September 4, 1978 Detroit Tigers at New York Yankees Play by Play and Box Score

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BAL 5
BOS 3 CAL 8
TEX 7 SEA 4
@MIL 3 MIL 5
SEA 0 MIN 2
CHW 1 NYY 9
DET 1 DET 5
@NYY 4 KCR 5
@OAK 3 CLE 5
@TOR 4 SDP 8
@ATL 4 MON 5
@CHC 3 MON 6
@CHC 5
(10) CIN 6
@HOU 3 LAD 5
SFG 4 PIT 7
NYM 4 PIT 7
NYM 0 STL 3
PHI 2 PHI 10
@STL 2

Standings at end of play this day

Second game of doubleheader, see First game.

Yankee Stadium, Attendance: 46,896

Monday, September 4, 1978
Time of Game: 2:31

Tigers

75-62

Won 1

5th, 10½ GB

                1  2  3   4  5  6   7  8  9    R  H  E
                -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -    -  -  -
Tigers          1  1  0   0  2  0   0  1  0    5  9  2
Yankees         0  3  0   0  1  0   0  0  0    4  9  2

W: J Hiller (7-4), L: S Lyle (9-3)

Yankees

80-56

Lost 1

2nd, 5 GB

BATTING

Detroit Tigers               AB   R   H RBI   BB  SO    BA   OPS  Pit   PO   A  Details
R LeFlore CF                  5   1   1   0    0   1  .295  .752    0    2   0   
S Dillard 2B                  5   1   0   0    0   0  .234  .580    0    1   3   
  L Whitaker 2B               0   0   0   0    0   0  .292  .707         0   0   
R Staub DH                    5   0   0   0    0   0  .285  .800    0    0   0   
J Thompson 1B                 4   1   3   2    0   0  .292  .848    0   13   0   3B
S Kemp LF                     3   0   1   0    1   0  .279  .781    0    2   0   
  M Stanley LF                0   0   0   0    0   0  .270  .716         0   0   
A Rodriguez 3B                4   1   2   1    0   1  .254  .682    0    0   2   HR
D Stegman RF                  2   0   1   0    0   0  .500 1.500    0    2   0   2B
  T Corcoran PH-RF            1   0   0   0    0   1  .271  .654    0    1   1   
  J Wockenfuss PH-RF          1   1   1   0    0   0  .277  .754    0    0   0   2B
M May C                       3   0   0   0    1   0  .266  .720    0    5   0   
M Wagner SS                   4   0   0   0    0   1  .239  .556    0    0   3   
  A Trammell SS               0   0   0   0    0   0  .270  .660         1   1   

J Morris P                                                               0   0
  S Baker P                                                              0   0
  J Hiller P                                                             0   1
Totals                       37   5   9   3    2   4                    27  11

BATTING

2B: D Stegman (1, off P Lindblad); J Wockenfuss (4, off S Lyle).

3B: J Thompson (2, off K Clay).

HR: A Rodriguez (7, off P Lindblad; 2nd inn, 0 on, 0 outs to LF).

TB: J Thompson 5; A Rodriguez 5; D Stegman 2; J Wockenfuss 2; R LeFlore; S Kemp.

RBI: J Thompson 2 (85); A Rodriguez (37).

2-out RBI: J Thompson.

Team LOB: 7.

With RISP: 2 for 11.

FIELDING

DP: 1. T Corcoran-J Thompson.

E: S Dillard (8); M May (10).

New York Yankees             AB   R   H RBI   BB  SO    BA   OPS  Pit   PO   A  Details
M Rivers CF                   5   0   0   0    0   0  .262  .692    0    3   1   
W Randolph 2B                 3   1   1   0    2   0  .265  .721    0    1   3   SB
T Munson C                    5   0   0   0    0   0  .291  .701    0    4   0   
C Chambliss 1B                5   1   3   0    0   0  .291  .743    0   11   1   2B
G Nettles 3B                  4   1   3   1    0   0  .276  .811    0    0   4   
L Piniella DH                 4   0   0   0    0   2  .310  .788    0    0   0   
R White LF                    3   0   0   0    0   0  .243  .704    0    1   0   
  J Johnstone LF              1   0   1   0    0   0  .211  .526    0    1   0   
G Thomasson RF                2   1   0   0    1   2  .228  .667    0    2   0   
  C Johnson PH                1   0   0   0    0   0  .186  .639    0    0   0   
  P Blair RF                  0   0   0   0    0   0  .179  .517         0   0   
B Dent SS                     3   0   1   0    1   0  .254  .625    0    3   2   

P Lindblad P                                                             0   0
  K Clay P                                                               0   0
  S Lyle P                                                               1   0
Totals                       36   4   9   1    4   4                    27  11

BATTING

2B: C Chambliss (23, off J Morris).

TB: C Chambliss 4; G Nettles 3; J Johnstone; W Randolph; B Dent.

RBI: G Nettles (76).

Team LOB: 9.

With RISP: 1 for 4.

FIELDING

E: W Randolph (14); G Thomasson (7).

BASERUNNING

SB: W Randolph (27, 3rd base off J Morris/M May).

PITCHING

Detroit Tigers                IP     H   R  ER   BB  SO  HR    ERA   BF  Pit-Str  Ct·Sw·Lk   GB·FB·LD· ?   GmSc  IR-IS   LevI    WPA
J Morris                       4.2   5   4   2    3   3   0   4.17   23     -       ·  ·      7· 5· 0· 5     42    -     1.11  -0.32
S Baker                        2     2   0   0    1   1   0   4.12    8     -       ·  ·      3· 0· 1· 2          2-0    1.38   0.17
J Hiller, W (7-4)              2.1   2   0   0    0   0   0   2.57    9     -       ·  ·      3· 4· 0· 2          1-0    2.96   0.36
Totals                         9     9   4   2    4   4   0          40     -       ·  ·     13· 9· 1· 9          3-0

New York Yankees              IP     H   R  ER   BB  SO  HR    ERA   BF  Pit-Str  Ct·Sw·Lk   GB·FB·LD· ?   GmSc  IR-IS   LevI    WPA
P Lindblad                     3     6   2   2    0   2   1   4.22   15     -       ·  ·      2· 5· 0· 6     41    -     1.00  -0.07
K Clay                         4     2   2   1    2   2   0   4.67   17     -       ·  ·      7· 3· 1· 2          0-0    1.31  -0.03
S Lyle, L (9-3)                2     1   1   0    0   0   0   3.27    7     -       ·  ·      4· 2· 0· 1          0-0    1.47  -0.18
Totals                         9     9   5   3    2   4   1          39     -       ·  ·     13·10· 1· 9           -

Balks: None.

WP: K Clay (3).

IBB: None.

HBP: None.

OTHER

Umpires: HP - Ted Hendry, 1B - Greg Kosc, 2B - Jerry Neudecker, 3B - George Maloney.

Time of Game: 2:31.

Attendance: 46,896.

Field Condition: Unknown.

Weather: Unknown.

LINEUPS

   Detroit Tigers                New York Yankees                     
1. R LeFlore            CF    1. M Rivers             CF 
2. S Dillard            2B    2. W Randolph           2B 
3. R Staub              DH    3. T Munson             C  
4. J Thompson           1B    4. C Chambliss          1B 
5. S Kemp               LF    5. G Nettles            3B 
6. A Rodriguez          3B    6. L Piniella           DH 
7. D Stegman            RF    7. R White              LF 
8. M May                C     8. G Thomasson          RF 
9. M Wagner             SS    9. B Dent               SS 

   J Morris             P        P Lindblad           P

TOP 5 PLAYS (wpa explanation)

   Inn Out Score RoB  Pt wWPA  wWE  Batter          Pitcher         Play Detail
  +---+---+-----+---+---+----+----++---------------+---------------+--------------------------------------------------------------+
   t 8   2  4-4  -2-      24%  71% M Wagner        S Lyle          Reached on E9 (Fly Ball); Wockenfuss Scores/No RBI/unER; Wagner out at 2B/CF-SS
   b 2   2  2-1  123     -20%  34% M Rivers        J Morris        Reached on E4 (Ground Ball); Nettles Scores/No RBI/unER; Thomasson Scores/unER/No RBI; Dent to 3B
   t 5   1  3-2  -2-      19%  57% J Thompson      K Clay          Triple to LF; Dillard Scores/unER
   b 5   2  4-3  -2-     -14%  49% C Chambliss     J Morris        Randolph Steals 3B; Randolph Scores/Adv on E2 (throw to 3B)
   b 7   0  4-4  1--      12%  48% T Munson        S Baker         Line Drive Double Play: RF-1B

PLAY BY PLAY (explanation)

Top of the 1st, Tigers Batting, Tied 0-0, Paul Lindblad facing 1-2-3
  Scr/Out RoB  Pt  wWE  Batter          Play Detail
  +------+---+---+----++---------------+--------------------------------------------------------------+
          ---      54%  R LeFlore       Single to CF
   O      1--      52%  S Dillard       Flyball: LF; LeFlore to 2B
   O      -2-      49%  R Staub         Groundout: 1B unassisted; LeFlore to 3B
   R      --3      58%  J Thompson      Single to RF; LeFlore Scores
   O      1--      56%  S Kemp          Flyball: CF
                  1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Tigers 1, Yankees 0.

Bottom of the 1st, Yankees Batting, Behind 0-1, Jack Morris facing 1-2-3
   O      ---      59%  M Rivers        Flyball: RF
   O      ---      60%  W Randolph      Groundout: SS-1B
   O      ---      61%  T Munson        Groundout: 2B-1B
                  0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Tigers 1, Yankees 0.

Top of the 2nd, Tigers Batting, Ahead 1-0, Paul Lindblad facing 6-7-8
   R      ---      71%  A Rodriguez     Home Run
          ---      76%  D Stegman       Double to LF
   O      -2-      75%  M May           Flyball: RF; Stegman to 3B
   O      --3      71%  M Wagner        Strikeout Looking
   O      --3      68%  R LeFlore       Flyball: RF
                  1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Tigers 2, Yankees 0.

Bottom of the 2nd, Yankees Batting, Behind 0-2, Jack Morris facing 4-5-6
          ---      61%  C Chambliss     Double to RF
   R      -2-      53%  G Nettles       Single to CF; Chambliss Scores
   O      1--      56%  L Piniella      Strikeout
   O      1--      60%  R White         Flyball: CF
          1--      57%  G Thomasson     Walk; Nettles to 2B
          12-      54%  B Dent          Walk; Nettles to 3B; Thomasson to 2B
   RR     123      34%  M Rivers        Reached on E4 (Ground Ball); Nettles Scores/No RBI/unER; Thomasson Scores/unER/No RBI; Dent to 3B
   O      1-3      38%  W Randolph      Flyball: RF
                  3 runs, 2 hits, 1 error, 2 LOB. Tigers 2, Yankees 3.

Top of the 3rd, Tigers Batting, Behind 2-3, Paul Lindblad facing 2-3-4
   O      ---      35%  S Dillard       Groundout: 3B-1B
   O      ---      34%  R Staub         Flyball: 2B
          ---      35%  J Thompson      Single to LF
          1--      37%  S Kemp          Single to RF; Thompson to 2B
   O      12-      32%  A Rodriguez     Strikeout
                  0 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB. Tigers 2, Yankees 3.

Bottom of the 3rd, Yankees Batting, Ahead 3-2, Jack Morris facing 3-4-5
   O      ---      34%  T Munson        Groundout: 3B-1B
   O      ---      36%  C Chambliss     Groundout: 2B-1B
          ---      35%  G Nettles       Single to RF
   O      1--      37%  L Piniella      Strikeout
                  0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Tigers 2, Yankees 3.

Top of the 4th, Tigers Batting, Behind 2-3, Ken Clay facing 7-8-9
                  Ken Clay replaces Paul Lindblad pitching
   O      ---      34%  D Stegman       Lineout: 1B
          ---      37%  M May           Walk
   O      1--      33%  M Wagner        Groundout: 2B-SS/Forceout at 2B
   O      1--      31%  R LeFlore       Groundout: 3B-1B
                  0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Tigers 2, Yankees 3.

Bottom of the 4th, Yankees Batting, Ahead 3-2, Jack Morris facing 7-8-9
   O      ---      33%  R White         Flyball: LF
   O      ---      34%  G Thomasson     Strikeout Looking
   O      ---      35%  B Dent          Foul Flyball: 1B
                  0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Tigers 2, Yankees 3.

Top of the 5th, Tigers Batting, Behind 2-3, Ken Clay facing 2-3-4
          ---      40%  S Dillard       Reached on E4 (Ground Ball)
   O      1--      38%  R Staub         Groundout: SS-1B; Dillard to 2B
   R      -2-      57%  J Thompson      Triple to LF; Dillard Scores/unER
   R      --3      63%  S Kemp          Wild Pitch; Thompson Scores
          ---      65%  " "             Walk
          1--      72%  A Rodriguez     Single to RF; Kemp to 3B
                  Tim Corcoran pinch hits for Dave Stegman batting 7th
   O      1-3      65%  T Corcoran      Strikeout Looking
   O      1-3      60%  M May           Groundout: SS unassisted/Forceout at 2B
                  2 runs, 2 hits, 1 error, 2 LOB. Tigers 4, Yankees 3.

Bottom of the 5th, Yankees Batting, Behind 3-4, Jack Morris facing 1-2-3
                  Tim Corcoran moves to RF
   O      ---      63%  M Rivers        Groundout: 1B unassisted
          ---      60%  W Randolph      Walk
   O      1--      62%  T Munson        Groundout: SS-1B; Randolph to 2B
   R      -2-      49%  C Chambliss     Randolph Steals 3B; Randolph Scores/Adv on E2 (throw to 3B)
          ---      47%  " "             Single to RF
          1--      44%  G Nettles       Single to CF; Chambliss to 2B
                  Steve Baker replaces Jack Morris pitching
   O      12-      50%  L Piniella      Groundout: SS-2B/Forceout at 2B
                  1 run, 2 hits, 1 error, 2 LOB. Tigers 4, Yankees 4.

Top of the 6th, Tigers Batting, Tied 4-4, Ken Clay facing 9-1-2
   O      ---      47%  M Wagner        Groundout: SS-1B
   O      ---      44%  R LeFlore       Strikeout
   O      ---      43%  S Dillard       Flyball: CF
                  0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Tigers 4, Yankees 4.

Bottom of the 6th, Yankees Batting, Tied 4-4, Steve Baker facing 7-8-9
   O      ---      46%  R White         Groundout: 1B unassisted
   O      ---      48%  G Thomasson     Strikeout
          ---      47%  B Dent          Single to CF
   O      1--      50%  M Rivers        Groundout: 2B-1B
                  0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Tigers 4, Yankees 4.

Top of the 7th, Tigers Batting, Tied 4-4, Ken Clay facing 3-4-5
                  Jay Johnstone replaces Roy White playing LF batting 7th
   O      ---      46%  R Staub         Flyball: CF
   O      ---      44%  J Thompson      Groundout: 2B-1B
   O      ---      42%  S Kemp          Flyball: LF
                  0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Tigers 4, Yankees 4.

Bottom of the 7th, Yankees Batting, Tied 4-4, Steve Baker facing 2-3-4
          ---      36%  W Randolph      Walk
   OO     1--      48%  T Munson        Line Drive Double Play: RF-1B
          ---      46%  C Chambliss     Single to LF
                  John Hiller replaces Steve Baker pitching
   O      1--      50%  G Nettles       Foul Flyball: C
                  0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Tigers 4, Yankees 4.

Top of the 8th, Tigers Batting, Tied 4-4, Sparky Lyle facing 6-7-8
                  Sparky Lyle replaces Ken Clay pitching
   O      ---      45%  A Rodriguez     Groundout: 2B-1B
                  John Wockenfuss pinch hits for Tim Corcoran batting 7th
          ---      55%  J Wockenfuss    Double to RF
   O      -2-      47%  M May           Flyball: 1B
   RO     -2-      71%  M Wagner        Reached on E9 (Fly Ball); Wockenfuss Scores/No RBI/unER; Wagner out at 2B/CF-SS
                  1 run, 1 hit, 1 error, 0 LOB. Tigers 5, Yankees 4.

Bottom of the 8th, Yankees Batting, Behind 4-5, John Hiller facing 6-7-8
                  John Wockenfuss moves to RF
   O      ---      77%  L Piniella      Groundout: 3B-1B
          ---      71%  J Johnstone     Single to RF
                  Cliff Johnson pinch hits for Gary Thomasson batting 8th
   O      1--      78%  C Johnson       Flyball: 1B
   O      1--      85%  B Dent          Flyball: LF
                  0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Tigers 5, Yankees 4.

Top of the 9th, Tigers Batting, Ahead 5-4, Sparky Lyle facing 1-2-3
                  Paul Blair replaces Cliff Johnson playing RF batting 8th
   O      ---      83%  R LeFlore       Groundout: 3B-1B
   O      ---      82%  S Dillard       Groundout: 3B-1B
   O      ---      81%  R Staub         Groundout: 1B-P
                  0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Tigers 5, Yankees 4.

Bottom of the 9th, Yankees Batting, Behind 4-5, John Hiller facing 1-2-3
                  Lou Whitaker replaces Steve Dillard playing 2B batting 2nd; Alan Trammell replaces Mark Wagner playing SS batting 9th; Mickey Stanley replaces Steve Kemp playing LF batting 5th
   O      ---      90%  M Rivers        Groundout: SS-1B
          ---      80%  W Randolph      Single to LF
   O      1--      91%  T Munson        Flyball: CF
   O      1--     100%  C Chambliss     Groundout: P-SS/Forceout at 2B
        0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Tigers 5, Yankees 4.

Retrosheet.org Boxscore:NYA197809042

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