June 21, 1977 – Tigers 5, Yankees 2

DETROIT – At least the tension was starting to ease for Billy Martin. A little.

“Yesterday I felt like I had a 600-pound weight around my neck,” he said referring to the long day he spent wondering if he still had a job. “Today I feel like I’ve got a 300-pound weight around my neck.”

Martin was able to joke around a bit because his job was safe, but there wasn’t a whole lot more to be happy about as the Yankees dropped their fifth straight game. Tigers rookie Dave Rozema had to leave after two innings because of shoulder stiffness, so a lefty named Jim Crawford came in and pitched the final seven innings, limiting the slumping Yankee offense to two runs on seven hits.

“There were some called strikes that we thought were balls,” Martin said. “But that left-hander stopped us pretty good. We’ll turn it around, though. I guarantee you.”

Ron Guidry had a rough night. He pitched another complete game, but he was tagged for a pair of two-run homers, one by Mickey Stanley in the fourth, and one by Tito Fuentes in the fifth.

Here's some more music from 1977. Blondie performing Rifle Range at CBGB's.

The daily baseball report

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