Fenway Flashback: 1975- Series Split leaves Sox looking up at the A's for Homefield
September 7, 1975
September 7, 1975 (Game 1) The Gold Dust Twins Deliver
Coming off the trouncing of the Brewers in the second game of the four-game set at County Stadium, the Sox were ready to square off with Milwaukee in an important doubleheader that could provide Boston with an advantage for home field in the American League. Baltimore was playing a single game against the Yankees at home, while the A’s were facing off in a twin bill of their own against the Rangers. If the Red Sox could take care of their business and get a little help from Texas, the path to the World Series could go directly through the Fens.
Pitching Matchup and Lineups
The pitching matchup for the opener featured a pair of 10-game winners: Reggie Cleveland for Boston and righty Jim Colborn for the Brewers.
Darryl Johnson mixed up the lineup a little bit for the early game:
• Cecil Cooper (DH)
• Denny Doyle (2B)
• Carl Yastrzemski (1B)
• Fred Lynn (CF)
• Jim Rice (LF)
• Carlton Fisk (C)
• Bernie Carbo (RF)
• Rick Burleson (SS)
• Rico Petrocelli (3B)
Game Recap
Colborn was on his game early, holding the Red Sox scoreless for the first six innings and giving his offense the opportunity to give the Brewers a fast lead. In the bottom of the first inning, the first two hitters reached base safely with singles. Third baseman Don Money led off with a single and went to third on Bob Sheldon’s single. Old friend George Scott then drove in the first run of the game with a groundout to give Milwaukee a quick 1–0 lead.
In the bottom of the second, Brewers center fielder Bill Sharp doubled with two outs and scored on a single by future Hall of Famer Robin Yount.
With the score 2–0 after two, Cleveland settled into a groove and matched Colborn zero for zero through the sixth inning. In the top of the seventh, the bats finally got to Colborn. Fisk led off the inning with a single and went to third on Bernie Carbo’s twenty-first double of the year. Rick Burleson then drove in Boston’s first run with a groundout.
In the top of the eighth, the Sox struck again. Denny Doyle led off with a single and went to third on a single by Yaz, thus ending Colborn’s day. Milwaukee skipper Del Crandall went to his pen for lefty Rick Austin to face Fred Lynn. Austin induced a ground ball from Lynn, but the Sox still tied the score at 2.
Del then removed Austin and brought in righty Eduardo Rodriguez (nope, not him) to face Jim Rice. Rodriguez promptly uncorked a wild pitch that allowed Lynn to advance to second base, which proved costly. He was able to get Rice to ground out to first, but there was no longer a chance for two. Pudge Fisk then made the wild pitch hurt by smashing a two-out double to score Lynn and give the Sox the lead.
In the bottom of the eighth inning, the Brewers threatened by putting two men on base with two outs. Johnson went to his pen for lefty Bill Lee, and Crandall countered with a dangerous pinch hitter of his own, Hank Aaron. Lee got a ground ball from the “Home Run King,” but second baseman Denny Doyle booted it, loading the bases. Johnson went to the bullpen again and brought in his workhorse, Dick Drago, who got Charlie Moore to ground out to Petrocelli at third to end the rally.
In the top of the ninth inning, the top of the order provided some breathing room for Drago. With two outs, Denny Doyle stroked a double to put a man in scoring position, and Yaz was hit by a pitch, putting two men on for the dangerous Fred Lynn. As was his custom in his rookie season, Lynn produced with his fortieth double of the year, driving in Doyle and sending Yaz to third. His fellow “Gold Dust Twin,” Jim Rice, then singled in both Yaz and Lynn to give Boston a 6–2 lead.
The insurance came in handy as Bill Sharp collected his first home run of the season with one out in the ninth, making the score 6–3. Drago retired Yount and Garcia to close out the win for the Sox in the opener.
Pitching Notes
Reggie Cleveland went 7.2 innings to record his 11th win of the season, allowing only two earned runs on nine hits, one walk, and five strikeouts. Bill Lee came in to face one batter, who reached on an error, and Dick Drago recorded his 11th save on the year. Drago pitched an inning and a third, with the only blemish being the solo home run.
Player Notes and Season Stats
Though they got going late, the bats managed a lucky thirteen hits on the day. Denny Doyle led the way with three hits, a double, and two runs scored. Yastrzemski, Lynn, Rice, and Fisk all had two hits apiece, and Lynn and Rice both had two RBI, their 96th and 95th, respectively.
September 7, 1975 (Game 2) Travers Turns the Tables
With the split of the four-game series secure, the Red Sox looked to finish off the twin bill sweep and head to Cleveland on a winning note.
Pitching Matchup and Lineups
With the late afternoon sun pouring down on the “Badger State,” the Red Sox turned to Dick Pole, and in an unusual move, the Brewers brought back their starter from Saturday, Bill Travers.
Living by the old “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” rule, Darryl Johnson went back to the starting nine from the previous day that lit Travers up:
• Juan Beniquez (CF)
• Rick Burleson (SS)
• Dwight Evans (RF)
• Jim Rice (LF)
• Carlton Fisk (C)
• Rico Petrocelli (3B)
• Bob Montgomery (C)
• Doug Griffin (2B)
Game Recap
In a shocking turn of events, Travers was able to get out of the first inning unscathed, but his luck did not last in the second, and the game began to give every appearance that a repeat performance might be on the way.
Carlton Fisk led off the top of the second by working a walk and then went to third on a single by Rico Petrocelli, who advanced to second on the throw to third. After a lineout by Bob Montgomery, Doug Griffin grounded softly to short, scoring Fisk and giving the Sox a 1–0 lead.
Pole retired the Brewers in order in the bottom of the second, and in the top of the third, some poor play by the Brewers and the legs of Juan Beniquez gave Boston a 2–0 lead. The speedy center fielder led off the inning by reaching on an error by shortstop Robin Yount. He then stole second and advanced to third on a passed ball by Darrell Porter. Beniquez raced home after a sac fly to center field by Rick Burleson.
From there, however, Travers found his form and managed to hold the Sox to only one more run the rest of the game.
The Brewers got a run back in the bottom of the third off Pole when nine-hole hitter Pedro Garcia singled and went to third on Don Money’s thirteenth double of the year. He then scored on a sacrifice fly by Bob Sheldon. Two innings later, the Brew Crew struck again, taking a lead they would not relinquish.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, Money walked with one out and was followed by a single by Bob Sheldon to set the table for George Scott to do some damage against his old team. “Boomer” destroyed a Pole delivery deep into the left field stands for his 28th homer of the season, giving Milwaukee a 4–2 lead.
Dick Pole then walked Darrell Porter, which marked the end of his outing, as Jim Willoughby was summoned from the Sox pen down in the right field corner. After walking a batter and hitting another, Willoughby was able to avoid further damage by retiring Robin Yount on a ground ball to third.
In the top of the sixth, Jim Rice struck quickly, leading off the inning with his 22nd homer of the year — a solo shot to left — to make the score 4–3 Milwaukee. That would be as close as Boston would get, as Travers retired the next twelve batters in a row.
Willoughby kept the Brewers at bay until the bottom of the eighth, when he ran out of gas and gave up three important insurance runs. Bill Sharp continued to hurt the Sox by leading off the inning with his 22nd double of the year. He scored on Robin Yount’s 25th double of the year two batters later. After Pedro Garcia reached on an error by shortstop Rick Burleson, Don Money reached on a fielder’s choice that scored Yount to make the score 6–3. Bob Sheldon ended the scoring with a groundout to second that scored Garcia, making it 7–3.
Pitching Notes
Sox starter Dick Pole took the loss, moving his season record to 3–5. He went 4.1 innings, allowing four earned runs on seven hits, two walks, while recording three strikeouts. Jim Willoughby went 3.1 innings, allowing three runs, one earned, on four hits, one walk, and two strikeouts. Jim Burton pitched .1 inning, retiring the only batter he saw.
Player Notes and Season Stats
Incredibly, the Sox offense could only manage three hits off Travers in the second game of the doubleheader. Jim Rice was 1-for-4 with a home run (22), RBI (97), and a run scored. Rick Burleson was 1-for-3 with an RBI, and Rico Petrocelli was 1-for-4.
The loss to the same pitcher they had destroyed the previous day left a bitter taste in the mouths of the Sox, despite splitting the doubleheader and the series. From a positive standpoint, the team gained a half game on the Orioles, who lost to the Yankees 2–0. Catfish Hunter outdueled Jim Palmer in Baltimore, dropping the O’s back to 7 games.
The A’s, on the other hand, swept the Rangers in their doubleheader, 4–1 and 7–3, giving them a one-game lead in the race for home field in the American League.
Disappointed in missing an opportunity to win the series, Boston boarded a plane east to Cleveland, where they were scheduled to play a quick two-game series against the fourth-place Indians. The series with Cleveland would mark the end of the second-to-last road trip of their regular season.
Stay tuned as we continue our day-by-day journey through the unforgettable 1975 Red Sox season.
Image courtesy of https://brewerfanatic.com/news-rumors/milwaukee-brewers/bill-travers-bio-throwback
/