Slaton got the ball in the top of the first inning and Tommy Harper was plunked to start. Juan Beniquez ripped a base hit to right to move Harper to third and Cecil Cooper hit a 3 run bomb to put Boston on top. Carl Yastrzemski hit a home run of his own to increase the lead but Bob Montgomery struck out swinging. Bernie Carbo grounded back to the mound and Terry Hughes struck out swinging to end the inning with the Sox up 4-0.
The Brewers responded against Lee in the bottom of the first as Don Money hit a routine grounder to third....thrown away by Hughes for an error. Money took off for second and Bob Montgomery threw the ball over the head of FIRST base for an another error. Ken Berry popped up to second but Money scored on the Dave May grounder to the mound. George Scott grounded out to third to end the inning with the Brewers down 4-1.
The Sox tried to start a rally in the top of the second as Doug Griffin singled to left to start. Mario Guerrero banged into a double play and Harper lined out to third to end the inning. John Briggs flied out to center to start the bottom of the third before Bob Coluccio singled to left. Coluccio moved to second on a wild pitch and third on the fly out to center on Darrell Porter. Pedro Garcia grounded out to short to end the inning.
Beniquez singled to left to start the top of the third before moving to second on a wild pitch. Cooper grounded out to short and Yaz was intentionally walked to get to Montgomery. The gamble worked as Montgomery banged into a double play to end the inning. Yount hit one up the elevator shaft to start the bottom of the third before Money popped up to second. Berry grounded out to third to end the inning.
For the fourth inning in a row, the Sox got the first guy on as Carbo ripped a base hit to right to start. Hughes dropped down a bunt to move Carbo to second but Griffin popped up to first. Guerrero grounded out to third to end the inning. May grounded out to first to start the bottom of the fourth before Scott flied out to center. Briggs popped up to short to end the inning.
Harper popped up to third to start the top of the fifth before Beniquez popped up to first. Cooper grounded out to second to end the inning. Lee cruised in the bottom of the fifth as Coluccio flied out to right to start. Porter also flied out to right and Garcia grounded out to third to end the inning.
Yaz doubled to left to start the top of the sixth and was sacrificed over to third on a bunt by Montgomery. The rally ended as Carbo and Hughes both grounded out to first to end the inning. Yount walked to start the bottom of the sixth before Money struck out swinging. Berry took strike three and May grounded out to first to end the inning.
Griffin popped up to second to start the top of the seventh before Guerrero popped up to third. Harper popped up to first to end the inning. After mustering nothing all day, the Brewers exploded in the bottom of the seventh. Scott got the rally started with a double to left before Briggs walked. Coluccio doubled to left to score both runners as it looked like Lee was out of gas. Porter hit a rocket to Cooper but Sox manager Darryl Johnson refused to lift Lee against the right handed hitting Garcia. The gamble failed as Garcia pounded a two run home run all the way to the Azores to give the Brewers the lead. Still Lee was in the game as Yount flied out to right but Money walked. FINALLY, Johnson lifted Lee for Reggie Cleveland. Lee was superb for 6 innings but fell apart in the seventh, allowing 5 runs in 6 2/3 innings. Money swiped second and Cleveland got Berry to fly out to right to end the inning with Milwaukee ahead 5-4.
Beniquez flied out to center to tart the top of the eighth before Cooper grounded out to second. Yaz walked to put the tying run on but Montgomery struck out swinging to end the inning. Cleveland returned for the bottom of the eighth and May struck out swinging to start. Scott grounded out to third and Briggs grounded out to first to end the inning.
Carbo flied out to left to start the top of the ninth but Hughes ripped a base hit to center. Rick Miller pinch ran for Hughes as Eduardo Rodriguez came in to close it out. Griffin flied out to center but Dick McAuliffe pinch hit for Guerrero. Miller swiped second but McAuliffe struck out swinging to end the game. The Brewers had won it 5-4.
Jackass Montgomery
Jackass of the Night is Bob Montgomery. Yes, Lee served up the two run home run but Montgomery killed not one but two rallies. In a one run game, that was crucial.
The Good:
Juan Beniquez was 2 for 4 with a run scored.
Carl Yastrzemski was 2 for 2 with 2 walks and a home run.
Rick Miller stole a base as a pinch runner.
Reggie Cleveland tossed 1 1/3 scoreless innings.
The Bad:
Mario Guerrero was 0 for 3.
Dick McAuliffe struck out as a pinch hitter.
Bill Lee took the loss by allowing 5 runs in 6 2/3 innings. He was left in one batter too late.
The Ugly:
Tommy Harper was 0 for 3 but scored a run.
Cecil Cooper was just 1 for 4 but the one hit was a 3 run blast.
Bernie Carbo was just 1 for 4.
Terry Hughes was 1 for 3 but struck out and committed an error.
Doug Griffin was just 1 for 4.
Final Thoughts:
That loss was a kick in the pants. Darrell Johnson is a rookie manager and he made a rookie mistake. Had he brought in Cleveland to face Garcia, the Sox might have won this game. As it was, it was a loss. Its only the second game of the season so there's no reason to panic, but two years ago the division came down to the final game and a loss like this is crucial come September. The loss of Carlton Fisk hurt because Montgomery killed two rallies and committed an error as his replacement. Still, its just one game and tomorrow is a new day. The Sox return to action tomorrow to finish the set when Rick Wise makes his Red Sox debut up against Clyde Wright of the Brewers. The game begins at 2 PM tomorrow afternoon at Fenway Park.
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