August 20, 1968 Atlanta Braves at Chicago Cubs Play by Play and Box Score

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CAL 7
BAL 2 CLE 2
BOS 1 DET 7
CHW 0 CHW 10
@DET 2 NYY 5
@MIN 0 WSA 7
@OAK 5 OAK 4
WSA 3 CHC 6
ATL 5
(10) PIT 8
@CIN 3 HOU 8
LAD 5 NYM 8
SFG 0 PHI 8
STL 2

Standings at end of play this day

Wrigley Field, Attendance: 16,749

Tuesday, August 20, 1968, 1:30PM
Time of Game: 3:28

Braves

63-62

Lost 3

5th, 16½ GB

                1  2  3   4  5  6   7  8  9  10    R  H  E
                -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -   -    -  -  -
Braves          0  3  0   0  0  1   1  0  0   0    5 10  4
Cubs            4  0  0   0  0  0   0  0  1   1    6  8  1

W: J Niekro (13-8), L: C Raymond (2-4)

Winning Run scored with 2 outs

Cubs

66-61

Won 2

4th, 14½ GB

BATTING

Atlanta Braves               AB   R   H RBI   BB  SO    BA   OPS  Pit   PO   A  Details
F Alou CF                     4   0   1   0    1   0  .310  .795    0    1   0   2B
F Millan 2B                   1   0   0   0    0   0  .293  .677    0    0   0   
  W Causey 2B                 4   0   1   1    0   0  .155  .434    0    2   3   
H Aaron RF                    5   0   1   0    0   3  .266  .787    0    2   0   
J Torre 1B                    4   0   0   0    0   1  .275  .732    0   12   1   HBP
T Francona LF                 3   1   1   0    2   0  .313  .804    0    2   0   
  T Aaron LF                  0   0   0   0    0   0  .247  .610         0   0   
B Johnson 3B                  5   0   0   0    0   0  .277  .603    0    2   1   
B Tillman C                   5   1   2   1    0   1  .206  .533    0    6   0   
M Martinez SS                 5   2   3   0    0   0  .219  .536    0    1   4   
P Niekro P                    4   1   1   3    0   0  .088  .299    0    1   1   HR
  C Raymond P                 0   0   0   0    0   0  .143  .286         0   1   
Totals                       40   5  10   5    3   5                    29  11

BATTING

2B: F Alou (28, off B Hands).

HR: P Niekro (2, off B Hands; 2nd inn, 2 on, 2 outs to LF).

HBP: J Torre (5, by B Hands).

TB: P Niekro 4; M Martinez 3; F Alou 2; B Tillman 2; T Francona; H Aaron; W Causey.

RBI: P Niekro 3 (7); B Tillman (18); W Causey (10).

2-out RBI: P Niekro 3; B Tillman; W Causey.

Team LOB: 9.

With RISP: 3 for 9.

FIELDING

E: B Johnson (9); C Raymond (2); M Martinez 2 (14).

Chicago Cubs                 AB   R   H RBI   BB  SO    BA   OPS  Pit   PO   A  Details
D Kessinger SS                5   0   0   0    0   1  .255  .596    0    2   5   
G Beckert 2B                  4   0   1   1    0   1  .274  .649    0    1   2   SF
B Williams RF                 5   1   2   0    0   0  .282  .812    0    5   0   
E Banks 1B                    5   1   1   0    0   2  .255  .768    0   11   1   
R Santo 3B                    4   1   0   0    1   0  .247  .768    0    2   2   
W Smith LF                    5   2   2   4    0   1  .263  .714    0    1   0   2·HR
R Hundley C                   4   1   2   0    0   0  .240  .625    0    5   0   
A Phillips CF                 3   0   0   0    0   1  .238  .701    0    2   0   SH
B Hands P                     2   0   0   0    0   0  .079  .200    0    1   1   
  P Regan P                   0   0   0   0    0   0  .158  .411         0   0   
  A Spangler PH               1   0   0   0    0   0  .288  .745    0    0   0   
  J Lamabe P                  0   0   0   0    0   0  .200  .400         0   0   
  J Arcia PH                  0   0   0   0    0   0  .191  .508    0    0   0   
  D Nen PH                    0   0   0   0    1   0  .200  .514    0    0   0   IW
  J Upham PR                  0   0   0   0    0   0  .167  .334         0   0   
  J Niekro P                  0   0   0   0    0   0  .115  .294         0   0   
Totals                       38   6   8   5    2   6                    30  11

BATTING

HR: W Smith 2 (2, off P Niekro, off C Raymond; 1st inn, 2 on, 2 outs to LF; 10th inn, 0 on, 2 outs to RF).

SF: G Beckert (4, off C Raymond).

SH: A Phillips (2, off C Raymond).

IBB: D Nen (1, by C Raymond).

TB: W Smith 8; R Hundley 2; B Williams 2; G Beckert; E Banks.

RBI: W Smith 4 (17); G Beckert (27).

2-out RBI: W Smith 4.

Team LOB: 7.

With RISP: 1 for 8.

FIELDING

E: G Beckert (16).

BASERUNNING

PO: A Phillips (1st base by C Raymond).

PITCHING

Atlanta Braves                IP     H   R  ER   BB  SO  HR    ERA   BF  Pit-Str  Ct·Sw·Lk   GB·FB·LD· ?   GmSc  IR-IS   LevI    WPA
P Niekro                       7     5   4   0    1   3   1   2.81   29     -       ·  ·     12· 8· 0· 5     61    -     1.06  -0.11
C Raymond, BS (3), L (2-4)     2.2   3   2   1    1   3   1   2.93   13     -       ·  ·      3· 2· 1· 3          1-0    4.38  -0.49
Totals                         9.2   8   6   1    2   6   2          42     -       ·  ·     15·10· 1· 8          1-0

Chicago Cubs                  IP     H   R  ER   BB  SO  HR    ERA   BF  Pit-Str  Ct·Sw·Lk   GB·FB·LD· ?   GmSc  IR-IS   LevI    WPA
B Hands                        5.1   7   4   4    2   2   1   2.92   26     -       ·  ·     10· 4· 0· 7     38    -     1.18  -0.02
P Regan, BS (6)                1.2   3   1   0    1   0   0   1.90    9     -       ·  ·      1· 4· 1· 2          1-1    1.96  -0.26
J Lamabe                       2     0   0   0    0   2   0   4.59    6     -       ·  ·      1· 3· 0· 0          0-0    0.66   0.07
J Niekro, W (13-8)             1     0   0   0    0   1   0   4.16    3     -       ·  ·      1· 1· 0· 0          0-0    1.89   0.12
Totals                        10    10   5   4    3   5   1          44     -       ·  ·     13·12· 1· 9          1-1

P Niekro faced 1 batter in the 8th inning.

Balks: None.

WP: B Hands (3); P Regan (2).

IBB: C Raymond (7; D Nen).

PO: C Raymond (2; A Phillips, 1st base).

HBP: B Hands (5; J Torre).

OTHER

Umpires: HP - Shag Crawford, 1B - Chris Pelekoudas, 2B - Doug Harvey, 3B - John Kibler.

Time of Game: 3:28.

Attendance: 16,749.

Field Condition: Unknown.

Weather: 90° F.

LINEUPS

   Atlanta Braves                Chicago Cubs                         
1. F Alou               CF    1. D Kessinger          SS 
2. F Millan             2B    2. G Beckert            2B 
3. H Aaron              RF    3. B Williams           RF 
4. J Torre              1B    4. E Banks              1B 
5. T Francona           LF    5. R Santo              3B 
6. B Johnson            3B    6. W Smith              LF 
7. B Tillman            C     7. R Hundley            C  
8. M Martinez           SS    8. A Phillips           CF 
9. P Niekro             P     9. B Hands              P

TOP 5 PLAYS (wpa explanation)

   Inn Out Score RoB  Pt wWPA  wWE  Batter          Pitcher         Play Detail
  +---+---+-----+---+---+----+----++---------------+---------------+--------------------------------------------------------------+
   b10   2  5-5  ---      47% 100% W Smith         C Raymond       Home Run
   b 1   2  0-1  12-      22%  88% W Smith         P Niekro        Home Run; Banks Scores/unER; Santo Scores/unER; Smith Scores/unER
   t 7   2  4-4  -2-     -22%  30% B Tillman       P Regan         Single to RF; Francona Scores/unER
   b 9   0  5-4  12-      22%  70% J Arcia         C Raymond       Phillips Picked off 1B, safe on E1; Hundley to 3B; Phillips to 2B
   t 2   2  4-0  12-     -22%  66% P Niekro        B Hands         Home Run; Tillman Scores; Martinez Scores

PLAY BY PLAY (explanation)

Top of the 1st, Braves Batting, Tied 0-0, Bill Hands facing 1-2-3
  Scr/Out RoB  Pt  wWE  Batter          Play Detail
  +------+---+---+----++---------------+--------------------------------------------------------------+
          ---      44%  F Alou          Double to LF
   O      -2-      50%  F Millan        Fielder's Choice SS; Alou out at 3B/SS-3B; Millan to 1B
   O      1--      52%  H Aaron         Strikeout
   O      1--      54%  J Torre         Groundout: 2B-1B
                  0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Braves 0, Cubs 0.

Bottom of the 1st, Cubs Batting, Tied 0-0, Phil Niekro facing 1-2-3
   O      ---      52%  D Kessinger     Groundout: P-SS-1B
   O      ---      51%  G Beckert       Popfly: 1B
          ---      52%  B Williams      Single to RF
          1--      55%  E Banks         Single to LF; Williams to 3B
   R      1-3      66%  R Santo         Reached on E6 (Ground Ball); Williams Scores/No RBI/unER; Banks to 2B; Santo to 1B
   RRR    12-      88%  W Smith         Home Run; Banks Scores/unER; Santo Scores/unER; Smith Scores/unER
          ---      88%  R Hundley       Single to LF
   O      1--      87%  A Phillips      Foul Flyball: 3B
                  4 runs, 4 hits, 1 error, 1 LOB. Braves 0, Cubs 4.

Top of the 2nd, Braves Batting, Behind 0-4, Bill Hands facing 5-6-7
   O      ---      89%  T Francona      Groundout: 2B-1B
   O      ---      90%  B Johnson       Groundout: P-1B
          ---      89%  B Tillman       Single to CF
          1--      88%  M Martinez      Single to CF; Tillman to 2B
   RRR    12-      66%  P Niekro        Home Run; Tillman Scores; Martinez Scores
   O      ---      67%  F Alou          Groundout: 1B-P
                  3 runs, 3 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Braves 3, Cubs 4.

Bottom of the 2nd, Cubs Batting, Ahead 4-3, Phil Niekro facing 9-1-2
                  Wayne Causey replaces Felix Millan playing 2B batting 2nd
   O      ---      65%  B Hands         Popfly: 2B
   O      ---      64%  D Kessinger     Groundout: SS-1B
   O      ---      63%  G Beckert       Flyball: LF
                  0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Braves 3, Cubs 4.

Top of the 3rd, Braves Batting, Behind 3-4, Bill Hands facing 2-3-4
   O      ---      66%  W Causey        Groundout: 1B unassisted
   O      ---      67%  H Aaron         Strikeout
   O      ---      68%  J Torre         Groundout: 3B-1B
                  0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Braves 3, Cubs 4.

Bottom of the 3rd, Cubs Batting, Ahead 4-3, Phil Niekro facing 3-4-5
   O      ---      67%  B Williams      Popfly: 2B
   O      ---      65%  E Banks         Groundout: SS-1B
   O      ---      64%  R Santo         Flyball: CF
                  0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Braves 3, Cubs 4.

Top of the 4th, Braves Batting, Behind 3-4, Bill Hands facing 5-6-7
          ---      59%  T Francona      Walk
   O      1--      64%  B Johnson       Flyball: RF
   O      1--      67%  B Tillman       Flyball: CF
          1--      65%  M Martinez      Single to RF; Francona to 2B
   O      12-      70%  P Niekro        Groundout: SS-1B
                  0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 2 LOB. Braves 3, Cubs 4.

Bottom of the 4th, Cubs Batting, Ahead 4-3, Phil Niekro facing 6-7-8
   O      ---      68%  W Smith         Groundout: 2B-1B
   O      ---      67%  R Hundley       Groundout: 3B-1B
   O      ---      66%  A Phillips      Popfly: SS
                  0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Braves 3, Cubs 4.

Top of the 5th, Braves Batting, Behind 3-4, Bill Hands facing 1-2-3
   O      ---      69%  F Alou          Groundout: 3B-1B
   O      ---      71%  W Causey        Foul Flyball: SS
          ---      70%  H Aaron         Single to RF
          1--      67%  J Torre         Hit By Pitch; Aaron to 2B
          12-      62%  T Francona      Walk; Aaron to 3B; Torre to 2B
   O      123      73%  B Johnson       Groundout: SS-2B/Forceout at 2B
                  0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 3 LOB. Braves 3, Cubs 4.

Bottom of the 5th, Cubs Batting, Ahead 4-3, Phil Niekro facing 9-1-2
   O      ---      71%  B Hands         Flyball: LF
   O      ---      70%  D Kessinger     Groundout: 2B-1B
   O      ---      69%  G Beckert       Strikeout
                  0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Braves 3, Cubs 4.

Top of the 6th, Braves Batting, Behind 3-4, Bill Hands facing 7-8-9
   O      ---      72%  B Tillman       Flyball: LF
          ---      68%  M Martinez      Single to CF
          1--      65%  P Niekro        Wild Pitch; Martinez to 2B
                  Phil Regan replaces Bill Hands pitching and batting 9th
          -2-      60%  " "             Wild Pitch; Martinez to 3B
   O      --3      70%  " "             Popfly: SS
          --3      68%  F Alou          Walk
   R      1-3      49%  W Causey        Single to RF (Line Drive); Martinez Scores; Alou to 3B
   O      1-3      57%  H Aaron         Popfly: 1B
                  1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB. Braves 4, Cubs 4.

Bottom of the 6th, Cubs Batting, Tied 4-4, Phil Niekro facing 3-4-5
   O      ---      54%  B Williams      Groundout: 1B unassisted
   O      ---      52%  E Banks         Groundout: SS-1B
          ---      53%  R Santo         Walk
   O      1--      50%  W Smith         Strikeout
                  0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Braves 4, Cubs 4.

Top of the 7th, Braves Batting, Tied 4-4, Phil Regan facing 4-5-6
   O      ---      54%  J Torre         Flyball: RF
          ---      46%  T Francona      Single to 2B; Francona to 2B/Adv on E4
   O      -2-      52%  B Johnson       Groundout: SS-1B
   R      -2-      30%  B Tillman       Single to RF; Francona Scores/unER
   O      1--      32%  M Martinez      Flyball: RF
                  1 run, 2 hits, 1 error, 1 LOB. Braves 5, Cubs 4.

Bottom of the 7th, Cubs Batting, Behind 4-5, Phil Niekro facing 7-8-9
          ---      40%  R Hundley       Reached on E6 (Ground Ball); Hundley to 1B
   O      1--      33%  A Phillips      Strikeout
                  Al Spangler pinch hits for Phil Regan batting 9th
   O      1--      30%  A Spangler      Groundout: 1B unassisted; Hundley to 2B
   O      -2-      22%  D Kessinger     Groundout: 1B-P
                  0 runs, 0 hits, 1 error, 1 LOB. Braves 5, Cubs 4.

Top of the 8th, Braves Batting, Ahead 5-4, Jack Lamabe facing 9-1-2
                  Jack Lamabe replaces Al Spangler pitching and batting 9th
   O      ---      24%  P Niekro        Groundout: 1B unassisted
   O      ---      25%  F Alou          Flyball: RF
   O      ---      26%  W Causey        Flyball: CF
                  0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Braves 5, Cubs 4.

Bottom of the 8th, Cubs Batting, Behind 4-5, Phil Niekro facing 2-3-4
          ---      36%  G Beckert       Single to CF
                  Claude Raymond replaces Phil Niekro pitching and batting 9th
          1--      51%  B Williams      Single to LF; Beckert to 2B
   O      12-      37%  E Banks         Strikeout
   O      12-      25%  R Santo         Flyball: RF
   O      12-      14%  W Smith         Groundout: 2B-1B
                  0 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB. Braves 5, Cubs 4.

Top of the 9th, Braves Batting, Ahead 5-4, Jack Lamabe facing 3-4-5
   O      ---      15%  H Aaron         Strikeout
   O      ---      16%  J Torre         Strikeout
   O      ---      17%  T Francona      Popfly: 3B
                  0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Braves 5, Cubs 4.

Bottom of the 9th, Cubs Batting, Behind 4-5, Claude Raymond facing 7-8-9
                  Tommie Aaron replaces Tito Francona playing LF batting 5th
          ---      30%  R Hundley       Single to CF
          1--      49%  A Phillips      Reached on E5/Sacrifice Bunt; Hundley to 2B; Phillips to 1B
                  Jose Arcia pinch hits for Jack Lamabe batting 9th
          12-      70%  J Arcia         Phillips Picked off 1B, safe on E1; Hundley to 3B; Phillips to 2B
                  Dick Nen pinch hits for Jose Arcia batting 9th
          -23      72%  D Nen           Intentional Walk
                  John Upham pinch runs for Dick Nen batting 9th
   O      123      51%  D Kessinger     Strikeout
   RO     123      60%  G Beckert       Flyball: RF/Sacrifice Fly; Hundley Scores/unER
   O      12-      50%  B Williams      Groundout: P-1B
                  1 run, 1 hit, 2 errors, 2 LOB. Braves 5, Cubs 5.

Top of the 10th, Braves Batting, Tied 5-5, Joe Niekro facing 6-7-8
                  Joe Niekro replaces John Upham pitching and batting 9th
   O      ---      55%  B Johnson       Groundout: SS-1B
   O      ---      59%  B Tillman       Strikeout
   O      ---      62%  M Martinez      Flyball: RF
                  0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Braves 5, Cubs 5.

Bottom of the 10th, Cubs Batting, Tied 5-5, Claude Raymond facing 4-5-6
   O      ---      57%  E Banks         Strikeout Looking
   O      ---      53%  R Santo         Lineout: 3B
   R      ---     100%  W Smith         Home Run
        1 run, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Braves 5, Cubs 6.

Retrosheet.org Boxscore:CHN196808200

Play-by-Play Explanation

Scr/Out- This has a "O" for every out on the play and an "R" for every run that scored on the play. Some plays will have both in no particular order.
RoB- This gives the baserunner (Runners on Base) configuration at the start of the play. "1-3" would mean runners on first and third. Clicking on this will show the defensive players and baserunners on the field for this play. This is a subscriber feature, so non-subscribers are limited as to the number of times they can use this feature in a day.
Pt- When available, the number of pitches in this plate appearance. Clicking on this number will show the sequence of pitches thrown including, when available, things like runner going, ball blocked, attempted pickoffs and the like. We believe this data to be as accurate as humanly possible, but there are going to be some errors in the data, so please take it with a grain of salt. Clicking on this will show the defensive players and baserunners on the field for this play. This is a subscriber feature, so non-subscribers are limited as to the number of times they can use this feature in a day.
Batter- The batter at the plate when this play occurred. If the play is a baserunning event, then the batter's name will be repeated as indicated by quotes.
Play Detail- This is an explanation of the play that occurred. In some cases, batted ball location and type will be indicated within parentheses. Again, these are best efforts to the record the game as it happened. Also, plays made on the baserunners (including the batter as a baserunner) will be indicated in parentheses after the baserunner's name. Advancement of baserunners is given in cases where the advancement is not easily deduced or obvious from the play. For example, advancement for a walk will not be given, but for a single or double it will be given.

Please report any issues or strangeness you see with the description of plays given above. We have tested several hundred different types of plays, but, in all likelihood, there are still some errors or misinterpretations of the play-by-play data.

The information used here was obtained free of charge from and is copyrighted by Retrosheet. Interested parties may contact Retrosheet at 20 Sunset Rd., Newark, DE 19711.

In some cases, the results from play-by-play data will contradict results in the official record. The official record has many, many errors, but we have not undertaken to reconcile those errors. Pitch-by-pitch data should not be taken as completely accurate, though we believe it to be as accurate as is currently possible.


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BATTING

PITCHING

OTHER

LINEUPS

TOP 5 PLAYS (wpa explanation)

PLAY BY PLAY (explanation)

Play-by-Play Explanation