NATIONAL LEAGUE PLAYOFF NOTES : Pirate Bullpen Makes Off With Booty

The Pittsburgh Pirates’ no-name bullpen saw all the pre-playoff attention that Cincinnati’s “Nasty Boys” relievers got and it made them--well, nasty.

All of the analysts, all of the advance scouts, many of the National League’s players and managers agreed the one big advantage the Reds had over Pittsburgh was the bullpen.

So why couldn’t the Reds hold a 3-0 lead? Why did Nasty Boy left-hander Norm Charlton give up the winning run in the Pirates’ 4-3 victory Thursday? And why did Pittsburgh’s who-are-these-guys bullpen by committee pitch three scoreless innings?

“We really haven’t gotten a lot of respect all year,” said rookie Stan Belinda, who retired all six hitters he faced. “It really didn’t bother us. But Jimmy (Leyland) rested us before the playoffs and we’re real strong.”

Down the stretch, Leyland used right-hander Vicente Palacios, recalled after postseason rosters were frozen on Sept. 1, as his closer. That took the pressure off a bullpen that slumped during the dog days of August and a six-game losing streak in early September.

Until what Belinda called “that little rough spell,” the bullpen of Belinda, Ted Power, Bill Landrum, Bob Kipper, Bob Patterson and, until he was traded, Scott Ruskin, led the league with a 21-7 record. They finished 28-18 with a 2.96 earned run average.

Leyland is grooming Belinda, a side-arm throwing right-hander with a 90-m.p.h. fastball, as his closer of the future. And, like most young pitchers who rely on heat, Belinda (3-4, 3.55 ERA, eight saves) can be awesome or awful.

“A lot of managers wouldn’t have used me in the situations Jimmy did,” he said. “But he had enough guts to use me in tight situations. He built up a lot of confidence in me. I came in there pumped up tonight.”

Reds owner Marge Schott makes Charlie Finley, the stingy former owner of the A’s, seem like a big spender. Schott, who counts paper clips, really aggravated the visiting Pirates when playoff tickets were allotted.

Each player received one ticket in the second-level seats and the rest in the upper-level seats, a long distance from the field. The Pirates were seething over the shabby treatment.

“Maybe we should sit Marge under the scoreboard clock (in center field) when the Reds come to Cincinnati,” bullpen Coach Rich Donnelly said. “Our people have been treating opposing people well all year. This isn’t right.”

The players were even tougher on Schott.

“We’re lucky our tickets aren’t on the roof of the hotel overlooking the stadium,” pitcher Bob Walk said.

“Marge Schott is the cheapest human being put on the earth,” infielder Wally Backman added.

“If her cars are anything like her personality, they’re all probably lemons,” catcher Mike LaValliere declared, referring to Schott’s auto dealership.

The Game 1 winner has won 13 of the previous 21 NL playoffs. The Pirates also won Game 1 in the 1972 playoffs but lost a five-game series to the Reds. . . .

The Pirates had been 0-6 against Cincinnati when one of the Nasty Boys--Charlton, Rob Dibble and Randy Myer pitched. But the Bucs have won their last five games in Cincinnati. . . .

The Reds have lost four straight playoff games against Pittsburgh, including the last three in the 1979 playoffs.