psychological warfare to try to gain an advantage for his runners against the crafty Tiant. The Reds had led the National League with 168 stolen bases, and were successful 82 percent of the time they ran; Sparky knew that getting a balk called early, possibly breaking Tiant’s confidence and concentration in the process, could be a key to beating him. National and American League umpires were still administered by two separate organizations, the World Series and All-Star Game being the only two occasions when they actually worked together. The composite umpire crew chosen for the Series had consequently spent extensive time reviewing the balk rule before Game One, which put the issue in the forefront of their minds.
In the fourth inning of Game One, Sparky’s tactic paid off. After Tiant retired the first ten batters he faced, Joe Morgan singled to become the Reds’ first base runner. Tiant made two routine throws to first, then caught Morgan leaning toward second and nearly picked him off on the third; the crowd and Sox first baseman Cecil Cooper thought he was out. After Tiant’s fourth pickoff throw, first base umpire Nick Colosi called a balk and waved Morgan to second. Red Sox manager Darrell Johnson ran out to argue the call, and Tiant rushed over from the mound, both of them shouting at Colosi. Tiant was outraged and for good reason; he hadn’t had a balk called on him in the American League for the last six years. On tape, in NBC’s slow-motion replay, Tiant’s left foot clearly lands before he makes the throw, but at least one of the umpires—from the Reds’ National League, it should be noted—appeared to have been influenced by Sparky’s lobbying; Nick Colosi had swallowed the bait. Morgan later admitted that he wasn’t sure an American League umpire would have made the same call, but insisted it was still his job to try to make Tiant balk. Sparky’s mind game had worked to perfection, landing his best runner on second with only one out and a still visibly upset Tiant facing the Reds’ dangerous cleanup man Johnny Bench: advantage Reds. A furious Darrell Johnson and the rest of the Red Sox bench continued to give Colosi an earful from the dugout, stirring up the crowd against him. Colosi—a onetime waiter at New York’s famed Copacabana nightclub, and notorious for his imperial air on the field—came over to stab a finger in the air at Johnson and threaten him with ejection.
“I realized while I was arguing that this was just what Cincinnati wanted me to do,” said Tiant. “I just told myself not to get mad and get back to thinking about pitching.”
Red Sox second baseman Denny Doyle trotted over to Tiant on the mound and reminded him to forget about it;Tiant patted him reassuringly on the cheek, and it was clear he already had. While the hubbub roiled on around him, Tiant regained his composure, bearing down and battling Johnny Bench for ten pitches before finally getting him to foul out to Fisk. As the chant of “Loo-eee, Loo-eee!” broke out in Fenway, Tiant then struck out first baseman Tony Perez to end the inning and the threat created by the phantom balk. The Reds would advance only three runners as far as second base during the rest of the game, and the unflappable Tiant cruised to a five-hit, 6–0 shutout victory in Game One.
----
Morgan had managed only two hits off Tiant while facing him nine times during the Series, but he’d also worked him for two walks. No one had to remind Morgan to be patient at the plate—with his small strike zone and good eye, he led the majors in bases on balls with 132—and he worked the count full against Tiant now. Morgan not only led the Reds in steals with 67, with Sparky’s blessing he’d become their de facto base running coach, with Ken Griffey, the runner at first, his number one disciple. Morgan ran clinics during their practice sessions, showing his teammates how to measure and hold a precise lead, how to read a pitcher’s motion
In the fourth inning of Game One, Sparky’s tactic paid off. After Tiant retired the first ten batters he faced, Joe Morgan singled to become the Reds’ first base runner. Tiant made two routine throws to first, then caught Morgan leaning toward second and nearly picked him off on the third; the crowd and Sox first baseman Cecil Cooper thought he was out. After Tiant’s fourth pickoff throw, first base umpire Nick Colosi called a balk and waved Morgan to second. Red Sox manager Darrell Johnson ran out to argue the call, and Tiant rushed over from the mound, both of them shouting at Colosi. Tiant was outraged and for good reason; he hadn’t had a balk called on him in the American League for the last six years. On tape, in NBC’s slow-motion replay, Tiant’s left foot clearly lands before he makes the throw, but at least one of the umpires—from the Reds’ National League, it should be noted—appeared to have been influenced by Sparky’s lobbying; Nick Colosi had swallowed the bait. Morgan later admitted that he wasn’t sure an American League umpire would have made the same call, but insisted it was still his job to try to make Tiant balk. Sparky’s mind game had worked to perfection, landing his best runner on second with only one out and a still visibly upset Tiant facing the Reds’ dangerous cleanup man Johnny Bench: advantage Reds. A furious Darrell Johnson and the rest of the Red Sox bench continued to give Colosi an earful from the dugout, stirring up the crowd against him. Colosi—a onetime waiter at New York’s famed Copacabana nightclub, and notorious for his imperial air on the field—came over to stab a finger in the air at Johnson and threaten him with ejection.
“I realized while I was arguing that this was just what Cincinnati wanted me to do,” said Tiant. “I just told myself not to get mad and get back to thinking about pitching.”
Red Sox second baseman Denny Doyle trotted over to Tiant on the mound and reminded him to forget about it;Tiant patted him reassuringly on the cheek, and it was clear he already had. While the hubbub roiled on around him, Tiant regained his composure, bearing down and battling Johnny Bench for ten pitches before finally getting him to foul out to Fisk. As the chant of “Loo-eee, Loo-eee!” broke out in Fenway, Tiant then struck out first baseman Tony Perez to end the inning and the threat created by the phantom balk. The Reds would advance only three runners as far as second base during the rest of the game, and the unflappable Tiant cruised to a five-hit, 6–0 shutout victory in Game One.
----
Morgan had managed only two hits off Tiant while facing him nine times during the Series, but he’d also worked him for two walks. No one had to remind Morgan to be patient at the plate—with his small strike zone and good eye, he led the majors in bases on balls with 132—and he worked the count full against Tiant now. Morgan not only led the Reds in steals with 67, with Sparky’s blessing he’d become their de facto base running coach, with Ken Griffey, the runner at first, his number one disciple. Morgan ran clinics during their practice sessions, showing his teammates how to measure and hold a precise lead, how to read a pitcher’s motion
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