GAME 1 - Sportsman Park - STL 5, NYM 1
Al Leiter (16-8, 3.20) vs Max Lanier (15-7, 1.90)
Leiter and Lanier hooked up in a scoreless duel until Ray Sanders led off the home half of the fifth with a homer. Things would get much worse very quickly when Walker Cooper blasted a grand slam to make it 5-0 Cardinals. That would mark the end of Leiter's day as well as the Mets chances. New York would get a run in the 8th when Edgardo Alfonzo doubled home Jay Payton with 1 out, but that was as close as it would get for the Amazin's. Every Met batsman, except for Mike Bordick had 1 hit. Nobody in the lineup had more than 1. The first 5 hitters in St. Louis' lineup scored a run.
Cardinals lead the series 1-0
GAME 2 - Sportsman Park - NYM 8, STL 7
Rick Reed (11-5, 4.11) vs Howie Pollet (8-4, 1.75)
Once again the early innings seemed like a feeling out process like
in a big heavyweight bout. The bottom of the 4th was the ice breaker as St. Louis posted 2 runs. They would do the same thing two innings later to take a 4-0 lead into the top of the 7th. Pollet's relief, Howie Krist had a rough go of it in the 7th giving up 3 runs to narrowly hold on to a 1 run lead. Lenny Harris' pinch hit single netted two runs with 2 out and the bases loaded. A Wally Kurowski error at 3rd on a Melvin Mora chopper scored Jay Payton from third. New York would score 4 more runs the following inning to take a 7-4 lead. Harris once again came through with the big hit, a two out two run triple, which followed Payton's 2 out 2 run single. New York was now in business, but they forgot to tell St. Louis who scored a solo run in the bottom of the inning on a Walker Cooper homer to make it 7-5. Benny Agbayani's 2 out homer in the ninth bumped New York's lead back up to 3 runs. They would need all 3 of those runs to hang on as both Armando Benitez and John Franco looked to be in generous moods. Franco gave up 2 homers (Kurkowski/Litwhiler) with 1 out in the 9th to make it a 1 run game. Walker Cooper, who was a triple away from the cycle lined into a 6-3 DP to end the game and save Franco's bacon.
Series tied at 1-1
GAME 3 - Shea Stadium - STL 2, NYM 0
Mort Cooper (21-8, 2.30) vs Mike Hampton (15-10, 3.14)
Mike Hampton, who spent just one glorious season in Flushing, pitched a dandy giving up no runs in almost 8 innings worth of work. Unfortunately for Hampton his team could not solve Mort Cooper, who went the distance allowing just 3 hits and no runs over 10 innings. Seldom do we see a scoreless tie go to extra innings, but the fans were treated to some fine pitching for sure. That was until Brooklyn's own Johnny Franco took the mound in the 10th and walked Harry "the Hat" Walker. Up came Stan "the man" Musial and you can just about guess what happened...Well if you can't guess I'll tell you...Stash hit a blast off the 396 marker in right center for an RBI triple. Franco then bounced a curve in the dirt that skipped by Mike Piazza to allow Musial to score and make it 2-0. The Metsies went weakly in the bottom of the 10th as Cooper locked down his shutout.
Cardinals lead the series 2-1
GAME 4 - Shea Stadium - STL 6, NYM 1
Harry Gumbert (10-5, 2.84) vs Rusch (11-11, 4.01)
New York was lucky to enter the 6th inning tied at 1 with the
Cards. The Mets once again could not find their lumber and would record just 1 lone run on the day. Unless they found a way to get the great Tom Seaver on the hill 1 run was not going to do it. Glendon Rusch was definitely pitching over his head battling to keep his team in it. After Melvin Mora booted a Harry Walker bouncer Stan Musial once again came through with a game breaking RBI triple. Kurkowski followed that up with an RBI single to make it 3-1. Kurkowski would single reliever Brecheen in the following inning to make it 4-1 and when St. Louis added two more in the 8th the game and the series was over. The Mets went down weakly in both the 8th and 9th. Curiously Mike Piazza wasn't in the starting lineup and didn't enter the game until the 7th as a pinch hitter.
Cardinals win the series 3-1
