1978 National League Championship Series
Encyclopedia
Game 1
Wednesday, October 4, 1978 at Veterans StadiumVeterans Stadium
Philadelphia Veterans Stadium was a professional-sports, multi-purpose stadium, located at the northeast corner of Broad Street and Pattison Avenue, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as part of the South Philadelphia Sports Complex...
in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
Because of having to start an NL East-clinching game a few days earlier, Phillies ace Steve Carlton
Steve Carlton
Steven Norman Carlton , nicknamed "Lefty", is a former Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. He pitched from 1965-1988 for six different teams in his career, but it is his time with the Philadelphia Phillies where he received his greatest acclaim as a professional and won four Cy Young Awards...
wasn't available for the start of the series, leaving the task to Larry Christenson
Larry Christenson
Larry Richard 'L.C.' Christenson , is a former professional baseball pitcher who played his entire career for the Philadelphia Phillies from 1973-1983....
. Christenson didn't fare well, as he was rocked for seven runs in five innings, the big blows coming on a three-run homer by Steve Garvey
Steve Garvey
Steven Patrick Garvey , nicknamed "Mr. Clean" because of the squeaky clean image he held throughout his career in baseball, is a former Major League Baseball first baseman and current Southern California businessman...
in the third inning and a two-run homer by Davey Lopes
Davey Lopes
David Earle Lopes is a former second baseman and manager in Major League Baseball. He batted and threw right-handed. He is currently the first base coach for the Los Angeles Dodgers.He is of Cape Verdean descent.-Playing:...
in the fourth. Garvey also added a triple and run scored in the fifth and another solo homer in the ninth. Steve Yeager
Steve Yeager
Stephen Wayne "Steve" Yeager is an American right-handed former major league baseball catcher. Yeager spent 14 of the 15 seasons of his Major League Baseball career, from through , with the Los Angeles Dodgers. His last year, , he played for the Seattle Mariners...
also homered for the Dodgers.
Rookie Bob Welch took the win for the Dodgers.
Game 2
Thursday, October 5, 1978 at Veterans StadiumVeterans Stadium
Philadelphia Veterans Stadium was a professional-sports, multi-purpose stadium, located at the northeast corner of Broad Street and Pattison Avenue, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as part of the South Philadelphia Sports Complex...
in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
The Dodgers won their second straight on the road in this series on the strength of a complete-game four-hit shutout by Tommy John
Tommy John
Thomas Edward John Jr. is a former left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball whose 288 career victories rank as the seventh highest total among left-handers in major league history...
. Davey Lopes
Davey Lopes
David Earle Lopes is a former second baseman and manager in Major League Baseball. He batted and threw right-handed. He is currently the first base coach for the Los Angeles Dodgers.He is of Cape Verdean descent.-Playing:...
continued to swing a hot bat, driving in three of the runs on a home run, single, and triple.
Game 3
Friday, October 6, 1978 at Dodger StadiumDodger Stadium
Dodger Stadium, also sometimes called Chavez Ravine, is a stadium in Los Angeles. Located adjacent to Downtown Los Angeles, Dodger Stadium has been the home ballpark of Major League Baseball's Los Angeles Dodgers team since 1962...
in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
With Steve Carlton
Steve Carlton
Steven Norman Carlton , nicknamed "Lefty", is a former Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. He pitched from 1965-1988 for six different teams in his career, but it is his time with the Philadelphia Phillies where he received his greatest acclaim as a professional and won four Cy Young Awards...
finally available to pitch, the Phillies cut the series deficit to 2–1 at Dodger Stadium
Dodger Stadium
Dodger Stadium, also sometimes called Chavez Ravine, is a stadium in Los Angeles. Located adjacent to Downtown Los Angeles, Dodger Stadium has been the home ballpark of Major League Baseball's Los Angeles Dodgers team since 1962...
. In addition to pitching a complete game, Carlton helped himself with the bat by hitting a three-run homer in the second off Don Sutton. Carlton added an RBI single in the sixth and scored on a double by Jerry Martin
Jerry Martin
Jerry Lindsey Martin is a former Major League Baseball outfielder. He is the son of major league pitcher Barney Martin....
.
Greg Luzinski also homered for the Phillies, while Steve Garvey
Steve Garvey
Steven Patrick Garvey , nicknamed "Mr. Clean" because of the squeaky clean image he held throughout his career in baseball, is a former Major League Baseball first baseman and current Southern California businessman...
belted his third homer of the series for the Dodgers.
Game 4
Saturday, October 7, 1978 at Dodger StadiumDodger Stadium
Dodger Stadium, also sometimes called Chavez Ravine, is a stadium in Los Angeles. Located adjacent to Downtown Los Angeles, Dodger Stadium has been the home ballpark of Major League Baseball's Los Angeles Dodgers team since 1962...
in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
With the Phillies fighting for their playoff lives, the Dodgers struck first in the second inning on a double by Ron Cey
Ron Cey
Ronald Charles Cey |Washington]]) is a former third baseman in Major League Baseball who played for the Los Angeles Dodgers , Chicago Cubs and Oakland Athletics . Cey batted and threw right-handed...
and an RBI single by Dusty Baker
Dusty Baker
Johnnie B. "Dusty" Baker, Jr. is a former player and current manager in Major League Baseball, currently the manager of the Cincinnati Reds. He enjoyed a 19-year career as a hard-hitting outfielder, mostly with the Atlanta Braves and Los Angeles Dodgers...
. Greg Luzinski put the Phillies back on top with a two-run homer in the third.
Cey tied it in the fourth with a home run, then Steve Garvey
Steve Garvey
Steven Patrick Garvey , nicknamed "Mr. Clean" because of the squeaky clean image he held throughout his career in baseball, is a former Major League Baseball first baseman and current Southern California businessman...
gave the Dodgers the lead with a homer, his fourth of the series, in the sixth. The home run was also his fifth extra base hit of the Series and tied Bob Robertson
Bob Robertson
Robert Eugene Robertson is a former first baseman in Major League Baseball. Robertson, who batted and threw right-handed, played for the Pittsburgh Pirates , Seattle Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays...
's 1971 NLCS
1971 National League Championship Series
-Game 1:Saturday, October 2, 1971 at Candlestick Park in San Francisco, CaliforniaWith aces Gaylord Perry and Steve Blass taking the mound for their respective teams, Game 1 looked to be a pitchers duel. It sort of was for four innings; the Pirates struck for two in the top of the third when Dave...
records for home runs and extra base hits in a League Championship Series. But, Bake McBride
Bake McBride
Arnold Ray "Bake" McBride , also nicknamed "Shake n' Bake" and "The Callaway Kid", is a former Major League Baseball outfielder, known primarily as a member of the Philadelphia Phillies' teams of the late 1970s and early 1980s. He made his major league debut for the St...
tied it once again for the Phillies in the seventh with a home run of his own.
In the bottom of the tenth, Tug McGraw
Tug McGraw
Frank Edwin "Tug" McGraw Jr. was a Major League Baseball relief pitcher and the father of Country music singer Tim McGraw and actor/TV personality Mark McGraw and Cari McGraw...
retired the first two Dodger batters, but then surrendered a walk to Cey. Baker then lifted a fly to center that Garry Maddox appeared to lose in the sun. Maddox started back on the ball, then charged forward, and the ball glanced off his glove. Now, Cey was on second and Baker on first. The next batter, Bill Russell
Bill Russell (baseball)
William Ellis Russell is a former shortstop, coach and manager in Major League Baseball. Russell played his entire 18-year, 2,181-game career with the Los Angeles Dodgers as the starting shortstop for four National League pennant winners and one World Series champion...
, lined a base hit to center. Maddox charged, but the ball skipped past him, enabling Cey to score the winning run. Had Maddox fielded the ball cleanly, he had a play on Cey at the plate. But, once again, it was not to be for the Phils.
Composite box
1978 NLCS (3–1): Los Angeles DodgersLos Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are a professional baseball team based in Los Angeles, California. The Dodgers are members of Major League Baseball's National League West Division. Established in 1883, the team originated in Brooklyn, New York, where it was known by a number of nicknames before becoming...
over Philadelphia Phillies
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
External links
- Baseball-Reference.com - 1978 NLCS