Series Wrapup

Story

After a brief players’ strike caused the 1972 baseball season to begin almost two weeks late, the Pittsburgh Pirates set about the task of capturing their third consecutive National League East title.  The Pirates experienced little difficulty separating themselves from the rest of the division, posting a regular-season record of 96-59 that left them 11 games ahead of the second-place Chicago Cubs. 

The Pirates boasted an extremely impressive lineup that finished third in the National League with 691 runs scored.  Roberto Clemente batted .312 in his final season.  Al Oliver drove in 89 runs, scored 88 others, and also batted .312.  Richie Hebner hit 19 home runs and batted .300.  Willie Stargell batted .293 and placed among the league leaders with 33 home runs and 112 runs batted in.

Although the Pirates’ offense garnered much of the attention, they had an extremely underrated pitching staff that finished second in the league with a team ERA of 2.81.  Steve Blass led the club with 19 wins, a 2.49 ERA, and 250 innings pitched.  Dock Ellis, Nelson Briles, and Bob Moose won 15, 14, and 13 games, respectively.  Meanwhile, Dave Giusti anchored the bullpen, saving 22 games, winning seven others, and compiling a 1.93 ERA.

While the Pirates clearly established themselves as the class of the N.L. East over the course of the season, they had neither the division’s top offensive performer, nor its best pitcher.  Billy Williams had an outstanding year for the second-place Cubs, finishing among the league leaders with 37 home runs and 122 runs batted in, and topping the circuit with a .333 batting average, a .606 slugging percentage, and 348 total bases.  Steve Carlton had an absolutely phenomenal season for the last-place Phillies, who finished 37 ½ games behind the Pirates.  Carlton led N.L. starters in every major statistical category, finishing the campaign with a record of 27-10, a 1.97 ERA, 310 strikeouts, 346 innings pitched, and 30 complete games, en route to winning his first Cy Young Award.  The big left-hander’s 27 victories represented an amazing 46 percent of his team's 59 wins, thereby establishing an all-time major league record. 

While Pittsburgh proved to be the Eastern Division’s dominant team, the Cincinnati Reds reigned supreme in the West.  Having acquired the services of Joe Morgan, Denis Menke, and Cesar Geronimo in a huge eight-player deal with the Houston Astros at the end of the previous season, the Reds returned to the top of the N.L. West standings after a one-year hiatus.  Cincinnati finished the year with a record of 95-59, 10 ½ games ahead of the Astros and Dodgers, who finished tied for second in the division.

The Reds rode their powerful offense to their second title in three years, placing a close second in the senior circuit to the Astros with 707 runs scored.  Tony Perez had a solid year for Cincinnati, hitting 21 home runs, driving in 90 runs, and batting .283.  Joe Morgan served as the team’s offensive catalyst, hitting 16 homers, batting .292, placing second in the league with 58 stolen bases, and topping the circuit with 122 runs scored, 115 walks, and a .419 on-base percentage.  Pete Rose batted .307 and scored 107 runs.  Johnny Bench earned his second N.L. MVP trophy by leading the league with 40 home runs and 125 runs batted in. 

Both the Reds and Pirates met their stiffest challenges to-date when they faced each other in the National League Championship Series.  The teams split the first two contests, before Pittsburgh came from behind to win Game Three.  The Reds evened the Series again by taking Game Four on a two-hitter by Ross Grimsley.  The most exciting contest of the Series ended up being Game Five, which the Pirates led 3-2 going into the bottom of the ninth inning.  Johnny Bench led off the frame by hitting an opposite- field home run off Pittsburgh closer Dave Giusti.  Tony Perez and Denis Menke followed with singles, prompting Pirates manager Bill Virdon to replace Giusti on the mound with Bob Moose, with two men out and the potential winning run on third base.  Moose subsequently uncorked arguably the most infamous pitch in NLCS history, bouncing an offering past catcher Manny Sanguillen that enabled pinch-runner George Foster to score the pennant-winning run.

The Pirates and their fans suffered anguish of a completely different nature less than three months later when Roberto Clemente died in a plane crash while on a mission to bring relief aid to earthquake victims in Nicaragua.  Just 38 years old at the time of his passing, Clemente ended his career with exactly 3,000 hits.

Entering the World Series as favorites against the Oakland Athletics, the Reds had a difficult time contending with Oakland’s outstanding pitching staff, which held them to a .209 team batting average over the course of the seven games.  Utility first baseman/catcher Gene Tenace also caused the Reds fits by hitting four home runs, driving in nine runs, and batting .348.  Although the Reds outscored Oakland by a combined margin of 21-16, they dropped the Series in seven games, losing four times by only one run.

Other outstanding performers, notable events, and points of interest from around the league follow:

• April 2 – With the sudden passing of Gil Hodges, who died of a heart attack, the New York Mets named Yogi Berra their new manager.

• May 11 – The San Francisco Giants traded Willie Mays to the New York Mets for minor league pitcher Charlie Williams and cash.

• May 14 – In front of a Mother's Day crowd of 35,000 in New York's Shea Stadium, Willie Mays made a triumphant return to New York with the Mets, hitting a game-winning home run against his old team, the Giants.

• August 1 – At Atlanta Fulton County Stadium, Nate Colbert of the San Diego Padres tied Stan Musial's 18-year record by hitting five home runs in a doubleheader against the Atlanta Braves. 

• New York’s Tom Seaver finished the year with a record of 21-12, a 2.92 ERA, 249 strikeouts, and 262 innings pitched.

• Steve Carlton won 15 straight games for the last-place Phillies at one point during the season.

• The National League won the All-Star Game 4-3 in Atlanta, in 10 innings.

• On September 2, Chicago’s Milt Pappas threw a no-hitter against the Padres.  He lost his perfect game by walking the 27th man on a 3-2 pitch.

• Chicago’s Burt Hooton no-hit Philadelphia on April 16.

• Montreal’s Bill Stoneman tossed a no-hitter against the Mets on October 2.

• New York's Jon Matlack (15-10, 2.32 ERA) earned N.L. Rookie of the Year honors.

• San Francisco's Jim Barr retired a major league record 41 batters in a row over two games.

• Milt Pappas became the first pitcher to collect 200 career wins without ever having won 20 games in a season.

• Montreal dealt Rusty Staub to the Mets for Ken Singleton, Tim Foli, and Mike Jorgensen.

• Bill Mazeroski retired holding the National League record for most games at second base (2,094).

• Cincinnati's Clay Carroll set a new major league record by saving 37 games.

• Tom Seaver became the highest-paid pitcher in history by signing a contract worth $172,000.

• Lou Brock led the National League with 63 stolen bases.

Seasons of the National League

1876 · 1877 · 1878 · 1879 · 1880 · 1881 · 1882 · 1883 · 1884 · 1885 · 1886 · 1887 · 1888 · 1889 · 1890 · 1891 · 1892 · 1893 · 1894 · 1895 · 1896 · 1897 · 1898 · 1899 · 1900 · 1901 · 1902 · 1903 · 1904 · 1905 · 1906 · 1907 · 1908 · 1909 · 1910 · 1911 · 1912 · 1913 · 1914 · 1915 · 1916 · 1917 · 1918 · 1919 · 1920 · 1921 · 1922 · 1923 · 1924 · 1925 · 1926 · 1927 · 1928 · 1929 · 1930 · 1931 · 1932 · 1933 · 1934 · 1935 · 1936 · 1937 · 1938 · 1939 · 1940 · 1941 · 1942 · 1943 · 1944 · 1945 · 1946 · 1947 · 1948 · 1949 · 1950 · 1951 · 1952 · 1953 · 1954 · 1955 · 1956 · 1957 · 1958 · 1959 · 1960 · 1961 · 1962 · 1963 · 1964 · 1965 · 1966 · 1967 · 1968 · 1969 · 1970 · 1971 · 1972 · 1973 · 1974 · 1975 · 1976 · 1977 · 1978 · 1979 · 1980 · 1981 · 1982 · 1983 · 1984 · 1985 · 1986 · 1987 · 1988 · 1989 · 1990 · 1991 · 1992 · 1993 · 1994 · 1995 · 1996 · 1997 · 1998 · 1999 · 2000 · 2001 · 2002 · 2003 · 2004 · 2005 · 2006 · 2007 · 2008 · 2009 · 2010