Monday June 13 at the Tigers

Opponent: Detroit Tigers
Outcome: W
Score: 6-4
Streak: W1
Record: 16-45
Rank: 7th
GB: 23.5

The Orioles arrived in Detroit to take on a Tigers team that was just coming off a road trip to Baltimore and Cleveland.  They had won five straight and had moved from third place into second by sweeping the Indians.  The sweep knocked the Indians out of second and started the Tribe's descent to sixth place where they ended the season.  The story of tonight's game looked like it was going to be about yet another failure of the Orioles bullpen but it turned out to be the Tigers' bullpen that faltered.

The Orioles drew blood first tonight with a two out rally in the fourth inning.  Eddie Murray continued his hot hitting with a double and then Larry Sheets reached base on an error by Tigers first baseman Darrell Evans.  Tigers starter Walt Terrell then walked Fred Lynn to load the bases.  Jim Traber singled to knock in Murray and Sheets before Mickey Tettleton flew out to end the inning.

Matt Nokes got the Tigers on the board in the bottom of the fifth with a solo home run off of Orioles starter Jose Bautista but Tettleton got the run back with a solo home run of his own in the top of the seventh.  But Evans would atone for his earlier error by tying the game up with a two run home run in the bottom of the seventh.

The bottom of the eighth started out looking like one of those horror movie innings that the Orioles bullpen seemed to specialize in.  Mark Williamson had come on in relief of Bautista the inning before and he walked Gary Pettis to start this inning.  Williamson then moved Pettis to second on a balk with Lou Whitaker at the plate.  Whitaker laid down a bunt to attempt to sacrifice Pettis to third but ended up being safe when Orioles third baseman Rene Gonzales was unable to throw him out at first.  Orioles manager Frank Robinson went back to his bullpen and brought in Don Aase.  Aase struck out Pat Sheridan for the first out of the inning but Alan Trammell singled to score Pettis and put the Tigers up for the first time all game.  Evans then hit a ground ball to Murray at first base but the throw was low to Aase covering and Evans was safe on Murray's throwing error.  Robinson went back to the bullpen and brought in Tom Neidenfuer, the Orioles closer who had been the previous day's losing pitcher.  Neidenfuer prevented further damage when he got Chet Lemon to ground into a double play to end the inning.  The Tigers now lead 4-3 though.

Tigers manager Sparky Anderson let Terrell start the top of the ninth but lifted him in favor of Willie Hernandez after Lynn hit a single with one out.  Pete Stanicek came in to run for Lynn and stole second while Hernandez was pitching to Traber.  Traber eventually drew a walk and Tettleton crushed a three run home run (his second home run of the game) to put the Birds up 6 to 4.  Hernandez got out of the inning without any further damage but Neidenfuer pitched a perfect bottom of the ninth to preserve his own victory.

This was my first day at my new job.  I had to go down to the DC area to my company's headquarters for orientation that morning before heading up to my local office near Baltimore that afternoon.  I remember stopping by a McDonalds to pick up lunch on the way back from DC and noticing that the workers there were all wearing maroon pinstriped dress shirts like the one that my friend Linda had picked out for me over the previous weekend.  I told myself that if this new job didn't work out that at least I already had clothes for a fall back position at McDonalds.  Luckily it wasn't needed - I ended up staying at this job for almost nine years.