KOD WS Game 6: O's soar past Dodgers 11-5 to clinch series

Game 6: Memorial Stadium, Baltimore, MD

The series headed back east to the stadium on 33rd street, a place that the Orioles have called home since 1953 when the fledgling St. Louis Browns franchise relocated to Baltimore to become the Orioles. The 1960's were a time of prosperity for the Oriole franchise, and the 1969 team just might have been the franchises strongest offering. Snake bit in real life the 1969 O's will forever be tagged with the label "chokers", because of the way they were swept by the 1969 Miracle Mets. While winning a sports sim championship can never erase those bad memories, it can give credence to the fact that this was a powerhouse team with few if no weaknessess.

The Orioles put their hopes on the shoulders of 23 year old fireballer Jim Palmer, who brought an 8-0 KOD record into the game. Los Angeles had their backs up against the proverbial wall, so they entrusted their fate to one of the franchises most clutch performers, Johnny Podres. For those of you not up on your baseball history, Podres at the tender age of 23 tossed a complete game shutout to close out the 1955 World Series and give Brooklyn it's only World Championship.

The battle lines have been set. We have a young fireballer just ready to enter his prime vs an old crafty veteran who has been there and done all that. An intersting sidebar to all this revolves around the added pressure on Palmer's shoulders. You see if Baltimore doesn't close the series out here in game six they will be forced into facing the imortal Koufax with one of their spot starters. In one of the greatest feats of clandestine operations the Orioles were able to hide from the media the fact that Dave McNally was nursing a sore elbow and could not be counted on to pitch much if he was to start game 7. Palmer knew this and so did his ballclub.

The old axiom when facing an underdog is to put them away early and not let them hang around and gain confidence. The Orioles didn't pay attention to this detail and after 2 innings there was still no score. After Palmer dispatched the Dodgers in the top of the third the Orioles shifted into gear and began the onslaught.

For the next 6 innings Baltimore would score at least 1 run. In the bottom of the 3rd they scored two to break the ice. Andy Etchebarren singled and was bunted over to second by Mark Belanger. Palmer, who is adept with the lumber, pushed him up one more base by grounding out to the right side. With 2 outs Don Buford can through with an RBI single and Davey Johnson followed that up by doubling him in to stake the O's to a 2-0 lead they would never relinquish.

The O's scored 1 in the fourth off of Podres when Boog Powell doubled and Brooks Robinson singled him home. the fifth saw the floodgates open as well as Podres departure. Baltimore chased the veteran lefty with 4 big runs. Podres gave up 7 runs in 4 innings worth of work. The big blow came off the bat of slugger Boog Powell who hit a towering grand slam into the right field bleachers.

The O's would tack on another run in the 6th to increase their lead to 8-0. At this point the outcome wasn't in question. The only question was what the final score would be and how cold could the champagne get. Palmer was cruising along until he gave up 3 runs to LA in the top of the 7th. LA might have been down, but they are a prideful organization that will keep on fighting until the final bell sounds. At this point Palmer looked either disinterested or tired. In either case he should have been removed from the game, but manager Weiss felt a sense of loyalty to his ace and wanted to see him close out the game and the series. Finally by the 9th inning Weiss went to the pen and brought in lefty Pete Richert, who by chance was also on the LA roster...go figure ? Richert, got Maury Wills to fly to right, struck out Willie Davis and ended the series by having Tommy Davis fly out to Don Buford.

Needless to say the crowd bum rushed the field and the players. Redemption is sweet, victory is sweeter. The Orioles answered their critics by posting an incredible 38-8 run in the KOD innaugrual season. The were the pre-season and post-season favorites and they didn't disappoint, even though their detractors said otherwise. Hats off to the '62-Dodgers who won and improbable pennant and tested the O's like no team had before.

Congratulations to the 1969 Baltimore Orioles - KOD World Champions !!!