Post by Phillies Phan on Apr 5, 2020 22:15:15 GMT -5
The opening Series of the Phinal Phour begins with the only two teams that have yet to drop a Series.
Gm1: Carlton v Carlton. Of course... The shocker? 77 Luzinski blows Game 1 wide open and announces that the slight underdog 77 squad is here for business. 12-1, 1977 takes the Opener!
Gm2: Lonborg v Kaat. Fever's Ozark decides to pitch Kaat as 77's team is slightly better vs RH pitchers. Will it make a difference? In another shocker, it sure does make ALL the difference. The old man, Kitty Kaat deals the Shutout! In a return to bizarro world it's Bowa v Bowa. 76's baserunning vs 77's defense. 5-0, Fever evens us at a game apiece.
Fever plans to roll out Lonborg, Underwood, Carlton. Is Ozark playing the platoon angle to heavy by rolling out Underwood over Christenson? We'll see...
77 counters with Christenson, Lerch, Carlton...
Gm3: Very close game, Christenson edges Lonborg, 2-1 in the Game and 77 is up 2-1 in the Series.
Gm4: So much for the platoon advantage, Underwood gets chased early, but it's Schmidt's fielding and the 76 Bullpen that delivers! 2-0 for the Fever, Series tied, again.
Gm5: Lefty vs Lefty, the rematch. The Fever breaks the pattern behind Dick Allen's pop and more slick fielding by Schmidty. 4-2, Fever is up 3 Games to 2 and headed to the home team locker room for Game 6.
The Fever will be putting the old man out there to try to finish it, with Lonborg waiting if a Game 7 is necessary.
77 send out Lonborg against Kaat again, to redeem himself. Christenson will be ready for Game 7.
Gm6: In a move that erases one of the biggest blunders in Phillies history, Ozark send Jerry Martin into LF as a Defensive substitution. Like clockwork the Fever get a rally going in the bottom of the 9th with baserunning by Dick Allen setting them up. It's a drive in the LF corner and Martin gobbles it up for the final out. 3-2, 1977. We're going to Game 7.
Gm 7: Both Christenson and Lonborg get chased early. 77 Sizemore and 76 Johnstone flash leather with both teams going very deep in their excellent bullpens... Hebner goes yard for 77 and... it goes into extras, 1-1. The bullpens are nearly empty when Ted McCarver slashes a Series winning hit off Underwood in relief. Fever is pushed to the ultimate limit, but manages to take the Series.
They are into the Championship!
77 Phils must be devastated. Extra innings in Game 7, after coming back from a 3 Games to 2 deficit? They drop into the Loser's bracket. They'll have one chance to win a rematch with the Fever.