Remembering Mets History (1973 NLCS) Game #5 - The Mets Win the Pennant!!

Wednesday October 10th, 1973- NLCS Game #5

New York Mets vs. Cincinnati Reds 

All the excitement of the 1973 season & drama of the Championship Series all came down to one deciding game. With the series all tied up at two games each, in this best of five series, Game #5 was to determine the winner of the NL Pennant.

 The Mets long season had them in last place in late August, then with a spectacular September run, they won the NL East title on the final day of the regular season. Now they were 2-2 against the mighty Big Red Machine as an official paid crowd of 50,323 filled into Shea Stadium for a chance to see their team get to the World Series.

It was a beautiful fall day for the afternoon game which took two hours & forty minutes to play. In 1973, the winning ball club would earn $14,000 (estimated at $96,000 in 2023) & the losers would earn about $6,000 (estimated at $41,000 in 2023). The Mets had to play without their main RBI man, Rusty Staub. Staub had injured his shoulder crashing into the outfield wall making a spectacular catch in yesterday's Game #4.

Ed Kranepool was penciled in the line up playing in left field, he had not played that position since mid-July. Cleon Jones moved over to play right field. 

For Yogi Berra's Mets, the 1973 Cy Young Award winner, Tom Seaver (19-10 / 2.08 ERA / 251 Ks) would take the mound. His opponent was the Reds ace, Jack Billingham (19-10 / 3.04 ERA / 155 Ks). It was a rematch of the Game #1 starters in the finale'.

As Tom Seaver started throwing, he soon found out his fastball was not at its best. He may have been fatigued, working on just three days rest & having pitched nine innings in Game#1.

Tom terrific would struggle all afternoon, without the use of his fastball. He would have to work extra hard today, using other pitches in his arsenal.

Quotes- Tom Seaver: "Jerry Grote realized that right away, he made me change my whole game. He made me change my speeds."

In the top of the 1st, Pete Rose led off. Rose was now public enemy number one in New York, he walked to the plate to a tremendous chorus of boo's & other creative New Yorker obscenities. He grounded out to Felix Millan at second base for the first out as the Mets fans cheered. 

Tom Seaver then walked Joe Morgan & served up a single to Dan Driessen. He then tossed a wild pitch advancing both runners into scoring position. He now faced Tony Perez who batted .319 with 27 HRs & 101 RBIs on the season.

Quotes- Tom Seaver:  "I had to get Perez out, so I would have to put Johnny Bench on. I got Perez on a sinker, a good pitch. And God Bless Jerry Grote, he made a hell of a play in the first inning that might have changed the whole game".

Grote held on to Perez's foul tip for out number two.

Next, Johnny Bench was walked intentionally & a young Ken Griffey flew out to center field to end the inning.

In the bottom of the 1st, Wayne Garrett grounded out to start the inning. But then Jack Billingham ran into trouble. 

Next Felix Millan singled to centerfield. It was Millan's fifth hit of the series; he had two of the three Mets hits in Game #4 as well. Millan would collect another hit later in the game & score five runs in the series.

Cleon Jones followed with another base hit to right field. John Milner then drew a walk to load the bases. 

Eddie Kranepool, in the lineup for the injured Staub, had said with a smile before the game "I'll be in left field today in Pete Rose's- Rose Garden, I hope I bloom."

Kranepool had not started in a game since September 15th & sure bloomed in his first at bat of the NLCS. Steady Eddie went after the first pitch he saw delivering a base hit to left field. Pete Rose fielded the ball & helplessly tossed it in as Felix Millan & Cleon Jones both crossed the plate. Shea Stadium erupted in a wild roar as the fans went crazy.

Billingham struck out Jerry Grote & then Don Hahn grounded out but the Mets were up 2-0.

In the top of the 2nd, Cesar Geronimo grounded out & Seaver struck out Darrel Chaney for the second out. Jack Billingham hit a grounder in the hole, but Felix Millan snagged it & threw to Milner who quickly covered for the third out.

Billingham retired the Mets in order in the next two innings.

In the Reds top of the 3rd inning, Pete Rose grounded out weakly to Seaver, exiting the field to more boos. Next Joe Morgan doubled to right field & advanced to third on Cleon Jones throwing error. 

Dan Driessen hit a sac fly to Kranepool in left putting the Reds on the board, 2-1 Mets. Tony Perez then hit a tough bouncer to short that Harrelson bobbled but recovered & threw him out to end the inning.

In the bottom of the 4th, after Ed Kranepool grounded out, Jerry Grote reached on an error at third by Dan Driessen. Don Hahn went down on strikes then Buddy Harrelson singled to left. But with two on Tom Seaver grounded to short to end the inning.

In the top of the 5th inning Pete Rose led off with a loop into left field near the line. Rose never hesitated & went into second base with a double. Joe Morgan hit a roller to first base that John Milner bare handed then stepped on the bag for the out, as Rose went to third. 

Dan Driessen bounced out to second, Felix Millan held Rose at third & made the second out. Tony Perez then singled into to right field tying up the game at two. The excitement was intense as everyone held their breath into the bottom of the inning.

The 1973 Mets team was a ballclub with a lot of heart that never gave up. They were used to being counted out & coming back from being down or behind. The team' score also had members of the 1969 Amazing World Champions & knew how to win. They quickly responded to the Reds tying the game.

In the bottom of the 5th, Wayne Garrett led off with a double to right center field that got by Cesar Geronimo, getting the Mets fans to start the "Lets Go Mets" chants.

Next up, Felix Millan who was second in the NL with 18 sac hits on the season, was called on by his manager Yogi Berra to do it once again. Millan laid down a bunt fielded by Billingham, who was instructed by Johnny Bench to throw to third base.

At third base rookie Dan Driessen caught the ball & stood on the base thinking it was a force play. Driessen a natural first baseman had a mental lapse. 

Reds Manager Spark Anderson told the media it was just inexperience, defending his player. 

All runners were safe & the Mets were in business with two on with no one out. 

Next, Cleon Jones delivered with his second hit of the game, a hard hit double over the head of Pete Rose off the left field wall. Wayne Garrett scored with the go ahead run, it was 3-2 Mets. 

Sparky Anderson yanked Billingham, bringing in the hard throwing Don Gullett (18-8 / 3.51 ERA / 153 Ks / 2 saves). Johnny Bench argued with home plate umpire Bruce Froemming on a close pitch to John Milner that he thought was strike three. Gullet lost him & John Milner drew the walk to load the bases.

Next came a very special moment at Shea Stadium as Yogi Berra sent up the legendary Willie Mays, to pinch hit for Ed Kranepool.

As he walked to the plate, the Shea Stadium crowd gave Mays an incredible standing ovation. Everyone knew it could be his last time at bat in his career in New York City. 

Trivia: Mays would get one more at bat today & a final at bat in New York in Game #3 of the World Series. 

It was a very touching moment, even Red's catcher Johnny Bench, gave Mays a tap on his back side as he stepped into the box.

As Mays was announced the Reds manager; Sparky Anderson changed pitchers again, bringing in Clay Carroll (8-8 / 14 saves / 3.69 ERA). 

Trivia: The national NBC television broadcast cut away to report that Vice President Spiro Agnew had resigned. They later had to apologize to the public for cutting away.

Trivia: As the bottom of the 6th inning began, on radio Mets broadcaster Bob Murphy said to Lindsey Nelson the last time the Mets won the pennant a man walked on the moon. If they do it today it would be when a vice president resigned.

Mays who batted just .211 on the season, came through in his first at bat of the NLCS. 

He bounced a high Baltimore Chop toward the third base line. Clay Carroll fielded the ball which would have definitely gone foul, threw to first & had no play. Mays reached safely with an infield hit.

It was enough to score Millan & make it a 4-2 Mets lead, as the Shea Stadium crowd gave Mays another standing ovation.

Quotes- Willie Mays: "I wanted to do something for this team, they've taken care of me all year. I mean they didn't bother me about playing. You always want to play but when you get older " 

Jerry Grote grounded to second base; Joe Morgan threw home to get the out. Next center fielder Don Hahn grounded to shortstop; John Milner was able to score from third base giving the Mets a 5-2 lead. 

Bud Harrelson, New York's latest underdog hero

then singled to Pete Rose in left field bringing in Willie Mays. Don Hahn was caught trying to get into third base to end the wild inning. 

The Mets sent eight men to the plate, scored four runs on four hits & a walk in the home 5th
taking a commanding 7-2 lead.

In the top of the 6th, Seaver retired the side in order with Willie Mays catching the third out on a fly ball from Darrel Chaney.

In the home 6th, Tom Seaver led off with a shot to left field. Pete Rose dove but couldn't get the ball as it went to the wall & Seaver went to second with a two bagger. It was his second double in the NLCS.

Wayne Garrett & Felix Millan were retired then with two outs, the hot hitting Cleon Jones brought in Seaver with a single up the middle, making it 7-2 New York.

John Milner also singled & Willie Mays got another at bat, bringing the fans to their feet once again. This time Milner grounded out to short to end the inning.

For the Mets, Tom Seaver allowed just one hit over the next three innings, a single to Pete Rose in the 7th. He then got Joe Morgan & Dan Driessen to both pop up in the infield.

In the home 7th, Ross Grimsley came on to pitch for Cincinnati, as Jerry Grote led off with a base hit. Tom Seaver would draw a two out walk, as he reached base for the second time in the game. But Ross Grimsley got Wane Garrett to end the inning.

In the top of the 8th, Seaver had an easy inning, striking out Tony Perez, then getting ground ball outs from Bench & Griffey.

In the bottom of the 8th, Felix Millan led off with a base hit down the left field line, the Mets 13th hit of the day. But Grimsley retired the next three Mets & it was onto the 9th inning. Three more outs & the Mets would win the pennant.

There was a very tense atmosphere going into the top of the 9th. Folks were very concerned about what was going on around Shea Stadium in the stands. 

Many of the younger fans, had made their way from the upper deck to the box seats area, in order to charge the field after the final out was made. The lower level was overflowing with fans who wanted to be a part of the action.

As play started in the inning, the crowd really came alive & were really revved up. Cesar Geronimo lined out to Felix Millan for the first out. But then Tom Seaver began to tire, he gave up a base hit to pinch hitter Larry Stahl.

Seaver fell behind to 3-0 on Reds hitter Hal King as Tug McGraw began to warm up in the bullpen.

The lights went on at Shea Stadium, the fans were all on their feet & getting restless.

First base umpire Jerry Dale pointed out to a policeman something in the stands. Play resumed & Seaver walked Hal King. Yogi Berra came out of the dugout & talked to Seaver on the mound. Seaver convinced him to stay in the game, as he now faced Pete Rose.

On the first base side, the temporary seating area collapsed from the weight of the fans making their way down. Home plate umpire Ed Sudol asked the Public Adress announcer to make an announcement to keep fans off the field. Two ladies in multi checkered outfits walked out to the bullpen area to exit the field after overflowing from the stands.

Quotes- Mets Broadcaster Lindsey Nelson: "There's two ladies in the bullpen, that's the first time I've seen that this year. The bullpen crew seems fairly happy about it."

The game had to be halted for ten minutes when Pete Rose was at bat. Tom Seaver himself walked over to the area & told the fans to calm down, they still had to finish the game. Other fans throughout the ballpark started chanting "Lets play ball".

A wife of the Reds team doctor fell down & was stepped on. She was escorted away in tears. Reds coach Alex Grammas knew what was coming & urged the players' wives' section to leave the box seat area. 

They were escorted out into the Reds dug out to the clubhouse. Reportedly, a rowdy fan pulled Mrs. Phil Gagliano's hair as she climbed into the Reds dugout. Phil then punched the fan & he got off the top of the dugout area. 

The fans were dying to storm the field, but the game still had to be played. Extra policeman came down the line to restore order. 

Quotes- Reds Manager Sparky Anderson: "It's unbelievable to me,

I just can't believe they don't have better control over the people. It makes me ashamed I am in this country.

But I am not too sure New York is in this country. Not after this week. Normal fans don't act that way, they must be on dope or something".

Harsh words for a whole city, because of a few out of hand fans, especially since Mr. Rose was the one who started a fight with a much smaller guy two days prior, stirring things up. Those words certainly would not be tolerated in today's politically correct times.

When play resumed, Pete Rose had an 0-2 count & took a close pitch. Seaver & Jerry Grote thought it was strike three, but umpire Bruce Froemming thought differently. Rose then drew a walk to load the bases.

Yogi Berra went to his bullpen, bringing in one of baseball's top relief pitchers, Tug McGraw. Seaver left to a tremendous ovation & McGraw entered to the exact situation he wanted to be in.

He walked into the Mets infield meeting on the mound & got the ball from Yogi Berra, everyone knew the World Series was awaiting the Miracle Mets. McGraw got Joe Morgan to pop up to the infield, as Harrelson made the grab for out number two. 

Now the tension really mounted, as public enemy number one in New York; Pete Rose was on first base. 

The Shea fans were looking like hungry lions waiting to devour on their prey, everyone in Red's camp were concerned with Rose's safety.

New York was a rough place in the early seventies & security measures for a crowd this large were not as advanced as in today's times.

On the radio MLB broadcaster, the legendary Vin Scully kept emphasizing over & over his concerns for Rose to get off the field safely, hoping the fans would behave.

Dan Driessen then grounded out to McGraw; he tossed the ball to John Milner at first for the final out. The Mets had done it, they won the pennant & amp; were headed to California for the World Series. 

McGraw held on to his cap & ran for his life as the fans stormed the field. Willie Mays had to fight a fan off to protect his cap, as he ran into the right field bullpen area for safety. 

Mays said it was the only cap he had left & felt it was a good luck charm. He would have rather give up his uniform shirt.

Pete Rose had to make it to the Reds dugout for his safety, he later claimed he was never more scared in his whole life.

Quotes- Pete Rose:  "I'm still thinking we can win this game & they are scaring me to death. I had 15 guys with bats ready to protect me, but I was never touched. I got out of there fast. New York doesn't deserve a pennant. They let the fans out of the zoo for the game & take them back when it's over."

Quotes- Jerry Grote: "He better get the hell out of here in a hurry!"

Quotes- Johnny Bench:" Our first concern was Pete's safety. I thought someone might try to kill him. If the cops weren't going to stop these maniacs, we would".

The Reds were very upset, as they banged the lockers & walls of the visiting clubhouse in disgust. Most of their rage was geared toward the fans to cover up their frustrations of losing the underdog Mets. 

Quotes Johnny Bench: "We had Seaver on the ropes in the first inning, with another hit & bingo maybe he'd be out of there. We didn't get that hit". 

The Reds boarded their team bus on their way home to a long winter. A Mets fan with a bugle stayed by that Reds bus & played "Taps" for over an hour!

The fans did storm the Shea Stadium field, but in celebration shouting "we're number one"! Unfortunately, they did rip part the turf, making huge craters on the field.

The bases, the pitching rubber & parts of the outfield fence were all gone. The Police estimated that one third of the crowd had jumped onto the field after the game.  It was a bad scene & the organization was embarrassed. 

Tom Seaver spoke out, embarrassed by some of the fans antics. "These fans don't care anything about baseball or us winning. It's just an excuse for them to tear up anything in sight".

Luckily the grounds crew had a full week before the World Series was to be played at Shea. 

In the Mets locker room, there was a happy, joyous chaos of a victory celebration.

From last place in August to an NL pennant a bit over a month later, was incredible. This was another Miracle Mets finish, not as surprising as 1969 but yet very memorable. 

As Lindsey Nelson reported during the game, it was probably the biggest game the Mets ever played up to that point. In 1969 they were ahead all post season, never with their backs to the wall like today.

The Mets were now going to their second World Series in four years & had to be acknowledged as winners.

The players doused each other in champagne, as Tug McGraw was heard yelling repeatedly "You Gotta Believe, You Gotta Believe!!!".

Tom Seaver poured some bubbly on the New York City Mayor; John Lindsay saying "Once again" referring to what he had done in 1969. The Mayor responded "Once again!!!".

Willie Mays said to him" Mr. Mayor you don't know how good I feel. I came in a winner & I am going out as a winner".

Yogi Berra, Ted Martinez, Willie Mays &
Felix Millan Celebrate Pennant Win

Quotes-Tom Seaver: "Of course I was tired, but I had a lot of good stuff. Jerry Grote called a great game he called a lot of change ups on Bench & others that made me more effective than I might have been otherwise. He's been catching me seven years now & knows me."

Willie Mays said he had a lump in his throat when he came to bat as a pinch hitter in the game. 

He was reminded that he as a rookie in 1951 (just 22 years prior), he was on deck when Bobby Thompson hit his famous "shot heard around the world" to win the 1951 pennant for the New York Giants.

Quotes- Willie Mays: "When Thompson hit the HR, I was on deck & scared to death. Today I was hoping to be up when something was happening. I think the pressure was on the pitcher. I like pressure."

He added this team was all about togetherness. Manager Yogi Berra said "whoever figured we'd win it & wind up in the World Series. They really played ball since we got them all together".

Quotes- Team Owner Mrs. Joan Payson: "I'm so stunned, I could scream".