[jksander]

MAY 21, 1954 . . . We’re back at Wrigley this afternoon, with Warren Hacker (3-2, 2.98 ERA, 57.1 IP, 29 K’s, 1.12 WHIP) going up against Milwaukee’s legendary Warren Spahn (3-3, 4.44 ERA, 52.2 IP, 28 K’s, 1.33 WHIP) in the first game of a four game set. More than 17,000 Cubs fans are here to enjoy the rainy, windy 58 degree Chicago afternoon. Here’s hoping we don’t get a rainout.

Willie Mays got a single through the gap to get us going with two outs in the bottom of the first, and Ernie Banks hit a single to right which, thanks to an E9 throwing error, allowed Willie Mays to score from second, giving Banks the chance to gain an extra base! Al Rosen batted out to first, ending the inning with us ahead 1-0 in the light drizzle. But Warren Hacker gave up a solo homer to clean-up batter Joe Adcock -- but a stikeout and a really solid diving catch by Sauer in left minimized the damage afterwards, and we came up to bat in the bottom of the second knotted 1-1. But the scoring stalled from there -- heading into the top of the fifth it was still 1-all, Same for the top of the sixth, but Al Kaline got things started in the bottom of the sixth with a single up the middle to center, followed by a Cacarretta single to center that drove Kaline all the way to third. Willie Mays hit a fly-out to left but the runners held, but Banks hit a single to left that the fielder narrowly missed, allowing Kaline to score the go-ahead run! Al Rosen batted into a double play to end the inning, but we had the 2-1 lead heading into the top of the seventh.

Sauer got an infield single in the bottom of the seventh and then reached second on a passed ball, making it to third when Elston Howard batted out to first. And Warren Hacker then bought himself some insurance, hitting a line drive to left that whizzed past the third baseman’s ear, scoring Sauer and making the lead 3-1! Al Rosen walked the bases loaded in the bottom of the eighth with just one out, and Elston Howard hit a blistering fly ball to left, scoring two more runs with two outs, increasing our lead to 5-1! Gene Baker hit a blast to center-right, winding up with a 2-run triple that put the game out of reach for Milwaukee. Hacker took a six run lead into the top of the ninth, and though he surrendered a solo homer to Eddie Matthews along with a couple weak hits, he got out of the game with no further damage as we shut down the Braves 7-2 here at home.

Hacker finished with a complete game with only six hits and two earned runs with five strikeouts against three walks on 118 pitches. He improved to 4-2 on the season with a 2.85 ERA. We outhit Milwaukee 11-6, with Cavarretta, Mays and Banks each notching a pair. Al Rosen remains ice cold as a hitter (the only one not to get a hit tonight) but he did come up with a critical walk which allowed him to score a run. Hank Sauer had the best night overall, with a hit leading to two runs scored.

MAY 22, 1954 . . . The rain held off yesterday and fans got a real show from our team, and today 18,000 fans showed up for a bright, sunny day at Wrigley, 57 degrees and the wind blowing in -- great weather for our starter Johnny Klippstein (7-0, 0.76 ERA, 57.1 IP, 40 K’s, 0.87 WHIP) to take on Milwaukee’s Johnny Antonelli (4-4, 2.93 ERA, 67.2 IP, 29 K’s, 1.32 WHIP).

Klippstein struggled to find his form early on, and a walk and a pair of hits led to Milwaukee putting up two quick runs before a double play and a flyout to right got us out of the top of the first. Cavarretta hit a standing double in the bottom of the inning but we weren’t able to do anything with it, keeing the score 2-0 Braves. Al Rosen got us on the board in the bottom of the third, hitting a line drive up the middle to score Willie Mays from third to make it 2-1. Rosen again came up big, this time in the bottom of the sixth, hitting a standup double to start the inning. He reached third on a groundout to first by Sauer, and scored on a flyball single to left by Elston Howard, tying the score at 2-2! Gene Baker batted into a double play to end the inning, but we were right back in this one!

Unfortunately Klippstein gave up a two-run homer to start the top of the seventh, and Harry Dorish came in with one out to keep the damage to a minimum. He got a flyout and a strikeout wrapped around two hits, getting us into the bottom of the inning with the Braves up 4-2. Kaline got a one-out double to start things out, reaching third on a Cavarretta ground-out to first. But Willie Mays struck out, ending any chance at a rally. Reliever Tom Ferrick came in to pitch in the top of the eighth, and he pitched through some early jitters to get us out of the inning without any damage, but our bats remained cold. Ferrick stayed in and gave up a two-run blast, but he made it through the rest of the inning and we trailed by four runs heading into the bottom of the inning, with the bottom of our lineup coming up. Clyde McCullough came in to pinch hit for Howard, getting a single past the third-baseman to get things going. Kenneth Chapman pinch hit for Gene Baker, taking a walk to give us two men on and a runner in scoring position. I brought Hy Cohen in to pinch hit for Tom Ferrick but he struck out swinging. That brought up the top of our order -- Kaline hit a single but they picked off Chapman on a fielder’s choice, giving us two outs and runners on the corner. And Cavarretta hit a weak infield grounder but beat out the throw, reaching first safely and driving McCullough in from third! Willie Mays came up as the potential tying run, with men on first and second, but he struck out swinging as we lost this one 6-3 to the Braves.

Johnny Klippstein’s perfect season is over -- he fell to 7-1 with a 1.27 ERA thanks to three hits, four earned runs, and two strikeouts against three walks. He threw 105 pitches in 6.1 innings, or perhaps he could have stayed in this one longer. Harry Dorish got two outs in the seventh with two hits and a strikeout, bringing his ERA down to 1.29. Tom Ferrick, meanwhile, threw his first two innings in relief this year, giving up three hits for two earned runs, adding a strikeout and a walk. His ERA sits at 9.00 after the appearance. We outhit the Braves 10-8 but they made better use of their runners. Al Rosen hit twice for a run and an RBI, his fifth RBI as a Cub this year and 17th overall, improving his average to .205 as a cub and .289 overall on the season. Kaline, Cavarretta, Mays, Banks, Sauer, Howard, McCullough and Baker each notched hits of their own, but we simply weren’t able to string them together to rally.

Double header tomorrow to decide the series! Meanwhile, though Rosen has stuggled to find his way offensively, we knew we wanted to assure him his position as a Cub is secure long term -- the trade with Cleveland was meant to give us his veteran leadership at third base, where he has been phenomenal as a fielder. So I’m pleased to announce (and the fans are very happy to learn) that we have signed him to a multi-year extension which will keep him here through 1957, earning $100,000 next year, increasing to $110,000 in 1956 and $120,000 in 1957. The extension has been very popular in the press here in Chicago, and the fans are ecstatic. Having him and Al Kaline signed to long term deals helps a great deal. I am also looking to secure Willie Mays long term as well, a move the fans will certainly be plased with as well.