1980 National League West tie-breaker game
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The 1980 National League West tie-breaker game was a one-game extension to
Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
's (MLB) 1980 regular season, played between the
Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston, Texas. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division, having moved to the division in 2013 after ...
and
Los Angeles Dodgers The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...
to decide the winner of the
National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...
's (NL) West Division. The game was played on October 6, 1980, at
Dodger Stadium Dodger Stadium is a baseball stadium in the Elysian Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. It is the home stadium of Major League Baseball's Los Angeles Dodgers. Opened in 1962, it was constructed in less than three years at a cost of ( ...
in
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, California. It was necessary after the Dodgers overcame a three-game deficit in the final three games of the season and both teams finished with identical win–loss records of 92–70. The Dodgers won a coin flip late in the season which, by rule at the time, awarded them
home field In sports, home is the place and venue identified with a team sport. Most professional teams are named for, and marketed to, particular metropolitan areas; amateur teams may be drawn from a particular region, or from institutions such as sch ...
for the game. The Astros won the game, 7–1, with Houston starter
Joe Niekro Joseph Franklin Niekro ( ; November 7, 1944 – October 27, 2006) was an American Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. He was the younger brother of pitcher Phil Niekro, and the father of former Major League first baseman Lance Niekro. Niekr ...
throwing a
complete game In baseball, a complete game (CG) is the act of a pitcher pitching an entire game without the benefit of a relief pitcher. A pitcher who meets this criterion will be credited with a complete game regardless of the number of innings played—pitche ...
. This victory advanced the Astros to the 1980 NL Championship Series (NLCS), in which they lost to the
Philadelphia Phillies The Philadelphia Phillies are an American professional baseball team based in Philadelphia. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) National League East, East division. Since 2004, the team's home sta ...
, ending the Astros' season. In
baseball statistics Baseball statistics play an important role in evaluating the progress of a player or team. Since the flow of a baseball game has natural breaks to it, and normally players act individually rather than performing in clusters, the sport lends itsel ...
, the tie-breaker counted as the 163rd regular season game for both teams, with all events in the game added to regular season statistics.


Background

The
Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...
won the West division the previous season with the Astros finishing 1.5 games back in second, and the Dodgers 11.5 back in third. However, the Reds went on to lose the
1979 NLCS The 1979 National League Championship Series was played between the National League West champion Cincinnati Reds and the National League East champion Pittsburgh Pirates. It was the 11th NLCS in all. It was the fourth time in the 1970s that th ...
in three games to the
Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...
, ending their season. The Astros acquired
Joe Morgan Joe Leonard Morgan (September 19, 1943 – October 11, 2020) was an American professional baseball second baseman who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Houston Colt .45s / Astros, Cincinnati Reds, San Francisco Giants, ...
and
Nolan Ryan Lynn Nolan Ryan Jr. (born January 31, 1947), nicknamed "the Ryan Express", is an American former professional baseball pitcher and sports executive. Over a record 27-year playing career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanning four decades, Ryan ...
via free agency during the offseason and the Dodgers signed
Dave Goltz David Allan Goltz (born June 23, 1949) is a former professional baseball player who pitched in the Major Leagues from 1972 to 1983. Biography Dave Goltz attended high school in Rothsay, Minnesota where he was a multi-sport star athlete. Goltz s ...
. Dave Kindred of ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'',
George Vecsey George Spencer Vecsey (born July 4, 1939) is an American non-fiction author and sports columnist for ''The New York Times.'' Vecsey is best known for his work in sports, but has co-written several autobiographies with non-sports figures. He is also ...
of ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', and Astros'
relief pitcher In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed because of fatigue (medical), fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection (sports), ejection, or for other strategic ...
Joe Sambito Joseph Charles Sambito (born June 28, 1952) is a former pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Houston Astros (1976–1982, 1984), New York Mets (1985) and Boston Red Sox (1986–1987). He batted and threw left-handed. Early life H ...
all credited Morgan's leadership with the Astros' success in 1980. The Reds maintained early success in 1980 with an eight-game winning streak to open the season and held at least a share of first place in the division until April 30. They were not as successful over the remainder of the season, only occasionally taking the division lead and last holding it on August 16. The Astros held the lead for the majority of the season thereafter, including a three-game lead over Los Angeles entering the final series of the season. The series matched the Astros with the Dodgers for three games at Dodger Stadium. The Dodgers won all three games, all by a single run, stopping the Astros from clinching a division championship as the two teams sat tied at 92–70. Kindred described the Astros as losing each game of the series by "fail ngto make elementary fielding plays." The final game included a run-scoring
pinch hit In baseball, a pinch hitter is a substitute batter. Batters can be substituted at any time while the ball is dead (not in active play); the manager may use any player who has not yet entered the game as a substitute. Unlike basketball, America ...
single by
Manny Mota Manuel Rafael Mota Geronimo, more commonly known as Manny Mota (born February 18, 1938), is a Dominican former Major League Baseball outfielder who played 20 seasons for the San Francisco Giants, Pittsburgh Pirates and Montreal Expos, as well a ...
, who had been almost exclusively a
coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...
and not a player that season, and a
home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...
by
Ron Cey Ronald Charles Cey (; born February 15, 1948), nicknamed "Penguin", is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a third baseman from through , most notably as an integral member of the Los Angeles Do ...
which also scored
Steve Garvey Steven Patrick Garvey (born December 22, 1948) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a first baseman for the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres from 1969 to 1987. Garvey was the National ...
, who had reached base in the previous
at bat In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens during their turn at bat, but a batt ...
on an
error An error (from the Latin ''error'', meaning "wandering") is an action which is inaccurate or incorrect. In some usages, an error is synonymous with a mistake. The etymology derives from the Latin term 'errare', meaning 'to stray'. In statistics ...
. The Dodgers needed each of these runs as they won the game 4–3.


Game summary

The Astros took their lead early, scoring in the top of the first inning.
Terry Puhl Terry Stephen Puhl (born July 8, 1956) is a Canadian former professional baseball player and coach. He played in Major League Baseball as a outfielder from 1977 to 1991, most prominently as a member of the Houston Astros where he helped the franc ...
led off the game reaching base on an error by the second baseman.
Enos Cabell Enos Milton Cabell (pronounced ), (born October 8, 1949) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a first baseman and third baseman from 1972 to 1986, most prominently as a member of the Hous ...
followed Puhl with a single and, while Joe Morgan batted, stole second base to put runners at second and third. Morgan
struck out In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is denot ...
and
José Cruz José Cruz Dilan (born August 8, 1947) nicknamed Cheo, is a Puerto Rican former professional baseball player, coach and baseball front office executive. He played in Major League Baseball as an outfielder from 1970 to 1988, most prominently a ...
appeared to hit into a
fielder's choice In baseball, fielder's choice (abbreviated FC) refers to a variety of plays involving an offensive player reaching a base due to the defense's attempt to put out another baserunner, or the defensive team's indifference to his advance. Fielder's cho ...
but a catching error by the
catcher Catcher is a Baseball positions, position in baseball and softball. When a Batter (baseball), batter takes their at bat, turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home plate, home) Umpire (baseball), umpire, and recei ...
allowed Puhl to score, Cabell to advance to third base, and Cruz to reach safely all with no out recorded. Cabell then scored on a
César Cedeño César Cedeño Encarnación (born February 25, 1951) is a Dominican former professional baseball player and coach. He played in Major League Baseball as a center fielder from 1970 to 1986, most prominently as a member of the Houston Astros where ...
ground out to make the game 2–0.
Art Howe Arthur Henry Howe Jr. (born December 15, 1946) is an American former professional baseball infielder, coach, scout, and manager, who appeared as a player in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates (–), Houston Astros (–), and ...
singled to advance Cruz to third, but Dodgers'
starting pitcher In baseball (hardball or softball), a starting pitcher or starter is the first pitcher in the game for each team. A pitcher is credited with a game started if they throw the first pitch to the opponent's first batter of a game. Starting pit ...
Dave Goltz David Allan Goltz (born June 23, 1949) is a former professional baseball player who pitched in the Major Leagues from 1972 to 1983. Biography Dave Goltz attended high school in Rothsay, Minnesota where he was a multi-sport star athlete. Goltz s ...
escaped the inning without further scoring. The Astros'
Joe Niekro Joseph Franklin Niekro ( ; November 7, 1944 – October 27, 2006) was an American Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. He was the younger brother of pitcher Phil Niekro, and the father of former Major League first baseman Lance Niekro. Niekr ...
retired the Dodgers in order in the first and second innings. The Astros added to their lead in the top of the third as Cedeño singled, stole second (after Cruz had been
caught stealing In baseball, a runner is charged, and the fielders involved are credited, with a time caught stealing when the runner attempts to advance or lead off from one base to another without the ball being batted and then is tagged out by a fielder whil ...
earlier in the inning), and scored on Art Howe's home run to make the game 4–0. Niekro allowed two successive singles to lead off the bottom of the inning, but proceeded to retire three straight Dodgers without allowing either runner to score. The Astros further added to their lead in the fourth, as Puhl singled on a
bunt Bunt may refer to: * Bunt (community), an elite social group from Karnataka, India * Bunt (baseball), a batting technique in baseball * Bunt (sail), a part of a ship's sail * Bunt Island, island in Antarctica * The Bunt, nickname of the Bunting ...
to third base and then stole second and third base while Cabell batted. Both he and Morgan walked to load the bases with one out. Puhl scored on a Cruz
sacrifice fly In baseball, a sacrifice fly (sometimes abbreviated to sac fly) is defined by Rule 9.08(d): "Score a sacrifice fly when, before two are out, the batter hits a ball in flight handled by an outfielder or an infielder running in the outfield in fair o ...
, Cedeño walked to re-load the bases, and finally a Howe single gave the Astros another two runs to make the game 7–0. The Dodgers scored their only run in the bottom of the fourth as
Dusty Baker Johnnie B. "Dusty" Baker Jr. (born June 15, 1949) is an American baseball manager and former player who is the manager of the Houston Astros in Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played in the MLB for 19 seasons, most notably with the L ...
singled, advanced to second on an error, and scored on another single. They threatened again in the sixth inning, loading the bases, though they failed to score. That was the only inning after the fourth in which a Dodgers' runner reached
scoring position In the sport of baseball, a baserunner is said to be in scoring position when they are on second or third base. The distinction between being on first base and second or third base is that a runner on first can usually only score if the batter h ...
. Niekro steadied again after the sixth, allowing just one baserunner on a two-out ninth-inning single over the remaining three innings.


Aftermath

Houston's win clinched the team's first postseason berth in franchise history. The Astros lost the five-game NLCS to the Phillies 3–2, ending their season. Due to the
1981 Major League Baseball strike The 1981 Major League Baseball strike was the first work stoppage in Major League Baseball since the 1972 Major League Baseball strike that resulted in regular season games being cancelled. Overall, it was the fourth work stoppage since 1972, bu ...
, the following season was split into halves and the winner of each half advanced to the postseason. The Dodgers won the first half and the Astros the second and so met in the first
National League Division Series In Major League Baseball, the National League Division Series (NLDS) determines which two teams from the National League will advance to the National League Championship Series. The Division Series consists of two best-of-five series, featuring e ...
. The Dodgers won the series 3–2 after Houston held a 2–0 series lead heading to Los Angeles (reminiscent to Los Angeles needing all three games at home during this season to force this tiebreaker), and went on to win the
1981 World Series The 1981 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1981 season. The 78th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American League (AL) champion New York Yankees and the Nati ...
. The Astros did not return to the NLCS until 1986 and did not win a NL pennant until 2005, leading to a loss in the
2005 World Series The 2005 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2005 season. The 101st edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the American League (AL) champion Chicago White Sox and the National ...
. In
baseball statistics Baseball statistics play an important role in evaluating the progress of a player or team. Since the flow of a baseball game has natural breaks to it, and normally players act individually rather than performing in clusters, the sport lends itsel ...
, tie-breakers counted as regular season games, with all events in them added to regular season statistics. Niekro, for example, reached his 20th win to break a tie with
Jim Bibby James Blair Bibby (October 29, 1944 – February 16, 2010)Morris, Chri"Former Major League pitcher Jim Bibby dies at 65" ''The News & Advance'' (Lynchburg, Virginia), Wednesday, February 17, 2010 was an American Major League Baseball right-han ...
for the second most wins in the NL that season. Similarly, Steve Garvey played in his 163rd game of the season, leading the league with a figure which could not have been equaled by anyone not on the Astros or Dodgers. Dusty Baker won a
Silver Slugger Award The Silver Slugger Award has been awarded annually since 1980 to the best offensive player at each position in both the American League and the National League, as determined by the coaches and managers of Major League Baseball. These voters cons ...
and
Steve Howe Stephen James Howe (born 8 April 1947) is an English musician, best known as the guitarist in the progressive rock band Yes across three stints since 1970. Born in Holloway, North London, Howe developed an interest in the guitar and began to l ...
, who pitched the final two scoreless innings of the tie-breaker for the Dodgers in relief, won the
Rookie of the Year Award A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience and expertise, a rookie is usually inexperienced ...
for their performances in the regular season. Additionally six Dodgers (Garvey,
Davey Lopes David Earle Lopes (; born May 3, 1945) is an American former second baseman and manager in Major League Baseball (MLB). He batted and threw right-handed. He played in MLB for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Oakland Athletics, Chicago Cubs, and Houston ...
,
Bill Russell William Felton Russell (February 12, 1934 – July 31, 2022) was an American professional basketball player who played as a center for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1956 to 1969. A five-time NBA Most V ...
,
Reggie Smith Carl Reginald Smith (born April 2, 1945) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as an outfielder and afterwards served as a coach and front office executive. He also played in the Nippon Profe ...
,
Jerry Reuss Jerry Reuss (born June 19, 1949)—pronounced "royce"—is a former left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball, best known for his years with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Reuss played for eight teams in his major league career; along with the Dodge ...
, and
Bob Welch Bob Welch may refer to: *Bob Welch (baseball) (1956–2014), American baseball pitcher *Bob Welch (author) (born c. 1955), American author and newspaper columnist *Bob Welch (musician) (1945–2012), American musician and member of Fleetwood Mac ** ...
) and two Astros ( J. R. Richard and Cruz) were named to the National League's All-Star team. In later years, after his retirement in 1996, Lasorda stated he regretted using a 19-year old
Fernando Valenzuela Fernando Valenzuela Anguamea (, born November 1, 1960) is a Mexican former professional baseball pitcher. Valenzuela played 17 Major League Baseball (MLB) seasons, from to and to . While he played for six MLB teams, he is best remembered f ...
out of the bullpen during the October 5 game vs. the Astros, thinking he could have saved Fernando to start in a potential tie-breaker game instead. This decision caused the team to start
Dave Goltz David Allan Goltz (born June 23, 1949) is a former professional baseball player who pitched in the Major Leagues from 1972 to 1983. Biography Dave Goltz attended high school in Rothsay, Minnesota where he was a multi-sport star athlete. Goltz s ...
in the tie-breaker game. Goltz recorded double-digit wins for six straight seasons in Minnesota, but his first season in Dodger Blue was a disappointment. He entered the most important game of the season with a 7–10 record. Nevertheless, Valenzuela still pitched in the tie-breaker game and threw two scoreless innings, though at that point, the score was 7–1. A year later, Valenzuela would have a breakout season, helping lead the Dodgers to a
World Championship A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...
. Due to tiebreaker games being abolished in 2022, this would end up being the only time that two teams had played each other in a tiebreaker game and a regularly-scheduled series at the same stadium back to back.


References

;General * ;Specific {{Good article 1980 National League West tie-breaker game Houston Astros postseason Los Angeles Dodgers postseason National League West tie-breaker game National League West tie-breaker game National League West Tie-Breaker Game National League West tie-breaker game