The #4 seed Baltimore Orioles played the #2 seed Cleveland Indians in
the 1997 CBML World Series. The first two games were to be
played in Cleveland, games 3-5 in Baltimore, and games 6 and 7 in
Cleveland, if necessary. The winner would be the 1997 CBML Champions.
GAME 1
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Inning 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
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Baltimore 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 9 0
Cleveland 0 1 0 4 0 0 1 0 - 6 7 1
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Starting Pitchers: Baltimore - Ben McDonald
Cleveland - Mark Clark
WP - Clark (1-0) LP - McDonald (0-1) S - Richie Lewis (1)
E: Baltimore - None
Cleveland - Rich Becker
HR: Baltimore - None
Cleveland - Ken Griffey, Omar Vizquel
Injuries: Baltimore - Derek Jeter (3 days)
Cleveland - Keith Osik (2 days)
Highlights: Both team's aces, Roger Clemens and Greg Maddux pitched in
their respective game 7's in the Semi-final round of the
playoffs, so Ben McDonald faced Mark Clark in the opening
game of the World Series. The Orioles opened the scoring
in the first inning by scoring 3 runs on 4 hits, including
back-to-back doubles by Edgar Martinez and Steve Finley.
The O's added another in the 2nd to take a 4-0 lead. A Ken
Griffey solo HR in the 2nd got the Tribe on the scoreboard.
The story of the game, however, was a 4-run Cleveland 4th
inning. After 1 out, Griffey singled, Cirillo doubled,
and Larry Walker doubled in 2 runs to get to within 4-3.
After an Osik strikeout, Omar Vizquel put everything he had
into the pitch, and belted out a 2-run HR to put the Indians
ahead for good at 5-4. Meanwhile, Mark Clark settled down,
and Richie Lewis pitched the last 1.1 innings to save the game.
GAME 2
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Inning 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
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Baltimore 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 3 4 0
Cleveland 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 4 - 6 13 1
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Starting Pitchers: Baltimore - Mike Bielecki
Cleveland - Greg Maddux
WP - Richie Lewis (1-0) LP - Mark Petkovsek (0-1)
E: Baltimore - None
Cleveland - Omar Vizquel
HR: Baltimore - Steve Finley
Cleveland - Ivan Rodriguez
Injuries: Cleveland - Larry Walker (5 days)
Highlights: Greg Maddux did start for the Tribe, but the O's countered
with Mike Bielecki (not Roger Clemens). The Indians opened
up the scoring with a run on a bases loaded sac fly by Cirillo
in the bottom of the 1st. After only getting one walk and no
hits off Maddux after 3 innings, Edgar got the first hit with
a 1-out single. Omar Vizquel botched a sure doubleplay ball
hit by Mariano Duncan to put two runners on with one out. After
Conine struck out, Steve Finley hit a 3-run shot to give the
O's a 3-1 lead over the Tribe and Maddux. With two outs in the
top of the 5th, the Indians' Manager pulled Maddux in a
strategic move. Meanwhile, the Tribe pulled to within 3-2 with
a run in the 5th. With the score still 3-2 Orioles into the
bottom of the 8th, Cleveland's Larry Walker was hit by a pitch
with one out, and was lost for 5 days. After Vizquel flew out,
Luis Gonzalez got a ballpark single attempt (1-9), and got the
single. #9 hitter Ivan Rodriguez rolled a 6-5 (HR 1-7, out the
rest), and boom, it's a 3-run shot, and a 5-3 Indians' lead.
Another ballpark single, stolen base, and double plated another
and the Indians went on to win the game, and take a 2 games to
none lead in the series.
GAME 3
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Inning 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
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Cleveland 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 4 6 11 1
Baltimore 0 0 1 1 4 0 3 1 - 10 16 2
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Starting Pitchers: Cleveland - John Burkett
Baltimore - Roger Clemens
WP - Clemens (1-0) LP - Burkett (0-1)
E: Cleveland - Omar Vizquel
Baltimore - Cal Ripken, Jeff Reed
HR: Cleveland - Keith Osik, Jeff Bagwell
Baltimore - Steve Finley
Injuries: Cleveland - Reggie Sanders (1 day)
Highlights: Roger Clemens finally got a start in game 3 of the series. He
faced John Burkett. The Indians opened the scoring in the 1st
scoring once on 3 singles and a walk. 3 Orioles' singles in
the 3rd tied the game at 1. Both teams scored one in the 4th.
In the bottom of the 5th, Conine hit a 1-out double, Vizquel
booted another for a 2-base error, Edgar doubled, Gwynn singled,
Hoiles walked, Finley singled, and Ripken hit a sac fly as the
O's scored 4 times (2 unearned runs). The O's scored 3 more
times in the 7th highlighted by a Cal Ripken double (Cal was
playing for the injured Jeter at shortstop). That was all
Clemens needed as the shut down the Tribe until a 9th inning
rally (4 runs, 2 HRs).
GAME 4
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Inning 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 R H E
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Cleveland 0 1 0 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 0 5 12 4
Baltimore 1 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0 1 6 10 2
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Starting Pitchers: Cleveland - Greg Maddux
Baltimore - David Cone
WP - Barry Manuel (1-0) LP - Richie Lewis (1-1)
E: Cleveland - Jeff Bagwell, Hector Carrasco, Jeff Cirillo,
Ivan Rodriguez
Baltimore - Derek Jeter(2)
HR: Cleveland - Jeff Bagwell, Ken Griffey
Baltimore - None
Injuries: Cleveland - Greg Maddux (4 days (+3 days rest))
Highlights: By taking Maddux out in the 5th inning of game 2, the Indians
could start him in game 4 to face David Cone and the Orioles.
Edgar Martinez doubled home Joyner in the 1st for a 1-0 lead.
Duncan tried to score from first on the play, but was thrown
out on a 1-13 chance. A Vizquel single, stolen base, and
Lyle Mouton single tied the game for the Tribe in the 2nd at 1.
With 2 outs and Jeter on second base in the bottom of the 2nd,
Chris Hoiles singled to left field. Jeter tried to score on
a 1-19 chance, but was thrown out at the plate. The Indians
left the bases loaded in the 4th as Ivan grounded out. In the
top of the 5th, Jeff Bagwell hit a 2-run ballpark (1-9) HR to
give Cleveland a 3-1 lead. But in the 6th, the series turned
around. Knoblauch opened the inning with a ground ball to
Bagwell, and he kicked it. Wally Joyner singled, and up came
designated hitter Mariano Duncan. A 6-12 was rolled. The key
wasn't the leftfield-X check (Gonzalez let it drop for a
single). The key was that Greg Maddux had to roll for an injury
check. Maddux got hurt for 4 days (+3 days rest). He was out
for the rest of the series. In came Carrasco, and after he
struck out Edgar Martinez, he booted a ball. Then walks to
Gwynn, Jeter, and Hoiles gave Baltimore a 5-3 lead. All 4 runs
in the inning were unearned. In the 7th, Eric Young singled,
but got caught stealing. Becker singled, Bagwell missed a
ballpark HR (1-9), and Griffey doubled, but Cirillo popped out
and no runs scored. In the top of the 9th, Osik got a pinch
hit walk, Bagwell struck out, and Griffey hit a ballpark HR to
tie the game. After 2 outs in the bottom of the 9th, Joyner
walked, and Cal Ripken hit a double to centerfield. With 2 outs,
the 3rd base coach sent Joyner home to try to win the game on
a 1-10 chance, but for the 3rd time in the game, a Baltimore
runner was thrown out at the plate. In the 11th, Jeter singled,
stole secondbase, and went to 3rd on a Finley sac. With the
infield and outfield in, Hoiles walked, Knoblauch struck out,
and Joyner was walked intentionally to get to Ripken (good
matchup for the Tribe as Urbina was pitching, and the Orioles'
bench was depleted. The first pitch was thrown, and Ivan
Rodriguez had a passed ball check (1-3). A 3 was rolled, and
the winning run scored (unearned). The World Series was down
to a best of 3 series.
GAME 5
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Inning 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
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Cleveland 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 5 1
Baltimore 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 1
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Starting Pitchers: Cleveland - Wilson Alvarez
Baltimore - Ben McDonald
WP - Alvarez (1-0) LP - McDonald (0-2)
E: Cleveland - Jeff Bagwell
Baltimore - Ben McDonald
HR: Cleveland - None
Baltimore - None
Injuries: Cleveland - Reggie Sanders (out for series)
Baltimore - Edgar Martinez (out for series)
Highlights: With Wilson Alvarez pitching (first lefty starter in the
series), the Orioles loaded their lineup with lefty killers.
But in the bottom of the 1st, Baltimore's best hitter, Edgar
Martinez, was hit by a pitch and injured for the rest of the
World Series. Without their best hitter, Baltimore's bats went
stale as they could only manage 2 hits off Alvarez. Meanwhile,
Baltimore starter Ben McDonald pitched his best game of the
entire playoffs. Only one run was scored in the game. In the
Indians' 3rd, Eric Young led off with a HBP, stole second and
third, and scored a a Becker single. Alvarez made that run
stand as he only faced five men over the minimum in a 2-hit,
3-walk, 1 HBP, 1 error masterpiece. The Indians were without
Maddux, but were one game away from a World Series victory.
GAME 6
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Inning 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
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Baltimore 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 8 2
Cleveland 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 4 0
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Starting Pitchers: Baltimore - Roger Clemens
Cleveland - Mark Clark
WP - Clemens (2-0) LP - Clark (1-1)
E: Baltimore - Derek Jeter(2)
Cleveland - None
HR: Baltimore - None
Cleveland - None
Injuries: None
Highlights: The series went back to Cleveland, and the Orioles put their
ace, Roger Clemens, on the mound against Mark Clark. The
Oriole batters woke up in the 1st as Knoblauch opened up the
game with a single. Joyner followed with a walk, Duncan
doubled, Finley doubled, and Gwynn singled as the O's scored
four times in the inning. In the Indians' 4th, a Becker single,
Bagwell walk, and Walker walk loaded the bases with 2 outs.
Lyle Mouton hit the ball to Jeter, and Jeter threw the ball
away for a 2-run 2-base error. Clemens and Clark took over from
there. Cleveland only got 2 hits, and Baltimore only got 3 hits
over the last 5 innings. Cleveland tried to put a last rally
together in the bottom of the 9th as Clemens walked Griffey,
and Jeter booted another ball allowing the tieing runs on base
with no outs. Knoblauch ended that threat as he started a 4-6-3
doubleplay on a Larry Walker groundball. After Lyle Mouton
walked, Clemens got pinch hitter Luis Gonzalez to groundout to
Jeter, and the series was tied at 3 games a piece. (This game
was the only game in which an injury did not occur. Jeff Reed
actually would have been injured in the 1st, but a wild pitch
attempt voided the injury.)
GAME 7
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Inning 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
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Baltimore 0 2 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 8 10 1
Cleveland 0 2 2 1 0 0 0 0 1 6 8 0
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Starting Pitchers: Baltimore - Brad Radke
Cleveland - Fernando Valenzuela
WP - Mark Petkovsek (1-1) LP - Ugueth Urbina (0-1)
E: Baltimore - Chuck Knoblauch
Cleveland - None
HR: Baltimore - Derek Jeter, Steve Finley
Cleveland - Eric Young, Lyle Mouton
Injuries: Cleveland - Ken Griffey (out for series)
Highlights: In the deciding game, and Greg Maddux injured, the Indians had
to put together a makeshift pitching lineup for the game.
Fernando Valenzuela was the man to start for the Tribe to face
Brad Radke. Needless to say, this was not a pitcher's duel.
In the top of the second, Derek Jeter hit a 2-run HR to give
the O's a 2-0 lead. A Knoblauch error, Osik double, Walker
double, and Eric Young single tied the game in the bottom of
the second. In came Urbina to start the 3rd for the Tribe.
Knoblauch was walked, James Mouton singled, and Gwynn singled to
load the bases with no outs. After a Joyner strikeout, Jeter
hit the ball deep enough to Griffey to score Knoblauch from 3rd.
Hoiles was hit by a pitch to reload the bases, and Otis Nixon
hit a 2-run single highlighting the 3-run 3rd. The Indians came
right back in their half of the 3rd. Bagwell led off with a
walk, but was thrown out attempting to steal. Griffey singled,
Cirillo singled, Vizquel walked, Osik walked to score a run,
and Walker got a ballpark HR attempt (1-5). He missed the chance
at the grand slam, but a run scored on a sac fly. Ivan Rodriguez
came up, and also rolled a ballpark HR attempt, but missed it
as well for the final out of the inning. The Orioles still led
the game 5-4 after 3 innings. In the 4th, Finley led off with
his 3rd HR of the series, and with runners on second and third
with two outs, Jeter singled them both home, and the Orioles
took a 8-4 lead. Both teams had several more scoring chances
in the game, but Cleveland was the only one to capitalize. Two
solo HRs (Young in the 4th, Mouton in the 9th) wasn't enough as
the Orioles won game 7, 8-6.
NOTES: The Indians had 6 injuries in the series. Maddux was the biggest
one of them all. Griffey got hurt in the 6th inning of game 7.
The Indians had trouble with rightfielders getting hurt as well.
The Orioles only had two injuries. Their biggest injury was Edgar
Martinez getting hurt for the rest of the series in the 1st inning
of game 5. Jeter got hurt in game 1, but only missed 2 games.
The Indians stole 17 bases out of 20 attempts. 2 of the 3 times
they were caught stealing were in crucial situations.
The Orioles stole 3 bases in 5 attempts. Gwynn was caught both
times in game 1.
Of course, Rodriguez's -4 arm compared to Jeff Reed's +1 and Chris
Hoiles +2 arm (along with + holds for most of the pitchers) were
a big reason for the difference is steals.
The Orioles hit 4 HRs in the series; 3 by Finley, 1 by Jeter.
The Indians hit 9 HRs in the series.
The World Series victory was Baltimore's 3rd in 4 tries. Cleveland
is now 0-3, but look out for next year!!!!