From: hbrooks@uiatma.atmos.uiuc.edu (Harold_Brooks)
Subject: American Association Championship Series-Game 3
Organization: NSSL
Date: Sat, 12 Sep 1992 16:13:34 GMT

In front of a franchise record crowd of 18,563, the Oklahoma
City '89ers moved to within one win of their first American
Association championship ever with an 8-2 victory over Buffalo
last night in the third game of their best of seven series.
The '89ers got their dramatics done a little quicker in the 
last game to be played in Oklahoma City this year by scoring
6 times in the bottom of the eighth to break a 2-2 tie.  Ray
Stephens again provided the big blows-a home run leading off
the 8th and a two-run double to close out the scoring.

The two teams each scored single tallies in the first and 
fifth.  The big defensive moment of the game came in the top of
the seventh when Kevin Blankenship, who had been rocked for a
game-tying home run in game one and who seemed destined to be
the loser before a two-run rally in the bottom of the ninth
turned the tables, came in to face Greg Tubbs with one out and
Eddie Zambrano on third and Joe Redfield on first.  Tubbs 
grounded to shortshop Larry Hanlon who threw home to get Zambrano
in a rundown.  The '89ers tagged out Zambrano and then got 
Redfield in a rundown between 2nd and 3rd after he and Tubbs 
both ended up on second base.  The play ended up as a routine
6-2-5-3-2-4 double play.

The game remained tied until the bottom of the eighth when the 
dreaded Curse of the Ex-89er Pitchers struck Buffalo for the
second time of the series as the '89ers roughed up three of 
their former teammates for six runs.  Ray Stephens greeted 
Mark Petkovsek with a lead-off home run.  After retiring
Chuck Jackson, Petkovsek allowed singles to Jim Presley and
Larry Hanlon.  Drew Hall was brought in to face Jim Walewander,
who singled in a run.  Keith Miller, who had scored the first
two '89er runs, then made the second out, but Dan Peltier
hit a two-run single to make it 6-2 OKC.  Rob Maurer chased 
Hall with another single and Darrel Akerfelds came on.  He
walked Russ McGinnis and then gave up the two-run double to
Stephens before Jackson made his second and the '89ers' last
out of the inning.

Petkovsek picked up his second loss of the series while 
Blankenship was credited with the win.

After the game, the teams went on to Buffalo to complete the
series.  The fourth game will be played this evening at 7:05
EDT.  Game five (if necessary) is scheduled for 12:35 EDT 
Sunday and games six and seven would start at 7:05 EDT on 
Monday and Tuesday.  Should the '89ers go on to win the series,
it would mark the 37th time in 52 Amer. Assoc. Championship
Series that the team with the poorer regular season record
won the post-season series.

BUFFALO                           OKLAHOMA CITY
NAME      POS AB  R  H RBI BB     NAME      POS AB  R  H RBI BB 
Tubbs      cf  3  1  2  1  1      Miller     lf  5  2  2  0  0 
Martin     lf  4  0  1  0  0      Peltier    rf  4  1  2  2  1 
Young      3b  4  0  1  0  0      Maurer     1b  2  1  1  0  3 
Dorsett    dh  4  0  0  1  0      McGinnis   dh  4  0  1  1  1 
Tolentino  1b  4  0  0  0  0      Stephens    c  4  1  2  3  1 
Prince      c  4  0  2  0  0      Jackson    cf  4  0  0  0  1 
Zambrano   rf  4  0  1  0  0      Presley    3b  4  1  2  0  0 
Richardson ss  3  0  0  0  0      Hanlon     ss  4  1  1  0  0 
Redfield   2b  3  1  2  0  0      Walewander 2b  4  1  2  1  0
----------------------------      ----------------------------
Totals        33  2  9  2  1      Totals        35  8 13  7  7

Buffalo        1 0 0   0 1 0   0 0 0 -- 5
Oklahoma City  1 0 0   0 1 0   0 6 X -- 6

E-Prince.  LOB-Buffalo 5, OKC 10.  DP-Buffalo 2, OKC 2.
2B-Miller, Redfield, Stephens.  HR-Stephens.  SB-Tubbs.

Buffalo       IP  H   R  ER  BB   K
York          7   6   2   2   6   3
Petkovsek (L) 0.1 3   3   3   0   0
Hall          0.1 3   3   3   0   0
Akerfelds     0.1 1   0   0   1   0

Oklahoma City IP  H   R  ER  BB   K
Brown         6.1 7   2   2   1   6
Blankenship(W)1.2 1   0   0   0   1
Barfield      1   1   0   0   0   0

WP-Brown.  
Time-2:45 ATT-18,743 (Franchise record.  Old record 18,563 on 
16 August 1979)

Harold
-- 
Harold Brooks                    hbrooks@uiatma.atmos.uiuc.edu
National Severe Storms Laboratory/CIMMS (Norman, OK)
Cal Ripken   April-August   .249 BA  .355 SLG  .329 OBA
Cal Ripken (1 Sep.-11 Sep.) .162 BA  .189 SLG  .225 OBA