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GAME 4 -- Atlanta 3,
Cleveland 2
BOX
LOG
 Hunt
for October
Carlton Wins Again,
Mathews Homers Again, Toppers Sweep
CLEVELAND (Oct.
6) -- The Atlanta Hilltoppers capped an impressive season today,
rallying in the ninth on the road for the second day in a row to
complete the first World Series sweep in UL history over the
Cleveland Barons and claim their second UL title after four straight
last place finishes. Steve Carlton won for the second time,
allowing seven hits and two runs in eight innings to earn Series MVP
honors, Don Gross earned his third straight save, and Eddie Mathews
again homered to help sink his former club.
Cleveland again struck first, taking an early lead on
Jesus Alou's first inning RBI single, but Mathews homered off Bob
Friend in the fourth to tie the game. Friend and Carlton then
battled for three scoreless innings, taking a 1-1 game to the bottom
of the eighth, when Cleveland recaptured the lead when Friend and
Hinton singled to lead off the inning and Curt Flood drove in Friend
with a sac fly to left.
Friend started the ninth, inducing a Don Pavletich
flyout, but was chased after Lou Clinton and Ken Berry hit
back-to-back singles. Lefty Jackie Collum then relieved
Friend, but Lenny Green laid down a perfect sacrifice to move the
runners up 90 feet and put the go-ahead run in scoring position.
The next batter and potential last out Ron Hunt then snapped out of
a 2-for-15 slump, ripping a two-out double down the third base line
to plate two runs and flip Atlanta's 1-2 deficit into a 3-2 lead.
Cleveland got two runners on in the bottom of the ninth, but Gross
got Russ Nixon to pop up to second and struck out Chuck Hinton.
Atlanta won 99 games in the regular season, emerging
from a three-way race in July to finish well ahead of rivals Los
Angeles and Chicago. The Hilltoppers were 212-436 (.327) over
the last four seasons, averaging 109 losses a year, but their
one-year bounce of 43 wins was the biggest in UL history, ending
Chicago's run of six straight West Division titles. Atlanta
becomes the first team in eight years besides Brooklyn or Chicago to
win the World Series.
GAME 3 -- Atlanta 4,
Cleveland 2
BOX
LOG
 Billy,
Oh Hell
Toppers Win
with Error-Assisted Rally in Ninth
CLEVELAND (Oct.
5) -- The Cleveland Barons were three outs away from their first
Series win, but threw away a 2-1 lead with ninth inning errors by
Dick Green and Billy O'Dell. The disastrous inning erased a
great outing by third starter Don Larsen, who pitched a no-hitter in
July, just two weeks after joining the Barons from Manhattan.
Larsen pitched 7.1 innings, allowing just one run on seven hits, and
was cruising to victory with reliever O'Dell on the mound for the
final inning. (The Barons' rotation milked just 54 wins this
year out of 83 quality starts.)
The Lakesiders led 2-0 after RBI singles by Dick Groat
and Jesus Alou in the second and third innings, and Larsen gave up
his only run on Roger Maris' double in the sixth, scoring Lenny
Green. Jim Lefebvre hit a two-out double in the seventh, but
was stranded when Bob Veale grounded out, and the Toppers got two
men on base in the eighth, chasing Larsen, before Game 1 hero Lou
Clinton flied out to end the frame. But with O'Dell on the
mound in the top of the ninth, Bob Allison reached on Dick Green's
dropped ball on a routine groundout. Don Pavletich then
walked, and Steve Bilko reached when O'Dell threw the ball over
Green's head on a routine comebacker, allowing Allison to score and
sending the go-ahed run to third. Cleveland walked Ken Berry
to set up a force play at the plate, but Lenny Green's sac fly to
center but the visitors ahead for the first time. Maris then
singled off a 1-0 pitch to score Bilko and double the lead.
Green tried to atone for himself with a two-out single off Don Gross
to keep the Barons alive in the bottom of the ninth, but Matty
Alou's flyout to left ended the inning and the game.
Bob Veale pitched well enough to keep the Toppers
within reach, allowing nine runs and two hits in 7.1 innings, and
Eddie Watt and Don Gross shut the game down, allowing a single
runner in 1.2 innings. It was Gross' second save of the
Series. Maris was 3-for-5 with a pair of RBIs, raising his
Series average to .385 (5-13). Cleveland pitching has a 3.96
ERA through three games, while their batters are hitting just .222.
Two Heroes for a Goat
The drama continues to unfold
surrounding what may prove to be the most fateful trade in UL
history. On Feb. 1 of this year, Cleveland sent one-time
franchise man Eddie Mathews and pitcher Steve Barber to Atlanta in a
package deal that netted Billy O'Dell. In the last two games,
Mathews and Barber were heroes in Game 2 for the Toppers, while
O'Dell was a Game 3 goat.
O'Dell was a first round pick of the New York Gothams
in 1957 and joined the Barons the next year for a three-year stint,
which included his best year (23-9, 3.23 in 1960). He was the
expansion Manhattan Gray Sox' fifth overall pick in 1962, and also
pitched for St. Louis and Atlanta before rejoining the Barons in the
Feb. 2 trade.
GAME 2 -- Atlanta 3,
Cleveland 2
BOX
LOG
 Eddie's Revenge
Mathews, Allison
Longballs Beat Barons
ATLANTA (Oct. 3)
-- Third baseman Eddie Mathews launched a two-run homer off Earl Francis to
break a 1-1 tie, leading Atlanta to a 3-2 win over his former team.
Mathews, a five-time All-UL third baseman in 14 seasons with the Boston Beacons/Cleveland
Barons, was traded to Atlanta, the franchise that drafted him, in February in the same deal that brought Barber to Georgia.
Barber, a 28-year-old southpaw, allowed just four hits in eight innings,
besting Earl Francis' five-hitter to earn his first playoff win.
The game was tied 1-1 after three innings after Bob
Allison's solo shot in the second and Bernie Allen's RBI double
in the third. But after Roger Maris grounded out to lead off the
fourth, Harmon Killebrew singled, setting up Mathew's blast to left-center.
The Toppers nearly gave the game away in the ninth,
when Maris misjudged a routine fly on what should have been the final out,
allowing Matty Alou to score and halve the lead. But Chico Salmon
grounded out to Mathews in the next at-bat to end the game, sending the
series to Cleveland with a 2-0 Toppers lead.
Atlanta will send lefty Bob Veale (15-15, 4.11, 1.62
WHIP) to the mound in Game Three, where he will likely face Cleveland
righthander Don Larsen (16-7, 3.24, 1.50 WHIP).
GAME 1 -- Atlanta 6,
Cleveland 4
BOX
LOG
Barons Blow
4-0 Lead, Carlton Tops Podres
 Clinton
Double Caps Six-Run Toppers Rally
ATLANTA (Oct. 2) -- The first Southern World Series did not start
anywhere near the way the Atlanta Hilltoppers had wished. Rookie
ace Lefty Carlton was touched for three hits and three runs as the
East Division champion Cleveland Barons jumped to an early lead.
One inning later, Chuck Hinton then singled, stole second
and third, and scored on a Bernie Allen groundout to make it 4-0
Barons after two. With Cy-favorite Johnny Podres, who narrowly missed
the best ERA in UL history, on he hill with a four-run lead, one could be
excused for assuming a Cleveland victory. But Atlanta is no ordinary
opponent, and boasts an extraordinary lineup.
Podres took a two-hitter into the bottom of the fifth,
but immediately got into trouble. Don Pavletich singled, Ken Berry
walked, and Phil Gagliano singled to load the bases. After Carlton
flied out to deep left to bring home Pavletich, Lou Clinton singled to
re-load the bases, setting up runs on the next two at-bats: a Ron Hunt
sacrifice and a Roger Maris infield single. With two on and two out,
Harmon Killebrew struck out on a full count to end the inning, the score 4-3
Barons. But Atlanta's next batter, Bob Allison, homered to lead off
the sixth, tying the game, which remained tied until the bottom of the
eighth.
With Larry Jaster relieving Podres, Pavletich led off
the eighth with a single and Gagliano walked, setting up Clinton's
tie-breaking two-run double off the wall. Clinton narrowly missed a
home run, but the end result was the same, a 6-4 Toppers win, as Carlton
closed out the ninth for an 8-hit complete game.
Game Two probables are righthander Earl Francis (20-7,
2.48, 1.19 WHIP) and lefty Steve Barber (15-11, 3.51, 1.44 WHIP).
SERIES PREVIEW
BARONS vs.
'TOPPERS
The case in the
chase to win the pennant race
by Lance Mueller
Baron Pros: Super solid pitching -- arguably the league's
#1 staff and pen -- and an extremely solid defense.
Baron Cons: A bit of weak-tit offense...they've got some
serious wheels but not much pop, so small ball is the name of the game.
Also missing some key players due to injuries.
'Topper Pros: Very solid rotation backed by a ridiculous
offense. Loads of power to get the job done.
'Topper Cons: Ummm, one seriously dumbass mascot??? Oh,
and Palmer will miss the Series, that's gone hurt a little.
THE VERDICT
Look for the series to feature some wickedly good pitching match
ups. With both teams likely to go with three man rotations, were looking at
Podres versus Carlton, Francis versus Barber, and probably Larsen versus
Veale...now that's a arms race for ya! While the pitching should be
superior, Atlanta holds a huge edge on the offensive front. Johnny Podres
will need to have three ridiculously good outings to hold down the
murderer's row of Hunt, Maris, Killebrew, Allison and Pavletich. Plus, with
the likelihood that Glen "The Evil Genius" Reed will probably run out an
all-lefty starting rotation, Cleveland will be hard pressed to find the
righty firepower to fight the good fight (especially w/ Freese gone and
Busby missing the series). So, while it's always fun to root for the
underdog, unless Ballsie Quallsie has some serious tricks up his sleeve,
look for the 'Toppers to put the icing on their worst-to-first turnaround
and take the Series in six.
BY THE NUMBERS
Atlanta
1st in runs, HR, SLG, OBP, 7th in SB
4th in runs allowed, 4th in ERA, 4th in starters ERA, 4th in bullpen ERA,
2nd in K
Cleveland
7th in runs, 6th in OBP, 12th in SLG, 12th in HR, 12th in XBH, 2nd
in SB
1st in runs allowed, 1st in ERA, 1st in starters ERA, 3rd in bullpen ERA,
4th in K
PROBABLE STARTERS:
Game
1
CLE: Johnny Podres (L) (19-6, 1.80, 0.91 WHIP)
ATL: Steve Carlton (L) (23-7, 3.32, 1.33 WHIP)
Game 2
CLE: Earl Francis (R) (20-7, 2.48, 1.19 WHIP)
ATL: Steve Barber (L) (15-11, 3.51, 1.44 WHIP)
Game 3
ATL:
Bob Veale (L) (15-15, 4.11, 1.62 WHIP)
CLE: Don Larsen (R) (16-7, 3.24, 1.50 WHIP)
TOP HITTERS:
Atlanta
RF Roger Maris (.330-36-110, .996 OPS) (half-season with
STL)
1B Harmon Killebrew (.307-39-137, .966)
SS Ron Hunt (.344-19-89, .952)
C Don Pavletich (.275-26-88, .843)
CF Bob Allison (.252-23-84, .778)
Cleveland
2B Bernie Allen (.298-20-99, .867 OPS)
CF Curt Flood (.315-8-67, 34 SB, .768)
C Johnny Roseboro (.245-11-41, 20 SB, .672)
LF Chuck Hinton (.233-5-44, 89 SB, .620)
Will not play:
3B Gene Freese (.291-14-89, .783) (career-ending injury Sept. 23)
RF Jim Busby (.290-5-29, .749) (tender elbow)
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