19. Danny Cox will start for the Cardinals, while Bob Walk goes to the hill for the Pirates.

Thoughts?

 

[Garrett Garlits]

It's Friday, July 28, 1989, and the Pirates are taking on the Philadelphia Phillies in the second game of a doubleheader at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. John Smiley will start for the Pirates, while Floyd Youmans takes the ball for the Phillies. Bonds in in left field and will bat fifth, as his replacement R,J, Reynolds did in real life. The Phillies won the actual second game, 6-1. The Pirates won the first game, 10-5.

As we begin again, Bonds is batting .247 (146-590) with nineteen home runs and sixty runs batted in, He has 843 career home runs, twenty-five behind all-time leader Sadaharu Oh.

Let's begin by examining Bonds' at-bats:

In the first. center fielder John Cangelosi beat out a grounder to third for an infield single, then stole second. Second baseman Rafael Belliard doubled down the left field line to bring Cangy home and give the Bucs a 1-0 lead. Youmans got the next two outs, as first baseman Jeff King popped to Dickie Thon at short and third baseman Bobby Bonilla grounded to short. Bonds walked to put two men on, but right fielder Glenn Wilson's fly to Randy Ready in left ended the inning.

In the third with one out, Belliard singled to left. King walked to put two men on, Bonilla's fly to right center was caught by Phils center fielder Lenny Dykstra for the second out, Bonds' slow roller to Von Hayes at first ended the inning.

In the sixth, his fly to deep right was caught at the wall by the Phils' Dwayne Murphy.

In the eighth, Bonilla led off with a lined single to right center. Bonds followed with a fly ball to right that dropped on the warning track and hopped over the wall for a book-rule double; Bonilla moved to third. Wilson struck out swinging for out number one, and catcher Junior Ortiz's sizzling line drive was snagged by Phils third baseman Charlie Hayes, who stepped on the bag to force the incoming Bonilla and end the inning.

In the ninth with one out and the Phillies leading 5-2, Reynolds (batting for reliever Jeff Robinson) beat out a bouncer to third for an infield single. Cangelosi walked to put two men on, and Belliard stroked a single to left center that brought Reynolds home to cut the Philly lead to 5-3. A walk to King loaded the bases and brought Bonilla to the plate; Bobby Bo came through with a lined single to right. Cangelosi and Belliard scored to tie the game at five, and King slid in safely at third ahead of Dykstra's throw,

Closer Roger McDowell came out of the Philly bullpen to face Bonds, who walked on five pitches to reload the bases. But the home squad got out of the inning when Wilson grounded to third. Hayes fired to the plate for the force on King, and catcher Steve Lake threw to first to complete the double play.

Now let's check out the rest of the game action:

In the bottom of the second with the Pirates leading 1-0, Murphy lined a leadoff single to center. Ready walked to put two men on, but Smiley got the next two outs when Thon and Hayes each hit foul pops that were caught by King. Lake was next, and his single to center scored Murphy to tie the game at one.

In the bottom of the third with one out, second baseman Tommy Herr lined a base hit to right center. First baseman Von Hayes (no relation to Charlie) was next, and he hit Smiley's 1-1 slider over the wall in left for a two-run homer to give the Phils a 3-1 lead. It was Von's twenty-seventh homer of the year.

In the bottom of the sixth with one out, Charlie hit Smiley's 2-1 slider over the wall in left for his ninth home run of the year to extend the Philly lead to 4-1. Lake followed with a lined single to left, and he was bunted over to second by reliever Jeff Parrett. Dykstra followed with a bloop that dropped on the right field line and rolled toward the corner. Lake scored, and the Phils led 5-1.

In the top of the seventh with one out, pinch hitter Gary Redus (batting for reliever Bob Kipper) walked. Cangelosi's single to right center put runners at the corners, and Redus scored when Belliard forced Cangelosi, As we stretched in Game 2, the Phillies led 5-2.

In the bottom of the tenth with the score tied at five, Charlie hit reliever Bob Patterson's 1-1 slider down the left field line and over the wall for a walkoff homer, his second of the game and tenth of the year. Our final in ten: Phillies 6, Pirates 5.

Final totals: Phillies 6-13-0, Pirates 5-10-0.

W- R. McDowell (5-8)
L- Patterson (4-4)

HR- PHI: V. Hayes (27), C. Hayes 2 (10)

DW- G. Harris (3-4)
DL- Reed (1-3)

LHR- PHI: C. Hayes (9), Lake (1)

Charlie's walkoff homer earned him Player of the Game honors.

Bonds was one for three with two walks. He's currently batting .248 (147-593) with nineteen home runs and sixty runs batted in.

He's tied for third in the National League in games played with the Cardinals' Pedro Guerrero and Terry Pendleton at 162.

He's now (unofficially) third in the National League in plate appearances with 694. Bonilla is second; I haven't officially tracked his number. The Padres' Roberto Alomar leads the league with 702.

Next: The Pirates host the Cardinals on Wednesday, September 27. Joe Magrane will start for the Cardinals, while Doug Drabek takes the ball for the Pirates.

Thoughts?