1985 NLCS Game 5 | Condensed Game | St. Louis Cardinals

1985 NLCS Game 5 | Condensed Game | St. Louis Cardinals

It has stopped raining. Both pitchers are warming up and we would appear to be 7 minutes away from a start. We will check the starting lineups as the Cardinals are about ready to take the field. There it is, the Aussie Smith backflip. Now all eyes center stage on Bob Forge. Bob Forch has made nine of 19 quality starts from August 11th on. He has made seven of 10 quality starts. And we would sure like to thank Mike Shannon, Stu Nahan, and Jay Randolph and the players and officials who cooperated along with the home video film to help us with that lengthy delay because now the stage is cleared and here we go. Game five. We were talking about the string of National League home victories in the championship series. There’s ball four. Duncan goes fast ball hit the straightaway center. They’re trying to decoy Duncan, but McGee makes the catch. The throw will come to first anyway, but he got back and he hits a double play ball. AI to her to Clark Fernando on the mound against Willie McGee and he did a pretty good job on him by throwing him a lot of breaking balls in LA and actually with two strikes throwing that ball out of the strike zone low and getting him though Fernando who has not won in his last five starts and has won just one in his last eight starts. Go. It is a case of faulty memory to say the least. Check swing. No swing says Crawford. There’s nobody out. No score. And he’s missing by plenty. Ground ball down the line. Here comes McGee. They’re going to hold Aussie. And he ran right through the stop sign and scored. Al Laneir tried to hold up Azie and he went right through him like it was a bad dream. It’s a two-pace hit for Tommy Herur and Laneir with nobody out trying to hold him up and Aussie just ran right through him. The relay though had nothing on it. no chance in the world. And luckily Fernando was backing him up. Now watch Azie go right through that stop sign. Hands were straight up by Laneir. Pulls him back here. But Aussie, he just kept coming and there it goes. He threw it into center field and the Spectre has come back to life. The infield is up except for Madlock. lined at Madlock and he goes to his knees prayerfully that it didn’t kill him. Wa! Right at him. Hot corner that proves it. Down he goes. And luckily I saw it. Foul tipped and held power and you have to stay on that corner. Highf fly ball to Landro. So he’s out of it cheaply enough. Two runs, one hit, one error, one left. As if to catch it really and knock him down so he couldn’t advance. Line drive that penalt. So each third baseman has had his hands burned and we have one out. No time to think here. I just put the glove up and there it is. He is really showing some great reflexes. Number five, high chopper over the mound. Back a second. There’s Azie. Right in the middle of that play. He knew he had to get something on and you could see him in midair kind of kick his body in gear and that’s what made the difference. Now watch him right here. Right there. He just when he gets up he kind of gives it a little push and that’s where he makes the play. It’s really remarkable to see a man leave the ground and throw that hard. Now, both feet are going to be off the ground when he makes the throw. See him hook it in gear. You could really see him almost shift that body [Music] and he breaks his bat and loops it into right field for a base hit. He will gladly take it. And he’s going now on a high number back to fours. That’s that. Marshall lost a hit by Azie Smith and that’s hit into right field and pending now. Let’s see if he turns on the heat. He’s going for two and he has a double and Fernando is in trouble again. He’s in a lot of trouble. Porch is bunting. Got it down. Fernando has to go to first. Porter at second. 0 and two. Got him. Aussie with seven hits. Pops it in the air. Duncan out. Guerrero and Landro Duncan. But at the same time, he’s a bachelor. Ground ball to third. He is hitting 100 points better away from home. Fernando about the best Dodger hitting pitcher. Pops it up and it’ll be Tito Landro. And then Guerrero hit into a double play. Ground ball to Clark. See you later. The Dodgers tiptoe through the third. A one two hopper to Dun. One away. Not throwing as many pitches as he has. Strike on the corner. Two and two. High pop foul back of first down the line and Brock makes the play right at home plate and lines it to center and that’ll be a base hit. Breaking ball lifted to the graveyard unless it carries out. And on the track is Willie McGee. And that’s another one that’s out at Dodger Stadium. Small consolation to Guerrero. Two and 0. He goes and so does the ball. High drive into left field and gone. And Madlock wears out Force and the Dodgers have tied the Cardinals. [Applause] Quite a contrast in the reaction of the fans on home runs that are hit here. And that’s that’s pretty you expect that. Madlock got the ball up and he just hit it right over that left field fence. That wasn’t hooking like that other one he had. Three and 0. And he’s aboard. There he goes. And then he goes back again. And he tipped him. He tipped him. Calling interference. They sure Daryl Porter tipping Mike Soious bat. And the Dodgers get a big break. And Whitey Herszog will talk to Paul Rangi. And now they’re going to bring in Ken Daly. I couldn’t figure out why Daly was up if he was going to let Greg Brock come up to the plate. Now if he hits into a double play, that’s been a big play. Ground ball to third. Penalt. How do you do? How can you believe this game? Screw ball grounded to third. Cabel is now over at first. One away. Ground ball to the left to Duncan. [Applause] Two down and he walks Porter a second time and he went two for five and bangs it up the middle. There it is. Got him again. So Fernando using Willie McGee as an escape hatch and he chased it and did you see where Porter was to say, “Hey, you stay here.” No risk injury. A little blooper on a broken bat to Azie Smith. Busted bat and a ground ball to Penalt. So the Dodgers are out in order in the fifth. A drive to left field. Guerrero started in, makes the play. High drive into left field. Guerrero going to the track at the wall. He’s got it. Line to right field. Base hit. [Applause] And immediately Fernando throws it away. And down to second base on the wild pitch goes Jack Clark for Fernando. Five walks. This one ruled intentional. High bouncer down to Madlock and he’s right on the bag for the force play and they’re out of the inning. And he promptly strokes it sinking in front of McGee. Base hit. So Landro with his seventh hit is hitting over 500 and that’s a little fly ball to right field. Sadoho is there. Landro holding and there’s a fly ball to right. Sadeno started back cuz it came off the end of the bat. Ground ball. What a stop by Daly to get him. [Applause] Foul tipped and held. One and two. Half swing. Got him. Half a dozen strikeouts. Ground ball. Fair ball to Cabel. Hangs it for Venuela. Would you gamble and play run and hit? Lord has all kinds. Well, if I’d have to call myself a conservative manager, I would want him to bunt the ball. I think they’ll hold as well. Boy, was that a big sequence of pitching. Ground ball off the glove of Laurel and the runners move up. [Applause] Two out, two on, a two- two tie. And he pops it up in foul ground. Porter and Clark. It’s playable. It is Porter. And the bunt is an astroturf punt. Big bounce. Oh, that took any chance. One4 sack. 353. Ground ball to short. Going over to third is McGee. And actually Duncan never had a chance to get him. We’re not going to let Jack Clark beat us. Pitch to Sado. And it’s hit to Landro in center. And Fernando is out of the inning. No runs. Two hits and two left. And both managers are going right down to the quick and he goes to left field. But it’s just a fly ball to land. That’s the way they played him. That’s the way they pitched him. Up and away. Fast ball. He didn’t get around on it. Foul ball to Clark. [Applause] Hit off the end of the bat. Dribble to Clark. He’s got it in fair ground. Three and one. And he has walked his eight now. Hit to left field and deep. Guerrero is there however to make the play and back to first comes Landram two and two. Landram goes swung on and mission late [Music] and he drives it to left but Guerrero has a play and the inning is over. Fast ball cracked bat ground ball to Aussie Smith. One away. Little fly ball to right field. Fly ball and it’ll be Willie McGee. And look out now. Here comes the bottom of the ninth inning. Needer will go in the spot where the last out was recorded. That was Cabel. So if there is a 10th inning, the Dodgers would have sacks. Matusk and Duncan high pop fly and it’s Madlock in foul ground and they take care of McGee. He strikes out once every 22 at bats. He has never struck out more than 49 times in an entire season. and Tom Neen are picking up the pitching burden and that’s good in a deep right field. [Applause] Heat up here. Heat. Heat. [Applause]

Game 5 of the 1985 NLCS features the epic “Go Crazy Folks!” home run. It became a signature moment in both Ozzie Smith and Jack Buck’s careers. See how the game reached that epic finish in this condensed game edit.