With a pitching performance as entertaining as it was admirable, Jose Oquendo impressed teammates, frustrated the Braves and earned a spot in Cardinals lore.
On May 14, 1988, at St. Louis, Oquendo was asked by manager Whitey Herzog to relieve in the 16th inning because no one on the pitching staff was available. Oquendo shifted from first base to the mound and shut out the Braves for three innings before yielding two runs in the 19th. Though he lost, Oquendo surprised most by doing as well as he did for as long as he did.
Another surprise was the performance of Jose DeLeon, a Cardinals pitcher who played the outfield in the final four innings.
Limited options
The Saturday night game matched starting pitchers Cris Carpenter, making his major-league debut for the Cardinals, against Zane Smith. The Cardinals led, 5-4, before the Braves tied the score with a run in the seventh.
Oquendo, a utility player, entered the game in the ninth as a replacement for first baseman and ex-Brave Bob Horner. In the bottom half of the inning, Oquendo and Tony Pena were on base, with one out, when Vince Coleman hit a grounder past pitcher Jose Alvarez. Second baseman Ron Gant dived, stopped the ball and started a double play, sending the game into extra innings.
In the 12th, former Cardinals catcher Ted Simmons led off for the Braves. Facing his friend, Bob Forsch, Simmons pulled a pitch hard on the ground. Oquendo ranged to his right, snagged the ball and threw to Forsch, covering first, in time to nip Simmons.
In the 15th, Herzog brought in his last available pitcher, Randy O’Neal, whom the Cardinals acquired from the Braves the year before. O’Neal had experience as a starter and Herzog figured to let him finish the game, no matter how many innings it took.
However, after retiring the Braves in order in the 15th, O’Neal said his arm hurt. Herzog had used all his pitchers except three: DeLeon, Larry McWilliams and John Tudor. All were deemed unavailable. DeLeon had pitched 8.2 innings the previous night, McWilliams was scheduled to start the next game and had been sent home by Herzog in the 10th inning, and Tudor had a tender shoulder.
Herzog turned to Oquendo, who’d made one big-league pitching appearance, a 1987 mop-up role during a blowout loss to the Phillies.
Serious business
Selecting Oquendo to pitch, Herzog needed someone to play first base. He moved Duane Walker from left field to first and brought in DeLeon to play left.
DeLeon hadn’t played a position other than pitcher since entering the big leagues in 1983. Asked how Herzog broke the news to him, DeLeon told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, “He said, ‘Can you play outfield?’ I said, ‘Sure.’ I didn’t mind.”
Herzog approached umpire Bob Davidson to inform him of the lineup switches. Recalled Davidson: “Whitey said he was bringing in Oquendo to pitch and he said, ‘Can I forfeit?’ ”
When catcher Steve Lake went to the mound to review the pitch signals, Oquendo told him he had three pitches: fastball, slider and split-finger. “I started chuckling,” Lake said. “Then I see that he’s dead serious.”
Ken Griffey Sr. led off the 16th against Oquendo and doubled. After Gerald Perry was walked intentionally, Ozzie Virgil Jr. hit a single to right. In a decision the Atlanta Constitution described as “a blunder,” third-base coach Willie Stargell sent Griffey to the plate, where Lake awaited with the ball after fielding a strong peg from right fielder Tom Brunansky. Griffey was out by 10 feet.
“I’ve got to thank Stargell because he didn’t hold the guy (at third),” Herzog said. “The game should have been over then.”
Mix and match
As the game moved along through the 17th and 18th, Herzog continually shifted DeLeon and Brunansky in an effort “to put DeLeon where the batter was least likely to hit the pitch,” according to the Constitution. DeLeon and Brunansky switched spots in right field and left field 11 times.
DeLeon had two fly balls hit to him and he caught both. “I was a little nervous,” DeLeon said. “My knees were shaking.”
In the 18th, with Cardinals runners on first and third, none out, Lake grounded out to third. After Luis Alicea walked, loading the bases, Walker hit a broken-bat liner that was caught by shortstop Andres Thomas and resulted in a double play when Brunansky was unable to get back to the bag at third.
“I didn’t get the job done,” said Walker. “All I had to do was hit a fly ball to end the game.”
Said Herzog: “We should have won in the 18th.”
The Cardinals stranded 21 on base in the game.
Staying alive
In the 19th, Griffey hit a two-run double against Oquendo with two outs. Rick Mahler retired the Cardinals in order in the bottom half, completing eight scoreless innings of relief and sealing a 7-5 Braves victory. Mahler “pitched the best he has in three years,” said Braves manager Chuck Tanner.
Oquendo finished with a pitching line of four innings, four hits, two runs, six walks and one strikeout. “He threw a lot of sliders and a lot of split-fingers,” said Lake. “I never knew where his fastball was going. I didn’t know if he was going to drop down (sidearm) or throw overhand.”
Oquendo became the first non-pitcher to receive a decision since outfielder Rocky Colavito won a relief stint for the Yankees against the Tigers in 1968.
“I’m glad I got a chance to pitch and I’m glad nobody got hurt,” Oquendo said.
Said Braves slugger Dale Murphy, who was hitless in seven at-bats: “It wouldn’t have looked very good if we had lost. It didn’t look too good anyway, but we won.” Boxscore
Herzog said utility player Tom Lawless would have relieved Oquendo if the game had gone to a 20th inning. “That would have been brutal,” said Lawless. “I’d already thrown batting practice.”
Oquendo should be managing the Cardinals.
Heading into this game the Cardinals bullpen had been pretty busy. On May 11, they used 5 pitchers in a 16 inning loss to San Francisco. The next night they again went through 5 pitchers in a crazy 13 to 12 win. Give credit to Whitey and the team for giving it their best shot. Back then baseball was still a game of chess moves and strategy. Miss those days.
Thanks. In the 16-inning game on May 11, the Cardinals pitched Randy O’Neal, Scott Terry, Ken Dayley, Todd Worrell and Bob Forsch. In the 13-12 game, the Cardinals’ pitchers were John Tudor, Steve Peters, Scott Terry, Larry McWilliams and Todd Worrell.