'75 Reds fall to '86 Mets in Dream Bracket 2
CINCINNATI -- Separated by just over a decade, the 1975 Reds and '86 Mets were loaded with popular stars and represented the best of both eras. But only one team could prevail in the National League finals of Dream Bracket 2: Dream Seasons.
New York held a 3-1 advantage through the first four games, the results of which were announced on Tuesday. The Reds hoped to make a surge on Wednesday, but the Mets ended their Dream Bracket 2 run with a 4-1 win in the decisive Game 5.
A 64-team, best-of-seven simulation tournament, Dream Bracket 2: Dream Seasons features two of the best post-World War II teams from each of the 30 Major League franchises, as well as three Negro Leagues teams and the 1994 Montreal Expos. The bracket is divided into the AL and the NL, with two “regions” for each league.
The simulated competition, featuring many of the greatest teams in baseball history, is being produced by Out of the Park Baseball 21, MLB‘s most realistic strategy game (PC and Mac).
• Complete Dream Bracket 2 rosters
Here’s a look at the games in the semifinals:
Game 1: Mets 3, Reds 2
It was a 2-2 game in the top of the ninth inning when Mookie Wilson hit a home run against reliever Rawly Eastwick. New York's Roger McDowell earned the win with two innings of scoreless relief following starter Dwight Gooden. Jesse Orosco recorded the save with two strikeouts in a perfect ninth. Joe Morgan was 3-for-3 with two runs scored for Cincinnati.
Game 2: Mets 3, Reds 2
George Foster made it a 1-1 game in the second inning with a solo home run against Ron Darling. But a two-run homer by Darryl Strawberry off ace Gary Nolan in the top of the sixth sealed the game for the Mets. The Reds scored a run in the ninth with Ken Griffey’s RBI triple against Rick Anderson, but Cesar Geronimo flied out to center to end the game.
Game 3: Reds 9, Mets 4
Cincinnati battled back from a 4-0 deficit after three innings. The comeback started in the fifth inning, when pinch-hitter Dan Driessen hit a solo homer off Bobby Ojeda. With two outs in the sixth, it became a one-run game on Dave Concepcion’s two-run double. A two-out, three-run double by pinch-hitter Merv Rettenmund put the Reds ahead in the eighth. Three more runs scored in the top of the ninth to close the rout.
Game 4: Mets 1, Reds 0
Reds lefty starter Fred Norman pitched 5 1/3 scoreless innings, but Mets lefty Sid Fernandez matched him by blanking Cincinnati for six frames. The pitching duel extended with both bullpens keeping the game at 0-0 through eight innings. But in the bottom of the ninth, a two-out walk from Eastwick to Wilson put runners on first and second base. Pinch-hitter Howard Johnson delivered the walk-off winner with an RBI single on an 0-2 pitch that scored Strawberry.
Game 5: Mets 4, Reds 1
Foster’s RBI single off Gooden in the top of the first inning was the only run the Reds could muster as they were eliminated. During his four-RBI game, Strawberry’s two-out double against Jack Billingham tied the game in the bottom of the first. He added a two-run double off Billingham in the sixth and an RBI triple in the eighth against Will McEnaney. Orosco retired the side in order during the ninth to put the 1975 Reds away and send the Mets to the finals.