[jksander]

AUGUST 10, 1956 . . . Bob Porterfield (3-1, 2.95 ERA, 39.2 IP, 28 K’s, 1.03 WHIP) got the start in our first game back at Wrigley in nearly three weeks, facing Larry Jackson (4-11, 4.03 ERA, 125.0 IP, 47 K’s, 1.31 WHIP) in our first of four against the bottom-dwelling Cardinals. Porterfield came out with some real heat, striking out four batters in the first two innings, and this one quietly turned into a pitcher’s duel early. Unfortunately the Cardinals got on the board first with a one-out solo homer by Andy Carey to take a 1-0 lead in the top of the third. They added an RBI triple and an RBI single in the top of the fourth, and our hitters struggled to get anything going, sending us into the top of the fifth trailing 3-0. Porterfield got us through the top of the fifth, and then Ed Bouchee pinch-hit for him in the bottom, getting a line drive to roll into the left field corner to eke out a double! Poppell grounded out to first, but moved Bouchee to third, but Rosen grounded out to first and kept us from rallying. What a waste of a scoring opportunity. Carl Erskine came out to pitch in the top of the sixth, getting three outs on 11 pitches, and Jackie Robinson started us out strong with a double in the bottom of the inning, advancing to third when Willie Mays’ would-be-homer blew just safely in for a catch at right field. Unfortunately our piss-poor luck held, and both Banks and Kaline were unable to make anything happen. Daniel Howard pinch-hit into a double play in the bottom of the seventh to end that inning with us still in a three-run hole, but Larry Jansen kept us from adding to the damage. It didn’t matter -- they were determined to hold the lead, and our offense was nonexistent. With two outs in the bottom of the eighth, Robinson got himself a base hit, but Mays flew out to center, another missed opportunity. We went into the bottom of the ninth needing a spark, and after a flyout by Banks, we got it when Kaline walked and then Maris hit an RBI triple to get us on the board. Maris scored on a wild pitch, pulling us within a run as our home crowd went insane. But Del Crandall struck out swinging, bringing in pinch-hitter Dick Whitman with two outs and no one on. And he struck out swinging, ending this one in disappointing fashion as a 3-2 loss to the worst team in baseball.

Porterfield fell to 3-2 with a 3.22 ERA, allowing four hits and three runs with six strikeouts and a walk through five innings. Erskine gave us two no-hit innings, adding a pair of strikeouts to his resume, and Jansen had two no-hit innings himself with a strikeout and a walk. But our bullpen’s epic performance couldn’t make up for our offensive impotence. We outhit them 8-4 and still came out losers. Jackie Robinson had two hits and a walk, Maris added two hits, a run and an RBI, and Al Kaline had a hit and a run scored.

Harry Dorish has cleared waivers and refuses to take a AAA assignment, and has therefore been released, giving the 35-year-old veteran a chance at free agency. His arm has fallen off significantly, and while we wish him luck and hope he can find a team to play for, it’s most likely time for him to consider retirement. He’ll always be a part of Cubs lore, having won Reliever of the year in 1954 and having played a part in both of our championship appearances. If he does retire, he has a record of 48-38 with 34 saves, with 316 career appearances and 28 starts. His career ERA of 3.68, a 1.33 WHIP, and 356 K’s in 715 innings won’t win him a spot in Cooperstown, but he put in the work and remains incredibly popular in Chicago. There will always be a place for him in our organization if he ever chooses to take up coaching.
 
AUGUST 11, 1956 . . . Tom Acker (5-4, 3.80 ERA, 94.2 IP, 66 K’s, 1.25 WHIP) got the start today against Vinegar Bend Mizell (8-12, 4.52 ERA, 185.1 IP, 91 K’s, 1.38 WHIP). Ernie Banks got us going in a big way, hitting a three-run homer into the center field bleachers in the bottom of the first, his 25th homer of the year! Acker was phenomenal right from the words “play ball!” and even got himself a nice line drive into right in the bottom of the fifth for a double. Whispers started flying around after six innings of near perfect precision -- only one runner had made it on base for the Cardinals, and that had been a runner who was hit by a pitch and then was promptly taken out at second trying to steal. Acker walked Frank Bolling in the top of the seventh, but Poppell made a great throw to first for the final out of the inning and kept an infield blooper from becoming a hit. Acker struck out the side in the top of the eighth and you could feel this place popping with anticipation, our boys firmly in control of the three-run shutout. We added some insurance in the bottom of the frame, Robinson hitting a two-run triple to increase our lead to five runs heading into the top of the ninth. Acker was wearing down a bit heading into the final frame, but he’d earned the right to try and write some Cubs history. But the no hitter was blown against the first batter, Tony Kubek taking first on a weak hit to left that just barely evaded Maris’ glove. Sandy Koufax came in with one out and men on the corners, with the crowd sending Acker off with a standing ovation. Koufax surrendered a run thanks to an RBI single by Frank Bolling, and then loaded the bases, but he struck out Orlando Cepeda swinging and a pop-out to Mays in center ended this one as a 5-1 victory.

Tom Acker made it through 8.1 innings and 105 pitches, only the second time he’s thrown more than a hundred, and he was absolutely exemplary, coming so close to a no hitter. As it stood, he allowed only one hit, with three runners reaching either as a hit batter or on an error, striking out ten batters without a single base-on-balls -- his only run was given up by Koufax, who got the final two outs with two hits and a strikeout. We outhit the Cardinals 8-3 today, with Ernie Banks leading the way with two hits, including his three-run homer. Poppell added two hits, a stolen base and two runs on the ground, while Rosen added two hits and two runs as well. Jackie Robinson also batted in a pair with his only hit of the night.

AUGUST 12, 1956 . . . We’re playing two today, with our best two pitchers ready to go. Hy Cohen (24-2, 1.66 ERA, 233.1 IP, 231 K’s, 0.75 WHIP) pitched in game one, going up against Don Lee (1-9, 6.46 ERA, 69.2 IP, 24 K”s, 1.48 WHIP), a 22-year-old rookie who has definitely taken his lumps while playing for the last-place Cardinals. Ernie Banks got us on the board with an RBI single that also sent Willie Mays around to third from first, but we had to settle for just the one run -- Kaline grounded out to first to end the first inning. Del Crandall hit a double into center field in the bottom of the second, his 10th double of the season, and then Hy Cohen stunned everybody by blasting one out into the stands at left, increasing our lead to 3-0! That’s Cohen’s second homer of the year and of his career! But Stan Musial hit a two-run triple in the top of the third, making this one into a much tighter game than we’d expected. Banks hit an RBI double to buy us some insurance in the bottom of the third, though he got our hearts beating quickly when he made the slide into second FACE FIRST ... Jesus!

The top of the fourth was a mess -- Cohen started out by hitting Jablonski with a pitch, advancing him to second on a passed ball, and to third when Bill Sarni hit a single. And then a wild pitch allowed Jablonski to score from third, drawing the Cards to within a run with just one out secured. Cohen got out number two, but advanced runners into scoring position, but he was able to strike Andy Carey out swinging to end the inning. Our batters gave Cohen some breathing room in the bottom of the fourth, however, loading the bases quickly and then Jackie Robinson hitting a grand slam into the left field bleachers, instantly making this one an 8-3 blowout! That was Robinson’s 22nd homer of the year, by the way. What a way to do it! Cohen gave up a solo homer to Frank Bolling, and then with two outs Wally Moon stole second and then, on a throwing error, took third. Moments later he gave up an RBI double by Jim King, and it was clear this wasn’t Cohen’s best day. He got the final out and kept the lead at 8-5, but it was clear he was getting the hook.

We brought Vern Law out to pitch in the top of the sixth, and he performed admirably, keeping the lead safe for us heading into the bottom of the inning, when we completely opened this one up -- Jackie Robinson hit his second homer of the game, this one a three-run blast, and we had ourselves a six-run lead. Law had a great night, but stayed in perhaps one batter too long ... giving up a two-run homer to pinch-hitter Charlie Neal to make it an 11-7 ballgame. Erskine came in with two outs, striking out their leadoff man and getting us into the bottom of the inning, where Willie Mays got us a run back with his 39th homer of the season. Erkine held tough in the bottom of the ninth and we closed out the 12-7 victory, though we all hoped the second game would be a little less insane.

He wasn’t at his best, but any time you have Hy Cohen on the mound you know you’ve got a guy who can win games. He is now 25-2 with a 1.81 ERA, despite allowing seven hits with two walks, three strikeouts and five earned runs in just five innings. Vern Law got his second hold since coming to Chicago, giving us 2.2 innings with two hits, a walk and two earned runs. And Erskine closed it out with one hit and two strikeouts through the final inning-and-a-third. We outhit them 14-10 in this hard-hitting battle, and there was no question that Jackie Robinson was our star. He had three hits (two homers!) and a walk, scoring four runs while batting in seven! Even as he’s halfway to his 38th birthday, this guy is unstoppable! Mays, Banks, Crandall and Cohen each had a pair of hits as well, but they were all in awe of what Robinson can still do.
 
Saul Rogovin (15-4, 1.77 ERA, 218.1 IP, 270 K’s, 0.75 WHIP) pitched in game two, challenging Mike Fornieles (7-14, 3.78 ERA, 192.2 IP, 74 K’s, 1.25 WHIP). Willie Mays hit a sac-fly to center that drove in Poppell from third, putting us up 1-0 in the bottom of the first. We then were quick to load the bases, and Gene Baker walked in a second run, before Les Moss struck out to end the inning one batter shy of batting around. But Rogovin struggled in the second inning, giving up a three-run blast via Del Rice to flip the Cardinals back into the lead. Willie Mays got us back to dead even, hitting an RBI triple with two outs in the bottom of the second, and Ernie Banks kept the roller coaster on the tracks, hitting a line drive into left that drove in the go-ahead run. Willie Mays hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the sixth to make it a 6-3 lead, his 40th homer of the year and his second of today’s doubleheader. Koufax came in to pitch in the top of the ninth with a three-run lead to protect, and he got two quick outs before walking Orlando Cepeda and then allowing Jim King to hit a line drive into right for a base hit as well. Del Rice then walked to load the bases, and walked in a run via Tony Kubek. This looked like a disaster in the making, but a popout to right field brought it to an end as a 6-4 victory. Talk about walking the edge of a knife!

Saul Rogovin gave us eight innings and 111 pitches, allowing five hits, with one walk, seven strikeouts and three earned runs. Koufax completed his 16th save of the year, but he’s been struggling with control issues -- tonight he only allowed one hit, but walked three batters which left us in a tight spot in the end. He’s still young, though, and it takes getting through jams like this to make you into a great player. We outhit the Cardinals 8-6 as we took control of the series (winning it three games to one), led by Willie Mays who hit three times and walked once, scoring two and driving in four, batting in the three spot as Robinson rested in the second game. Today’s doubleheader was a bit rough, with all the runs, but we held tough and will have to keep doing so if we want to keep our two-game lead in the pennant race.

Jackie Robinson was named the NL’s Batter of the Week, hitting .400 with two homers, 12 RBIs and seven runs scored on the ground. This season, through 113 games, Robinson is batting .318/.429/.634 with 29 doubles, 18 triples and 23 homers, giving him 8.5 WAR on the year. I’m hopeful he’ll be able to continue to play like this for years to come. It’s incredible that he’s making a very strong case to be considered for his second MVP award -- Mays has been hitting the long ball well, but Robinson’s well-rounded performance has drawn more interest in the press.