When my 1976 Lionville Tiger-Cats won their first 6 games, with 7-0, 11-3, 12-3, and 7-3 among the scores, I wondered what kind of monster I had created. As it turned out my team was not a monster but rather a highly consistent, efficient machine, so much so, in fact, that we were not shut out the entire season. With 58 wins in the first half-season and 57 in the second, our final record of 115-47 (.710) was better than any real-life MLB team since the Seattle Mariners went 116-46 in 2001.
Did we go wire to wire? Almost - but not quite. After that 6-0 start we were reminded we were mere mortals, losing 6 of our next 10. As May began we were a half-game behind hot-starting Honey Brook.
The Beekeepers' lead didn't last long. We took over 1st place for good 3 days later with the first of what would be a 3-game sweep of Honey Brook at home. That started us on a huge roll: 43 wins in 54 games from May 2 to June 25, behind Randy Jones, who won his first 9 decisions, and Joe Morgan and Greg Luzinski, each of whom demonstrated unexpected power over the first 5 months of the season. Our lead as that prolonged hot streak ended was 11½ games over 2nd place Marshallton, and our record was a glittering 53-17.
We couldn't shake the Hatters, though. Their manager John Young had them playing great ball behind Ken Griffey and Brent Strom. Starting in mid-May, they won 48 out of 66. As that stretch ended July 23, they beat us 7-2 behind Gary Nolan to cut our lead to 6½ games.
That was as close as they would get.
The next day we swept a doubleheader from them at Four Dogs Field, 8-2 and 4-3, the latter in 10 innings, to extend our lead to 8½ games. The Hatters would falter in 7 of their next 8, including 4 of 5 to us. That ballooned our lead to 14½ games in a little more than a week, and as of the 1st of August, the race was ours to lose.
We didn't.
With 20 wins in 28 games in August, we entered September with a 19-game lead. Victory number 100 came at home, 5-3 against Chester Springs on September 6 - Bruce Kison was the winning pitcher. The pennant clincher came 4 days later, a 5-4 win by Steve Carlton at Chester Springs. At that point our record was a tidy 103-39. With the backups getting increased playing time, our record for the rest of the season was a pedestrian (for us) 12-8. I had hoped for as many as 117 wins but contented myself with the 115.
2nd place seemed secure for Marshallton as of August 24. They had a 7½-game lead over 3rd place Glenmoore. But then Dr. Bob Phillips' 4th place Eagle Eagles got white-hot. They won 15 straight games. During that streak they caught up to and passed Marshallton. Really, the Eagles had turned around their season with an 8-game win streak that began July 30. Including that streak they won 37 of their last 57. With a week and a day left in the campaign, Eagle had built a 5½-game lead over Marshallton in the race for the runner-up spot.
Young and the Hatters were not to be denied, though.
Marshallton went on a tear in the last week of the season. 7 straight wins brought them into a flat-footed tie with Eagle going into the season's final day. Both teams won their last games to finish in a tie for 2nd place at 91-71 (.562), 24 games behind Lionville.
One other team made a big move over the last few months - Honey Brook - but the Beekeepers' move was in the wrong direction. On July 8 they beat Chester Springs, 9-7, to up their record to 40-46. Then the roof fell in. They went 20-56 the rest of the way, and their play went from bad to worse. Of their last 17 games, they won only 2.
As the penultimate week of the season ended, last place did not seem out of reach for Honey Brook. Guthriesville manager Gary Scott had somehow gotten his woebegone Golddiggers to win 7 straight games to close within 4 games of the Beekeepers. Fortunately for Honey Brook, Guthriesville reverted to form with 6 consecutive defeats, and Honey Brook lay claim to 9th place at 60-102 (.370), 5 games ahead of the Golddiggers.
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