[jksander]

JUNE 22, 1954 . . . I’m sending Carmen Mauro down to AAA for a spell, giving me a chance to bring up veteran minor-league reliever Bob Spicer to give us a bullpen arm that is not completely worn out. Spicer, at 29, would be making his major league debut if he gets into a game -- he’s spent the last five seasons at AAA, pitching nearly 1,500 minor league innings over his career, and this year he has a 1.96 ERA with 16 K’s through 23 innings over ten appearances. I’m hopeful that we can get long outings from our starters in the next three games -- Rogovin, Diehl and Hacker are next up in the rotation, and we’ll be able to use Dobson as a long-relief option if absolutely necessary, but the key is to give the guys time to recover from the beatdown against the Dodgers and let their arms recover. Consuegra only threw single-digit pitches in the final inning, so we do have him as a closing option as well.

Tonight Saul Rogovin (9-0, 1.31 ERA, 89.0 IP, 54 K’s, 0.89 WHIP) takes the mound hoping to keep his fiery streak going while facing down Bob Lemon (4-4, 3.10 ERA, 104.2 IP, 55 K’s, 1.35 WHIP) in the first game at Philadelphia. Cavarretta tripled to start the top of the first, and Willie Mays got things going with a run-scoring double to put us up 1-0. But Saul Rogovin gave up a two-out, three-run homer to left in the bottom of the inning, and it felt like the nightmare was starting where it left off. Ernie Banks hit a flyball double and Willie Mays was able to score all the way from first to pull us within a run in the top of the fourth, and Al Rosen got a hit right past the ear of the third baseman, the ball rolling into left field and allowing Banks to come around and tie the game 3-3! But Rogovin gave up a goddamned solo homer to start the bottom of the inning, got a strikeout, and then gave up ANOTHER F---ING SOLO HOMER to make it 5-3! What has happened to our control? We’re letting these road fans into our heads! And it’s not like he has no control. By the time he got us out of the fourth inning he had thrown five strikeouts, but he was also nearing 80 pitches. With the day of rest in between games, I decided to warm up Harry Dorish, while hoping that we could get a fifth inning out of Rogovin and maybe some run support.

Willie Mays got a flyball into right in the top of the fifth, driving home a run via Saul Rogovin, who scored from third having walked to start the inning, but Roger Maris hit to the second baseman and ended the inning before we could forment a true rally. Rogovin started the bottom of the sixth with a strikeout, then a runner reached first when the ball took a bad hop at short. Alvin Dark walked, but a flyout to center kept the runners in place, bringing up Randy Jackson at third with two outs and two on. Ernie Banks caught an infield flyball to end the inning, with Rogovin at 95 pitches through five and the lead still 5-4 for the Phillies.

Rogovin got a flyout to center to start the sixth but then surrendered a triple to pitcher Bob Lemon, and I brought in Bob Spicer to pitch with the out and a man in scoring position. He gave up a hit that scored Rogovin’s run, but then took part in a spectacular double play that got a runner out at home with the bases loaded and then the runner out at first to end the inning with the Phillies up 6-4. Spicer got two outs for us in the seventh as well, at which point I brought Harry Dorish in with a man on first, and he got a quick out to end the innning with us still down by two runs. Dorish got us through the eighth without much fuss, but we came up in the top of the ninth needing at least two runs to prolong the game and give us a chance.

Al Rosen took a walk to start things out, and Joe Collins came in to pinch hit for Elston Howard, and they walked him too! I brought Russ Snyder in to pinch hit for Gene Baker, and with the count 2-2 a passed ball allowed both runners to advance with us still playing with no outs! Snyder struck out, bringing up Harry Dorish. With Consuegra warming up in the bullpen, we brought in Bill Serena to hit, and he hit a sac fly to center .... or it would have been, if Rosen had taken the chance! I can’t believe he stayed put. That brought up Al Kaline, two runners in position, two outs. And he hit straight to the second baseman, who got the easy out to home. I still can’t believe that finish, we lose 6-4 in a game we had every chance to win.

Saul Rogovin’s perfect season came to an end with a loss, slipping to 9-1 with a 1.81 ERA thanks to six earned runs off eight hits. He struck out six and walked two, but giving up three homers will f--- you up every time. Spicer’s debut was solid, with 1.1 innings of work and two hits, with two walks and a strikeout over 25 pitches -- no runs of his own, so his ERA as a major leaguer is unblemished! And Harry Dorish threw 1.1 innings without a hit, striking out one and improving his ERA to 1.17. It just wasn’t in the cards. The Phillies outhit us 10-7 as they improved to 35-32 on the season. Kaline and Mays each had two hits, with Mays scoring once and driving in two more. Ernie Banks also had a hit and an RBI, and Cavarretta had a hit and a run scored. Rogovin scored a run off a walk as well.

We need to focus and fight back over the last two in the series, because right now we’ve lost our last three in a row, and the Redlegs, Dodgers and Phillies are all within a dozen games of us. Now’s not the time to start slumping, even if road wins ARE hard to find in the NL.