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By BILL SAVAGE; Times Leader Sports Writer
Sunday, September 04, 1994 Page: 13C
NORFOLK, Va. — The Red Barons’ 1994 season ended like a bad mystery novel
Saturday night — although the final chapter did contain one interesting
twist.
Although he gave up a sixth-inning grand slam to Jeromy Burnitz that ended
up costing him the game, Robert Gaddy struck out eight Norfolk batters to set
a team record for strikeouts in a season as the Red Barons lost their finale,
5-1 to the Tides.
“These things are always, I don’t know, bittersweet,” said manager Mike
Quade of the end of perhaps the most frustrating season in Red Barons history.
“I’m taking some time off, but most of us who love the game, it’s a matter of
about a month and we’ll be chomping at the bit.”
Burnitz turned what had been a 1-0 Red Barons lead into a 4-1 deficit with
his drive over the right field fence as Norfolk finished at 67-75 and won six
of seven games against the Red Barons this year at Harbor Park.
The Red Barons closed the book on a 62-80 season that matched the team’s
worst-ever record, set last year.
They also finished the year with the same record on the road as they had at
Lackawanna County Stadium, going 31-40 at home and away.
And they spread their losses out evenly, losing 40 games to teams from the
International League East, and 40 games to teams from the West.
Finally, they finished dead last not only in the IL East, but in the league
overall, the first time in the six years since they moved from Maine in 1989
that they’ve done that.
Toledo clinched ninth place overall by beating Columbus on Saturday and
finishing at 63-79, one game ahead of Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
The Red Barons finished 16 games behind IL East winner Pawtucket and nine
games behind second-place Syracuse for a playoff spot.
They finished 5 games behind Rochester for fourth place.
“It would have been nice to see Gator get his 10th, but he needed to do the
same thing again,” said Quade of Gaddy, who lost a perfect game to Norfolk in
the ninth inning this past Monday.
Gaddy 9-12, finished with eight strikeouts, the number he needed to break
Paul Fletcher’s team record of 116, set last year.
With his 117 strikeouts this year, Gaddy has 157 for his Red Barons career.
Likely to be protected on Philadelphia’s 40-man roster and just as likely to
begin the 1995 season with the Red Barons, he is now tied with Wally Ritchie
for sixth place on the team’s all-time strikeout list.
Gaddy was perfect for three innings Saturday, and had a one-hit shutout
going into the sixth.
But Greg Graham led off that inning with a single, then Jim Vatcher, who
broke up the perfect game back in Moosic, reached on an error. After a
sacrifice bunt and a walk, Gaddy fell behind Burnitz, who was in a 1-for-24
slump, and delivered a 2-1 pitch that the right fielder blasted deep over the
wall in right field, nearly into the Elizabeth River.
The grand slam completely turned around the game, although Gaddy did get
the two strikeouts he needed to break Fletcher’s mark before he left.
The Red Barons had scored a run in the second inning when Tom Marsh doubled
and came around to score on a single by Mike Lieberthal.
Norfolk, which finished the season without manager Bobby Valentine, who
underwent colon surgery, added an eighth-inning run off Joe Slusarski.
A number of Red Barons went into Saturday’s game with opportunities to
break team records, but only Gaddy did it.
Shawn Gilbert failed to score a run or get three hits, and thus failed to
break the records of 82 and 139, respectively, set by Keith Miller.
Charlie Montoyo didn’t play, and so came up two short of Chris Knabenshue’s
walk record of 76.
And Gene Schall went 0-for-4, failing to get the one double and two home
runs he needed to tie the team marks of 36 (Tony Longmire) and 18
(Knabenshue), respectively.
Had Gaddy won Saturday’s game, he’d have been the Red Barons’ only 10-game
winner this year.
Saturday’s loss meant the Red Barons finished the season with 10 wins in
their final 14 games, their best stretch of the season.
The game beg