PRELIMINARY ROUND
Series #133
1963 Boston Red Sox (76-85) vs 1967 Kansas City Athletics (62-99)
We recently saw the 1961 Red Sox bow out of the competition and now the 1963 team that finished 7th in the AL has a good draw and another good chance to advance. There is talent on this team and one would have to dig deeper to see exactly why they didnt win more but most fingers were pointed to manager Johnny Pesky. Starter Bill Monbouquette won 20 games despite a higher then normal ERA of 3.71. He allowed 31 home runs but limited damage with good command but he may not have what it takes to be considered an ace. Earl Wilson went 11-16 but had the opposite issue then Monbouquette walking more then 4 batters per nine and throwing 21 wild pitches. Dave Morehead is only 19 years old but made 29 starts and did walk 5.1 batters per nine with a 4.11 FIP. Still his effort and results at such a young age says alot about him. Rounding off the Pesky four man rotation was Bob Heffner who had a 4.26 in 126 innings and depended on weak contact, a tough proposition at Fenway. Dick Radatz had an excellent season in relief saving 23 games with a 1.97 ERA and had multiple appearances with multiple innings worked. Jack Lamabe worked well in addition to Radatz but that is where the Sox depth ends with Arnold Early being hit hard and Wilbur Wood a bit too green to be effective. For the era the 3.97 team ERA was extremely high and heavy weight on the club. The Sox could really hit with 171 home runs lead by Dick Stuart who hit a whopping 42 slugging .521 and driving in 118 while striking out 144 times. For a short stop Eddie Bressoud hit an impressive 20 bombs while hitting .260 but a lack of speed and range for the position. Chuck Schilling was light hitting at second in everyway bringing a .234 average to the lineup with 33 RBI in 146 games. Frank Malzone remained unappreciated at third hitting .291 with 15 home runs and 71 RBI. Carl Yastrzemski was beginning to prove how good he was hitting .321 at 23 years old with a .418 OBP and a poise that patrons at Fenway hadnt seen for a while. Lou Clinton drove in 77 runs with 22 home runs but he also didnt make much contact and had a .294 OBP. Lefty Gary Geiger was in center hitting 16 home runs and stealing nine bases but he split time with Ramon Meijas with limited effect. Bill Tillman at catcher couldn't hit much at .225 and just did his job when needed on defense but still leaving the position a but undermanned. Dick Williams and Felix Mantilla were the best options off the bench as Williams brought experience and Mantilla hit .315. Boston should hit just fine and in this series matchup their margin for error should be large enough to win.
There just wasn't much to get excited about yet in the Athletics organization but a few crumbs were starting to come together as the club looked to a very successful future especially coming out of Kansas City. Twenty one year old Catfish Hunter lost 17 games but threw 259 innings with 5 shutouts and a 2.81 ERA including 196 strikeouts. Hunter was a rare talent and he was already showing what he could become. Jim Nash also was a young man at 22 who also lost 17 games but his ERA was 3.76 and he had more of the common issues of a young arm. Nash was an excellent strikeout pitcher for the time getting 7.5 per nine but his work with men on base was a concern. Chuck Dobson at 23 believe it or not was the eldest of the rotation. he went 10-10 with a 3.69 making most of his numbers less then average for the ear he threw in. Blue Moon Odom capped off the four man rotation but was hit hard with a 5.04 ERA and the likes of Lew Krause had to take his turn in the rotation, Krause had a 4.28 ERA and also took the popular 17 losses in 160 innings. The pen was a struggle and Jack Aker had 12 saves in 57 games but had a 4.30 ERA. Paul Lindbald was the specialist from the leftside while Tony Pierce at 21 threw close to 100 quality innings. The pitching corps was young for sure, but the A's were committed to their plan of development and there ace was a big reason why. Youth was the word on offense as well, 21 year old centerfielder Rick Monday had a decent .740 OPS but did strike out 102 times. He was much better then Jim Gosger in left who hit .242 with only 31 runs scored and almost no power. Mike Hershberger was in right and he hit one lone home run all season with a .254 average but did make contact striking out only 40 times. Bert Campaneris had the talent to make a difference at short and his glove was for sure up to par. Campy however only hit .248 but did add 29 doubles and a very high 55 bases. Danny Cater at third was a nonfactor with 4 home runs and a .270 average as was Ramon Webster at first who hit 11 home runs and 51 RBI. The A's just wernt getting the power numbers they needed from their core positions. Phil Roof played the most games at catcher but hit only .205 with a 78 OPS+, he was platooned with Dave Duncan who was even worse at .188. Ken Harrelson and Sal Bando were trying to find their way into atbats but it was dynamic 21 year old Reggie Jackson who hit his first home run and had only 135 atbats. Reggie and the youth movement was great promise for the future, but didnt do much in 1967. Still the Athletics just may have an outside chance in this series with the Red Sox.
Game 1 At Fenway Park
Clear 69
1967 Athletics.......................3
1963 Red Sox.......................0
WP: C. Hunter (1-0) LP: B. Monbouquette (0-1)
HR: R. Repoz (1)
POG: Catfish Hunter
1967 Athletics lead series 1-0
Catfish hunter threw nine scoreless innings at Fenway Park walking two and striking out six for an impressive shutout victory. Robert Repoz broke a scoreless game open in the sixth inning with a two run home run off Bill Montebouquette and that would be all their ace would need. Just the start that Kansas City was hoping for.
Game 2 At Fenway Park
Rain 61
1967 Athletics......................6
1963 Red Sox......................3
WP: J. Nash (1-0) LP: E. Wilson (0-1)
HR: R. Nixon 2 (2), D. Stuart (1)
POG: Jim Nash
1967 Athletics lead series 2-0
Soggy day in Boston and another complete game by the Athletics as Jim Nash wasnt as dominant as Catfish but wins jus the same going nine innings allowing three earned runs with 11 strikeouts. Catcher Russ Nixon hit two solo home runs for the Sox but as a whole the Boston offense has been shut down and thus the deep hole as the series heads to Kansas City. Leadoff man Bill Campaneris was 3-5 with a big two run double in a four run second inning that set the tone for the win.
Game 3 At KC Municipal Stadium
Clear 64
1963 Red Sox........................5
1967 Athletics........................10
WP: B. Stafford (1-0) LP: B. Heffner (0-1) S: T. Pierce (1)
HR: R. Webster (1), J. Gosger (1), R. Repoz (2)
POG: Jim Gosger
1967 Athletics lead series 3-0
A seven run seventh inning turned a 5-1 Red Sox lead onto its head as the Athletics take the first three games of this series and now have two home games to close out the series. Boston starter Bob Heffner was going well until he ran into big trouble including a grand slam home run from Roger Repoz. Boston also showed their nerves committing four errors and take the loss despite outhitting the home team. Jim Gosper also drove in two runs and made a couple of fine plays in left field.
Game 4 At KC Municipal Stadium
Clear 66
1963 Red Sox.......................5
1967 Athletics.......................6
WP: J. Aker (1-0) LP: D. Radatz (0-1)
HR: R. Repoz 2 (4), D. Stuart (2), F. Malzone (1), E. Bressoud (1)
POG: Roger Repoz
In a moment that maybe stands as the best of the competition so for, Roger Repoz hit a walk off series ending grand slam in the bottom of the ninth against Dick Radatz to end the series in four. It was the 4th home run for Repoz and his second of the game all coming after the Red Sox hit three home runs and held a comfortable three run lead with their closer on the mound. Dave Morehead deserved much better and had pitched the type of game to keep his team in the series, but baseball is indeed a nine inning game. The ball sailed 352 feet straight down the left field line.
1967 Kansas City Athletics Win Series 4 Games To 0
Series MVP:
Roger Repoz
(.294, 4 HR, 13 RBI, 1.000 SLG, 4 R, Walk off GS)