Jim Clancy--1985
Looking at this Jim Clancy card, it
reminds of a day that I didn't see him
smiling at the ballpark.
A consistent starter for Toronto, the
righty posted 10 or more victories in
eight seasons and gathered All-Star
honors in 1982. However, Clancy
signed as a free agent in 1989 in
what would be a million-dollar bust for
Houston.
It was August 3, 1989 and Clancy
took the ball in a noon-hour affair in
Cincinnati. The second-place Astros
were chasing the division leading
Giants, while the injury-laden Reds
were limping their way to the end of
the season.
Sitting behind home plate charting
the pitches for the Reds, little I did I
know that the Cincinnati Nine would
put a historic first inning whooping on
Clancy and the Astros.
After Tom Browning retired Houston
in order in the first, Clancy
proceeded to struggle mightily in the
bottom of the inning. Mariano
Duncan opened with a walk that
found him at second base after a
stolen base. Luis Quinones followed
with a bunt single down the third
base line.
Eric Davis followed with a single to
score Duncan and Quinones was
later pushed home when Ken Griffey,
Sr. blasted a home run to deep
left-center field. Rolondo Roomes,
the rangy backup outfielder who was
filling in for an injured Paul O'Neill,
connected for a single to re-start the
hit parade. Todd Benzinger and Jeff
Reed both singled to right field to
chase the right-hander from the
mound.
Second baseman Ron Oester
greeted Bob Forsch with a double to
score Benzinger. Pitcher Tom
Browning watched Reed score on a
wild pitch before he grounded out to
first baseman Glenn Davis for the
Reds first out of the inning.
Returning to the top of the order, the
hits continued in front of a stunned
Astros dugout and a giddy Cincinnati
crowd.
Duncan hit a double.
Quinones, Davis, Griffey and
Roomes all added singles to the
foray. Benzinger connected for a
double that was followed by singles
by Reed, Oester and Browning.
Finally, Duncan and Quinones flied
out to end the inning that saw the
Reds plate 14 runs on 16 hits.
I remember just sitting there marking
down each pitch and shaking my
head. While the inning seemed to
last forever, the game would go just
two hours and 16 minutes, as both
clubs were just trying get the game
over after the first inning so the
Astros could travel to San Francisco.
The final score was 18-2, and
Clancy's line for the day was 0
innings pitched, 6 hits, 7 earned runs
and 1 walk. He dropped to 5-9 on the
season which ultimately saw him
finish 7-14. After just seven batters
and with no relief help from Forsch,
Clancy's ERA rose from 4.43 to 5.04
at the end of the day in a day that he
would rather forget... but I won't.
Editor's Note: This was one of the
few highlights for the '89 Reds, as
the season was filled with injured
players and the on-going Pete Rose
gambling scandal. But what a day it
was!
reminds of a day that I didn't see him
smiling at the ballpark.
A consistent starter for Toronto, the
righty posted 10 or more victories in
eight seasons and gathered All-Star
honors in 1982. However, Clancy
signed as a free agent in 1989 in
what would be a million-dollar bust for
Houston.
It was August 3, 1989 and Clancy
took the ball in a noon-hour affair in
Cincinnati. The second-place Astros
were chasing the division leading
Giants, while the injury-laden Reds
were limping their way to the end of
the season.
Sitting behind home plate charting
the pitches for the Reds, little I did I
know that the Cincinnati Nine would
put a historic first inning whooping on
Clancy and the Astros.
After Tom Browning retired Houston
in order in the first, Clancy
proceeded to struggle mightily in the
bottom of the inning. Mariano
Duncan opened with a walk that
found him at second base after a
stolen base. Luis Quinones followed
with a bunt single down the third
base line.
Eric Davis followed with a single to
score Duncan and Quinones was
later pushed home when Ken Griffey,
Sr. blasted a home run to deep
left-center field. Rolondo Roomes,
the rangy backup outfielder who was
filling in for an injured Paul O'Neill,
connected for a single to re-start the
hit parade. Todd Benzinger and Jeff
Reed both singled to right field to
chase the right-hander from the
mound.
Second baseman Ron Oester
greeted Bob Forsch with a double to
score Benzinger. Pitcher Tom
Browning watched Reed score on a
wild pitch before he grounded out to
first baseman Glenn Davis for the
Reds first out of the inning.
Returning to the top of the order, the
hits continued in front of a stunned
Astros dugout and a giddy Cincinnati
crowd.
Duncan hit a double.
Quinones, Davis, Griffey and
Roomes all added singles to the
foray. Benzinger connected for a
double that was followed by singles
by Reed, Oester and Browning.
Finally, Duncan and Quinones flied
out to end the inning that saw the
Reds plate 14 runs on 16 hits.
I remember just sitting there marking
down each pitch and shaking my
head. While the inning seemed to
last forever, the game would go just
two hours and 16 minutes, as both
clubs were just trying get the game
over after the first inning so the
Astros could travel to San Francisco.
The final score was 18-2, and
Clancy's line for the day was 0
innings pitched, 6 hits, 7 earned runs
and 1 walk. He dropped to 5-9 on the
season which ultimately saw him
finish 7-14. After just seven batters
and with no relief help from Forsch,
Clancy's ERA rose from 4.43 to 5.04
at the end of the day in a day that he
would rather forget... but I won't.
Editor's Note: This was one of the
few highlights for the '89 Reds, as
the season was filled with injured
players and the on-going Pete Rose
gambling scandal. But what a day it
was!
