Wednesday, May 17, 1967: Tigers 8, Washington 2

Washington, D.C.- Joe Sparma pitched his best outing of the season---a complete game, scattering nine hits---and the Tigers ran away from the Washington Senators in the late innings to win going away, 8-2 at D.C. Stadium.

The game was tied, 2-2, heading into the sixth inning, but the Tigers scored twice in the sixth, once in the seventh and three times in the ninth to salt away the victory for Sparma (1-4), who lowered his ERA from 6.63 to 5.74.

Norm Cash (three-run) and Willie Horton (solo) hit homers for Detroit (16-12), which has won three straight. Cash's blast came in the ninth inning with Bill Freehan and Horton on base.

Tigers hitters drew eight walks, five of which scored.

Barry Moore took the loss for Washington as the Tigers swept the brief two-game series.

Freehan scored four runs and Horton scored three for the Tigers.

The Tigers now return home for 14 straight contests.

Game 28	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
DET	0	1	0	1	0	2	1	0	3	8	7	2
WAS	0	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	2	9	1

WP: Sparma (1-4)

LP: Moore

Tuesday, May 16, 1967: Tigers 4, Washington 3

Washington, D.C.- Jim Price's single scored Norm Cash with the go-ahead run in the ninth inning, and the Tigers stole away with a 4-3 win over the Washington Senators on Tuesday night.

Price's hit broke a 2-2 tie and the Tigers added another run on Ray Oyler's bloop single one batter later.

The Senators scratched out a run in the bottom of the ninth and had runners on second and third, but Paul Casanova popped out to short to end the game.

John Hiller (2-0) got the win in relief for Detroit (15-12), winners of two in a row.

Both Tigers runs in the ninth were charged to lefty reliever (and loser) Dick Lines.

Fred Gladding pitched a shaky but successful ninth to earn his fifth save of the season.

Earl Wilson pitched seven strong innings for the Tigers (two hits, eight strikeouts, no walks) and Willie Horton hit a solo homer in the fifth for a 2-0 Detroit lead.

In a rarity, Dick McAuliffe walked five times.

Game 27	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
DET	0	0	1	0	1	0	0	0	2	4	8	0
WAS	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	0	1	3	3	0

WP: Hiller (2-0)
SV: Gladding (5)
LP: Lines

Sunday, May 14, 1967: Tigers 9-7, Boston 10-5 (DH)

Boston, MA- The Tigers split a doubleheader in Boston on Mother's Day, blowing a 9-3 lead in Game 1 to lose, 10-9 in 10 innings, and rebounding to win the nightcap, 7-5.

The Tigers blitzed star Red Sox right-hander Jim Lonborg for nine runs in four innings in the first game, but Detroit starter Denny McLain gave up six runs himself, and the bullpen couldn't hold off the Red Sox.

Reggie Smith slammed a two-run, pinch-hit homer in the eighth inning off Fred Gladding to tie the game, 9-9, and Jerry Adair came off the bench to slap a game-winning single off John Hiller with the bases loaded in the 10th.

In Game 2, The Tigers again started strong, storming to a 7-0 lead by the fourth inning off Boston starter Jose Santiago. A five-run third highlighted the onslaught.

The Red Sox got a three-run home run from Joe Foy in the eighth inning to make the score 7-5, but this time the Tigers bullpen made the lead stand up.

The teams split the four-game series.

Saturday, May 13, 1967: Boston 6, Tigers 3

Boston, MA- Joe Sparma endured another tough start, surrendering three runs in the first two innings, and the Boston Red Sox went on to beat the Tigers, 6-3, at Fenway Park.

Sparma (0-4, 6.63 ERA) wasn't helped by his defense, as the Red Sox scored two unearned runs during the right-hander's 6.2 innings of work.

Joe Foy smacked a solo homer in the seventh to make the score 5-3, Boston. The Red Sox added an unearned run later in the inning.

George Scott's double and a bases loaded walk accounted for two Boston runs in the first inning.

Don Wert (4-for-4) and Al Kaline (three hits) did the most damage for the Tigers (13-11).

Dennis Bennett picked up the win for Boston, hurling six innings. John Wyatt pitched two scoreless frames, and Sparky Lyle pitched 2/3 inning in the ninth before giving way to Dan Osinski, who coaxed a ground ball from Bill Freehan with the bases loaded to end the game.

The teams, having split the first two games of this series, play a doubleheader on Sunday.

Game 24	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
DET	0	0	2	0	0	1	0	0	0	3	12	2
BOS	2	1	0	0	1	0	2	0	x	6	9	0

WP- Bennett
SV- Osinski
LP- Sparma (0-4)

Friday, May 12, 1967: Tigers 6, Boston 5

Boston, MA- Earl Wilson pitched 7.1 innings and the bullpen held off a furious Boston rally as the Tigers beat the Red Sox, 6-5, at Fenway Park.

When Reggie Smith struck out for the final out, the Red Sox had pushed across a run and had the tying tally on third base.

The Tigers led, 6-2, after scoring a run in the top of the eighth. But as is typical in Fenway Park, no lead is truly safe.

Boston scored twice in the eighth on a two-run double by Joe Foy, drawing them to within two runs. But after John Hiller worked 1/3 innings, Fred Gladdding (4) picked up the save for Wilson with 1.1 innings of shaky but successful relief.

The Tigers (13-10) hit three home runs, giving them 12 in their past six games. Don Wert, Jim Northrup and Bill Freehan all cranked balls out for Detroit.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
DET	0	2	0	1	2	0	0	1	0	6	16	0
BOS	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	2	1	5	8	0

WP- Wilson (4-2)

LP- Brandon

SV- Gladding (4)

Wednesday, May 10, 1967: Cleveland 2, Tigers 1

Cleveland, OH- The Cleveland Indians scored twice in the first inning but not after that, yet it was enough to edge the Tigers, 2-1, at Municipal Stadium.

The Tribe's Sonny Siebert outdueled Detroit's Mickey Lolich, as both pitchers went all the way for their respective teams.

Siebert allowed just three hits, striking out 10 and walking three. Lolich only gave up two runs despite his team committing five errors. Cleveland managed seven scattered hits as the teams split the two-game series.

Rocky Colavito and Chico Salmon each had RBI singles in the first inning. Mickey Stanley tripled home Jerry Lumpe for the Tigers' only run, in the fourth inning.

Detroit (12-10) travels to Boston for a four-game weekend series.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
DET	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	3	5
CLE	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	X	2	7	1

WP- Siebert

LP- Lolich (3-2)

Welcome/Introduction

Hi fellow tabletop sports gamers!

I have been rolling dice and consulting cards for almost 40 years, and I still get excited whenever I start a new tabletop sports project.

In recent years I have taken to documenting some of my baseball replays with blogs. I have found that by doing so, I can present the project to fellow gamers in a way that is more fun and more interesting than can be done in a Delphi Forum thread.

Not that there won't be a thread---there will be. But the thread will constantly link back to this blog.

This project will take you through my replay of the 1967 Detroit Tigers season, using Strat-o-Matic Baseball.

The '67 American League pennant race was one of the best in baseball history. No less than four teams---the Tigers, the Minnesota Twins, the Chicago White Sox and the Boston Red Sox---were within a couple games of first place in the season's final weeks.

The need to make up earlier rainouts necessitated that the Tigers play consecutive double-headers on the season's final two days---Saturday and Sunday---against the California Angels, in Detroit.

Because Boston took control, they were the team the Tigers had to catch, playing games 159-thru-162 at Tiger Stadium. If Detroit could win three of the four against the Angels, the Tigers could force a one-game playoff. If the Tigers won all four, they'd win the pennant outright.

But the Tigers could manage to beat the Angels only twice in those four games, and the last of those four was a California victory that was sealed when Detroit's Dick McAuliffe, who hadn't grounded into a double play all year, bounced into a 4-6-3 to end the game. The "Impossible Dream" Red Sox thus won the pennant by one game.

Here, you will find brief write-ups of games played, constantly updated team stats and standings---but only involving the aforementioned four teams. I will keep track of my Tigers' records against those four, comparing them to games played in real life, and adjust those teams' won/loss record accordingly for my replay.

The result will be tailored standings, so I can see how my Tigers fare in the race.

I am using as-played lineups for the opponents, and as-used starting pitchers for the Tigers.

But, to give me the opportunity to do some managing beyond in-game decisions, I will use my own lineups, utilizing what I call my "10 percent rule."

That means that I will limit each player's plate appearances and innings pitched to 10 percent above their real life use.

For example, a player with 300 plate appearances will be capped at 330 in my replay.

I feel this is only fair, as Strat's 1967 set leaves out many fringe players, to whom those extra plate appearances and innings pitched would go, had those players been carded.

You join this project already underway, 21 games in. The Tigers are 12-9. It's May 9, 1967.

Turn on the wayback machine!