Philadelphia Phillies Retro Scorecard Recap: July 31, 1997

Remembering this date in history when the Philadelphia Phillies clashed with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1997.

I’m reaching way back in the annals to bring you a recap of one of the very first games at which I ever kept score, a Thursday night showdown on July 31, 1997, between the Philadelphia Phillies and St. Louis Cardinals which saw 18,409 fans pack the Vet to cheer on their home club. Did I mention that the Phillies were 32-72 at that point of the season?

But the Phils did have a great chance to win at least one time every five days, and tonight was the night, since Curt Schilling was on the mound. He was being opposed by the Cardinals’ Matt Morris, who was enjoying a very good rookie season for a so-so St. Louis team. It looked like a nice pitcher’s duel on the surface, and that was magnified even more by the presence of umpire Eric Gregg behind home plate. Gregg, a Philadelphia native who ended up working at Chickie’s and Pete’s after he lost his job in baseball during the umpire strike of 1999, was notorious for the girth of his strike zone. I hope that everyone bet the under on this game.

We’ll skip to the bottom of the fifth, since only five players have managed to reach base all game by that point, and the Phils finally start to get something cooking. Kevin Stocker leads off with a walk, and then Schilling bunts him over. It’s a shame that we won’t see this excitement anymore with the National League going to a DH now. Following a Ricky Otero strikeout, Mickey Morandini rolls one through the right side to plate Stocker, and it’s 1-0 Phillies.

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Schilling continues to motor, mowing down the likes of Cardinals hitters like Willie McGee, Royce Clayton, and John Mabry. We get all the way to the top of the eighth, and Schilling strikes out the first two hitters. But then things get strange. He walks Cardinals catcher Tom Lampkin. Then, he issues another free pass to Scott Livingstone, who was pinch-hitting for Morris. After that, he walks Delino DeShields to load the bases. Finally, Schilling strikes out Clayton to end the self-induced threat. The damage was done, however, with Schilling needing 34 pitches to get out of the inning. He’s now at 115 for the game.

It would be nice if the Phillies could provide some insurance, but they ground out three times in the bottom of the eighth, and it’s still 1-0 headed to the ninth. Terry Francona decides to let Schilling try to finish it on his own, keeping closer Ricky Bottalico in the bullpen. Or, more accurately, Schilling probably just told him what was going to happen. Phil Plantier tags him for a one-out double; however, and then future Phil Ron Gant brings him home with a double of his own. All that work, and the game is tied just like that. Schilling gets out of the frame without further issues, and he’s finally done at 132 pitches. Can the Phillies still get him a win?

They can not, as they strand a man at third base in the bottom of the ninth, and we’re headed to extras. Ricky Bo emerges from the bullpen for the tenth, and he is able to keep the Cardinals off the board. The Phils have the top of the order coming up. This is their chance.

First up: Ricky Otero. And he gets on base with a walk! After a Morandini lineout, Gregg Jefferies singles to left-center, sending Otero all the way to third. Cardinals reliever Tony Fossas then issues a free pass to Scott Rolen to load the bases, bringing Kevin Jordan to the plate.

Jordan, unfortunately, hits one right back to Fossas, who throws home to force Otero at the plate. The bases remain loaded, but there are now two outs. It’s all up to… Midre Cummings. Cummings, who had been claimed off waivers from the Pirates earlier in the month, has hit well so far with the Phils. Can he play hero in this one?

To the surprise and delight of the probably hundreds of fans who remained at 10:28 pm, yes, he can! Cummings sends one into the gap to bring home Jefferies, and the Philadelphia Phillies win 2-1. They finish the month of July just 34 games back in the NL East race.

As for the Cardinals, they lost on the field on July 31, 1997. But that hardly registers in their history. Because it’s also the day that they traded for Mark McGwire, who would go on to make his Cardinals debut the following night at the Vet. He would end up being kind of a big deal.