Game 124: Jon Matlack pitches seven shutout innings and scores two runs; Richie Hebner homers and drives home four; and the Riders take the opener from Oakland 9-2.

Game 125: Bruce Kison's second start in a Riders uniform goes much better than the first one; he allows only one run in six innings and Rich Gossage picks up another two-inning save as the Riders win 4-2. Richie Hebner continues his hot hitting with two hits and scores two runs.

Game 126: This one goes back and forth; Milwaukee waits until the fifth to match Oakland's four-run first, but ties the game when it does so. Neither team scores again until the ninth, when the Zoo gets an RBI triple from Fran Healy with none out. Darold Knowles escapes without further damage, but the Zoo leads 6-5. Bill Madlock is retired to lead off the ninth but Richie Hebner singles. Thurman Munson hits a long fly to center.. and it goes OUT!!! Riders win 7-6.

Milwaukee will host New York next.

Game 127: The rotation's first inning troubles continue; New York scores three runs in the first off Ron Reed, and goes on to a 6-4 win. The Riders are constantly putting themselves in a big hole before even coming to bat.

Game 128: Milwaukee takes a 5-1 lead after six, but Bill Lee tires, and Reggie Smith's homer puts the Mammoths ahead, 6-5, in the eighth. With two on and two out, Larry Biittner singles home two runs to give the Riders a lead. Two singles bring Biittner home, and Rich Gossage pitches a scoreless ninth for his 34th save. Larry Demery gets the win in relief.

Game 129: Milwaukee drops the rubber match, 4-1, as Jon Matlack is outpitched by 20-game winner Frank Tanana. Bill Madlock's solo homer accounts for Milwaukee's only tally.

The Riders head to Fenway to take on Boston.

Game 130: Terry Crowley, making a rare start at first base, has four hits including three doubles and drives home four runs to spark the Riders to a 10-5 win over Boston. Bruce Kison pitches well (two runs in six innings) to get his second win in a Rider uniform.

Game 131: Fred Norman pitches a one-hitter, and the Riders get a three-run homer from Terry Crowley, as they take game 2 of the Fenway series, 9-0.

Game 132: Thurman Munson doubles and triples, driving in three runs, and Ron Reed pitches well into the seventh, earning his 18th victory as the Riders sweep Boston with a 6-4 decision.

We head to the nation's capital to face the Commandos.

Game 133: Andy Etchebarren hits a grand slam off Bill Lee in the fourth inning, his first home run of the season. It's enough; Jim Slaton scatters 10 hits in seven-plus innings and the Riders drop the opener 5-3.

Game 134: Milwaukee gets only six hits, but four come in a three-run second. Jon Matlack and the bullpen makes it stand up; Milwaukee evens the series with a 4-2 win.

Game 135: Bruce Kison is brilliant and the Riders take the series with a 3-1 win in the finale. Kison pitches seven three-hit innings and improves to 3-1 since joining Milwaukee.

The Riders now trail Anaheim by one game for the division lead and lead Chicago by four in the wild card race. We finish this nine-game road trip with a visit to Chicago.

Game 136: Reggie Cleveland manhandles the Rider lineup for 8.2 innings before finally ceding to Doug Bird with two on and two out in the ninth. Bird needs only three pitches to retire Mike Ivie and the White Sox take the opener, 3-0.

Game 137: Bill Madlock hits a two-run homer in the first; Jerry White slams a three-run homer in the second; and the Riders survive a shaky start from Ron Reed to beat the White Sox, 7-6. Larry Demery tosses 3.1 scoreless innings to get the win while Rich Gossage pitches the final two innings for another save.

Game 138: Skip Lockwood's relief appearance is brief but decisive. He faces four batters; three of them score. Milwaukee can do nothing with Chicago relievers Rich Folkers or Doug Bird and drops the finale 6-2.

No leading the White Sox by only three games in the wild card race, Milwaukee finally heads home, but they have to face Minnesota.

Game 139: Milwaukee hits six doubles and gets nine hits from the 2/3/4 positions in the order as they outslug the Mooseheads to win the opener 8-6. Bill Lee isn't particularly effective but gets the win, improving to 16-14. Rich Gossage gets his 39th save.

Game 140: First-inning woes return as Bruce Kison allows five in the first, then exits during another five-run inning (the fifth). Mason Karg commits three errors and the Riders are blown away, 18-4, by Minnesota.

Game 141: Milwaukee collects 13 hits, but not very many with runners in scoring position. The middle of the lineup strands numerous baserunners and the Mooseheads win the rubber match, 5-2, beating Fred Norman.

Now with a two-game lead over Chicago in the wild card race, the Riders head to Detroit.

Game 142: Timely hitting is a problem again, but Ron Reed pitches superbly, giving the offense some time to figure things out.. and in the ninth, they do. Leading off the ninth, Larry Hisle hits his sixth homer to break a 1-1 tie. Jim Wohlford later triples home another run, and Rich Gossage pitches a scoreless bottom half for his 40th save.

Game 143: Larry Biittner and Frank Taveras each hit home runs off reliever Buzz Capra and the Riders beat Detroit 6-2.

Game 144: Richie Hebner's two solo homers, along with Jon Matlack's seven shutout innings, have the Riders looking good going into the eighth. Matlack falters in the eighth, however, and Rich Gossage is unable to stop the avalanche; Detroit scores six times in the frame and takes the finale 6-2. Milwaukee's lead over Chicago is trimmed to a single game.



The Riders return home to face Cleveland (79-65).

Game 145: Milwaukee gets a little help from a George Brett error in the seventh (one of three Brett commits in the game) and turns it into a four-run inning to snap a 2-2 tie. The bullpen allows a couple of unearned runs over the final two innings but the Riders hang on for a 6-4 win.

Game 146: Milwaukee gets no extra base hits but draws eight walks and steals three bases on the way to a 9-4 win over Cleveland. Larry Demery pitches 2.2 scoreless innings of relief to help Fred Norman get his 14th win.

Game 147: Rico Carty's eighth inning error precedes three walks in four Rider batters, allowing Milwaukee to tie the score at two. Larry Demery pitches a scoreless ninth, and then a scoreless 10th when the Riders fail to end it. Jim Wohlford walks with two down in the bottom half and steals second. Mike Lum singles and Wohlford races home with the game-winner.

The Riders will host Baltimore before finishing the season with 12 division games.

Game 148: Bill Lee pitches well, but the Riders don't do much with the bats and Larry Hisle's eighth inning error helps Baltimore tie the score at three. Hisle helps get the run back, leading off the bottom half of the frame with the first of three straight singles. Milwaukee scores twice, and Rich Gossage pitches a scoreless ninth for his 42nd save.

Game 149: Bob Gibson holds the Riders scoreless for two innings, but Milwaukee explodes for seven runs in the third, capped by Richie Hebner's three-run homer, his 20th of the season. Milwaukee scores in each and every inning thereafter on the way to an 18-5 win. Hebner adds a second homer; Jim Wohlford is 4-4.

Game 150: Milwaukee once again takes advantage of an exhausted Brewer bullpen, scoring a 16-5 win in the series finale. Terry Crowley doubles and homers, driving home five runs. Mike Lum homers and drives home four. Bruce Kison is shaky but the bullpen is solid.

With the sweep, Milwaukee moves back into first place in the division past Anaheim, with a big four-game series at Anaheim on the schedule to start the final stretch of division games. It's basically a three-team race for two playoff spots as either Anaheim or Milwaukee will take the West and the loser of that race will try to stay ahead of Chicago for the wild card spot.

Game 151: After scoring 34 runs in the final two games against Baltimore, the Rider offense disappears in Anaheim as Joe Coleman outpitches Fred Norman in a 3-2 decision. Milwaukee puts two men on base in the ninth, but pinch hitter Jim Wohlford grounds out to end the game.

Game 152: Early inning problems continue to plague Milwaukee pitchers against the Angels; Anaheim takes a 3-0 lead after two innings and goes on to win 7-2 behind Marty Pattin. The division race is now tied and the Riders are looking anemic.

Game 153: Rich Gossage suffers a rare blown save, walking three batters in the ninth, but Manny Trillo singles home Bill Madlock in the 10th after an Ivan Dejesus error and the Riders finally take a game from Anaheim, 3-2. Darold Knowles gets the win, his sixth.

Game 154: Milwaukee gets 10 hits, including Bill Lee's first home run, but Lee's control problems hurt him on the mound. Anaheim draws eight walks and takes the series three games to one with a 4-2 win in the finale.

Tied for first in the division, but luckily four games ahead of Chicago in the wild card race, the Riders will host Kansas City in their final homestand of the season.

Game 155: Thurman Munson hits a grand slam home run in the third inning, and Bruce Kison makes that stand up, pitching eight shutout innings as the Riders take the opener from KC, 5-1. Kison improves to 4-2, with an ERA of 4.17, as a Rider. Chicago loses their game, so the Riders' magic number to clinch a postseason appearance is three.

Game 156: Milwaukee falls behind 4-0 after six but rallies for three in the first off new reliever Jim Todd, and then ties the game in the eighth with Jim Wohlford delivering his second RBI single in as many innings. Wohlford then comes up big again in the 10th, singling Mike Lum to third with one out. Tom Burgmeier enters to face Manny Trillo and Trillo singles to bring Lum home with the game-winner. Larry Demery improves to 11-2 with two scoreless innings of relief.

Game 157: The Riders' big boppers strand a bunch of runners as Milwaukee is shut down by KC's bullpen; the Blue Sox take the game 3-2 and the Riders fall a game back of Anaheim. There is good news, though, as the White Sox lose again - Milwaukee has clinched a playoff spot!

Game 158: Bill Lee gives up 10 hits and six walks in 7.2 innings, and though he keeps KC leadoff man Pete Rose away from home plate despite reaching base five times (and gets rare home runs from the offense's Ted Sizemore and Terry Crowley), he drops his 16th game of the season, 5-4.

The Riders head to Oakland to close out the season, trailing Anaheim by a single game for the division title.

Game 159: The Riders try to give this one away, but prevail in the end. After scoring twice in the ninth to erase a 5-4 deficit, Rich Gossage walks home the tying run in the bottom half, his seventh blown save. Ted Sizemore hits a two-run double in the tenth, however, and then scores on Jerry White's single. Dave Laroche allows a leadoff homer to Dave Parker in the bottom half but retires the next three batters for a save. Anaheim falls to Kansas City so the division race is tied with three to play.

Game 160: Milwaukee gets their 100th win of the season, almost a duplicate of the prior game. Milwaukee scores twice in the ninth to take a 4-3 lead, but Dave Parker homers in the bottom half, this one off Rich Gossage, to tie it up. Jerry White singles home Bill Madlock in the 10th and Dave Laroche gets the save, allowing only a two out single. Milwaukee gets 15 hits, all singles.

Game 161: Mike Lum hits a three-run double, a sacrifice fly, and a two-run homer to pace the Rider offense as they defeat Oakland 8-6. Things get a little scary at the end but Rich Gossage comes in to retire Gary Thomasson to earn his 44th save. Anaheim falls to Kansas City, meaning the Riders can clinch the division with a win in the regular season finale.

Game 162: Ron Reed allows only two unearned runs in six innings of work; Skip Lockwood and Rich Gossage combine for three hitless frames (and seven strikeouts) to preserve a division clinching 4-2 win over Oakland.

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Minnesota will face New York in the first round of the playoffs. The Mammoths scored 872 runs this season (19 more than Milwaukee) but their team ERA of 4.49 is nearly one run higher than Milwaukee's 3.58 mark.

GAME 1

In Milwaukee

Frank Tanana (23-14) vs. Jon Matlack (18-12)

Ken Singleton leads off the game with a double, moves to third on a fly ball, and scores when Mason Karg boots a grounder. Bill Bailey then doubles home another run and the Riders trail 2-0 after the first. Reggie Smith homers in the third to make it a 3-0 game; Milwaukee leaves two men on base in both the first and third innings.

The Riders finally dent the scoreboard when Jim Wohlford doubles home two runs in the sixth. Two men are stranded in both the seventh and eighth, and Dave Laroche gives up two runs in the ninth. Milwaukee rallies against Tom Buskey in the bottom half, scoring twice and getting Thurman Munson to the plate with the tying run on first. Munson hits a grounder to third that turns into a game-ending double play, and the Mammoths take the opener 5-4.



GAME 2

In Milwaukee

Vida Blue (21-13) vs. Ron Reed (19-11)

Larry Hisle singles in the first, steals second, and scores on Mike Ivie's single to give the Riders their first lead of the series. Those two account for Milwaukee's next trip to the scoreboard as well; Hisle doubles to lead off the third and Ivie homers. Mason Karg adds a two-run single later that inning. Though the Mammoths respond with two in the fourth on Darrell Evans' single, Thurman Munson gets those back in the bottom half with a two run double (Hisle scoring first on that hit).

Ken Singleton drives home runs for New York in the fifth and seventh, but Reed exits after seven with a 7-4 lead. Rich Gossage enters the game in the eighth and has no problems in that frame. Things get a little shaky in the ninth when he hits the first batter, then walks the next two. Rusty Staub doubles, scoring two runs and making it a 7-6 game with two on and no out. Gossage coaxes a short fly from Evans, strikes out pinch hitter Bobby Mitchell, and gets a fly out from pinch hitter Joe Torre to end it. Riders win, 7-6.

GAME 3

In New York

Fred Norman (15-11) vs. Frank Tanana (23-14)

Milwaukee strikes in the first inning again, as Bill Madlock's sacrifice fly scores Jerry White, who had been hit by a pitch and moved to third on a single. New York ties it in the second on George Mitterwald's single, but White homers in the third to give Milwaukee the lead back. Bucky Dent's error is then followed two batters later by an RBI double of Mike Ivie's bat.

Jerry White strikes again in the fourth, driving home two runs with a single. Fred Norman is brilliant, allowing no other runs through the seventh. Skip Lockwood pitches a 1-2-3 eighth, but allows the first two batters in the ninth to reach base. Dave Laroche enters, gets a double play grounder from Darrell Evans, and retires Bucky Dent to end it. Milwaukee wins 5-1 and takes the homefield advantage back.



GAME 4

In New York

Bruce Kison (3-2) vs. Vida Blue (21-13)

Reggie Smith blasts a two-run homer off Bruce Kison in the first, and the Mammoths never look back from that point. Kison appears too amped up for his first playoff appearance; he walks six in five innings. Mike Lum's RBI grounder in the fourth makes it a one-run game, but the Riders don't sniff the scoreboard after that. Vida Blue is brilliant, allowing only four hits in a complete game 5-1 win. Bill Lee "contributes" to the playoff experience by allowing two Mammoth runs in the eighth.



GAME 5

In Milwaukee

Frank Tanana (23-14) vs. Ron Reed (19-11)

Ron Reed cruises along through four innings, allowing only two harmless hits, and has a 1-0 lead courtesy of Mason Karg's home run. Things start to go badly in the fifth. George Mitterwald triples, then beats the throw home on Bucky Dent's grounder. With one out, Ken Griffey Sr. singles. Ken Singleton hits a two-run double, making it 3-1. Bill Lee enters. First batter flies to Larry Hisle... who drops it. Darrell Evans singles home a run, and Mike Cubbage blasts a three-run homer. That's ballgame.

Milwaukee manages a weak rally in the ninth, scoring a single run, but drops the series with a crushing 7-2 defeat in Game 5.



On to next year, I guess.

1975 in review:

HITTING

C - Thurman Munson (.359/.417/.474) didn't show a lot of power (38 doubles, nine home runs) but has developed into a superb hitter and consistent run producer (91 scored, 94 driven in). He doesn't strike out much (58 Ks, 58 walks) and played nearly every game.

1B - Mike Ivie (.273/.326/.382) was a bit of a disappointment, showing little power (five homers) from a corner infield spot. He did hit 24 doubles and somehow drove in 69 runs in 377 at bats. Various others filled in here as well, including Terry Crowley (.344/.380/.672) who had 13 extra base hits in 64 at bats.

2B - Rookie Manny Trillo (.303/.369/.350) nearly matched Ted Sizemore's best years, though with even less power (16 extra base hits). Sizemore (.252/.323/.330) showed a good eye (49 walks versus 31 Ks), hit 27 doubles, and drove home more than 60 runs.

SS - Frank Taveras (.245/.303/.304) proved not quite ready for big league pitching, while Gene Michael (.274/.328/.355) was adequate in spot duty. Prospect Mason Karg (.254/.304/.529) displayed tremendous power, ranking third on the team with 10 home runs. Another prospect, Walter Ster (.254/.286/.323) also saw some time here.

3B - Bill Madlock (.393/.438/.530) flirted with the .400 mark for much of the year and had the team's longest hitting streak at 18 games. He led the team with 103 runs scored and 101 driven in, hitting 34 doubles and nine homers. Richie Hebner (.267/.331/.458) played a lot of first base but also saw time at third and led the team with 21 homers.

OF - Quite a mishmash this season with the following featured players:

Larry Biittner (.348/.419/.450) was fantastic, scoring and driving in over 50 runs.

Larry Hisle (.305/.421/.463) was great when healthy, he hit nine homers in 246 at bats.

Jim Wohlford (.281/.346/.346) was a nice pickup, stealing 15 bases and scoring 57 times.

Mike Lum (.264/.348/.413) had a slow start but was good in the second half. He ranked second on the team with 13 home runs.

Jerry White (.323/.425/.490) provided a nice spark when he played, and prospect Tyler McCormick (.283/.313/.384) had a great start but fizzled after the break.

Bill Robinson (.344/.383/.534) was spectacular, starting against LHP, but was the price to acquire Bruce Kison. He will be missed.

The pitchers were generally harmless, though Ron Reed did hit 10 doubles in 91 at bats, and Bill Lee went long once.