TRANSCRIPT: Ep. 15: THE STRETCH June 15, 1998 Brewers vs Cubs

Text Transcript of Ep. 15

00:00:00 – 00:05:03

Woah to. It’s ninety miles the threat. Welcome back to the stretch ninety miles podcast fans. We are coming at you from Monday June fifteenth nineteen ninety eight today. Nineteen ninety eight was a special year in a lot of ways for these two. Ball clubs got Ryan on the other side with us. We’re gonna be talking to you today about a very special ballgame Ryan can you bring say a little beautiful night here Wrigley field. Thirty thirty seven thousand nine hundred fans and attendance, sixty nine degrees. Beautiful Niver baseball lights are on its nineteen ninety eight. We’re we’re bringing you back. We’re we’re we’re there. We’re back in the late nineties. You can imagine the different than it is today. There might be a few more ripped jeans out there who knows better could be somewhere around. We don’t even know for sure he’s been in and out a cubs fan dome for number of years, mostly in obviously. But in yeah. Yeah. He’s always been a cubs fan. Let’s not go there. But yeah, we don’t know he could have been attendance. He could have been one of the thirty seven thousand nine hundred and three P. Yeah. We wanted to talk about a little bit of the ninety miles tie here. Obviously nineteen ninety eight was especially in a lot of ways. Cubs fans will have some very specific memories. As the why Milwaukee brewer fans may remember this is their first season in the National League central and Monday June. Fifteenth makes this the first game between the Milwaukee Brewers and Chicago Cubs. The very first game even though Milwaukee has existed since nineteen seventy both teams suck enough to never meet in the World Series. And as I league at this page. As a look at this page. The Milwaukee Brewers were very confused on their logo at this point in time. This is the that it’s it’s one of the worst logos. It doesn’t even look like a major league baseball team logo. Looks like a high school team logo or something. It’s this diamond shaped thing with an m b in the middle and the B has its arm way up very bizarre. Go back and Larry nineties nineties degreen. They’re very, yes. That that hideous green color, Milwaukee fans can hearken back a little bit to the late nineties early two thousand bucks where they started bringing purple and green together some fans really like that. But it’s a very specific era. And it’s got a very specific vibe to it that green would be good color for para wind pants or you could take those colors make it. Nice para Zubaydah’s with those ho. Yeah. That Dirk Lewin that weird green Zuma. Yeah. I think it’s almost like it’s like the Seattle Seahawks now, but it’s really done terribly badly. Yeah. It’s it’s not good. But this is, you know, the good news is Milwaukee’s figured it out the ball and glove was the way to go. Bring it back. It’s always good. The cubs logo is the typical cubs logo. You know? It’s classic been around for you know, hundreds of losing seasons, isn’t it into? But what we wanted to do tonight was bring it back to this era. And we wanna go through the very first game these two ball clubs played we’re going to. Yeah. A little bit lake. We’re calling the game not quite like that. But we’re just going to kind of take through it. Bring back some of the have some fun. These stretch episodes are meant to be timeless. And this is a timeless game whether these two clubs like it or not this is the very first meeting. Why don’t we get into a little bit anything? You wanted to bring up about the nineties that we should touch on before we jump into the ballgame. No. I mean, I think most stuff will come up as we go. You know, we’re gonna get into these lineups. And and we’re going to get into you know, some of the players on the teams at the time. And also, you know that I think before we start. I mean, this is June fifteenth at the time the brewers were thirty three and thirty three rate at five hundred the cubs were forty and twenty eight pretty exciting season. Of course this. Is few starts after Kerry Wood’s twenty strikeout game, which we did a stretch episode about that drew up. Let’s go and pull that up keeps up this this Kerry wood cat keeps turning up. So yeah. Yeah. So we can tell what era we year rookie year, and he already tied. The major league record strikeouts. Is very exciting. Every time. He started was exciting. And that was no exception for this game. He was the starter for this game. Yes. Kill out. Yes. Exactly. He’s up against Cal Eldred who was more or less. The closest thing to the brewers ace at that period of time not a particularly tough brewers team.

00:05:03 – 00:10:00

But they actually weren’t terrible. Although you get to the end of the season they finished quite a ways under five hundred did not particularly go well for them. But this game this game a tight one, folks. So you’re going to want to hang out and kinda ride along as a good one. It was so to begin. Let’s let’s get going. You know, top of the first so brewers lineup at at. I three batters that Kerry would face for Nando Vena, Jeff. Cirillo Germany brunettes. Yes, you have Fernando Vina onto three surreal and brunettes are big names and Bruce history really fan favorites from the area batting in the four holes. John John the offs pumped up prospect that never really totally pan out. But not bad either for Nando Vena led off the game representing Phil Garner’s brewers with a fly out to left field. That means one Henry Rodriguez for the cubs made the catch. That’s a name. I’ve never heard of. So that’s news brewers fans. I don’t know if he’s fresh to you. I’m sure you’ve heard of them, but Jeff Cirillo very popular character in a lot of ways and Bruce history there is some shades of things that went on round the Gary Sheffield area between sirocco chef that were supposedly very positive, but he would walk against Kerry wood. Yes. Yes. Kerry. Would that was his I walked he gave up there in the game. And he carry what I mean, that’s one of his things he struggled with control a little bit especially earlier on obviously he didn’t in that game against Houston with twenty strikeouts. Just a few starts prior. But but yes, the control issue bite some here early and he walks a real, oh, but fortunately germy brunettes next at bat. Yes. Jeremy brunettes who actually ended up with a pretty nice Bruce career in general. He ended up hitting three hundred and fifteen bombs in his career a very very solid player ended up with nineteen point eight war for career. But yes, he has left handed her grounds into a double play. So that. Not ground. No. It was a strike strike them out. Throw them out double play. I should read the box score. You’re right. Ember burnett’s struck out swinging and Serena was caught stealing second. Sandy martinez. Threw threw it down a second. And. Yeah. Strike them out. Throw him out double-play, obviously, a hit and run was on there. That was very as unsuccessful. Well, it actually. Yes. And I’m yeah. That that’s true. I it looks like it went to three to count as well. We’re still kind of learning on the fly here three to count with the guy running. So he swung. And there was a throw it. So it wasn’t really a hit and run so much as a bit of a hit and run. But the one out full-count thing a very traditional. From the lawn and he was attempting to contact and didn’t so yeah. But in any case Kerry would escapes the inning the top of the I only faces three batters despite a walk. They’re so pretty harmless, take it. But you will. But you will cubs fans or we go to the body then the brewers are sending out kill Eldred kill Eldred gets up there through the ball, pretty hard. If I remember I’d use know fastball slider. Curveball kind of guy I would have to go back and do some research. We’re really digging into my memory banks talking over twenty years. I mean, we’re gonna have every detail and every one of these hitters necessarily. But no, we won’t we won’t at all. And we’ll get more into Kells career numbers. It’s thirds out pretty nice for kale grown note, right away. A pair of him wanna Brant Brown? One to Mickey Morin Dini, whom you said, what do you remember about me? Key more Dini other than that’s a heck of a handle. Yeah. I mean, I boy I think I remember I mean, he mostly played with the Phillies. He just was with the cubs a couple years later on and that season. He remember he he decent batting average. You know? That’s why they general had them up a part of the order there. But but yeah. Played second base. You know, this, of course, is after no longer Sandberg on the team, which sure, you know. Few years out looking for looking for somebody to help fill that position little bit. So he groans out the third and that brings up one Sammy Sosa. So Cal l delivers. Oh, yeah. Sammy.

00:10:00 – 00:15:03

Hammy? Yeah. Tell us a little bit about Sammy in nineteen ninety eight Ryan. Well. Let’s see in nineteen ninety eight. He had a couple hit a few home runs. That’s. May remember the big race to beat sixty one Mark McGwire? Sammy Sosa earlier on Ken Griffey junior was in that in that race as well. So as a pretty, you know at the time is definitely exciting. And you know, we’ve like back on it. Now, it’s a little tainted. Of course, knowing what was actually going on. But you know, we, well we’ve talked about before we looked at some numbers. And and there’s still there’s still some respect to be paid. I mean, the, you know steroids. Don’t don’t do anything for hand eye coordination? They don’t, you know, don’t do anything for being able to to really hone it on the strike zone or in and make solid contact round ball with around bat. I you know, it is what it is. But nonetheless. Yes, that was the year that was the big year was Sosa McGwire. So so there were chasing. Roger marris’s record sixty one of sixty one home runs and the would both surpass it. And it’s kind of cool that the Burs got to contribute to that so heavily because they face the cubs and the quite a bit that season. They got to be a history coming from the American League central the National League central and the brewers pitching staff distributed. Two did very single season home run records that year. Yes. So. Cal Eldred has one contribution serves went up to Sammy Sosa. Who knows if the bat was corked or not, you know, that’s another thing. Oh, okay. Well, we’re still brewers and cubs fans that don’t particularly like each in mind as we’ll ball. No strike pitch. Yeah. It was a one. Okay. To right center field. So so crushed one and that would have been number twenty two on the year for him. So is June June fifteenth he hit his twenty second home run that year, and that was off of Eldred right in the very first cubs brewers game. So very first that bad for Sammy Sosa against the Milwaukee Brewers goes for a home run must be nice. That would be held up by. Well, we’ll keep moving here. We got an entire game too. So yeah, that that’s followed up by Mark grace, groaning out to first base unassisted that wraps up that half of the we will talk more about Mark grace getting into the town of the second inning Kerry wood records, a strikeout against John. Je that would be his second straight out of the game review. Sending that of ended on a strike him out. Throw him out double-play. Dave Nielsen gets a walk. That is also. The second walk issued by second walk. Yup. And that leads us to go ahead. I think murky Grissom, there’s a name for mystrom. Yes. Yeah. Well, remembered for his Expos baseball card right back in the day. Yeah. Yeah. I remember that one having some value. It did reason it did. And murky Grissom ended up having a, you know, a fairly decent career. It wasn’t anything else standing. He did not I guess live up to whatever kind of hype you really wanted to throw on him. But really to be fair. He was a very solid major league ball player finished at a two seventy two batting average two hundred twenty seven home runs. An on base percentage of only three eighteen you know, that’s a little bit lower than you like the only at seven thirty two, but a twenty nine point six career war bases lot stolen bases. He he had some years where he was nine. Ninety three and ninety four. He was an all star. This is nineteen ninety eight. So you’re getting a little bit later in the career. Yeah. Very very fun ball player to watch. Yes. Seventy eight stolen bases in one thousand nine hundred seventy six and nineteen Ninety-one. You just don’t see numbers like that anymore. Yeah. Well, those those led the the may all the major leagues those both those years. Yes. And as they should he had fifty three I believe in nineteen ninety three which would have been his first all star game. He did receive some consideration for MVP a couple of times and was a three time gold glove winner correction four time gold glove winner. So you’d think the Bruce had something pretty nice and him. They were getting him on the latter half of his career but marquees gruesome pop fly to right field short. And then. Yeah, what happened next? Well, Jose Valentin Jose Valentin on a three.

00:15:03 – 00:20:04

Oh pitch. Yep. So we had a walk his Dave Nielsen. Yeah. And Jose Valentine tags one. Absolutely destroys it. Okay. We don’t know if it was absolutely destroyed. We’re doing this from the box. Yes. So they put the brewers on top, you know? So we went from a one nil ballgame with Sammy Sosa solo shot two to one ballgame in favor. The walk the walk biting Kerry wood there. Correct two runs. So. Then you’re yeah. But he comes back and gets a strikeout young soon. He’s I think what does that three strikeouts already through two innings for would. Although he’s giving up two runs. So as we head to the bottom half of the inning Alette Ryan takeover and take care of that. It was taking the lead to one we’ll probably accelerate a little more. Once we get through the first time through the lineup and talk about some of the players. We wanna talk about you know, an Henry Rodriguez his five ball the center off account algorithm. Jose Hernandez than comes up. He strikes out swinging. So to to outs there in six pitches. And then Santa Martinez, basically Kerry Wood’s catcher, all you know, he was one beyond the plate for his twenty strikeout game. He he comes up and hits a single centerfield line drive single, which is fantastic. And then then Santa Martinez steals. Second base with Manny exander up who many exander, then it’s double the centerfield line drive and Martinez scores on that. After. For having stolen second base and getting into scoring position. He’s able to score on that. Kerry would than hits a single to centerfield which scores Alexander. So Carey would help himself out there. And you know, now now, you know, tables have turned a little bit. Yeah. Well, still think they had Martinez at second base on the stolen base. But that’s just my memory from twenty one years ago. Actually, I didn’t watch this game. I don’t know. But. No, I’m mad. No that game. How are they had the delay? But yeah. Where’s the replay? Yeah. Exactly. They needed replay in nineteen ninety eight just for this game. All right. Well, they wrap it up Kelder gets Brant Brown to fly to centerfield. And at this point. We’ve got a three two cubs ballgame we are moving to the top of the third. That means the bruiser back at the plate. We’re gonna lead off with Cal Eldred who grounds out the short kill Eldred was not a particularly good hating pitcher. He did not rake. Our current brewed pitching staff does. But. Yeah, right, right Kerry. Wood wasn’t wasn’t bad. He had his moments as a hitter too. So, you know, there there you go, and then, you know, in retaliation for the home run for Nando Vinas pitch from Kerry would I don’t know if that’s true or not. But he did get hit by not. He had some control issues. Yeah now. And then so I. And then the brewers run into another out at second base trying to steal. I don’t know was were they trying to run on sandy Martinez. Or was this a running on Kerry wood thing, I don’t really recall Kerry would having particularly slow delivery. But maybe the brewers were just not getting good jumps that day. I don’t know. But a second. I don’t know. I don’t know the second time caught stealing their top of the third. They’re giving they’re giving away outs. And then surreal flies out to left field. That ends the top of the third and the bruise trailing two to three. Yeah. And and. You know that now basically starting number two in the order here now for the cubs. So Mickey more Dini he strikes out swinging. And then it’s a second time for Sammy Sosa up this game again against Cal Eldred count gets a two balls and one strike, and what do, you know? Sammy Sosa deep fly ball to left field and is out of here. Homerun? Royds corked bat. Well, yeah. Yeah. So he he did look particularly ripped about this point in his career. So you look back in history, and it’s pretty obvious. I don’t care what Mark Maguire says in front of congress to be perfectly square on it.

00:20:04 – 00:25:02

But it was it was still a super exciting summer. I remember this one I wasn’t following baseball nearly as much as I had previously. But I do recall this season and catching highlights and catching a couple of games on TV here and there. Yeah. The Sosa McGwire thing was was quite the story for sure. Yeah. Well that made it four to two and that was so says twenty third home run so twenty two and twenty three coming against the brewers here in this game. And yeah. And then Mark grace at a single Mark grace, one of my favorite players for sure he spent a number of years in Chicago before ending his last few years in Arizona, but always a solid solid hitter. Good batting average ninety eight. You know, he ended up with three oh nine batting average. And yeah, it’s a single here. And and then Henry rod Rigas. Fly ball Jose, Hernandez is up then. And there and Cal Eldred throws a wild pitch and grace moves to second base, but Jose Hernandez ends up just hitting a fly ball. To center so just the Sosa homerun four to two hits a single run a pair of hits a single run one man left on brace cubs lead for two after three. So yeah. Pretty good game so far. Yeah. Not too bad. Got a little work to do. So they get back on they get back into the batter’s box. We Jerry brunettes the leadoff, Jeremy brunettes one of the better hitters in their line-up. Fly ball left field out unfortunate. John John, the young prospect who didn’t really end up panning out just to kind of touch on him one more time. I just wanted to take a quick peek at his numbers. I remember him being somebody that was talked about quite a lot as I was growing up as a potential guy to really be something pretty solid. He started playing quite a bit more in eighty in nineteen ninety three ninety four. He was around for quite a while. There was a season he had three three hundred. Eighty seven plate appearances in nineteen ninety five. He hit three three thirteen. So it’s not like this guy was nobody he at twenty bombs in nineteen Ninety-six. He did have thirty four home runs hit three hundred. So to just say he was a guy that never really filled out is pretty unfair. I think he actually had quite of decent little career. It was more unfortunate that the bruise just kind of stunk while he was there. Nineteen ninety nine nineteen ninety eight would be as last season as a Milwaukee bur that year. He did hit two. Oh, eight. So maybe that’s why sticking out in my memory a little bit more nineteen ninety seventy two forty seven. Okay. Did not hit for a lot of power that nineteen Ninety-six market. Thirty four was his best year until nineteen ninety nine. When he must have signed with Billy bean in the Oakland A’s because he hit thirty five bombs that you’re ended up in the all star game actually received some votes for MVP hit two seventy six with a slugging five fifty six and nine seventy. So he did have a pretty stellar year out and Oakland in nineteen ninety nine that was not, of course this year, though. So this year, we are kind of covered those numbers did not go too. Well for Gionta he lines out to center field. Dave Nielsen draws a walk marquees Grissom follows with a single off of Kerry wood. So you have Nielsen at second. And you have Grissom at first Jose Valentin comes up. He’s one of the guys. I believe that. I believe he came over in the Sheffield trade as well from few previous season’s strikeout looking that ends the inning for the brewers that puts a rap and most of the guys I wanna talk about one hit to left on base. Bruce trail two to four. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I think I’m, you know, I think not next few innings are fairly quiet. I think we can maybe cruise along here. You know drama the fourth Cup zone. Do anything really other Santa Martinez starts ending with the double the center, but then strike out ground ground out? We had the top of the fifth and and the brewers we end up getting a one two three inning couple Kerry wood couple more strikeouts. And then a fly ball to center, and and then Kelder de must a kind of grooved in their bottom of the fifth yet more Zini strikes. Strikes out Mark grace. It’s a single. But then Henry Rodriguez strikes out so nice outside. Yeah. Kill Eldred starting to put it together starting to find a groove at this point. And then you get to the top of the sixth and you’re looking at a couple of different things here.

00:25:03 – 00:30:00

So yeah, we get into the top of the sixth year. The brewers get up there. Still carry would against the brew crew. Jeff Cirillo groundout, Jeremy brunettes fly ball centerfield. John. Jay, Haas strikeout. Looking. We’re just riding along right now. Bruise trailing the cubs. Two to four. Yeah. Pitches kinda grooving getting now it’s it’s not really until. Yeah. Top of the well top of the seventh carry woods still going. Yeah. What? Yeah. The six. Yeah. The sixth inning not a lot going on top of the seventh jumping Sarry. Yeah. Yeah. Well, one-two-three for Kerry wood and the top of the seventh. Bottom of the seven something starts to happen again. Right. So this. Where we kind of wanted to jump forward to this is why we kind of skipped through and scattered those innings a bit Brant Brown groans owed against Cal Eldred. Mickey more any fly ball the right field. You know, who’s up next then so Brown the top. At the top of the line. Ami Sosa was hitting in the three homey Sosa, and yeah, he gets to two balls and one strike and deep left center field, crushes another home run. Third home run of the game twenty four th home run on the season all three oh. All off the Cal Eldred. Sammy Sosa three homerun performance in the very first cubs brewers game with the since Burs come into the central in nineteen ninety eight. So that’s something. Yeah. That is huge. It’s a like I said the bruise really knew how to contribute to baseball history when they switched leagues. So so so hits his his twenty four the third one off Eldred for the day. Mark grace groans out to follow. This puts the brewers that puts the Bruce to cubs up our five to two. Yeah. Burs down by three runs. And we’re in the top of the eighth. That’s right. So Carey would carry would having struggled a little bit with this control. Most of the day kind of cruise kind of cruise through those three or four previous innings though. He had kind of defined find a group there. But but yeah. Top the eighth, Bobby Hughes. He walks and. And then you got Bob Hamlyn. So Celtic comes out of the game time to pinch it form, you gave up three bombs the Sosa and for the brewers little National League ball. They’re letting cheaters for for the pitcher a little bit new. I mean, it’s June by nose, and and so right. But I mean new the the season anyway. Yes. Yes. The previous previous twenty some years. We’re all in the American League central. So Bob Hamlyn gets in he walks, and then Fernando Vina does with Fernando Vina does to men on strikes swinging. Why don’t you take the rest of the inning and kind of break down from a cubs? Yes, it’s interesting because here, and I, you know, I don’t know if I have any particular. Details but Scott service comes in. So I don’t know. Why Santa Martinez came out of the game there? But but yeah. After the walk Bob Hamlyn, Scott service comes in and replays, the sandy Martinez at catcher this true. And that’s in the middle of an inning, which is a little unusual because Kerry wood, no, no pitcher change would still in there. So not a double. Switch must have been must have been an injury of sort injury. I’m guessing I guess, I guess we can look in here a little deeper, but, but yeah, so Scott services in their catching now and Kerry Wood’s strikes out for Nando Vena Jeff Cirillo than hits a single a bunt to two week third base. Yeah. Jeff. It’s a weird wording of that. But but you got into it is what it means at a boy. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Typical surreal ABS getting into one. Yeah. Right. Right. So now, we got basis loaded. Jeremy brunettes is up and he would. Yeah. As a little little trouble with the strike zone and on a full count, walk som walks in Iran, and that would be the end of the day for Kerry wood. Usually if you’ve walked someone with the bases loaded in the eighth inning. You know, what’s funny is actually carry would given given this. I I would imagine he would have been probably taken out of the game much earlier than this in today’s game. Yeah.

00:30:00 – 00:35:12

Probably. Yeah. With the control he was having earlier. But then it did smooth out in the middle innings. It’s kind of hard to know. But. They did. Yeah. The hook was a lot longer back at this point in history nineteen. Yeah. I mean, obviously the bullpen was important in ninety eight. But it’s nothing like it is twenty years later today. No, I, you know, talking about pitch count because I remember they that’s when pitch counts started to be talked about a little more. I mean prior prior to the late nineties. It wasn’t really talked about it all, but then it started being talked about. But I remember threshold kind of being like one twenty whereas today like a hundred a hundreds of long day to thrash old. Yes. Yeah. Yeah. So the, you know, big difference. And I and I remember reading seven Olin Ryan needs to pitch like throw like two hundred pitches in a game. So there’s a lot different in the past. But so I don’t know. I guess we didn’t do any necessarily any math on pitch counts at this point. But I think. You know, K would was probably up there. He was with the amona strikeouts. In walks that he had he was definitely higher on the pitch count. So that leads to another John John appearance. No, remember, I already told you. He didn’t particularly have a good season this season in nineteen ninety eight nineteen ninety nine you know, he was an all star go figure, you know. That’s how the Bruce luck was back then developing players and John had a nice little career, but he comes into face, Terry Adams. And what is Terry Adams do get them to three one count? The brewers are down three to five right? Cubs are up five to three John works into three one and he walks so Hamlin’s third brunettes the second. So another walk that brings us to a five four cubs lead. Dave Nielsen up against Terry Adams now Dave Nielsen ends up with only one oh so far grounds the second. So you get a force out but the run scores tie ballgame. The. Brewers of comeback bruise of comeback. Yeah. Baby. Yes. And that leaves marquees gruesome to clean the basis and he groans up. So through the top of the eighth inning. The brewers and cubs are no tied at five piece despite Sammy Sosa and all the steroids carrying them to five runs. A man all five of those are charged against Kerry wood, and I did see he pitched one hundred seventeen pitches. So you’re right on the money game. You’re right on the money. I thought seventeen Mark. So we go to the bottom of the eighth inning. This is a tight one fans. This is actually good game. I know it’s been a half an hour episode is a little longer than normal stretch. But we enjoy kind of breaking into these box scores. I think it’s time to see what happens as the Cubbies come up in the bottom of the eighth inning pretty interrupting thinning. So what you got Doug Jones. Doug Jones is coming out of the bullpen. His actually a pretty decent little reliever for the brewers for a number of years. I don’t have his. That’s right in front of me. But a very familiar name. Yes. Probably two million. Wanna you know, you don’t wanna be thinking about middling relievers from that era very much, but Doug Jones came in ah pull him up rate here. It’s pretty easy to do. He comes in. And and Henry Rodriguez is batting and hits a five all the center Jose, Hernandez hits a single to left. Yes. It’s rate in between shortstop and third base right through that whole ground ball. And then Scott service who came in replace any Martinez. Mid inning before looks like a in and seeing I single is what it looks like. Single field shortstop third base. Whole now Doug Jones, I was selling them a bit short actually had a heck of a nice little career as a reliever nation say little career the dude had three hundred and three saves. So he was a legitimate reliever. Three point three career ERA at twenty one point four war. This Bruce staff and Bruce team in general from this year had a lot of pretty solid ball players on it. He would later get traded in the season. I believe Cleveland in nineteen ninety eight. So the brewers season wasn’t going particularly. Well, he did finish with an ear a as the brewers reliever that you’re a five point one seven. So it’s not like he had a great season there. Maybe that’s where my memories coming from on him. Not being particularly good. But a career three thirty area a guy that could get off the hook when he wriggled into one. Right. So you’ve got I third with Hernandez and surveys and that brings up Manny Alexander to face Doug Jones. What has? Fly ball deep left field. All that’s needed for a sack FAI to to for Hernandez, tag up and score. And and there you go cubs. Pull pull ahead back into the lead there six to five and and I believe then terro Terrell Lowery ends up pinch hitting for Terry Adams next he strikes out swinging.

00:35:12 – 00:40:02

But yes, Doug Jones sewer. They strike in the bottom of the eighth. They strike rate back and now it’s six to five cubs. So all of that worked come back from five to two deficit. Yes, all of the walks Kerry wood gave up and Terry Adams followed with and the brewers are back down sixty five just kinda spills the season out a little bit. But it is still only the end of the bottom of the eighth cubs wreck up run on two hits. No heirs. We get to the ninth. And we have rod Beck coming on to get the save for the cubs. What do you know about rod Beck? Because they’re whole lot there or what I don’t know. Yeah. He he was there closer, and and a pretty solid one. He at this point. You know, he he was a he was a big guy. I remember that through hard. You know, he. Yeah. He was a pretty pretty decent closer, you know, he he accumulated quite a few saves between ninety two and ninety nine. He was only on the cubs really rate at the end of his career towards the end of his career there. Well, known ninety eight not part of ninety nine then he was with Boston. And and the Padres then. But he he ended up accumulating two hundred eighty six saves in nineteen ninety eight. He had was his best season. Fifty one saves and three a three point O to E R A, very, very solid. He led the majors and games finished with seventy. So gotcha. Okay. So pretty darn. Yeah. And I and actually now I think about I do remember that he did he he. He died in two thousand seven only a few years after retiring thirty eight years old seven that’s way, too young. Yeah. Yeah. Well way to bring sewed. Well, yeah. I know. Case. He he was he was a no he was a a big piece of that cubs team in nineteen ninety eight he really could come in and and and closed down a game. So. So he comes in Jose Vallon PC. Yeah. Valentin touch on one more time. He had been brought up, and he always been somebody that had a lot of promise, you know, played some shortstop played some second base in this game at second base. Not a particularly good year. He to twenty four in the year of nineteen ninety eight on base percentage is a semi respectable three twenty three. The opium was not good seven sixteen. He would go on to have a couple years where he was well over one hundred strikeouts. Oftentimes, that’s where it landed. So it was no huge surprise Jose Valentin. I remember being pretty solid generally in a lot of ways career be batting average two forty-three slow hundred thirty six bases. He did have a career war of thirty one point six. So it’s not that he stunk loud all the time. But he did have a nice long career from ninety two to two thousand seven all that being said he comes in strikes out swinging, Bobby. Hughes comes on he groans out the short. And then Bobby Hamlin who had pinch hit a couple of innings earlier grounds out the second base. And rod Beck gets the safe. And the cubs. The stupid cubs win six to five. Cubs. When coz win. Yes. Five nine in game, two and a half hours. Roughly, what was a two hours thirty two hours. Thirty eight minutes just a little over two and a half a fairly quick game. Despite of coming back from a five to deficit and have absolutely hideous logo. The brewers are unable to capitalize in the first game of the brewers cubs. All-time series would go on to have a relatively rough nineteen ninety eight the cubs, of course, would go on to have a very good nineteen ninety eight that would end in the first round of the playoffs. Sammy Sosa Mark McGwire a lot of history in nineteen ninety eight that really ties the ninety miles. So yes, ends up with sixty six home runs that season. And of course, carry would that was his rookie year which included his fifth start twenty strikeouts.

00:40:02 – 00:41:48

Both of those being kind of big big moments in in cubs history and baseball history and that game Kerry wood, by the way, he walked. Six struck out nine through one hundred seventeen pitches. So. So yeah, you know. If you want kill Elvis line quick seven innings pitched ten hits five runs five earned six strikeouts. Three bombs for Sammy Sosa against Cal Eldred. Doug Jones comes on and actually ends up taking the loss. Not. But it was a tight game. It was a fun game. And I think that really kind of puts a rap on this episode of the stretch. Yeah. Yeah. Let us know. What you think I mean? Of this. We may do this with other games may it’s it’s kind of a fun way to maybe point out some players of of brewers and cubs past Milwaukee passed, and and so forth, and just you know, is kind of. Taking a look and into these. You know, this one was just an interesting three hold on game. Sammy Sosa got Kerry would pitching its first time to cups brewers. Played each other. And yeah, it was a good one. That’s a good little piece of history. Good. Yeah. If it helps you pass the time, don’t forget to subscribe at ninety miles podcast dot com. Follow us on Twitter. I’m at brew crew winning. You’re at. Wraps his cubs win. That’s right. And yeah, we hope you enjoyed it. And that’s the story for Monday June fifteenth nineteen ninety eight thanks for listening to the stretch. Thanks for listening. We’ll talk to you later.