June 11, 1980: Mike Norris’s pitching endurance, Tony Armas grand slam send A’s to 14-inning win

On June 11, 1980, the 1979 American League champion Baltimore Orioles were a disappointing 27–27, third overall in the AL East, 6 1/2 games out. Prior to the afternoon rubber match of a three-game series with the Oakland Athletics, the Orioles placed left-fielder Gary Roenicke on the 21-day disabled list with a hairline fracture of his left wrist, activating John Lowenstein1 as a reserve and starting Pat Kelly in left. Pitcher Jim Palmer was starting. Though not the same dominating pitcher, he was on his way to a 16-win season. Concerned, manager Earl Weaver nervously chain-smoked more Raleighs.2

The 1979 Athletics had epitomized dreadfulness, finishing 54–108. Wanting to sell the team, owner Charlie Finley needed to bring excitement back. He chose a manager who was fearless: Billy Martin.3 A native of nearby Berkeley, Martin displayed confidence at his introductory press conference: “I think I can get fans to come back to Oakland.”4 His brand of baseball became known as “Billy Ball.” On June 11, 1980, Oakland was a surprising 27–28, third place in the AL West.

Outfielder Tony Armas was harnessing the potential he had occasionally shown since arriving to Oakland from Pittsburgh in 1977.5 In the offseason, while playing for Los Leones del Caracas in the Venezuelan Professional Baseball League, Felipe Alou worked with Armas on his hitting; “He was my manager the past two years in winter ball. … He told me to get down over the plate more and now I feel comfortable that way.”6

Drafted in the first round by Oakland in 1973, starting pitcher Mike Norris had emerged as a dominating hurler.7 The twenty-five-year-old right-handed screwball specialist had experienced bursitis and tendinitis during his last two starts.8 With his trademark high-leg kick, Norris went into his windup. His recognizable green glove pointed at the plate as if it were guiding the ball. And so, the first pitch of the game was thrown to Al Bumbry.

Norris retired the Orioles in order to start the game. The Athletics jumped to a quick advantage in their half of the first inning. Palmer faced seven batters and gave up two runs on three weak singles that found defensive holes. He walked Rickey Henderson, who then stole second.9 Dwayne Murphy grounded out to Kiko Garcia at second, advancing Henderson to third. Dave Revering drove in Henderson with a single past shortstop Mark Belanger. Wayne Gross singled to center, advancing Revering to scoring position at second. Palmer tossed a fastball to Mitchell Page, whose soft liner landed in center, scoring Revering. Palmer directed his frustration toward the sky, but settled down, retiring Armas on strikes and Jeff Newman on a popup to first baseman Eddie Murray.

In the third, Baltimore failed in an opportunity to score runs off Norris. Kelly led off with a liner to left that Henderson couldn’t catch. Garcia smacked a bouncer to Gross at third, who threw to Dave McKay at second, who made an extraordinary pivot, throwing to first to turn Oakland’s first double play of the game. With two outs, Belanger walked and Bumbry singled to left. Rich Dauer’s grounder to Mario Guerrero forced Bumbry out at second to end the inning.

Norris experienced one inning of trouble, in the seventh when Baltimore tied the score, 2–2. Murray smacked his ninth homer of the season over the right-field fence. With two outs, Kelly doubled off the center-field fence. Garcia singled to right to drive in Kelly for the tying run.

After his tempestuous first inning, Palmer blanked the Athletics for the next five innings. In the seventh, with one out, Henderson and Murphy reached base with bloop outfield singles. Revering was next; he already had two singles. Weaver decided Palmer could not face Revering again and signaled for lefty Tippy Martinez. An angry Palmer cursed while he stomped off the mound. He viciously tossed his glove into the dugout bench. “I was getting ‘squib-hit’ to death,” Palmer said in a postgame interview.10

The Athletics squandered a chance for the lead through unfortunate baserunning that resulted in a quirky double play. Revering grounded to the sure-fielding Murray, who threw home when he saw Henderson break from third. Henderson saw the play developing and drew a rundown so Murphy could advance to third. Instead, catcher Dan Graham chased Henderson back to third and tagged both runners. However, the umpire only called out Murphy. Believing he was called out, Henderson wandered off the bag and was tagged again by Graham. The 3–5–2–2 double play ended the rally.

After Norris retired the Orioles in order, Gross led off the A’s eighth with a double. Mickey Klutts pinch-ran. With one out, Tim Stoddard entered in relief. Once again, Armas failed to come through with runners in scoring position. He lined out to second; Newman struck out looking.

Murray led off the Oriole ninth with a single to third base but was subsequently forced out at second by designated hitter Terry Crowley’s failed sacrifice bunt. Wayne Krenchicki pinch-ran for Crowley. McKay’s defense at second then made a difference with a “graceful scoop” of Graham’s grounder and his “consummate underhand toss to Guerrero” at second, who threw to first to double up Graham.11 With two outs and Henderson and Murphy on base, Revering flew out to left. The game went to extra innings.

After Garcia singled in the 10th, Weaver used Lowenstein as a pinch-hitter for Belanger. Martin, oblivious to Lowenstein’s activation prior to the game, protested the game. The Orioles’ defense halted an Oakland rally in the 11th. Guerrero reached on a walk and advanced to second on a sacrifice. Henderson smacked a hopper that Stoddard tipped off his glove for an infield single. With Guerrero on third, Henderson stole second. Murphy, on a 3–2 count, had an opportunity to make up for his base-running snafu in the seventh. He hit a line drive toward right field that had the hallmarks of a game-winning hit. But Lenn Sakata, now at second, leaped to snow-cone the ball for the last out.

Sammy Stewart assumed Orioles pitching duties in the 12th. Leading off, Revering appeared to hit a home run to right until he was robbed by Ken Singleton, who used all of his 6-foot-4 frame to catch the ball. The setting sun made it difficult for Singleton to track the ball as he raced to the fence. The ball “already cleared the eight-foot fence when Singleton leaped, reached over and came back to earth with the ball.”12 Ken Nigro of the Baltimore Sun wrote that the catch “had to be seen to be believed.”13 Though the game was still tied and Norris was still pitching, what remained of the 5,635 in attendance drifted to the exits. Klutts doubled to right. Page was intentionally walked. Again, Armas failed to come through with runners in scoring position, grounding into a double play.

Each inning after the 11th, Norris disappeared into the clubhouse “to solidify my thoughts so I could go out there and keep a positive attitude.”14 Weaver several times requested the umpires examine Norris for petroleum jelly or grease on his body.15

The Orioles had held the Athletics scoreless since the first inning. Revering led off the 14th. Again, his drive flew towards Singleton in right-center. Singleton again had trouble seeing the ball in the late-afternoon sun, getting his glove on the ball, but he could not catch it. A poor execution of the relay allowed Revering to leg out a triple. Mike Edwards pinch-ran for Revering. Weaver ordered Stewart to intentionally walk Klutts and Page to load the bases to face Armas and ensure the possibility of a force at the plate. Weaver moved in his infield and played the outfield shallow.

Armas had a plan: “All I wanted to do was get the ball out there deep enough to score a run. A sacrifice fly.”16 Armas belted Stewart’s first pitch, a hanging slider, over the left-field fence for a walk-off grand slam and a 6–2 victory.17 Kelly did not look up to track the ball’s flight.18 Stewart walked off the field with his sixth loss against two wins.

Norris said he “wasn’t going to come out of that game today because if I lost it—I lost it myself. I had a 2–0 lead.”19 Martin withdrew his game protest regarding Lowenstein: “No big deal. … It’s academic after you win.”20

Norris faced an astronomical 51 batters, throwing 162 pitches for his seventh complete game and his seventh win against four losses.21 Asked how long he would have gone with Norris, Martin interjected, “All day Wednesday.”22 Moreover, “I wasn’t going to take that game away from him.”23 “After the fifth inning some kind of miracle must have happened and my arm felt good,” Norris said.24

The Athletics’ defense derailed the Orioles with four double plays, each involved McKay.25 “He did everything you could ask of a man,” Martin said.26

While drinking his customary postgame Schlitz, Weaver was informed of Palmer’s postgame tirade.27 Weaver sympathized: “I’m sure he was mad. … But Jim hasn’t said anything to me—yet.”28 Before Weaver boarded the team bus to the airport, he walked into the Athletics’ clubhouse to visit Martin. They chatted about baseball. “That’s the first time he’s ever done that. He’s a helluva of manager,” Martin said.29

Sources and Acknowledgments

In addition to the sources cited in the Notes, the author consulted with the San Francisco Public Library, the Oakland Public Library, MLB.com, the Library of Congress, Baseball-Reference, and YouTube.

To my wife, Teri, for her nonpareil patience and editorial skills.

Many thanks to The Black Lion Cafe in Travilah, Maryland, where I researched, developed, and wrote several iterations of this article.

https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/OAK/OAK198006110.shtml

https://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1980/B06110OAK1980.htm

Photo credit: Mike Norris, Trading Card Database.

Notes

1 Roenicke suffered a hairline fracture of his left wrist sliding into second base in a failed effort break up a double play in the first game of the Oakland series. Lowenstein had been on the disabled list since May 23 with deep bruises on his left leg and right shoulder.

2 It was said that Weaver believed in the restorative qualities of cigarettes. It was not unusual to see Weaver smoking in the dugout. He had a pocket sewn into his game jersey that would conceal his smokes.

3 Martin was hired to a two-year deal worth $250,000.

4 Dale Tafoya, Billy Ball (Lyons Press: Guilford, Connecticut, 2020), 7.

5 Armas in 1980 hit 35 homers and drove in 109 runs with a .279 average. On March 15, 1977, the Pittsburgh Pirates traded Armas, along with pitchers Doug Bair, Dave Giusti, Rick Langford, and Doc Medich and outfielder Mitchell Page, to the Oakland Athletics for infielders Phil Garner and Tommy Helms and pitcher Chris Batton.

6 Pat Sullivan, “That Other Right Fielder,” San Francisco Chronicle, June 12, 1980: 72.

7 Owen Watson, “The Cy Young That Never Was,” FanGraphs, November 5, 2014. https://tht.fangraphs.com/the-cy-young-that-never-was/, accessed February 5, 2026. Norris in 1980 finished with a 22–9 record and pitched 284 1/3 innings, the second most in the American League. He tossed 180 strikeouts and completed 24 of his 33 starts. Norris had a 1.048 WHIP and led the league with just 6.8 hits allowed per nine innings.

8 In his last start against Boston, Norris had his worst outing of the season, charged for eight earned runs in 4 1/3 innings and lost his hold on the league’s ERA lead.

9 It was Henderson’s 28th stolen base of the season. The Athletics stole three bases in the game, two by Henderson and one by Page.

10 Jim Henneman, “Palmer Displays Displeasure at Another Early Removal,” Evening Sun (Baltimore, Maryland), June 12, 1980: E-4.

11 Stephanie Salter, “A’s McKay Sparkles Defensively,” San Francisco Examiner, June 12, 1980: 70.

12 Kit Stier, “A’s Take One for the Book,” Oakland Tribune, June 12, 1980: D-1.

13 Ken Nigro, “A’s Top Birds, 6-2, on ‘Slam” in 14th,” Baltimore Sun, July 12, 1980: C15.

14 “Grand Slam … Armas Blasts A’s Over Orioles 6-2 in 14,” Sacramento Bee, June 12, 1980: C2. Armas had gone 0-for-6 with three strikeouts and hitting into a double play

15 Kit Stier, “Athletics,” Oakland Tribune, June 12, 1980: D-2.

16 Bob Stevens, “The A’s,” San Francisco Chronicle, June 12, 1980: 72.

17 It was Armas’ 10th homer, second grand slam, and sixth game-winning hit of the season.

18 Stier, “Athletics.”

19 United Press International, “A Tired Norris Goes the Distance for the A’s,” North County Times (Oceanside, California), June 12, 1980: 17.

20 Bob Stevens, “A’s Slam the Orioles in 14,” San Francisco Chronicle, June 12, 1980: 71. At season’s end, Oakland showed a 29-game improvement to finish second in the AL West at 83–79, 14 games behind the eventual American League champion Kansas City. The Orioles followed its 1979 AL East pennant, World Series appearance, and 102–60 record by finishing in second place in the AL East at 100–62 (a two-game decline) and three games behind the first place New York Yankees.

21 Norris gave up 12 hits, two walks, and struck out five with two earned runs. He lowered his ERA from 2.06 to 1.95. Oakland played in six 14-inning contests in 1980, and in four of them the starter went the distance. For the season, the A’s accumulated 94 complete games. United Press International, “A Tired Norris.” Five of Norris’ 24 complete games in 1980 were extra-inning jaunts of 10 2/3, 14, 10, 11, and 11 innings. Norris was awarded Gold Gloves in 1980 and 1981.

22 Stevens, “The A’s.”

23 Jim Henneman, “Norris Survives 14 Innings to Beat Orioles,” Baltimore Evening Sun, June 12, 1980: E1.

24 United Press International, “A Tired Norris.” Other press reports quoted Norris as saying, “I was just throwing puss up there.” See Joe Giuffre, UPI, “Tony Armas Hits Grand Slam HR,” Elizabethton Star (Elizabethton, Tennessee), 12, 1980: 5. Nerve damage in his shoulder and drug addiction derailed Norris’ career. He was convinced overuse led him to become partially paralyzed below the waist as result of a spinal cord defect. Yet, Norris said, “You can’t blame that on Billy Martin. That’s what we do.” See Bob Bolch, “All the Way Crazy,” Los Angeles Times, July 18, 2011: C5.

25 McKay came within one assist of tying the league record of 13 for extra innings. At the time the record was held by Willie Randolph and Bobby Avila.

26 Stephanie Salter, “McKay Matches Norris and Armas,” San Francisco Examiner, June 12, 1980: 69.

27 Weaver’s beers of choice were pop-top Schlitz cans or Baltimore’s own National Bohemian.

28 Henneman, “Palmer Displays Displeasure.”

29 Stier, “Athletics.”