June 22, 1974: Jim Kaat defeats former Twins teammates in complete-game duel with Albury

Jim Kaat’s previous outing for the White Sox on June 18, 1974, was a red-letter day: He got his 200th major-league win. Perhaps it contributed to his confidence in his next game, on June 22, when he went 10 innings to claim his next victory. Kaat’s mound opponent, Vic Albury, didn’t make it easy for him though, since the Twins left-hander was also at the top of his game that day, matching Kaat’s 10 innings.

The 1974 season was like riding on a roller-coaster for Kaat. He had his share of ups and downs during the season, experiencing multiple winning and losing periods. The Minnesota Twins had given up on him late in the 1973 s
eason, and the White Sox claimed him off waivers in August for barely the waiver price. The 35-year-old Kaat was now in his second season with the White Sox. It appeared that the White Sox had gotten a bargain when he won four of his first five decisions. But his season began to fall apart in mid-May when he suffered a five-game losing streak, and he started questioning whether his career was fizzling out.

During his career, Kaat had pitched through some tough periods before, but he always seemed to rebound. Before coming to the White Sox, he had played 15 seasons for the Twins, winning 190 games, the most by any Twins pitcher at the time. Included were 12 seasons with double-digit wins.

He pitched only 23⅓ innings in those five losses, and had a 7.33 earned-run average. Only once did he get past the seventh inning. Consequently, White Sox manager Chuck Tanner had to make the tough decision to remove the veteran from the starting rotation.

Was this the beginning of the end of Kaat’s illustrious career? He said, “You begin saying to yourself, ‘Well this must be the end.’ You worry about it. But it’s a strange thing. Age isn’t that much of a factor. Sometimes you can pitch as well, or better, at 35 than you did at 25.’” He added, “When you’re young and doing poorly, you never think of those things. When you’re 22 and get kicked around, you still have a future. But when you’re 35, you’ve got to turn it around a lot quicker.”1

However, Kaat did turn things around. He broke his losing streak by picking up his 199th career win in a relief appearance on June 7. His start on June 18, his first since June 2, was celebrated with his 200-win milestone, a complete-game victory over Cleveland.

The Twins had roughed up Kaat with four runs in 2⅔ innings in his first outing against them in early April, so he was looking to get revenge against his former teammates.

Without a left-hander in the starting rotation for the Twins, Albury had been pressed into service as a starter in late April. A first baseman when he signed with Cleveland in 1965, he had converted to pitching after serving two years in the military. The starting role was new to him: In his rookie season, 1973, his 14 appearances were all in relief, with an impressive 2.70 ERA. Joining the rotation in 1974, he posted effective outings in three of his first four starts. Despite his initial success, he was anxious to return to his reliever role. He said, “I don’t dislike being a starter, but I like being a relief pitcher better.”2 But then he ran into difficulty, recording five consecutive losing decisions before his start on June 22. His 2-6 record reflected his regression.

Coming into the game, the White Sox were in fourth place in the American League West, but just three games behind the first-place Oakland A’s. The Twins were in fifth place in the six-team division, five games behind the White Sox. Their lineup featured potent hitters like Rod Carew, Harmon Killebrew, Tony Oliva, Bobby Darwin, and Larry Hisle.

Chicago scored in the first and last innings of the game but couldn’t manage to put up a run in between. The White Sox’ run in the first inning came on a walk to Brian Downing, a single by Jorge Orta, a wild pitch, and a groundout by Ron Santo.

Albury held the White Sox in check for the next eight innings, allowing only one runner to reach second base, in the fifth inning.

The Twins tied the game in the bottom of the eighth when Eric Soderholm led off with a single. Glenn Borgmann bunted him to second, Danny Thompson’s grounder to second base moved him to third, and Steve Brye’s single scored Soderholm.

The Twins had a chance to win the game in the bottom of the ninth, when Larry Hisle drove a 430-foot shot over center fielder Ken Henderson that appeared to be headed for extra bases. However, Henderson retreated in time to make a lunging catch that took him against the bullpen gate.

In the top of the 10th, Downing singled off Albury with two outs. Orta followed with his fourth home run of the season to make the score 3-1. Kaat retired the side in order in the bottom half to claim the victory. It was the third game of the season in which Orta’s hit won a contest in extra innings.

Kaat, who was wearing an old Bert Blyleven T-shirt under his uniform for good luck, was stingy with the Twins hitters when it came to allowing baserunners; they managed only five singles and a walk. Excluding the White Sox’ two run-scoring innings, Albury kept the game close, effectively silencing their bats with a lone single and three walks. Altogether, he yielded five hits and four walks for the entire game.

Albury expressed frustration about how his season was going. He said, “I guess I keep wondering when I’m going to win one. But I try not to let it bother me when I’m out there pitching. I never think I’m going to lose while the game is going on.” He added, “But when it’s over, it seems like I just can’t get a win. There’s nothing I can do but go back out and try my hardest again next time.”3

Kaat sympathized with Albury, “I know he’s been having rough luck,” the ex-Twin said. “He certainly deserved to win this game, too, but it was the kind of game where a break could win it, and I’m glad we got the break. Except for three feet [a reference to Hisle’s drive that Ken Henderson corralled], we might have lost this one in nine innings.”4

Kaat’s winning decision brought his record to 7-6. It was his third victory in a row, and he would go on to win seven straight. But his season took another turn for the worse in August when he lost six of eight starts.

He experienced another resurgence in his season by finishing with a seven-game winning streak. Kaat yielded only two earned runs in his last 60⅔ innings pitched. His final record was 21-13; it was the second 20-win season of his career.

Albury had a revival of his own, going 6-2 record the rest of the season, primarily as a starter. He pitched two more seasons in the majors, eventually getting his wish to return to the reliever role.

Pitching coach Johnny Sain was a calming force for Kaat during his rough spots. Kaat’s previous work under Sain in Minnesota allowed him to be comfortable putting his career in Sain’s hands. He attributed his turnaround to a change in his pitching motion. “You might say it goes against everything you’re taught. But I’m throwing more with my arm and less with my body,” he said. “Johnny Sain feels that this delivery suits me better at this stage of my career.”5

Kaat was hardly finished at age 35. He won 20 games the next season, earning a fourth-place finish in the Cy Young Award voting. He went on to pitch in the majors until age 44, retiring after the 1983 season. He ended his career with 283 wins, 21st on the all-time leader list at the time.

Sources

In addition to the sources cited in the Notes, the author consulted Retrosheet and Baseball-Reference.com:

retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1974/B06240KCA1974.htm

baseball-reference.com/boxes/MIN/MIN197406220.shtml

Notes

1 Jerome Holtzman, “Slumping Kaat Knows Value of Self-Discipline,” The Sporting News, June 22, 1974: 17.

2 Bob Fowler, “Albury, Successful as Starter, Longs for Bullpen,” The Sporting News, May 25, 1974: 10.

3 John Gilbert, “10th Inning Orta Homer Tips Twins,” Minneapolis Tribune, June 23, 1972: 3C.

4 Gilbert.

5 Richard Dozer, “Vet Kaat Proving Chisox Can Spot a Pitching Bargain,” The Sporting News, August 31, 1974: 3.