OPENING DAY ISSUE
Ellis Era Dawns in Motown
Dock Blanks Brooklyn; Three Shutouts on Opening Day
DETROIT (Aug. 16) -- Dock Ellis, the first Griffin other than Pedro Ramos to pitch on Opening Day in 17 years, showed no signs of nerves today as he retired batter after batter en route to a two-hit shutout of the Brooklyn Superbas.  Ellis won the ace job after a lackluster 1972 in which he compiled a 9-12 record and 3.33 ERA, but second year GM John Horsch saw something special in the 29-year-old righthander, and had no second thoughts about the decision.  Ellis was 15-9 in 1971 but had losing season in each of his other four UL campaigns.  He came into the season with a respectable 3.89 ERA.  Ellis left to a standing ovation with two outs in the ninth, as 39,727 expressed their appreciation, before Ramon Hernandez got Ollie Brown to ground out for the final out.  The excitement outside Kiner Field was palpable after the game, as Griffins fans speculated about their club's pennant chances after finishing a total of 10 games behind over the last three years.

Other highlights from the league's 23rd Opening Day included shutouts by Bill Singer and Bob Moose, and the Outlaws 13-4 rout of the Gray Sox at Yankee Stadium.

Washington 6, Boston 2
Don Wilson took a shutout to the ninth but settled for a 10-strikeout complete game as the Mons opened their title defense with a 6-2 win at Fenway.  Washington led 1-0 until the sixth, when they strung together five consecutive hits to plate four runs off Marcelino Lopez and pull ahead for good.  Frank Robinson was 0-for-4 with a pair of strikeouts in his Blue-and-White debut.  Orlando Cepeda was 3-for-4 and 40-year-old reliever Tex Clevenger pitched two shutout innings for the home side.

Los Angeles 13, Manhattan 4
There were fireworks at Yankee Stadium, and we don't mean the pyrotechnic variety.  On a cold and rainy day, Ron Santo hit a fourth inning grand slam off "Terrific" Tom Seaver and Darrell Porter added a two-run shot two batters later to chase the hapless Gray Sox ace.  In the next at bat, reliever Mike Nagy plunked Mike "Superjew" Epstein, who charged the mound.  The benches cleared and both Nagy and Epstein were ejected.  The Outlaws rolled to a 13-4 rout with Fritz Peterson going the distance for a six-hit complete game.

Atlanta 6, St. Louis 4
Sal Bando's three-run homer off Dave Roberts broke a 3-3 tie and set the Toppers on their way to a 6-4 win.  Atlanta leadoff man Joe Morgan had two doubles and a hamstring pull and will miss three weeks.  Rick Miller had two hits and Ellie Rodriguez an RBI in their Roons debuts.  Ron Reed got the win, despite giving up 11 hits and a walk in 8.2 innings.

Detroit 7, Brooklyn 2
The Dock Ellis era began in Motown on a brisk afternoon at Kiner Field, as the 28-year-old righthander inherited the mantle of longtime ace Pedro Ramos and responded by striking out 10 Bas and anchoring a two-hit shutout.  Bobby Bonds homered in his first two at bats, setting a new UL record, and newcomer Tony Perez homered and drove in three runs.  Mike Schmidt was 0-for-2 with a walk and Dave Rosello was 0-3 with two strikeouts in their UL debuts. 

San Francisco 3, Cleveland 0
Bob Moose went the distance for a four-hit shutout, striking out seven, as the Arachnids topped the Barons 3-0 at Seals Stadium.  Jim Palmer struck out nine, allowing just six hits, but John Mayberry's two-run double in the third inning held up, and Richie Zisk added a solo homer in the eighth.

Chicago 3, Dallas 0
The Ponies sprayed Wayne Simpson with 11 hits, including a pair of Roger Maris doubles, and Bill Singer tossed eight-plus shutout innings, as the Colts opened their West Division title defense with a 3-0 blanking of the Lone Stars.