his teammates to be less selfish and he singled people out and it worked. Immediately following the meeting, Houston went on a tear and gained a three game lead in the NL West. Everyone was happy, according to Morgan, except manager Bill Virdon, who felt Morgan had overstepped his bounds. Their relationship changed after that. As the team continued to surge, players would talk about how much of an influence Morgan was which made the problem worse. Virdon began benching Morgan late in games and it would come back to bite them later on. While the Phillies were putting their finishing touches on clinching the NL East during the last weekend of the season, the Astros had a meltdown at Dodger Stadium. All Houston had to do was win one game and they would qualify for their first ever post-season appearance. Instead, they were swept in three games by the second place Dodgers to force a one game playoff. More than 50,000 people packed Dodger Stadium on Monday, October 6 for the one-game playoff to determine the NL West champion. The Astros sent 19-game winner Joe Niekro to the mound, while the Dodgers countered with Dave Goltz, who signed as a free-agent in the 1979-1980 off-season. Goltz recorded double-digit wins for six straight seasons in Minnesota, but his first season in Dodger Blue was a disappointment, as he entered the most important game of the season with a 7–10 record. Houston would knock Goltz out the game early and go on to win 7–1, setting the stage for a Phillies versus Astros NL Championship Series. Rosters Philadelphia Phillies Ramón Avilés, Bob Boone, Larry Bowa, Warren Brusstar, Marty Bystrom, Steve Carlton, Larry Christenson, Greg Gross, Greg Luzinski, Garry Maddox, Bake McBride, Tug McGraw, Keith Moreland, Dickie Noles, Ron Reed, Pete Rose, Dick Ruthven, Kevin Saucier, Mike Schmidt, Lonnie Smith, Manny Trillo, Del Unser, George Vukovich. Houston Astros Joaquín Andújar, Alan Ashby, Dave Bergman, Bruce Bochy, Enos Cabell, César Cedeño, José Cruz, Ken Forsch, Danny Heep, Art Howe, Frank LaCorte, Rafael Landestoy, Jeffrey Leonard, Joe Morgan, Joe Niekro, Terry Puhl, Luis Pujols, Craig Reynolds, Vern Ruhle, Nolan Ryan, Joe Sambito, Dave Smith, Denny Walling, Gary Woods. Summary Houston Astros vs. Philadelphia Phillies Game summaries Game 1 The 1980 NLCS featured Joe Morgan on the Astros and Pete Rose on the Phillies, the leadoff and 2-hole hitters in the Big Red Machine batting