"Ain't Gonna Work As Topping's Farm No More" -- A's Baseball in a Reimagined Fifties - Page 3

jksander · 08-31-2024, 11:02 PM

January 18, 1956: The press voters were absolutely brutal this year in Hall of Fame voting ... NOBODY got in, and NOBODY was close. Tommy Bridges, in his first year of eligibility, drew just 40.9 percent of the votes, and he was the highest vote-getter.

January 25, 1956: Bob Lee has already been doing well working with the training staff down in Pocatello, Idaho with our Pioneer League affiliate, and has reportedly picked up first base defensively like a natural! While his pitching will always be the main focus, he does have decent gap power and when he does get on base the kid is fast and has good instincts and aggressiveness for getting the most of things. So anything that gives him an edge is good in my book, especially in kids straight out of high school. Lee, who turned 18 just a week and a half after the draft, is definitely looking great to me. Meanwhile, Fred Carpenter, a 17-year-old outfielder we drafted this year in the 13th round, has been putting the work in to improve his defense in right field and has had solid results as well. He’s nowhere close to major league ready, but he’s adaptable and works his ass off, so I’m glad to have him as part of our organization.

February 11, 1956: We snagged Catfish Metkovich, 35, from the Cubs out of minor league free agency, and he’s a real get ... great contact with an aggressive approach, and excellent defense of center field, and though he didn’t play for the Cubs last year at the major league level, he hit .316 with 28 doubles, 16 homers and 60 RBIs for AAA Oakland, with an incredible +17.2 zone rating at center, which netted him 8.2 WAR! He’s going to be our new leadoff hitter and starting center fielder, earning $28,000 on a one year contract, bumping Bill Wilson back to the bench where he’ll play backup at left and center. Metkovich is pretty much unknown outside Chicago, so this isn’t going to immediately move the needle with our fans, but defensively this is a big get, and will help us fill the gap created when we moved Hector Lopez to improve clubhouse morale.

March 13, 1956: Spring training is set to begin, and we’re excited to get fans ready for another year of Kansas City A’s baseball! Projected season ticket sales are looking to be up nearly 32% to around 3,400, and we’re hoping to average around 10,000 fans per game as the season gets going, which would be up a similar amount. We have forty players up here for the 30-game spring schedule, which will run through Friday, April 13th. We’ll then open our season with a three-game road set against Detroit April 17-19, followed by our debut here in Kansas City with three games against the White Sox, two against Detroit and two against Cleveland.

March 22, 1956: Alex Kellner has suffered a setback in his recovery from a ruptured disc in his back, and unfortunately his career is now over, according to our best team medical experts. The 31-year-old’s career comes to an end with a total record of 84-104 with six saves, an ERA of 4.43, 620 strikeouts and 19.3 total WAR. That’s a real disappointment, just as the fans were really starting to warm up to him. But we’d built the 1956 A’s roster expecting he’d be out for at least a few months, and we have to roll with the punches.

March 29, 1956: Middle reliever Larry Jansen has suffered a strained forearm muscle during a spring training game and will be out at least two months, which is definitely disappointing -- we’d acquired him from Washington back in early November in exchange for Chuck Tanner and Billy Shantz, and if he is unable to recover from this, that trade’s definitely not going to be looking great in retrospect. Hopefully he’ll be able to return by early June and we can ease him back into the bullpen rotation.

April 14, 1956: Spring training games are now complete, and we finished with a 13-17 record in the games which, while they don’t count as official games, do give us good information about how our team is gelling as the season nears its start. We’re paring the roster down to its final 25-man status, and will report opening day rosters within a matter of days, with first pitch in Detroit on the 17th set for 1:05 p.m. central time!

April 16, 1956: Our final two difficult cuts involved moving Sonny Dixon back down to AAA for the time being, as will backup third-baseman Daryl Spencer. But with those moves complete, we have your official opening day rosters for Kansas City’s Athetics in 1956!

Lineup
C -Joe Astroth
1B - Vic Power
2B - Danny O’Connell
3B - Jim Finigan
SS - Joe DeMaestri
LF - Andy Pafko
CF - Catfish Metkovich
RF - Harry Walker

Bench: Ray Noble (C), Dick Kryhoski (1B), Pete Suder (INF), George Wilson (SS), Zeke Bella (LF), Bill Wilson (LF, CF), Joe Frazier (OF)

Starters
1 - Juan Pizarro
2 Carl Erskine
3 - Arnie Portocarrero
4 - Art Ditmar
5 - Walt Craddock

Closer: Bobby Shantz
Stopper: Moe Drabowsky
Middle: Tom Gorman, Al Gettel
Long: Bob Spicer

The new “BNN Top Prospects” report is out officially, and we can proudly announce that our new young ace, Pizarro, is ranked 8th overall. But we’ve got a long way to go to build up to the level of Cleveland (they have the top three prospects in Rocky Colavito, Roger Maris and Norm Cash) and Washington (#4 Harmon Killebrew and #5 Willie McCovey). Moe Drabowski is ranked 40th overall, Bob Lee is ranked 59th, and our catcher draftee, Chris Cannizzaro, is ranked 179th, but he’s the sixth best catching prospect in the minors. The good news is that our minor league system has gone up in ranking from 16th to 10th overall.

jksander · 09-01-2024, 06:41 AM

April 17, 1956: For opening day in Detroit, we matched up rookie left-handed hurler Juan Pizarro against Detroit’s Billy Hoeft, 23, who went 12-14 with a 3.88 ERA and 130 K’s for the Tigers last year in his fourth full season. It was cold, barely into the 40s, and cloudy, but nearly 23,000 fans came out and got to see Catfish Metkovich double into right field to get us a baserunner immediately! Harry Walker sac-bunted him over to third, and a Vic Power groundout gave us our first run and lead of the season just five minutes in. Pafko doubled with two outs, and Finigan doubled to bring him around to score, putting us up 2-0 heading into Pizarro’s first pitch. In the top of the second, Metkovich walked the bases loaded with one out but we weren’t able to add on. The Tigers got on the board in the bottom of the third with an RBI single by Kaline, but Danny O’Connell got it back for us with a solo homer out of center in the top of the fourth. Pizarro had a great fourth inning, getting three outs, and we added on with an RBI double by Finigan to give us a 4-1 lead heading into the bottom of the fifth. In the top of the sixth, Metkovich again walked the bases loaded, two outs, but Walker struck out swinging to get the Tigers out of a real jam. Pizarro got us through the sixth, a quality start in his first go ‘round, and Tom Gorman came out with a 4-1 lead to protect in the bottom of the seventh. We brought out 20-year-old rookie reliever Moe Drabowsky in the eight inning, and he got three outs off 11 pitches. We added on a run via a wild pitch in the top of the ninth, so, leading by four Drabowsky stayed out in the bottom of the inning to finish things off. But he got into trouble with one out, loading the bases, and we brought out Bobby Shantz to get out of the jam. Pinch-hitter Frank House popped out to center but drove in a run, but a quick groundout by Blasingame ended this as a 5-2 victory for our Athletics!

Juan Pizarro took the win, starting out with a 1-0 record and 1.50 ERA thanks to a two-hit, three walk, four strikeout game with just one earned run. Gorman allowed just a hit in his inning, and Drabowsky was solid in his debut, allowing two hits and a walk with a strikeout and an earned run, and Shantz saved the game by getting two outs with just five pitches thrown. More important, we outhit the Tigers 12-5, with FIVE players hitting twice. Metkovich, our new leadoff man, led the way with two hits, two walks and two runs scored, while Finigan had two hits and two RBIs. And newcomer Danny O’Connell, batting seventh in the order, helped keep scoring drives going, hitting twice including his homer. Our three doubles and the homer showcased our improved gap power as a lineup ... hopefully this will continue into the season.

April 18, 1956: In our second game in Detroit, Carl Erskine faced off against another young Tigers starter, Jim Bunning, who went 9-8 last year with a 3.92 ERA and 154 strikeouts in his rookie campaign. With two outs in the top of the first, Vic Power hit his first solo homer of the year to put us up 1-0! Harry Walker batted in a run with a single in the top of the third, extending the lead, and with the bases loaded, no outs in the top of the fourth, Danny O’Connell walked in a run to keep it going. DeMaestri singled in another and a Catfish Metkovich sac-fly to center kept the run train rolling ... we went into the bottom of the fourth with a stunning 5-0 lead! We blew them up in the top of the seventh, adding on SEVEN RUNS, capping things off with a three-run homer out of left by Joe DeMaestri, as this one became a complete rout! Bob Spicer came out for the last two innings, and in the bottom of the ninth they got on the board with a three-run homer by Red Wilson, and with one out, Solly Hemus hit a solo homer to cut our lead to eight. But Spicer got the last two outs and we were able to easily win this one 12-4.

Carl Erskine started his season out with a 1-0 record and a 0.00 ERA, allowing just four hits with four walks and three strikeouts. Spicer gave us two innings with three hits, four runs (three earned) and a pair of strikeouts. But we again outhit the Tigers 13-7, and our power remains a big part of it ... today we added two homers for four runs, plus four doubles including two for Metkovich, who has three of them in the first two games this year, hitting .571 with a 1.000 slug. Vic Power was dominant, hitting three times with two runs and two RBIs, and DeMaestri hit twice and batted in four runs, scoring once.

April 19, 1956: Arnie Portocarrero got the start in our final game in Detroit, facing yet another young Tigers starter in Bob Shaw, who at age 22 is making his major league debut today, ranked #19 overall by the Baseball News Network. Last year in AAA he was 15-12 with a 3.92 ERA and 144 strikeouts. Portocarrero got into deep trouble in the bottom of the second, loading the bases and hitting Fred Hatfield on the shoulder to walk in a run. He got out of it with just three runs against him, which seemed like a small miracle, but he’d only thrown 31 pitches through the first two innings. Vic Power got us on the board with an RBI single in the top of the sixth, and Andy Pafko hit another single into center, driving in a second run, sending us into the bottom of the sixth trailing just 3-2. Portocarrero, who had settled down nicely, stayed out and got us through the sixth with ease, and Gorman relieved him to start the bottom of the seventh still trailing by a run. He got us through the eighth unblemished, but we at least needed a run in the top of the ninth to keep this game going. O’Connell walked with two outs, giving us a baserunner, but DeMaestri grounded out to first and we lost our first game of the year, 3-2.

Portocarrero recovered from his terrible second inning and wound up giving us six innings with just six hits and a strikeout, his three earned runs giving him a 4.50 ERA. Gorman was solid in his two innings, with two hits and nothing else as his ERA remains unblemished. They outhit us 8-5 and still we almost made a comeback happen. Walker had a double and walked once, scoring a run, while Power and Pafko each had a hit and an RBI.

We’ll go into our home opener with a 2-1 record, facing the 1-1 White Sox for a three-game set.

April 20, 1956: We drew the biggest crowd Municipal Stadium has ever hosted -- nearly 21,000 fans, on a partly cloudy day with temps in the lower 50s, as Kansas City fans got their first chance to see our new and improved team up close and personal! Juan Pizarro (1-0, 1.50 ERA, 6.0 IP, 4 K’s, 0.83 WHIP) pitched in the first game, going up against The White Sox’s 28-year-old veteran Dick Donovan, who last year put up a 9-6 record with a 4.09 ERA and 78 strikeouts through 24 starts. Pizarro’s start went well early, including striking out the side in the top of the second AND third innings, but our bats were slow to awaken. Pizarro didn’t give up a hit or a baserunner until the top of the fifth, when Larry Doby doubled on one out, but he successfully stranded him there to keep the game scoreless. But the stalemate was broken in the top of the sixth, when Walt Dropo hit a solo homer over the right field fence to put Chicago up 1-0. Bob Nieman hit a solo homer in the top of the seventh to make it 2-0, and with a man on first and no outs, Al Gettel came in to relieve Pizarro, who again finished with six innings. Gettel, however, had rough luck because of the wind, Sherm Lollar hitting a two-run blast out of left to make it a four-run Chicago lead, giving us a lot of work to do if our offense was going to find a way to save this one. Tom Gorman came out and got us through the top of the ninth. With two outs in the bottom of the inning Astroth and O’Connell had back to back singles, but Dick Kryhoski batted out to short and we lost this one 4-0.

Fans got plenty to be excited about despite the disappointing finish. Though Pizarro fell to 1-1 with a 3.00 ERA, he managed six innings with just three hits, a walk and seven strikeouts, throwing just shy of 90 pitches. We’re working his pitch count up carefully, and if we’d given him run support he might have lasted through the seventh. Gettel allowed a hit, a walk and struck out a pair, his one earned run giving him a 4.50 ERA after two innings. Gorman, meanwhile, remained perfect ERA-wise, getting through his inning with a single hit in his third appearance. We also got hits, outhitting the White Sox 10-5, but the strong winds worked against us today, their three home runs killing us in the end.

April 21, 1956: Carl Erskine (1-0, 0.00 ERA, 7.0 IP, 3 K’s, 1.14 WHIP) pitched against Chicago’s Bob Rush, who went 14-14 last year with a 3.69 ERA and 132 K’s. Andy Pafko hit an RBI single in the bottom of the first that drove in a run, giving us a 1-0 lead, but the White Sox tied it up in the top of the first with a solo homer by Sherm Lollar, his second of the series (and the season), giving Erskine his first earned run of the year. Harry Walker hit an RBI triple in the bottom of the third to get us back into the lead, and a sac-fly to left by Vic Power drove in a third run, but Chicago wasn’t fazed -- Minnie Minoso hit a solo homer out of left to cut the lead to a single run, as homers continue to kill us in this series. Erskine then lost his control and an RBI double by Jim Rivera pushed in a pair to give the White Sox a 4-3 lead. He finally got the third out, and had only thrown 54 pitches, but Erskine had shown the enemy weakness, and this isn’t an easy team to beat in any situation, especially when you keep giving up leads. He loaded the bases in the top of the fifth and walked in another run, with the bullpen warming up arms, but he at least was able to finish the fifth inning without further damage -- not a great start by any stretch, but if we can get hits, two runs can be made up easier than four or five.

In the bottom of the inning Metkovich took a walk and Walker reached via an E6 error, and Vic Power hit a bouncing shot into center field that evaded their defenses, pushing in a run with what was eventually deemed a single with an E8 error that pushed the batter to second. Then, with two outs, Danny O’Connell hit a shot over the head of their second baseman and in the process pushed two runs in, giving us back the lead! The rally took so long we no longer had an arm warmed up, so Erskine stayed out while we got Gorman warm from the bullpen, and instead of being replaced, he pitched around a one-out single by Johnny Groth and got through the sixth with the lead. Gorman came out in the seventh to protect the one-run lead, but he stayed out in the eighth and blew the save with back to back hits that tied the game at six. Moe Drabowsky came out to pitch in the top of the eighth with a man on second, no outs, and got us through the inning without giving the Sox a lead, and he held it through the ninth, but we were unable to get a run through to end it in regulation, so this one went into extras.

Al Gettel came out to pitch in the top of the 10th, still tied up at six, and he got us into the bottom of the inning unscathed, with a chance to walk it off, but our bats came up empty, so Bobby Shantz came out to pitch in the top of the 11th, three quick outs again getting us back up to the plate. Shantz then singled into right with one out in the bottom of the inning to bring up the top of our lineup, but they left him there stranded. With one out in the top of the 12th, Chicago got the lead back off an RBI single by Jerry Priddy, and we went into the bottom of the inning trailing by a run. We had a run of luck in the bottom of the inning, however, with Vic Power leading off with a single, Pafko beating out an infield squib for a single of his own to push Power into scoring position. Both runners advanced on a wild pitch, and with one out they walked O’Connell to load the bases. Joe Astroth came in to replace DeMaestri as catcher and pinch-hit, and he hit a sac-fly that tied us back up! They hit George Wilson with a pitch to reload the bases, and with Bob Spicer warmed up and ready in the pen, Dick Kryhoski came in to pinch-hit for Shantz, striking out swinging and pushing us into the 13th inning. With the bases loaded in the bottom of the inning, Jim Finigan came up to the plate with one out, walking it off with a sac-fly to deep left as we won this one 8-7! It took our entire bullpen, but we got it done.

Bob Spicer got the win after all the craziness, improving to 1-0 with a 9.00 ERA after a perfect 13th inning. Erskine had a bit of a rough start, but he left with a lead after six innings, allowing eight hits with five walks for five earned runs, striking out three. After Gorman blew the save, Moe Drabowsky came out and got us into extras with two innings and just a walk and a strikeout, improving his ERA to 2.70. Everyone in our bullpen has an ERA under 3.50 now except Spicer. But we did what was almost impossible to think of last year -- we outhit the White Sox 15-12 in this marathon, led by Pafko (four hits and an RBI), Vic Power (three hits, two runs, two RBIs) and Catfish Metkovich (three hits, a walk and three runs scored).

We’re sending Joe Frazier down to AAA for the moment so we can bring up an extra bullpen arm for the upcoming stretch of home games. Sonny Dixon, with his excellent control, will join us in a setup role.

April 22, 1956: Art Ditmar got his first start of the season this afternoon, facing Chicago’s Connie Johnson (0-0, 1.50 ERA, 6.0 IP, 4 K’s, 1.33 WHIP). The White Sox took the lead off a single by Connie Johnson that drove in two runs in the top of the second, and by the time Ditmar got his third out the game was a rout thanks to a three-run homer by Bob Nieman. Bob Spicer came out to pitch in the top of the fifth, still trailing by six, and Chicago added two more runs in the top of the sixth. Vic Power batted in a run to get us on the board in the bottom of the seventh, and Al Gettel came out to get us through the remainder as we lost this one 9-1.

Ditmar lasted four innings with seven hits, three walks, two strikeouts and six earned runs -- beyond Pizarro and Erskine, our starting squad looks rough, and that’s going to be what determines how our season goes -- who will step up and prove they belong? Unless we can pull off a miracle trade, this is the pitching roster we have, and top starters are at a premium. We were outhit 13-10, led by Metkovich and O’Connell, who each hit twice, but only Power managed to bat in a run, DeMaestri scoring it.

We go into the coming week with a 3-3 record, and we’ll face Detroit (3-4) for two and Cleveland (3-3) for two here in Kansas City before heading to Chicago for a four-game set next weekend, a series that starts a brutal road stretch including 19 games in 16 days as we’ll visit six cities.

jksander · 09-02-2024, 03:57 PM

April 23, 1956: Juan Pizarro (1-1, 3.00 ERA, 12.0 IP, 11 K’s, 0.75 WHIP) started today against Bob Shaw (1-0, 2.58 ERA, 7.2 IP, 3 K’s, 0.91 WHIP) on a 40-degree blustery night, which is what kept the crowd slightly under the 10,000 mark. An Andy Pafko sac-fly in the bottom of the third put us into the lead 1-0 against the Tigers, and in the bottom of the fourth DeMaestri hit a solo bomb out of left, his second homer of the year! Zeke Bella hit a sac-fly in the bottom of the fifth to add on, and we held that lead into the top of the eighth when Moe Drabowsky came in to relieve Pizarro with one out and men on first and second. Unfortunately Bill Tuttle batted in both runs with a triple, but Drabowsky struck out the next two batters he faced, getting out of there with the one run lead still safe. Bobby Shantz came in to pitch in the top of the ninth, getting three quick outs to seal the 3-2 victory!

Juan Pizarro improved to 2-1 with a 2.79 ERA, getting through 7.1 innings with five hits, two walks, four strikeouts and two earned runs. He threw 99 pitches tonight, a new career high! Drabowsky held his second game of the season with a hit and two strikeouts as he handled the high leverage situation with aplomb as his ERA improved to 2.25, and Shantz saved his second game, with no hits and one strikeout, giving him a 2.45 ERA. We outhit the Tigers 8-6, led by DeMaestri with two hits, a walk, a run and an RBI.

April 24, 1956: Carl Erskine (1-0, 3.46 ERA, 13.0 IP, 6 K’s, 1.62 WHIP) pitched against Jim Bunning (0-2, 11.57 ERA, 9.1 IP, 7 K’s, 2.36 WHIP) this afternoon. Detroit scored a run in the top of the first when Harvey Kuenn singled and Harry Walker missed the cutoff man on a throw back from right field. A pair of back to back hits, including an RBI single by Whitey Lockman, added to their lead, digging us a two run hole heading into the bottom of the inning. They added a run in the top of the fourth and then a fourth run in the top of the fifth to further dig our hole. Bob Spicer came out to pitch in the top of the sixth, trailing 4-0, and we got on the board in the bottom of the inning with an RBI single by Finigan. Tom Gorman came out to pitch in the top of the eighth, and we traded runs from there -- they added two in the top of the eighth and we added two in the bottom of the eighth. In the end it didn’t matter, we’d dug our hole and had to lie in it, losing 6-3.

Erskine fell to 1-1 with a weak five inning effort -- eight hits, a walk, two strikeouts and four runs (only one of which was earned), so his ERA looks more solid (at 3.00) than he likely deserves. Spicer had two good innings and improved his ERA to 5.62, allowing two hits with one strikeout, and Gorman had a rougher stretch, allowing four hits in his two innings with a walk, a strikeout and two earned runs. But we were outhit 14-9, so we were never really in it at any point. Finigan led the way with three hits, a run and two RBIs, while O’Connell hit once, walked once and is still batting .406 early in the season.

April 25, 1956: Arnie Portocarrero (0-1, 4.50 ERA, 6.0 IP, 1 K, 1.00 WHIP) pitched in tonight’s game against Cleveland, facing Don Mossi (0-1, 2.70 ERA, 6.2 IP, 1 K, 1.05 WHIP). And Cleveland got out to a quick start, a three-run blast by Dale Long that was followed by a solo bomb out of right by Al Rosen dug us a 4-0 hole before we ever had a chance to bat. Joe Astroth batted a run in for us in the bottom of the inning, but they added on two more in the top of the second to keep us in our place. Pete Suder drove in a run in the bottom of the second with a sac-fly, and Joe DeMaestri cut the deficit to three with an RBI single that was aided by an E7 error. Bob Spicer came out in the top of the fifth with one out and no one one, and we went into the seventh inning stretch trailing the Guardians 7-3. Moe Drabowsky came out in the top of the eighth, and he didn’t allow a single baserunner in his two innings, but we still needed to make up four runs in the bottom of the ninth. That wasn’t happening; they shut us down completely and we lost this one in the end by the same 7-3 margin.

Arnie Portocarrero has not had an auspicious start to his season, going 0-2 with a 6.10 ERA. Tonight he allowed four hits and six runs (four earned) with six walks and three strikeouts in just 4.1 innings of work. Spicer lasted 2.2 innings with three hits and an earned run, and Drabowsky was stellar -- three strikeouts in two innings, no hits. But though we outhit them 9-7, we weren’t able to get runners around to score, and we were crushed by the two homers Cleveland hit in the first inning -- there was no coming back from that. Joe Astroth hit three times with a run and an RBI, as did Joe DeMaestri.

April 26, 1956: Walt Craddock made his first start of the season tonight, going up against Tom Cheney (0-1, 6.00 ERA, 6.0 IP, 4 K’s, 1.67 WHIP). In the bottom of the first, Harry Walker injured himself sliding into second, and had to be replaced by Zeke Bella. We came up empty in the inning, and this turned into a pitcher’s duel early, nobody getting anything through. Craddock pitched surprisingly well, getting us into the seventh inning stretch still with neither team on the board, and with one out in the top of the eighth, a runner on first, Sonny Dixon came in to get us through. In the bottom of the ninth, Vic Power led off with a single, but no one else could move him and this game went into extra innings with no score -- five hits for us, three hits for them in regulation innings. In the bottom of the 10th, with one out, George Wilson came up to the plate and absolutely whalloped a fastball off Ed Roebuck, the flyball exiting the park at center as we walked this game off 1-0!

Walt Craddock had a great start, going 7.1 innings with just three hits and a pair of walks, and Sonny Dixon stayed out to win it, pitching 2.2 innings with just a strikeout ... no hits, no baserunners, throwing 31 pitches to do it! We outhit them 6-3 in this epic duel, with Wilson’s homer being our only offense of the night, though Vic Power hit twice. Harry Walker’s injury remains undiagnosed, which is not a great sign.

We have four games in three days this weekend in Chicago to start our road trip, with a day off on Monday, and then we’ll play 15 games in 13 days to start the month of May on the road. We’re 5-5 and the White Sox are 3-3, both of us sitting a game and a half out of first.

April 27, 1956: First, some good news. Henry Walker bruised his ankle and it was not serious ... he can return to the roster immediately. Juan Pizarro (2-1, 2.78 ERA, 19.1 IP, 15 K’s, 0.83 WHIP) started his fourth game of the season this afternoon, facing Chicago’s Billy Pierce (0-1, 4.00 ERA, 9.0 IP, 7 K’s, 1.00 WHIP). Chicago got on the board in the bottom of the second with a sac-fly by Luis Aparicio, but Catfish Metkovich hit a solo homer to lead off in the top of the third, tying us up at one! Pizarro got through six innings with the score still tied, but we weren’t able to get anything through in the top of the seventh, so he stayed out in the bottom of the inning and got two quick outs, going over 100 pitches for the first time in his career. Moe Drabowsky came in with two outs and no one on, pitching around an error and a single to get us the out we needed without breaking the tie. We left two more runners stranded in scoring position in the top of the ninth, still unable to break the stalemate, so Tom Gorman came out to pitch in the bottom of the inning, getting three quick outs to send us into extras for the second day in a row. With two outs in the top of the 10th inning, Metkovich hit one over the lead of the third baseman and into left field, driving in the go-ahead run! Bobby Shantz came in to protect the lead, but Chicago walked it off with one out, a two-run homer by Minnie Minoso giving the Sox a 3-2 win.

Pizarro did well once again, lasting 6.2 innings with four hits, three walks, four strikeouts and just one earned run as his ERA improved to 2.42. The bullpen did well to keep us in this game, but Shantz just had bad luck with that gopher ball over the wall in center. We outhit them 9-6 and did everything we could to win this one except actually win it. Metkovich continues to shine in the leadoff spot, hitting three times and walking once, scoring a run and driving in two more. He’s hitting .359/.469/.564 through ten games with five doubles, a homer and three RBIs, and he already has a +3.4 zone rating in center field.

April 28, 1956: Carl Erskine (1-1, 3.00 ERA, 18.0 IP, 8 K’s, 1.67 WHIP) pitched against Chicago’s Connie Johnson (1-0, 1.29 ERA, 14.0 IP, 7 K’s, 1.36 WHIP). In the top of the fifth inning we finally broke through the early stalemate, Jim Finigan driving in a pair with a single into right field to put us up 2-0! Astroth singled to drive in a third run, and we went into the bottom of the inning leading 3-0. Erskine was in great form today, but Chicago got back into the game with a two-run homer by Larry Doby with one out in the bottom of the second, just their second hit of the entire game. We went into the top of the eighth leading by a run and were unable to add any insurance, but Erskine remained at the top of his game, getting us through the rest of the eighth safely as well. Bobby Shantz came out to pitch in the bottom of the ninth, still leading by a run and, eager to put last night behind him, he got a quick out only to then allow a solo homer by Bob Nieman to tie it up ... two blown saves in two nights. He got us through the inning, but this one was headed ... once again .. for extra innings, the third game in a row to have this happen. We retook the lead in the top of the tenth with a two-out RBI triple by Metkovich, and an RBI single by Harry Walker drove in a second run. Bobby Shantz stayed out to pitch in the bottom of the inning and got three quick outs to get us through with the 5-3 victory to keep us at .500 heading into tomorrow’s doubleheader.

Carl Erskine gave us eight innings with just three hits, three walks and two earned runs, striking out a pair, while Shantz put in two innings with one hit, one strikeout and one earned run ... though he blew the save, he got the win, so he’s now 1-1 with two saves and a 6.00 ERA through six innings. We outhit the White Sox 15-4, so we’re glad to get out of there with the win. Finigan led the way with three hits, a run and two RBIs, while Walker, Astroth, O’Connell and DeMaestri each hit twice.

April 29, 1956: We’ve made a trade in an attempt to add a third legitimate pitcher to our rotation. The Philadelphia Phillies are sending us legendary veteran pitcher Johnny Sain, age 38, and they’re retaining 70 percent of his $57,200 conract, in exchange for Zeke Bella, our rule 5 pickup from back in December. Normally I hate to give up a young player like Bella for a guy as old as Sain, but even at 38 the man has incredible control of his pitches, and that’s something we desperately need if we’re going to avoid falling to the bottom of the league. So after discussions with ownership, we agreed it’s a move that needs to be made. Trigger, pulled. We executed the deal yesterday afternoon and Sain got on a bus west immediately so he could be available for the second game of today’s doubleheader in Chicago.

Arnie Portocarrero (0-2, 6.10 ERA, 10.1 IP, 4 K’s, 1.55 WHIP) started for us in the first game of the afternoon, facing Chicago’s Dick Donovan (1-0, 0.00 ERA, 8.2 IP, 1 K, 1.04 WHIP). Portocarrero is an extremely hard worker, but the 24-year-old has been frequently outmatched when he faces the best pitchers in the league ... but he did well for us early, keeping us in a deadlocked battle with the White Sox. He just didn’t benefit from the fact that our bats couldn’t get anyone around to score. He got into a groove and we went into the top of the eighth still knotted up with no score, and pitching efficiently he was able to make it through the eighth inning as well. Bob Boyd hit a single in the bottom of the ninth and we brought out Gorman, no outs, to try and get this one into extras. He walked Minnie Minoso but got Nieman to pop out to Astroth for the second out, and Larry Doby popped out to left. Four games in a row, all going into extra innings ... bring it on!

Dick Kryhoski led off in the top of the 11th by pinch-hitting for Gorman, and he picked up a double to give us a real chance! Catfish Metkovich hit one down the left line for a groundout to first, but advanced Kryhoski to within 90 feet of home. Harry Walker hit what should have been a sac-fly to deep right, but for some reason Kryhoski held his base ... he needs to work on his baserunning instincts. But Vic Power singled into left and DID finally drive him home, and we took a 1-0 lead into the bottom of the inning! Moe Drabowsky came out to pitch ... Nellie Fox hit a single into right, but Minnie Minoso struck out swinging. Bob Nieman hit a single into center that drove Fox into third, and a sac-fly into center gave us two outs, but drove in the tying run, so this game was headed for more innings. Sonny Dixon came out to pitch in the bottom of the 12th, still tied up 1-1, getting the outs we needed to keep the game going, even if maybe we’d be better off not doing so with a whole new game still waiting to be played today. Pete Suder pinch-hit for Dixon to lead off the top of the 13th, singling into right to take first, and Metkovich grounded out to first, driving him into scoring position. Vic Power hit an RBI single to give us the lead, and Al Gettel came out to pitch with Shantz warming up in the pen. Gettel got two quick outs and then Nieman hit a single into right, taking first ... but Larry Doby flew out to left and we won it 2-1 in the 13th inning!

Arnie Portocarrero gave us eight innings with just three hits, a walk and a pair of strikeouts, throwing 83 pitches in his best start of the season. Drabowsky blew his first save of his career in the 11th inning, but only allowed a hit, a walk, a strikeout and the single earned run, giving him a 2.16 ERA through 8.1 innings of work, so he’s doing fine as a rookie. Sonny Dixon took the win, improving to 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA, allowing just one hit, and Al Gettel got the save, allowing one hit and bringing his ERA down to 3.00 through six innings.

After three and a half hours and 13 innings of baseball, we came back out ready to see if we could keep it going in a second game, with Johnny Sain ready to make his debut for us. He played one game earlier in the season for Philly, going 0-0 with a 2.57 ERA in seven innings, striking out four for a 1.29 WHIP. Chicago brought out Bob Rush (0-0, 5.79 ERA, 4.2 IP, 4 K’s, 1.93 WHIP), so matchup-wise it at least looks good for us to be able to stay in this one and compete to win the series. In the bottom of the fourth Sain pitched around a leadoff triple by Bob Nieman to keep the game scoreless ... he’s still got it! But we were stuck in another pitching duel, exactly what we didn’t need. Chicago took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the sixth, when Nieman (who hit a single with two outs) took second on an E1 pick-off error and then came around to score off an RBI single by Doby. Bob Wilson had to come out of the game with a finger blister, and Catfish Metkovich came in to replace him in center field. That’s when Sain gave up a two-run homer to Earl Battey, and this one started to get away from us. Sain got us out of the inning, but we trailed 3-0 heading into the top of the seventh. Al Gettel came out to pitch in the bottom of the seventh and he got us through the eighth, coming up to hit in the top of the ninth trailing by three runs. There was no rally this time and we lost 3-0, getting out of Chicago with a split series and a 7-7 record.

Johnny Sain took the loss, falling to 0-1 with a 3.46 ERA, lasting six innings with five hits, a walk, two strikeouts and three earned runs. Gettel then handled the remainder, allowing a hit and a walk while improving his ERA to 2.25 through eight innings work. Each team hit six times, ours being led by O’Connell who hit three times, George Wilson hitting twice -- but neither got anywhere.

We’ve got the day off for travel, and will start the month of May at Fenway ... this coming week we have two games against the Red Sox (6-7), three against the Yankees (8-4) and then a doubleheader on Sunday against the Senators (6-8) in Washington to start a three-game series. We then play three against Baltimore (7-8) and a four-game weekend series against Cleveland (6-6) the following week before we finally get to go back home to Kansas City.It’s a tough stretch, but we’ve handled ourselves well despite being frequently overmatched. I think we can do well if we stay focused on our goals. Right now the Yankees are the only team in the AL with a winning record, and we’re only two games out of first despite sitting in fifth place.

jksander · 09-02-2024, 04:03 PM

May 1, 1956: Juan Pizarro (2-1, 2.42 ERA, 26.0 IP, 19 K’s, 0.88 WHIP) has been red hot, and he’s getting his first Fenway Park experience today against Boston’s Ike Delock (1-0, 2.02 ERA, 13.1 IP, 6 K’s, 1.27 WHIP). He’s had quality starts in each of his first four games in the majors. The big question would be whether he’d get any run support or not. In the bottom of the first Jackie Jenson hit a solo homer over the Green Monster to put the Sox up 1-0, but Pizarro wound up getting our first hit of the game, beating out an infield blooper to take first with two outs in the top of the third -- too bad we couldn’t string more together. Ted Williams hit a home run out of right in the bottom of the fourth to give Boston a 2-0 lead, but Pizarro got out of a bases loaded jam to get out without the game getting too far out of hand. Problem was, our bats just weren’t hacking it ... which put a lot of pressure on the young hurler’s shoulders. Boston added on with an RBI single by Willie Jones in the bottom of the fifth, and we brought Bob Spicer out with the score 3-0 in the bottom of the sixth. It did not go well from there. Spicer got shellacked, giving up five runs in the sixth, and Ditmar gave up a pair in the eighth. We got a mercy run to avoid the shutout in the top of the ninth but lost this one badly 10-1.

Pizarro took the loss and fell to 2-2 with a 2.90 ERA, allowing seven hits and three earned runs with a walk and three strikeouts, but it was Spicer who did the most damage -- he lasted one inning and allowed five earned runs off five hits and three walks, with one strikeout, and his ERA exploded to 8.49. Ditmar’s improved slightly to 12.00, with three hits, three walks and two earned runs in two innings. Spicer’s rookie season last year may have truly been a fluke, he’s shown nothing of his spark from last year -- and Ditmar’s not been much better. But we got outhit 15-3, and no pitchers are going to look good against that kind of beating. Astroth batted in our only run, Pafko scoring it after being hit by a pitch.

May 2, 1956: Carl Erskine (1-1, 2.77 ERA, 26.0 IP, 10 K’s, 1.38 WHIP) pitched against Boston’s Frank Baumann (1-1, 6.60 ERA, 15.0 IP, 5 K’s, 1.53 WHIP). In the bottom of the third they took the lead 1-0 off a homer by Jenson, which, like the one yesterday, went clear over the Monster in left. Williams went yard immediately thereafter to make it 2-0, and heading into the fourth inning you had to wonder if that might be all they’d need, the way we (haven’t) been hitting so far this year. They added on in the bottom of the fourth with ANOTHER homer over the Monster, this time a two-run blast by leadoff man Jim Piersall, and it became clear that Erskine simply didn’t have the right stuff for today’s game. He had two outs when Ted Williams doubled in another run, and though he got the final out to get us into the fifth, we were now in a 5-0 hole. Tom Gorman replaced him to start the bottom of the fifth, still trailing by five, and in the bottom of the seventh he gave up a pair to extend the lead for Boston. Al Gettel came out in the eighth to finish the game for us, giving up three more as we got shelled again 10-0. We keep showing signs of improvement and then a two-game series like this come around to slap us back into reality ... and then we get three games in New York. Fun times.

Erskine fell to 1-2 with a brutal four-inning effort, allowing nine hits and five earned runs with a walk and two strikeouts. Gorman lasted three innings with a hit, a walk, two strikeouts and a pair of earned runs, giving him a 3.46 ERA, while Gettel allowed four hits and three earned uns with a strikeout in his inning, blowing his ERA up to 5.00. We were outhit 14-1, Metkovich the only baserunner we had all day, as Baumann missed out on a perfect game by the skin of his teeth ... one hit and eight strikeouts for him in his complete game.

May 3, 1956: We’ve sent Spicer back down to AAA and called up Bill Harrington, who has a 4-1 record and 1.62 ERA with two saves in 16.2 AAA innings this season. We’ve also put in a waiver claim on Vic Raschi, of the Brooklyn Dodgers ... the 37-year old, like Sain, has great movement and control, and he has the endurance to be a good back-end starter even at his age. He played two games this year in long relief for the Dodgers and has a 4.50 ERA through eight innings with a 1.38 WHIP, though he never got a decision. If no one else claimed him he should join us tomorrow.

Today against the Yankees in our first game facing them this season, Johnny Sain (0-1, 3.46 ERA, 13.0 IP, 6 K’s, 1.15 WHIP) started against Don Larsen (1-1, 7.15 ERA, 11.1 IP, 6 K’s, 1.76 WHIP). New York took the lead in the bottom of the first off a sac-fly by Mantle, but Finigan answered with a lead-off solo homer in the top of the second, a 481-foot bomb out of center, to tie it back up. That was his first homer of the year! Woodie Held hit a two-run blast out of center for the Yankees in the bottom of the third to put them back up 3-1, and Andy Carey hit a two-run blast over the short porch in right to make it a 5-1 game before Sain could get us out of that third inning. Pafko hit a solo homer for us into right to cut the lead to three runs, and Danny O’Connell pulled one to right field as well, driving in two more, sending us into the bottom of the fourth trailing just by a 5-4 margin and still in this one. We brought Art Ditmar out to pitch with one out and a man on, with McDougald about to bat for the third time, and he got him to ground into a fielder’s choice, with Mantle striking out swinging to get us into the fifth. New York got a run back in the bottom of the fifth thanks to an RBI single by Carey, and we brought Bill Harrington out to pitch with two outs and men on first and second, the Yankees adding on a run before we got the third out, giving them a 7-4 lead again with us coming up to hit in the sixth. Moe Drabowsky came out to pitch in the bottom of the seventh, still trailing by three, and he got us into the top of the ninth without any further scoring explosions. Astroth then led off with a triple, and Danny O’Connell batted him in with ANOTHER triple, cutting the lead to two and giving us our first real momentum since the middle innings! O’Connell scored on a wild pitch to cut the Yankees’ lead to a single run, and with one out Kryhoski (pinch-hitting for Drabowsky) beat out an infield squib to take first. But that was all the gas we had left, and the Yankees got out of here with a 6-5 win despite the attempted rally.

Johnny Sain struggled today, allowing eight hits and five earned runs in 3.1 innings, no walks, no strikeouts. But if Ditmar hadn’t given up two earned runs off two hits in his 1.1 innings, we would have still had a chance. Harrington went 1.1 innings with just one hit, and Drabowsky had two innings without a single baserunner, giving him a 1.74 ERA through seven appearances and 10.1 innings. New York outhit us 11-9 ... we were led by Danny O’Connell, who hit twice with two runs and three RBIs, whle Finigan added two hits, two runs and an RBI.

Our claim of Vic Raschi went through, and Ditmar’s going back down to AAA to make room for him. Walt Craddock is heading into the bullpen, and Raschi will become our number five starter behind Portocarrero.

May 4, 1956: Juan Pizarro (2-2, 2.90 ERA, 31.0 IP, 22 K’s, 1.00 WHIP) started today, facing Vinegar Bend Mizell (3-0, 0.35 ERA, 26.0 IP, 13 K’s, 1.50 WHIP) who has only given up two runs all year, though he has allowed six or more hits in every game while walking 19 batters, so he’s shown at least a tiny bit of weakness ... or that’s what I told myself before the game to give us a sliver of hope. In the top of the second inning, Danny O’Connell hit a one-out triple, but we weren’t able to bring him in to score. Pizarro hit a rough patch in the bottom of the fourth, walking Berra and Skowron back to back to load the bases, bringing up Andy Carey with just one out. Carey popped out to center, driving in a run, but Elston Howard grounded into a fielder’s choice and we went into the top of the fifth just trailing by a run. The Yankees added on with an RBI single by Hank Bauer in the bottom of the fifth, and we brought Pete Suder in to pinch-hit for Pizarro in the top of the sixth ... he singled into center to take his base, and Catfish Metkovich hit into center as well, driving Suder over to third without an out. Vic Power hit a grounder through the gap to drive in a run, and Pafko hit an RBI double to tie it up, sending us into the bottom of the inning knotted up 2-2 with Tom Gorman coming out to pitch. He got through the sixth and had two outs in the seventh when Yogi Berra hit a bases-loaded single to drive in two. Walt Craddock came out to pitch in the bottom of the eighth, trailing by two, and Andy Carey hit a homer to ice it for the Yankees ... we went into the top of the ninth trailing by three and Mizell, though he did walk us twice, closed out the game without any real threat as they beat us 5-2.

Mizell allowed six hits and walked us three times, but he only gave up two earned runs ... once we blew the tie in the seventh any real hope was over, there was no way he was giving up that many runs. Pizarro did his best, allowing just four hits and two earned runs through five innings with three walks and three strikeouts, but it was Gorman who wound up with the loss ... one hit, three walks and two earned runs through two innings giving him an 0-1 record and a 4.20 ERA through 15 innings. We hit six times as well, led by Vic Power with two hits and an RBI, while Metkovich added a hit, a walk and a run scored.

We head into tomorrow’s game on a five-game skid since our last win, which came in our fourth overtime game in a row back on April 29. We’re now in last place in the league, tied with Washington at 7-11. The Yankees, meanwhile, now have an 11-5 record and a game and a half lead on the Boston Red Sox for the AL pennant lead.

May 5, 1956: Carl Erskine (1-2, 3.90 ERA, 30.0 IP, 12 K’s, 1.53 WHIP) pitched our final game against the Yankees of this series, facing Gene Conley (0-1, 2.70 ERA, 16.2 IP, 9 K’s, 1.02 WHIP). Vic Power hit a two-run blast out of left to put us up 2-0 in the top of the first, and Erskine worked his ass off trying to hold it the rest of the way. Bob Cerv hit an RBI triple to get the Yankees on the board in the bottom of the seventh, but Erskine got out of it with Cerv stranded on third, our one-run lead still safe, and Henry Walker hit an RBI single with two outs in the top of the eighth to get us the run back. Moe Drabowsky came out to pitch in the bottom of the eighth, and with one out the Yankees got back within a run with an RBI single by Enos Slaughter, and the tying run came in with an RBI single by Yogi Berra. With the bullpen warming up, Drabowsky’s rough stretch continued with an RBI single by Elston Howard, and just like that we were in a one-run hole. Sonny Dixon came in with one out and men on first and second, and he got us out of the inning without further damage, but now we HAD to find a way to score in the top of the ninth or it was all over. With two outs, Astroth and O’Connell walked, and we brought Pete Suder in to pinch-hit for DeMaestri ... he got a good read on the ball, but his flyball into left was caught easily and we lost yet another close game 4-3.

Drabowsky blew the save, his second of the year, and took the loss, his first, allowing five hits and three runs against just one out ... his first bad outing, and it blows his ERA up to 4.22. Dixon stayed perfect by getting the final two outs, but we were outhit 11-6, a close game destroyed by one rough inning. Harry Walker led the way with three hits, a run and an RBI, while Power’s homer gave us the two-run lead we had hoped to hold onto.

We’ll take our six-loss streak onward to Washington, where we’ve got a doubleheader against the 7-12 Senators ... by the end of the three-game series over the next two days, we’ll know for sure who the worst team is, for now, in the AL.

May 6, 1956: Arnie Portocarrero (0-2, 3.44 ERA, 18.1 IP, 6 K’s, 1.09 WHIP) pitched out first game of the doubleheader, facing off against Washington’s Bill Kennedy (0-1, 7.88 ERA, 14.0 IP, 13 K’s, 1.69 WHIP). Washington drew first blood, scoring off an RBI single by Mickey Vernon to take the lead in the bottom of the third. We tied it up with an RBI double by Joe Astroth in the top of the fourth, but in the bottom of the inning they got it back with a single by Jim Busby to go up 2-1 heading into the fifth. Jim Finigan hit an RBI double to tie it up in the top of the sixth, no outs, and with two outs Pete Suder came in to pinch hit for Portocarrero, getting a great shot into center that drove in the go-ahead run! Catfish Metkovich hit an RBI single to add to the lead, and Tom Gorman came out to pitch in the bottom of the inning with a 4-2 lead to protect. Gorman loaded the bases but got out of the inning with no runs against us, and he got us through the seventh as well, though an RBI triple by Roy Sievers cut our lead down to one. No matter ... he got us through the eighth as well, holding the lead as we came up to hit in the top of the ninth with Shantz warming up in the bullpen. Henry Walker led off with an infield single, but we weren’t able to hit any insurance runs so it was up to Shantz to come in and finish the game off. But he completely choked ... there’s no way around it ... Gorman had thrown 45 pitches through three innings to hold the lead, and it took four batters for Shantz to s--- the win away ... Pete Runnels hit a single, an error allowed Mickey Vernon to take first and push Runnels to second, Roy Sievers hit a run-scoring double, and then Jim Lemon kicked us in the balls with a three-run homer. We lost this one 7-4 and fell to 7-13 on the season.

It hasn’t been a good start to the season for Bobby Shantz ... this was his third blown save, and he’s now 1-2 with a 10.50 ERA. Six games and six innings is a small sample size, for sure, but he’s not looking anything like the guy who just last season saved 32 games with a 2.43 ERA. It’s a shame, because we’d played well leading up to his disasterous ninth inning, with Portocarrero lasting five innings with four hits, three walks, two strikeouts and two earned runs, and Gorman had a three-inning hold with just three hits, two walks and an earned run. We also outhit Washington 11-10, led by Andy Pafko with three hits and two runs scored, while Walker added a pair of hits and a walk, though he didn’t manage to score.

The second game of the doubleheader was postponed due to a line of thunderstorms that stalled and dumped a ton of rain on our nation’s capital. So we’ll end up playing two tomorrow instead. That will be the start of another long week -- the doubleheader, followed by three against Baltimore (10-12) and four in three days against the Guardians (8-10).

jksander · 09-03-2024, 04:41 PM

May 7, 1956: Vic Raschi (0-0, 4.50 ERA, 8.0 IP, 5 K’s, 1.38 WHIP) made his first start for us since the waiver wire pickup, going up against Camilo Pascual (1-3, 3.86 ERA, 30.1 IP, 22 K’s, 1.42 WHIP) in the day’s first game. We took the lead in the top of the first with an RBI triple by Finigan that drove in a pair, and in the top of the third Finigan hit into a fielder’s choice that allowed a third run to score. In the top of the fifth, Astroth hit an RBI single to extend the lead to four runs, and in the top of the sixth Metkovich scored off an RBI double by Vic Power as this one looked like it might turn into a total rout. A groundout by Pafko in the top of the eighth added another run to the lead, and with the bases loaded against us in the bottom of the inning a 5-2-3 double play got Raschi out of his only real jam of the afternoon to hold the shutout. He stayed out for the final frame and we were able to get out of game one with a surprising 6-0 win!

Raschi, right out of the gate, proved to be a Godsend from the mound ... though he allowed 10 hits, he only walked a pair, striking out one and completing the shutout. We outhit the Senators 12-10, led by Vic Power with four hits, two runs and an RBI, and by Metkovich, who hit twice and walked once, scoring three times.

Johnny Sain (0-2, 5.51 ERA, 16.1 IP, 6 K’s, 1.41 WHIP) pitched the second half of the doubleheader, facing Chuck Stubbs (0-3, 5.66 ERA, 20.2 IP, 12 K’s, 2.23 WHIP). The Senators decided to live dangerously, letting us load the bases in the top of the first and the second ... and it was with two outs in the top of the second that we took the lead, Vic Power batting in two with a single, trailing the runners to take second. Finigan walked the bases loaded again, but we had to settle for a 2-0 lead as O’Connell popped out to third. We’re gonna wish we’d run the score up, because in the bottom of the inning Sain got into his own batch of trouble, Bruce Edwards batting in a run with no outs, pushing Jim Lemon over to third, and the tying run came in off a wild pitch. They took the lead with a single by Carlos Paula. With just 26 pitches thrown, Sain was in absolute freefall ... with runners on the corners and still no outs, we had to start warming Walt Craddock, as we hoped Sain would settle down and we wouldn’t have to pull him so quickly. It didn’t happen ... in the amount of time it took to warm up Craddock’s arm, Sain had time to get the rest of his outs, but the Senators had taken a 6-2 lead in the process. Craddock took over in the bottom of the third, and in the top of the sixth we got our mojo back ... Bill Wilson hit a two-run homer and, if you can believe it, Craddock hit a solo homer of his own ... just like that we were back within a run! He struck out three batters around a single by Jose Valdivielso to get through the bottom of the sixth, and Moe Drabowsky came in to relieve him after the stretch. He got us into the top of the ninth still trailing by a run, and Harry Walker hit a towering homer over the giant wall in right field to tie it up as the leadoff hitter! Drabowsky stayed out for the bottom of the inning and, striking out Pete Runnels, got us into extra innings for our sixth time this season still knotted up 6-6!

With two outs and a runner on first, Pete Suder pinch-hit for Drabowsky in the top of the 10th, hitting a line drive to right that advanced the runner, George Wilson, into scoring position, but we couldn’t get him in to score. Al Gettel came in to pitch in the bottom of the inning ... and though he loaded the bases, we were able to get out of it without a run scoring! Sonny Dixon came out to pitch in the bottom of the 11th, and Bill Harrington replaced him in the bottom of the 13th, and still we played on, nobody able to break the tie! Finally, with two outs in the top of the 15th inning, Catfish Metkovich hit one HARD, and it went over the wall in center as a two-run homer, giving us the lead at long last! Bobby Shantz came out to pitch in the bottom of the inning and he pitched around a single by Ken Aspromonte to get the outs we needed to win this one 8-6!

Johnny Sain had a rough start, going just two innings with eight hits and six earned runs, no walks and no strikes. But our bullpen then came out and gave us 13 innings with five hits, six walks, six strikeouts and NO EARNED RUNS, to get us out of there with a win! Craddock went four innings and Drabowsky went three, but it was Harrington (our sixth pitcher of the night) who got the win, improving to 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA in just his second appearance of the season. Shantz then saved his third game, though his ERA remains at 9.00 due to his last few outings. We outhit the Senators 14-13, led by Metkovich with a hit, two walks and the game-winning homer. Walker had two hits, a run and an RBI, and George Wilson added two hits, a walk and two runs on the ground.

The win gives us a one-game lead on the Senators in the standings, so we’re no longer in last place ... more importantly, we’re now on a two-game winning streak, and we’re just half a game back of Baltimore (10-13), the team we have three games up against next.

May 8, 1956: Juan Pizarro (2-2, 3.00 ERA, 36.0 IP, 25 K’s, 1.06 WHIP) will start our first game against Baltimore, facing Ruben Gomez (1-2, 4.55 ERA, 29.2 IP, 8 K’s, 1.38 WHIP). Baltimore took the lead in the bottom of the first with a two-out RBI single by Vern Stephens, which was unfortunate because our batters were getting absolutely nothing to hit off Gomez. Pizarro pitched as well as ever, but without even the most meager run support there’s little a pitcher can do. He got us through the sixth inning still trailing by the one run, but Gomez was unhittable ... seven innings gave us two walks and no hits, so Pizarro stayed out after the stretch and got us through one more without a baserunner. Finally in the top of the eight we got our first hit, a single by Astroth into right field, but Pete Suder hit into a double play to squelch our shot. Pizarro got through the eighth inning without any further scoring, and we came up in the ninth owing him our best shot ... Danny O’Connell came in to pinch hit for him, but he hit to the shortstop for an easy out at first. But Catfish Metkovich got a shot into right and managed to turn into a double ... our first runner in scoring position all night! Jim Finigan came in to pinch hit for DeMaestri, grounding out to first but pushing Metkovich to within 90 feet of the promised land. But Vic Power popped out to center, and we took a 1-0 loss, our offense completely failing on every level.

Pizarro pitched his first complete game, going eight innings with just five hits, a walk, four strikeouts and an earned run. But it was a duel all night and we got outhit 5-2, so even though all we needed was a single run, that was too much to ask. Metkovich tried ... he had a hit and a walk, but in the end Pizarro had to take the “L” and fell to 2-3 with a stellar 2.66 ERA.

May 9, 1956: We have hired a new hitting coach, Nick Williams, a temperamental fellow who I’m hoping can help shake things up and spur our offense to actually put up some runs. He’s got good relationships with Catfish Metkovich, Andy Pafko, Joe DeMaestri, Danny O’Connell and Joe Astroth in particular, and he has 18 years’ experience, so we’re certainly hopeful.

For today’s game against Baltimore we started Carl Erskine (1-2, 3.41 ERA, 37.0 IP, 15 K’s, 1.46 WHIP) against Jim McDonald (3-1, 2.03 ERA, 31.0 IP, 15 K’s, 1.16 WHIP). The Orioles took the lead in the bottom of the second with a Wayne Causey RBI single, but this time around we were getting hits but not when anyone was in scoring position. Bob Hale batted in a run with a single to put them up 2-0 in the bottom of the third, but we finally got on the board in the top of the sixth with an RBI single by Pafko, and George Wilson hit a triple that drove in two more to push us into the lead! In the bottom of the sixth they tied it up with a solo homer by Hoot Evers, and with one out and a man on second in the bottom of the seventh we brought out Sonny Dixon, who managed to get us out of the inning despite loading the bases, still tied 3-3. Catfish Metkovich came in to replace Bill Wilson at center field, hitting a line drive into left for a single in the leadoff spot, but Joe Astroth, pinch-hitting for Dixon, hit into a fielder’s choice, taking first on an attempted bunt. Harry Walker hit an infield single to drive Astroth into scoring position, but neither O’Connell or Power could get him home. Moe Drabowsky came out to pitch in the bottom of the ninth, getting a strikeout but then allowing back to back doubles as the Orioles walked it off and beat us 4-3.

Erskine lasted 6.1 innings with seven hits, a walk, a strikeout and three earned runs, and Dixon kept his ERA perfect with two innings and just two hits and a walk. But Drabowsky fell to 0-2 and his ERA dropped to 3.86, allowing two hits and the earned run. We matched them 11-11 on hits, led by George Wilson with three hits and two RBIs, while Pafko added two hits, a run and an RBI. The loss knocks us down to 9-15 and into last place in the AL, and at this point I’m just hoping our owner is willing to give me the time to continue this build.

May 10, 1956: Arnie Portocarrero (0-2, 3.47 ERA, 23.1 IP, 8 K’s, 1.16 WHIP) started against Bob Kuzava (0-3, 7.18 ERA, 31.1 IP, 18 K’s, 1.88 WHIP). This time we got out to a quick start, with Harry Walker batting Catfish Metkovich in with an RBI single in the top of the first, after which we loaded the bases, one out. Joe Astroth hit one up the gap into center field, driving in a pair, and we went into the bottom of the inning leading by a 3-0 margin. Portocarrero led off with a single in the top of the second, but we weren’t able to add on. Baltimore got on the board in the bottom of the third with an RBI single by Chuck Diering, and a single by Vern Stephens got them a second run, sending us into the top of the fourth now leading just 3-2. In the bottom of the fifth they tied it up with a single by Vern Stephens, who injured himself sliding into second as a trailing runner ... he’s out of the game. His pinch-runner got greedy off a hit into right by Charlie Maxwell and was tagged out at home to get us out of the inning, but yet again we needed our offense to step up, the three-run lead completely evaporated. They took the lead in the bottom of the sixth off a triple by Bob Kennedy, and though Portocarrero got us through the rest of the inning, his night was over. We loaded the bases in the top of the seventh with two outs, and Pete Suder, pinch-hitting for Portocarrero, got a hit into left that he turned into a magnificent double, scoring three runs and at least giving Arnie a shot at a win.

Al Gettel came out to pitch in the bottom of the inning, and he had two outs around a base hit, but two errors in a row led to a run scoring ... 10 pitches and we had two runners in scoring position. Tom Gorman came out to handle the high leverage situation, and instead of getting out number three, a line drive went into left and Johnny Pesky had batted in the tying run. We wee spared by the fact that the runner on second got tagged out at home plate, but again we were knotted at 6-6, Gorman tagged with the blown save. Gorman got two outs in the bottom of the eighth and then gave up a huge homer to Charley Lau to put Baltimore up by a run. We went down quietly, three up, three down in the top of the ninth as we lost yet another game that we should have won, 7-6.

Portocarrero took it hard ... he gave us six innings with 10 hits, a walk and four strikeouts, giving up four earned runs but still had a chance to get out of here with a win. Instead, Gettel held it with two outs and then Gorman went 1.1 innings and two hits, giving up the one earned run for the blown save and the loss ... he’s now 0-2 with a 4.19 ERA through 19.1 innings. We were outhit 12-10, led by Suder (who pinch hit for a hit and three RBIs) and by Metkovich who had two hits and a run scored.

We’ll take our 9-16 record and three-game losing streak into Cleveland (11-11) for four games in three days this weekend. That should be fun!

May 11, 1956: Vic Raschi (1-0, 2.12 ERA, 17.0 IP, 6 K’s, 1.35 WHIP) pitched against Cleveland’s Don Mossi (2-1, 2.73 ERA, 26.1 IP, 12 K’s, 1.52 WHIP). George Wilson hit a homer out of left in the top of the third to put us up 1-0, his second homer this season. Joe Finigan loaded the bases for us with a single, no outs in the top of the fourth, and Danny O’Connell took advantage, delivering a two-run double to extend our lead, and Kryhoski hit a three-run homer out of left to run it up ... good, we need it! So Vic Raschi had a six-run lead when he came out to pitch in the bottom of the fourth ... would that be enough? Raschi got us through the seventh unblemished, but he stayed out for one batter too many, giving up a solo homer to Bobby Avila to blow the shutout. Walt Craddock came out with no outs and no one on, and with two outs Stan Lopata hit an RBI single into right, scoring a second run ... with loaded bases, he managed to get us out of the inning with a pop-out to left by Sam Dente, still leading 6-2. Craddock gave up back to back hits in the bottom of the ninth to put runners on the corners, no outs, so Moe Drabowsky had to come out and try to shut this down. Al Smith popped out to left and George Crowe held at third. Al Rosen struck out swinging, that’s out number two! Roger Maris walked to load the bases, and then Gordy Coleman got a line drive into right to drive in their third run, still two outs. But Stan Lopata popped out harmlessly to first and we got out of there with a hard-fought 6-3 victory.

Vic Raschi improved his record to 2-0 with a 1.88 ERA, lasting seven innings with three hits, four walks, four strikeouts and one earned run. He then had to watch and pray we wouldn’t piss the lead away ... Craddock allowed four hits with two walks and a strikeout to go with two earned runs in his inning, but Drabowsky saved the game, his first of the year, with just a hit and a walk .. a really solid effort for the rookie reliever. We matched them 8-8 for hits, led by Finigan who hit three times and scored a run, while Dick Kryhoski added two hits, a run and three RBIs and George Wilson hit twice with a run and an RBI.

May 12, 1956: Juan Pizarro (2-3, 2.66 ERA, 44.0 IP, 29 K’s, 1.00 WHIP) got the start today against Cleveland’s young phenom Herb Score (3-1, 4.63 ERA, 35.0 IP, 34 K’s, 1.57 WHIP). Cleveland blew him up in the bottom of the third thanks to a three-run homer by Stan Lopata, and for the first time all year he didn’t make it out of the fifth inning. Trailing 5-0, Bill Harrington came in to pitch with one out and a man on first, and he stayed out the remainder of the game without surrendering a run. Too bad our boys never got on the board as we lost by the same 5-0 margin, despite only being outhit 5-4.

Pizarro fell to 2-4 with a 3.35 ERA, lasting 4.1 innings with four hits, five walks, two strikeouts and five earned runs. Harrington then held his own for 3.2 innings and had a walk, two strikeouts and not a single hit against him, keeping his ERA at zero through seven innings this season. Seven of our players made it on base, but nobody did it twice and we only had two players in scoring postion the entire game.

May 13, 1956: Time for a doubleheader ... Carl Erskine (1-2, 3.53 ERA, 43.1 IP, 16 K’s, 1.43 WHIP) pitched in game one against Cleveland’s Tom Cheney (1-1, 4.35 ERA, 20.2 IP, 21 K’s, 1.31 WHIP). We took the lead in the top of the second with an RBI double by Harry Walker which drove in a pair, but Cleveland answered quickly in the bottom of the inning with an RBI double by Allan Meyer that scored two to tie it up. They took the lead in the bottom of the fifth as George Crowe walked in the go-ahead run, they added another pair in the bottom of the sixth, and we never recovered. Cleveland took the first game with relative ease, winning 6-4.

Erskine fell to 1-3 with a 3.83 ERA, lasting six innings with seven hits, eight walks, two strikeouts and five runs (four earned). Tom Gorman came out for the rest, lasting two innings with two hits, a walk, a strikeout and an earned run, and we lost despite outhitting our opponent 11-9. Harry Walker led the way with two hits, a run and two RBIs, while Joe DeMaestri added two hits, a walk and a run. Unfortunately, Harry Walker suffered a hamstring injury, and will have to miss at least the next four weeks of action. We’ve added him to the 15-day IL and have called up 23-year-old AAA right fielder Thomas Paddock who will take over in right field while he’s recovering.

Johnny Sain (0-2, 7.85 ERA, 18.1 IP, 6 K’s, 1.69 WHIP) started game two, facing Early Wynn (2-1, 3.69 ERA, 31.2 IP, 12 K’s, 1.23 WHIP). Andy Pafko hit a single that, thanks to an E8 throwing error, allowed Danny O’Connell to score and give us a 1-0 lead in the top of the first, but a two-run homer by Rocky Colavito put the Guardians in the lead in the bottom of the inning. They added a run in the bottom of the sixth thanks to an RBI single by Harry Simpson, and Sonny Dixon came out to pitch with two outs and men on the corners, another run scoring before we could get out of the inning. We tried to make a comeback, but despite a sac-fly by Finigan which scored a run in the eighth, and a solo homer by Thomas Paddock in the top of the ninth, we came up short and lost this one 4-3.

Johnny Sain fell to 0-3 with a 7.50 ERA, allowing four hits, four walks, four strikeouts and four earned runs in his 5.2 innings, while Sonny Dixon held tough through 2.1 innings to still give us a fighting chance -- he allowed four hits and nothing else, his ERA remaining at zero through 10.1 innings. Again we outhit them 9-8, and yet we couldn’t make up the ground we lost early on. Pafko led the way with two hits and an RBI, while Paddock had two hits, a run and an RBI thanks to his homer in his major-league debut.

We’re off tomorrow and then return to Kansas City for a stretch of nine games, no doubleheaders involved. We’ll face Baltimore (14-16) for two, Boston (14-12) for three, New York (18-9) for two and Washington (12-16) for two before hitting the road for a three-game set in Detroit (14-12). Already we’re nine games under .500, and though we’ve played a ton on the road, that’s not an excuse ... we’re just not a very well balanced team yet, and our starting pitching is a real liability. We’re leading the AL in extra base hits, and we’re second in the league in hits, but we’re not stringing them together, and our pitchers are giving up so many runs we just can’t keep up. At least our defensive efficiency remains solid, or we’d be in much worse position than we are.

jksander · 09-03-2024, 06:54 PM

May 15, 1956: We’ve played 22 of our first 29 games on the road, and will play 13 of our next 16 at home. Tonight Vic Raschi (2-0, 1.88 ERA, 24.0 IP, 10 K’s, 1.25 WHIP) pitched against Jim McDonald (3-1, 1.69 ERA, 37.1 IP, 18 K’s, 1.26 WHIP). Baltimore took a lead with an RBI double by Chuck Dierling and added an RBI single by Bob Hale that made it 2-0 after half an inning. We got on the board in the bottom of the third, thanks to an O’Connell RBI single, but we had to bring Walt Craddock out to pitch in the top of the fifth with no outs and men on first and second. He got one out and then Bob Hale added on with a two-run double, and by the time we got out of the top of the fifth we were in a 6-1 hole. Joe DeMaestri hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the seventh, and with two outs in the top of the eighth a 25-minute rain delay led to Tom Gorman coming in to pitch for the final out. In the bottom of the eighth, Gorman hit an RBI single that scored a pair of runs to get us back within one, and Catfish Metkovich hit a single that drove in two more to put us in the lead! Gorman got three quick outs in the top of the ninth and we escaped with a come-from-behind 7-6 win!

Raschi allowed eight hits with a walk and four strikeouts, giving up four earned runs in four innings of work. And though Craddock gave up two more earned runs off three hits in his rough fifth inning, Gettel got through 2.2 innings with no hits and three strikeouts, and Gorman got the win, with just a hit and a strikeout, improving his record to 1-2 with a 3.97 ERA. Each team had 12 hits, ours led by DeMaestri with three hits, two runs and two RBIs, and by Joe Astroth who had three hits and scored two runs.

May 16, 1956: Juan Pizarro (2-4, 3.35 ERA, 48.1 IP, 31 K’s, 1.10 WHIP) pitched today against Don Johnson (1-2, 4.21 ERA, 25.2 IP, 9 K’s, 1.71 WHIP). Unfortunately he spotted them a 2-0 lead in the top of the first thanks to back-to-back homers byChuck Diering and Charlie Maxwell, though at least Vic Power got us on the board in the bottom of the first with an RBI single. Catfish Metkovich tied it up in the bottom of the third with a solo homer of his own, his third of the year, and there it stayed until Pizarro gave up a two-run homer in the top of the seventh by Hoot Evers, putting the Orioles back up 4-2. Bill Harrington came out with two outs and a man on first and got the final out but the damage was done. Harrington stayed out the rest of the way but our bats didn’t make a sound as we lost this one 4-2.

That loss dropped Pizarro to 2-5 with a 3.60 ERA, though he only allowed five hits through 6.2 innings ... he walked six with just three strikeouts, and we gave up four earned runs while he was pitching, however. The walks have definitely got to come down as he gets used to major league batting. Harrington got through the last 2.1 innings without a baserunner, but they outhit us 5-3. Metkovich hit once and walked once, hitting his homer and scoring an additional run as well to lead the way.

May 17, 1956: Boston’s keeping pace with the Yankees, just a game and a half out of first place, so they’re not a team we’d really like to be facing right now, but there you go. Carl Erskine (1-3, 3.83 ERA, 49.1 IP, 18 K’s, 1.56 WHIP) pitched against Frank Baumann (2-3, 5.40 ERA, 33.1 IP, 19 K’s, 1.17 WHIP), and like clockwork we spotted them a 2-0 lead in the top of the first. In the bottom of the fourth we came roaring back with an RBI single by Pafko, another by Astroth and a sac-fly by DeMaestri that shot us into the lead 3-2, and we added a run in the bottom of the seventh with an RBI triple by Catfish Metkovish that scored Erskine from third. With two outs and a man on third base, Moe Drabowsky came in to replace Erskine, and Billy Goodman hit an RBI single to drive in a run that cut our lead to one, but a pop-out to second ended the frame safely. Drabowsky got two quick outs in the ninth but then an RBI single by Marty Keough gave up two runs to shoot them into the lead, and we went into the bottom of the inning needing to find some offense to make up for another costly pitching lapse. We got runners on the corners, but pinch-hitter Pete Suder and then Catfish Metkovich hit quick groundouts and we lost this one 5-4.

Carl Erskine lasted 7.2 innings with eight hits, three walks, a strikeout and three earned runs, but Drabowsky blew his third save and took his third loss, allowing four hits and two walks with just one strikeout, letting two earned runs through. His ERA sits at 4.41 now through 16.1 innings over 12 appearances, but he just hasn’t put it all together just yet. It didn’t help that we got outhit 12-9. Metkovich hit twice with an RBI, and Erskine hit twice and scored a run.

May 18, 1956: Arnie Portocarrero (0-2, 3.99 ERA, 29.1 IP, 12 K’s, 1.30 WHIP) started against Frank Sullivan (2-2, 4.23 ERA, 38.1 IP, 22 K’s, 1.30 WHIP). We took control of this one in the bottom of the fifth with a two-run homer by Pafko, piling on with a two-run single by George Wilson and an RBI double by DeMaestri that put us up 5-0 on the stunned Red Sox. Tom Gorman came out to pitch in the top of the sixth, and Thomas Paddock hit a two-run blast, his second in just a few days, to make it a seven run lead! Bill Harrington came out to pitch in the top of the eighth, and he got us the rest of the way there as we completely crushed Boston 7-0.

Portocarrero finally got his first win, improving to 1-3 with a 3.41 ERA, with four hits and three strikeouts through five innings. Gorman and Harrington then got through four innings with no hits and three strikeouts combined, and we outhit the Red Sox 9-4. George Wilson led with two hits, a walk, a run and an RBI, while Paddock hit once, walked once and batted in the two runs with his homer. But it was a team effort, with eight players hitting at least once.

May 19, 1956: Vic Rauchi (2-0, 2.89 ERA, 28.0 IP, 14 K’s, 1.39 WHIP) started against Tom Brewer (0-4, 6.12 ERA, 25.0 IP, 6 K’s, 1.72 WHIP) in our third game against the Red Sox this series. Danny O’Connell hit an RBI single to get us the lead in the bottom of the third, and we added on four runs in the bottom of the fourth, including an RBI double by Raschi that scored a pair! Boston got on the board with a run in the top of the fifth thanks to a Tom Brewer RBI double (pitchers getting hits, y’all!) and Ted Williams hit a solo homer to cut our lead to three in the top of the sixth. RBI singles by Power and Pafko in the bottom of the inning rebuilt our momentum, and Sonny Dixon came in to protect the five-run lead in the top of the seventh. They kept inching back, however, and Bobby Shantz came in with a two-run lead in the top of the ninth, Jim Piersall hitting a two-run blast out of center to tie us up at seven, and we couldn’t buy any runs in the bottom of the frame so we went to extras for what feels like the thirtieth time of the season.

Tom Gorman came out to pitch in the top of the 11th with one out and a man on second, getting two quick outs to keep us in the driver’s seat if we could just find a walk-off hit. That hero role should have gone to Jim Finigan, who, with two runners on base via walks, hit a solid shot into right, but Vic Power was thrown out at home plate, denying us the run. They hit Astroth with a pitch to load the bases, and DeMaestri popped out to short ... onward we go. Finally, in the bottom of the 12th, Vic Power hit one into right and did drive in the winning run, and we got out of this one with an 8-7 win, stealing the series from Boston 2-1.

Raschi had six solid innings with six hits, a walk, four strikeouts and two earned runs, and he should have had the win with ease. Shantz blew his fourth save of the year but stuck with it through 2.1 innings to set up Gorman for the win he eventually got. Gorman didn’t allow a hit, striking out two through 1.2 innings to improve to 2-2 with a 3.42 ERA. We outhit the Red Sox 15-14 in the marathon, led by Power who had four hits, a walk and three RBIs, giving him 20 batted in this season.

May 20, 1956: Juan Pizarro (2-5, 3.60 ERA, 55.0 IP, 37 K’s, 1.09 WHIP) started today against the Yankees’ Gene Conley (1-3, 3.18 ERA, 39.2 IP, 25 K’s, 1.11 WHIP). Gil McDougald hit a solo homer in the top of the first to give the Yankees a lead, but Finigan hit a groundball single into right that drove in a pair to put us on top 2-1 in the bottom of the inning. Metkovich hit a single into right that scored a run in the bottom of the second, and then Vic Power hit a three-run homer to give us a legitimate lead, 6-1, heading into the third. Pizarro hit a two-run single to add on in the third, giving us an 8-1 lead we held into the top of the seventh, when, with one out and men on second and third, Al Gettel came out to relieve Pizarro. A groundout to first allowed a run to score for the Yankees, but Joe Collins struck out swinging and got us into the stretch leading still by six runs. Moe Drabowsky came out in the top of the ninth leading still by six, and he shut them down quickly as we won 8-2!

Juan Pizarro gave us 6.1 innings with five hits, a walk and 10 strikeouts, a dominant performance that improved his record to 3-5 with a 3.52 ERA. We outhit the Yankees 10-6, led by Catfish Metkovich who hit three times with two runs and an RBI -- he’s hitting .294 through 33 games and has been the perfect leadoff man, with seven doubles and three triples already this year.

May 21, 1956: Bobby Shantz has been disgruntled about us trying to keep him forced into a closer / stopper role, and he’s been making it clear he’s unhappy. And with the bottom of our rotation a mess anyway, I’ve decided to give him a shot ... moving him into the rotation as a sixth starter to see if getting more innings helps steady his performance this year. We’re also going to send rookie reliever Moe Drabowsky down to AAA for a spell to see if he can work on his control and steady his nerves a hair. In his place we’ve called up 25-year-old Don Bessent, who the Phillies granted minor league free agency to ... we were able to pick up the former top 75 prospect for a mere $1,400 bonus on a minor league deal, and he’ll step into our stopper role, with Gorman, Harrington and Dixon in middle relief and Gettel and Craddock as multi-innings options in long relief.

It’s a juggling act, but I’m doing what I can to keep this team fresh as we try to climb back into a still-wide-open American League race.

Carl Erskine (1-3, 3.79 ERA, 57.0 IP, 19 K’s, 1.54 WHIP) pitched for us today against the Yankees’ Billy O’Dell (4-4, 2.92 ERA, 61.2 IP, 43 K’s, 1.31 WHIP). The game was heading into the top of the fifth tied at 2-2 when the skies unleashed and drove everyone out of the stadium ... the game was suspended, and will be resumed on June 25th as part of a split doubleheader. Erskine threw just 59 pitches and could be available to start our second game against the Senators, though we’ll likely let him rest until the Detroit series on the road this weekend and keep to his throwing routine.

May 22, 1956: Arnie Portocarrero (1-2, 3.41 ERA, 34.1 IP, 15 K’s, 1.22 WHIP) started against Washington’s Duke Maas (3-1, 2.55 ERA, 35.1 IP, 18 K’s, 1.33 WHIP). He had five exceptional innings, and then in the top of the sixth Washington put up three quick runs to take control of what had been, to that point, an epic duel. Bill Harrington came out to start the top of the sixth, trailing by three, and Sonny Dixon came out in the ninth, getting absolutely shelled. He gave up four runs and Gorman came out and allowed another, as we got shut out 8-0. Ugly, ugly, ugly.

Portocarrero only allowed five hits with three walks and two strikeouts in his six innings, but the three earned runs were more than enough. He fell to 1-3 with a 3.57 ERA, and though Harrington had two great innings, Dixon allowed five runs off three hits and two walks, not even getting a damned out. It didn’t help that we were outhit 11-5, nobody on our offense deserving a word of note. Like I said, ugly, and best forgotten as we move on to another game against the Senators tomorrow.

May 23, 1956: Vic Raschi (2-0, 2.91 ERA, 34.0 IP, 18 K’s, 1.35 WHIP) pitched against Chuck Stobbs (1-4, 5.18 ERA, 41.2 IP, 20 K’s, 1.82 WHIP). Jim Finigan hit a solo homer to put us up 1-0 in the bottom of the second, and a Bill Wilson triple in the bottom of the fifth extended our lead to two runs. Walt Craddock came in to pitch with two outs and a man on first in the top of the sixth, and threw just one pitch before getting their runner out at second on a pickoff. Tom Gorman came out to pitch in the top of the eighth, and he got absolutely destroyed ... first a two-run homer by Jim Lemon that tied it up, then two singles and a fly-out before Eddie Yost hit an RBI single and we had the bullpen frantically warming arms. By the time Don Bessent came in, we were down 5-2, two outs, men on first and second. He quickly got the out, but our nerves were shot. We picked up a run in the bottom of the eighth and Bessent gave us a chance by pitching well in the ninth, but we lost this one in the end 5-3.

Gorman blew his third save of the year and fell to 2-3, allowing four hits and five runs (two earned) with a pair of walks while only getting two outs. Washington outhit us again 11-5, with Finigan leading the way with a hit, a run and an RBI. We’ll take our 14-23 record on the road for three in Detroit this weekend, where we’ll hope to steal some wins from the 19-16 Tigers ... they’re only three games out of first and in fourth place, with no one team in the AL looking outright dominant. We currently still sit in last place, a game behind the 16-23 Orioles and a game and a half back of the 15-21 Senators. Then next week we’ll play two at home against the White Sox (18-14) and a Wednesday doubleheader against Detroit, followed by a four-game road trip to play Boston (17-18) next weekend as we get into June.

jksander · 09-05-2024, 01:41 PM

May 25, 1956: Arnie Portocarrero (1-3, 3.57 ERA, 40.1 IP, 17 K’s, 1.24 WHIP) got the start tonight in Detroit against Billy Hoeft (4-3, 3.65 ERA, 56.2 IP, 40 K’s, 1.29 WHIP). He gave up four runs in the top of the first and with just one out we brought Sonny Dixon out to get us through the inning. Walt Craddock came out in the bottom of the third, still trailing by four, and he gave up four more at which point the game became a total farce. I’ll keep it simple -- we got slaughtered 13-4, and there’s really nothing good I can say about the night except it did, finally, end.

We were outhit just 14-13, but our pitchers dug such a deep hole there was no coming back. Pafko led the way with four hits and an RBI, O’Connell hit three times for a run and Vic Power added two hits, a run and an RBI. But the rest of our lineup hit sporadically if at all, and we weren’t able to sustain any real kind of rally. We’ve sent Portocarrero down to AAA, and we’ve waived / DFA’d right fielder Joe Taylor to make room to bring Larry Jansen back in off the IL. Johnny Sain has agreed to go into the bullpen as a potential multi-inning stopper, but at this point we’ll be happy with any kind of minor consistency from our beleagured pitching corps.

May 26, 1956: Juan Pizarro (3-5, 3.52 ERA, 61.1 IP, 47 K’s, 1.08 WHIP) started tonight against Jim Bunning (2-4, 5.68 ERA, 65.0 IP, 36 K’s, 1.54 WHIP). Detroit took the lead with an RBI double in the first by Solly Hemus, adding an RBI single by Don Blasingame in the second, but we got on the board in the top of the third with a solo homer by Pizarro, who clearly was determined to will us back into this game. The rest of his team played sloppy defense, but even with the bases loaded in the bottom of the sixth he didn’t flinch, getting back to back K’s to get us out of there within a run of tying. Danny O’Connell hit an RBI single in the top of the seventh to tie us up, and with the score 2-2 heading into the stretch, we brought Johnny Sain out of the bullpen to try and get us over the hump. In the bottom of the eighth he loaded the bases with one out, but got Bunning to hit into a fielder’s choice with a 6-2 putout at home plate, and Blasingame popped out to left to keep us tied into the ninth inning. With two outs, Metkovich hit a double, and O’Connell beat out an infield squib to drive him over to third. That’s when Pafko hit a solid flyball into right that drove in the go-ahead run for us! Sain stayed in and completed the ninth inning, clinching it when Red Wilson hit into a 4-6-3 double play as we won the game 3-2!

Pizarro was solid for us, lasting six inning with seven hits, two walks, eight strikeouts and two earned runs, improving his ERA slightly to 3.48. But Sain was excellent in the stopper role tonight, pitching three innings with four hits, two walks and no earned runs as he picked up the win -- he’s now 1-3 with a 6.67 ERA through 27 innings this season. They outhit us 11-10, but Metkovich, O’Connell and Kryhoski each hit twice, and Pizarro added his first career homer, as we ground out the win.

May 27, 1956: Larry Jansen, who was injured near the end of spring training, is finally back to full health, and started for the first time today, facing Steve Gromek (3-1, 2.56 ERA, 45.2 IP, 20 K’s, 1.16 WHIP). Unfortunately he loaded the bases and then gave up a two-out triple in the bottom of the first, immediately digging us a deep hole. We picked up a run each in the top of the fourth and the fifth, and we brought Walt Craddock out to pitch in the bottom of the inning trailing 4-2. He got two quick outs and then loaded the bases, and that was pretty much the end of our chances to come back in this one. Two hits and four runs later, still stuck on two outs, Gorman came out and got us out of there, but we trailed by six. In the end they beat us 10-2, another ugly loss for a team that’s barely holding things together at this point.

Jansen’s first start of the year was not great -- nine hits and two walks leading to four runs, with just two strikeouts through four innings. The bullpen gave up six more runs and we were outhit 16-5 ... there’s nothing making up for that. Nobody hit more than once. And at ten games under .500 before it’s even June, and with a miserable 8-18 record so far in May, it’s hard to find much positive to say.

May 28, 1956: Carl Erskine (1-3, 3.84 ERA, 61.0 IP, 21 K’s, 1.52 WHIP) started against Connie Johnson (2-4, 4.82 ERA, 56.0 IP, 30 K’s, 1.54 WHIP) as we returned to Kansas City to host the third-place White Sox, who come in with a 21-15 record, just a game and a half out of first. We took a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first thanks to a two-run Pafko homer and an RBI double by Astroth, and though Chicago got a run back in the second inning, we held the lead until the top of the sixth, when with one out Erskine gave up a fastball to Sherm Lollar, who took it all the way out of left to tie the score at 3-3. Sonny Dixon came out to pitch, and he’d give up the go-ahead thanks to a passed ball, but we tied it again in the bottom of the sixth with an RBI single by DeMaestri. Pafko hit a sac-fly into right to drive in the go-ahead for us in the bottom of the seventh, and we brought Sain out to pitch with the lead in the top of the eighth. He got us through the inning and then hit a grounder into right field on two outs to drive in an insurance run in the ttop of the ninth! Don Bessent came out in the bottom of the inning to close the game out, but immediately Stan Jok got to second based on a throwing error at first, made it to third off a single by Ron Northey ... and then back to back outs brought Larry Doby up to the plate, runners on the corners, our lead still at two runs. Doby popped out harmlessly to right field, and we’d won it 6-4! Talk about a clutch finish by Bessent to avoid the unearned run!

Erskine did a solid job, going 5.1 innings with five hits, three runs (two earned) and two strikeouts, but it was Sonny Dixon (3-0, 4.60 ERA) who got the win, going 1.2 innings with three hits, a strikeout and an unearned run. Sain got his first hold of the year with a walk and two K’s, and Bessent saved his first game, keeping his ERA at 0.00 through his first two appearances as an Athletic. We outhit them 12-9, Metkovich hitting three times for a run while Power, Astroth and DeMaestri each hit twice.

May 29, 1956: We’ve made a trade with the Cincinnati Redlegs, sending them Dick Kryhoski and reliever Tom Gorman for 24-year-old left-handed starter Charlie Rabe, a hard worker with a five-pitch arsenal, and $15,000 in cash. Kryhoski has been frustrated with his lack of playing time behind Vic Power, and Gorman has not been putting in the effort, frequently grousing about our overall poor performance. Ownership is fine with the move, which puts money in their coffers, and I think we get a pitcher out of the deal who has long term potential. We’re sending him to AAA Columbus for now, but he could get called up later in the summer if we wind up needing the pitching depth.

Vic Raschi (2-0, 2.50 ERA, 39.2 IP, 19 K’s, 1.31 WHIP) started today against the White Sox, facing Billy Pierce (6-1, 1.83 ERA, 69.0 IP, 43 K’s, 1.04 WHIP). Joe Astroth hit a solo homer in the bottom of the second to give us a one run lead, but they tied it up in the top of the sixth with an RBI single by Bob Nieman. Vic Power hit an RBI triple to give us back the lead in the bottom of the sixth, and Pafko drove him home with a single, and with one out DeMaestri hit a shot into left that knocked in another! With the lead at 4-1, Raschi was able to stay out there and spare the bullpen, and Al Gettel came out to pitch in the eighth, getting an out and then giving up an RBI single to Larry Doby, cutting into the lead. Johnny Sain came in with the one out, man on first, leaving runners on the corners as he got the outs we needed to keep the two-run lead into the bottom of the inning. He got us through the ninth as well, and we held tough to win this one 4-2 ... back to back wins against a really good team!

Raschi improved to 3-0 with a 2.31 ERA, lasting seven innings with just six hits, a walk, four strikeouts and a single earned run. Gettel picked up a hold though he only got one out, but Sain has adjusted swimmingly to his role in the bullpen and gave us 1.2 innings with just a hit and a walk as he earned his first save of the season, bringing his ERA down to 6.07 through 29.2 innings. Chicago outhit us 9-8, but Astroth led the way with two hits, a walk, a run and an RBI, while O’Connell hit twice for a run as well.

Tomorrow we have a doubleheader against Detroit, followed by a travel day and then we’ve got four games in three days against Boston on the road, starting a two week stretch away from Kansas City. Six games in five days will be a real test of whether we can keep a streak going and make some progress climbing back up the ladder in the AL.

May 30, 1956: Juan Pizarro (3-5, 3.48 ERA, 67.1 IP, 55 K’s, 1.11 WHIP) started for us against Billy Hoeft (5-3, 3.66 ERA, 64.0 IP, 43 K’s, 1.30 WHIP) in the first game of the afternoon, and Detroit struck first, an RBI single by Whitey Lockman giving them the lead in the top of the first. But in the bottom of the inning we got ourselves a two-run homer off the bat of Vic Power to put us back in charge, and Pizarro hit his second homer of the season in the bottom of the second to extend the lead! Vic Power added an RBI double in the bottom of the third, and Pizarro held it until the top of the sixth when Andre Rodgers hit a three-run blast out of right with two outs ... boom, tied up 4-4. Pizarro stayed out and got us through the top of the seventh, but we couldn’t get a run across in the bottom of the inning and brought out Johnny Sain to helm the mound in the eighth. Alas, this time it was a failed session for him, as three consecutive hits led to the go-ahead run for Detroit, and Walt Craddock came out with runners on second and third (no outs) just hoping to get us out of the jam without too much damage. He wound up getting the three outs with only one of Sain’s runs scoring, and we had just two runs to make up heading into the bottom of the eighth. Sonny Dixon got us through the ninth, but we came up short -- an RBI single in the bottom of the ninth by Pafko wasn’t enough, and we lost this one 6-5.

Pizarro pitched seven innings with seven hits, six walks, five strikeouts and four earned runs, but it was Sain (1-4, 6.67 ERA) who took the loss. We outhit them 14-12 but were just outhustled down the stretch ... Vic Power hit three times with a run and three RBIs, and Metkovich hit three times with a run scored.

Bobby Shantz (1-2, 3 SV, 8.68 ERA, 9.1 IP, 2 K’s, 1.39 WHIP) got his first start in the second game of the day, facing Ned Garver (4-1, 3.20 ERA, 39.1 IP, 14 K’s, 1.25 WHIP), as we aimed to keep our starters on a rotation with the two doubleheaders in a five-day stretch. But he struggled almost immediately, giving up four runs in the top of the first before getting us up to bat. Metkovich hit a homer in the bottom of the inning to get us on the board, and Shantz got us into the fifth with that margin unchanged, before giving up a one-out single to Al Kaline that drove in a fifth run for Detroit. With the score 5-1 heading into the top of the sixth, Al Gettel came out to pitch, and Bill Harrington came out in the eighth ... and though no more runs scored, they didn’t need to. We hit next to nothing good down the stretch and lost this one 5-1.

Bobby Shantz fell to 1-3 with an 8.79 ERA, allowing five hits, four walks and five earned runs with just three strikeouts. Our bullpen arms got through four innings with just five hits, a walk and a strikeout between them, and Detroit only outhit us 10-9, but ours were mostly empty hits to nowhere. Only Metkovich, with two hits, including his homer, made any offensive impact.

The Chicago Cubs are interested in Shantz, and have offered us Sam Jones, their 28-year-old starter (who has great stuff and not-so-great command) along with $75,000 in cash to get him. But I’m torn. He’s having a rough year, but he’s one of our most popular players. I’m going to sit on the deal and see how we continue to play ... because if we wind up too deep in the hole, it may not be just Shantz on the trading block as we try to stock up on youth.

June 1, 1956: Carl Erskine (1-3, 3.80 ERA, 66.1 IP, 23 K’s, 1.48 WHIP) got the start in Boston, facing Ike Delock (5-1, 3.53 ERA, 51.0 IP, 22 K’s, 1.37 WHIP). In the top of the fourth, Andy Pafko hit an RBI double that drove in two runs for us, giving us a lead against the Sox. Erskine worked hard to hold the lead, the Red Sox getting on the board in the bottom of the sixth with a sac-fly by Gene Stephens. Sonny Dixon came out with two outs and a man on second, striking out Willie Jones to get us into the seventh still leading by a run. With the bases loaded in the top of the seventh, two outs, Vic Power walked in a run to get us back up by a pair, and Andy Pafko hit a line drive into left that bounced around near the Monster and pushed in a pair before we went into the stretch leading 5-1. Norm Zauchin led off in the bottom of the inning with a homer that went over the Gulf sign above the Green Monster, cutting the lead to three, and with two outs and men on first and second we brought out Johnny Sain ... who nearly took the ump’s head off when he called a balk that moved both runners into scoring position. But he avoided getting ejected, and got the final out to get us into the eighth still leading by three runs. The Red Sox got two more runs back in the bottom of the eighth, thanks to a two-run homer by Jones, and they tied it up just minutes later when Zauchin went over the wall AGAIN. Sain got us through the ninth and into extra innings, as we hoped we could find a way to get back in control. We found our mojo in the top of the 10th, when Finigan hit a two-run blast over the Monster to get us back into the lead, and Don Bessent came out to pitch in the bottom of the inning, getting three quick outs as we got out of Fenway with an upset win, 7-5 in ten innings.

Sain blew the save, but came out of it with a win, improving to 2-4 though his ERA is now a dismal 7.03 through 32 innings ... tonight he allowed four hits and three earned runs with two strikeouts through 2.1 innings. Bessent got the save, his second of the year, and has still not given up a run though this was only his third appearance. We outhit Boston 11-8, led by Pafko, who had four hits, a run and four RBIs, giving him 25 runs batted in this season, second only to Power on the team.

June 2, 1956: Small steps ... last night’s win got us a game ahead of the Senators, so we’re no longer in dead last place in the American League. And though we’re still nine games under .500, we’ve won four of our last seven games. Doesn’t sound like much, but when you lose 20 games in the month of May alone, you grab at any straws you can reach.

Juan Pizarro (3-5, 3.63 ERA, 74.1 IP, 60 K’s, 1.18 WHIP) started this afternoon against Frank Baumann (4-4, 4.91 ERA, 58.2 IP, 38 K’s, 1.30 WHIP). Andy Pafko hit a groundout to first that drove Danny O’Connell in to score from third, giving us a 1-0 lead in the top of the first, and in the top of the sixth he hit an RBI triple that drove in our second run! Pizarro got us through the sixth, and we brought Craddock out to pitch after the stretch still leading 2-0. But with one out he predictably botched it by letting Sammy White hit a two-run blast out of center ... Pizarro keeps pitching gems, and we keep screwing the kid over ... it’d be comical if it wasn’t so frustrating. In the top of the eighth, Andy Pafko singled in the go-ahead run, but with two outs, Craddock gave up ANOTHER DAMNED HOMER, this time letting them take the lead thanks to Dick Gernert’s two-run blast out over the Monster. Gettel came in and got us into the top of the ninth just trailing by the one run, but there were no more comebacks in us -- Boston won this one 4-3 and we head into the doubleheader tomorrow knowing we could have ... SHOULD HAVE ... won this one.

Juan Pizarro gave us six innings with just three hits, two walks and five strikeouts, one of his best all-around performances of the year, but Craddock blew the save AND took the loss, falling to 0-1 with a 6.86 ERA, thanks to his two hits, two walks and four earned runs. Pizarro remains 3-5 with a 3.36 ERA through his first 13 starts, with a 1.16 WHIP and 1.4 WAR, but he’s had three quality starts in a row that haven’t wound up netting him a decision. We outhit them 10-5, which makes me want to go out and hit something. But I have to keep it together as the manager, or the whole house of cards will collapse. The problem was that Andy Pafko had to do it all tonight, hitting twice and batting in three runs, while O’Connell hit twice and scored all three. Without more depth in the lineup, there’s no way to sustain dominance (or to make up for massive bullpen blunders).

We’ve gone ahead and called Moe Drabowsky back up from AAA with the doubleheader tomorrow, and we’ve brought up Daryl Spencer as a backup infielder and potential pinch-hitter to fill out the 25-man roster.

June 3, 1956: Vic Raschi (3-0, 2.31 ERA, 46.2 IP, 23 K’s, 1.26 WHIP) got the start in game one today, facing Tom Brewer (0-5, 6.44 ERA, 36.1 IP, 7 K’s, 1.93 WHIP). Jim Finigan hit an RBI single in the top of the first to get us a 1-0 lead in the top of the first, but a wild pitch scored Jim Piersall to tie it up in the bottom of the inning. A passed ball scored the go-ahead for them in the bottom of the second, and they added on a pair in the bottom of the third before we finally got hot in the top of the fourth thanks to a three-run homer by Danny O’Connell that tied us up 4-4. Sonny Dixon came out to pitch with the score still tied at four in the bottom of the sixth, but with one out he gave up a homer to Zauchin that put Boston back up 5-4. We tied it back up with an RBI single by Finigan in the top of the seventh, and with the bases loaded Bill Wilson hit a line drive into left that pushed in two more. Moe Drabowsky came out to protect the two-run lead in the bottom of the seventh, and with two outs the Red Sox hit an RBI triple that cut the lead in half, though Drabowsky got through the inning with the lead still in existence, which is a real plus for us these days. Walt Craddock came out in the bottom of the eighth, held the lead for us, and with no insurance runs forthcoming, Bessert came out for the bottom of the ninth. Two strikeouts and a pop-out to center later and we had the 7-6 win by the skin of our teeth ... hey, it still counts!

Raschi lasted five innings with four hits, four walks, two strikeouts and four runs (three earned), but it was Sonny Dixon (4-0, 4.82 ERA) who got the win out of the bullpen. Drabowsky (#3) and Craddock (#2) picked up holds, and Bessent came out and did his thing with just 13 pitches as he saved his third game in four appearances. We outhit Boston 11-7, led by Finigan who hit three times and walked once, scoring a run and batting in two more.

Larry Jansen (0-1, 9.00 ERA, 4.0 IP, 2 K’s, 2.75 WHIP) gets a chance to redeem himself in his second start of the year, going up against Frank Sullivan (2-4, 5.86 ERA, 64.0 IP, 31 K’s, 1.41 WHIP) in the second game of the afternoon. The Red Sox took the lead in the bottom of the fourth off an RBI single by Billy Goodman, and a two-run homer by Zauchin extended that lead. Astroth hit an RBI single that scored Pafko in the top of the fifth to get us on the board, and Johnny Sain came out to pitch in the bottom of the seventh, keeping the game within reach with three quick outs. In the top of the eighth, Vic Power led off with a triple, and Andy Pafko hit a two-run blast out of right to tie the game up 3-3! Sain kept it tied through the bottom of the eighth, but we weren’t able to score in the top of the ninth so we decided to bring out Bobby Shantz, who pitched around a base hit to get us into extra innings. Shantz stayed out and got us through the 10th without the Red Sox scoring, and Al Gettel replaced him in the bottom of the 11th, but with just one out they walked it off with a homer over the Green Monster by Willie Jones that lost this for us 4-3.

Larry Jansen got through six innings with just five hits, two walks and three strikeouts, but he gave up three earned runs ... his ERA improved to 6.30, but he couldn’t get us into the lead. Sain and Shantz combined for four innings with just three hits and a pair of strikeouts between them, soit was Gettel who took the loss, getting just one out as he struck out one man and gave a homer to another. We again outhit Boston 11-9 but still came up short despite a great night for Pafko who hit four times with two runs and two RBIs.

We’re off tomorrow and then will play three against the Yankees (32-16) and three against Baltimore (20-31) this week, followed by three against Washington (19-29), all on the road. We then get to actually come back to Kansas City for a significant stretch -- 17 games in two and a half weeks, getting us into the month of July. We’re half a game up on Baltimore right now and tied with Washington as we work to dig our way out of the early hole we dug this year.

jksander · 09-05-2024, 04:12 PM

June 5, 1956: Juan Pizarro (3-5, 3.36 ERA, 80.1 IP, 65 K’s, 1.16 WHIP) got the start today against Gene Conley (3-4, 4.47 ERA, 56.1 IP, 37 K’s, 1.38 WHIP) as we made a visit to Yankee Stadium. Andy Pafko led off with a solo homer in the top of the second (his sixth of the year) to put us up 1-0, and Pizarro hit his THIRD homer of the year as a pitcher in the top of the third! He’s only made 30 plate appearances but he’s hitting .241 with a .586 slug! Finigan led off with a triple in the top of the fourth, and Pizarro hit an RBI double that drove in a pair to extend the lead ... it’s official, that kid’s going to join our pinch-hitting squad, he’s clutch as hell! The Yankees got on the board in the bottom of the fourth with an RBI single by Yogi Berra that drove in a pair of runs, but Pizarro got us through the sixth without any further scoring, and he did the same through the seventh. Moe Drobowsky came out to pitch in the top of the eighth and allowed a walk and two hits, the last of which was a three-run homer by Mickey Mantle that erased our lead entirely. Pizarro doesn’t have the endurance to pitch complete games at this point, and until he can, he won’t ever be sure a lead is safe. We weren’t able to get anything to happen in the top of the ninth, and we lost 5-4.

Pizarro was exhaused after seven innings but wishes he’d gutted it out in the eighth to have given himself a chance to win. He went seven innings with five hits, one walk, seven strikeouts and two earned runs, throwing 105 pitches without a decision. This was his fourth quality start in a row where he didn’t end up with the win when he had qualified for one, but he’s still a bright-eyed 19 year old who is happy to be here ... so it’s not getting to him yet. And Drabowsky, another young player without a ton of experience, though frustrated, knows it’s bad luck and not a lack of skill that led to two hits, a walk and three earned runs. We outhit the Yankees 11-7, including two hits, a run and three RBIs for Pizarro who has now batted in seven runs. O’Connell, Pafko and Finigan each hit twice as well.

Mantle’s homer was his 15th of the season, putting him on pace to obliterate his personal best of 29 dingers set just last year ... that kid’s a demon!

June 6, 1956: Vic Raschi (3-0, 2.61 ERA, 51.2 IP, 25 K’s, 1.30 WHIP) got the unenviable task of pitching against Vinegar Bend Mizell (10-1, 1.03 ERA, 96.0 IP, 64 K’s, this year’s front-runner for the AL’s Cy Young award. We caught him napping in the top of the first, and Metkovich scored from third off a sac-fly by Pafko to give us a 1-0 lead. But New York tied it up in the bottom of the second with an RBI single by Bill Skowron, so we had to keep grinding. The Yankees took the lead in the bottom of the third with an RBI single by Woodie Held, and it stayed that way through the fifth inning, Walt Craddock coming in to pitch in the bottom of the sixth, still trailing by a run. Elston Howard hit a solo homer out of right in the bottom of the seventh to add to their lead as a light rain began to fall. Sonny Dixon pitched the eighth inning for us, and New York added on a run, sending us into the top of the ninth needing three to keep the game going. O’Connell led off with a line drive single into right, and Vic Power beat out an infield hit to give us a runner in scoring position with two on. Pafko hit into a fielder’s choice with the out coming at second, Finigan walking the bases loaded for Astroth, with one out. He popped out to right and drove in a run, at which point DeMaestri silenced the home crowed with a triple that scored two including the tying run! Bobby Shantz came out and shut down the top of their lineup, including striking Mantle out swinging and this one was going into extras! Johnny Sain got us through the bottom of the 10th with no score, but Vinegar Bend Mizell shut us down again in the 11th, and with one out in the bottom of the inning the Yankees walked it off with a single by Enos Slaughter and we lost 5-4, the same as yesterday but getting there in a completely different way.

Raschi had a good start, with five innings and just five hits, a walk, a strikeout and two earned runs. Craddock and Dixon dug the hole deeper, but we kept grinding and Shantz got us into extras with a chance. Sain, unfortunately, didn’t have the luck he had in the 10th when he got into the final frame, so he finished with the loss, falling to 2-5 with a 6.62 ERA -- he had three hits, an earned run and a strikeout. This time New York outhit us 13-7, so it’s impressive that we battled back and made them work for it. O’Connell led the way with two hits and a run, while DeMaestri added a hit and two runs batted in.

June 7, 1956: Carl Erskine (1-3, 3.62 ERA, 72.0 IP, 26 K’s, 1.44 WHIP) started today against Don Larsen (2-1, 6.75 ERA, 20.0 IP, 10 K’s, 1.55 WHIP). Yogi Berra hit a homer in the bottom of the second to put the Yankees up 1-0, but we kept fighting and were able to tie it up in the top of the seventh when Thomas Paddock grounded out to first and scored Jim Finigan from third! Erskine stayed out in the bottom of the eighth and the Yankees retook the lead thanks to an RBI single by Hank Bauer, so without an out we had to bring out Drabowsky, who loaded the bases from there and our hopes completely collapsed from there. We went into the top of the ninth trailing by four runs and it stayed that way, New York crushing us in the end 5-1.

Erskine fell to 1-4 on the year, lasting seven innings with seven hits, two walks, a strikeout and three earned runs while Drabowsky had the thankless task of cleaing up his mess, getting out of it with two hits, three walks and two earned runs. New York outhit us 9-5, with Paddock’s hit and RBI our only real offense, though Finigan did score a run, walking twice without a hit.

We play Baltimore and Washington three times each on the road, and then return to Kansas City to play Baltimore three times and Washington four times. So our next 13 games are against the only two teams moderately as bad as us. This may be our last chance to really dig out of this hole and put up a succession of wins ... if we stay in a free-fall, the season may be unsalvageable by the time we get out of the month of June. And our owner has made it clear that, at that point he’s fully considering forcing us to go into a full sell-off to bring in young prospects, even if it means getting rid of our best veteran players. And if that happens, it’s hard to imagine my job not being in jeopardy quickly from there.

June 8, 1956: Larry Jansen (0-1, 6.30 ERA, 10.0 IP, 5 K’s, 1.80 WHIP) pitched against Jim McDonald (4-1, 2.14 ERA, 67.1 IP, 31 K’s, 1.19 WHIP). Joe DeMaestri gave us a lead in the top of the second with an RBI single, but in the bottom of the seventh Jansen gave up an RBI double to Bob Hale and we were tied up just like that. Sonny Dixon came in with an out and men on second and third, immediately giving up a three-run homer that shot us straight through. We got two runs back with a homer of our own, Vic Power batting in two with a shot out of left in the top of the eighth, and with the lead still at just one run, Astroth led off with a single in the top of the ninth. Joe DeMaestri singled, but Astroth got greedy and was picked off at third ... Juan Pizarro came in to pinch hit for Paddock, popping out to center, but Sonny Dixon kept us alive with a shot into right, driving in DeMaestri to tie it up at four. But they walked it off in the bottom of the inning and we lost this one 5-4 thanks to a single by Evers, who had hit the homer that put them up in the seventh.

Jansen had a good night, lasting 6.1 innings with three hits, a walk, two strikeouts and three earned runs, Dixon (4-1, 5.40 ERA) taking the loss with two innings and three hits, a walk, a strikeout and two RBIs. We outhit Baltimore 10-6, led by Power with two hits, a run and two RBIs.

June 9, 1956: Juan Pizarro (3-5, 3.30 ERA, 87.1 IP, 72 K’s, 1.13 WHIP) started today against Ruben Gomez (5-4, 3.25 ERA, 83.0 IP, 33 K’s, 1.14 WHIP). Baltimore took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the second thanks to an RBI single by Gomez and an RBI double by Willy Miranda, but we chipped away at it ... Finigan hit an RBI single in the top of the fourth, and Pizarro batted in a run with a single in the fifth to tie it up 2-2. Bobby Shantz came out in the bottom of the eighth with the score still tied, and this one stayed that way into extra innings. In the top of the 10th, Vic Power hit an RBI single to give us a one-run lead, and Johnny Sain came out to get us through the bottom of the inning as we held on and won 3-2!

Juan Pizarro continues to pitch well in no-decisions, lasting seven innings with three hits, two walks, six strikeouts and two earned runs. His walks are coming down nicely, he’s now struck out 78 batters against 35 free passes, and ten of his 15 starts have been quality ones. Shantz took the win, improving to 2-3 with a 6.52 ERA, allowing two hits and a walk with no earned runs, while Sain saved his second game with just one hit.

June 10, 1956: Vic Raschi (3-0, 2.70 ERA, 56.2 IP, 26 K’s, 1.29 WHIP) pitched against Roger Craig (1-4, 1 SV, 4.89 ERA, 49.2 IP, 22 K’s, 1.45 WHIP). Danny O’Connell singled in the bottom of the third, and aided by an E7 error, Catfish Metkovich was able to score from first to put us into the lead. Thomas Paddock hit a solo homer in the fifth to add a run, Pafko adding another in the top of the eighth to give us a three-run lead. Raschi stayed out to complete the shutout as we won the game, and the series, with a 3-0 victory!

Raschi had his best game yet this year, a complete game five hit shutout, and we outhit the Orioles 9-5. Metkovich had three hits and a run, while O’Connell, Pafko and Paddock each hit twice. That was a nice complete win, here’s hoping we can build on it!

June 11, 1956: We’ll finish this road trip out with three games against the 23-31 Washington Senators, with us now half a game up on Baltimore and two games behind the Senators in the standings. Carl Erskine (1-4, 3.65 ERA, 79.0 IP, 27 K’s, 1.43 WHIP) started against Camilo Pascual (2-9, 5.56 ERA, 81.0 IP, 47 K’s, 1.80 WHIP). The Senators took the lead in the bottom of the first, but Vic Power batted us into the lead with a two-run double in the top of the third. Unfortunately the Senators took control from there, Bruce Edwards tying it with an RBI single in the bottom of the third and Pete Runnels adding a two-run double in the bottom of the fourth to put them back on top. Trailing by four in the top of the seventh, Thomas Paddock hit a two-run homer and Pafko added an RBI single to get us back within a run, and Erskine was able to get us through the bottom of the inning without the Senators getting any baserunners. Sain came out to pitch still trailing by a run at the start of the bottom of the eighth, and he kept it that way as we headed into the ninth. Pizarro pinch-hit for Sain with one out, getting a hit up the middle for a single, but that was our last gasp as we lost this one 6-5.

Erskine fell to 1-5 with a 3.87 ERA, allowing 14 hits in seven innings with three strikeouts and six runs (five earned), while the Senators outhit us 15-8, making it amazing we were even close at the end. Paddock, who now has five homers this year, hit twice, walked once and scored two runs with two more batted in to lead the team.

June 12, 1956: Larry Jansen (0-1, 5.51 ERA, 16.1 IP, 7 K’s, 1.35 WHIP) started against Duke Maas (4-4, 2.70 ERA, 60.0 IP, 32 K’s, 1.23 WHIP). We took the lead in the top of the fourth with a sac-fly by Darryl Spencer, but Washington retook the lead in the bottom of the fourth with a two-run homer by Jim Lemon. We tied it up in the top of the sixth with an E6 error that allowed Paddock to take first, driving in Finigan from third, and it stayed that way into the bottom of the eighth, when Bobby Shantz came in to relieve Jansen with one out and a man on first. Shantz stranded two as he got us out of the inning unscathed. In the top of the ninth, Shantz bunted Paddock and Metkovich into scoring position with our first out, Danny O’Connell walked to load the bases, and George Wilson hit a sac-fly to deep right and pushed in the go-ahead run! Shantz stayed out and got us out of there with a 3-2 win as we capped the comeback!

Jansen has been solid in his last few starts, tonight lasting 7.1 innings with five hits, a walk, three strikeouts and the two earned runs. Shantz, meanwhile, came out for 1.2 innings and got the win, improving to 3-3 with a 6.00 ERA as he allowed a pair of hits and nothing else. Each team had seven hits, ours led by Paddock, who had two hits, a run and an RBI.

June 13, 1956: Juan Pizarro (3-5, 3.24 ERA, 94.1 IP, 78 K’s, 1.10 WHIP) started today against Pedro Ramos (4-3, 3.18 ERA, 62.1 IP, 29 K’s, 1.17 WHIP). We were knotted up at zero until the bottom of the fifth, when an RBI single by Runnels put the Senators up a run, Jim Busby tripled to drive Runnels in for a second run, and Mickey Vernon added an RBI single to pile on. Sonny Dixon came out to relieve Pizarro in the bottom of the sixth, and though we got a run back in the top of the ninth thanks to an RBI double by Darryl Spencer, we still lost this one 3-1.

Juan Pizarro took the loss, falling to 3-6 with a 3.35 ERA, allowing six hits, two walks, six strikeouts and three earned runs through five innings. Dixon got us through the rest with just a single strikeout, improving his ERA to 4.74, and we outhit the Senators 9-6 ... that fifth inning just killed us; that and our lack of run support. Metkovich hit three times and Pafko twice, neither one managing to score.

We now return to Kansas City with a dismal 22-35 record, with our biggest stretch of home games of the season .... three against Baltimore (24-36), four against Washington (25-32), three against Boston (29-28), four against New York (40-17) and then three against Detroit (26-29). We then play three on the road July 3-4 in Cleveland (32-24) before returning for three here against the Guardians, and that’ll get us into the All Star break at which point the decision will have been made if we’re gutting this team for parts.

jksander · 09-05-2024, 10:43 PM

June 15, 1956: Vic Raschi (4-0, 2.33 ERA, 65.2 IP, 29 K’s, 1.23 WHIP) started the first game of the homestand, facing Ruben Gomez (5-4, 3.13 ERA, 92.0 IP, 35 K’s, 1.14 WHIP). We spotted them a two run lead in the top of the first, but an Andy Pafko single drove in a pair of runs in the bottom of the third to tie it up, and in the bottom of the sixth we took the lead off a Pafko solo homer ... getting it done! Vic Raschi stayed out and completed the game and we held tough to win 3-2!

Raschi has been a gem since we claimed him off waivers from Brooklyn back in early May ... tonight’s five hit complete game shutout was his second of the season, improving his record to 5-0 with a 2.29 ERA! We were outhit 6-5, but Pafko led the way offensively with two hits, a run and three RBIs, giving him a .305 average and 37 RBIs, both of which lead our team.

June 16, 1956: Carl Erskine (1-5, 3.87 ERA, 86.0 IP, 30 K’s, 1.48 WHIP) started against Don Johnson (3-6, 4.98 ERA, 59.2 IP, 23 K’s, 1.61 WHIP) and in the bottom of the fourth we took the lead with an RBI single by DeMaestri that scored Jim Finigan from second. Erskine wrenched his back with two outs in the top of the fifth, but Gettel got the out to get us out of the inning with the lead still safe, and he stayed out for two more innings as we tried to buy some insurance. Johnny Sain came out with the lead still 1-0 in the top of the eighth, and he got two quick outs but then let Lenny Green hit an RBI single to tie it up, and Hal Smith hit a two-out single that drove in the go-ahead. With one out in the bottom of the ninth, Joe DeMaestri hit a line drive single into right, but we weren’t able to rally and lost this one 2-1.

Erskine’s injury appears to have been minor, and won’t hinder him as the season progresses ... but it hurt us tonight, since he was only at 42 pitches through 4.2 innings, with two strikes and a no-hitter going. Gettel got us through 2.1 innings with three hits, but Sain took the loss, blowing the save and falling to 2-6 with a three hit, two earned run night. Each team finished with six hits, with DeMaestri leading the way for us with three of them for an RBI, while Finigan walked once and scored a run.

June 17, 1956: Our owner has told me to go ahead and bite the bullet, as the Cubs upped their offer for Bobby Shantz, sending us 30-year-old right-handed starter Sam Jones and $180,000 in cash. Jones has great stuff overall, with his fastball, slider and changeup all rating as plus pitches with real juice ... he throws consistently at 95 miles per hour or faster, and has excellent stamina. His control is questionable, but “Toothpick Sam” will be able to pitch for us either way, and we all know how Richard Doyle feels about cold hard cash. Jones has a 4-3 record and a 4.91 ERA through eight starts for the Cubs this season, but he’s walked 36 batters against 30 strikeouts. He’ll join our rotation as our #5 starter.

Juan Pizarro (3-6, 3.35 ERA, 99.1 IP, 84 K’s, 1.13 WHIP) got the start this afternoon, going up against Bob Kuzawa (1-6, 4.63 ERA, 83.2 IP, 48 K’s, 1.54 WHIP). Hal Smith batted in a run with a single to put the Orioles up 1-0 in the top of the first, but Vic Power batted in the tying run in the bottom frame with a single, and a Metkovich single in the bottom of the second gave us a tenuous 2-1 lead. Paddock’s sixth homer of the season gave us a little breathing room in the bottom of the fourth, and Pizarro was able to get us through the fifth though his control had been a bit shakey in the game to that point and he’d thrown more pitches than anticpated. Andy Pafko batted in a run in the bottom of the fifth to make it a three-run lead, and we brought Moe Drabowsky out to pitch in the sixth ... he immediately gave up a solo homer to Gus Triandos on his fifth pitch of the afternoon, but he settled in from there and only took 11 more pitches to get us out of the inning. He stayed out in the seventh and eighth, handling himself with real poise, and we brought Don Bessert out for the top of the ninth, still leading by a pair ... he got three quick outs, and we were able to hold off the Orioles 4-2 to win the three-game series two games to one.

Juan Pizarro got the win, improving to 4-6 with a 3.28 ERA, allowing six hits with a walk and four strikeouts through five innings with just the one earned run. Drabowsky held tough for his fourth hold of the year, giving us three innings with two hits, two strikeouts and the earned run, improving his ERA to 5.79 through 23.1 innings, and Bessert saved his fourth game, pitching around a walk to keep his ERA at 0.00 through 5.1 innings in five appearances. They outhit us 8-7, but our hits came from seven different batters, and eight different players managed to get on base tonight. Metkovich led the way with a hit, a walk, a run and an RBI as his average continues to flirt with the .300 mark.

Harry Walker has been out since May 13th with a strained oblique that was expected to take a month to heal, but he remains on the IL with an undetermined return time. Getting him back in the lineup would be a real plus, but at age 39 I’m starting to wonder how much gas he has left in the tank.

June 18, 1956: Sam Jones will get his first start as a member of our Athletics, facing Dean Stone (2-1, 1 SV, 4.38 ERA, 24.2 IP, 14 K’s, 1.46 WHIP) in his first American League game since he played for Cleveland back in 1952. We punished the Senators in the bottom of the first, Jim Finigan batting in two with a single, Pafko scoring off a groundout by Astroth, and DeMaestri making it a four-run lead with an RBI single. They got on the board with an RBI single by Ed Fitz Gerald and scored a second run off a sac-fly to left by Ken Aspromonte in the top of the second but we were able to hold the lead, adding on runs with a sac-fly by Metkovich and an RBI single by O’Connell in the bottom of the fourth to give us back a four-run lead. Jones got a bit wild in the sixth, loading the bases with one out, but Pete Runnels lined into a 5-3 double play and got us out of the inning with the lead unchanged. We added on in the bottom of the inning, with Danny O’Connell batting in two more runs with a line drive single, and Johnny Sain came in to pitch in the top of the seventh. In the top of the ninth Sain gave up runs via a walk and a beaned batter, but was able to get us out of here with an 8-4 win.

Jones was impressive, getting through six innings with four hits and two runs (one earned) despite six walks against a single strikeout, improving his record to 5-3 with a 4.57 ERA. Sain had three innings with two hits, two walks and two earned runs, and we outhit the Senators 11-6, led by O’Connell who had two hits and three RBIs. Paddock added two hits and two runs, and Metkovich added a hit, a walk, a run and an RBI.

June 19, 1956: Vic Raschi (5-0, 2.29 ERA, 74.2 IP, 29 K’s, 1.18 WHIP) started against Camilo Pascual (3-10, 5.33 ERA, 96.1 IP, 52 K’s, 1.76 WHIP). Washington got out to a 2-0 lead thanks to runs in the top of the first and second, but we stuck with the gameplan, and in the bottom of the sixth we batted around the order, scoring off an RBI single by DeMaestri, an RBI double by Paddock that scored a pair, and off a wild pitch, giving us a 4-2 lead heading into the top of the seventh. Raschi got us through the top of the eighth with the lead still safe, and Don Bessert came out to pitch in the top of the ninth, striking out the side as we won this one 4-2!

Raschi remains undefeated, improving to 6-0 with a 2.29 ERA, allowing five hits and two earned runs today with a walk and three strikeouts through eight innings’ work. Bessent then saved his fifth game in six tries, striking out three batters as he did it. We outhit Washington 9-5, led by George Wilson (a hit, a walk, a run) and Thomas Paddock (a hit and two RBIs). That’s now our third win in a row, our first three-game win streak since May 18-20 when we beat Boston twice and the Yankees once, and we’ve won seven of our last ten.

June 20, 1956: Carl Erskine (1-5, 3.67 ERA, 90.2 IP, 32 K’s, 1.40 WHIP) started today against Chuck Stubbs (4-6, 4.21 ERA, 87.2 IP, 44 K’s, 1.49 WHIP). Mickey Vernon hit a two-run homer for the Senators in the top of the third inning, and with one out and men on first and second in the top of the sixth, Sonny Dixon replaced Erskine, Washington still up by two. He got us out of a bases loaded jam without any further runs scoring, and in the bottom of the sixth we picked up an RBI single from Pafko, an RBI single by Finigan and DeMaestri got us into the lead when he hit a sac-fly to center that scored Pafko from third! Moe Drabowsky came out for the top of the eighth with the score still 3-2 A’s, and he struck out three around a single by Runnels, keeping the lead protected, and he finished out the rest of the game as we held the Senators off again 3-2 ... tomorrow we play the Senators one last time, with a chance at a series sweep!

Erskine went 5.1 innings with six hits, a walk, a strikeout and two earned runs, and Dixon came out for 1.2 innings to win the game, with just a hit and a walk -- he’s now 5-1 with a 4.44 ERA through 26.1 innings. Drabowsky then saved his second game of the year, striking out four with just two hits in his two innings, improving his ERA to 5.33. Each team hit nine times, ours led by Andy Pafko with two hits, a run and an RBI.

June 21, 1956: Harry Walker came off the IL today, and we sent Walt Craddock down to AAA to make room for him on the 25-man roster. Larry Jansen (0-1, 4.56 ERA, 23.2 IP, 10 K’s, 1.18 WHIP) started the final game against Washington, facing Mickey McDermott (4-6, 3.56 ERA, 73.1 IP, 34 K’s, 1.58 WHIP). Jansen had a rough second inning, loading the bases and getting lucky that he only gave up two runs in the ensuing mess. He gave up a two-run homer to Chuck Tanner in the top of the seventh, and Al Gettel took over, no one on and no one out, giving up two more before we got out of the inning. We were dead in the water from there, losing this one 8-0 to snap our winning streak and dropping us back to 10 games under .500.

Jansen took the loss, falling to 0-2 with a 4.55 ERA, allowing only five hits but walking two and letting them score five runs, four of them earned. The bullpen (Gettel and Harrington) contributed four more runs, and they outhit us 9-8. Astroth and Metkovich had five hits between them and got nothing out of them.

June 22, 1956: Juan Pizarro (4-6, 3.28 ERA, 104.1 IP, 88 K’s, 1.14 WHIP) pitched against Frank Baumann (5-5, 4.48 ERA, 86.1 IP, 57 K’s, 1.30 WHIP) in our first of three games against Boston here in Kansas City. Pizarro gave up four runs in the top of the fourth to propel Boston to a significant 4-1 lead over us, and he took a beating from there. With the score 8-1 against us in the top of the sixth, one out, one man on, Sain came in and handled the remainder as we got smacked around 12-4.

Pizarro fell to 4-7 with a 3.86 ERA, allowing nine hits, walking three, striking out three and giving up nine earned runs through 5.1 innings. It was his first truly brutal outing, but we’re at the point in the season where he’s going to have to eat some bad innings. Sain went 3.2 innings to complete the rest of the game, allowing three hits, three walks and three earned runs with two strikeouts, and we were outhit 12-8. DeMaestri led the way with two hits, a run and two RBIs.

Ownership has made it clear that we’ve got to focus on building the team through the draft and by trading for youth, so it’s official ... the sell-off is on, and the first casualties are Jim Finigan and Vic Power, who are being sent to Cleveland for 27-year-old left-handed starter Don Mossi and $50,000 in cash. Mossi is a huge get for us ... he won the 1955 AL Cy Young award last season with a 20-6 record and 2.22 ERA, and he’s started out with a 6-5 record this year with a 2.83 ERA and a 1.31 WHIP. But it’s a move toward the future, since we had to give up so much of our offense to get him. The move definitely has fans in both cities buzzing, though, since Cleveland, at just 8.5 games back of the Yankees, are clearly signaling their intention to be competitive at the deadline.

June 23, 1956: Vic Raschi (6-0, 2.29 ERA, 82.2 IP, 32 K’s, 1.14 WHIP) started today against Boston’s Ike Delock (5-3, 3.74 ERA, 77.0 IP, 32 K’s, 1.40 WHIP). Harry Walker hit an RBI single to give us a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the third, and Daryl Spencer added an RBI single in the bottom of the fourth to extend the lead. But Boston tied it up with a two-run homer by Ted Williams in the top of the fifth. We answered with a solo homer by Joe Astroth in the bottom of the sixth inning, and Harry Walker added an RBI single in the bottom of the seventh to get us back up two runs. Pafko batted in a run with a single, and we went into the top of the eighth leading 5-2, with Carl Erskine coming in out of the bullpen to hold it. He stayed out for the final two innings and we took this one 5-2.

Sonny Dixon picked up after Raschi’s first five innings, giving us two hitless frames with a walk and a strikeout as he improved to 6-1 with a 4.13 ERA. Erskine, in his first game out of the pen now that we have added Mossi to the rotation, got through two innings with a hit, two walks and two strikeouts, picking up the save and improving his ERA to 3.58.

June 24, 1956: Don Mossi made his first start as a member of the A’s this afternoon, going up against Frank Sullivan (3-6, 4.38 ERA, 96.2 IP, 47 K’s, 1.37 WHIP). Daryl Spencer batted in a run to give us the lead in the bottom of the second, and Mossi held that lead through the seventh inning, getting us into the stretch still up by a run. Moe Drabowsky came out to pitch in the top of the eighth, and he stayed out in the ninth, pitching around a base hit by Whitey Herzog, to get us the 1-0 victory!

Mossi got through seven innings with four hits, two walks and three strikeouts, his ERA for the season improving to 2.61 through his first 14 starts. Drabowsky then came out and pitched two innings with four strikeouts, saving his third game of the year and improving his ERA to 4.94 through 27.1 innings. Boston outhit us 4-2, but Metkovich led the way with a hit and a run, while Spencer added a walk and an RBI.

Tomorrow we’ll face the Yankees (46-21) for two games, starting with the suspended game from more than a month ago, as part of what is now going to be a four-game series here in Kansas City. We’re then off on Thursday and will finish the homestand with a trio of games against Detroit (33-31).

June 25, 1956: In our first game against the Yankees, we pick things up in the top of the fifth, no outs, no one on, with the score knotted up at two runs apiece. Carl Erskine had just four hits before the game was originally suspended, and he picked up where he left off, getting two quick outs before Gil McDougald hit a solo homer out of left to put the Yankees ahead 3-2. We got hot though in the bottom of the seventh, Metkovich singling in Paddock from second, Don Bollweg singling Metkovich in to score the go-ahead, and then Andy Pafko hitting an RBI single to score Bollweg, putting us up 5-3 heading into the top of the eighth. Erskine stayed out in the ninth and unfortunately for us he gave up a two-run homer to Elston Howard to tie things up ... but Joe Astroth hit a line drive into left field to walk it off as we beat the Yankees 6-5, only our second win against them all year!

Carl Erskine improved to 2-5 with a complete game, allowing seven hits, three walks and five earned runs with five strikeouts. We outhit the Yankees 12-7, led by Andy Pafko who hit three times with two runs and two RBIs.

In the evening’s second game, we started Sam Jones (5-3, 4.57 ERA, 61.0 IP, 31 K’s, 1.62 WHIP) against the Yankees’ Whitey Ford (6-4, 3.63 ERA, 91.2 IP, 59 K’s, 1.60 WHIP). The Yankees got out to a quick start, outscoring us 3-2 in the first two innings, and with a 4-1 advantage heading into the top of the sixth, Moe Drabowsky came out for us as we tried to keep this one from becoming a blowout. Sonny Dixon came out to pitch in the top of the seventh, and in the bottom of the eighth O’Connell tripled to lead things off and was batted home by Pafko with a sac-fly to cut our deficit to two runs. Dixon got us through the top of the ninth, and with two outs, Paddock pinch-hit for Dixon and hit a double into center. They walked Walker, but O’Connell popped out to right as this one ended as a 4-2 loss.

Jones lasted five innings with five hits, two walks, five strikeouts and four earned runs, taking the loss as he fell to 5-4 with a 4.77 ERA. They outhit us 9-6, our team led by Metkovich who hit twice with a run and an RBI, while O’Connell added a hit and a run.

June 26, 1956: Juan Pizarro (4-7, 3.86 ERA, 109.2 IP, 91 K’s, 1.19 WHIP) got the start against Vinegar Bend Mizell (14-1, 1.14 ERA, 134.0 IP, 95 K’s, 0.96 WHIP). Mickey Mantle batted in a run in the top of the first and Yogi Berra singled in a second with some help from an E9 error, giving them an early 2-0 lead. Daryl Spencer got us on the board in the bottom of the fourth with a line drive single into left, but they got the run back in the top of the fifth with an RBI single by Woodie Held. Moe Drabowsky came in to relieve Pizzaro in the top of the seventh, still trailing by two runs, and with the bases loaded and two outs Skowron cleared the bases with a double that put this one way out of reach. Harrington came out to mop things up in the eighth, and he gave up four runs himself as we got crushed 10-1.

Pizarro fell to 4-8 with a 3.81 ERA, despite lasting six innings with eight hits, two walks, one strikeout and three runs (two earned). We were outhit 16-4 and were never really in this one once we lost the lead in the first inning. Don Bollweg led the way with two hits to nowhere, while Spencer batted in a run with his lone hit, Walker scoring one with a hit as well.

June 27, 1956: Vic Raschi (6-0, 2.36 ERA, 87.2 IP, 35 K’s, 1.16 WHIP) started tonight in our final game against the Yankees, going up against Billy O’Dell (9-5, 2.53 ERA, 121.0 IP, 68 K’s, 1.14 WHIP). We scored four runs in the bottom of the third to take the lead, thanks to an RBI double by O’Connell, an RBI single by Pafko, an RBI triple by Metkovich and an RBI single by Spencer, four key hits back to back. But the Yankees scored twice in the fifth and twice in the sixth to tie it up, but DeMaestri kept us going with a solo homer that sent us into the top of the seventh leading 5-4. And that wound up being enough ... a huge storm complex rolled through with one out in the bottom of the seventh, and after waiting more than an hour, the ump called the game as a 5-4 win for our A’s!

Raschi came out of it with another win, improving to 7-0 with a 2.38 ERA thanks to seven innings with seven hits, four runs (two earned) and three strikeouts, no walks. We outhit New York 8-7, led by O’Connell with two hits, a run and an RBI.

June 29, 1956: Detroit came into town with a 36-31 record to face us with our 31 wins and 40 losses. They’ve beaten us six times out of the 10 we’ve faced them, but we’re 14-13 so far in the month of June, and if treading water keeps us out of dead last place, we’re all for it. Don Mossi (7-5, 2.61 ERA, 93.0 IP, 54 K’s, 1.33 WHIP) started against Billy Hoeft (9-4, 4.40 ERA, 102.1 IP, 75 K’s, 1.43 WHIP). This one went back and forth through the first six innings, our boys tying things up 3-3 in the bottom of the sixth with an RBI single by Daryl Spencer. Mossi got us safely through the seventh inning and into the stretch still tied up, and Carl Erskine came out of the pen in the top of the eighth. He got us through the eighth, stranding runners on second and third, and in the bottom of the inning Danny O’Connell hit an RBI double to give us the lead! Moe Drabowsky came out with one out and no one on, getting the outs we needed to win this one 4-3!

Mossi had seven great innings, with seven hits, two walks, two strikeouts and three earned runs, but it was Erskine (3-5, 3.62 ERA) who got us into the lead with his 1.1 innings and two hits, a walk and a strikeout. Drabowsky saved his fourth game of the year with two outs on four pitches, so he’s still nicely rested with his ERA at 5.40 through his first 22 appearances.

June 30, 1956: Juan Pizarro (4-8, 3,81 ERA, 115.2 IP, 92 K’s, 1.22 WHIP) started against Bob Shaw (4-8, 4.53 ERA, 97.1 IP, 49 K’s, 1.47 WHIP). Detroit took the lead in the top of the first with an RBI single by Al Kaline, and with the score 4-2 against us in the top of the sixth we brought out Johnny Sain. He gave up a pair in the top of the seventh, and in the end it didn’t matter because we couldn’t find a way to score after the fourth inning, losing this one 6-2.

Pizarro fell to 4-9 with a 3.73 ERA, allowing four hits and four runs (one earned) with two walks and three strikeouts through five innings. Detroit outhit us 8-7, our team led by Daryl Spencer with two hits and two runs. We’ll head into the month of July with a 32-41 record, 16 games out of first place but four games out of last place.

jksander · 09-06-2024, 07:41 PM

July 1, 1956: Two red hot pitchers faced off today in Kansas City: Vic Raschi (7-0, 2.38 ERA, 94.2 IP, 38 K’s, 1.15 WHIP) and Steve Gromek (6-2, 2.51 ERA, 93.1 IP, 40 K’s, 1.07 WHIP). We took the lead in the bottom of the first with a Danny O’Connell solo homer, adding on when an E7 error allowed Daryl Spencer to reach first and drive Andy Pafko in from third. Andy Pafko got himself a solo homer in the bottom of the fifth to add on, but they got on the board themselves in the top of the sixth when Al Kaline batted in a run with a single. They added a run in the top of the seventh, cutting our lead to one run with an RBI double by Blasingame, and Sonny Dixon came out with the runner on second and two outs, getting us into the stretch with a groundout to first. Daryl Spencer batted in a pair to get our lead back to three runs heading into the top of the eighth, and we brought Drabowsky out to pitch in the top of the ninth, pitching around two singles to get us the outs we needed to win 5-2.

Raschi is now 8-0 since the move from Brookyn, with a 2.31 ERA after allowing just six hits, two walks, two strikeouts and two runs (one earned) in tonight’s game. Dixon got his second hold, and Drabowsky saved his fifth game of the season and brought his ERA down to 5.23. We outhit Detroit 13-8, with O’Connell and Pafko each hitting twice, scoring twice and batting in a run. Metkovich hit three times and scored a run, and he now leads the team with a .309 average.

Next up: a game in Cleveland on Tuesday, and two in Chicago on Wednesday, and then we’ll return to Kansas City to play Cleveland three more times before going on break for the All Star game. These games should be particularly interesting, since we now have Mossi and they’ve got Finigan and Power.

July 3, 1956: Dan Mossi (7-5, 2.70 ERA, 100.0 IP, 56 K’s, 1.33 WHIP) started against his former team, facing Tom Cheney (5-3, 2.72 ERA, 89.1 IP, 63 K’s, 1.25 WHIP) in a one-off game in Cleveland. The Guardians took the lead in the bottom of the second with an RBI single by Paul Jones, and Mossi pitched a great game completely unaided by our lack of hitting. The Guardians scored again in the bottom of the seventh thanks to an RBI single (again) by Paul Jones, but Mossi got us through the inning trailing 2-0. Sonny Dixon came out to pitch us through the bottom of the eighth, and in the top of the ninth Juan Pizarro came out to pinch-hit for him, getting a single up the gap. Harry Walker then singled him over to second, and O’Connell sac-bunted them both over! A sac-fly to deep center by Pafko got us on the board, but Catfish Metkovich hit one straight to their shortstop ... game over, we lose it 2-1.

Mossi only allowed four hits and two earned runs with three walks and three strikeouts through seven innings, and we had four hits ourselvs but only managed to get one last-inning run. Pizarro scored after his pinch-hit, and Pafko drove him in without ever making it on base. Walker hit twice, but couldn’t get anywhere.

July 4, 1956: It’s a doubleheader day and America’s birthday ... how do you like that? Juan Pizarro (4-9, 3.73 ERA, 120.2 IP, 95 K’s, 1.22 WHIP) started the first game against Chicago’s Connie Johnson (5-7, 4.75 ERA, 106.3 IP, 74 K’s, 1.52 WHIP). Daryl Spencer got us on the board in the top of the first with a sac-fly, and Joe Astroth batted home Andy Pafko with a single, giving us a two-run lead before Pizarro even threw the ball. Earl Battey got Chicago a run in the bottom of the fourth with an RBI single, and then Pizarro got crushed in the bottom of the fifth, giving up four runs. Johnny Sain came out with men on second and third, two outs, and avoided further carnage, and he stayed out the remainder of the game but our bats were silent and they won 5-2.

Pizarro is now 4-10 in his rookie season, five hits, four walks and five runs (three earned) in 4.2 innings tonight giving him a 3.81 ERA as he struggles to find his early-season momentum. Sain held tough and got through 3.1 innings with three hits and a pair of strikeouts, but Chicago outhit us 10-4 and we were never in it after giving up those runs in the fifth inning. Astroth led the way with three hits and an RBI.

For the second game we brought out Sam Jones (5-4, 4.77 ERA, 66.0 IP, 36 K’s, 1.61 WHIP), who went up against Bob Rush (5-3, 3.12 ERA, 92.1 IP, 49 K’s, 1.31 WHIP). Chicago took the lead with a single by Aparicio in the bottom of the second, and then added on with an RBI single by Earl Battey in the bottom of the fifth to go up 2-0. But Don Bollweg hit a two-run blast out of center to tie it up in the top of the sixth. They took the lead back in the bottom of the seventh thanks to an RBI triple by Nieman, and Carl Erskine came out, no outs, to try and hold him there at third ... and that did NOT happen. Larry Doby batted in the run with a single, and we went into the top of the eighth trailing 5-2. Sonny Dixon came out in the eighth, got the outs we needed, and then in the top of the ninth we unexpectedly shot back into the lead thanks to a two-run homer by Dixon and a two-run homer by Darryl Spencer! Dixon, who had only taken six pitches to get through the eighth, stayed out to pitch in the bottom of the ninth, getting two quick outs ... and then an RBI triple by Johnny Groth tied it up. But Dixon got the third out to strand the runner and this one went, like so many before it, into extra innings. Moe Drabowsky came out in the bottom of the 10th and gave up three straight hits to end this one, Nellie Fox walking it off with a single, and we lost 7-6.

Drabowsky fell to 0-5 with a 5.52 ERA, allowing three hits and an earned run off eight pitches. Each team hit 14 times, ours led by Spencer with two hits, a walk, a run and two RBIs. O’Connell, Metkovich and George Wilson each hit twice as well. We just gave up too many runs, it’s hard for any lineup to counter that.

July 6, 1956: Larry Jansen (0-2, 4.55 ERA, 29.2 IP, 14 K’s, 1.18 WHIP) pitched tonight against Dick Hall (2-0, 5.25 ERA, 12.0 IP, 5 K’s, 1.33 WHIP) as Cleveland came to town with about 8,300 die-hard A’s fans camped out in the stands. Andy Pafko hit a solo homer in the bottom of the third to put us up 1-0, and after they tied it up in the fourth, Pafko added an RBI single in the bottom of the fifth to put us back up 2-1. Darryl Spener hit an RBI single that, aided by an E9 error, allowed Metkovich to score and add some insurance in the bottom of the eighth, and Jansen stayed out for the top of the ninth but gave up a solo homer to Dale Long immediately ... he then got two strikeouts and a pop-out to right field to end this as a 2-3 victory!

Jansen only allowed nine hits in the complete game, walking two, striking out three and giving them two earned runs. We hit nine times as well, led by Pafko who hit three times with a run and two RBIs.

July 7, 1956: Don Mossi (7-6, 2.69 ERA, 107.0 IP, 59 K’s, 1.31 WHIP) pitched against Mike Garcia (7-4, 2.52 ERA, 128.2 IP, 79 K’s, 1.10 WHIP) and we actually broke 10,000 fans, which is flat-out incredible considering we’re still ten games under .500 ... Joe Astroth batted in two runners with a line drive single in the bottom of the first to give us the lead, and an O’Connell RBI triple in the bottom of the second extended the lead to three. We built a 6-0 lead through the first five innings, and then in the top of the sixth Mossi gave up five runs to the Guardians as the whole thing damnned near fell apart. Luckly our bats stayed hot -- Astroth hit an RBI triple, scoring two, and Bollweg (RBI double) and Mossi himself (RBI single) rebuilt the lead with four runs in the bottom of the inning. Johnny Sain came out leading 10-5 in the top of the seventh, and Drabowsky came out in the top of the eighth with two outs and men on first and second, getting us out of a bases loaded situation with no runs scored. We added a pair in the bottom of the inning and then cruised to win 12-5.

Don Mossi had a rough time in that one inning, but he only allowed six hits with three walks, seven strikeouts and five earned runs in his six innings, improving to 8-6 with a 2.95 ERA, 2-1 since coming to Kansas City. Sain lasted 1.2 innings with two hits and two walks, and Drabowsky just walked two with nothing else in his 1.1 innings as we won big. We outhit them 16-8, led by Astroth who hit twice with a run and four RBIs.

July 8, 1956: It’s the final game before the All Star break, and we came out wanting to win it and go out with a bang. Vic Raschi, Carl Erskine and Danny O’Connell made the All Star roster, which definitely helps with drawing fans into the stadium. In fact, nearly 12,700 fans came out for the third game of the series, to see Juan Pizarro (4-10, 3.81 ERA, 125.1 IP, 97 K’s, 1.26 WHIP) pitch against Tim Cheney (6-3, 2.56 ERA, 98.1 IP, 67 K’s, 1.18 WHIP). That was our best attendance since opening day! Pizarro had a rough first inning, loading the bases, but he got out of it without any runs scoring. He got out of the third with a pair of strikeouts, and the crowd really got behind him ... but our bats were completely silent. Finally in the bottom of the fourth we got an RBI from Daryl Spencer, his single batting in Danny O’Connell to put us up 1-0. Sonny Dixon came out in the top of the sixth, and Al Gettel came out to pitch in the top of the seventh with two outs and a man on first, making our final out on a pick-off play at second to keep the one-run lead. Gettel got us through the eighth, but on his first pitch in the ninth he gave up a triple to Dale Long ... Don Bessent came out and got two quick outs, but the second was a sac-fly to center. TIE GAME. He struck out Paul Jones and we came up to hit in the bottom of the inning, couldn’t hit, and this one went into extras, with Pizarro just looking glum in the dugout. Bessent got us through the top of the 10th, but Erskine had to come out to pitch in the 11th. Finally, in the bottom of the 11th innning, Daryl Spencer hit a homer out of left to walk it off and we won the game 2-1.

Pizarro went through five innings with three hits, three walks and two strikeouts, but that first inning roughed him up and we couldn’t count on him to go deep into this one. Dixon (#3) and Gettel (#3) picked up holds to get us through the eighth, but Bessent blew his first save ... he lasted two innings with just one hit and one strikeout, and Erskine picked up the win, improving to 4-5 with a 3.61 ERA, just a strikeout for him in the one inning he pitched. Bessent has yet to give up an earned run through 8.1 innings. Cleveland outhit us 7-5, our team led by Spencer, who had a hit, a run and two RBIs including this, his second homer of the year.

We’ll go into the All Star break with a 36-44 record, 19 games out of first but with a little more room between us and the bottom two teams, Washington (34-49, 22.5 GB) and Baltimore (30-50, 25 GB). The middle of the pack is wide open, and I’m hopeful that this year we can find a way to keep winning games after the break and avoid the complete free-fall we faced last season after this point. We’ll return from the break on the road, facing Baltimore for three, followed by Washington (a doubleheader on the 15th), Boston (37-42) for three and the Yankees (56-26) for four. We then return to Kansas City for three against Boston, three against the Yankees, three against Baltimore and three against Washington, getting us nicely into early August.

July 10, 1956: Danny O’Connell was a bench player for the All Star game, so we weren’t sure if he’d get to play much, if at all. But our pitchers were likely to be used, I just wasn’t sure how this year’s manager would choose to use them. Our AL team took a 4-0 lead in the top of the first here at beautiful Wrigley Field, and then surprisingly Vinegar Bend Mizell gave up two runs to the NL team in the bottom of the first. That’s gotta sting! Vic Raschi came out to pitch for us in the bottom of the second, and he was excellent ... got Ed Bailey to ground out, Johnny Logan to flyout to left, and after Duke Snyder hit a triple, he got Eddie Mathews to fly out again to left, blanking them. O’Connell pinch-hit for Willie Jones in the top of the sixth, but struck out swinging, staying in to play third base ... Carl Erskine came out to pitch in the bottom of the seventh, with our lead 6-5 over the National League team, and he did as well as Raschi, getting three outs around a single by Red Schoendienst, to confound the heart of their order. O’Connell got a second at-bat in the top of the ninth, our lead still at one run, but he struck out again. We still shut them down in the final frame and the American League won the game 6-5. Bill Skowron had a hit, a walk, two runs and two RBIs, the Yankee first baseman earning MVP honors. On the NL side, San Musial had a hit, two walks, two runs and an RBI to lead his offense.

The New York Yankees lead the AL by 11 games over the Chicago White Sox (43-35) and by 12.5 over Detroit (42-37) and Cleveland (42-37). Over in the NL, Brooklyn (52-26) leads the Cincinnati Redlegs (44-35) by 8.5 games, and by 9.5 games over Milwaukee’s Braves (42-35) and the New York Giants (43-36). The Chicago Cubs (29-50) have the worst record in the majors by half a game over Baltimore.

jksander · 09-07-2024, 12:32 PM

July 12, 1956: Don Mossi (8-6, 2.95 ERA, 113.0 IP, 66 K’s, 1.32 WHIP) started tonight against Baltimore’s Ruben Gomez (7-7. 3.44 ERA, 131.0 IP, 48 K’s, 1.14 WHIP). This one was a classic pitcher’s duel, with the game knotted up with nothin’ through six innings, but then we broke through in a big way ... in the top of the seventh, Don Bollweg hit a flyball double into center that scored a quick pair of runs, and Don Mossi singled in a run by Bollweg to make it 3-0 heading into the stretch! Baltimore got an RBI triple off the bat of Hoot Evers with one out in the bottom of the seventh, and a groundout to first scored a second. But Daryl Spencer got us a run back in the top of the eighth with a double that drove in Pafko, and Sonny Dixon came out to pitch in the bottom of the inning and got three quick outs. He stayed out and got one out in the ninth, then gave up a pair of hits and we brought out Don Bessent with men on first and second, and he left them both stranded as we won this one 4-2, our fourth win in a row!

Mossi improved to 3-1 since his trade to Kansas City, and he has a 9-6 record and 2.92 ERA on the whole, lasting seven innings tonight with three hits, four walks, three strikeouts and two earned runs -- without the walks he might have made it a complete game! Dixon earned his fourth hold, and Bessent his sixth save, and we outhit Baltimore 9-5, led by Spencer, who had two hits, two walks, a run and an RBI. He’s now hitting .284 through 23 games, and the relatively unknown 27-year-old has suddenly become a household name in the Kansas City area.

July 13, 1956: Juan Pizarro (4-10, 3.66 ERA, 130.1 IP, 99 K’s, 1.26 WHIP) pitched against Bob Kuzawa (1-10, 4.43 ERA, 113.2 IP, 64 K’s, 1.48 WHIP) in our second game against the Orioles, and we gave him a lead to work with thanks to a two-run homer by Catfish Metkovich, his sixth of the season, putting us up 2-0 after the top of the first. Baltimore got on the board with a sac-fly by Vern Stephens in the bottom of the third that pushed in Hal Smith from third, and in the bottom of the sixth with one out, Hoot Evers tied it up with an RBI single, and with the bases loaded Pizarro walked in a run to give them the lead ... and he has no one to blame but himself. He got us out of the inning but he hasn’t had a win since June 17 and hasn’t shown much consistency since late April. Sonny Dixon came out to pitch in the bottom of the seventh, and with two outs he gave up an RBI single to Evers that scored two more runs, and our bats didn’t make a peep from there as we lost 5-2. Pizarro took the loss, falling to 4-11 with a 3.70 ERA, walking four, striking out three and allowing seven hits that contributed to a trio of earned runs. We were outhit 10-7, led by Metkovich with a hit, a run and two RBIs.

July 14, 1956: Vic Raschi (8-0, 2.31 ERA, 101.1 IP, 40 K’s, 1.15 WHIP) started against Jim McDonald (5-3, 2.67 ERA, 101.0 IP, 41 K’s, 1.33 WHIP). We got two runs again in the top of the first, but Raschi gave them back four in the bottom of the inning. Thankfully we got some oomph from our offense in the top of the third, when Don Bollweg hit a grand salami out of the park to left, putting us back into the lead 6-4! They tied us up again in the bottom of the fourth with a two-run line drive single by Vern Stephens, and we brought Moe Drabowsky out to pitch in the bottom of the sixth. In the top of the seventh we got hot again, taking the lead off an RBI triple by Spencer and then adding on with a single by Bollweg and a double by DeMaestri! Drabowsky got us through the seventh, Erskine got three quick outs around a single in the eighth, and Bessent made quick worth of the final frame as we held tough to win 9-6!

Moe Drabowsky was the hero of the night, giving us two innings with just a walk and two strikeouts as he won his first game as a major leaguer. He’s now 1-5 with five saves and a 4.98 ERA through 34.1 innings. Erskine picked up his first hold of the year, and Bessent saved his seventh, throwing just 12 pitches and keeping his 0.00 ERA through 10 full innings. We outhit the Orioles 11-10, led by Don Bollweg who hit twice with a run and five RBIs, and by Spencer with three hits, two runs and an RBI.

July 15, 1956: Today we’ve got a doubleheader in Washington against the Senators, Larry Jansen (1-2, 3.96 ERA, 38.2 IP, 17 K’s, 1.19 WHIP) starting the first game against Duke Maas (6-6, 2.98 ERA, 96.2 IP, 43 K’s, 1.30 WHIP). Poor fielding summed up the second inning, as a pair of errors led to an unearned run, Aspromonte having reached first on an E3 and then eventually coming around to score thanks to an Ed Fitz Gerald RBI single in the bottom of the inning. Eddie Yost added a solo homer in the bottom of the third, and Mickey Vernon hit one the opposite direction in the very next at-bat, digging us a nice 3-0 hole a third of the way through the game. Don Bollweg hit a two-run homer in the top of the fifth, his third since becoming a starter, but Al Harrington came out to pitch for us in the bottom of the seventh trailing 4-2, and we weren’t able to do anything else ... that wound up being the final score in a disappointing loss. Jansen fell to 1-3 with a 4.03 ERA, allowing six hits and four runs (three earned) with a walk and a strikeout through six innings. They outhit us 9-4, led by Bollweg’s two RBIs thanks to his homer.

Sam Jones (5-4, 4.88 ERA, 72.0 IP, 37 K’s, 1.64 WHIP) started the second game, facing Bill Kennedy (0-3, 4.76 ERA, 70.0 IP, 40 K’s, 1.51 WHIP), and this one was scoring whiplash through the first five and a half frames ... we came out in the top of the sixth trailing 4-2, but with two outs, Andy Pafko hit an RBI double that cleared the bases and scored three runs, putting us up 5-4 with Drabowsky ready to come in and pitch. He promptly gave up a solo homer to pinch-hitter Chuck Tanner, and with one out in the bottom of the seventh they hit another, this time via Jim Busby, to give the Senators a 6-5 lead. Sonny Dixon came out and got us out of there without any further damage, but he gave up a run in the eighth and we lost this one 7-5. Drabowsky took the loss, falling to 1-6 with a 5.30 ERA. We each had 11 hits, our team led by Pafko who had three hits and four RBIs while Metkovich, Spencer and DeMaestri each had two hits.

July 17, 1956: Don Mossi (9-6, 2.92 ERA, 120.0 IP, 69 K’s, 1.30 WHIP) started against Frank Sullivan (4-10, 4.09 ERA, 132.0 IP, 60 K’s, 1.30 WHIP) at Fenway for our first of three. It was not a good game. Boston took a 3-0 lead out of the gate, and by the time Johnny Sain came out for mop-up duty, we were already in a 6-0 hole. We traded runs in the eighth and ninth, but came up empty in a 9-3 drubbing. Mossi took the loss in a particularly poor outing, but we were outhit 11-6 and never put up any real resistance. Don Bollweg continues to shine on offense, leading the way with two hits and three RBIs, but no one else was energized.

July 18, 1956: Juan Pizarro (4-11, 3.70 ERA, 136.1 IP, 102 K’s, 1.28 WHIP) pitched against Willard Nixon (7-3, 3.98 ERA, 126.2 IP, 75 K’s, 1.59 WHIP). And Pizarro put in the work to try and keep us in this one, though we traded runs early ... trailing 3-1 after five innings, Bollweg hit an RBI single to get us back within a run, and Pizarro gutted it out past 100 pitches to get through the sixth. But with no run support, we had to bring Sonny Dixon out in the top of the seventh, and with one out he gave up a solo homer over the Monster by Jackie Jansen (his second homer of the game) to dig our hole deeper. Daryl Spencer hit a solo homer in the top of the eighth to get us back within a run, and Moe Drabowsky got us through the bottom of the eighth ... in the top of the ninth with two outs Walker took his base on balls, and then O’Connell hit one HARD ... but the wind blew it back in just barely enough for Jensen to snag it, and this one ended as a 4-3 loss. Pizarro took yet another loss, falling to 4-12 with a 3.73 ERA, with just five hits, four walks, four strikeouts and three earned runs through six. We outhit them 9-7, led by Bollweg with two hits and an RBI, and by Joe Astroth who hit once and scored twice.

July 19, 1956: Vic Raschi (8-0, 2.62 ERA, 106.1 IP, 42 K’s, 1.21 WHIP) went up against Frank Baumann (7-6, 3.74 ERA, 125.0 IP, 88 K’s, 1.26 WHIP), and this one was a harsh one for us ... we took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first off a solo homer by Pafko, but in the bottom of the fourth they tied it up with a triple followed by a sac-fly by Jensen, and Don Buddin batted in the go-ahead with a single. Raschi pitched the rest of the game, but we couldn’t find a way to tie it up, and we lost in the end 2-1. Raschi took his first loss of the year, falling to 8-1 despite only allowing six hits with three walks, five strikeouts and two earned runs in his eight innings of work. We even outhit them 8-6, which makes our inability to score evern more galling. Pafko led the team with two hits, a run and an RBI.

July 20, 1956: Larry Jansen (1-3, 4.03 ERA, 44.2 IP, 18 K’s, 1.19 WHIP) pitched against Don Larsen (6-3, 4.52 ERA, 67.2 IP, 34 K’s, 1.46 WHIP) for our first of four in New York, and it was another rough night for us. We took the lead in the top of the first with an RBI double by Metkovich, and though they took the lead in the bottom of the inning with three unanswered runs, we tied it up in the top of the fourth ... but then gave up three in the bottom of that inning and two more in the sixth. We tried to climb back in, with three runs across the seventh and eighth innings, but New York had their foot on our necks and never let up -- they beat us in the end 8-6. Jansen took the loss and fell to 1-4 with a 4.97 ERA, allowing nine hits and eight earned runs with three walks and three strikeouts through six innings. Al Gettel did what he could through the remainder, but two good innings weren’t enough. They only outhit us 9-8, but the gulf felt much wider -- Bollweg led with two hits, a run and three RBIs, while Astroth added two hits, a run and two RBIs.

July 21, 1956: Six losses in a row has to qualify as a free-fall, so it’s turning into a repeat of last year ... fight to stay close, and then collapse after the All Star break. Sam Jones (5-4, 4.91 ERA, 77.0 IP, 40 K’s, 1.66 WHIP) pitched against Gene Conley (7-4, 4.04 ERA, 89.0 IP, 55 K’s, 1.27 WHIP). We took a 3-0 lead in the top of the first thanks to a Daryl Spencer three-run homer, and heading into the bottom of the sixth we still held a 4-2 lead, so Johnny Sain came out of the pen to try and protect it. He failed, giving up a two-run homer to Bob Cerv almost immediately. Carl Erskine came out in the bottom of the seventh with loaded bases and just one out, and the Yanks unleashed on us from there. Elston Howard hit a three-run double, and though Erskine got out of it from there, it was too late. He stayed out to finish the game and we lost 7-4. Sain blew his third save and fell to 2-7 with a 7.33 ERA, and we were outhit 9-7 ... Spencer led the way with his two hits, a run and three RBIs, but once we got that in the first, it was like we gave up on any real offense.

July 22, 1956: Doubleheader day. Don Mossi (9-7, 3.21 ERA, 126.0 IP, 74 K’s, 1.35 WHIP) got the start against Whitey Ford (8-4, 3.92 ERA, 126.1 IP, 80 K’s, 1.58 WHIP) in game one, and Mossi spotted them a run in the bottom of the first, off an RBI single by Woodie Held. And though Mossi lasted through the seventh inning, that run was all that stood between our teams, and Ford wasn’t looking ready to surrender anything. Carl Erskine came in for the bottom of the eighth, and with one out Hank Bauer hit a solo bomb out of left to make it a two-run lead, and Mantle hit a two-run shot to stick the nails in. We lost this one 4-0. Mossi lasted seven innings with three hits, two walks, five strikeouts and one bloody run, but they outhit us 6-5 and never let us make any moves at all ... absolutely brutal.

In game two, Juan Pizarro (4-12, 3.73 ERA, 142.1 IP, 106 K’s, 1.29 WHIP) started against Vinegar Bend Mizell (17-4, 1.71 ERA, 184.2 IP, 119 K’s, 1.03 WHIP). He spotted them a pair in the bottom of the first, and though we tried to chase, it was never a race ... Vinegar Bend doesn’t give up leads, he extends them. Pizarro hit an RBI single in the top of the fourth to get us within a run, down 3-2, and that’s how it stayed. He lasted seven innings and took the loss, allowing five hits, three walks, five strikeouts and three runs, though only one was earned. We each only managed five hits, Pizarro’s RBI and DeMaestri’s pair of hits and an RBI being our only real signs of life. The losing streak now stands at nine in a row, we’re heading home to Kansas City 16 games under .500, and we’re only a game and a half up now on Baltimore as we try to avoid falling into last place.

July 24, 1956: Vic Raschi (8-1, 2.60 ERA, 114.1 IP, 47 K’s, 1.21 WHIP) pitched against Boston’s Frank Baumann in our first game back in Kansas City since the break, and it was an abrupt crash ... 72 degrees, intermittent rain, and only 4,300 fans showed up, with any hope for our season now properly extinguished. Joe Astroth hit a solo homer in the bottom of the second to give us a lead, and we held it through the seventh inning stretch, but couldn’t score any insurance runs, so Drabowsky came out to relieve Raschi in the top of the eighth as rain started to fall. He got two outs and then Jackie Jensen tied it up with an RBI single, and we went into the bottom of the inning desperately needing some offense. We didn’t get it, but Drabowsky stayed out and got us through the top of the ninth with the tie still in effect, and this one soon went into extra innings. Don Bessent came out to pitch in the top of the 10th, and in the bottom of the inning Danny O’Connell hit a walk off single to win it for us 2-1, snapping the losing streak and restoring at least a tiny bit of my sanity.

Bessent got the win, his first, making up for Drabowsky’s sixth blown save. Raschi had a one-hitter through seven, with one walk and four strikeouts, and we outhit Boston 10-4 ... why do we keep making ourselves work so hard for things? O’Connell led the way with two hits and the game winning RBI, while Astroth’s homer got the whole thing started.

July 25, 1956: Don Mossi (9-8, 3.11 ERA, 133.0 IP, 79 K’s, 1.32 WHIP) started for us today against Willard Nixon (8-3, 3.85 ERA, 135.2 IP, 80 K’s, 1.57 WHIP). We got out to a 3-1 lead after the first inning, and in the bottom of the fifth, leading 4-2, we broke the game wide open scoring runs off an RBI single by Walker and a three-run double by Pafko to make it a six-run lead in the top of the sixth. With two outs in the top of the sixth, Boston got a run back thanks to an RBI single by Dick Gernert, and Sain came out of the pen to get us through with two outs and a man on second. Jim Piersall hit an RBI single, Jensen hit an RBI triple, and then finally we got the out, taking a mere three-run lead into the bottom of the inning. DeMaestri batted in a run to get us a little more breathing room, and Al Gettel came out to pitch, and he got us through the remainder -- we did give them back a pair in the top of the ninth, but we held firm and won this one 10-7. Mossi got the win, allowing eight hits and four runs with two walks and three strikeouts through five, and Gettel saved it, his second, with five hits, a walk and two earned runs in three innings. They outhit us 15-14, our team led by Astroth (three hits, a run, an RBI) and Pafko (two hits, a walk, four RBIs).

July 26, 1956: Larry Jansen (1-4, 4.97 ERA, 50.2 IP, 21 K’s, 1.28 WHIP) pitched against Tom Brewer (2-8, 7.67 ERA, 81.0 IP, 29 K’s, 2.05 WHIP). The weather was clear and warm, so a couple thousand extra fans came out for the game-day atmosphere, by which I mean plenty of brats, beers and Boston-hating hecklers. We took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first thanks to an RBI single by Pafko and an RBI double by Metkovich, but Boston tied it up in the top of the third they tied us up with a two-run homer by Ted Williams, his 22nd long ball of the season ... but we picked up three in the bottom half of the inning, thanks to a three-run double by Don Bollweg. Boston got a pair back in the top of the fifth, but O’Connell hit an RBI single to make it 6-4 as we brought Moe Drabowsky out to pitch in the top of the seventh. Erskine came out in the eighth, still up by a pair, and though he tried to stay out through the ninth after a 10-pitch eighth inning, two quick hits forced us to bring out Bessent to try and keep this from going all lopsided. With the bases loaded, Bessent got Don Lenhardt to hit into a 6-4-3 double play, Jim Piersall scoring a run to cut our lead in half. But he got a groundout to end the game as a 6-5 victory, saving his eighth game of the season and staying perfect through his 12th inning ... the run that scored applied to Erskine. Jansen, who lasted six innings with 10 hits, four earned runs and three strikeouts, improved to 2-4 with a 5.08 ERA, and though Boston outhit us 14-11, we got the series sweep. Pafko led the way with three hits, a walk, two runs and an RBI, while Bollweg added two hits and three RBIs.

Now we get to play three here in Kansas City against the Yankees, who have a 12-3 lead on the season series ... their 66-32 record dwarfing our 41 wins, but Chicago’s only down 12.5 games and the Yanks haven’t clinched yet. Would be nice to kick them in the balls a little for a change ... meanwhile, only a few days left before the trade deadline, and teams aren’t dealing ... nobody wants to offer up any good prospects, and we really don’t want to dismantle our offense any further than we already have if it’s not going to significantly improve our farm for the future.

July 27, 1956: We gave Juan Pizarro (4-13, 3.62 ERA, 149.1 IP, 111 K’s, 1.29 WHIP) an extra day of rest, and his reward was another matchup against Vinegar Bend Mizell (18-4, 1.72 ERA, 193.2 IP, 127 K’s, 1.02 WHIP). For three innings, all was well ... then they got a three-run homer off Bill Skowron’s bat, and it became a bad case of déjà vu. Skowron batted in another run with a single in the top of the sixth, and with two outs and men on first and second Bill Harrington came out to pitch, getting a bases-loaded strikeout to get us into the bottom of the frame trailing by four. They blew it up from there and we lost badly, 9-1. Pizarro lost once again, falling to 4-14 with a 3.66 ERA, with four hits, two walks, six strikeouts and four runs (three earned). They outhit us 8-6, our team led by Harry Walker who hit twice and scored our only run.

It’s important to not get bogged down in those win-loss numbers for Pizarro, who as a rookie has started 26 games and put up 2.7 WAR as a pitcher. We knew he was coming into a team where he’d be the best player on the roster with the most long-term potential, and he’s taking his lumps now so that we can hopefully build on the foundation and give him some young bats to work with in the coming seasons.

July 28, 1956: Vic Raschi (8-1, 2.45 ERA, 121.1 IP, 51 K’s, 1.15 WHIP) pitched against Whitey Ford (9-4, 3.66 ERA, 135.1 IP, 86 K’s, 1.54 WHIP). The game was close early, but the Yankees led from the top of the third on, and though we went into the top of the eighth trailing just 2-1, Raschi tried to stay out too long and got shelled. Carl Erskine came in with one out and the deficit at 7-1 thanks to a three-run homer by Woodie Held, and that’s where the score would stay -- Erskine threw 24 pitches in 1.2 innings for a walk and a strikeout, but New York still crushed us in the end by that same six-run margin. Raschi fell to 8-2, and New York only outhit us 7-6, but we still got bruised and beaten like they’d put up 25 hits.

July 29, 1956: Larry Jansen (2-4, 5.08 ERA, 56.2 IP, 24 K’s, 1.32 WHIP) pitched against Billy O’Dell (14-7, 2.56 ERA, 179.0 IP, 95 K’s, 1.15 WHIP). And the game was out of hand before it barely started ... the Yankees had a 4-0 lead after seven, and Drabowsky came in to mop it up. We got a run in the eighth and didn’t let them make it worse, but we were past the point of real comebacks, losing this one 4-1. Jansen fell to 2-5 with a 5.09 ERA, and with seven hits each, our team was led by Bollweg who hit once, scoring a run and batting in one.

We have four games against Baltimore () and three against Washington () this week, and then two against Chicago () and two against Detroit () on the road and a three game homestand against Cleveland () the following week. We then host Chicago for three, after which the rest of August is going to be played out on the road. If we want to win more games than last year, we’re running out of time to find such victories. Our record now stands at 41-57, with just 56 games remaining ... 32 of them at home and 24 on the road.

jksander · 09-09-2024, 02:16 AM

July 30, 1956: We’ve moved Sam Jones back down to AAA, and are calling Art Ditmar up ... he’s gone 8-6 down in Charlotte with a 3.20 ERA with a 1.31 WHIP through 132 innings, good for 2.5 WAR. He had a very rough start for us early in the season, but at this point he’s got better movement and control than Jones and if the 27-year-old is going to get any chance to make it in the majors, this is his chance to show it. We’re back at the top of our rotation for now, but he’ll get his chance, most likely in our first game against Washington on August 3rd.

Don Mossi (4-3, 3.93 ERA, 52.2 IP, 31 K’s, 1.27 WHIP) pitched today against Baltimore’s Ruben Gomez (7-10, 3.33 ERA, 159.1 IP, 64 K’s, 1.19 WHIP). Andy Pafko hit a two-run homer to put us in the lead in the bottom of the first, and we added two more in the bottom of the third with an RBI single by Don Bollweg and a sac-fly by Catfish Metkovich. Thomas Paddock batted in our fifth run with a single in the bottom of the fourth, but we had some bad luck in the bottom of the fifth -- Daryl Spencer was injured sliding into second, giving us two on, no outs, and had to be pulled from the game for Suder, his injury yet to be diagnosed. They would get three quick outs to keep us from adding on, but we still led 5-0 when Bill Harrington came out to pitch in the top of the seventh. So of course he got destroyed, and when Carl Erskine came out with one out and a runner on third, our lead had been cut to one run. A pop-out to center held the runner at third, but Wayne Causey hit an RBI single to tie it up and we went into the stretch knotted up 5-5: “Kansas City -- where no lead is ever safe!” Sonny Dixon came out in the eighth and Max Drabowsky in the ninth, keeping them from scoring each time, but our bats remained silent too, so this one like so many others before it went into extra innings.

Drabowsky got three quick outs to get us up to bat in the bottom of the 10th, but in the top of the 11th Al Gettel gave up an RBI single to Charley Lau that put Baltimore into the lead, two outs, runner on second. Don Bessent came out to pitch, got the final out, and it would be up to our bats to see if we had a win in us somewhere. Ray Noble pinch-hit for Bessent in the bottom of the inning, taking a walk, and with one out Don Bollweg batted him over to third with a single! Andy Pafko hit a hard one into center, driving in the tying run with a single of his own, but we couldn’t get the go-ahead, and Sain came out to pitch in the top of the 12th as the last remaining reliever in our arsenal. On his third pitch of the night he gave Causey a fat homer to push out of the park, pushing them back on top by a run, but Sain hit a flyball into right in the bottom of the inning that tied it up with a double, and Don Bollweg walked it off with a hit into right as we beat the Orioles 8-7 in 12 innings!

It took us EIGHT PITCHERS ... but we got the win. Sain improved to 3-7 with a 7.49 ERA, and Mossi had a solid start -- six innings, five hits, two walks, four strikeouts and no earned runs. Erskine blew the save, but only threw 13 pitches, so he, Dixon, Bessent and Gettel should all be rested enough to pitch later in the series if needed. Each team hit 16 times tonight, a real slugfest ... Don Bollweg was the clear winner for us, and not just for his walk-off single. He hit four times tonight with two runs and two RBIs, while Pafko added three hits, a run and three RBIs.

July 31, 1956: Good news: Daryl Spencer is only day to day for a few days due to a sore knee, and he’ll be able to play. Juan Pizarro (4-14, 3.66 ERA, 155.0 IP, 117 K’s, 1.28 WHIP) pitched today against Don Johnson (4-8, 4.68 ERA, 92.1 IP, 36 K’s, 1.54 WHIP). With no score heading into the top of the third, Pizarro got into a bases-loaded jam but got two strikeouts to end the threat. Neither our batting nor our fielding did him any favors, but he dug in and stranded another runner at third as he got through the fourth inning. Finally we got something going offensively with a solo homer by Don Bollweg in the bottom of the fourth, but Pizarro couldn’t get a clean inning. Hoot Evers took second off an E1 error, one out, in the top of the sixth, but Pizarro did get the outs to get us out of there with his lead still safe. We added a run in the bottom of the sixth when Daryl Spencer hit himself a solo bomb out of center, and Pizarro held firm in the seventh to get us into the break leading 2-0. He went on to have the best game of his season by far, completing the game and holding tight to his 2-0 victory!

Juan Pizarro earned this win, improving to 5-14 with a complete game six-hit shutout! He only walked a pair, and struck out nine, just one off his career high, improving his ERA to 3.46. Our bats did nothing to give him real confidence ... two homers off four hits, against six hits from Baltimore, but Bollweg and Spencer’s homers got us the lead and he did the job needed to hold it. He threw a season-high 118 pitches, and even when facing a two-out man on second situation in the top of the ninth, he chose to stay out and show he could be solid in the clutch.

August 1, 1956: Vic Raschi (8-2, 2.80 ERA, 128.2 IP, 55 K’s, 1.18 WHIP) started against Ruben Gomez (7-10, 3.55 ERA, 162.1 IP, 65 K’s, 1.21 WHIP), as Ruben tries to recover from his rough 51-pitch outing two days ago. Andy Pafko hit an RBI single in the bottom of the third to put us up 1-0, but the Orioles got a solo homer from Charlie Maxwell in the top of the sixth to tie it up ... so Andy Pafko hit one of his own in the bottom of the sixth to get us back into the lead. Raschi got us into the stretch with the 2-1 lead, and for the second game in a row our starter stayed a hundred percent locked in ... Raschi stayed out in the ninth and completed the game as we shut Baltimore down 2-1! He finished the night with just six hits, three walks, five strikeouts and his one earned run, improving his record to 9-2 with a 2.68 ERA. We outhit them 8-6, led by Pafko who had three hits, a run and two RBIs.

I’ve received some backdoor hints and messages from friends in the baseball world that there’s interest from the New York Giants (51-49, 15 GB) and St. Louis Cardinals (54-46, 12 GB) over in the National League in bringing me in as a GM / Manager for their programs, but unless things go south between me and owner Richard Doyle between now and the Fall Classic, I’m fully immersed in turning this program around in Kansas City. I’m only 27, and I’m getting full control to rebuild a program from the ground up ... why would I want to jump ship to another team that would be just as much in the shadow of the Brooklyn Dodgers as I am right now against the likes of the White Sox or the Yankees?

August 2, 1956: Larry Jansen (2-5, 5.09 ERA, 63.2 IP, 28 K’s, 1.32 WHIP) got the start in the final game against Baltimore, facing Bob Kuzawa (3-11, 4.56 ERA, 136.1 IP, 73 K’s, 1.53 WHIP). Baltimore took the lead in the top of the third with a solo homer by Carroll Hardy, his first of the season, but in the bottom of the sixth we got a two-run homer from DeMaestri, his fifth, and had a 2-1 lead heading into the top of the seventh. With two outs in the top of the seventh, Hardy hit his second homer of the night to score three and shoot the Orioles back into the lead 4-2. Metkovich batted in a run with a single in the bottom of the inning to get us back within one, but homers continued to kill us -- Erskine gave one up to Wes Covington in the top of the eighth and we weren’t able to make up any more runs, losing this one in the end 5-3. Larry Jansen fell to 2-6 with a 5.12 ERA, allowing six hits, three walks and four earned runs with four strikeouts. Erskine got through the remainder with two hits, a strikeout and the home run, and though we outhit them 10-8 their power tonight overwhelmed us. Metkovich hit twice with an RBI, and DeMaestri led the way with three hits, a run and two RBIs.

August 3, 1956: Art Ditmar (0-1, 12.27 ERA, 7.1 IP, 3 K’s, 2.45 WHIP) got the start against Mickey McDermott (5-10, 3.42 ERA, 126.1 IP, 64 K’s, 1.62 WHIP). Ditmar loaded the bases in the first inning, and a run scored off a sac-fly to right to get Washington on the board quickly. A second run scored off a fielder’s choice, but we got out of the top of the first trailing 2-0. The Senators extended their lead with an RBI single by Jim Lemon in the top of the third, and we still trailed by that same 3-0 margin when Moe Drabowsky came out to pitch in the top of the seventh. Drabowsky got us through the ninth inning but our bats were completely silent and the Senators completed the 3-0 shutout without any real fuss on our part. Ditmar fell to 0-2 on the season, allowing just three hits but walking four to contribute to the three earned runs, his ERA improving to 8.78. Drabowsky then threw three full innings with three hits, two walks and a strikeout, his ERA improving to 4.24 through 46.2 innings. They outhit us 6-5, with Daryl Spencer hitting once and walking twice to “lead” our offense.

August 4, 1956: Don Mossi (10-8, 3.11 ERA, 144.2 IP, 86 K’s, 1.33 WHIP) pitched against Chuck Stubbs (6-12, 4.88 ERA, 145.2 IP, 75 K’s, 1.58 WHIP). The game was knotted up 2-all in the third, but in the top of the fourth Mossi fell apart and the Senators broke out to a 6-2 lead, with Harrington coming out to try and put out the fire. That went poorly ... we were down seven heading into the bottom of the fourth, and though there was plenty of scoring from there, we still got blown out of the place 12-6 and were never really in contention. Mossi allowed eight hits with three walks, two strikeouts and eight earned runs in his 3.1 innings of work, and Washington outhit us 16-10. Daryl Spencer led the way with three hits, three runs and three RBIs, while Joe Astroth added three hits, one run and three RBIs.

August 5, 1956: Juan Pizarro (5-14, 3.46 ERA, 164.0 IP, 126 K’s, 1.26 WHIP) pitched today against Duke Maas (7-8, 3.56 ERA, 118.2 IP, 56 K’s, 1.36 WHIP). Washington took the lead in the top of the third with an RBI single by Eddie Yost, and they added on with an RBI double in the top of the fifth, again by Yost. Mickey Vernon singled in another run moments later, and that was pretty much it for Pizarro tonight. Al Gettel came out to pitch in the top of the sixth and got us through four innings without a run scoring, but we again lost this one 3-0 ... our bats haven’t gotten a run across in two full games now. Pizarro fell to 5-15, allowing seven hits and three earned runs with three walks and three strikeouts through five innings, and Gettel lasted four innings with five hits, two walks and three strikeouts. But they outhit us 12-1 and we only had three baserunners all night.

August 6, 1956: Vic Raschi (9-2, 2.68 ERA, 137.2 IP, 60 K’s, 1.17 WHIP) started against the White Sox’s Dick Donovan (5-8, 4.52 ERA, 129.1 IP, 53 K’s, 1.31 WHIP) on the road. Andy Pafko hit a two-run homer to give us the lead in the top of the first, but a pair of singles by Larry Doby and Minnie Minoso tied us up in the bottom of the third, and they took the lead in the bottom of the sixth with a two-out RBI single by Luis Aparicio. Carl Erskine came out to pitch with two outs and men on first and second and kept them from building further onto their lead. But we wound up losing this one in the end 4-2, our offense continuing to flounder. Raschi took the loss and fell to 9-3, allowing eight hits and three earned runs with two walks and four strikeouts through 5.2 innings, and Erskine finished the game’s final 2.1 innings with three hits, two walks and an earned run. They outhit us 11-9, Pafko’s two hits, one run and two RBIs our biggest (and really ONLY) offensive contribution to the game.

In the second game of the doubleheader, Larry Jansen (2-6, 5.12 ERA, 70.1 IP, 32 K’s, 1.32 WHIP) went up against Billy Pierce (13-8, 2.77 ERA, 181.2 IP, 123 K’s, 1.18 WHIP). Chicago broke a six-inning deadlock tonight with a triple by Nellie Fox and an RBI single by Minnie Minoso in the bottom of the sixth to give them a 1-0 lead. Moe Drabowsky came out with one out and Minoso on first and kept them from adding on, but Earl Battey hit a solo homer to start the seventh, expanding their advantage. We never got closer than that, as they went on to shut us out 4-0. Larry Jansen fell to 2-7 with a 4.90 ERA, allowing two hits with four walks, two strikeouts and one earned run through 5.1 innings. Drabowsky had two innings with two hits, a walk, three strikeouts and three earned runs, and Harrington closed it out with a hit, a walk and a strikeout in the final inning. Chicago outdueled us 5-2 on hits and we only had six baserunners the entire night.

Next up: a pair of games in Detroit (56-49), and then three games against Cleveland (60-47) and three against these White Sox (58-48) back in Kansas City. We then finish the month out with two and a half weeks on the road. We’re now on a six game losing streak, and it looks to get worse before it gets better.

August 8, 1956: Art Ditmar (0-2, 8.78 ERA, 13.1 IP, 5 K’s, 1.88 WHIP) pitched against Jim Bunning (12-9, 4.01 ERA, 190.2 IP, 123 K’s, 1.21 WHIP). Andy Pafko hit a two-run homer in the top of the third to give us a lead, his 15th four-bagger of the season. And then, in the top of the fourth, we went completely crazy on their asses ... everybody got an at bat, and we scored runs off a Ditmar single, a Walker single, an O’Connell walk, a Pafko sac-fly and a Daryl Spencer line drive double that drove in two, giving us an 8-0 lead! Detroit got on the board in the bottom of the fifth, a triple by Irv Noren driving in a pair, so we came out and scored five of our own in the top of the sixth, including a two-run homer by Spencer, his seventh of the year ... where’s this coming from? Detroit picked up a pair off a double by Randy Jackson in the bottom of the sixth, cutting our lead to nine, but we got it back to double digits in the top of the seventh with a Bollweg sac-fly. Erskine came out to pitch in the eighth inning, still leading by ten runs, and we wound up winning this one with relative ease 14-6. Ditmar improved to 1-2 with a 6.64 ERA, allowing seven hits, a walk and four runs (two earned) with three strikeouts. We outhit Detroit 16-8, led by Ditmar (three hits, a run, three RBIs) and Spencer (two hits, a walk, a run and four RBIs).

August 9, 1956: Don Mossi (10-9, 3.53 ERA, 148.0 IP, 88 K’s, 1.37 WHIP) pitched against Billy Hoeft (12-8, 4.09 ERA, 169.1 IP, 111 K’s, 1.36 WHIP) in game two against the Tigers. Joe DeMaestri batted in a run as he reached first on an E6 error in the top of the second, and in the top of the eighth we added a run off a Pafko sac-fly, and Moe Drabowsky came out to protect the two-run lead in the bottom of the eighth. Don Bessent came out in the ninth to close it, and he pitched around a single to shut them down as we won 2-0! Mossi is now 5-4 since coming to Kansas City, and he got through seven with four hits, two walks, two strikeouts and no earned runs. Drabowsky earned his sixth hold, and Bessent his ninth save, his ERA remaining at 0.00 through 13.1 innings over 13 relief appearances.We outhit Detroit 6-5, led by Spencer and O’Connell who each hit twice with a run scored.

August 10, 1956: John Pizarro (5-15, 3.51 ERA, 169.0 IP, 129 K’s, 1.28 WHIP) started tonight against Cleveland’s Dick Hall (5-1, 4.34 ERA, 45.2 IP, 28 K’s, 1.47 WHIP). We took an early lead in the bottom of the first thanks to a two-run Pafko homer, but Pete Suder wrenched his ankle while batting and had to be replaced by Pete Suder -- Suder took over at second while O’Connell took over at third. Pizarro batted in a run with a double in the bottom of the second, but in the top of the fourth Cleveland came roaring to life, back-to-back solo homers by Bobby Avila and Al Smith putting them back within a run of us. Bollweg answered with a solo bomb of his own in the bottom of the fourth, and Pizarro got us into the stretch still leading by a pair. Moe Drabowsky came out to pitch in the eighth, and Roger Maris hit his fourth homer of the season with one out, cutting the lead back to one run, but Drabowsky got us through. Don Bessent came out in the ninth, but every good run has to end ... he gave up a two-run homer to center fielder Dale Long to push Cleveland into the lead, blowing the save and surrendering his first two earned runs of the season. We came up to hit in the bottom of the inning trailing for the first time, and we went down quietly, losing this one 5-4. That ended Bessent’s 10-game shutdown streak, as he fell to 1-1 with a 1.26 ERA, allowing two hits, two walks and two earned runs. Pizarro had three hits, two walks and four strikeouts through seven innings, allowing two earned runs as his ERA improved slightly to 3.48. We outhit them 7-6, led by Pafko who had two hits, a run and two RBIs, while Pizarro had a hit and an RBI, giving him 10 batted in this season.

August 11, 1956: Vic Raschi (9-3, 2.76 ERA, 143.1 IP, 64 K’s, 1.19 WHIP) pitched against Tom Cheney (8-4, 2.54 ERA, 145.1 IP, 103 K’s, 1.24 WHIP). Cleveland took a two-run lead in the fifth, added a run in the sixth, and our contribution ... a bottom of the sixth RBI single by newly-called up backuup 3B Martin Rosell ... wasn’t enough to overcome it. Raschi got through seven innings with seven hits and three earned runs, but we didn’t put up any more runs and lost this one 3-1. Cleveland outhit us 8-6, Metkovich and Bollweg hitting twice and Bollweg scoring once, but the 21-year-old Rosell had our only run batted in.

August 12, 1956: Larry Jansen (2-7, 4.90 ERA, 75.1 IP, 34 K’s, 1.31 WHIP) went up against Mike Garcia (11-6, 2.56 ERA, 179.0 IP, 116 K’s, 1.12 WHIP) in our last game of the series against Cleveland. Jansen gave up four runs almost instantly, and after trading runs in the coming innings, we got some offense going in the bottom of the fifth, a two-run homer by Pafko pulling us back within a run heading into the top of the sixth, trailing 5-4. We tied it up in the bottom of the eighth, thanks to an RBI single by Catfish Metkovich, and Drabowsky came out to pitch in the ninth with Jansen at 133 pitches. Roger Maris then came out and, with no outs, hit a two-run homer to put them squarely back in the lead, and they kept it, beating us in the end 7-5. Jansen wound up lasting eight innings with five walks, four strikeouts and five earned runs, but overcoming the four runs he allowed in the first inning was a tough task. The loss, however, went to Drabowsky, who fell to 1-7 with a 4.88 ERA, thanks to the Maris homer, a walk and a strikeout for two earned runs in his inning. We outhit them 10-9, led by Pafko with two hits, two runs and two RBIs, and by Metkovich with two hits, a walk and two RBIs.

August 14, 1956: Art Ditmar (1-2, 6.64 ERA, 20.1 IP, 8 K’s, 1.62 WHIP) went up against Chicago’s Jack Harshman (13-5, 1.92 ERA, 163.2 IP, 87 K’s, 1.23 WHIP). In the bottom of the third we came to life, a DeMaestri single, a Danny O’Connell single and a two-run RBI double by Metkovich putting us up 4-0! Carl Erskine came out to pitch in the top of the sixth with one out and men on first and second, and he left them both stranded on the corners as we got into the bottom of the inning with the shutout still in play. They got a run in the top of the eighth with a solo homer by Luis Aparicio, but Erskine was on fire and held on to complete the rest of the game as we won 4-1. Ditmar improved to 2-2 with a 5.26 ERA thanks to 5.1 innings with one hit, two walks and four strikeouts, and Erskine had a 3.2 inning save with a hit and an earned run. We outhit them 6-2, led by Metkovich with two hits and two RBIs, while O’Connell had a hit, a walk, a run and an RBI.

August 15, 1956: Don Mossi (11-9, 3.37 ERA, 155.0 IP, 90 K’s, 1.35 WHIP) went up against Connie Johnson (7-12, 4.74 ERA, 165.1 IP, 116 K’s, 1.60 WHIP). Chicago took the lead in the top of the fourth and added on runs in the sixth and seventh, with Johnny Sain coming out to pitch in the top of the eighth trailing in a three-run shutout situation. He got through two solid innings but it wasn’t enough to overcome our inability to hit -- Chicago won easily, 3-0. Mossi had a great night with seven innings and just five hits, two walks and three strikeouts, but the three runs weren’t able to be overcome by our four hits and eight total baserunners. Only Astroth made it on base twice, and both of his were walks.

August 16, 1956: Juan Pizarro (5-15, 3.48 ERA, 176.0 IP, 133 K’s, 1.26 WHIP) started against Billy Pierce (14-9, 2.96 ERA, 194.2 IP, 128 K’s, 1.17 WHIP) in the last game of our homestand. He pitched a complete game, but Chicago took the lead 2-0 in the first inning and never let go ... we wound up losing this one 5-1 in the end. Pizarro’s endurance is improving, and he allowed seven hits with two walks and five strikeouts while throwing 106 pitches. But those five earned runs really hurt, when we only got outhit 7-5. Joe Astroth hit once with an RBI, and Metkovich had a hit and a run scored.

We play Cleveland (65-50, 11.5 GB) for four games this weekend including a Sunday doubleheader as the Guardians try to close the gap against the Yankees. We then get a day off and then two against Baltimore (46-68), three against Washington (48-66) and a Sunday doubleheader on the 26th at Fenway Park against the 53-62 Red Sox. We then get some rest days mixed in, with one game in New York (78-40) on August 29th and then a three-game set in Detroit (59-54) August 31st through September 2nd. We then return home for three against Cleveland including a Labor Day doubleheader. Of our 26 September games, all but seven will be in front of our home fans, or at least however many of those are still willing to pony up $1.40 for a ticket.

jksander · 09-12-2024, 12:58 PM

August 17, 1956: Vic Raschi (9-4, 2.81 ERA, 150.1 IP, 67 K’s, 1.18 WHIP) started against Cleveland’s Mike Garcia (11-6, 2.63 ERA, 185.0 IP, 117 K’s, 1.16 WHIP). We took the lead in the top of the third with an RBI single by Walker and an E8 error that let Bollweg score from second, followed by an RBI double by O’Connell that put us up 2-0. But they tied it up in the bottom of the fourth with a two-run homer by Rocky Colavito. We retook the lead in the top of the sixth with a line drive single by Astroth that scored two runs, but they got a three-run blast from George Crowe to flip themselves back into the lead 5-4 with one out in the bottom of the inning. Al Gettel came out and got us through without futher scoring ... but our bats were silent from there on, and we lost 5-4. Raschi took the loss and fell to 9-5, allowing four hits three walks and five earned runs with four strikeouts, all the runs coming off a pair of homers. We actually outhit them 7-4, but the longball killed us; Don Bollweg was the offense’s leader with two hits and a run scored.

August 18, 1956: Larry Jansen (2-7, 4.97 ERA, 83.1 IP, 38 K’s, 1.54 WHIP) started against Cleveland’s Ray Moore (3-0, 2 SV, 2.33 ERA, 19.1 IP, 15 K’s, 0.88 WHIP). Daryl Spencer batted in a run with a hit into a fielder’s choice in the top of the first, and he batted in another in the top of the third with a flyball double! Al Rosen hit a solo homer to get Cleveland on the board in the bottom of the fourth, however, and they took control in the bottom of the sixth with a three-run homer by Rocky Colavito that pushed them into the lead. Bill Harrington came out to pitch in the bottom of the eighth, and we would go on to lose this one in the end 5-1. Jansen fell to 2-8 with a 4.98 ERA, allowing six hits, two walks and four earned runs with three strikeouts. We matched them with nine hits in total, but they got four of their five runs off just two homers. Metkovich led our team with three hits, a walk and a run, while Spencer had a hit and two RBIs.

We got some good news after the game, in that our waiver claim on 26-year-old defensive catcher Del Crandall was executed successfully! The Milwaukee Braves waived him a week ago, despite his .239 average, 10 doubles, 10 homers and +2.0 zone rating ... he’ll take over fur as as our starting catcher, with Joe Astroth covering for him off the bench. His salary of $36,000 has mostly been paid, and will make him one of our top paid players next year, but our catchers were both aging and having a young solid defender is going to help us in the long term.

August 19, 1956: Today we have a doubleheader ... Art Ditmar (2-2, 5.26 ERA, 25.2 IP, 12 K’s, 1.40 WHIP) started in the first game against Early Wynn (10-6, 3.52 ERA, 176.1 IP, 101 K’s, 1.33 WHIP). Daryl Spencer again got us into the lead in the top of the first, this time by walking in a run, but they tied it up in the bottom of the first off a passed ball. Pafko batted in a run via Harry Walker from second off a line drive single in the top of the fifth to give us back the lead, but again we collapsed in the bottom of the inning, this time thanks to a Vic Power solo homer, an Al Rosen RBI single and another passed ball. Moe Drabowsky came out in the bottom of the sixth trailing by two, and we were completely outmatched from there, losing 7-3. Ditmar fell to 2-3 with a 4.70 ERA, allowing four hits, three walks and four runs (one earned) with two strikeouts. They outhit us 9-7, our team led by Andy Pafko with a hit and an RBI, and by Spencer who hit once, walked once and batted in a run.

Don Mossi (5-5, 3.91 ERA, 76.0 IP, 42 K’s, 1.29 WHIP since coming to Kansas City) started game two, facing Tom Cheney (9-4, 2.36 ERA, 160.1 IP, 114 K’s, 1.21 WHIP). We took the lead in the top of the fourth with a solo homers by Spencer and Bollweg, but Vic Power scored off an RBI single by Al Smith to cut our lead to a run heading into the fifth inning. Mossi got us through the sixth inning without giving up that lead, and Al Gettel came out in the bottom of the seventh, protecting the lead around a pair of hits. Don Bessent came out with one out and men on first and second in the bottom of the eighth, getting the outs we needed, and with our bats unable to buy any insurance runs in the top of the ninth, he stayed out and held his ground as we were able to get out of Cleveland with a 2-1 win. Mossi picked up his sixth win as an Athletic, allowing nine hits with three walks, four strikeouts and a single earned run through six innings. Gettel held it, his fourth this year, and Bessent picked up his 10th save with two walks, a strikeout and no earned runs, bringing his ERA down to 1.12 through 16 innings of work.

We’ll now head to Baltimore, where our 48-71 A’s will face their 49-68 Orioles for a pair. Right now we’re in dead last place in the American League, so the most exciting thing yet to come in this season will be the draft class reveal.

August 21, 1956: Juan Pizarro (5-16, 3.55 ERA, 185.0 IP, 138 K’s, 1.24 WHIP) pitched against Ruben Gomez (7-13, 3.68 ERA, 186.0 IP, 77 K’s, 1.26 WHIP). We had a 3-0 lead going into the bottom of the fourth, and Pizarro went and got himself smacked down, five runs scoring before he could get out of the bottom frame. Johnny Sain came out in the bottom of the fifth with two outs, a man on first and the lead at 6-3 for the Orioles, and he got rung up in the bottom of the sixth with three more runs. Erskine got us through the remainder of the game, but we lost badly, 9-4. Pizarro took his 17th loss, allowing 10 hits and six earned runs with four walks and four strikeouts and only making it through 4.2 innings. We were outhit 16-10 which certainly didn’t help, but we have made a bad habit out of building leads and then completely collapsing. Andy Pafko led the way with two hits, two runs and two RBIs, while Metkovich added two hits and an RBI.

August 22, 1956: Vic Raschi (9-5, 2.91 ERA, 148.2 IP, 66 K’s, 1.17 ERA since coming to Kansas City) pitched against Bob Kuzawa (5-11, 3.98 ERA, 160.2 IP, 85 K’s, 1.49 WHIP) in game two against the Orioles, and we had a chance going into the bottom of the eighth trailing by a single run. But with two outs and men on first and second, Moe Drabowsky let Gus Triandos hit a three-run homer and we were done. We put up no resistance in the top of the ninth and lost this one 6-2. Raschi has gone from winning nine of his first 11 games in a stretch from May 7th through August 1st to losing his last four in a row. Tonight he lasted seven innings with seven hits and three earned runs, no walks, no strikeouts. We matched them with nine hits, Harry Walker leading the way with two hits and a run scored.

We’ve got three games now against Washington and a pair on Sunday against the Red Sox and then we get a few days off around a one-game trip to New York, and then a three-game weekend set against Detroit. By then we should be mathematically eliminated from what remains of the pennant chase.

August 23, 1956: Larry Jansen (2-8, 4.98 ERA, 90.1 IP, 41 K’s, 1.33 WHIP) pitched against Washington’s Duke Maas (9-8, 3.51 ERA, 136.0 IP, 62 K’s, 1.35 WHIP). In the top of the sixth we took the lead with a sac-fly by Don Bollweg, and Al Gettel came out to protect the lead in the bottom of the sixth, pitching around a single by Eddie Yost to get us out of there still leading by a run, and Bill Harrington did the same in the seventh, though his three outs were split up by a 25-minute rain delay. We added to our lead in the top of the eighth with a two-run homer by Del Crandall, his first as a member of our team, but Harrington gave a run back in the bottom of the inning, so Don Bessent came out with one out and a man on first to get us through. Once again he got our final five outs and we were able to get out of there with a 3-1 victory! Jansen got the win, improving to 3-8 with a three-hitter through five innings, a walk and five strikeouts helping improve his ERA to 4.72. Gettel and Harrington held the lead, and Bessent got his 11th save and second in the last week, getting his ERA down to 1.02 thanks to no hits and a pair of strikeouts. We outhit the Senators 6-5, led by Crandall who had two hits, a walk, a run and two RBIs.

August 24, 1956: Art Ditmar (2-3, 4.70 ERA, 30.2 IP, 14 K’s, 1.40 WHIP) pitched against Camilo Pascual (3-18, 5.78 ERA, 187.0 IP, 116 K’s, 1.79 WHIP), and he immediately got spotted a lead when Catfish Metkovich hit a flyball double that drove in a pair for us in the top of the first. Metkovich got another RBI, a single, in the top of the third and Daryl Spencer made it a 4-0 lead with a groundball single of his own. But Drabowsky had to come in for Ditmar in the top of the sixth, bases loaded and no outs, as the young starter did his damndest to blow this one for us, and Drabowsky DID blow it ... his second pitch of the night giving them a grand slam off Willie McCovey’s bat, tying the score at 4-4. We got out of the inning without giving them the lead, but the gutpunch was bad enough on its own. Drabowsky got us through the seventh and eighth without further incident, but, unable to add any runs in the top of the ninth, Al Gettel came out to get us through and into extra innings, and though it took more effort than we’d hoped, he got us there ... with an excellent throw by Metkovich to get the final out of the first nine innings at home plate. Gettel would get us through the 10th inning, and Al Harrington came out for the bottom of the 11th ... he got us through three innings with the score still knotted at four. Don Bessent came out in the bottom of the 14th, at 12:14 a.m., and with the bases loaded in the top of the 15th inning on one out, Del Crandall hit a sac-fly to center field that gave us the lead! Bessent stayed out and got the three outs we needed and we were able to get out of there at nearly one in the morning with a 5-4 victory!

Moe Drabowsky could have let that seventh blown save of the year drag him down, but he got us through three innings with just the one hit and a walk, and he was only saddled with a single earned run, so he now has a 5.37 ERA through 58.2 innings. Gettel and Harrington then added five combined innings with two hits, a walk and six strikeouts, setting up Bessent nicely for the win -- he is now 2-1 with a 0.92 ERA after tonight’s two innings without a baserunner, with 12 K’s through 17 innings as well. We outhit them 19-7 through 15 innings, so it would have been maddening to lose this one. Metkovich hit three times with three RBIs, Spencer had four hits, a walk and an RBI, and Danny O’Connell had three hits and scored three himself as we won our 50th game of the season.

August 25, 1956: Don Mossi (6-5, 3.73 ERA, 82.0 IP, 46 K’s, 1.34 WHIP) pitched against Bill Kennedy (1-3, 4.78 ERA, 99.0 IP, 57 K’s, 1.56 WHIP). We took a 2-0 lead in the top of the fourth thanks to an RBI single by Metkovich and a groundout to first by Crandall. We added a pair in the top of the sixth to give Mossi more breathing room thanks to singles by Spencer and Mossi himself, but our starters continue to collapse in the middle innings ... this time Mossi couldn’t handle himself in the bottom of the sixth, loading the bases and walking in a run, though he got out of the inning without doing a ton of damage. Carl Erskine came out to pitch in the bottom of the seventh, still leading by three runs, and he completed the three-inning save as we held tough to win 4-1. Mossi improved to 7-5 with a 3.58 ERA since joining our team, allowing four hits with four walks and three strikeouts with just the one earned run, while Erskine’s third save improved his ERA to 3.53 through 132.2 innings (20 of them out of the bullpen). We outhit the Senators 10-6, led by Metkovich who hit twice, walked once, scoring a run and batting in another.

We remain in last place in the AL, just half a game behind the Senators with our record now at 51-73 ... another dozen wins and we can say we improved over last season’s first year in Kansas City. Boston (58-66) will now host us for a pair before we then travel to New York to play a Wednesday game against the 81-45 Yankees. We’ll then play three against Detroit (65-57) before returning home where we’ll play 19 of our last 24 games.

jksander · 09-13-2024, 09:27 AM

August 26, 1956: Doubleheader day in Boston! Juan Pizarro (5-17, 3.75 ERA, 189.2 IP, 142 K’s, 1.29 WHIP) started the first game against Ike Delock (7-7, 1 SV, 4.42 ERA, 130.1 IP, 64 K’s, 1.55 WHIP) as we hoped to keep our winning streak going. We took the lead in the top of the fourth with a solo homer by Bollweg (his ninth), but they tied it up in the bottom of the inning when Jim Piersall hit a triple and then came around to score with a groundout by Jackie Jensen. That’s when Pizarro got into trouble ... he had clear bases, one out, but then gave up a double to Ted Williams and then walked Willie Jones and Billy Klaus back to back, issuing a third consecutive walk to Sammy White as he pissed the lead away. He got Billy Goodman to hit into a 5-4-3 double play to get us into the fifth, but his wildness is the only reason the lead was blown ... he can’t blame anyone else for his three walks. Piersall hit a solo homer off him in the bottom of the fifth with two outs, extending their lead, and with two outs in the bottom of the sixth it was Billy Klaus who hit a solo homer ... which brought out Carl Erskine, trailing by three, to get us into the seventh. Erskine stayed out the rest of the way, but it didn’t matter as the Red Sox easily held us off 5-2. Pizarro fell to 5-18 with a 3.82 ERA, allowing five hits with three walks and six strikeouts, giving them four earned runs. We only managed six hits, led by Bollweg’s two hits, two runs and an RBI.

Vic Raschi (9-6, 2.95 ERA, 155.2 IP, 66 K’s, 1.16 WHIP) pitched in game two against Willard Nixon (9-8, 4.71 ERA, 174.0 IP, 96 K’s, 1.67 WHIP). And his night went quickly from bad to worse, giving up two runs in the bottom of the fourth and then four more in the bottom of the fifth ... Johnny Sain came out to replace him with two outs and a man on first, and Al Gettel came out in the bottom of the eighth to finish the night. But our bats were completely useless to us tonight and Boston ran us out of there with a 6-0 beatdown. Raschi has now lost five in a row, tonight only managing 4.2 innings with five hits, five walks and six runs (five earned). We were outhit 5-3 as Nixon had a hell of a night (three hits, one walk, four strikeouts) in the shutout, only allowing four baserunners for our team all night.

August 29, 1956: We’re officially eliminated from pennant contention, as are the Senators. Tonight against the 83-45 Yankees we started Don Mossi (7-5, 3.58 ERA, 88.0 IP, 49 K’s, 1.34 WHIP) against Vinegar Bend Mizell (20-6, 2.68 ERA, 241.2 IP, 161 K’s, 1.13 WHIP). New York took a three-run lead in the bottom of the second and were up 5-0 before we brought in Bill Harrington in the bottom of the sixth inning. But we got back into the game in the top of the seventh, scoring a run off a Danny O’Connell single, another when Andy Pafko reached first on an E6 error, and then two more with a Metkovich double, going into the stretch trailing just 5-4. Moe Drabowsky came out to pitch after the break, and in the top of the eighth Bollweg tied it up with a homer out of center, his 10th of the season ... but Drabowsky fell apart in the bottom of the eighth, loading the bases and giving up a two-run single to Bob Cerv. Erskine came out, no outs, loaded the bases, and then with one out gave up a triple to Mantle which put the game well out of reach. We got two runs back in the top of the ninth but it wasn’t enough as the Yankees beat us 10-7. Drabowsky took the loss and fell to 1-8 with a 5.88 ERA through 59.2 innings ... he’d only thrown 14 pitches in the seventh, so we gave him too much of a leash in the eighth. We outhit the Yankees 10-9, led by Metkovich who hit three times with a run and an RBI.

August 31, 1956: Juan Pizarro (5-18, 3.82 ERA, 195.1 IP, 148 K’s, 1.29 WHIP) pitched against Billy Hoeft (13-9, 3.62 ERA, 211.1 IP, 141 K’s, 1.32 WHIP) in our first of three road games against Detroit. The game stayed scoreless until the top of the fifth, when we came out hot ... Harry Walker hit an RBI single, Danny O’Connell batted in two with a double, and Andy Pafko hit a sac-fly to right, giving us a 4-0 lead! Pizarro got through seven innings with that lead unchanged, and Moe Drabowsky came out to pitch in the bottom of the eighth. In the bottom of the ninth with two outs he loaded the bases and walked in a run, but Don Bessent came out and got Solly Hemus to pop out to left and ended this as a 4-1 win. Pizarro was noticably nervous in the final frame, but he got his win, lasting seven innings with just two hits, a walk and seven strikeouts. Drabowsky only allowed a single hit in his 1.2 innings, but he walked three in the ninth, so Bessent got his 12th save for just four critical pitches with the bases loaded. We outhit the Tigers 9-3, led by Daryl Spencer (three hits) and Harry Walker (three hits, a run and an RBI), while O’Connell added a hit and two RBIs.

September 1, 1956: We’ve called up five players from the minors as we head into the month of September with expanded rosters: Sam Jones, Artie Portocarrero and Walt Craddock for the bullpen, and catcher Ray Noble and middle-infielder Spook Jacobs for our bench. Jones will go in as a sixth starter, while Portocarrero and Craddock will give us extra long relief options out of the pen. This afternoon, Vic Raschi (9-7, 3.14 ERA, 160.1 IP, 68 K’s, 1.19 WHIP) pitched against Bob Shaw (8-12, 4.14 ERA, 174.0 IP, 85 K’s, 1.39 WHIP). We took the lead 2-0 in the top of the fourth thanks to a two-run double by Del Crandall, but Raschi gave them four runs back in the bottom of the inning to dig us a hole. He gave up three hits in a row to start the bottom of the fifth, including a two-run triple by Fred Hatfield, and that was enough. Johnny Sain came out, no outs, man on third, and got us out of there trailing 7-2 as we went into the sixth thoroughly demoralized. Carl Erskine came out in the bottom of the eighth trailing by six runs, and that’s how it ended, Detroit avenging yesterday’s loss with an 8-2 beatdown this afternoon. That’s six in a row lost by Raschi, who allowed seven runs (six earned) off nine hits and three walks through just four innings. They only outhit us 11-8, but aside from Crandall’s two RBIs, the rest of our hitters managed to get on base and do next to nothing.

September 2, 1956: Larry Jansen (3-8, 4.72 ERA, 95.1 IP, 46 K’s, 1.30 WHIP) pitched against Paul Foytack (3-1, 6 SV, 3.92 ERA, 59.2 IP, 37 K’s, 1.42 WHIP). Detroit took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first and never looked back. Jansen gave up five more in the bottom of the fourth and got pulled for Craddock, who finished up the game with only one addition run scored against us. But we only managed a single run in the top of the sixth and lost this one 8-1, a complete and total beatdown. Jansen fell to 3-9, allowing seven hits, two walks and seven earned runs in 3.1 disappointing innings. Craddock was solid with two hits, a walk, two strikeouts and an earned run through 61 pitches in 4.2 innings. But we were outhit 9-4 and never made a real effort to climb back after taking the shelling in the first four frames.

We have 24 games remaining, 19 of them at home, and we still need at least 11 wins to get past last year’s high water mark of 62 victories. We’ll start a stretch of 16 consecutive games at Muncipal Stadium with a doubleheader tomorrow against Cleveland (76-55) for Labor Day. We then face Detroit (67-62) for four, the Yankees (85-47) for three, Washington (54-76) for two, a Sunday doubleheader against Baltimore (54-75) and then a pair against Boston (65-66). After that we have six against the White Sox (68-62), half on the road and half at home, sandwiching our final road pair against Cleveland. So it’s NOT an easy set of games, and it’s far from assured that we can play anything close to .500 ball. Currently the Yankees lead the AL by 8.5 games over Cleveland, while Brooklyn leads the NL by just three games over the surging Braves of Milwaukee, so neither pennant race is secure.

September 3, 1956: Art Ditmar (2-3, 4.79 ERA, 35.2 IP, 18 K’s, 1.46 WHIP) pitched against Tom Cheney (10-5, 2.44 ERA, 180.2 IP, 127 K’s, 1.22 WHIP) in the first game of the afternoon. We got through four innings, tying the score in the bottom of the fourth with a solo homer by Crandall! But the game was then suspended with our boys about to come up in the bottom of the fifth, due to bad weather after a ninety minute delay, knotted up at 1-1. We’ll pick this game up tomorrow afternoon as part of a split doubleheader. But it’s a bizarre set of decisions being made here by our organization, because with heavy clouds and rain chances still in the forecast, we attempted to get the day’s SECOND game underway late in the afternoon, which made little sense to anyone involved, much less the fans, only about 5,000 of whom decided to stick around and give a damn.

Sam Jones (4-3, 4.91 ERA, 55.0 IP, 30 K’s, 1.62 WHIP) started against Dick Hall (7-1, 4.20 ERA, 60.0 IP, 33 K’s, 1.38 WHIP) in the second game, and Cleveland took a quick 2-0 lead thanks to a pair of singles by Dale Long and Vic Power, and by the time Carl Erskine came out to pitch in the top of the seventh we were still in a 3-2 hole against them. They quickly added on a pair off an RBI single by Bobby Avila, but Crandall kept us in the game with an RBI triple and Carl Erskine batted in a run with a single to cut the lead back to one heading into the top of the eighth. Bill Harrington came out to pitch and got three quick outs, and in the bottom of the eighth the fans who were here went crazy as Daryl Spencer hit a three run blast to put us in the lead by two! Harrington stayed out and got three more outs and we were able to win this one 7-5! Harrington got the win, his two innings featuring three strikeouts, no hits ... he’s now 2-0 with a 4.74 ERA through 38 innings. We outhit the Guardians 15-4, led by Crandall with three hits, a walk, two runs and two RBIs, while Spencer’s three-run homer won the game for us.

September 4, 1956: Art Ditmar came out to continue his game in the resumed first game of the afternoon, and he quickly gave the Guardians back the lead with an RBI single by Rocky Colavito in the top of the sixth. Moe Drabowsky came out to relieve him trailing 3-1 with one out and men on second and third, and an inexcusable “fielder’s choice” by Danny O’Connell wound up both allowing a run and not getting an out from it, when he had no throw to home in the first place! What the hell, guys? Drabowsky got us out of the half-inning trailing 4-1, and we got a run back in the bottom of the eighth thanks to a Metkovich double. Drabowsky stayed out and got three quick outs in the top of the ninth, and Del Crandall led off with a solo homer in the bottom of the inning to cut their lead to one, but that was all we had left ... we lost this one 4-3 knowing that we blew the chance. Ditmar took the loss, getting just one out today (to go with the five yesterday) as he finished with eight hits, a walk, four strikeouts and four earned runs. Drabowsky pitched 3.2 innings without a baserunner, striking out three, but it was for nothing. It’s maddening, because we outhit them 11-8, but stupid mistakes damned us. Crandall led the way with three hits, two runs and two RBIs, while Metkovich hit twice, walked once and drove in a run.

Don Mossi (7-5, 3.87 ERA, 93.0 IP, 54 K’s, 1.35 WHIP) started against Mike Garcia (13-7, 2.86 ERA, 214.1 IP, 135 K’s, 1.16 WHIP) in game two of the afternoon. We took the lead in the bottom of the fourth with an RBI single by Daryl Spencer, and we still held that lead when, in the top of the sixth the game was called after two outs due to inclement weather, giving us a 1-0 win. Mossi allowed two hits and nothing else in his 5.2 innings, improving to 8-5, while we outhit the Guardians 4-2. Spencer led the way with his hit and RBI, while Metkovich scored the run.

September 6, 1956: We had a day off yesterday and now get four in a row here in Kansas City against the 68-64 Tigers! Juan Pizarro (6-18, 3.69 ERA, 202.1 IP, 155 K’s, 1.26 WHIP) got the start, facing Bob Shaw (9-12, 4.07 ERA, 181.1 IP, 90 K’s, 1.38 WHIP). Pizarro has had 17 quality starts this year despite only winning eight games, but Detroit got the jump on him early with a double by Bill Tuttle that later turned into a first-inning run thanks to an RBI single by Harvey Kuenn. But he only allowed three baserunners in the first four innings, and just needed our bats to wake up just a bit to give him a chance. Daryl Spencer hit a solo homer in the bottom of the fifth to tie it up 1-1, and Pizarro kept it that way into the seventh inning stretch, but we couldn’t find our way into the lead, so he gave us an extra inning, getting us into the bottom of the eighth still tied ... and with his arm completely spent. Don Bessent came out in the top of the ninth, and with two outs he blew it, letting Fred Hartfield hit an RBI single that drove in the go-ahead for Detroit as Pizarro tried not to let his frustration show in the dugout. He was even more frustrated by the fact that our bats woke up in the bottom of the inning, loading the bases and walking off the win with an RBI single by Spencer that scored two runs. We won 3-2, but he won’t get the credit. Instead, Bessent (3-1, 1.29 ERA) does, with a two hit, one walk, one run eighth inning. Pizarro was excellent, however, lasting eight innings and throwing 105 pitches with four hits, three walks, three strikeouts and one earned run, his ERA improving to 3.59 through 210.1 innings. We matched them 6-6 for hits, led by Spencer who had two hits, a walk, a run and three batted in, singlehandedly keeping our offense alive.

September 7, 1956: Vic Raschi (9-8, 3.40 ERA, 164.1 IP, 68 K’s, 1.24 WHIP) pitched tonight against Tom Brewer (2-3, 4.13 ERA, 32.2 IP, 17 K’s, 1.68 WHIP), who the Tigers acquired from Boston at the trade deadline. He’s had some bad luck in the last month, but tonight we got him an early lead, thanks to Catfish Metkovich hitting an RBI double down the right field line to put us up 1-0! Daryl Spencer then walked the bases loaded, and with two outs Del Crandall walked in a run to make it a two-run lead. Two more scored off a single into center by DeMaestri, giving him a 4-0 cushion heading into the top of the second. Detroit got on the board in the top of the fourth with an RBI triple by Randy Jackson, and Lee Walls beat out an infield single to drive in another one when we should have had our first out ... no hustle! Fred Hatfield hit a one-out triple to drive in a third, and Raschi can blame no one but himself for the RBI single by Tom Brewer that tied it up. He got out of the inning but his sloppiness continues to show. DeMaestri hit a one-out solo homer to get us into the lead in the bottom of the sixth, and Moe Drabowsky came out to pitch in the seventh, and with two outs and a man on third in the top of the eighth Al Gettel came out and preserved the lead, getting Lee Walls to pop out in the infield. Gettel stayed out in the ninth and iced it, helping to complete the 5-4 win as we find ourselves streaking in September! Raschi managed to last long enough to get the win, improving to 10-8 with a 3.49 ERA despite seven hits and four earned runs in six innings. Drabowsky earned his eighth hold of the year, and Gettel got through the last four outs with just one hit, saving his third. Detroit outhit us 9-7, but DeMaestri had a great night with three hits, a run and three RBIs to keep us in the game.

September 8, 1956: We’ve won four of our last five games, and with Detroit on the verge of elimination we’re relishing our chance to play spoiler. Don Mossi (8-5, 3.65 ERA, 98.2 IP, 54 K’s, 1.30 WHIP) started against Jim Bunning (13-12, 4.47 ERA, 227.2 IP, 147 K’s, 1.28 WHIP). Andy Pafko got us the lead in the bottom of the first with an RBI triple, but they tied it up in the top of the second with an RBI single by Bunning, and a two-run homer in the top of the third by Kaline put them ahead 3-1. An RBI double with two outs added on, and we came up in the bottom of the third trailing by three. Arnie Portocarrero came out to pitch in the top of the sixth, trailing by four, giving up two runs in the sixth but sticking it out from there ... Del Crandall got us a run back in the seventh with an RBI single, and Andy Pafko hit a three-run homer in the bottom of the eighth, so Portocarrero stayed out in the top of the ninth, trailing 7-5. Were it not for an error at third early in the inning he’d have been fine, but that unearned run scored thanks to a two-out single by Al Aber which also scored an earned one. We came up to hit in the bottom of the inning trailing by four runs, and we were only able to get one of them back, losing 9-6. Mossi took the loss, falling to 8-6 thanks to 13 hits, a walk and five earned runs through five innings, but Portocarrero looked good through four, allowing just five hits with a walk, two strikeouts and four runs (two earned) as his ERA improved to 4.43 through 44.2 innings. They outhit us 18-11, with Pafko leading the way for our offense with two hits, a run and four RBIs.

September 9, 1956: Larry Jansen (3-9, 5.20 ERA, 98.2 IP, 46 K’s, 1.36 WHIP) pitched in our final game of the year against the Tigers, facing Billy Hoeft (13-10, 3.74 ERA, 226.1 IP, 148 K’s, 1.32 WHIP). Detroit took the lead with an RBI double by Kaline in the top of the first, and Catfish Metkovich tied it up for us in the bottom of the inning with a single ... Harry Walker had made it to second on a wild pitch and then came around to score off the single, though he had to come out of the game with a painful bone bruise on his wrist thanks to his slide into home plate. We went into the bottom of the fifth trailing by a run, but Pafko drove in the tying run with a single and a Metkovich single gave us a 4-3 lead heading into the top of the sixth! We then piled on in the bottom of the sixth, adding on four runs -- Pafko drove in two with a single, Metkovich pushed one through with another single, and Bollweg got Pafko around to score thanks to an E4 error that allowed him to reach first safely. Detroit got a run back in the top of the eighth, and Moe Drabowsky came in leading 8-4 with two outs and Fred Hatfield on second, getting Bill Tuttle out on strikes. He then stayed out and finished the ninth inning as well, as we stumped Detroit 8-4 and won the series three games to one. Jansen improved to 4-9 with a 5.16 ERA, allowing eight hits and four earned runs with two walks and four strikeouts, while Drabowsky got us four outs with a hit and a strikeout. We outhit Detroit 12-9, led by Pafko (three hits, two runs, three RBIs) and Metkovich (three hits, three RBIs).

This win officially eliminated Detroit from the pennant chase, though at 19.5 games back they were long gone anyway. Cleveland (81-57, 8.5 GB) and the Yankees (89-48) are alone in the race now in the American League, while Milwaukee (86-53) has now overtaken Brooklyn (84-53, 1 GB) in the NL race. That one should go down to the wire, but the Yankees, with a magic number of nine, should be able to lock up their end of things this week ... though with our next three home games against them we’d like to think we can find a way to help drag that process out. Cleveland certainly hopes so, since we still have two games left against them in late September (they also have a doubleheader in Cleveland against the Yankees on the 16th which they hope will still be meaningful in the pennant chase.

In other news, backup catcher Ray Noble, 37, has decided to retire at the end of the season. He only played in two games all year, walking in his one at-bat. He batted .275 with one RBI in his ten games at AAA Columbus, and he knew with the acquisition of Crandall that he was unlikely to make the cut next season. A career minor leaguer, in total he only played in 109 games in the majors, hitting .217 with six doubles, nine homers and 40 RBIs.

jksander · 09-13-2024, 09:37 AM

September 11, 1956: We head into the Yankees series with our record at 57-80, just half a game out of a seventh place tie with Washington (58-80) and Baltimore (57-79). Juan Pizarro (6-18, 3.59 ERA, 210.1 IP, 158 K’s, 1.25 WHIP) pitched against New York’s Don Larsen (10-7, 3.55 ERA, 106.1 IP, 56 K’s, 1.40 WHIP), and the Yankees made it clear from the beginning they were all about winning ... Hank Bauer led off with a homer in the top of the first, and Pizarro got shelled, giving up five runs before we ever batted. He made it through five innings, and then Carl Erskine came out with the score 6-2 Yankees, to take over in the top of the sixth. Catfish Metkovich had to be pulled in the top of the eighth, and his season’s over ... bone chips in his elbow ... and this game was never close as the Yankees crushed us 8-3. Pizarro fell to 6-19 with a 3.76 ERA, allowing six hits, three walks and six earned runs through five innings with three strikeouts. Erskine got us through the rest with four hits, two earned runs and two strikeouts, and we were only outhit 10-9. Harry Walker led the way with three hits, a walk and an RBI, while Metkovich hit twice, walked once and never made it around to score in his final game of the season.

September 12, 1956: Art Ditmar (2-4, 5.05 ERA, 41.0 IP, 22 K’s, 1.49 WHIP) pitched against Billy O’Dell (19-10, 2.64 ERA, 252.2 IP, 138 K’s, 1.12 WHIP). New York had a 4-0 lead heading into the top of the fifth, and after an RBI double by Andy Carey, Walt Craddock wound up replacing Ditmar without a single out in the fifth. He gave up four runs without an out, but Portocarrero was able to put out the fire and get three outs with two of their runners stranded -- but by then we were down 9-0. New York unleashed on us and it was depressing and embarassing; they won 14-0. None of our pitchers looked good in this one, and we were outhit 17-4, leaving three runners in scoring position as we were shut out completely.

September 13, 1956: Vic Raschi (10-8, 3.49 ERA, 170.1 IP, 68 K’s, 1.23 WHIP) pitched against Vinegar Bend Mizell (23-6, 2.59 ERA, 267.2 IP, 102 K’s, 1.12 WHIP). Hank Bauer led off in the top of the sixth with a solo bomb out of right, his 16th of the season, and that was all they needed, beating us 1-0 to complete the sweep. They outhit us 6-5, and though Raschi only gave up three hits with three walks and an earned run, he still took the loss. They had our number the entire series, and it was clear they want to clinch and get those World Series paychecks.

September 14, 1956: Don Mossi (8-6, 3.91 ERA, 103.2 IP, 56 K’s, 1.37 WHIP) pitched against Washington’s Mickey McDermott (8-13, 3.85 ERA, 170.2 IP, 84 K’s, 1.61 WHIP). We took a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the fourth thanks to RBI doubles by Bill Wilson and Harry Walker and an RBI single by Danny O’Connell, and we still led by three when Al Gettel came out to pitch in the top of the seventh. Erskine got us through the eighth, and Bessert came out to close things out, completing the 3-0 shutout in our favor. Mossi improved to 9-6, allowing two hits with three strikeouts in his six innings, and Gettel (#6) and Erskine (#3) held it while Bessert earned his 13th save of the year ... those three combined for three hitless innings, walking one and striking out a pair ... we outhit Washington 9-2, led by O’Connell with three hits, a walk and an RBI.

September 15, 1956: Larry Jansen (4-9 ,5.16 ERA, 106.1 IP, 50 K’s, 1.34 WHIP) pitched against Dean Stone (6-5, 3 SV, 4.17 ERA, 82.0 IP, 43 K’s, 1.44 WHIP). The Senators took the lead with an RBI single by Ed Fitz Gerald in the top of the second, but we took control in the bottom of the seventh, tying it with an RBI single by Bollweg, taking the lead with a sac-fly by DeMaestri, and then adding on with an RBI single by Bill Wilson, giving us a 3-1 lead heading into the top of the eighth. We added on four more in the bottom of the eighth, and though Eddie Yost hit a solo homer in the top of the ninth, Jansen then got three quick outs to end this as a 7-2 complete-game beatdown. He only allowed five hits and a walk with four strikeouts and two earned runs, improving his record to 5-9 with a 4.92 ERA. We outhit the Senators 14-5, led by Bill Wilson with three hits and three RBIs, while Walker, Pafko, Spencer and Bollweg each had two hits.

The Yankees could be able to clinch the pennant tomorrow with their doubleheader against Cleveland ... their magic number is four. Brooklyn currently leads Milwaukee by half a game, and their magic number remains at 12. Milwaukee would love the chance to beat out the Dodgers, as they haven’t made it to the World Series since 1948 ... it would be a huge win for a small market.

September 16, 1956: We have a doubleheader today against Baltimore (58-83), our final doubleheader of the season! We drew 11,000 fans for the first game, Sam Jones facing Ruben Gomez (9-15, 3.80 ERA, 215.2 IP, 94 K’s, 1.34 WHIP). It didn’t go well ... he got shellacked, giving up eight runs in the first three innings ... by the time Al Gettel came out, one out and a man on third, we were down 8-0. Johnny Sain came out to pitch in the top of the sixth trailing 9-2, and he finished the game, giving up three more in the top of the ninth as we got stomped 12-4. Jones is now 1-2 since coming to the Athletics, but his ERA took a real beating today, allowing six hits, seven walks and nine runs in 2.1 innings. This will likely be his last start, he can finish the season in the bullpen and regroup.

Juan Pizarro (6-19, 3.76 ERA, 215.1 IP, 161 K’s, 1.26 WHIP) pitched against Bob Kuzava (7-12, 3.87 ERA, 197.2 IP, 109 K’s, 1.44 WHIP) in the afternoon’s second game, and Baltimore took an early 2-0 lead in the first three innings, but we climbed back in ... DeMaestri hit an RBI double in the bottom of the fourth, and Daryl Spencer batted in two more with a single in the bottom of the fifth to push us into the lead 3-2. Pizarro got us through the sixth for another quality start, and Arnie Portocarrero came out in the top of the seventh to protect the one run lead. He got us through the eighth unscathed, and Moe Drabowsky came out to pitch in the ninth, getting three quick outs as we held tough to win 3-2! Pizarro picked up the win, improving to 7-19 with a 3.74 ERA, allowing six hits, with two walks and two earned runs, striking out six tonight. Portocarrero got his first hold of the year, going two innings with just one hit, and Drabowsky saved his sixth game, one hit and two strikeouts getting his ERA down to 5.14 through 70 innings. We outhit Baltimore 10-8 in this one, led by Daryl Spencer with two hits, a walk, a run and two RBIs as we won our 60th game of the season.

Cleveland and New York split their series, so the Yankees will head on the road Tuesday to play a game in Chicago, where a win would allow them to clinch the pennant. Cleveland, at this point, would need to win out and have the Yankees lose the rest of the way, to get over their 8.5 game deficit, so it’s less a matter of if New York will clinch but when. Meanwhile, Brooklyn and Milwaukee keep trading places, and that one’s looking like the best pennant race the NL’s seen in years. The two teams have no more head-to-head matchups, so it’s going to come down to who can beat the teams they need to beat to stay ahead.

September 18, 1956: Art Ditmar (2-5, 5.80 ERA, 45.0 IP, 24 K’s, 1.62 WHIP) pitched against Willard Nixon (10-9, 4.43 ERA, 203.0 IP, 110 K’s, 1.55 WHIP) in the first of two games we have against Boston this week -- the last two games against them this season. We took the lead in the bottom of the fourth with an RBI single by Bollweg, but Boston tied it up in the top of the fifth with a single by Sammy White, taking the lead in the top of the sixth with an RBI single by Willie Jones. But we picked up four runs in the bottom of that inning thanks to an RBI single by Spencer, a two-run single by Ditmar and an RBI single by Walker. Bill Harrington came out to pitch in the top of the seventh, and he and Erskine held the lead for Bessent, who came out in the ninth with a two-run advantage. He got two pop-outs and a strikeout as we won this one 5-3! Ditmar improved to 3-5 with a five hit, two walk, two strikeout, two earned run effort, and Harrington (#2) and Erskine (#4) held the lead, allowing Bessent to save his 14th game ... the 25-year-old has a 1.17 ERA through 23 innings in his rookie campaign. We outhit Boston 9-7, led by Bollweg who had four hits, a run and an RBI ... the 35-year-old journeyman is having a breakout season due to injuries, and has his batting average above .240 for the first time in four years.

The Yankees lost 3-2 to the White Sox, so they’ll have to wait until this weekend at Fenway to again try to clinch the pennant.

September 19, 1956: Vic Raschi (10-9, 3.42 ERA, 176.1 IP, 70 K’s, 1.22 WHIP) pitched against Boston’s Frank Sullivan (10-12, 4.37 ERA, 222.1 IP, 104 K’s, 1.38 WHIP), and they quickly took a two-run lead in the first and built on it. Craddock came out to pitch with two outs and men on first and second in the top of the fourth, trailing 6-0, and we never really recoved ... they’d go on to beat us soundly 8-4. Raschi took the loss, allowing five hits, five walks and six runs (five earned) in 3.2 innings to set us up poorly. Boston outhit us 10-8, Spencer and Bollweg leading the way with a hit, a run and an RBI each.

Henry Walker is going to be out the remainder of the season due to back spasms. He’ll finish the year with a .226 average, 16 doubles, a pair of triples and a homer ... he batted in 17 runs and put up -0.9 WAR through 403 plate appearances, his defensive regression in right field making it questionable whether we’ll keep him around next year; he turns 40 in October and may not be worth even a steeply discounted arb rate to keep him on the roster.

September 21, 1956: We’re on the road this weekend in Chicago for our final road stretch ... three games against the 75-70 White Sox and two in Cleveland (87-59), before we wrap up the season with three against the White Sox back in Kansas City. We’re 61-85 heading into the homestretch, with eight chances to win the two games that we need to beat last year’s mark, all remaining games against teams with winning records. Don Mossi (9-6, 3.69 ERA, 109.2 IP, 59 K’s, 1.31 WHIP) pitched tonight against Billy Pierce (18-11, 2.52 ERA, 264.0 IP, 182 K’s, 1.11 WHIP). Chicago took control in the bottom of the fourth with a pair of runs and they added three more in the sixth as they went on to beat us easily 5-0. Mossi fell to 9-7 with a six hit, two walk, five run game though only two of the runs were earned. Sam Jones pitched two innings in relief, allowing one hit and four walks, and they only outhit us 7-6, but they were great at keeping us from stringing them together ... nobody on our team made it on base twice.

September 22, 1956: Juan Pizarro (7-19, 3.74 ERA, 221.1 IP, 167 K’s, 1.26 WHIP) started against John Harshmann (14-9, 217.1 IP, 112 K’s, 1.26 WHIP). Andy Pafko batted in a run with a single in the top of the third to give us the lead, and we added on on the fifth with a walk by Crandall and a hit into a fielder’s choice by DeMaestri. Pizarro tried to stay out in the sixth, but an RBI triple by Minnie Minoso without an out led us to go to Drabowsky in the bullpen with the lead still 3-1. He walked a batter but was able to get all three outs with Minoso stranded at third, and Carl Erskine came out in the bottom of the seventh, handling his business to keep the lead safe into the ninth inning. Don Bessent came out in the bottom of the inning with a two run lead, pitching around a Clint Courtney single to get the outs we needed, beating the White Sox 3-1 for our 62nd win of the year, tying last year’s mark! Pizarro improved to 8-19 with four hits, two walks and an earned run through five innings, and Drabowsky (#9) and Erskine (#5) held the lead, Bessent earning his 15th save with just one hit. We outhit the White Sox 7-6, led by Bollweg (two hits, a walk and a run) and Crandall (a hit, a walk and an RBI).

The Yankees are letting Cleveland keep their foot in the door ... They have lost the first two games against Boston 6-1 and 3-2, their losing streak now at four games. Cleveland has now won four in a row, beating the Yankees 4-2 on the 16th, Washington 5-4 on the 18th, and then winning the first two against Detroit on the road this weekend 3-2 and 3-2. If the Yankees lose against Boston tomorrow and the Guardians pick up a win in Detroit, we’ll have a chance to potentially knock them out ourselves when we go to Cleveland this week!

September 23, 1956: Larry Jansen (5-9, 4.92 ERA, 115.1 IP, 54 K’s, 1.29 WHIP) started the final game in Chicago against Connie Johnson (8-15, 4.68 ERA, 213.1 IP, 146 K’s, 1.57 WHIP). Chicago took control early, scoring in the second, fourth and sixth innings to build a 3-0 lead. Bill Harrington came out to pitch in the top of the sixth and allowed that third run, but he kept us in the game after a Del Crandall solo homer got us on the board in the top of the seventh. Moe Drabowsky got us through the eighth inning, and in the top of the ninth we tied it up with Crandall’s second homer of the night, this one a two-run blast! “Cool Moe D” kept his composure in the bottom of the ninth and we were headed for extra innings! Don Bessent came out with men on first and second in the bottom of the 10th, no outs, and with the bases loaded, he got Larry Doby to hit into a 3-2-3 double play to leave just Minoso at third, Clint Courtney coming to the plate. A groundout to first and he’d escaped the high leverage death trap and given us another shot! Unfortunately our bats were silent in the extra innings and in the bottom of the 11th, on two outs, they walked it off with a single by Nellie Fox and we lost 4-3. Bessent took the loss, falling to 3-2 despite only allowing one hit, two walks and an unearned run in his 1.2 innings. We outhit them 9-8 but just couldn’t finish ... Crandall had two homers to lead the way, while Spencer added two hits, a run and an RBI.

Sorry, Cleveland fans ... New York got themselves a 2-1 win in Boston, officially clinching the pennant. Milwaukee, meanwhile, has a 1.5 game lead now on the Brooklyn Dodgers, and their magic number is now at just four ... but with no head-to-head games, that one will come down to the final day of games. They need to win out, since Brooklyn plays their last five games at home against Philly (54-95) and Pittsburgh (74-76), while Milwaukee has one on the road in Cincinnati (73-78) left and three more in St. Louis (79-70). I certainly don’t envy the Braves their heartburn down the stretch.

jksander · 09-14-2024, 11:30 AM

September 25, 1956: Vic Raschi (10-10, 3.60 ERA, 180.0 IP, 71 K’s, 1.26 WHIP) pitched against Herb Score (10-7, 4.05 ERA, 189.0 IP, 165 K’s, 1.50 WHIP) in the first game of two in Cleveland this week. We put up three runs in the top of the first, and then let them get all three back in the bottom of the inning plus a pair in the second to take control. Arnie Portocarrero came out of the pen in the fifth inning and it was downhill from there. We would go on to lose this one 8-3. Raschi allowed five earned runs off nine hits and a walk in the first four innings, and Portocarrero lasted three innings with five hits, a walk, three strikeouts and three earned runs. They outhit us 15-4, Crandall leading the way with a hit and two RBIs.

September 26, 1956: Art Ditmar (3-5, 5.47 ERA, 51.0 IP, 26 K’s, 1.57 WHIP) pitched against Mike Garcia (16-8, 2.71 ERA, 246.0 IP, 152 K’s, 1.18 WHIP). Cleveland scored first in the bottom of the second inning, but we tied it up on a wild pitch in the top of the third, and an RBI single by Ditmar plus an E9 error allowed DeMaestri and Paddock to score, putting us in the lead 3-1! Bill Wilson hit a solo homer to add on in the top of the sixth, but Ditmar loaded the bases and let a run score on a wild pitch in the bottom of the sixth, bringing Drabowsky in with no outs and men on second and third. A strikeout and a groundout got us two outs, but we lost control from there ... Mike Garcia singled in two runs to tie it up, Bobby Avila batted in two more with a single, and with the bases loaded Sam Jones finally got us the final out after relieving Drabowsky. We went into the top of the seventh trailing 6-4. Carl Erskine came out to pitch after the stretch, and he got us through the remainder of the game but our bats stayed silent and we lost this one by two runs, blowing a great chance to steal a road win. Drabowsky blew his eighth save and fell to 1-9 with a 5.13 ERA, though he only allowed two hits and two earned runs ... Ditmar dug his own grave in the bottom of the sixth with extremely sloppy play, allowing four hits, two walks and four runs (three earned) in his five innings. They outhit us 8-7, and it was Ditmar with a hit and two RBIs who built the lead in the first place, so I guess that’s a wash.

We’ll finish the season with a three game series in Kansas City against the White Sox, who come into it with a 79-72 record.

September 28, 1956: Juan Pizarro (8-19, 3.70 ERA, 226.1 IP, 167 K’s, 1.26 WHIP) pitched his final start of his rookie campaign, facing Chicago’s Jack Harshman (14-10, 2.37 ERA, 224.1 IP, 117 K’s, 1.27 WHIP). Pizarro got destroyed in this one, giving up six runs in the first and another in the third, getting replaced by Johnny Sain with the lead 7-3 for Chicago heading into the top of the fourth. We went on to lose this one 10-6 and looked absolutely lost out there. Pizarro took his 20th loss of the year, allowing nine hits, two walks and seven runs, ONLY TWO OF WHICH WERE EARNED. Jesus ... we were out hit 16-11, so it didn’t matter. Pafko had a hit and two RBIs and Bill Wilson added two hits, a run and an RBI.

September 29, 1956: Don Mossi (9-7, 3.66 ERA, 115.2 IP, 61 K’s, 1.31 WHIP) pitched against Connie Johnson (8-15, 4.59 ERA, 223.1 IP, 155 K’s, 1.55 WHIP). Daryl Spencer batted in a run with a single in the bottom of the first, but Nellie Fox hit an RBI single to tie it up in the top of the third, and there the score stayed. Carl Erskine came out to pitch in the top of the eighth still knotted up 1-1, and finally we got the lead back with a Pafko solo homer, his 20th of the season, bringing out Bessent in the top of the ninth to close. He got three quick outs and we shut this one down as a 2-1 victory, our 63rd -- so at least we can say we showed a slight improvement this season. Mossi lasted seven innings with four hits, two walks, five strikeouts and an earned run, but it was Erskine (5-5, 3.44 ERA) who came away with the win, and Bessent saved his 16th game without allowing a baserunner in this one. We outhit them 6-5, led by O’Connell who had a two hits and a run. Andy Pafko also batted in the 1,000th run of his career, giving the 35-year-old 93 batted in this season.

September 30, 1956: One last game before another season is in the books, and we’re guaranteed not to finish last in the American League. Larry Jansen (5-9, 4.86 ERA, 120.1 IP, 54 K’s, 1.29 WHIP) pitched against Bob Rush (13-7, 2.99 ERA, 195.1 IP, 108 K’s, 1.28 WHIP). Daryl Spencer hit into a fielder’s choice in the bottom of the first, batting in a run to put us up 1-0. But the White Sox put up three in the top of the fourth, added three in the seventh, and cruised to victory over us 7-1 in the end. Jansen threw 121 pitches and lasted six innings, allowing five hits, seven walks and three (unearned) runs, while Sam Jones pitched the remainder of the game and allowed four more. They outhit us 11-5, O’Connell again leading the way with two hits and a run. We’ll finish the season with a record of 63-91, only marginally better than last year, and though I think my job is safe for now, it’s hard to feel overly confident.

- - - - -

Milwaukee’s Braves clinched the NL pennant with a 4-2 win over St. Louis this afternoon. The 95-59 Braves finished one game up on the 94-60 Dodgers, who will have to lick their wounds and try again next year despite leading the majors with a +244 run differential. The Braves will face the Yankees, owners of a 100-54 record, in this year’s World Series. Milwaukee has home field advantage, game one set to take place on October 3rd.

October 3, 1956: Ray Crone (17-9, 2.66 ERA, 216.2 IP, 101 K’s, 1.05 WHIP) faced off against Vinegar Bend Mizell (25-7, 2.47 ERA, 295.2 IP, 198 K’s, 1.10 WHIP) as the World Series got started in Milwaukee this afternoon in front of 46,000 eager Braves fans. The Yankees took a 1-0 lead in the top of the fifth with a walk by Mickey Mantle, but the Braves struck back hard in the bottom of the seventh with a two-run homer by Bobby Morgan, an RBI double by Hector Lopez and a beanball that hit Joe Adcock, driving in their fourth run. Milwaukee held tough from there and won this one 4-1, Warren Hacker taking the win and Windy McCall earning a save. The Braves outhit the Bronx Bombers 9-7, led by Bobby Morgan, who hit twice, scoring a run and batting in two.

October 4, 1956: Bob Buhl (10-8, 4.48 ERA, 196.2 IP, 91 K’s, 1.45 WHIP) went up against New York’s Whitey Ford (11-8, 4.08 ERA, 185.1 IP, 113 K’s, 1.52 WHIP) as the Braves looked to take a commanding lead in the series. But New York had other plans ... after letting Milwaukee take a 1-0 lead after one, they rattled off 10 runs in the second, third and fourth, dominating the remainder to win easily 11-3. The Yankees outhit Milwaukee 17-8, led by Woodie Held (three hits, two runs, three RBIs) and Andy Carey (three hits, a walk, three runs and an RBI). Whitey Ford pitched the entire game and struck out seven against two walks, allowing just two earned runs out of the three they scored.

October 6, 1956: New York swiped homefield advantage with the road win in game two. Milwaukees’ Warren Spahn (20-10, 2.81 ERA, 285.1 IP, 116 K’s, 1.18 WHIP) went up against the Yankees’ Johnny Kucks (4-4, 2 SV, 4.71 ERA, 107.0 IP, 37 K’s, 1.51 WHIP) in game three, and while the Braves took a 2-0 lead in the fourth and added a run in the fifth and two more in the eighth, the Yankees struck back in the bottom of the eighth ... Bill Skowron hit an RBI triple to drive in Mantle and Berra, and Elston Howard hit a double that pushed Skowron in to tie it up 5-5, and this one would go into extra innings! Milwaukee took a 6-5 lead in the top of the 10th thanks to a Jack Shepard RBI single, and they were able to hold on to steal a win in Yankee Stadium by a one run margin ... advantage flips back to Milwaukee! The Braves outhit New York 12-10, led by Joe Adcock who hit three times with two runs and two more batted in. Reliever Don McMahon took the win despite allowing four hits in his two innings. Mantle hit three times for a run, giving him a .455 average through three games, but the Yankees were denied.

October 7, 1956: Milwaukee’s Lew Burdette (13-8, 3.76 ERA, 205.2 IP, 70 K’s, 1.15 WHIP) got the start in game four against New York’s Hal Brown (3-2, 2.47 ERA, 43.2 IP, 14 K’s, 0.89 WHIP). New York got going with a two-run Mantle homer in the bottom of the first, but Eddie Mathews hit a solo bomb in the top of the fourth and Jack Shepard tied the score with an RBI single. An RBI triple by Del Ennis pushed Milwaukee into the lead 3-2 in the top of the fifth, and they added on three more in the top of the sixth as this one threatened to turn into a rout! New York never recovered, and the Braves held tough to win 6-3 and take a 3-1 series lead into the final game in New York tomorrow night! Milwaukee outhit New York 10-8, led by Ennis’ four hits and two RBIs. Mantle batted in three runs, but the New York bats were conspicuously silent outside of his. And the Yankees manager is going to catch fire for choosing not to start ace and likely Cy Young winner Vinegar Bend Mizell on short rest.

October 8, 1956: Ray Crone and Vinegar Bend Mizell faced off once again in game five, with everything on the line for the Yankees. They beat the Dodgers four games to two last year, but can feel it all slipping through their fingers this time around, against an opponent they didn’t take nearly seriously enough. Mantle batted in a run with a single in the bottom of the fourth to put the Yanks up 1-0, and Tony Kubek batted in an insurance run for them in the bottom of the seventh, driving in Skowron to put them up 2-0. They wound go on to win the game 3-0 to push this series back to Milwaukee for a game six, outhitting the Braves 9-3 in the shutout -- Mizell had just three hits, two walks and six strikeouts in the commanding win. Mickey Mantle hit twice for a run and an RBI, and he’s hitting .444 this series, but the rest of his team needs to step up if the Yankees think they can take this when it gets back to Wisconsin.

October 10, 1956: Bob Buhl and Whitey Ford faced off in Milwaukee as game six got underway, the Braves leading the Yankees three games to two. Yogi Berra batted in three runs with a double in the top of the first, but Milwaukee answered fast -- Del Ennis walked in a run, and then Joe Adcock hit a grand slam homer to put the Braves up 5-3 after just one inning! The Yankees tied it up 5-5 in the top of the eighth, thanks to a two-run single by sparkplug Billy Martin, and this one went into extra innings, the second game to do so in the series. Elston Howard hit a solo homer to put the Yanks up 6-5 in the top of the 10th, but Eddie Mathews batted in a run with a single to tie it up in the bottom of the inning. Mickey Mantle scored on an E6 error that allowed Joe Collins to take first in the top of the 12th, but in the bottom of the inning the Braves again had an answer -- Hector Lopez hit a groundball single, and an E8 error allowed Johnny Logan to tie the game up at seven. Growing desperate, the Yankees powered themselves into the lead with a two-run homer in the top of the 15th, and that proved to be enough ... there will be a game seven, as New York took this one 9-7 in an epic showdown! The Yankees outhit Milwaukee 12-8, led by Howard who hit twice with three runs and three RBIs. But they’re going to regret the strain this game put on their bullpen -- Ford didn’t even make it out of the first inning, giving up two hits, two walks and five runs (four earned) without even getting an out! Five Yankee arms combined to finish the 15 inning marathon, Johnny Kucks taking the win with three hits and two strikeouts after coming in for the 13th inning and beyond.

October 11, 1956: There’s nothing finer in sports than a game seven! The Yankees had no choice but to go back to their ace, Vinegar Bend Mizell, on three days’ rest, to face Milwaukee’s Warren Spahn. Woodie Held batted Mantle in from second in the top of the first to give the Yankees an early lead, and a groundout by Hank Bauer allowed a run to score in the second as they built on the lead. But in the bottom of the fifth, Milwaukee unleashed the kraken, Joe Adcock scoring off a fielder’s choice, Jack Shepard taking first, and just moments later Johnny Logan hit a three-run homer to give the Braves a 4-2 lead. That took any wind the Yankees had left out of their sails, and the Braves cruised to victory, 4-2! New York outhit them 7-6, but Logan’s three RBIs won the game, Spahn picking up the win and Warren Hacker finishing with a save. Mizell lasted the complete game with six hits, four earned runs and just three strikeouts to go with his three walks. Mantle and Howard, meanwhile, were the only Yankees to finish above .300 for the series.

The Milwaukee Braves are your World Series Champions, beating the Yankees four games to three!
This was their second World Series title, the first coming in 1914, and it was only their third World Series appearance.

OOC: The poor Yankees couldn’t pull off the back to back titles, as unlike in real life, 27-year-old Don Larsen didn’t end up pitching in game five and dominating with his perfect game. It was a close series all around, but these Yankees looked weak out of the gate and Milwaukee just never let up. Could this be a signal that the Yankees are ready to be taken down? It will be interesting to see how 1957 plays out, with the Braves a year ahead of schedule. Our record of 63-91 finished 11 games ahead of their real life counterpart, and while the situation didn’t improve much for them in 1957 (59 wins) I am hopeful we can make some moves and get much better in the coming year.

- - - - -

October 12, 1956: We only have 11 players in our system who are potentially eligible to enter free agency. Six of them have been offered minor league extensions, but the remainder, including Bill Renna and Bob Trice, are being released outright.

October 16, 1956: The draft pool has been announced, and as a lover of killer pitching arms, I would love to get our hands on Bob Gibson, a 20-year-old phenom out of college who would immediately give us a brutal rotation ... but our second-from-last finish puts Baltimore and Philadelphia ahead of us in the draft order, and I think Pittsburgh gets a comp pick ahead of us as well. If either of those teams passes on Gibson they should fire their GM immediately. There are other good guys in the mix, but we’re not settled on who we’re going to aim our best resources after. We should know more in a few weeks after some serious scouting.

October 20, 1956: Kansas City owner Richard Doyle has offered me a two year extension to my contract, worth $14,000 per year through 1958. His biggest emphasis is on getting our attendance up, continuing to build our farm and improving my draft record, and he expects us to be playing much closer to .500 ball if I expect to stay on his good side. He’s currently unhappy with my progress, and if we’re not on track by midseason I expect that two year extension will barely be worth the paper the ink is on. So we better get cracking.He’s siphoned off our cash, which is going to make my job doubly hard ... how we do in the draft is going to go a long way to how our season looks as it comes flying toward us. We have a budget of $950,000, which suggests anything over $850,000 in payroll is going to be a problem -- and right now we’re looking at $902,000 in contract related expenses.

jksander · 09-14-2024, 01:16 PM

November 15, 1956: We have the fifth pick in the first round of this year’s Amateur Draft, behind Philly at #1, Baltimore (#2), Pittsburgh (Comp, #3) and Washington (#4). Philly, as expected, took Bob Gibson off the board; Baltimore then took SP Mike Cuellar, a raw but intriguing 19-year-old lefty, with their #2 pick. Pittsburgh kept the pitching run going, taking 17-year-old lefty SP Claude Osteen off the board ... Washington then took LF Tommy Davis, a 17-year-old with a ton of contact and power potential, bringing us up to the plate. Here are our top picks from this year’s draft:

ROUND 1, Pick 5 -- SP Milt Pappas
Pappas, even at age 17, has the durability and skill to be a top-tier starter at the major league level. Once he reaches his peak control, he’ll be able to attack hitters with a plus changeup, a slider with hard bite and a decent fastball. He’s got stamina for days, as well, so he’s not a guy you have to worry about whether he’ll rack up innings.

ROUND 2, Pick 22 -- 1B Walt Bond
Bond may be primarily a first baseman now, but he has the arm to become a solid outfielder defensively at both left and right, with great range and an ability to hit both for contact and power while avoiding K’s. He’s already an advanced hitter for his age, with raw strength and quick wrists. He’s also an average runner who manages to deliver above average stolen bases.

ROUND 3, Pick 42 -- RP Bob Miller
Miller, at 17, shows strong potential toward becoming an eventual setup man out of the pen. He’s got above average stuff and good ball movement, his bread and butter being a good changeup and an above-average fastball.

ROUND 4, Pick 58 -- RP Dean Skidgel
Skidgel is a 21-year-old left-handed reliever who shows the potential to have top-tier control over his arsenal. A real worm killer who generates a ton of groundballs, his control helping him make the best of what is really just fringey stuff. If he can improve his movement, he’ll be a keeper. If he can’t, he’ll spend his career in the minors. But I like his basic skillset and think he can do well here.

ROUND 5, Pick 74 -- 2B Jack Damaska
Lean and athletic, Damaska hails from Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, and grades out as a solid runner, makes the routine plays consistently and struggles to make contact. I like him primarily as a defensive sparkplug, with above average potential both in the infield and out, with good range around the diamond and an uncanny ability to create double play opportunities. He’s 19 and raw, so it’ll be a while before we see what the kid can do, but I think he’ll make it.

Beyond that level the talent overall drops off significantly, though I’m sure there will be plenty of young surprises who develop well in our minor league system.

December 20, 1956: We used a Rule 5 pick to bring in second baseman Bob Lillis, age 26, from the Brooklyn Dodgers. Lillis is a known clubhouse leader, and our players are already excited to have him on the team, even if it will be as a utility player off the bench. Lillis makes good contact and does well to avoid K’s, and can competantly play second base and shortstop. We and the Cubs were the only teams to draft anyone this year, so we got our pick of the litter.

January 16, 1957: Hall of Fame voting has finished, and again nobody even came close to earning enough votes to get through ... the national press is full of guys who never played the game and who think anyone outside the hallowed early days of baseball is unworthy of the Hall. It’ll be interesting to see if that changes in the coming years or not. The good news is, for now, our owner at least is now satisfied, thanks to the early ticket sales we’ve been bringing in plus our solid draft ... Bob Lee is up to #40 in the latest BNN ratings, out of last year’s draft, and Chris Cannizaro, the catcher we took that year, is up to #86. And once we get ratings back on the current year’s draftees, I think he’ll be even happier. Just have to stay off the hot seat long enough to keep building the team’s foundation. We have a list of guys we’d like to offload, but owners around the league are being incredibly stingy with their cash, and apparently they think that just because we’re based in Kansas City we’re a bunch of rubes who would trade a stud like Pizarro for $25K and the keys to a rusted out junk bucket. No sale. So my goal for the offseason is to have us in a position to be cash positive and then play with the hand we’ve been dealt. I think we have the groundwork laid for a significant improvement this year.

February 4, 1957: We got some great news out of our development facility about right fielder Thomas Paddock, 23, who got 52 games and 163 plate appearances last season at the MLB level. Paddock had outstanding results training to improve his defense in right field, and he saw significant improvement. He’s still essentially a bench-level option because of his weak contact, but he hits well via gap power (four doubles and six homers in limited action) and with his solid defensive improvements, he’s not a bad late-game option beyond just pinch hitting.

February 17, 1957: We just got solid news from Richard Doyle, our owner ... he’s happy enough with how the draft went that he’s increased our budget from $950,000 to $1.1 million, which will allow us to not have to sell off any contracts to remain solvent. It won’t, however, allow us to go out and buy anybody off another team and increase our payroll by any significant measure, so mostly he’s saying he won’t be actively trying to penny pinch us to death all year ... or at least for the time being. Last year we averaged 8,400 fans in attendance, and this year advance ticket sales suggest we could see closer to 9,500 this year, with tickets selling for $1.25 per fan, which is only a 4.8% increase. So we’ll see ... there’s room for those prices to come down early in the season if it means packing more fans into the place as we fight to stay above .500 ...

Spring training begins March 11th, and this year we open at home in Kansas City April 16-17 with games against the Detroit Tigers. And unlike last year we have the bulk of our early games at home ... aside from five games (three in Chicago and two in Detroit), 16 of our first 21 games are on our own field -- that should help us find firmer footing early on. We also don’t have any doubleheaders until May 12th, and there are only six of those before the All Star break and 13 during the season as a whole.

March 11, 1957: Spring training starts today against the Yankees, and we’ve got 43 players currently invited to participate:

Catcher
Del Crandall
Joe Astroth
Chris Cannizaro

Cannizaro is likely to remain in the minors, but we want to see what he can do.

First Base
Harry Walker
Don Bollweg
Walt Bond

Walker is now 40 years old, and Bollweg is 36 ... Bond may need a little time in the minors to gain some seasoning, but he’s almost certain to come up at some point this season ... he’s definitely our future at the position at the moment.

Second Base
Danny O’Connell
Spook Jacobs
Bob Lillis

Lillis has to stay up as a Rule 5 pick, so most likely Spook Jacobs is going to remain at AAA this year, but it’s good to see what he can handle. The 31-year-old is aware that he’s been kept around as middle infield insurance, but still wants to be able to play so this is his chance to show he can still keep up. Everyone at the position is 30+ though, and O’Connell put up 3.4 WAR last year so his starting spot is pretty much assured.

Third Base
Daryl Spencer
Martin Rosell

Rosell only played in two September games last year, so the 21-year-old is untested. But he hit .247/.335/.388 in AAA and put up 1.3 WAR. He’s definitely a solid backup, and is definitely going to make the official opening day roster out of necessity.

Shortstop
Joe DeMaestri
George Wilson

Wilson played 38 games for us last year as DeMaestri’s backup, and he was pretty much an even prop ... didn’t help, didn’t hurt, really didn’t show much either way. But he didn’t have to -- DeMaestri played in 145 games and hit .229 with 22 doubles, with a +4.5 zone rating at short and a +1.1 zone rating as an occasional backup at catcher. Shortstop is our weakest position, however, and I’m constantly on the lookout for a player we can snag to improve at the position.

Left Field
Andy Pafko
Ross Sullivan

Both are old, and Sullivan played last year entirely at AAA ... the 34-year old still put up 1.9 WAR at that level. Does he have the stuff to be a legitimate backup to Pafko, who played in 150 games last year, with a .287 average, 25 doubles, 20 homers and 95 RBIs at age 36?

Center Field
Catfish Metkovich
Bill Wilson

Metkovich was excellent last year even into his mid-30s, playing in 133 games and hitting .294 with 34 doubles, five triples, six homers and 3.7 WAR, and Wilson played in 40 games across all three outfield positions, though most of his were at center ... he hit .193 and lost us about half a game in WAR, so beyond shortstop, our critical area of need is anywhere we can get folks in the outfield. Right now he’s our backup by default, but needs to show improvement in almost every area.

Right Field
Thomas Paddock
Joe Frazier

At age 23, Paddock has shown such significant improvement that as of now he’d be our starter at the position. He played in 52 games for us at the MLB level last year, hitting .227 but with a negative zone rating. We’re hoping to see that improve after his time in the offseason development facilities, because Frazier, at 34, is merely a stopgap at his age and ability level.

Starting Pitching / Emergency SP
Juan Pizarro
Milt Pappas
Don Mossi
Vic Raschi
Larry Jansen
Carl Erskine
Johnny Gray
Walt Craddock
Bob Spicer

If I had to pick a starting five right now, Pizarro, Pappas and Mossi are the guarantees ... so Raschi, Jansen, Erskine, Gray, Craddock and Spicer are fighting over who gets those final two spots. If they miss out and are lucky, they could make the bullpen, but if they aren’t lucky they could find themselves as trade bait.

Bullpen - Long Relief
Charlie Bishop
Dutch Romberger
Sonny Dixon
Bill Harrington

None of these four are assured a bullpen spot at the moment. Right now Harrington has the edge, but they’re all fighting for their right to keep a roster spot as we develop more quality arms for higher leverage situations. Dixon and Bishop may not have the stuff to continue playing as more than filler at the upper levels of the minors, so now’s their chance to prove me wrong.

Bullpen - Middle Relief
Bob Miller
Charlie Rabe
Al Gettel
Lou Sleater
Arnie Portocarrero
Sam Jones

Miller is our third rounder this year, and my scout says he’s ready to come up, but if he needs time at AAA I’m willing to give it to him. Gettel, Portocarrero and Jones are the most likely ones to be fighting for a permanent bullpen spot, but Rabe at 24 has a great mix of pitches and could earn a spot ... we’d traded for him from Cincy back in May and he spent the year in Columbus (AAA) putting up 3.6 WAR, going 7-10 with a 4.28 ERA and 98 K’s. Our bullpen is definitely going to start to skew significantly younger, so if you’re pitching and nearing 30, better bring your stuff and control this spring!

Bullpen - Setup / Stopper / Closer
Don Bessent
Art Ditmar
Johnny Sain
Moe Drabowsky
Bob Lee

Bessent and Drabowsky will be up this year, no question. Bob Lee, our third rounder last season, spent most of last year at the single-A level, going 5-5 with 18 saves, a 3.68 ERA and 58 K’s, a strikout per inning -- he has the stuff to succeed at this level but if his control needs more work, he’s likely to end up at AA. So Ditmar and Sain are the two who are truly fighting for a spot .. Ditmar would still be valuable to have at AAA at his age, but Sain, if he doesn’t make it, will either wind up as trade bait or a potential DFA after spring is done.

jksander · 09-15-2024, 12:26 PM

March 11, 1957: We won our first spring game of the season in an overtime affair that lasted 11 innings, beating the Yankees 6-5! Daryl Spencer walked in the top of the ninth to drive in Joe Astroth, tying it up at five each, and then Lou Sleater hit a solo homer in the top of the 11th to win it. Juan Pizarro threw 51 pitches to start the game, allowing just three hits and a walk, but he allowed four runs, two earned, and only struck out one batter. Sleater got the win as the pitcher and drove in the winning run, so he’s definitely riding high in the spring sun. The bullpen looked good ... Gettel, Harrington, Miller, Drabowsky, Sleater and Sain combined for seven innings with four hits, two walks, four strikeouts and no earned runs. We outhit them 12-11, two of those coming to 40-year-old Harry Walker, who hit twice but went nowhere. “Harry The Hat” still has skills, and he’s a guy the young players look up to. Hoping to see that translate to good things on the field this year.

March 12, 1957: Bill Wilson hit a two-run homer to tie the game at 2-2 in the bottom of the second, but Milt Bolling put Boston up 3-2 in the top of the fourth and the one-run lead held ... they won it 3-2. We again had a good hitting day, outhitting them 11-5, but just couldn’t get runs around ... but I’m liking that we’re getting hits from a variety of players, these early spring games are hard to gauge who’s making big improvements. Walt Bond is hitting .333 through the first two games, and the 19-year-old seems to be adjusting well to major league action. Milt Pappas looked good in his three innings of work, allowng three hits and two runs with three strikeouts, throwing 48 pitches, and Sonny Dixon took the loss off the unearned run in the third. Ditmar, Bessent, Rabe and Jones kept the strong bullpen pitching coming.

March 13, 1957: Detroit beat us 5-3 in this one, but for most of the game it was a real pitching duel. Detroit took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first, but Andy Pafko hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the seventh to give us a lead. Bob Spicer had a rough one in the top of the eighth, allowing four runs, and that did us in. But we outhit the Tigers 8-7, so our hitting is still looking strong. Martin Rosell hit twice and scored a run, as did Joe DeMaestri, and Don Mossi lasted four innings in his start with four hits, a walk, a strikeout and an earned run while throwing just 42 pitches. Spicer got two outs and allowed three hits, three walks and four earned runs, and is looking like the first player who truly isn’t ready to be part of the roster this year. Too bad nobody else wants him either ...

March 14, 1957: Del Crandall hit a two-run homer in the top of the first, but we gave up six unanswered in the first, third and eighth as the Guardians beat us 6-2. Vic Raschi struggled, allowing five hits, a walk and four earned runs in his three innings (no hits, two walks, two strikeouts between them through four innings), but Bomberger and Bishop were great out of the pen ... Johnny Sain gave up two earned runs off three hits and a walk in his inning to seal the deal. They outhit us just 8-7, and Martin Rosell continues to shine -- two hits and a run, he’s now hitting .857 so far this spring in admittedly limited exposure.

Daryl Spencer has suffered a mild oblique strain and will be benched until he’s completely healthy ... no sense having something small become a big problem with a key player.

March 15, 1957: The White Sox gave us a hell of a fight, leading 4-2 heading into the bottom of the sixth, but in the bottom of the inning Joe Frazier hit an RBI double to score George Wilson, and Charlie Bishop hit an RBI single that scored Frazier and Chris Cannizzaro! In the bottom of the eighth, tied up at five apiece, Cannizzaro hit an RBI single that scored Frazier, and we won this one 6-5! We outhit them 11-10, led by Paddock, Frazier and Cannizzaro who each hit twice. Larry Jansen pitched three innings with a hit, two strikeouts and an unearned run, keeping his ERA unblemished in his first spring start through 44 pitches. Don Bessent got the win and Art Ditmar the save, neither giving up a run, though Craddock and Bishop combined for four innings with eight hits and four earned runs.

March 16, 1957: This one was all Washington all the time, as they stumped us 4-0. Each team hit seven times, but none of our hitters stood out. Carl Erskine had his first spring start and went three innings with a hit, three strikeouts and an earned run through 41 pitches.

March 17, 1957: Juan Pizarro made his second spring start today, and we gave him a quick lead with a two run homer by Catfish Metkovich and a solo homer by Del Crandall in the top of the first. He pitched four innings with a hit, two strikeouts and no runs against us, throwing 39 pitches and getting the win. And when Wes Covington hit a two-run blast in the bottom of the seventh to make it interesting, we got a Spook Jacobs RBI single in the top of the ninth to insure the win, beating the Orioles 4-2. We outhit them 11-6, led by Crandall who hit three times for a run and an RBI. He’s going to be a great asset for our team this year, and is a reason I will never stop trolling the waiver wire.

After a week of spring baseball, we’ve got a 3-4 record and are seeing good things from our bats, while our bullpen arms are looking particularly solid. We’ve decided to demote Bob Spicer back to AAA, along with Walt Craddock, and we’ve put Johnny Sain on waivers. We’ve also made decisions on the long relievers on our early list -- Charlie Bishop and Sonny Dixon did not make the cut, Bishop will return to AAA Buffalo, but Dixon is out of option years and has been put on waivers alongside Sain. As for hitters, our owner wants us to stick with rookie Walt Bond as our backup at first, so Don Bollweg is heading down to AAA. We’re not going to have a ton of cuts to make from the hitting side of our lineup, and this week’s going to be a big one for paring down our pitching roster which is definitely overstuffed with borderline players, particularly among middle relievers.

jksander · 09-15-2024, 04:39 PM

March 18, 1957: New York beat us 3-1 in a game that was a scoreless duel until the top of the fifth when Lee Thomas hit a two-run homer for the Yankees ... they never looked back. They outhit us 7-4, our only offense coming off a Pafko homer in the bottom of the eighth as we lost 3-1. Milt Pappas looked really good in his second outing, going four innings with two hits, a walk and four strikeouts, throwing 52 pitches without an earned run. Our 19-year-old closer candidate Bobby Lee had another good inning, a hit and a walk in 23 pitches without an out, and he’s still got a 0.00 ERA ... with our owner’s obsession with youth, it’s very likely he’ll make the cut this year, though the competition for the top bullpen spots is going to be fierce.

March 19, 1957: Another pitching duel early, this one broke open for the Red Sox in the bottom of the seventh, a Dick Gernert three-run homer winning the game for them after being tied 1-1 since the top of the fifth when Bob Lillis had tied it up for us with an RBI single. Boston won 4-1, but Don Mossi had another good spring start, going four innings with a hit, a walk, four strikeouts and an earned run through 56 pitches. Art Ditmar took the loss, giving up three runs thanks to a hit (the Gernert homer) and two walks. They outhit us 7-6, with Pafko’s homer our only real hitter’s moment.

March 20, 1957: The Tigers had home advantage in this one, but we scored first, getting a run off a wild pitch and then scoring a second with a Daryl Spencer RBI double, both in the top of the third. We held them off nicely from there and Frazier scored off a passed ball in the top of the eighth to seal it as a 3-1 win. Vic Raschi had a good start, with four innings and six hits, just allowing one earned run through 60 pitches. Five pitchers from the bullpen combined to keep them from adding any more runs or even getting a single hit. We had a good hitting night, outhitting them 10-6, and Spencer’s two hit one RBI night has him hitting .357 this spring.

We’ve demoted Johnny Gray to AAA and waived Bill Harrington who is out of minor league options. Art Ditmar needs to show improvement or he may no longer have a spot in the bullpen, with an 8.10 ERA so far through 8.1 innings. Sonny Dixon cleared waivers and has been sent to AAA, but Johnny Sain has refused to be demoted, and nobody wants him on the trade market. We’ve had to bite the bullet and released him outright, adding $2,472 to our player expenses in the process.

March 22, 1957: Cleveland blew us out 4-0 tonight as we were no-hit by a combination of five of their pitchers. Larry Jansen took the loss for us with four innings and five hits, two strikeouts and three earned runs, while Sleater out of the pen allowed two hits and the other run with a walk and a strikeout. Our pitchers held their own as best they could, but we were outhit in the end 11-0. Brutal.

March 23, 1957: Today we took an early lead with Pizarro on the mound -- in the top of the second Paddock hit a triple that drove in two runs, and George Wilson pushed Paddock home with a sac-fly. Daryl Spencer hit a two-run homer in the top of the eighth to add on, and even with a pair of runs given up in the bottom of the ninth we held tough to win 5-2 over the White Sox. Pizarro improved to 2-0 with a 1.64 ERA in spring games, going four innings with two hits, a walk and three strikeouts, and Drabowsky, Ditmar, Rabe and Gettel combined for four hitless innings before Romberger took a bit of a beating with two hits and two earned runs in the ninth. We outhit them 9-4 and nobody on our team hit twice, though Paddock and Spencer each knocked in two runs.

March 24, 1957: Washington took an early lead in this one, scoring early and then keeping their foot on the gas. They’d go on to win easily, 5-0, outhitting us 9-5. Pappas got roughed up a bit, with six hits, a walk and three runs with three strikeouts through four innings, throwing 72 pitches, and we only had seven baserunners all day.

March 25, 1957: Harry Walker singled in a run in the top of the first with help from an E8 error, driving in O’Connell to score the only run of the entire game, but the entire pitching staff held it, and we won 1-0! This was a real duel ... we outhit them 4-3, and Mossi only allowed a pair of hits and a walk in his four innings. Lee, Gettel, Drabowsky and Erskine got holds, and Bessent earned the save ... those five combined for one hit and five walks in their five innings of work.

March 26, 1957: We had the Yankees on the ropes in this one, Pafko hitting an RBI double in the top of the fifth that gave us a 4-3 lead. But Charlie Rabe hit a rough patch big time in the bottom of the eighth, giving up five hits, a walk and four earned runs as he blew the save and took the loss -- the 24-year-old has been solid until now, but remains raw and untested. Vic Raschi went four innings off 58 pitches with five hits, a walk and three earned runs, as he continues to struggle as well.

With 15 games left in the spring slate, we’ve moved Rabe back down to AAA along with Spook Jacobs and Joe Astroth. Meanwhile, Daryl Spencer has strained his tricep now and will be out for weeks ... he’s been added to the 15 day IL, so Martin Rosell will now be starting at age 21, and catcher Chris Cannizzaro will be backing him up at third while also playing as a backup catcher. That brings our roster down to 31 men at the moment, with tough cuts still to come to the pitching corps.

March 27, 1957: Boston took the lead in the top of the first thanks to a Jackie Jensen homer, but Martin Rosell answered with a two-run blast of his own in the bottom of the fifth, and we held our ground to win this one 2-1, outhitting the Red Sox 6-2. Larry Jansen only pitched four innings, with a hit, a walk, two strikeouts and the earned run, but Erskine lasted two innings and took the win, and Sleater, Romberger and Gettel combined for three innings without a single baserunner. Rosell picked up two RBIs and improved his average to .263 this spring.

Lou Sleater, Al Gettel, and Dutch Romberger have been placed on waivers, and Bill Harrington has been assigned to AAA after clearing waivers himself. Our bullpen is now down to eight men, and unless we choose to keep six men in the pen and cut an offensive player, we’ll have three more cuts to make by opening day to get down to a 25-man roster.

jksander · 09-15-2024, 07:54 PM

March 28, 1957: This game wasn’t going our way early, with Detroit scoring runs in the third and eighth without our bats making a peep. But in the bottom of the ninth Walt Bond hit a solo homer, and then a few minutes later Del Crandall walked it off with a three-run homer to win the game! Pizarro went five innings with one hit, five walks, four strikeouts and the one earned run, throwing 78 pitches, but it was Drabowsky who got the win, throwing a strikeout without a hit or a walk in the top of the ninth. We outhit them 7-4, led by Bond with two hits, a run and an RBI, while Crandall’s three RBIs bring his total to seven so far this spring.

March 29, 1957: In a game that showed why spring games probably should have innings limits, this one was tied 4-4 at the end of regulation and then went ten more scoreless innings before, in the top of the 19th, Danny O’Connell hit an RBI single to get us our fifth run. Then, just a minute later, George Wilson came to the plate and slammed a grand salami out of center field, giving us the 9-4 lead we’d eventually win by. The entire game took nearly six hours, and we outhit them 14-10, using 10 pitchers to get it done to their 14. Milt Pappas went four innings, allowing two hits, three walks and an earned run with a strikeout, and Lee, Ditmar, Miller, Bessent, Portocarrero, Jansen and Jones combined for seven innings with just four hits, three walks and three runs between them. But it was Moe Drabowsky who had a star-making performance even if the stats don’t count ... he pitched 7.1 INNINGS and threw 96 pitches, with three hits, two walks and six strikeouts -- he improved to 2-0 with an 0.00 ERA now through 12.2 spring innings. Mossi then finished them off with two outs and a single hit, giving him a 1.42 ERA. I knew Drabowsky was durable, but never suspected anything like this was possible! O’Connell led with three hits, two runs and two RBIs, George Wilson hit twice with four RBIs, and Bob Lillis had six at-bats as our backup shortstop and picked up three hits, improving his average to .273.

March 30, 1957: The White Sox scored five in the third inning and never looked back, beating us 5-0 in a game our offense never woke up for despite outhitting Chicago 7-6. Vic Raschi is in danger of losing his starting spot ... he went five innings with six hits, a walk and five earned runs, striking out one, and he has a 7.31 ERA through his four spring starts -- at age 38, he may not have what it takes to handle a starter’s workload.

March 31, 1957: Juan Pizarro lasted six innings with four hits, a walk, five strikeouts and a single earned run, throwing 75 pitches in his fifth spring start, improving his ERA to 1.64. But Washington took the lead with a pair of runs in the top of the eighth and we had no countermove, losing this one 3-2. They outhit us 6-3, led by Bill Wilson with a hit, a run and an RBI.

April 1, 1957: We took on Baltimore today and won a hard fought game by a 3-2 margin, taking the lead in the fourth and never letting them get back in. Carl Erskine started the game, pitching four innings with a hit, a walk and four strikeouts, improving to 2-1 this spring with an 0.82 ERA. We outhit the Orioles 12-5, led by Harry Walker and George Wilson who each had two hits, a run and an RBI.

April 2, 1957: Mossi had four good innings and a bad fifth one, giving the Yankees back SIX RUNS in the fifth en route to a 10-1 beatdown. He finished with 4.1 innings and five hits, with six earned runs and two strikeouts. Vic Raschi then gave up six hits, a walk and two earned runs in relief as the damage compounded. We were outhit 14-7, led by Paddock who hit twice to nowhere.

Al Gettel has refused to be demoted after clearing waivers, and is going to cost us $3,600 to release him from his contract. We’ve traded Vic Raschi to Cincinnati in exchange for 32-year-old reliever Tom Gorman and $10,000 in cash, however, so we were able to balance it out on the books. Gorman, who has had issues in the past with his motivation or lack thereof, is still a solid addition to the team due to his excellent control -- we’re going to promote him back to the major league club, and have waived Arnie Portocarrero who will move back to AAA once he clears. Interestingly, when we traded him to Cincinnati they paid us $15,000 and they paid us $10,000 to bring him back, so he’s been a very profitable trading chip. In another move, Art Ditmar has moved down to AAA, so we only have one more cut we’ll need to make before finalizing our opening day roster. As of right now Joe Frazier is fighting with our bullpen for the final spot, and if I decide to keep a six-man bullpen he’ll likely drop down to AAA.

April 4, 1957: We won another close battle, this time against the Red Sox, by a 3-2 margin today. An RBI triple by Martin Rosell was the deciding factor in the top of the seventh, after which the bullpen refused to give an inch. We outhit them 8-6, and Pappas had himself a solid five inning start, with two hits, three walks, three strikeouts and an earned run through 68 pitches. Tom Gorman blew a save but got the win in his first spring appearance for us, and Sam Jones picked up his second save. Andy Pafko had two hits and a run, while Rosell had his hit and RBI.

April 5, 1957: We dug ourselves an early 3-0 hole in the first three innings against Detroit, but Walker hit an RBI single in the fourth, Crandall hit an RBI double in the fifth, and we took control in the sixth thanks to an RBI single by Bob Lillis (aided by an E7 error) and a two-run double by Pizarro as a pinch-hitter. From there we cruised, winning 5-3. We outhit them 12-7, led by Pizarro with his two RBIs, and Jansen was able to recover from a rough start, lasting five innings with six hits, two strikeouts and three runs (two earned) as he improved to 1-1 with a 3.18 ERA.

April 6, 1957: Pizarro made his sixth start of the spring today against Cleveland, and he pitched a quality start, lasting six innings with one hit, two walks and three strikeouts. We led 2-0 when he left the game for Bessent, and he, Miller and Gorman combined for one hit and three strikeouts as we shut the Guardians down in the remainder, winning by the same 2-0 margin. We outhit them 5-2 in the duel, led by Danny O’Connell with two hits, a run and an RBI. That will be Pizarro’s last spring start, as he’ll be our opening day starter on April 16th ... in these final five spring games we’ll start the rest of our rotation and then give the final game to Sam Jones, who is likely going to be our spot starter / long reliever this season.

April 7, 1957: Carl Erskine got the start against the White Sox today, and he got through five shutout innings before Drabowsky took over, the score 0-0 in the bottom of the sixth. The White Sox came unleashed in the bottom of the eighth, scoring four runs, and that lost the game for us. But Erskine looked good with three hits, a walk and a strikeout through 66 pitches, and it was the first bad inning for 19-year-old Bob Lee out of the pen, allowing all four earned runs. We were outhit 8-4.

April 8, 1957: Don Mossi got his final spring start against Washington, and he had a quality start, six innings with just a hit and a pair of strikeouts. Gorman came out leading 1-0 in the bottom of the seventh, and we’d go on to win this one in the end 2-0. We outhit the Senators 9-3, with O’Connell and George Wilson hitting twice each, but Metkovich led the way with two hits, two runs and an RBI.

April 9, 1957: Milt Pappas started against the Orioles tonight, and he left the game after five innings with our lead at 4-1, having allowed just four hits with a walk, a run and three strikeouts through nearly 70 pitches. That wound up being the final score, as our bullpen remains locked in. We outhit them 9-7, led by Joe DeMaestri who hit three times for three RBIs.

April 10, 1957: Larry Jansen got his final start of the spring season, facing the Yankees and the insanely good Vinegar Bend Mizell. Unfortunately he gave up two runs in the bottom of the second and only lasted four innings before he got pulled at 79 pitches. We’d go on to lose 3-0, which is about what you’d expect going up against Mizell in a game where the results don’t count and nobody wants to risk overuse. They only outhit us 7-6, we just didn’t string any good runs together.

April 11, 1957: Sam Jones got the start in our final spring game against the Red Sox, and he had five solid innings with three hits, three walks, three strikeouts and three earned runs. We went into the bottom of the eighth trailing 3-0, but Bob Lillis hit an RBI single, Del Crandall hit an RBI single, Harry Walker hit a three-run double and Walt Bond hit an RBI double ... six unanswered runs, as we’d go on to win 6-3! Don Bessent pitched three innings with three hits, a walk and a strikeout as he picked up the win, improving to 2-1 with a 1.88 spring ERA, and Gorman saved his second game as we finished the spring season with a 16-14 record, good for fourth place behind Detroit, New York and Cleveland. We outhit them 10-9, mostly in that killer eighth inning, led by Crandall who had two hits, a run and an RBI, while Bond had two hits and an RBI.

Bob Lee had to go back down to AA to make room for Daryl Spencer, who is coming off the IL just in time for the real games to start. Lee is young but needs a little testing at the upper minors level while he develops firmer control over his pitches. He’s likely to get a call-up at some point this season as wear and tear on the bullpen becomes more evident, but I’d rather have an extra bat on the bench than risk overplaying a young arm when he’s not ready.

April 15, 1957: Tomorrow is our opening day, though games officially start today, so what better time to announce our official opening day rosters? The prospect rankings for the current class have also been announced ... Milt Pappas comes in at #14, while third-rounder Bob Miller came in #41 and second-rounder Walt Bond came in #48! Bob Lee is ranked 65th, and fourth-rounder Dean Skidgel rounds out the top 100 at #93.

Lineup
C - Del Crandall
1B - Harry Walker
2B - Danny O’Connell
3B - Daryl Spencer
SS - Joe DeMaestri
LF - Andy Pafko
CF - Catfish Metkovich
RF - Thomas Paddock

Bench: Chris Cannizzaro, Juan Pizarro, Walt Bond, Bob Lillis, Martin Rosell, George Wilson, Russ Sullivan

Starters
1 - Juan Pizarro
2 - Milt Pappas
3 - Don Mossi
4 - Carl Erskine
5 - Larry Jansen

Bullpen
Closer - Don Bessent
Stopper - Moe Drabowsky
Setup - Tom Gorman
Middle - Bob Miller
Long - Sam Jones

09-01-2024, 06:41 AM	#42
jksander All Star Starter Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Indianapolis IN Posts: 1,908	April 17, 1956: For opening day in Detroit, we matched up rookie left-handed hurler Juan Pizarro against Detroit’s Billy Hoeft, 23, who went 12-14 with a 3.88 ERA and 130 K’s for the Tigers last year in his fourth full season. It was cold, barely into the 40s, and cloudy, but nearly 23,000 fans came out and got to see Catfish Metkovich double into right field to get us a baserunner immediately! Harry Walker sac-bunted him over to third, and a Vic Power groundout gave us our first run and lead of the season just five minutes in. Pafko doubled with two outs, and Finigan doubled to bring him around to score, putting us up 2-0 heading into Pizarro’s first pitch. In the top of the second, Metkovich walked the bases loaded with one out but we weren’t able to add on. The Tigers got on the board in the bottom of the third with an RBI single by Kaline, but Danny O’Connell got it back for us with a solo homer out of center in the top of the fourth. Pizarro had a great fourth inning, getting three outs, and we added on with an RBI double by Finigan to give us a 4-1 lead heading into the bottom of the fifth. In the top of the sixth, Metkovich again walked the bases loaded, two outs, but Walker struck out swinging to get the Tigers out of a real jam. Pizarro got us through the sixth, a quality start in his first go ‘round, and Tom Gorman came out with a 4-1 lead to protect in the bottom of the seventh. We brought out 20-year-old rookie reliever Moe Drabowsky in the eight inning, and he got three outs off 11 pitches. We added on a run via a wild pitch in the top of the ninth, so, leading by four Drabowsky stayed out in the bottom of the inning to finish things off. But he got into trouble with one out, loading the bases, and we brought out Bobby Shantz to get out of the jam. Pinch-hitter Frank House popped out to center but drove in a run, but a quick groundout by Blasingame ended this as a 5-2 victory for our Athletics! Juan Pizarro took the win, starting out with a 1-0 record and 1.50 ERA thanks to a two-hit, three walk, four strikeout game with just one earned run. Gorman allowed just a hit in his inning, and Drabowsky was solid in his debut, allowing two hits and a walk with a strikeout and an earned run, and Shantz saved the game by getting two outs with just five pitches thrown. More important, we outhit the Tigers 12-5, with FIVE players hitting twice. Metkovich, our new leadoff man, led the way with two hits, two walks and two runs scored, while Finigan had two hits and two RBIs. And newcomer Danny O’Connell, batting seventh in the order, helped keep scoring drives going, hitting twice including his homer. Our three doubles and the homer showcased our improved gap power as a lineup ... hopefully this will continue into the season. April 18, 1956: In our second game in Detroit, Carl Erskine faced off against another young Tigers starter, Jim Bunning, who went 9-8 last year with a 3.92 ERA and 154 strikeouts in his rookie campaign. With two outs in the top of the first, Vic Power hit his first solo homer of the year to put us up 1-0! Harry Walker batted in a run with a single in the top of the third, extending the lead, and with the bases loaded, no outs in the top of the fourth, Danny O’Connell walked in a run to keep it going. DeMaestri singled in another and a Catfish Metkovich sac-fly to center kept the run train rolling ... we went into the bottom of the fourth with a stunning 5-0 lead! We blew them up in the top of the seventh, adding on SEVEN RUNS, capping things off with a three-run homer out of left by Joe DeMaestri, as this one became a complete rout! Bob Spicer came out for the last two innings, and in the bottom of the ninth they got on the board with a three-run homer by Red Wilson, and with one out, Solly Hemus hit a solo homer to cut our lead to eight. But Spicer got the last two outs and we were able to easily win this one 12-4. Carl Erskine started his season out with a 1-0 record and a 0.00 ERA, allowing just four hits with four walks and three strikeouts. Spicer gave us two innings with three hits, four runs (three earned) and a pair of strikeouts. But we again outhit the Tigers 13-7, and our power remains a big part of it ... today we added two homers for four runs, plus four doubles including two for Metkovich, who has three of them in the first two games this year, hitting .571 with a 1.000 slug. Vic Power was dominant, hitting three times with two runs and two RBIs, and DeMaestri hit twice and batted in four runs, scoring once. April 19, 1956: Arnie Portocarrero got the start in our final game in Detroit, facing yet another young Tigers starter in Bob Shaw, who at age 22 is making his major league debut today, ranked #19 overall by the Baseball News Network. Last year in AAA he was 15-12 with a 3.92 ERA and 144 strikeouts. Portocarrero got into deep trouble in the bottom of the second, loading the bases and hitting Fred Hatfield on the shoulder to walk in a run. He got out of it with just three runs against him, which seemed like a small miracle, but he’d only thrown 31 pitches through the first two innings. Vic Power got us on the board with an RBI single in the top of the sixth, and Andy Pafko hit another single into center, driving in a second run, sending us into the bottom of the sixth trailing just 3-2. Portocarrero, who had settled down nicely, stayed out and got us through the sixth with ease, and Gorman relieved him to start the bottom of the seventh still trailing by a run. He got us through the eighth unblemished, but we at least needed a run in the top of the ninth to keep this game going. O’Connell walked with two outs, giving us a baserunner, but DeMaestri grounded out to first and we lost our first game of the year, 3-2. Portocarrero recovered from his terrible second inning and wound up giving us six innings with just six hits and a strikeout, his three earned runs giving him a 4.50 ERA. Gorman was solid in his two innings, with two hits and nothing else as his ERA remains unblemished. They outhit us 8-5 and still we almost made a comeback happen. Walker had a double and walked once, scoring a run, while Power and Pafko each had a hit and an RBI. We’ll go into our home opener with a 2-1 record, facing the 1-1 White Sox for a three-game set. April 20, 1956: We drew the biggest crowd Municipal Stadium has ever hosted -- nearly 21,000 fans, on a partly cloudy day with temps in the lower 50s, as Kansas City fans got their first chance to see our new and improved team up close and personal! Juan Pizarro (1-0, 1.50 ERA, 6.0 IP, 4 K’s, 0.83 WHIP) pitched in the first game, going up against The White Sox’s 28-year-old veteran Dick Donovan, who last year put up a 9-6 record with a 4.09 ERA and 78 strikeouts through 24 starts. Pizarro’s start went well early, including striking out the side in the top of the second AND third innings, but our bats were slow to awaken. Pizarro didn’t give up a hit or a baserunner until the top of the fifth, when Larry Doby doubled on one out, but he successfully stranded him there to keep the game scoreless. But the stalemate was broken in the top of the sixth, when Walt Dropo hit a solo homer over the right field fence to put Chicago up 1-0. Bob Nieman hit a solo homer in the top of the seventh to make it 2-0, and with a man on first and no outs, Al Gettel came in to relieve Pizarro, who again finished with six innings. Gettel, however, had rough luck because of the wind, Sherm Lollar hitting a two-run blast out of left to make it a four-run Chicago lead, giving us a lot of work to do if our offense was going to find a way to save this one. Tom Gorman came out and got us through the top of the ninth. With two outs in the bottom of the inning Astroth and O’Connell had back to back singles, but Dick Kryhoski batted out to short and we lost this one 4-0. Fans got plenty to be excited about despite the disappointing finish. Though Pizarro fell to 1-1 with a 3.00 ERA, he managed six innings with just three hits, a walk and seven strikeouts, throwing just shy of 90 pitches. We’re working his pitch count up carefully, and if we’d given him run support he might have lasted through the seventh. Gettel allowed a hit, a walk and struck out a pair, his one earned run giving him a 4.50 ERA after two innings. Gorman, meanwhile, remained perfect ERA-wise, getting through his inning with a single hit in his third appearance. We also got hits, outhitting the White Sox 10-5, but the strong winds worked against us today, their three home runs killing us in the end. April 21, 1956: Carl Erskine (1-0, 0.00 ERA, 7.0 IP, 3 K’s, 1.14 WHIP) pitched against Chicago’s Bob Rush, who went 14-14 last year with a 3.69 ERA and 132 K’s. Andy Pafko hit an RBI single in the bottom of the first that drove in a run, giving us a 1-0 lead, but the White Sox tied it up in the top of the first with a solo homer by Sherm Lollar, his second of the series (and the season), giving Erskine his first earned run of the year. Harry Walker hit an RBI triple in the bottom of the third to get us back into the lead, and a sac-fly to left by Vic Power drove in a third run, but Chicago wasn’t fazed -- Minnie Minoso hit a solo homer out of left to cut the lead to a single run, as homers continue to kill us in this series. Erskine then lost his control and an RBI double by Jim Rivera pushed in a pair to give the White Sox a 4-3 lead. He finally got the third out, and had only thrown 54 pitches, but Erskine had shown the enemy weakness, and this isn’t an easy team to beat in any situation, especially when you keep giving up leads. He loaded the bases in the top of the fifth and walked in another run, with the bullpen warming up arms, but he at least was able to finish the fifth inning without further damage -- not a great start by any stretch, but if we can get hits, two runs can be made up easier than four or five. In the bottom of the inning Metkovich took a walk and Walker reached via an E6 error, and Vic Power hit a bouncing shot into center field that evaded their defenses, pushing in a run with what was eventually deemed a single with an E8 error that pushed the batter to second. Then, with two outs, Danny O’Connell hit a shot over the head of their second baseman and in the process pushed two runs in, giving us back the lead! The rally took so long we no longer had an arm warmed up, so Erskine stayed out while we got Gorman warm from the bullpen, and instead of being replaced, he pitched around a one-out single by Johnny Groth and got through the sixth with the lead. Gorman came out in the seventh to protect the one-run lead, but he stayed out in the eighth and blew the save with back to back hits that tied the game at six. Moe Drabowsky came out to pitch in the top of the eighth with a man on second, no outs, and got us through the inning without giving the Sox a lead, and he held it through the ninth, but we were unable to get a run through to end it in regulation, so this one went into extras. Al Gettel came out to pitch in the top of the 10th, still tied up at six, and he got us into the bottom of the inning unscathed, with a chance to walk it off, but our bats came up empty, so Bobby Shantz came out to pitch in the top of the 11th, three quick outs again getting us back up to the plate. Shantz then singled into right with one out in the bottom of the inning to bring up the top of our lineup, but they left him there stranded. With one out in the top of the 12th, Chicago got the lead back off an RBI single by Jerry Priddy, and we went into the bottom of the inning trailing by a run. We had a run of luck in the bottom of the inning, however, with Vic Power leading off with a single, Pafko beating out an infield squib for a single of his own to push Power into scoring position. Both runners advanced on a wild pitch, and with one out they walked O’Connell to load the bases. Joe Astroth came in to replace DeMaestri as catcher and pinch-hit, and he hit a sac-fly that tied us back up! They hit George Wilson with a pitch to reload the bases, and with Bob Spicer warmed up and ready in the pen, Dick Kryhoski came in to pinch-hit for Shantz, striking out swinging and pushing us into the 13th inning. With the bases loaded in the bottom of the inning, Jim Finigan came up to the plate with one out, walking it off with a sac-fly to deep left as we won this one 8-7! It took our entire bullpen, but we got it done. Bob Spicer got the win after all the craziness, improving to 1-0 with a 9.00 ERA after a perfect 13th inning. Erskine had a bit of a rough start, but he left with a lead after six innings, allowing eight hits with five walks for five earned runs, striking out three. After Gorman blew the save, Moe Drabowsky came out and got us into extras with two innings and just a walk and a strikeout, improving his ERA to 2.70. Everyone in our bullpen has an ERA under 3.50 now except Spicer. But we did what was almost impossible to think of last year -- we outhit the White Sox 15-12 in this marathon, led by Pafko (four hits and an RBI), Vic Power (three hits, two runs, two RBIs) and Catfish Metkovich (three hits, a walk and three runs scored). We’re sending Joe Frazier down to AAA for the moment so we can bring up an extra bullpen arm for the upcoming stretch of home games. Sonny Dixon, with his excellent control, will join us in a setup role. April 22, 1956: Art Ditmar got his first start of the season this afternoon, facing Chicago’s Connie Johnson (0-0, 1.50 ERA, 6.0 IP, 4 K’s, 1.33 WHIP). The White Sox took the lead off a single by Connie Johnson that drove in two runs in the top of the second, and by the time Ditmar got his third out the game was a rout thanks to a three-run homer by Bob Nieman. Bob Spicer came out to pitch in the top of the fifth, still trailing by six, and Chicago added two more runs in the top of the sixth. Vic Power batted in a run to get us on the board in the bottom of the seventh, and Al Gettel came out to get us through the remainder as we lost this one 9-1. Ditmar lasted four innings with seven hits, three walks, two strikeouts and six earned runs -- beyond Pizarro and Erskine, our starting squad looks rough, and that’s going to be what determines how our season goes -- who will step up and prove they belong? Unless we can pull off a miracle trade, this is the pitching roster we have, and top starters are at a premium. We were outhit 13-10, led by Metkovich and O’Connell, who each hit twice, but only Power managed to bat in a run, DeMaestri scoring it. We go into the coming week with a 3-3 record, and we’ll face Detroit (3-4) for two and Cleveland (3-3) for two here in Kansas City before heading to Chicago for a four-game set next weekend, a series that starts a brutal road stretch including 19 games in 16 days as we’ll visit six cities. __________________ "Campus Chronicles" -- The Indiana Hoosiers in a New College World (An OOTP 27 Dynasty) Online Leagues Modern Baseball (Chicago White Sox) Championship Baseball League (Winnipeg Goldeye) WPORBL 55 (Chicago Cubs) WPORBL 74 (Oakland A's) WPORBL 94 (Montreal Expos) WPOBL (Cincinnati Reds) Last edited by jksander; 09-01-2024 at 06:42 AM.

09-02-2024, 03:57 PM	#43
jksander All Star Starter Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Indianapolis IN Posts: 1,908	April 23, 1956: Juan Pizarro (1-1, 3.00 ERA, 12.0 IP, 11 K’s, 0.75 WHIP) started today against Bob Shaw (1-0, 2.58 ERA, 7.2 IP, 3 K’s, 0.91 WHIP) on a 40-degree blustery night, which is what kept the crowd slightly under the 10,000 mark. An Andy Pafko sac-fly in the bottom of the third put us into the lead 1-0 against the Tigers, and in the bottom of the fourth DeMaestri hit a solo bomb out of left, his second homer of the year! Zeke Bella hit a sac-fly in the bottom of the fifth to add on, and we held that lead into the top of the eighth when Moe Drabowsky came in to relieve Pizarro with one out and men on first and second. Unfortunately Bill Tuttle batted in both runs with a triple, but Drabowsky struck out the next two batters he faced, getting out of there with the one run lead still safe. Bobby Shantz came in to pitch in the top of the ninth, getting three quick outs to seal the 3-2 victory! Juan Pizarro improved to 2-1 with a 2.79 ERA, getting through 7.1 innings with five hits, two walks, four strikeouts and two earned runs. He threw 99 pitches tonight, a new career high! Drabowsky held his second game of the season with a hit and two strikeouts as he handled the high leverage situation with aplomb as his ERA improved to 2.25, and Shantz saved his second game, with no hits and one strikeout, giving him a 2.45 ERA. We outhit the Tigers 8-6, led by DeMaestri with two hits, a walk, a run and an RBI. April 24, 1956: Carl Erskine (1-0, 3.46 ERA, 13.0 IP, 6 K’s, 1.62 WHIP) pitched against Jim Bunning (0-2, 11.57 ERA, 9.1 IP, 7 K’s, 2.36 WHIP) this afternoon. Detroit scored a run in the top of the first when Harvey Kuenn singled and Harry Walker missed the cutoff man on a throw back from right field. A pair of back to back hits, including an RBI single by Whitey Lockman, added to their lead, digging us a two run hole heading into the bottom of the inning. They added a run in the top of the fourth and then a fourth run in the top of the fifth to further dig our hole. Bob Spicer came out to pitch in the top of the sixth, trailing 4-0, and we got on the board in the bottom of the inning with an RBI single by Finigan. Tom Gorman came out to pitch in the top of the eighth, and we traded runs from there -- they added two in the top of the eighth and we added two in the bottom of the eighth. In the end it didn’t matter, we’d dug our hole and had to lie in it, losing 6-3. Erskine fell to 1-1 with a weak five inning effort -- eight hits, a walk, two strikeouts and four runs (only one of which was earned), so his ERA looks more solid (at 3.00) than he likely deserves. Spicer had two good innings and improved his ERA to 5.62, allowing two hits with one strikeout, and Gorman had a rougher stretch, allowing four hits in his two innings with a walk, a strikeout and two earned runs. But we were outhit 14-9, so we were never really in it at any point. Finigan led the way with three hits, a run and two RBIs, while O’Connell hit once, walked once and is still batting .406 early in the season. April 25, 1956: Arnie Portocarrero (0-1, 4.50 ERA, 6.0 IP, 1 K, 1.00 WHIP) pitched in tonight’s game against Cleveland, facing Don Mossi (0-1, 2.70 ERA, 6.2 IP, 1 K, 1.05 WHIP). And Cleveland got out to a quick start, a three-run blast by Dale Long that was followed by a solo bomb out of right by Al Rosen dug us a 4-0 hole before we ever had a chance to bat. Joe Astroth batted a run in for us in the bottom of the inning, but they added on two more in the top of the second to keep us in our place. Pete Suder drove in a run in the bottom of the second with a sac-fly, and Joe DeMaestri cut the deficit to three with an RBI single that was aided by an E7 error. Bob Spicer came out in the top of the fifth with one out and no one one, and we went into the seventh inning stretch trailing the Guardians 7-3. Moe Drabowsky came out in the top of the eighth, and he didn’t allow a single baserunner in his two innings, but we still needed to make up four runs in the bottom of the ninth. That wasn’t happening; they shut us down completely and we lost this one in the end by the same 7-3 margin. Arnie Portocarrero has not had an auspicious start to his season, going 0-2 with a 6.10 ERA. Tonight he allowed four hits and six runs (four earned) with six walks and three strikeouts in just 4.1 innings of work. Spicer lasted 2.2 innings with three hits and an earned run, and Drabowsky was stellar -- three strikeouts in two innings, no hits. But though we outhit them 9-7, we weren’t able to get runners around to score, and we were crushed by the two homers Cleveland hit in the first inning -- there was no coming back from that. Joe Astroth hit three times with a run and an RBI, as did Joe DeMaestri. April 26, 1956: Walt Craddock made his first start of the season tonight, going up against Tom Cheney (0-1, 6.00 ERA, 6.0 IP, 4 K’s, 1.67 WHIP). In the bottom of the first, Harry Walker injured himself sliding into second, and had to be replaced by Zeke Bella. We came up empty in the inning, and this turned into a pitcher’s duel early, nobody getting anything through. Craddock pitched surprisingly well, getting us into the seventh inning stretch still with neither team on the board, and with one out in the top of the eighth, a runner on first, Sonny Dixon came in to get us through. In the bottom of the ninth, Vic Power led off with a single, but no one else could move him and this game went into extra innings with no score -- five hits for us, three hits for them in regulation innings. In the bottom of the 10th, with one out, George Wilson came up to the plate and absolutely whalloped a fastball off Ed Roebuck, the flyball exiting the park at center as we walked this game off 1-0! Walt Craddock had a great start, going 7.1 innings with just three hits and a pair of walks, and Sonny Dixon stayed out to win it, pitching 2.2 innings with just a strikeout ... no hits, no baserunners, throwing 31 pitches to do it! We outhit them 6-3 in this epic duel, with Wilson’s homer being our only offense of the night, though Vic Power hit twice. Harry Walker’s injury remains undiagnosed, which is not a great sign. We have four games in three days this weekend in Chicago to start our road trip, with a day off on Monday, and then we’ll play 15 games in 13 days to start the month of May on the road. We’re 5-5 and the White Sox are 3-3, both of us sitting a game and a half out of first. April 27, 1956: First, some good news. Henry Walker bruised his ankle and it was not serious ... he can return to the roster immediately. Juan Pizarro (2-1, 2.78 ERA, 19.1 IP, 15 K’s, 0.83 WHIP) started his fourth game of the season this afternoon, facing Chicago’s Billy Pierce (0-1, 4.00 ERA, 9.0 IP, 7 K’s, 1.00 WHIP). Chicago got on the board in the bottom of the second with a sac-fly by Luis Aparicio, but Catfish Metkovich hit a solo homer to lead off in the top of the third, tying us up at one! Pizarro got through six innings with the score still tied, but we weren’t able to get anything through in the top of the seventh, so he stayed out in the bottom of the inning and got two quick outs, going over 100 pitches for the first time in his career. Moe Drabowsky came in with two outs and no one on, pitching around an error and a single to get us the out we needed without breaking the tie. We left two more runners stranded in scoring position in the top of the ninth, still unable to break the stalemate, so Tom Gorman came out to pitch in the bottom of the inning, getting three quick outs to send us into extras for the second day in a row. With two outs in the top of the 10th inning, Metkovich hit one over the lead of the third baseman and into left field, driving in the go-ahead run! Bobby Shantz came in to protect the lead, but Chicago walked it off with one out, a two-run homer by Minnie Minoso giving the Sox a 3-2 win. Pizarro did well once again, lasting 6.2 innings with four hits, three walks, four strikeouts and just one earned run as his ERA improved to 2.42. The bullpen did well to keep us in this game, but Shantz just had bad luck with that gopher ball over the wall in center. We outhit them 9-6 and did everything we could to win this one except actually win it. Metkovich continues to shine in the leadoff spot, hitting three times and walking once, scoring a run and driving in two more. He’s hitting .359/.469/.564 through ten games with five doubles, a homer and three RBIs, and he already has a +3.4 zone rating in center field. April 28, 1956: Carl Erskine (1-1, 3.00 ERA, 18.0 IP, 8 K’s, 1.67 WHIP) pitched against Chicago’s Connie Johnson (1-0, 1.29 ERA, 14.0 IP, 7 K’s, 1.36 WHIP). In the top of the fifth inning we finally broke through the early stalemate, Jim Finigan driving in a pair with a single into right field to put us up 2-0! Astroth singled to drive in a third run, and we went into the bottom of the inning leading 3-0. Erskine was in great form today, but Chicago got back into the game with a two-run homer by Larry Doby with one out in the bottom of the second, just their second hit of the entire game. We went into the top of the eighth leading by a run and were unable to add any insurance, but Erskine remained at the top of his game, getting us through the rest of the eighth safely as well. Bobby Shantz came out to pitch in the bottom of the ninth, still leading by a run and, eager to put last night behind him, he got a quick out only to then allow a solo homer by Bob Nieman to tie it up ... two blown saves in two nights. He got us through the inning, but this one was headed ... once again .. for extra innings, the third game in a row to have this happen. We retook the lead in the top of the tenth with a two-out RBI triple by Metkovich, and an RBI single by Harry Walker drove in a second run. Bobby Shantz stayed out to pitch in the bottom of the inning and got three quick outs to get us through with the 5-3 victory to keep us at .500 heading into tomorrow’s doubleheader. Carl Erskine gave us eight innings with just three hits, three walks and two earned runs, striking out a pair, while Shantz put in two innings with one hit, one strikeout and one earned run ... though he blew the save, he got the win, so he’s now 1-1 with two saves and a 6.00 ERA through six innings. We outhit the White Sox 15-4, so we’re glad to get out of there with the win. Finigan led the way with three hits, a run and two RBIs, while Walker, Astroth, O’Connell and DeMaestri each hit twice. April 29, 1956: We’ve made a trade in an attempt to add a third legitimate pitcher to our rotation. The Philadelphia Phillies are sending us legendary veteran pitcher Johnny Sain, age 38, and they’re retaining 70 percent of his $57,200 conract, in exchange for Zeke Bella, our rule 5 pickup from back in December. Normally I hate to give up a young player like Bella for a guy as old as Sain, but even at 38 the man has incredible control of his pitches, and that’s something we desperately need if we’re going to avoid falling to the bottom of the league. So after discussions with ownership, we agreed it’s a move that needs to be made. Trigger, pulled. We executed the deal yesterday afternoon and Sain got on a bus west immediately so he could be available for the second game of today’s doubleheader in Chicago. Arnie Portocarrero (0-2, 6.10 ERA, 10.1 IP, 4 K’s, 1.55 WHIP) started for us in the first game of the afternoon, facing Chicago’s Dick Donovan (1-0, 0.00 ERA, 8.2 IP, 1 K, 1.04 WHIP). Portocarrero is an extremely hard worker, but the 24-year-old has been frequently outmatched when he faces the best pitchers in the league ... but he did well for us early, keeping us in a deadlocked battle with the White Sox. He just didn’t benefit from the fact that our bats couldn’t get anyone around to score. He got into a groove and we went into the top of the eighth still knotted up with no score, and pitching efficiently he was able to make it through the eighth inning as well. Bob Boyd hit a single in the bottom of the ninth and we brought out Gorman, no outs, to try and get this one into extras. He walked Minnie Minoso but got Nieman to pop out to Astroth for the second out, and Larry Doby popped out to left. Four games in a row, all going into extra innings ... bring it on! Dick Kryhoski led off in the top of the 11th by pinch-hitting for Gorman, and he picked up a double to give us a real chance! Catfish Metkovich hit one down the left line for a groundout to first, but advanced Kryhoski to within 90 feet of home. Harry Walker hit what should have been a sac-fly to deep right, but for some reason Kryhoski held his base ... he needs to work on his baserunning instincts. But Vic Power singled into left and DID finally drive him home, and we took a 1-0 lead into the bottom of the inning! Moe Drabowsky came out to pitch ... Nellie Fox hit a single into right, but Minnie Minoso struck out swinging. Bob Nieman hit a single into center that drove Fox into third, and a sac-fly into center gave us two outs, but drove in the tying run, so this game was headed for more innings. Sonny Dixon came out to pitch in the bottom of the 12th, still tied up 1-1, getting the outs we needed to keep the game going, even if maybe we’d be better off not doing so with a whole new game still waiting to be played today. Pete Suder pinch-hit for Dixon to lead off the top of the 13th, singling into right to take first, and Metkovich grounded out to first, driving him into scoring position. Vic Power hit an RBI single to give us the lead, and Al Gettel came out to pitch with Shantz warming up in the pen. Gettel got two quick outs and then Nieman hit a single into right, taking first ... but Larry Doby flew out to left and we won it 2-1 in the 13th inning! Arnie Portocarrero gave us eight innings with just three hits, a walk and a pair of strikeouts, throwing 83 pitches in his best start of the season. Drabowsky blew his first save of his career in the 11th inning, but only allowed a hit, a walk, a strikeout and the single earned run, giving him a 2.16 ERA through 8.1 innings of work, so he’s doing fine as a rookie. Sonny Dixon took the win, improving to 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA, allowing just one hit, and Al Gettel got the save, allowing one hit and bringing his ERA down to 3.00 through six innings. After three and a half hours and 13 innings of baseball, we came back out ready to see if we could keep it going in a second game, with Johnny Sain ready to make his debut for us. He played one game earlier in the season for Philly, going 0-0 with a 2.57 ERA in seven innings, striking out four for a 1.29 WHIP. Chicago brought out Bob Rush (0-0, 5.79 ERA, 4.2 IP, 4 K’s, 1.93 WHIP), so matchup-wise it at least looks good for us to be able to stay in this one and compete to win the series. In the bottom of the fourth Sain pitched around a leadoff triple by Bob Nieman to keep the game scoreless ... he’s still got it! But we were stuck in another pitching duel, exactly what we didn’t need. Chicago took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the sixth, when Nieman (who hit a single with two outs) took second on an E1 pick-off error and then came around to score off an RBI single by Doby. Bob Wilson had to come out of the game with a finger blister, and Catfish Metkovich came in to replace him in center field. That’s when Sain gave up a two-run homer to Earl Battey, and this one started to get away from us. Sain got us out of the inning, but we trailed 3-0 heading into the top of the seventh. Al Gettel came out to pitch in the bottom of the seventh and he got us through the eighth, coming up to hit in the top of the ninth trailing by three runs. There was no rally this time and we lost 3-0, getting out of Chicago with a split series and a 7-7 record. Johnny Sain took the loss, falling to 0-1 with a 3.46 ERA, lasting six innings with five hits, a walk, two strikeouts and three earned runs. Gettel then handled the remainder, allowing a hit and a walk while improving his ERA to 2.25 through eight innings work. Each team hit six times, ours being led by O’Connell who hit three times, George Wilson hitting twice -- but neither got anywhere. We’ve got the day off for travel, and will start the month of May at Fenway ... this coming week we have two games against the Red Sox (6-7), three against the Yankees (8-4) and then a doubleheader on Sunday against the Senators (6-8) in Washington to start a three-game series. We then play three against Baltimore (7-8) and a four-game weekend series against Cleveland (6-6) the following week before we finally get to go back home to Kansas City.It’s a tough stretch, but we’ve handled ourselves well despite being frequently overmatched. I think we can do well if we stay focused on our goals. Right now the Yankees are the only team in the AL with a winning record, and we’re only two games out of first despite sitting in fifth place. __________________ "Campus Chronicles" -- The Indiana Hoosiers in a New College World (An OOTP 27 Dynasty) Online Leagues Modern Baseball (Chicago White Sox) Championship Baseball League (Winnipeg Goldeye) WPORBL 55 (Chicago Cubs) WPORBL 74 (Oakland A's) WPORBL 94 (Montreal Expos) WPOBL (Cincinnati Reds)

09-02-2024, 04:03 PM	#44
jksander All Star Starter Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Indianapolis IN Posts: 1,908	May 1, 1956: Juan Pizarro (2-1, 2.42 ERA, 26.0 IP, 19 K’s, 0.88 WHIP) has been red hot, and he’s getting his first Fenway Park experience today against Boston’s Ike Delock (1-0, 2.02 ERA, 13.1 IP, 6 K’s, 1.27 WHIP). He’s had quality starts in each of his first four games in the majors. The big question would be whether he’d get any run support or not. In the bottom of the first Jackie Jenson hit a solo homer over the Green Monster to put the Sox up 1-0, but Pizarro wound up getting our first hit of the game, beating out an infield blooper to take first with two outs in the top of the third -- too bad we couldn’t string more together. Ted Williams hit a home run out of right in the bottom of the fourth to give Boston a 2-0 lead, but Pizarro got out of a bases loaded jam to get out without the game getting too far out of hand. Problem was, our bats just weren’t hacking it ... which put a lot of pressure on the young hurler’s shoulders. Boston added on with an RBI single by Willie Jones in the bottom of the fifth, and we brought Bob Spicer out with the score 3-0 in the bottom of the sixth. It did not go well from there. Spicer got shellacked, giving up five runs in the sixth, and Ditmar gave up a pair in the eighth. We got a mercy run to avoid the shutout in the top of the ninth but lost this one badly 10-1. Pizarro took the loss and fell to 2-2 with a 2.90 ERA, allowing seven hits and three earned runs with a walk and three strikeouts, but it was Spicer who did the most damage -- he lasted one inning and allowed five earned runs off five hits and three walks, with one strikeout, and his ERA exploded to 8.49. Ditmar’s improved slightly to 12.00, with three hits, three walks and two earned runs in two innings. Spicer’s rookie season last year may have truly been a fluke, he’s shown nothing of his spark from last year -- and Ditmar’s not been much better. But we got outhit 15-3, and no pitchers are going to look good against that kind of beating. Astroth batted in our only run, Pafko scoring it after being hit by a pitch. May 2, 1956: Carl Erskine (1-1, 2.77 ERA, 26.0 IP, 10 K’s, 1.38 WHIP) pitched against Boston’s Frank Baumann (1-1, 6.60 ERA, 15.0 IP, 5 K’s, 1.53 WHIP). In the bottom of the third they took the lead 1-0 off a homer by Jenson, which, like the one yesterday, went clear over the Monster in left. Williams went yard immediately thereafter to make it 2-0, and heading into the fourth inning you had to wonder if that might be all they’d need, the way we (haven’t) been hitting so far this year. They added on in the bottom of the fourth with ANOTHER homer over the Monster, this time a two-run blast by leadoff man Jim Piersall, and it became clear that Erskine simply didn’t have the right stuff for today’s game. He had two outs when Ted Williams doubled in another run, and though he got the final out to get us into the fifth, we were now in a 5-0 hole. Tom Gorman replaced him to start the bottom of the fifth, still trailing by five, and in the bottom of the seventh he gave up a pair to extend the lead for Boston. Al Gettel came out in the eighth to finish the game for us, giving up three more as we got shelled again 10-0. We keep showing signs of improvement and then a two-game series like this come around to slap us back into reality ... and then we get three games in New York. Fun times. Erskine fell to 1-2 with a brutal four-inning effort, allowing nine hits and five earned runs with a walk and two strikeouts. Gorman lasted three innings with a hit, a walk, two strikeouts and a pair of earned runs, giving him a 3.46 ERA, while Gettel allowed four hits and three earned uns with a strikeout in his inning, blowing his ERA up to 5.00. We were outhit 14-1, Metkovich the only baserunner we had all day, as Baumann missed out on a perfect game by the skin of his teeth ... one hit and eight strikeouts for him in his complete game. May 3, 1956: We’ve sent Spicer back down to AAA and called up Bill Harrington, who has a 4-1 record and 1.62 ERA with two saves in 16.2 AAA innings this season. We’ve also put in a waiver claim on Vic Raschi, of the Brooklyn Dodgers ... the 37-year old, like Sain, has great movement and control, and he has the endurance to be a good back-end starter even at his age. He played two games this year in long relief for the Dodgers and has a 4.50 ERA through eight innings with a 1.38 WHIP, though he never got a decision. If no one else claimed him he should join us tomorrow. Today against the Yankees in our first game facing them this season, Johnny Sain (0-1, 3.46 ERA, 13.0 IP, 6 K’s, 1.15 WHIP) started against Don Larsen (1-1, 7.15 ERA, 11.1 IP, 6 K’s, 1.76 WHIP). New York took the lead in the bottom of the first off a sac-fly by Mantle, but Finigan answered with a lead-off solo homer in the top of the second, a 481-foot bomb out of center, to tie it back up. That was his first homer of the year! Woodie Held hit a two-run blast out of center for the Yankees in the bottom of the third to put them back up 3-1, and Andy Carey hit a two-run blast over the short porch in right to make it a 5-1 game before Sain could get us out of that third inning. Pafko hit a solo homer for us into right to cut the lead to three runs, and Danny O’Connell pulled one to right field as well, driving in two more, sending us into the bottom of the fourth trailing just by a 5-4 margin and still in this one. We brought Art Ditmar out to pitch with one out and a man on, with McDougald about to bat for the third time, and he got him to ground into a fielder’s choice, with Mantle striking out swinging to get us into the fifth. New York got a run back in the bottom of the fifth thanks to an RBI single by Carey, and we brought Bill Harrington out to pitch with two outs and men on first and second, the Yankees adding on a run before we got the third out, giving them a 7-4 lead again with us coming up to hit in the sixth. Moe Drabowsky came out to pitch in the bottom of the seventh, still trailing by three, and he got us into the top of the ninth without any further scoring explosions. Astroth then led off with a triple, and Danny O’Connell batted him in with ANOTHER triple, cutting the lead to two and giving us our first real momentum since the middle innings! O’Connell scored on a wild pitch to cut the Yankees’ lead to a single run, and with one out Kryhoski (pinch-hitting for Drabowsky) beat out an infield squib to take first. But that was all the gas we had left, and the Yankees got out of here with a 6-5 win despite the attempted rally. Johnny Sain struggled today, allowing eight hits and five earned runs in 3.1 innings, no walks, no strikeouts. But if Ditmar hadn’t given up two earned runs off two hits in his 1.1 innings, we would have still had a chance. Harrington went 1.1 innings with just one hit, and Drabowsky had two innings without a single baserunner, giving him a 1.74 ERA through seven appearances and 10.1 innings. New York outhit us 11-9 ... we were led by Danny O’Connell, who hit twice with two runs and three RBIs, whle Finigan added two hits, two runs and an RBI. Our claim of Vic Raschi went through, and Ditmar’s going back down to AAA to make room for him. Walt Craddock is heading into the bullpen, and Raschi will become our number five starter behind Portocarrero. May 4, 1956: Juan Pizarro (2-2, 2.90 ERA, 31.0 IP, 22 K’s, 1.00 WHIP) started today, facing Vinegar Bend Mizell (3-0, 0.35 ERA, 26.0 IP, 13 K’s, 1.50 WHIP) who has only given up two runs all year, though he has allowed six or more hits in every game while walking 19 batters, so he’s shown at least a tiny bit of weakness ... or that’s what I told myself before the game to give us a sliver of hope. In the top of the second inning, Danny O’Connell hit a one-out triple, but we weren’t able to bring him in to score. Pizarro hit a rough patch in the bottom of the fourth, walking Berra and Skowron back to back to load the bases, bringing up Andy Carey with just one out. Carey popped out to center, driving in a run, but Elston Howard grounded into a fielder’s choice and we went into the top of the fifth just trailing by a run. The Yankees added on with an RBI single by Hank Bauer in the bottom of the fifth, and we brought Pete Suder in to pinch-hit for Pizarro in the top of the sixth ... he singled into center to take his base, and Catfish Metkovich hit into center as well, driving Suder over to third without an out. Vic Power hit a grounder through the gap to drive in a run, and Pafko hit an RBI double to tie it up, sending us into the bottom of the inning knotted up 2-2 with Tom Gorman coming out to pitch. He got through the sixth and had two outs in the seventh when Yogi Berra hit a bases-loaded single to drive in two. Walt Craddock came out to pitch in the bottom of the eighth, trailing by two, and Andy Carey hit a homer to ice it for the Yankees ... we went into the top of the ninth trailing by three and Mizell, though he did walk us twice, closed out the game without any real threat as they beat us 5-2. Mizell allowed six hits and walked us three times, but he only gave up two earned runs ... once we blew the tie in the seventh any real hope was over, there was no way he was giving up that many runs. Pizarro did his best, allowing just four hits and two earned runs through five innings with three walks and three strikeouts, but it was Gorman who wound up with the loss ... one hit, three walks and two earned runs through two innings giving him an 0-1 record and a 4.20 ERA through 15 innings. We hit six times as well, led by Vic Power with two hits and an RBI, while Metkovich added a hit, a walk and a run scored. We head into tomorrow’s game on a five-game skid since our last win, which came in our fourth overtime game in a row back on April 29. We’re now in last place in the league, tied with Washington at 7-11. The Yankees, meanwhile, now have an 11-5 record and a game and a half lead on the Boston Red Sox for the AL pennant lead. May 5, 1956: Carl Erskine (1-2, 3.90 ERA, 30.0 IP, 12 K’s, 1.53 WHIP) pitched our final game against the Yankees of this series, facing Gene Conley (0-1, 2.70 ERA, 16.2 IP, 9 K’s, 1.02 WHIP). Vic Power hit a two-run blast out of left to put us up 2-0 in the top of the first, and Erskine worked his ass off trying to hold it the rest of the way. Bob Cerv hit an RBI triple to get the Yankees on the board in the bottom of the seventh, but Erskine got out of it with Cerv stranded on third, our one-run lead still safe, and Henry Walker hit an RBI single with two outs in the top of the eighth to get us the run back. Moe Drabowsky came out to pitch in the bottom of the eighth, and with one out the Yankees got back within a run with an RBI single by Enos Slaughter, and the tying run came in with an RBI single by Yogi Berra. With the bullpen warming up, Drabowsky’s rough stretch continued with an RBI single by Elston Howard, and just like that we were in a one-run hole. Sonny Dixon came in with one out and men on first and second, and he got us out of the inning without further damage, but now we HAD to find a way to score in the top of the ninth or it was all over. With two outs, Astroth and O’Connell walked, and we brought Pete Suder in to pinch-hit for DeMaestri ... he got a good read on the ball, but his flyball into left was caught easily and we lost yet another close game 4-3. Drabowsky blew the save, his second of the year, and took the loss, his first, allowing five hits and three runs against just one out ... his first bad outing, and it blows his ERA up to 4.22. Dixon stayed perfect by getting the final two outs, but we were outhit 11-6, a close game destroyed by one rough inning. Harry Walker led the way with three hits, a run and an RBI, while Power’s homer gave us the two-run lead we had hoped to hold onto. We’ll take our six-loss streak onward to Washington, where we’ve got a doubleheader against the 7-12 Senators ... by the end of the three-game series over the next two days, we’ll know for sure who the worst team is, for now, in the AL. May 6, 1956: Arnie Portocarrero (0-2, 3.44 ERA, 18.1 IP, 6 K’s, 1.09 WHIP) pitched out first game of the doubleheader, facing off against Washington’s Bill Kennedy (0-1, 7.88 ERA, 14.0 IP, 13 K’s, 1.69 WHIP). Washington drew first blood, scoring off an RBI single by Mickey Vernon to take the lead in the bottom of the third. We tied it up with an RBI double by Joe Astroth in the top of the fourth, but in the bottom of the inning they got it back with a single by Jim Busby to go up 2-1 heading into the fifth. Jim Finigan hit an RBI double to tie it up in the top of the sixth, no outs, and with two outs Pete Suder came in to pinch hit for Portocarrero, getting a great shot into center that drove in the go-ahead run! Catfish Metkovich hit an RBI single to add to the lead, and Tom Gorman came out to pitch in the bottom of the inning with a 4-2 lead to protect. Gorman loaded the bases but got out of the inning with no runs against us, and he got us through the seventh as well, though an RBI triple by Roy Sievers cut our lead down to one. No matter ... he got us through the eighth as well, holding the lead as we came up to hit in the top of the ninth with Shantz warming up in the bullpen. Henry Walker led off with an infield single, but we weren’t able to hit any insurance runs so it was up to Shantz to come in and finish the game off. But he completely choked ... there’s no way around it ... Gorman had thrown 45 pitches through three innings to hold the lead, and it took four batters for Shantz to s--- the win away ... Pete Runnels hit a single, an error allowed Mickey Vernon to take first and push Runnels to second, Roy Sievers hit a run-scoring double, and then Jim Lemon kicked us in the balls with a three-run homer. We lost this one 7-4 and fell to 7-13 on the season. It hasn’t been a good start to the season for Bobby Shantz ... this was his third blown save, and he’s now 1-2 with a 10.50 ERA. Six games and six innings is a small sample size, for sure, but he’s not looking anything like the guy who just last season saved 32 games with a 2.43 ERA. It’s a shame, because we’d played well leading up to his disasterous ninth inning, with Portocarrero lasting five innings with four hits, three walks, two strikeouts and two earned runs, and Gorman had a three-inning hold with just three hits, two walks and an earned run. We also outhit Washington 11-10, led by Andy Pafko with three hits and two runs scored, while Walker added a pair of hits and a walk, though he didn’t manage to score. The second game of the doubleheader was postponed due to a line of thunderstorms that stalled and dumped a ton of rain on our nation’s capital. So we’ll end up playing two tomorrow instead. That will be the start of another long week -- the doubleheader, followed by three against Baltimore (10-12) and four in three days against the Guardians (8-10). __________________ "Campus Chronicles" -- The Indiana Hoosiers in a New College World (An OOTP 27 Dynasty) Online Leagues Modern Baseball (Chicago White Sox) Championship Baseball League (Winnipeg Goldeye) WPORBL 55 (Chicago Cubs) WPORBL 74 (Oakland A's) WPORBL 94 (Montreal Expos) WPOBL (Cincinnati Reds)

09-03-2024, 04:41 PM	#45
jksander All Star Starter Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Indianapolis IN Posts: 1,908	May 7, 1956: Vic Raschi (0-0, 4.50 ERA, 8.0 IP, 5 K’s, 1.38 WHIP) made his first start for us since the waiver wire pickup, going up against Camilo Pascual (1-3, 3.86 ERA, 30.1 IP, 22 K’s, 1.42 WHIP) in the day’s first game. We took the lead in the top of the first with an RBI triple by Finigan that drove in a pair, and in the top of the third Finigan hit into a fielder’s choice that allowed a third run to score. In the top of the fifth, Astroth hit an RBI single to extend the lead to four runs, and in the top of the sixth Metkovich scored off an RBI double by Vic Power as this one looked like it might turn into a total rout. A groundout by Pafko in the top of the eighth added another run to the lead, and with the bases loaded against us in the bottom of the inning a 5-2-3 double play got Raschi out of his only real jam of the afternoon to hold the shutout. He stayed out for the final frame and we were able to get out of game one with a surprising 6-0 win! Raschi, right out of the gate, proved to be a Godsend from the mound ... though he allowed 10 hits, he only walked a pair, striking out one and completing the shutout. We outhit the Senators 12-10, led by Vic Power with four hits, two runs and an RBI, and by Metkovich, who hit twice and walked once, scoring three times. Johnny Sain (0-2, 5.51 ERA, 16.1 IP, 6 K’s, 1.41 WHIP) pitched the second half of the doubleheader, facing Chuck Stubbs (0-3, 5.66 ERA, 20.2 IP, 12 K’s, 2.23 WHIP). The Senators decided to live dangerously, letting us load the bases in the top of the first and the second ... and it was with two outs in the top of the second that we took the lead, Vic Power batting in two with a single, trailing the runners to take second. Finigan walked the bases loaded again, but we had to settle for a 2-0 lead as O’Connell popped out to third. We’re gonna wish we’d run the score up, because in the bottom of the inning Sain got into his own batch of trouble, Bruce Edwards batting in a run with no outs, pushing Jim Lemon over to third, and the tying run came in off a wild pitch. They took the lead with a single by Carlos Paula. With just 26 pitches thrown, Sain was in absolute freefall ... with runners on the corners and still no outs, we had to start warming Walt Craddock, as we hoped Sain would settle down and we wouldn’t have to pull him so quickly. It didn’t happen ... in the amount of time it took to warm up Craddock’s arm, Sain had time to get the rest of his outs, but the Senators had taken a 6-2 lead in the process. Craddock took over in the bottom of the third, and in the top of the sixth we got our mojo back ... Bill Wilson hit a two-run homer and, if you can believe it, Craddock hit a solo homer of his own ... just like that we were back within a run! He struck out three batters around a single by Jose Valdivielso to get through the bottom of the sixth, and Moe Drabowsky came in to relieve him after the stretch. He got us into the top of the ninth still trailing by a run, and Harry Walker hit a towering homer over the giant wall in right field to tie it up as the leadoff hitter! Drabowsky stayed out for the bottom of the inning and, striking out Pete Runnels, got us into extra innings for our sixth time this season still knotted up 6-6! With two outs and a runner on first, Pete Suder pinch-hit for Drabowsky in the top of the 10th, hitting a line drive to right that advanced the runner, George Wilson, into scoring position, but we couldn’t get him in to score. Al Gettel came in to pitch in the bottom of the inning ... and though he loaded the bases, we were able to get out of it without a run scoring! Sonny Dixon came out to pitch in the bottom of the 11th, and Bill Harrington replaced him in the bottom of the 13th, and still we played on, nobody able to break the tie! Finally, with two outs in the top of the 15th inning, Catfish Metkovich hit one HARD, and it went over the wall in center as a two-run homer, giving us the lead at long last! Bobby Shantz came out to pitch in the bottom of the inning and he pitched around a single by Ken Aspromonte to get the outs we needed to win this one 8-6! Johnny Sain had a rough start, going just two innings with eight hits and six earned runs, no walks and no strikes. But our bullpen then came out and gave us 13 innings with five hits, six walks, six strikeouts and NO EARNED RUNS, to get us out of there with a win! Craddock went four innings and Drabowsky went three, but it was Harrington (our sixth pitcher of the night) who got the win, improving to 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA in just his second appearance of the season. Shantz then saved his third game, though his ERA remains at 9.00 due to his last few outings. We outhit the Senators 14-13, led by Metkovich with a hit, two walks and the game-winning homer. Walker had two hits, a run and an RBI, and George Wilson added two hits, a walk and two runs on the ground. The win gives us a one-game lead on the Senators in the standings, so we’re no longer in last place ... more importantly, we’re now on a two-game winning streak, and we’re just half a game back of Baltimore (10-13), the team we have three games up against next. May 8, 1956: Juan Pizarro (2-2, 3.00 ERA, 36.0 IP, 25 K’s, 1.06 WHIP) will start our first game against Baltimore, facing Ruben Gomez (1-2, 4.55 ERA, 29.2 IP, 8 K’s, 1.38 WHIP). Baltimore took the lead in the bottom of the first with a two-out RBI single by Vern Stephens, which was unfortunate because our batters were getting absolutely nothing to hit off Gomez. Pizarro pitched as well as ever, but without even the most meager run support there’s little a pitcher can do. He got us through the sixth inning still trailing by the one run, but Gomez was unhittable ... seven innings gave us two walks and no hits, so Pizarro stayed out after the stretch and got us through one more without a baserunner. Finally in the top of the eight we got our first hit, a single by Astroth into right field, but Pete Suder hit into a double play to squelch our shot. Pizarro got through the eighth inning without any further scoring, and we came up in the ninth owing him our best shot ... Danny O’Connell came in to pinch hit for him, but he hit to the shortstop for an easy out at first. But Catfish Metkovich got a shot into right and managed to turn into a double ... our first runner in scoring position all night! Jim Finigan came in to pinch hit for DeMaestri, grounding out to first but pushing Metkovich to within 90 feet of the promised land. But Vic Power popped out to center, and we took a 1-0 loss, our offense completely failing on every level. Pizarro pitched his first complete game, going eight innings with just five hits, a walk, four strikeouts and an earned run. But it was a duel all night and we got outhit 5-2, so even though all we needed was a single run, that was too much to ask. Metkovich tried ... he had a hit and a walk, but in the end Pizarro had to take the “L” and fell to 2-3 with a stellar 2.66 ERA. May 9, 1956: We have hired a new hitting coach, Nick Williams, a temperamental fellow who I’m hoping can help shake things up and spur our offense to actually put up some runs. He’s got good relationships with Catfish Metkovich, Andy Pafko, Joe DeMaestri, Danny O’Connell and Joe Astroth in particular, and he has 18 years’ experience, so we’re certainly hopeful. For today’s game against Baltimore we started Carl Erskine (1-2, 3.41 ERA, 37.0 IP, 15 K’s, 1.46 WHIP) against Jim McDonald (3-1, 2.03 ERA, 31.0 IP, 15 K’s, 1.16 WHIP). The Orioles took the lead in the bottom of the second with a Wayne Causey RBI single, but this time around we were getting hits but not when anyone was in scoring position. Bob Hale batted in a run with a single to put them up 2-0 in the bottom of the third, but we finally got on the board in the top of the sixth with an RBI single by Pafko, and George Wilson hit a triple that drove in two more to push us into the lead! In the bottom of the sixth they tied it up with a solo homer by Hoot Evers, and with one out and a man on second in the bottom of the seventh we brought out Sonny Dixon, who managed to get us out of the inning despite loading the bases, still tied 3-3. Catfish Metkovich came in to replace Bill Wilson at center field, hitting a line drive into left for a single in the leadoff spot, but Joe Astroth, pinch-hitting for Dixon, hit into a fielder’s choice, taking first on an attempted bunt. Harry Walker hit an infield single to drive Astroth into scoring position, but neither O’Connell or Power could get him home. Moe Drabowsky came out to pitch in the bottom of the ninth, getting a strikeout but then allowing back to back doubles as the Orioles walked it off and beat us 4-3. Erskine lasted 6.1 innings with seven hits, a walk, a strikeout and three earned runs, and Dixon kept his ERA perfect with two innings and just two hits and a walk. But Drabowsky fell to 0-2 and his ERA dropped to 3.86, allowing two hits and the earned run. We matched them 11-11 on hits, led by George Wilson with three hits and two RBIs, while Pafko added two hits, a run and an RBI. The loss knocks us down to 9-15 and into last place in the AL, and at this point I’m just hoping our owner is willing to give me the time to continue this build. May 10, 1956: Arnie Portocarrero (0-2, 3.47 ERA, 23.1 IP, 8 K’s, 1.16 WHIP) started against Bob Kuzava (0-3, 7.18 ERA, 31.1 IP, 18 K’s, 1.88 WHIP). This time we got out to a quick start, with Harry Walker batting Catfish Metkovich in with an RBI single in the top of the first, after which we loaded the bases, one out. Joe Astroth hit one up the gap into center field, driving in a pair, and we went into the bottom of the inning leading by a 3-0 margin. Portocarrero led off with a single in the top of the second, but we weren’t able to add on. Baltimore got on the board in the bottom of the third with an RBI single by Chuck Diering, and a single by Vern Stephens got them a second run, sending us into the top of the fourth now leading just 3-2. In the bottom of the fifth they tied it up with a single by Vern Stephens, who injured himself sliding into second as a trailing runner ... he’s out of the game. His pinch-runner got greedy off a hit into right by Charlie Maxwell and was tagged out at home to get us out of the inning, but yet again we needed our offense to step up, the three-run lead completely evaporated. They took the lead in the bottom of the sixth off a triple by Bob Kennedy, and though Portocarrero got us through the rest of the inning, his night was over. We loaded the bases in the top of the seventh with two outs, and Pete Suder, pinch-hitting for Portocarrero, got a hit into left that he turned into a magnificent double, scoring three runs and at least giving Arnie a shot at a win. Al Gettel came out to pitch in the bottom of the inning, and he had two outs around a base hit, but two errors in a row led to a run scoring ... 10 pitches and we had two runners in scoring position. Tom Gorman came out to handle the high leverage situation, and instead of getting out number three, a line drive went into left and Johnny Pesky had batted in the tying run. We wee spared by the fact that the runner on second got tagged out at home plate, but again we were knotted at 6-6, Gorman tagged with the blown save. Gorman got two outs in the bottom of the eighth and then gave up a huge homer to Charley Lau to put Baltimore up by a run. We went down quietly, three up, three down in the top of the ninth as we lost yet another game that we should have won, 7-6. Portocarrero took it hard ... he gave us six innings with 10 hits, a walk and four strikeouts, giving up four earned runs but still had a chance to get out of here with a win. Instead, Gettel held it with two outs and then Gorman went 1.1 innings and two hits, giving up the one earned run for the blown save and the loss ... he’s now 0-2 with a 4.19 ERA through 19.1 innings. We were outhit 12-10, led by Suder (who pinch hit for a hit and three RBIs) and by Metkovich who had two hits and a run scored. We’ll take our 9-16 record and three-game losing streak into Cleveland (11-11) for four games in three days this weekend. That should be fun! May 11, 1956: Vic Raschi (1-0, 2.12 ERA, 17.0 IP, 6 K’s, 1.35 WHIP) pitched against Cleveland’s Don Mossi (2-1, 2.73 ERA, 26.1 IP, 12 K’s, 1.52 WHIP). George Wilson hit a homer out of left in the top of the third to put us up 1-0, his second homer this season. Joe Finigan loaded the bases for us with a single, no outs in the top of the fourth, and Danny O’Connell took advantage, delivering a two-run double to extend our lead, and Kryhoski hit a three-run homer out of left to run it up ... good, we need it! So Vic Raschi had a six-run lead when he came out to pitch in the bottom of the fourth ... would that be enough? Raschi got us through the seventh unblemished, but he stayed out for one batter too many, giving up a solo homer to Bobby Avila to blow the shutout. Walt Craddock came out with no outs and no one on, and with two outs Stan Lopata hit an RBI single into right, scoring a second run ... with loaded bases, he managed to get us out of the inning with a pop-out to left by Sam Dente, still leading 6-2. Craddock gave up back to back hits in the bottom of the ninth to put runners on the corners, no outs, so Moe Drabowsky had to come out and try to shut this down. Al Smith popped out to left and George Crowe held at third. Al Rosen struck out swinging, that’s out number two! Roger Maris walked to load the bases, and then Gordy Coleman got a line drive into right to drive in their third run, still two outs. But Stan Lopata popped out harmlessly to first and we got out of there with a hard-fought 6-3 victory. Vic Raschi improved his record to 2-0 with a 1.88 ERA, lasting seven innings with three hits, four walks, four strikeouts and one earned run. He then had to watch and pray we wouldn’t piss the lead away ... Craddock allowed four hits with two walks and a strikeout to go with two earned runs in his inning, but Drabowsky saved the game, his first of the year, with just a hit and a walk .. a really solid effort for the rookie reliever. We matched them 8-8 for hits, led by Finigan who hit three times and scored a run, while Dick Kryhoski added two hits, a run and three RBIs and George Wilson hit twice with a run and an RBI. May 12, 1956: Juan Pizarro (2-3, 2.66 ERA, 44.0 IP, 29 K’s, 1.00 WHIP) got the start today against Cleveland’s young phenom Herb Score (3-1, 4.63 ERA, 35.0 IP, 34 K’s, 1.57 WHIP). Cleveland blew him up in the bottom of the third thanks to a three-run homer by Stan Lopata, and for the first time all year he didn’t make it out of the fifth inning. Trailing 5-0, Bill Harrington came in to pitch with one out and a man on first, and he stayed out the remainder of the game without surrendering a run. Too bad our boys never got on the board as we lost by the same 5-0 margin, despite only being outhit 5-4. Pizarro fell to 2-4 with a 3.35 ERA, lasting 4.1 innings with four hits, five walks, two strikeouts and five earned runs. Harrington then held his own for 3.2 innings and had a walk, two strikeouts and not a single hit against him, keeping his ERA at zero through seven innings this season. Seven of our players made it on base, but nobody did it twice and we only had two players in scoring postion the entire game. May 13, 1956: Time for a doubleheader ... Carl Erskine (1-2, 3.53 ERA, 43.1 IP, 16 K’s, 1.43 WHIP) pitched in game one against Cleveland’s Tom Cheney (1-1, 4.35 ERA, 20.2 IP, 21 K’s, 1.31 WHIP). We took the lead in the top of the second with an RBI double by Harry Walker which drove in a pair, but Cleveland answered quickly in the bottom of the inning with an RBI double by Allan Meyer that scored two to tie it up. They took the lead in the bottom of the fifth as George Crowe walked in the go-ahead run, they added another pair in the bottom of the sixth, and we never recovered. Cleveland took the first game with relative ease, winning 6-4. Erskine fell to 1-3 with a 3.83 ERA, lasting six innings with seven hits, eight walks, two strikeouts and five runs (four earned). Tom Gorman came out for the rest, lasting two innings with two hits, a walk, a strikeout and an earned run, and we lost despite outhitting our opponent 11-9. Harry Walker led the way with two hits, a run and two RBIs, while Joe DeMaestri added two hits, a walk and a run. Unfortunately, Harry Walker suffered a hamstring injury, and will have to miss at least the next four weeks of action. We’ve added him to the 15-day IL and have called up 23-year-old AAA right fielder Thomas Paddock who will take over in right field while he’s recovering. Johnny Sain (0-2, 7.85 ERA, 18.1 IP, 6 K’s, 1.69 WHIP) started game two, facing Early Wynn (2-1, 3.69 ERA, 31.2 IP, 12 K’s, 1.23 WHIP). Andy Pafko hit a single that, thanks to an E8 throwing error, allowed Danny O’Connell to score and give us a 1-0 lead in the top of the first, but a two-run homer by Rocky Colavito put the Guardians in the lead in the bottom of the inning. They added a run in the bottom of the sixth thanks to an RBI single by Harry Simpson, and Sonny Dixon came out to pitch with two outs and men on the corners, another run scoring before we could get out of the inning. We tried to make a comeback, but despite a sac-fly by Finigan which scored a run in the eighth, and a solo homer by Thomas Paddock in the top of the ninth, we came up short and lost this one 4-3. Johnny Sain fell to 0-3 with a 7.50 ERA, allowing four hits, four walks, four strikeouts and four earned runs in his 5.2 innings, while Sonny Dixon held tough through 2.1 innings to still give us a fighting chance -- he allowed four hits and nothing else, his ERA remaining at zero through 10.1 innings. Again we outhit them 9-8, and yet we couldn’t make up the ground we lost early on. Pafko led the way with two hits and an RBI, while Paddock had two hits, a run and an RBI thanks to his homer in his major-league debut. We’re off tomorrow and then return to Kansas City for a stretch of nine games, no doubleheaders involved. We’ll face Baltimore (14-16) for two, Boston (14-12) for three, New York (18-9) for two and Washington (12-16) for two before hitting the road for a three-game set in Detroit (14-12). Already we’re nine games under .500, and though we’ve played a ton on the road, that’s not an excuse ... we’re just not a very well balanced team yet, and our starting pitching is a real liability. We’re leading the AL in extra base hits, and we’re second in the league in hits, but we’re not stringing them together, and our pitchers are giving up so many runs we just can’t keep up. At least our defensive efficiency remains solid, or we’d be in much worse position than we are. Attached Images __________________ "Campus Chronicles" -- The Indiana Hoosiers in a New College World (An OOTP 27 Dynasty) Online Leagues Modern Baseball (Chicago White Sox) Championship Baseball League (Winnipeg Goldeye) WPORBL 55 (Chicago Cubs) WPORBL 74 (Oakland A's) WPORBL 94 (Montreal Expos) WPOBL (Cincinnati Reds)

09-03-2024, 06:54 PM	#46
jksander All Star Starter Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Indianapolis IN Posts: 1,908	May 15, 1956: We’ve played 22 of our first 29 games on the road, and will play 13 of our next 16 at home. Tonight Vic Raschi (2-0, 1.88 ERA, 24.0 IP, 10 K’s, 1.25 WHIP) pitched against Jim McDonald (3-1, 1.69 ERA, 37.1 IP, 18 K’s, 1.26 WHIP). Baltimore took a lead with an RBI double by Chuck Dierling and added an RBI single by Bob Hale that made it 2-0 after half an inning. We got on the board in the bottom of the third, thanks to an O’Connell RBI single, but we had to bring Walt Craddock out to pitch in the top of the fifth with no outs and men on first and second. He got one out and then Bob Hale added on with a two-run double, and by the time we got out of the top of the fifth we were in a 6-1 hole. Joe DeMaestri hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the seventh, and with two outs in the top of the eighth a 25-minute rain delay led to Tom Gorman coming in to pitch for the final out. In the bottom of the eighth, Gorman hit an RBI single that scored a pair of runs to get us back within one, and Catfish Metkovich hit a single that drove in two more to put us in the lead! Gorman got three quick outs in the top of the ninth and we escaped with a come-from-behind 7-6 win! Raschi allowed eight hits with a walk and four strikeouts, giving up four earned runs in four innings of work. And though Craddock gave up two more earned runs off three hits in his rough fifth inning, Gettel got through 2.2 innings with no hits and three strikeouts, and Gorman got the win, with just a hit and a strikeout, improving his record to 1-2 with a 3.97 ERA. Each team had 12 hits, ours led by DeMaestri with three hits, two runs and two RBIs, and by Joe Astroth who had three hits and scored two runs. May 16, 1956: Juan Pizarro (2-4, 3.35 ERA, 48.1 IP, 31 K’s, 1.10 WHIP) pitched today against Don Johnson (1-2, 4.21 ERA, 25.2 IP, 9 K’s, 1.71 WHIP). Unfortunately he spotted them a 2-0 lead in the top of the first thanks to back-to-back homers byChuck Diering and Charlie Maxwell, though at least Vic Power got us on the board in the bottom of the first with an RBI single. Catfish Metkovich tied it up in the bottom of the third with a solo homer of his own, his third of the year, and there it stayed until Pizarro gave up a two-run homer in the top of the seventh by Hoot Evers, putting the Orioles back up 4-2. Bill Harrington came out with two outs and a man on first and got the final out but the damage was done. Harrington stayed out the rest of the way but our bats didn’t make a sound as we lost this one 4-2. That loss dropped Pizarro to 2-5 with a 3.60 ERA, though he only allowed five hits through 6.2 innings ... he walked six with just three strikeouts, and we gave up four earned runs while he was pitching, however. The walks have definitely got to come down as he gets used to major league batting. Harrington got through the last 2.1 innings without a baserunner, but they outhit us 5-3. Metkovich hit once and walked once, hitting his homer and scoring an additional run as well to lead the way. May 17, 1956: Boston’s keeping pace with the Yankees, just a game and a half out of first place, so they’re not a team we’d really like to be facing right now, but there you go. Carl Erskine (1-3, 3.83 ERA, 49.1 IP, 18 K’s, 1.56 WHIP) pitched against Frank Baumann (2-3, 5.40 ERA, 33.1 IP, 19 K’s, 1.17 WHIP), and like clockwork we spotted them a 2-0 lead in the top of the first. In the bottom of the fourth we came roaring back with an RBI single by Pafko, another by Astroth and a sac-fly by DeMaestri that shot us into the lead 3-2, and we added a run in the bottom of the seventh with an RBI triple by Catfish Metkovish that scored Erskine from third. With two outs and a man on third base, Moe Drabowsky came in to replace Erskine, and Billy Goodman hit an RBI single to drive in a run that cut our lead to one, but a pop-out to second ended the frame safely. Drabowsky got two quick outs in the ninth but then an RBI single by Marty Keough gave up two runs to shoot them into the lead, and we went into the bottom of the inning needing to find some offense to make up for another costly pitching lapse. We got runners on the corners, but pinch-hitter Pete Suder and then Catfish Metkovich hit quick groundouts and we lost this one 5-4. Carl Erskine lasted 7.2 innings with eight hits, three walks, a strikeout and three earned runs, but Drabowsky blew his third save and took his third loss, allowing four hits and two walks with just one strikeout, letting two earned runs through. His ERA sits at 4.41 now through 16.1 innings over 12 appearances, but he just hasn’t put it all together just yet. It didn’t help that we got outhit 12-9. Metkovich hit twice with an RBI, and Erskine hit twice and scored a run. May 18, 1956: Arnie Portocarrero (0-2, 3.99 ERA, 29.1 IP, 12 K’s, 1.30 WHIP) started against Frank Sullivan (2-2, 4.23 ERA, 38.1 IP, 22 K’s, 1.30 WHIP). We took control of this one in the bottom of the fifth with a two-run homer by Pafko, piling on with a two-run single by George Wilson and an RBI double by DeMaestri that put us up 5-0 on the stunned Red Sox. Tom Gorman came out to pitch in the top of the sixth, and Thomas Paddock hit a two-run blast, his second in just a few days, to make it a seven run lead! Bill Harrington came out to pitch in the top of the eighth, and he got us the rest of the way there as we completely crushed Boston 7-0. Portocarrero finally got his first win, improving to 1-3 with a 3.41 ERA, with four hits and three strikeouts through five innings. Gorman and Harrington then got through four innings with no hits and three strikeouts combined, and we outhit the Red Sox 9-4. George Wilson led with two hits, a walk, a run and an RBI, while Paddock hit once, walked once and batted in the two runs with his homer. But it was a team effort, with eight players hitting at least once. May 19, 1956: Vic Rauchi (2-0, 2.89 ERA, 28.0 IP, 14 K’s, 1.39 WHIP) started against Tom Brewer (0-4, 6.12 ERA, 25.0 IP, 6 K’s, 1.72 WHIP) in our third game against the Red Sox this series. Danny O’Connell hit an RBI single to get us the lead in the bottom of the third, and we added on four runs in the bottom of the fourth, including an RBI double by Raschi that scored a pair! Boston got on the board with a run in the top of the fifth thanks to a Tom Brewer RBI double (pitchers getting hits, y’all!) and Ted Williams hit a solo homer to cut our lead to three in the top of the sixth. RBI singles by Power and Pafko in the bottom of the inning rebuilt our momentum, and Sonny Dixon came in to protect the five-run lead in the top of the seventh. They kept inching back, however, and Bobby Shantz came in with a two-run lead in the top of the ninth, Jim Piersall hitting a two-run blast out of center to tie us up at seven, and we couldn’t buy any runs in the bottom of the frame so we went to extras for what feels like the thirtieth time of the season. Tom Gorman came out to pitch in the top of the 11th with one out and a man on second, getting two quick outs to keep us in the driver’s seat if we could just find a walk-off hit. That hero role should have gone to Jim Finigan, who, with two runners on base via walks, hit a solid shot into right, but Vic Power was thrown out at home plate, denying us the run. They hit Astroth with a pitch to load the bases, and DeMaestri popped out to short ... onward we go. Finally, in the bottom of the 12th, Vic Power hit one into right and did drive in the winning run, and we got out of this one with an 8-7 win, stealing the series from Boston 2-1. Raschi had six solid innings with six hits, a walk, four strikeouts and two earned runs, and he should have had the win with ease. Shantz blew his fourth save of the year but stuck with it through 2.1 innings to set up Gorman for the win he eventually got. Gorman didn’t allow a hit, striking out two through 1.2 innings to improve to 2-2 with a 3.42 ERA. We outhit the Red Sox 15-14 in the marathon, led by Power who had four hits, a walk and three RBIs, giving him 20 batted in this season. May 20, 1956: Juan Pizarro (2-5, 3.60 ERA, 55.0 IP, 37 K’s, 1.09 WHIP) started today against the Yankees’ Gene Conley (1-3, 3.18 ERA, 39.2 IP, 25 K’s, 1.11 WHIP). Gil McDougald hit a solo homer in the top of the first to give the Yankees a lead, but Finigan hit a groundball single into right that drove in a pair to put us on top 2-1 in the bottom of the inning. Metkovich hit a single into right that scored a run in the bottom of the second, and then Vic Power hit a three-run homer to give us a legitimate lead, 6-1, heading into the third. Pizarro hit a two-run single to add on in the third, giving us an 8-1 lead we held into the top of the seventh, when, with one out and men on second and third, Al Gettel came out to relieve Pizarro. A groundout to first allowed a run to score for the Yankees, but Joe Collins struck out swinging and got us into the stretch leading still by six runs. Moe Drabowsky came out in the top of the ninth leading still by six, and he shut them down quickly as we won 8-2! Juan Pizarro gave us 6.1 innings with five hits, a walk and 10 strikeouts, a dominant performance that improved his record to 3-5 with a 3.52 ERA. We outhit the Yankees 10-6, led by Catfish Metkovich who hit three times with two runs and an RBI -- he’s hitting .294 through 33 games and has been the perfect leadoff man, with seven doubles and three triples already this year. May 21, 1956: Bobby Shantz has been disgruntled about us trying to keep him forced into a closer / stopper role, and he’s been making it clear he’s unhappy. And with the bottom of our rotation a mess anyway, I’ve decided to give him a shot ... moving him into the rotation as a sixth starter to see if getting more innings helps steady his performance this year. We’re also going to send rookie reliever Moe Drabowsky down to AAA for a spell to see if he can work on his control and steady his nerves a hair. In his place we’ve called up 25-year-old Don Bessent, who the Phillies granted minor league free agency to ... we were able to pick up the former top 75 prospect for a mere $1,400 bonus on a minor league deal, and he’ll step into our stopper role, with Gorman, Harrington and Dixon in middle relief and Gettel and Craddock as multi-innings options in long relief. It’s a juggling act, but I’m doing what I can to keep this team fresh as we try to climb back into a still-wide-open American League race. Carl Erskine (1-3, 3.79 ERA, 57.0 IP, 19 K’s, 1.54 WHIP) pitched for us today against the Yankees’ Billy O’Dell (4-4, 2.92 ERA, 61.2 IP, 43 K’s, 1.31 WHIP). The game was heading into the top of the fifth tied at 2-2 when the skies unleashed and drove everyone out of the stadium ... the game was suspended, and will be resumed on June 25th as part of a split doubleheader. Erskine threw just 59 pitches and could be available to start our second game against the Senators, though we’ll likely let him rest until the Detroit series on the road this weekend and keep to his throwing routine. May 22, 1956: Arnie Portocarrero (1-2, 3.41 ERA, 34.1 IP, 15 K’s, 1.22 WHIP) started against Washington’s Duke Maas (3-1, 2.55 ERA, 35.1 IP, 18 K’s, 1.33 WHIP). He had five exceptional innings, and then in the top of the sixth Washington put up three quick runs to take control of what had been, to that point, an epic duel. Bill Harrington came out to start the top of the sixth, trailing by three, and Sonny Dixon came out in the ninth, getting absolutely shelled. He gave up four runs and Gorman came out and allowed another, as we got shut out 8-0. Ugly, ugly, ugly. Portocarrero only allowed five hits with three walks and two strikeouts in his six innings, but the three earned runs were more than enough. He fell to 1-3 with a 3.57 ERA, and though Harrington had two great innings, Dixon allowed five runs off three hits and two walks, not even getting a damned out. It didn’t help that we were outhit 11-5, nobody on our offense deserving a word of note. Like I said, ugly, and best forgotten as we move on to another game against the Senators tomorrow. May 23, 1956: Vic Raschi (2-0, 2.91 ERA, 34.0 IP, 18 K’s, 1.35 WHIP) pitched against Chuck Stobbs (1-4, 5.18 ERA, 41.2 IP, 20 K’s, 1.82 WHIP). Jim Finigan hit a solo homer to put us up 1-0 in the bottom of the second, and a Bill Wilson triple in the bottom of the fifth extended our lead to two runs. Walt Craddock came in to pitch with two outs and a man on first in the top of the sixth, and threw just one pitch before getting their runner out at second on a pickoff. Tom Gorman came out to pitch in the top of the eighth, and he got absolutely destroyed ... first a two-run homer by Jim Lemon that tied it up, then two singles and a fly-out before Eddie Yost hit an RBI single and we had the bullpen frantically warming arms. By the time Don Bessent came in, we were down 5-2, two outs, men on first and second. He quickly got the out, but our nerves were shot. We picked up a run in the bottom of the eighth and Bessent gave us a chance by pitching well in the ninth, but we lost this one in the end 5-3. Gorman blew his third save of the year and fell to 2-3, allowing four hits and five runs (two earned) with a pair of walks while only getting two outs. Washington outhit us again 11-5, with Finigan leading the way with a hit, a run and an RBI. We’ll take our 14-23 record on the road for three in Detroit this weekend, where we’ll hope to steal some wins from the 19-16 Tigers ... they’re only three games out of first and in fourth place, with no one team in the AL looking outright dominant. We currently still sit in last place, a game behind the 16-23 Orioles and a game and a half back of the 15-21 Senators. Then next week we’ll play two at home against the White Sox (18-14) and a Wednesday doubleheader against Detroit, followed by a four-game road trip to play Boston (17-18) next weekend as we get into June. __________________ "Campus Chronicles" -- The Indiana Hoosiers in a New College World (An OOTP 27 Dynasty) Online Leagues Modern Baseball (Chicago White Sox) Championship Baseball League (Winnipeg Goldeye) WPORBL 55 (Chicago Cubs) WPORBL 74 (Oakland A's) WPORBL 94 (Montreal Expos) WPOBL (Cincinnati Reds) Last edited by jksander; 09-05-2024 at 01:19 AM.

08-31-2024, 11:02 PM	#41
jksander All Star Starter Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Indianapolis IN Posts: 1,908	January 18, 1956: The press voters were absolutely brutal this year in Hall of Fame voting ... NOBODY got in, and NOBODY was close. Tommy Bridges, in his first year of eligibility, drew just 40.9 percent of the votes, and he was the highest vote-getter. January 25, 1956: Bob Lee has already been doing well working with the training staff down in Pocatello, Idaho with our Pioneer League affiliate, and has reportedly picked up first base defensively like a natural! While his pitching will always be the main focus, he does have decent gap power and when he does get on base the kid is fast and has good instincts and aggressiveness for getting the most of things. So anything that gives him an edge is good in my book, especially in kids straight out of high school. Lee, who turned 18 just a week and a half after the draft, is definitely looking great to me. Meanwhile, Fred Carpenter, a 17-year-old outfielder we drafted this year in the 13th round, has been putting the work in to improve his defense in right field and has had solid results as well. He’s nowhere close to major league ready, but he’s adaptable and works his ass off, so I’m glad to have him as part of our organization. February 11, 1956: We snagged Catfish Metkovich, 35, from the Cubs out of minor league free agency, and he’s a real get ... great contact with an aggressive approach, and excellent defense of center field, and though he didn’t play for the Cubs last year at the major league level, he hit .316 with 28 doubles, 16 homers and 60 RBIs for AAA Oakland, with an incredible +17.2 zone rating at center, which netted him 8.2 WAR! He’s going to be our new leadoff hitter and starting center fielder, earning $28,000 on a one year contract, bumping Bill Wilson back to the bench where he’ll play backup at left and center. Metkovich is pretty much unknown outside Chicago, so this isn’t going to immediately move the needle with our fans, but defensively this is a big get, and will help us fill the gap created when we moved Hector Lopez to improve clubhouse morale. March 13, 1956: Spring training is set to begin, and we’re excited to get fans ready for another year of Kansas City A’s baseball! Projected season ticket sales are looking to be up nearly 32% to around 3,400, and we’re hoping to average around 10,000 fans per game as the season gets going, which would be up a similar amount. We have forty players up here for the 30-game spring schedule, which will run through Friday, April 13th. We’ll then open our season with a three-game road set against Detroit April 17-19, followed by our debut here in Kansas City with three games against the White Sox, two against Detroit and two against Cleveland. March 22, 1956: Alex Kellner has suffered a setback in his recovery from a ruptured disc in his back, and unfortunately his career is now over, according to our best team medical experts. The 31-year-old’s career comes to an end with a total record of 84-104 with six saves, an ERA of 4.43, 620 strikeouts and 19.3 total WAR. That’s a real disappointment, just as the fans were really starting to warm up to him. But we’d built the 1956 A’s roster expecting he’d be out for at least a few months, and we have to roll with the punches. March 29, 1956: Middle reliever Larry Jansen has suffered a strained forearm muscle during a spring training game and will be out at least two months, which is definitely disappointing -- we’d acquired him from Washington back in early November in exchange for Chuck Tanner and Billy Shantz, and if he is unable to recover from this, that trade’s definitely not going to be looking great in retrospect. Hopefully he’ll be able to return by early June and we can ease him back into the bullpen rotation. April 14, 1956: Spring training games are now complete, and we finished with a 13-17 record in the games which, while they don’t count as official games, do give us good information about how our team is gelling as the season nears its start. We’re paring the roster down to its final 25-man status, and will report opening day rosters within a matter of days, with first pitch in Detroit on the 17th set for 1:05 p.m. central time! April 16, 1956: Our final two difficult cuts involved moving Sonny Dixon back down to AAA for the time being, as will backup third-baseman Daryl Spencer. But with those moves complete, we have your official opening day rosters for Kansas City’s Athetics in 1956! *Lineup* C -Joe Astroth 1B - Vic Power 2B - Danny O’Connell 3B - Jim Finigan SS - Joe DeMaestri LF - Andy Pafko CF - Catfish Metkovich RF - Harry Walker Bench: Ray Noble (C), Dick Kryhoski (1B), Pete Suder (INF), George Wilson (SS), Zeke Bella (LF), Bill Wilson (LF, CF), Joe Frazier (OF) *Starters* 1 - Juan Pizarro 2 Carl Erskine 3 - Arnie Portocarrero 4 - Art Ditmar 5 - Walt Craddock Closer: Bobby Shantz Stopper: Moe Drabowsky Middle: Tom Gorman, Al Gettel Long: Bob Spicer The new “BNN Top Prospects” report is out officially, and we can proudly announce that our new young ace, Pizarro, is ranked 8th overall. But we’ve got a long way to go to build up to the level of Cleveland (they have the top three prospects in Rocky Colavito, Roger Maris and Norm Cash) and Washington (#4 Harmon Killebrew and #5 Willie McCovey). Moe Drabowski is ranked 40th overall, Bob Lee is ranked 59th, and our catcher draftee, Chris Cannizzaro, is ranked 179th, but he’s the sixth best catching prospect in the minors. The good news is that our minor league system has gone up in ranking from 16th to 10th overall. Attached Images __________________ "Campus Chronicles" -- The Indiana Hoosiers in a New College World (An OOTP 27 Dynasty) Online Leagues Modern Baseball (Chicago White Sox) Championship Baseball League (Winnipeg Goldeye) WPORBL 55 (Chicago Cubs) WPORBL 74 (Oakland A's) WPORBL 94 (Montreal Expos) WPOBL (Cincinnati Reds)

09-05-2024, 04:12 PM	#48
jksander All Star Starter Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Indianapolis IN Posts: 1,908	June 5, 1956: Juan Pizarro (3-5, 3.36 ERA, 80.1 IP, 65 K’s, 1.16 WHIP) got the start today against Gene Conley (3-4, 4.47 ERA, 56.1 IP, 37 K’s, 1.38 WHIP) as we made a visit to Yankee Stadium. Andy Pafko led off with a solo homer in the top of the second (his sixth of the year) to put us up 1-0, and Pizarro hit his THIRD homer of the year as a pitcher in the top of the third! He’s only made 30 plate appearances but he’s hitting .241 with a .586 slug! Finigan led off with a triple in the top of the fourth, and Pizarro hit an RBI double that drove in a pair to extend the lead ... it’s official, that kid’s going to join our pinch-hitting squad, he’s clutch as hell! The Yankees got on the board in the bottom of the fourth with an RBI single by Yogi Berra that drove in a pair of runs, but Pizarro got us through the sixth without any further scoring, and he did the same through the seventh. Moe Drobowsky came out to pitch in the top of the eighth and allowed a walk and two hits, the last of which was a three-run homer by Mickey Mantle that erased our lead entirely. Pizarro doesn’t have the endurance to pitch complete games at this point, and until he can, he won’t ever be sure a lead is safe. We weren’t able to get anything to happen in the top of the ninth, and we lost 5-4. Pizarro was exhaused after seven innings but wishes he’d gutted it out in the eighth to have given himself a chance to win. He went seven innings with five hits, one walk, seven strikeouts and two earned runs, throwing 105 pitches without a decision. This was his fourth quality start in a row where he didn’t end up with the win when he had qualified for one, but he’s still a bright-eyed 19 year old who is happy to be here ... so it’s not getting to him yet. And Drabowsky, another young player without a ton of experience, though frustrated, knows it’s bad luck and not a lack of skill that led to two hits, a walk and three earned runs. We outhit the Yankees 11-7, including two hits, a run and three RBIs for Pizarro who has now batted in seven runs. O’Connell, Pafko and Finigan each hit twice as well. Mantle’s homer was his 15th of the season, putting him on pace to obliterate his personal best of 29 dingers set just last year ... that kid’s a demon! June 6, 1956: Vic Raschi (3-0, 2.61 ERA, 51.2 IP, 25 K’s, 1.30 WHIP) got the unenviable task of pitching against Vinegar Bend Mizell (10-1, 1.03 ERA, 96.0 IP, 64 K’s, this year’s front-runner for the AL’s Cy Young award. We caught him napping in the top of the first, and Metkovich scored from third off a sac-fly by Pafko to give us a 1-0 lead. But New York tied it up in the bottom of the second with an RBI single by Bill Skowron, so we had to keep grinding. The Yankees took the lead in the bottom of the third with an RBI single by Woodie Held, and it stayed that way through the fifth inning, Walt Craddock coming in to pitch in the bottom of the sixth, still trailing by a run. Elston Howard hit a solo homer out of right in the bottom of the seventh to add to their lead as a light rain began to fall. Sonny Dixon pitched the eighth inning for us, and New York added on a run, sending us into the top of the ninth needing three to keep the game going. O’Connell led off with a line drive single into right, and Vic Power beat out an infield hit to give us a runner in scoring position with two on. Pafko hit into a fielder’s choice with the out coming at second, Finigan walking the bases loaded for Astroth, with one out. He popped out to right and drove in a run, at which point DeMaestri silenced the home crowed with a triple that scored two including the tying run! Bobby Shantz came out and shut down the top of their lineup, including striking Mantle out swinging and this one was going into extras! Johnny Sain got us through the bottom of the 10th with no score, but Vinegar Bend Mizell shut us down again in the 11th, and with one out in the bottom of the inning the Yankees walked it off with a single by Enos Slaughter and we lost 5-4, the same as yesterday but getting there in a completely different way. Raschi had a good start, with five innings and just five hits, a walk, a strikeout and two earned runs. Craddock and Dixon dug the hole deeper, but we kept grinding and Shantz got us into extras with a chance. Sain, unfortunately, didn’t have the luck he had in the 10th when he got into the final frame, so he finished with the loss, falling to 2-5 with a 6.62 ERA -- he had three hits, an earned run and a strikeout. This time New York outhit us 13-7, so it’s impressive that we battled back and made them work for it. O’Connell led the way with two hits and a run, while DeMaestri added a hit and two runs batted in. June 7, 1956: Carl Erskine (1-3, 3.62 ERA, 72.0 IP, 26 K’s, 1.44 WHIP) started today against Don Larsen (2-1, 6.75 ERA, 20.0 IP, 10 K’s, 1.55 WHIP). Yogi Berra hit a homer in the bottom of the second to put the Yankees up 1-0, but we kept fighting and were able to tie it up in the top of the seventh when Thomas Paddock grounded out to first and scored Jim Finigan from third! Erskine stayed out in the bottom of the eighth and the Yankees retook the lead thanks to an RBI single by Hank Bauer, so without an out we had to bring out Drabowsky, who loaded the bases from there and our hopes completely collapsed from there. We went into the top of the ninth trailing by four runs and it stayed that way, New York crushing us in the end 5-1. Erskine fell to 1-4 on the year, lasting seven innings with seven hits, two walks, a strikeout and three earned runs while Drabowsky had the thankless task of cleaing up his mess, getting out of it with two hits, three walks and two earned runs. New York outhit us 9-5, with Paddock’s hit and RBI our only real offense, though Finigan did score a run, walking twice without a hit. We play Baltimore and Washington three times each on the road, and then return to Kansas City to play Baltimore three times and Washington four times. So our next 13 games are against the only two teams moderately as bad as us. This may be our last chance to really dig out of this hole and put up a succession of wins ... if we stay in a free-fall, the season may be unsalvageable by the time we get out of the month of June. And our owner has made it clear that, at that point he’s fully considering forcing us to go into a full sell-off to bring in young prospects, even if it means getting rid of our best veteran players. And if that happens, it’s hard to imagine my job not being in jeopardy quickly from there. June 8, 1956: Larry Jansen (0-1, 6.30 ERA, 10.0 IP, 5 K’s, 1.80 WHIP) pitched against Jim McDonald (4-1, 2.14 ERA, 67.1 IP, 31 K’s, 1.19 WHIP). Joe DeMaestri gave us a lead in the top of the second with an RBI single, but in the bottom of the seventh Jansen gave up an RBI double to Bob Hale and we were tied up just like that. Sonny Dixon came in with an out and men on second and third, immediately giving up a three-run homer that shot us straight through. We got two runs back with a homer of our own, Vic Power batting in two with a shot out of left in the top of the eighth, and with the lead still at just one run, Astroth led off with a single in the top of the ninth. Joe DeMaestri singled, but Astroth got greedy and was picked off at third ... Juan Pizarro came in to pinch hit for Paddock, popping out to center, but Sonny Dixon kept us alive with a shot into right, driving in DeMaestri to tie it up at four. But they walked it off in the bottom of the inning and we lost this one 5-4 thanks to a single by Evers, who had hit the homer that put them up in the seventh. Jansen had a good night, lasting 6.1 innings with three hits, a walk, two strikeouts and three earned runs, Dixon (4-1, 5.40 ERA) taking the loss with two innings and three hits, a walk, a strikeout and two RBIs. We outhit Baltimore 10-6, led by Power with two hits, a run and two RBIs. June 9, 1956: Juan Pizarro (3-5, 3.30 ERA, 87.1 IP, 72 K’s, 1.13 WHIP) started today against Ruben Gomez (5-4, 3.25 ERA, 83.0 IP, 33 K’s, 1.14 WHIP). Baltimore took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the second thanks to an RBI single by Gomez and an RBI double by Willy Miranda, but we chipped away at it ... Finigan hit an RBI single in the top of the fourth, and Pizarro batted in a run with a single in the fifth to tie it up 2-2. Bobby Shantz came out in the bottom of the eighth with the score still tied, and this one stayed that way into extra innings. In the top of the 10th, Vic Power hit an RBI single to give us a one-run lead, and Johnny Sain came out to get us through the bottom of the inning as we held on and won 3-2! Juan Pizarro continues to pitch well in no-decisions, lasting seven innings with three hits, two walks, six strikeouts and two earned runs. His walks are coming down nicely, he’s now struck out 78 batters against 35 free passes, and ten of his 15 starts have been quality ones. Shantz took the win, improving to 2-3 with a 6.52 ERA, allowing two hits and a walk with no earned runs, while Sain saved his second game with just one hit. June 10, 1956: Vic Raschi (3-0, 2.70 ERA, 56.2 IP, 26 K’s, 1.29 WHIP) pitched against Roger Craig (1-4, 1 SV, 4.89 ERA, 49.2 IP, 22 K’s, 1.45 WHIP). Danny O’Connell singled in the bottom of the third, and aided by an E7 error, Catfish Metkovich was able to score from first to put us into the lead. Thomas Paddock hit a solo homer in the fifth to add a run, Pafko adding another in the top of the eighth to give us a three-run lead. Raschi stayed out to complete the shutout as we won the game, and the series, with a 3-0 victory! Raschi had his best game yet this year, a complete game five hit shutout, and we outhit the Orioles 9-5. Metkovich had three hits and a run, while O’Connell, Pafko and Paddock each hit twice. That was a nice complete win, here’s hoping we can build on it! June 11, 1956: We’ll finish this road trip out with three games against the 23-31 Washington Senators, with us now half a game up on Baltimore and two games behind the Senators in the standings. Carl Erskine (1-4, 3.65 ERA, 79.0 IP, 27 K’s, 1.43 WHIP) started against Camilo Pascual (2-9, 5.56 ERA, 81.0 IP, 47 K’s, 1.80 WHIP). The Senators took the lead in the bottom of the first, but Vic Power batted us into the lead with a two-run double in the top of the third. Unfortunately the Senators took control from there, Bruce Edwards tying it with an RBI single in the bottom of the third and Pete Runnels adding a two-run double in the bottom of the fourth to put them back on top. Trailing by four in the top of the seventh, Thomas Paddock hit a two-run homer and Pafko added an RBI single to get us back within a run, and Erskine was able to get us through the bottom of the inning without the Senators getting any baserunners. Sain came out to pitch still trailing by a run at the start of the bottom of the eighth, and he kept it that way as we headed into the ninth. Pizarro pinch-hit for Sain with one out, getting a hit up the middle for a single, but that was our last gasp as we lost this one 6-5. Erskine fell to 1-5 with a 3.87 ERA, allowing 14 hits in seven innings with three strikeouts and six runs (five earned), while the Senators outhit us 15-8, making it amazing we were even close at the end. Paddock, who now has five homers this year, hit twice, walked once and scored two runs with two more batted in to lead the team. June 12, 1956: Larry Jansen (0-1, 5.51 ERA, 16.1 IP, 7 K’s, 1.35 WHIP) started against Duke Maas (4-4, 2.70 ERA, 60.0 IP, 32 K’s, 1.23 WHIP). We took the lead in the top of the fourth with a sac-fly by Darryl Spencer, but Washington retook the lead in the bottom of the fourth with a two-run homer by Jim Lemon. We tied it up in the top of the sixth with an E6 error that allowed Paddock to take first, driving in Finigan from third, and it stayed that way into the bottom of the eighth, when Bobby Shantz came in to relieve Jansen with one out and a man on first. Shantz stranded two as he got us out of the inning unscathed. In the top of the ninth, Shantz bunted Paddock and Metkovich into scoring position with our first out, Danny O’Connell walked to load the bases, and George Wilson hit a sac-fly to deep right and pushed in the go-ahead run! Shantz stayed out and got us out of there with a 3-2 win as we capped the comeback! Jansen has been solid in his last few starts, tonight lasting 7.1 innings with five hits, a walk, three strikeouts and the two earned runs. Shantz, meanwhile, came out for 1.2 innings and got the win, improving to 3-3 with a 6.00 ERA as he allowed a pair of hits and nothing else. Each team had seven hits, ours led by Paddock, who had two hits, a run and an RBI. June 13, 1956: Juan Pizarro (3-5, 3.24 ERA, 94.1 IP, 78 K’s, 1.10 WHIP) started today against Pedro Ramos (4-3, 3.18 ERA, 62.1 IP, 29 K’s, 1.17 WHIP). We were knotted up at zero until the bottom of the fifth, when an RBI single by Runnels put the Senators up a run, Jim Busby tripled to drive Runnels in for a second run, and Mickey Vernon added an RBI single to pile on. Sonny Dixon came out to relieve Pizarro in the bottom of the sixth, and though we got a run back in the top of the ninth thanks to an RBI double by Darryl Spencer, we still lost this one 3-1. Juan Pizarro took the loss, falling to 3-6 with a 3.35 ERA, allowing six hits, two walks, six strikeouts and three earned runs through five innings. Dixon got us through the rest with just a single strikeout, improving his ERA to 4.74, and we outhit the Senators 9-6 ... that fifth inning just killed us; that and our lack of run support. Metkovich hit three times and Pafko twice, neither one managing to score. We now return to Kansas City with a dismal 22-35 record, with our biggest stretch of home games of the season .... three against Baltimore (24-36), four against Washington (25-32), three against Boston (29-28), four against New York (40-17) and then three against Detroit (26-29). We then play three on the road July 3-4 in Cleveland (32-24) before returning for three here against the Guardians, and that’ll get us into the All Star break at which point the decision will have been made if we’re gutting this team for parts. __________________ "Campus Chronicles" -- The Indiana Hoosiers in a New College World (An OOTP 27 Dynasty) Online Leagues Modern Baseball (Chicago White Sox) Championship Baseball League (Winnipeg Goldeye) WPORBL 55 (Chicago Cubs) WPORBL 74 (Oakland A's) WPORBL 94 (Montreal Expos) WPOBL (Cincinnati Reds) Last edited by jksander; 09-05-2024 at 04:14 PM.

09-06-2024, 07:41 PM	#50
jksander All Star Starter Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Indianapolis IN Posts: 1,908	July 1, 1956: Two red hot pitchers faced off today in Kansas City: Vic Raschi (7-0, 2.38 ERA, 94.2 IP, 38 K’s, 1.15 WHIP) and Steve Gromek (6-2, 2.51 ERA, 93.1 IP, 40 K’s, 1.07 WHIP). We took the lead in the bottom of the first with a Danny O’Connell solo homer, adding on when an E7 error allowed Daryl Spencer to reach first and drive Andy Pafko in from third. Andy Pafko got himself a solo homer in the bottom of the fifth to add on, but they got on the board themselves in the top of the sixth when Al Kaline batted in a run with a single. They added a run in the top of the seventh, cutting our lead to one run with an RBI double by Blasingame, and Sonny Dixon came out with the runner on second and two outs, getting us into the stretch with a groundout to first. Daryl Spencer batted in a pair to get our lead back to three runs heading into the top of the eighth, and we brought Drabowsky out to pitch in the top of the ninth, pitching around two singles to get us the outs we needed to win 5-2. Raschi is now 8-0 since the move from Brookyn, with a 2.31 ERA after allowing just six hits, two walks, two strikeouts and two runs (one earned) in tonight’s game. Dixon got his second hold, and Drabowsky saved his fifth game of the season and brought his ERA down to 5.23. We outhit Detroit 13-8, with O’Connell and Pafko each hitting twice, scoring twice and batting in a run. Metkovich hit three times and scored a run, and he now leads the team with a .309 average. Next up: a game in Cleveland on Tuesday, and two in Chicago on Wednesday, and then we’ll return to Kansas City to play Cleveland three more times before going on break for the All Star game. These games should be particularly interesting, since we now have Mossi and they’ve got Finigan and Power. July 3, 1956: Dan Mossi (7-5, 2.70 ERA, 100.0 IP, 56 K’s, 1.33 WHIP) started against his former team, facing Tom Cheney (5-3, 2.72 ERA, 89.1 IP, 63 K’s, 1.25 WHIP) in a one-off game in Cleveland. The Guardians took the lead in the bottom of the second with an RBI single by Paul Jones, and Mossi pitched a great game completely unaided by our lack of hitting. The Guardians scored again in the bottom of the seventh thanks to an RBI single (again) by Paul Jones, but Mossi got us through the inning trailing 2-0. Sonny Dixon came out to pitch us through the bottom of the eighth, and in the top of the ninth Juan Pizarro came out to pinch-hit for him, getting a single up the gap. Harry Walker then singled him over to second, and O’Connell sac-bunted them both over! A sac-fly to deep center by Pafko got us on the board, but Catfish Metkovich hit one straight to their shortstop ... game over, we lose it 2-1. Mossi only allowed four hits and two earned runs with three walks and three strikeouts through seven innings, and we had four hits ourselvs but only managed to get one last-inning run. Pizarro scored after his pinch-hit, and Pafko drove him in without ever making it on base. Walker hit twice, but couldn’t get anywhere. July 4, 1956: It’s a doubleheader day and America’s birthday ... how do you like that? Juan Pizarro (4-9, 3.73 ERA, 120.2 IP, 95 K’s, 1.22 WHIP) started the first game against Chicago’s Connie Johnson (5-7, 4.75 ERA, 106.3 IP, 74 K’s, 1.52 WHIP). Daryl Spencer got us on the board in the top of the first with a sac-fly, and Joe Astroth batted home Andy Pafko with a single, giving us a two-run lead before Pizarro even threw the ball. Earl Battey got Chicago a run in the bottom of the fourth with an RBI single, and then Pizarro got crushed in the bottom of the fifth, giving up four runs. Johnny Sain came out with men on second and third, two outs, and avoided further carnage, and he stayed out the remainder of the game but our bats were silent and they won 5-2. Pizarro is now 4-10 in his rookie season, five hits, four walks and five runs (three earned) in 4.2 innings tonight giving him a 3.81 ERA as he struggles to find his early-season momentum. Sain held tough and got through 3.1 innings with three hits and a pair of strikeouts, but Chicago outhit us 10-4 and we were never in it after giving up those runs in the fifth inning. Astroth led the way with three hits and an RBI. For the second game we brought out Sam Jones (5-4, 4.77 ERA, 66.0 IP, 36 K’s, 1.61 WHIP), who went up against Bob Rush (5-3, 3.12 ERA, 92.1 IP, 49 K’s, 1.31 WHIP). Chicago took the lead with a single by Aparicio in the bottom of the second, and then added on with an RBI single by Earl Battey in the bottom of the fifth to go up 2-0. But Don Bollweg hit a two-run blast out of center to tie it up in the top of the sixth. They took the lead back in the bottom of the seventh thanks to an RBI triple by Nieman, and Carl Erskine came out, no outs, to try and hold him there at third ... and that did NOT happen. Larry Doby batted in the run with a single, and we went into the top of the eighth trailing 5-2. Sonny Dixon came out in the eighth, got the outs we needed, and then in the top of the ninth we unexpectedly shot back into the lead thanks to a two-run homer by Dixon and a two-run homer by Darryl Spencer! Dixon, who had only taken six pitches to get through the eighth, stayed out to pitch in the bottom of the ninth, getting two quick outs ... and then an RBI triple by Johnny Groth tied it up. But Dixon got the third out to strand the runner and this one went, like so many before it, into extra innings. Moe Drabowsky came out in the bottom of the 10th and gave up three straight hits to end this one, Nellie Fox walking it off with a single, and we lost 7-6. Drabowsky fell to 0-5 with a 5.52 ERA, allowing three hits and an earned run off eight pitches. Each team hit 14 times, ours led by Spencer with two hits, a walk, a run and two RBIs. O’Connell, Metkovich and George Wilson each hit twice as well. We just gave up too many runs, it’s hard for any lineup to counter that. July 6, 1956: Larry Jansen (0-2, 4.55 ERA, 29.2 IP, 14 K’s, 1.18 WHIP) pitched tonight against Dick Hall (2-0, 5.25 ERA, 12.0 IP, 5 K’s, 1.33 WHIP) as Cleveland came to town with about 8,300 die-hard A’s fans camped out in the stands. Andy Pafko hit a solo homer in the bottom of the third to put us up 1-0, and after they tied it up in the fourth, Pafko added an RBI single in the bottom of the fifth to put us back up 2-1. Darryl Spener hit an RBI single that, aided by an E9 error, allowed Metkovich to score and add some insurance in the bottom of the eighth, and Jansen stayed out for the top of the ninth but gave up a solo homer to Dale Long immediately ... he then got two strikeouts and a pop-out to right field to end this as a 2-3 victory! Jansen only allowed nine hits in the complete game, walking two, striking out three and giving them two earned runs. We hit nine times as well, led by Pafko who hit three times with a run and two RBIs. July 7, 1956: Don Mossi (7-6, 2.69 ERA, 107.0 IP, 59 K’s, 1.31 WHIP) pitched against Mike Garcia (7-4, 2.52 ERA, 128.2 IP, 79 K’s, 1.10 WHIP) and we actually broke 10,000 fans, which is flat-out incredible considering we’re still ten games under .500 ... Joe Astroth batted in two runners with a line drive single in the bottom of the first to give us the lead, and an O’Connell RBI triple in the bottom of the second extended the lead to three. We built a 6-0 lead through the first five innings, and then in the top of the sixth Mossi gave up five runs to the Guardians as the whole thing damnned near fell apart. Luckly our bats stayed hot -- Astroth hit an RBI triple, scoring two, and Bollweg (RBI double) and Mossi himself (RBI single) rebuilt the lead with four runs in the bottom of the inning. Johnny Sain came out leading 10-5 in the top of the seventh, and Drabowsky came out in the top of the eighth with two outs and men on first and second, getting us out of a bases loaded situation with no runs scored. We added a pair in the bottom of the inning and then cruised to win 12-5. Don Mossi had a rough time in that one inning, but he only allowed six hits with three walks, seven strikeouts and five earned runs in his six innings, improving to 8-6 with a 2.95 ERA, 2-1 since coming to Kansas City. Sain lasted 1.2 innings with two hits and two walks, and Drabowsky just walked two with nothing else in his 1.1 innings as we won big. We outhit them 16-8, led by Astroth who hit twice with a run and four RBIs. July 8, 1956: It’s the final game before the All Star break, and we came out wanting to win it and go out with a bang. Vic Raschi, Carl Erskine and Danny O’Connell made the All Star roster, which definitely helps with drawing fans into the stadium. In fact, nearly 12,700 fans came out for the third game of the series, to see Juan Pizarro (4-10, 3.81 ERA, 125.1 IP, 97 K’s, 1.26 WHIP) pitch against Tim Cheney (6-3, 2.56 ERA, 98.1 IP, 67 K’s, 1.18 WHIP). That was our best attendance since opening day! Pizarro had a rough first inning, loading the bases, but he got out of it without any runs scoring. He got out of the third with a pair of strikeouts, and the crowd really got behind him ... but our bats were completely silent. Finally in the bottom of the fourth we got an RBI from Daryl Spencer, his single batting in Danny O’Connell to put us up 1-0. Sonny Dixon came out in the top of the sixth, and Al Gettel came out to pitch in the top of the seventh with two outs and a man on first, making our final out on a pick-off play at second to keep the one-run lead. Gettel got us through the eighth, but on his first pitch in the ninth he gave up a triple to Dale Long ... Don Bessent came out and got two quick outs, but the second was a sac-fly to center. TIE GAME. He struck out Paul Jones and we came up to hit in the bottom of the inning, couldn’t hit, and this one went into extras, with Pizarro just looking glum in the dugout. Bessent got us through the top of the 10th, but Erskine had to come out to pitch in the 11th. Finally, in the bottom of the 11th innning, Daryl Spencer hit a homer out of left to walk it off and we won the game 2-1. Pizarro went through five innings with three hits, three walks and two strikeouts, but that first inning roughed him up and we couldn’t count on him to go deep into this one. Dixon (#3) and Gettel (#3) picked up holds to get us through the eighth, but Bessent blew his first save ... he lasted two innings with just one hit and one strikeout, and Erskine picked up the win, improving to 4-5 with a 3.61 ERA, just a strikeout for him in the one inning he pitched. Bessent has yet to give up an earned run through 8.1 innings. Cleveland outhit us 7-5, our team led by Spencer, who had a hit, a run and two RBIs including this, his second homer of the year. We’ll go into the All Star break with a 36-44 record, 19 games out of first but with a little more room between us and the bottom two teams, Washington (34-49, 22.5 GB) and Baltimore (30-50, 25 GB). The middle of the pack is wide open, and I’m hopeful that this year we can find a way to keep winning games after the break and avoid the complete free-fall we faced last season after this point. We’ll return from the break on the road, facing Baltimore for three, followed by Washington (a doubleheader on the 15th), Boston (37-42) for three and the Yankees (56-26) for four. We then return to Kansas City for three against Boston, three against the Yankees, three against Baltimore and three against Washington, getting us nicely into early August. July 10, 1956: Danny O’Connell was a bench player for the All Star game, so we weren’t sure if he’d get to play much, if at all. But our pitchers were likely to be used, I just wasn’t sure how this year’s manager would choose to use them. Our AL team took a 4-0 lead in the top of the first here at beautiful Wrigley Field, and then surprisingly Vinegar Bend Mizell gave up two runs to the NL team in the bottom of the first. That’s gotta sting! Vic Raschi came out to pitch for us in the bottom of the second, and he was excellent ... got Ed Bailey to ground out, Johnny Logan to flyout to left, and after Duke Snyder hit a triple, he got Eddie Mathews to fly out again to left, blanking them. O’Connell pinch-hit for Willie Jones in the top of the sixth, but struck out swinging, staying in to play third base ... Carl Erskine came out to pitch in the bottom of the seventh, with our lead 6-5 over the National League team, and he did as well as Raschi, getting three outs around a single by Red Schoendienst, to confound the heart of their order. O’Connell got a second at-bat in the top of the ninth, our lead still at one run, but he struck out again. *We still shut them down in the final frame and the American League won the game 6-5.* Bill Skowron had a hit, a walk, two runs and two RBIs, the Yankee first baseman earning MVP honors. On the NL side, San Musial had a hit, two walks, two runs and an RBI to lead his offense. The New York Yankees lead the AL by 11 games over the Chicago White Sox (43-35) and by 12.5 over Detroit (42-37) and Cleveland (42-37). Over in the NL, Brooklyn (52-26) leads the Cincinnati Redlegs (44-35) by 8.5 games, and by 9.5 games over Milwaukee’s Braves (42-35) and the New York Giants (43-36). The Chicago Cubs (29-50) have the worst record in the majors by half a game over Baltimore. Attached Images __________________ "Campus Chronicles" -- The Indiana Hoosiers in a New College World (An OOTP 27 Dynasty) Online Leagues Modern Baseball (Chicago White Sox) Championship Baseball League (Winnipeg Goldeye) WPORBL 55 (Chicago Cubs) WPORBL 74 (Oakland A's) WPORBL 94 (Montreal Expos) WPOBL (Cincinnati Reds) Last edited by jksander; 09-06-2024 at 07:43 PM.

09-12-2024, 12:58 PM	#53
jksander All Star Starter Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Indianapolis IN Posts: 1,908	August 17, 1956: Vic Raschi (9-4, 2.81 ERA, 150.1 IP, 67 K’s, 1.18 WHIP) started against Cleveland’s Mike Garcia (11-6, 2.63 ERA, 185.0 IP, 117 K’s, 1.16 WHIP). We took the lead in the top of the third with an RBI single by Walker and an E8 error that let Bollweg score from second, followed by an RBI double by O’Connell that put us up 2-0. But they tied it up in the bottom of the fourth with a two-run homer by Rocky Colavito. We retook the lead in the top of the sixth with a line drive single by Astroth that scored two runs, but they got a three-run blast from George Crowe to flip themselves back into the lead 5-4 with one out in the bottom of the inning. Al Gettel came out and got us through without futher scoring ... but our bats were silent from there on, and we lost 5-4. Raschi took the loss and fell to 9-5, allowing four hits three walks and five earned runs with four strikeouts, all the runs coming off a pair of homers. We actually outhit them 7-4, but the longball killed us; Don Bollweg was the offense’s leader with two hits and a run scored. August 18, 1956: Larry Jansen (2-7, 4.97 ERA, 83.1 IP, 38 K’s, 1.54 WHIP) started against Cleveland’s Ray Moore (3-0, 2 SV, 2.33 ERA, 19.1 IP, 15 K’s, 0.88 WHIP). Daryl Spencer batted in a run with a hit into a fielder’s choice in the top of the first, and he batted in another in the top of the third with a flyball double! Al Rosen hit a solo homer to get Cleveland on the board in the bottom of the fourth, however, and they took control in the bottom of the sixth with a three-run homer by Rocky Colavito that pushed them into the lead. Bill Harrington came out to pitch in the bottom of the eighth, and we would go on to lose this one in the end 5-1. Jansen fell to 2-8 with a 4.98 ERA, allowing six hits, two walks and four earned runs with three strikeouts. We matched them with nine hits in total, but they got four of their five runs off just two homers. Metkovich led our team with three hits, a walk and a run, while Spencer had a hit and two RBIs. We got some good news after the game, in that our waiver claim on 26-year-old defensive catcher Del Crandall was executed successfully! The Milwaukee Braves waived him a week ago, despite his .239 average, 10 doubles, 10 homers and +2.0 zone rating ... he’ll take over fur as as our starting catcher, with Joe Astroth covering for him off the bench. His salary of $36,000 has mostly been paid, and will make him one of our top paid players next year, but our catchers were both aging and having a young solid defender is going to help us in the long term. August 19, 1956: Today we have a doubleheader ... Art Ditmar (2-2, 5.26 ERA, 25.2 IP, 12 K’s, 1.40 WHIP) started in the first game against Early Wynn (10-6, 3.52 ERA, 176.1 IP, 101 K’s, 1.33 WHIP). Daryl Spencer again got us into the lead in the top of the first, this time by walking in a run, but they tied it up in the bottom of the first off a passed ball. Pafko batted in a run via Harry Walker from second off a line drive single in the top of the fifth to give us back the lead, but again we collapsed in the bottom of the inning, this time thanks to a Vic Power solo homer, an Al Rosen RBI single and another passed ball. Moe Drabowsky came out in the bottom of the sixth trailing by two, and we were completely outmatched from there, losing 7-3. Ditmar fell to 2-3 with a 4.70 ERA, allowing four hits, three walks and four runs (one earned) with two strikeouts. They outhit us 9-7, our team led by Andy Pafko with a hit and an RBI, and by Spencer who hit once, walked once and batted in a run. Don Mossi (5-5, 3.91 ERA, 76.0 IP, 42 K’s, 1.29 WHIP since coming to Kansas City) started game two, facing Tom Cheney (9-4, 2.36 ERA, 160.1 IP, 114 K’s, 1.21 WHIP). We took the lead in the top of the fourth with a solo homers by Spencer and Bollweg, but Vic Power scored off an RBI single by Al Smith to cut our lead to a run heading into the fifth inning. Mossi got us through the sixth inning without giving up that lead, and Al Gettel came out in the bottom of the seventh, protecting the lead around a pair of hits. Don Bessent came out with one out and men on first and second in the bottom of the eighth, getting the outs we needed, and with our bats unable to buy any insurance runs in the top of the ninth, he stayed out and held his ground as we were able to get out of Cleveland with a 2-1 win. Mossi picked up his sixth win as an Athletic, allowing nine hits with three walks, four strikeouts and a single earned run through six innings. Gettel held it, his fourth this year, and Bessent picked up his 10th save with two walks, a strikeout and no earned runs, bringing his ERA down to 1.12 through 16 innings of work. We’ll now head to Baltimore, where our 48-71 A’s will face their 49-68 Orioles for a pair. Right now we’re in dead last place in the American League, so the most exciting thing yet to come in this season will be the draft class reveal. August 21, 1956: Juan Pizarro (5-16, 3.55 ERA, 185.0 IP, 138 K’s, 1.24 WHIP) pitched against Ruben Gomez (7-13, 3.68 ERA, 186.0 IP, 77 K’s, 1.26 WHIP). We had a 3-0 lead going into the bottom of the fourth, and Pizarro went and got himself smacked down, five runs scoring before he could get out of the bottom frame. Johnny Sain came out in the bottom of the fifth with two outs, a man on first and the lead at 6-3 for the Orioles, and he got rung up in the bottom of the sixth with three more runs. Erskine got us through the remainder of the game, but we lost badly, 9-4. Pizarro took his 17th loss, allowing 10 hits and six earned runs with four walks and four strikeouts and only making it through 4.2 innings. We were outhit 16-10 which certainly didn’t help, but we have made a bad habit out of building leads and then completely collapsing. Andy Pafko led the way with two hits, two runs and two RBIs, while Metkovich added two hits and an RBI. August 22, 1956: Vic Raschi (9-5, 2.91 ERA, 148.2 IP, 66 K’s, 1.17 ERA since coming to Kansas City) pitched against Bob Kuzawa (5-11, 3.98 ERA, 160.2 IP, 85 K’s, 1.49 WHIP) in game two against the Orioles, and we had a chance going into the bottom of the eighth trailing by a single run. But with two outs and men on first and second, Moe Drabowsky let Gus Triandos hit a three-run homer and we were done. We put up no resistance in the top of the ninth and lost this one 6-2. Raschi has gone from winning nine of his first 11 games in a stretch from May 7th through August 1st to losing his last four in a row. Tonight he lasted seven innings with seven hits and three earned runs, no walks, no strikeouts. We matched them with nine hits, Harry Walker leading the way with two hits and a run scored. We’ve got three games now against Washington and a pair on Sunday against the Red Sox and then we get a few days off around a one-game trip to New York, and then a three-game weekend set against Detroit. By then we should be mathematically eliminated from what remains of the pennant chase. August 23, 1956: Larry Jansen (2-8, 4.98 ERA, 90.1 IP, 41 K’s, 1.33 WHIP) pitched against Washington’s Duke Maas (9-8, 3.51 ERA, 136.0 IP, 62 K’s, 1.35 WHIP). In the top of the sixth we took the lead with a sac-fly by Don Bollweg, and Al Gettel came out to protect the lead in the bottom of the sixth, pitching around a single by Eddie Yost to get us out of there still leading by a run, and Bill Harrington did the same in the seventh, though his three outs were split up by a 25-minute rain delay. We added to our lead in the top of the eighth with a two-run homer by Del Crandall, his first as a member of our team, but Harrington gave a run back in the bottom of the inning, so Don Bessent came out with one out and a man on first to get us through. Once again he got our final five outs and we were able to get out of there with a 3-1 victory! Jansen got the win, improving to 3-8 with a three-hitter through five innings, a walk and five strikeouts helping improve his ERA to 4.72. Gettel and Harrington held the lead, and Bessent got his 11th save and second in the last week, getting his ERA down to 1.02 thanks to no hits and a pair of strikeouts. We outhit the Senators 6-5, led by Crandall who had two hits, a walk, a run and two RBIs. August 24, 1956: Art Ditmar (2-3, 4.70 ERA, 30.2 IP, 14 K’s, 1.40 WHIP) pitched against Camilo Pascual (3-18, 5.78 ERA, 187.0 IP, 116 K’s, 1.79 WHIP), and he immediately got spotted a lead when Catfish Metkovich hit a flyball double that drove in a pair for us in the top of the first. Metkovich got another RBI, a single, in the top of the third and Daryl Spencer made it a 4-0 lead with a groundball single of his own. But Drabowsky had to come in for Ditmar in the top of the sixth, bases loaded and no outs, as the young starter did his damndest to blow this one for us, and Drabowsky DID blow it ... his second pitch of the night giving them a grand slam off Willie McCovey’s bat, tying the score at 4-4. We got out of the inning without giving them the lead, but the gutpunch was bad enough on its own. Drabowsky got us through the seventh and eighth without further incident, but, unable to add any runs in the top of the ninth, Al Gettel came out to get us through and into extra innings, and though it took more effort than we’d hoped, he got us there ... with an excellent throw by Metkovich to get the final out of the first nine innings at home plate. Gettel would get us through the 10th inning, and Al Harrington came out for the bottom of the 11th ... he got us through three innings with the score still knotted at four. Don Bessent came out in the bottom of the 14th, at 12:14 a.m., and with the bases loaded in the top of the 15th inning on one out, Del Crandall hit a sac-fly to center field that gave us the lead! Bessent stayed out and got the three outs we needed and we were able to get out of there at nearly one in the morning with a 5-4 victory! Moe Drabowsky could have let that seventh blown save of the year drag him down, but he got us through three innings with just the one hit and a walk, and he was only saddled with a single earned run, so he now has a 5.37 ERA through 58.2 innings. Gettel and Harrington then added five combined innings with two hits, a walk and six strikeouts, setting up Bessent nicely for the win -- he is now 2-1 with a 0.92 ERA after tonight’s two innings without a baserunner, with 12 K’s through 17 innings as well. We outhit them 19-7 through 15 innings, so it would have been maddening to lose this one. Metkovich hit three times with three RBIs, Spencer had four hits, a walk and an RBI, and Danny O’Connell had three hits and scored three himself as we won our 50th game of the season. August 25, 1956: Don Mossi (6-5, 3.73 ERA, 82.0 IP, 46 K’s, 1.34 WHIP) pitched against Bill Kennedy (1-3, 4.78 ERA, 99.0 IP, 57 K’s, 1.56 WHIP). We took a 2-0 lead in the top of the fourth thanks to an RBI single by Metkovich and a groundout to first by Crandall. We added a pair in the top of the sixth to give Mossi more breathing room thanks to singles by Spencer and Mossi himself, but our starters continue to collapse in the middle innings ... this time Mossi couldn’t handle himself in the bottom of the sixth, loading the bases and walking in a run, though he got out of the inning without doing a ton of damage. Carl Erskine came out to pitch in the bottom of the seventh, still leading by three runs, and he completed the three-inning save as we held tough to win 4-1. Mossi improved to 7-5 with a 3.58 ERA since joining our team, allowing four hits with four walks and three strikeouts with just the one earned run, while Erskine’s third save improved his ERA to 3.53 through 132.2 innings (20 of them out of the bullpen). We outhit the Senators 10-6, led by Metkovich who hit twice, walked once, scoring a run and batting in another. We remain in last place in the AL, just half a game behind the Senators with our record now at 51-73 ... another dozen wins and we can say we improved over last season’s first year in Kansas City. Boston (58-66) will now host us for a pair before we then travel to New York to play a Wednesday game against the 81-45 Yankees. We’ll then play three against Detroit (65-57) before returning home where we’ll play 19 of our last 24 games. __________________ "Campus Chronicles" -- The Indiana Hoosiers in a New College World (An OOTP 27 Dynasty) Online Leagues Modern Baseball (Chicago White Sox) Championship Baseball League (Winnipeg Goldeye) WPORBL 55 (Chicago Cubs) WPORBL 74 (Oakland A's) WPORBL 94 (Montreal Expos) WPOBL (Cincinnati Reds) Last edited by jksander; 09-12-2024 at 12:59 PM.

09-13-2024, 09:37 AM	#55
jksander All Star Starter Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Indianapolis IN Posts: 1,908	September 11, 1956: We head into the Yankees series with our record at 57-80, just half a game out of a seventh place tie with Washington (58-80) and Baltimore (57-79). Juan Pizarro (6-18, 3.59 ERA, 210.1 IP, 158 K’s, 1.25 WHIP) pitched against New York’s Don Larsen (10-7, 3.55 ERA, 106.1 IP, 56 K’s, 1.40 WHIP), and the Yankees made it clear from the beginning they were all about winning ... Hank Bauer led off with a homer in the top of the first, and Pizarro got shelled, giving up five runs before we ever batted. He made it through five innings, and then Carl Erskine came out with the score 6-2 Yankees, to take over in the top of the sixth. Catfish Metkovich had to be pulled in the top of the eighth, and his season’s over ... bone chips in his elbow ... and this game was never close as the Yankees crushed us 8-3. Pizarro fell to 6-19 with a 3.76 ERA, allowing six hits, three walks and six earned runs through five innings with three strikeouts. Erskine got us through the rest with four hits, two earned runs and two strikeouts, and we were only outhit 10-9. Harry Walker led the way with three hits, a walk and an RBI, while Metkovich hit twice, walked once and never made it around to score in his final game of the season. September 12, 1956: Art Ditmar (2-4, 5.05 ERA, 41.0 IP, 22 K’s, 1.49 WHIP) pitched against Billy O’Dell (19-10, 2.64 ERA, 252.2 IP, 138 K’s, 1.12 WHIP). New York had a 4-0 lead heading into the top of the fifth, and after an RBI double by Andy Carey, Walt Craddock wound up replacing Ditmar without a single out in the fifth. He gave up four runs without an out, but Portocarrero was able to put out the fire and get three outs with two of their runners stranded -- but by then we were down 9-0. New York unleashed on us and it was depressing and embarassing; they won 14-0. None of our pitchers looked good in this one, and we were outhit 17-4, leaving three runners in scoring position as we were shut out completely. September 13, 1956: Vic Raschi (10-8, 3.49 ERA, 170.1 IP, 68 K’s, 1.23 WHIP) pitched against Vinegar Bend Mizell (23-6, 2.59 ERA, 267.2 IP, 102 K’s, 1.12 WHIP). Hank Bauer led off in the top of the sixth with a solo bomb out of right, his 16th of the season, and that was all they needed, beating us 1-0 to complete the sweep. They outhit us 6-5, and though Raschi only gave up three hits with three walks and an earned run, he still took the loss. They had our number the entire series, and it was clear they want to clinch and get those World Series paychecks. September 14, 1956: Don Mossi (8-6, 3.91 ERA, 103.2 IP, 56 K’s, 1.37 WHIP) pitched against Washington’s Mickey McDermott (8-13, 3.85 ERA, 170.2 IP, 84 K’s, 1.61 WHIP). We took a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the fourth thanks to RBI doubles by Bill Wilson and Harry Walker and an RBI single by Danny O’Connell, and we still led by three when Al Gettel came out to pitch in the top of the seventh. Erskine got us through the eighth, and Bessert came out to close things out, completing the 3-0 shutout in our favor. Mossi improved to 9-6, allowing two hits with three strikeouts in his six innings, and Gettel (#6) and Erskine (#3) held it while Bessert earned his 13th save of the year ... those three combined for three hitless innings, walking one and striking out a pair ... we outhit Washington 9-2, led by O’Connell with three hits, a walk and an RBI. September 15, 1956: Larry Jansen (4-9 ,5.16 ERA, 106.1 IP, 50 K’s, 1.34 WHIP) pitched against Dean Stone (6-5, 3 SV, 4.17 ERA, 82.0 IP, 43 K’s, 1.44 WHIP). The Senators took the lead with an RBI single by Ed Fitz Gerald in the top of the second, but we took control in the bottom of the seventh, tying it with an RBI single by Bollweg, taking the lead with a sac-fly by DeMaestri, and then adding on with an RBI single by Bill Wilson, giving us a 3-1 lead heading into the top of the eighth. We added on four more in the bottom of the eighth, and though Eddie Yost hit a solo homer in the top of the ninth, Jansen then got three quick outs to end this as a 7-2 complete-game beatdown. He only allowed five hits and a walk with four strikeouts and two earned runs, improving his record to 5-9 with a 4.92 ERA. We outhit the Senators 14-5, led by Bill Wilson with three hits and three RBIs, while Walker, Pafko, Spencer and Bollweg each had two hits. The Yankees could be able to clinch the pennant tomorrow with their doubleheader against Cleveland ... their magic number is four. Brooklyn currently leads Milwaukee by half a game, and their magic number remains at 12. Milwaukee would love the chance to beat out the Dodgers, as they haven’t made it to the World Series since 1948 ... it would be a huge win for a small market. September 16, 1956: We have a doubleheader today against Baltimore (58-83), our final doubleheader of the season! We drew 11,000 fans for the first game, Sam Jones facing Ruben Gomez (9-15, 3.80 ERA, 215.2 IP, 94 K’s, 1.34 WHIP). It didn’t go well ... he got shellacked, giving up eight runs in the first three innings ... by the time Al Gettel came out, one out and a man on third, we were down 8-0. Johnny Sain came out to pitch in the top of the sixth trailing 9-2, and he finished the game, giving up three more in the top of the ninth as we got stomped 12-4. Jones is now 1-2 since coming to the Athletics, but his ERA took a real beating today, allowing six hits, seven walks and nine runs in 2.1 innings. This will likely be his last start, he can finish the season in the bullpen and regroup. Juan Pizarro (6-19, 3.76 ERA, 215.1 IP, 161 K’s, 1.26 WHIP) pitched against Bob Kuzava (7-12, 3.87 ERA, 197.2 IP, 109 K’s, 1.44 WHIP) in the afternoon’s second game, and Baltimore took an early 2-0 lead in the first three innings, but we climbed back in ... DeMaestri hit an RBI double in the bottom of the fourth, and Daryl Spencer batted in two more with a single in the bottom of the fifth to push us into the lead 3-2. Pizarro got us through the sixth for another quality start, and Arnie Portocarrero came out in the top of the seventh to protect the one run lead. He got us through the eighth unscathed, and Moe Drabowsky came out to pitch in the ninth, getting three quick outs as we held tough to win 3-2! Pizarro picked up the win, improving to 7-19 with a 3.74 ERA, allowing six hits, with two walks and two earned runs, striking out six tonight. Portocarrero got his first hold of the year, going two innings with just one hit, and Drabowsky saved his sixth game, one hit and two strikeouts getting his ERA down to 5.14 through 70 innings. We outhit Baltimore 10-8 in this one, led by Daryl Spencer with two hits, a walk, a run and two RBIs as we won our 60th game of the season. Cleveland and New York split their series, so the Yankees will head on the road Tuesday to play a game in Chicago, where a win would allow them to clinch the pennant. Cleveland, at this point, would need to win out and have the Yankees lose the rest of the way, to get over their 8.5 game deficit, so it’s less a matter of if New York will clinch but when. Meanwhile, Brooklyn and Milwaukee keep trading places, and that one’s looking like the best pennant race the NL’s seen in years. The two teams have no more head-to-head matchups, so it’s going to come down to who can beat the teams they need to beat to stay ahead. September 18, 1956: Art Ditmar (2-5, 5.80 ERA, 45.0 IP, 24 K’s, 1.62 WHIP) pitched against Willard Nixon (10-9, 4.43 ERA, 203.0 IP, 110 K’s, 1.55 WHIP) in the first of two games we have against Boston this week -- the last two games against them this season. We took the lead in the bottom of the fourth with an RBI single by Bollweg, but Boston tied it up in the top of the fifth with a single by Sammy White, taking the lead in the top of the sixth with an RBI single by Willie Jones. But we picked up four runs in the bottom of that inning thanks to an RBI single by Spencer, a two-run single by Ditmar and an RBI single by Walker. Bill Harrington came out to pitch in the top of the seventh, and he and Erskine held the lead for Bessent, who came out in the ninth with a two-run advantage. He got two pop-outs and a strikeout as we won this one 5-3! Ditmar improved to 3-5 with a five hit, two walk, two strikeout, two earned run effort, and Harrington (#2) and Erskine (#4) held the lead, allowing Bessent to save his 14th game ... the 25-year-old has a 1.17 ERA through 23 innings in his rookie campaign. We outhit Boston 9-7, led by Bollweg who had four hits, a run and an RBI ... the 35-year-old journeyman is having a breakout season due to injuries, and has his batting average above .240 for the first time in four years. The Yankees lost 3-2 to the White Sox, so they’ll have to wait until this weekend at Fenway to again try to clinch the pennant. September 19, 1956: Vic Raschi (10-9, 3.42 ERA, 176.1 IP, 70 K’s, 1.22 WHIP) pitched against Boston’s Frank Sullivan (10-12, 4.37 ERA, 222.1 IP, 104 K’s, 1.38 WHIP), and they quickly took a two-run lead in the first and built on it. Craddock came out to pitch with two outs and men on first and second in the top of the fourth, trailing 6-0, and we never really recoved ... they’d go on to beat us soundly 8-4. Raschi took the loss, allowing five hits, five walks and six runs (five earned) in 3.2 innings to set us up poorly. Boston outhit us 10-8, Spencer and Bollweg leading the way with a hit, a run and an RBI each. Henry Walker is going to be out the remainder of the season due to back spasms. He’ll finish the year with a .226 average, 16 doubles, a pair of triples and a homer ... he batted in 17 runs and put up -0.9 WAR through 403 plate appearances, his defensive regression in right field making it questionable whether we’ll keep him around next year; he turns 40 in October and may not be worth even a steeply discounted arb rate to keep him on the roster. September 21, 1956: We’re on the road this weekend in Chicago for our final road stretch ... three games against the 75-70 White Sox and two in Cleveland (87-59), before we wrap up the season with three against the White Sox back in Kansas City. We’re 61-85 heading into the homestretch, with eight chances to win the two games that we need to beat last year’s mark, all remaining games against teams with winning records. Don Mossi (9-6, 3.69 ERA, 109.2 IP, 59 K’s, 1.31 WHIP) pitched tonight against Billy Pierce (18-11, 2.52 ERA, 264.0 IP, 182 K’s, 1.11 WHIP). Chicago took control in the bottom of the fourth with a pair of runs and they added three more in the sixth as they went on to beat us easily 5-0. Mossi fell to 9-7 with a six hit, two walk, five run game though only two of the runs were earned. Sam Jones pitched two innings in relief, allowing one hit and four walks, and they only outhit us 7-6, but they were great at keeping us from stringing them together ... nobody on our team made it on base twice. September 22, 1956: Juan Pizarro (7-19, 3.74 ERA, 221.1 IP, 167 K’s, 1.26 WHIP) started against John Harshmann (14-9, 217.1 IP, 112 K’s, 1.26 WHIP). Andy Pafko batted in a run with a single in the top of the third to give us the lead, and we added on on the fifth with a walk by Crandall and a hit into a fielder’s choice by DeMaestri. Pizarro tried to stay out in the sixth, but an RBI triple by Minnie Minoso without an out led us to go to Drabowsky in the bullpen with the lead still 3-1. He walked a batter but was able to get all three outs with Minoso stranded at third, and Carl Erskine came out in the bottom of the seventh, handling his business to keep the lead safe into the ninth inning. Don Bessent came out in the bottom of the inning with a two run lead, pitching around a Clint Courtney single to get the outs we needed, beating the White Sox 3-1 for our 62nd win of the year, tying last year’s mark! Pizarro improved to 8-19 with four hits, two walks and an earned run through five innings, and Drabowsky (#9) and Erskine (#5) held the lead, Bessent earning his 15th save with just one hit. We outhit the White Sox 7-6, led by Bollweg (two hits, a walk and a run) and Crandall (a hit, a walk and an RBI). The Yankees are letting Cleveland keep their foot in the door ... They have lost the first two games against Boston 6-1 and 3-2, their losing streak now at four games. Cleveland has now won four in a row, beating the Yankees 4-2 on the 16th, Washington 5-4 on the 18th, and then winning the first two against Detroit on the road this weekend 3-2 and 3-2. If the Yankees lose against Boston tomorrow and the Guardians pick up a win in Detroit, we’ll have a chance to potentially knock them out ourselves when we go to Cleveland this week! September 23, 1956: Larry Jansen (5-9, 4.92 ERA, 115.1 IP, 54 K’s, 1.29 WHIP) started the final game in Chicago against Connie Johnson (8-15, 4.68 ERA, 213.1 IP, 146 K’s, 1.57 WHIP). Chicago took control early, scoring in the second, fourth and sixth innings to build a 3-0 lead. Bill Harrington came out to pitch in the top of the sixth and allowed that third run, but he kept us in the game after a Del Crandall solo homer got us on the board in the top of the seventh. Moe Drabowsky got us through the eighth inning, and in the top of the ninth we tied it up with Crandall’s second homer of the night, this one a two-run blast! “Cool Moe D” kept his composure in the bottom of the ninth and we were headed for extra innings! Don Bessent came out with men on first and second in the bottom of the 10th, no outs, and with the bases loaded, he got Larry Doby to hit into a 3-2-3 double play to leave just Minoso at third, Clint Courtney coming to the plate. A groundout to first and he’d escaped the high leverage death trap and given us another shot! Unfortunately our bats were silent in the extra innings and in the bottom of the 11th, on two outs, they walked it off with a single by Nellie Fox and we lost 4-3. Bessent took the loss, falling to 3-2 despite only allowing one hit, two walks and an unearned run in his 1.2 innings. We outhit them 9-8 but just couldn’t finish ... Crandall had two homers to lead the way, while Spencer added two hits, a run and an RBI. Sorry, Cleveland fans ... New York got themselves a 2-1 win in Boston, officially clinching the pennant. Milwaukee, meanwhile, has a 1.5 game lead now on the Brooklyn Dodgers, and their magic number is now at just four ... but with no head-to-head games, that one will come down to the final day of games. They need to win out, since Brooklyn plays their last five games at home against Philly (54-95) and Pittsburgh (74-76), while Milwaukee has one on the road in Cincinnati (73-78) left and three more in St. Louis (79-70). I certainly don’t envy the Braves their heartburn down the stretch. __________________ "Campus Chronicles" -- The Indiana Hoosiers in a New College World (An OOTP 27 Dynasty) Online Leagues Modern Baseball (Chicago White Sox) Championship Baseball League (Winnipeg Goldeye) WPORBL 55 (Chicago Cubs) WPORBL 74 (Oakland A's) WPORBL 94 (Montreal Expos) WPOBL (Cincinnati Reds)

09-14-2024, 11:30 AM	#56
jksander All Star Starter Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Indianapolis IN Posts: 1,908	September 25, 1956: Vic Raschi (10-10, 3.60 ERA, 180.0 IP, 71 K’s, 1.26 WHIP) pitched against Herb Score (10-7, 4.05 ERA, 189.0 IP, 165 K’s, 1.50 WHIP) in the first game of two in Cleveland this week. We put up three runs in the top of the first, and then let them get all three back in the bottom of the inning plus a pair in the second to take control. Arnie Portocarrero came out of the pen in the fifth inning and it was downhill from there. We would go on to lose this one 8-3. Raschi allowed five earned runs off nine hits and a walk in the first four innings, and Portocarrero lasted three innings with five hits, a walk, three strikeouts and three earned runs. They outhit us 15-4, Crandall leading the way with a hit and two RBIs. September 26, 1956: Art Ditmar (3-5, 5.47 ERA, 51.0 IP, 26 K’s, 1.57 WHIP) pitched against Mike Garcia (16-8, 2.71 ERA, 246.0 IP, 152 K’s, 1.18 WHIP). Cleveland scored first in the bottom of the second inning, but we tied it up on a wild pitch in the top of the third, and an RBI single by Ditmar plus an E9 error allowed DeMaestri and Paddock to score, putting us in the lead 3-1! Bill Wilson hit a solo homer to add on in the top of the sixth, but Ditmar loaded the bases and let a run score on a wild pitch in the bottom of the sixth, bringing Drabowsky in with no outs and men on second and third. A strikeout and a groundout got us two outs, but we lost control from there ... Mike Garcia singled in two runs to tie it up, Bobby Avila batted in two more with a single, and with the bases loaded Sam Jones finally got us the final out after relieving Drabowsky. We went into the top of the seventh trailing 6-4. Carl Erskine came out to pitch after the stretch, and he got us through the remainder of the game but our bats stayed silent and we lost this one by two runs, blowing a great chance to steal a road win. Drabowsky blew his eighth save and fell to 1-9 with a 5.13 ERA, though he only allowed two hits and two earned runs ... Ditmar dug his own grave in the bottom of the sixth with extremely sloppy play, allowing four hits, two walks and four runs (three earned) in his five innings. They outhit us 8-7, and it was Ditmar with a hit and two RBIs who built the lead in the first place, so I guess that’s a wash. We’ll finish the season with a three game series in Kansas City against the White Sox, who come into it with a 79-72 record. September 28, 1956: Juan Pizarro (8-19, 3.70 ERA, 226.1 IP, 167 K’s, 1.26 WHIP) pitched his final start of his rookie campaign, facing Chicago’s Jack Harshman (14-10, 2.37 ERA, 224.1 IP, 117 K’s, 1.27 WHIP). Pizarro got destroyed in this one, giving up six runs in the first and another in the third, getting replaced by Johnny Sain with the lead 7-3 for Chicago heading into the top of the fourth. We went on to lose this one 10-6 and looked absolutely lost out there. Pizarro took his 20th loss of the year, allowing nine hits, two walks and seven runs, ONLY TWO OF WHICH WERE EARNED. Jesus ... we were out hit 16-11, so it didn’t matter. Pafko had a hit and two RBIs and Bill Wilson added two hits, a run and an RBI. September 29, 1956: Don Mossi (9-7, 3.66 ERA, 115.2 IP, 61 K’s, 1.31 WHIP) pitched against Connie Johnson (8-15, 4.59 ERA, 223.1 IP, 155 K’s, 1.55 WHIP). Daryl Spencer batted in a run with a single in the bottom of the first, but Nellie Fox hit an RBI single to tie it up in the top of the third, and there the score stayed. Carl Erskine came out to pitch in the top of the eighth still knotted up 1-1, and finally we got the lead back with a Pafko solo homer, his 20th of the season, bringing out Bessent in the top of the ninth to close. He got three quick outs and we shut this one down as a 2-1 victory, our 63rd -- so at least we can say we showed a slight improvement this season. Mossi lasted seven innings with four hits, two walks, five strikeouts and an earned run, but it was Erskine (5-5, 3.44 ERA) who came away with the win, and Bessent saved his 16th game without allowing a baserunner in this one. We outhit them 6-5, led by O’Connell who had a two hits and a run. Andy Pafko also batted in the 1,000th run of his career, giving the 35-year-old 93 batted in this season. September 30, 1956: One last game before another season is in the books, and we’re guaranteed not to finish last in the American League. Larry Jansen (5-9, 4.86 ERA, 120.1 IP, 54 K’s, 1.29 WHIP) pitched against Bob Rush (13-7, 2.99 ERA, 195.1 IP, 108 K’s, 1.28 WHIP). Daryl Spencer hit into a fielder’s choice in the bottom of the first, batting in a run to put us up 1-0. But the White Sox put up three in the top of the fourth, added three in the seventh, and cruised to victory over us 7-1 in the end. Jansen threw 121 pitches and lasted six innings, allowing five hits, seven walks and three (unearned) runs, while Sam Jones pitched the remainder of the game and allowed four more. They outhit us 11-5, O’Connell again leading the way with two hits and a run. We’ll finish the season with a record of 63-91, only marginally better than last year, and though I think my job is safe for now, it’s hard to feel overly confident. - - - - - Milwaukee’s Braves clinched the NL pennant with a 4-2 win over St. Louis this afternoon. The 95-59 Braves finished one game up on the 94-60 Dodgers, who will have to lick their wounds and try again next year despite leading the majors with a +244 run differential. The Braves will face the Yankees, owners of a 100-54 record, in this year’s World Series. Milwaukee has home field advantage, game one set to take place on October 3rd. October 3, 1956: Ray Crone (17-9, 2.66 ERA, 216.2 IP, 101 K’s, 1.05 WHIP) faced off against Vinegar Bend Mizell (25-7, 2.47 ERA, 295.2 IP, 198 K’s, 1.10 WHIP) as the World Series got started in Milwaukee this afternoon in front of 46,000 eager Braves fans. The Yankees took a 1-0 lead in the top of the fifth with a walk by Mickey Mantle, but the Braves struck back hard in the bottom of the seventh with a two-run homer by Bobby Morgan, an RBI double by Hector Lopez and a beanball that hit Joe Adcock, driving in their fourth run. Milwaukee held tough from there and won this one 4-1, Warren Hacker taking the win and Windy McCall earning a save. The Braves outhit the Bronx Bombers 9-7, led by Bobby Morgan, who hit twice, scoring a run and batting in two. October 4, 1956: Bob Buhl (10-8, 4.48 ERA, 196.2 IP, 91 K’s, 1.45 WHIP) went up against New York’s Whitey Ford (11-8, 4.08 ERA, 185.1 IP, 113 K’s, 1.52 WHIP) as the Braves looked to take a commanding lead in the series. But New York had other plans ... after letting Milwaukee take a 1-0 lead after one, they rattled off 10 runs in the second, third and fourth, dominating the remainder to win easily 11-3. The Yankees outhit Milwaukee 17-8, led by Woodie Held (three hits, two runs, three RBIs) and Andy Carey (three hits, a walk, three runs and an RBI). Whitey Ford pitched the entire game and struck out seven against two walks, allowing just two earned runs out of the three they scored. October 6, 1956: New York swiped homefield advantage with the road win in game two. Milwaukees’ Warren Spahn (20-10, 2.81 ERA, 285.1 IP, 116 K’s, 1.18 WHIP) went up against the Yankees’ Johnny Kucks (4-4, 2 SV, 4.71 ERA, 107.0 IP, 37 K’s, 1.51 WHIP) in game three, and while the Braves took a 2-0 lead in the fourth and added a run in the fifth and two more in the eighth, the Yankees struck back in the bottom of the eighth ... Bill Skowron hit an RBI triple to drive in Mantle and Berra, and Elston Howard hit a double that pushed Skowron in to tie it up 5-5, and this one would go into extra innings! Milwaukee took a 6-5 lead in the top of the 10th thanks to a Jack Shepard RBI single, and they were able to hold on to steal a win in Yankee Stadium by a one run margin ... advantage flips back to Milwaukee! The Braves outhit New York 12-10, led by Joe Adcock who hit three times with two runs and two more batted in. Reliever Don McMahon took the win despite allowing four hits in his two innings. Mantle hit three times for a run, giving him a .455 average through three games, but the Yankees were denied. October 7, 1956: Milwaukee’s Lew Burdette (13-8, 3.76 ERA, 205.2 IP, 70 K’s, 1.15 WHIP) got the start in game four against New York’s Hal Brown (3-2, 2.47 ERA, 43.2 IP, 14 K’s, 0.89 WHIP). New York got going with a two-run Mantle homer in the bottom of the first, but Eddie Mathews hit a solo bomb in the top of the fourth and Jack Shepard tied the score with an RBI single. An RBI triple by Del Ennis pushed Milwaukee into the lead 3-2 in the top of the fifth, and they added on three more in the top of the sixth as this one threatened to turn into a rout! New York never recovered, and the Braves held tough to win 6-3 and take a 3-1 series lead into the final game in New York tomorrow night! Milwaukee outhit New York 10-8, led by Ennis’ four hits and two RBIs. Mantle batted in three runs, but the New York bats were conspicuously silent outside of his. And the Yankees manager is going to catch fire for choosing not to start ace and likely Cy Young winner Vinegar Bend Mizell on short rest. October 8, 1956: Ray Crone and Vinegar Bend Mizell faced off once again in game five, with everything on the line for the Yankees. They beat the Dodgers four games to two last year, but can feel it all slipping through their fingers this time around, against an opponent they didn’t take nearly seriously enough. Mantle batted in a run with a single in the bottom of the fourth to put the Yanks up 1-0, and Tony Kubek batted in an insurance run for them in the bottom of the seventh, driving in Skowron to put them up 2-0. They wound go on to win the game 3-0 to push this series back to Milwaukee for a game six, outhitting the Braves 9-3 in the shutout -- Mizell had just three hits, two walks and six strikeouts in the commanding win. Mickey Mantle hit twice for a run and an RBI, and he’s hitting .444 this series, but the rest of his team needs to step up if the Yankees think they can take this when it gets back to Wisconsin. October 10, 1956: Bob Buhl and Whitey Ford faced off in Milwaukee as game six got underway, the Braves leading the Yankees three games to two. Yogi Berra batted in three runs with a double in the top of the first, but Milwaukee answered fast -- Del Ennis walked in a run, and then Joe Adcock hit a grand slam homer to put the Braves up 5-3 after just one inning! The Yankees tied it up 5-5 in the top of the eighth, thanks to a two-run single by sparkplug Billy Martin, and this one went into extra innings, the second game to do so in the series. Elston Howard hit a solo homer to put the Yanks up 6-5 in the top of the 10th, but Eddie Mathews batted in a run with a single to tie it up in the bottom of the inning. Mickey Mantle scored on an E6 error that allowed Joe Collins to take first in the top of the 12th, but in the bottom of the inning the Braves again had an answer -- Hector Lopez hit a groundball single, and an E8 error allowed Johnny Logan to tie the game up at seven. Growing desperate, the Yankees powered themselves into the lead with a two-run homer in the top of the 15th, and that proved to be enough ... there will be a game seven, as New York took this one 9-7 in an epic showdown! The Yankees outhit Milwaukee 12-8, led by Howard who hit twice with three runs and three RBIs. But they’re going to regret the strain this game put on their bullpen -- Ford didn’t even make it out of the first inning, giving up two hits, two walks and five runs (four earned) without even getting an out! Five Yankee arms combined to finish the 15 inning marathon, Johnny Kucks taking the win with three hits and two strikeouts after coming in for the 13th inning and beyond. October 11, 1956: There’s nothing finer in sports than a game seven! The Yankees had no choice but to go back to their ace, Vinegar Bend Mizell, on three days’ rest, to face Milwaukee’s Warren Spahn. Woodie Held batted Mantle in from second in the top of the first to give the Yankees an early lead, and a groundout by Hank Bauer allowed a run to score in the second as they built on the lead. But in the bottom of the fifth, Milwaukee unleashed the kraken, Joe Adcock scoring off a fielder’s choice, Jack Shepard taking first, and just moments later Johnny Logan hit a three-run homer to give the Braves a 4-2 lead. That took any wind the Yankees had left out of their sails, and the Braves cruised to victory, 4-2! New York outhit them 7-6, but Logan’s three RBIs won the game, Spahn picking up the win and Warren Hacker finishing with a save. Mizell lasted the complete game with six hits, four earned runs and just three strikeouts to go with his three walks. Mantle and Howard, meanwhile, were the only Yankees to finish above .300 for the series. The Milwaukee Braves are your World Series Champions, beating the Yankees four games to three! This was their second World Series title, the first coming in 1914, and it was only their third World Series appearance. OOC: The poor Yankees couldn’t pull off the back to back titles, as unlike in real life, 27-year-old Don Larsen didn’t end up pitching in game five and dominating with his perfect game. It was a close series all around, but these Yankees looked weak out of the gate and Milwaukee just never let up. Could this be a signal that the Yankees are ready to be taken down? It will be interesting to see how 1957 plays out, with the Braves a year ahead of schedule. Our record of 63-91 finished 11 games ahead of their real life counterpart, and while the situation didn’t improve much for them in 1957 (59 wins) I am hopeful we can make some moves and get much better in the coming year. - - - - - October 12, 1956: We only have 11 players in our system who are potentially eligible to enter free agency. Six of them have been offered minor league extensions, but the remainder, including Bill Renna and Bob Trice, are being released outright. October 16, 1956: The draft pool has been announced, and as a lover of killer pitching arms, I would love to get our hands on Bob Gibson, a 20-year-old phenom out of college who would immediately give us a brutal rotation ... but our second-from-last finish puts Baltimore and Philadelphia ahead of us in the draft order, and I think Pittsburgh gets a comp pick ahead of us as well. If either of those teams passes on Gibson they should fire their GM immediately. There are other good guys in the mix, but we’re not settled on who we’re going to aim our best resources after. We should know more in a few weeks after some serious scouting. October 20, 1956: *Kansas City owner Richard Doyle has offered me a two year extension to my contract, worth $14,000 per year through 1958.* His biggest emphasis is on getting our attendance up, continuing to build our farm and improving my draft record, and he expects us to be playing much closer to .500 ball if I expect to stay on his good side. He’s currently unhappy with my progress, and if we’re not on track by midseason I expect that two year extension will barely be worth the paper the ink is on. So we better get cracking.He’s siphoned off our cash, which is going to make my job doubly hard ... how we do in the draft is going to go a long way to how our season looks as it comes flying toward us. We have a budget of $950,000, which suggests anything over $850,000 in payroll is going to be a problem -- and right now we’re looking at $902,000 in contract related expenses. __________________ "Campus Chronicles" -- The Indiana Hoosiers in a New College World (An OOTP 27 Dynasty) Online Leagues Modern Baseball (Chicago White Sox) Championship Baseball League (Winnipeg Goldeye) WPORBL 55 (Chicago Cubs) WPORBL 74 (Oakland A's) WPORBL 94 (Montreal Expos) WPOBL (Cincinnati Reds) Last edited by jksander; 09-14-2024 at 01:12 PM.

09-14-2024, 01:16 PM	#57
jksander All Star Starter Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Indianapolis IN Posts: 1,908	November 15, 1956: We have the fifth pick in the first round of this year’s Amateur Draft, behind Philly at #1, Baltimore (#2), Pittsburgh (Comp, #3) and Washington (#4). Philly, as expected, took Bob Gibson off the board; Baltimore then took SP Mike Cuellar, a raw but intriguing 19-year-old lefty, with their #2 pick. Pittsburgh kept the pitching run going, taking 17-year-old lefty SP Claude Osteen off the board ... Washington then took LF Tommy Davis, a 17-year-old with a ton of contact and power potential, bringing us up to the plate. Here are our top picks from this year’s draft: ROUND 1, Pick 5 -- SP Milt Pappas Pappas, even at age 17, has the durability and skill to be a top-tier starter at the major league level. Once he reaches his peak control, he’ll be able to attack hitters with a plus changeup, a slider with hard bite and a decent fastball. He’s got stamina for days, as well, so he’s not a guy you have to worry about whether he’ll rack up innings. ROUND 2, Pick 22 -- 1B Walt Bond Bond may be primarily a first baseman now, but he has the arm to become a solid outfielder defensively at both left and right, with great range and an ability to hit both for contact and power while avoiding K’s. He’s already an advanced hitter for his age, with raw strength and quick wrists. He’s also an average runner who manages to deliver above average stolen bases. ROUND 3, Pick 42 -- RP Bob Miller Miller, at 17, shows strong potential toward becoming an eventual setup man out of the pen. He’s got above average stuff and good ball movement, his bread and butter being a good changeup and an above-average fastball. ROUND 4, Pick 58 -- RP Dean Skidgel Skidgel is a 21-year-old left-handed reliever who shows the potential to have top-tier control over his arsenal. A real worm killer who generates a ton of groundballs, his control helping him make the best of what is really just fringey stuff. If he can improve his movement, he’ll be a keeper. If he can’t, he’ll spend his career in the minors. But I like his basic skillset and think he can do well here. ROUND 5, Pick 74 -- 2B Jack Damaska Lean and athletic, Damaska hails from Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, and grades out as a solid runner, makes the routine plays consistently and struggles to make contact. I like him primarily as a defensive sparkplug, with above average potential both in the infield and out, with good range around the diamond and an uncanny ability to create double play opportunities. He’s 19 and raw, so it’ll be a while before we see what the kid can do, but I think he’ll make it. Beyond that level the talent overall drops off significantly, though I’m sure there will be plenty of young surprises who develop well in our minor league system. December 20, 1956: We used a Rule 5 pick to bring in second baseman Bob Lillis, age 26, from the Brooklyn Dodgers. Lillis is a known clubhouse leader, and our players are already excited to have him on the team, even if it will be as a utility player off the bench. Lillis makes good contact and does well to avoid K’s, and can competantly play second base and shortstop. We and the Cubs were the only teams to draft anyone this year, so we got our pick of the litter. January 16, 1957: Hall of Fame voting has finished, and again nobody even came close to earning enough votes to get through ... the national press is full of guys who never played the game and who think anyone outside the hallowed early days of baseball is unworthy of the Hall. It’ll be interesting to see if that changes in the coming years or not. The good news is, for now, our owner at least is now satisfied, thanks to the early ticket sales we’ve been bringing in plus our solid draft ... Bob Lee is up to #40 in the latest BNN ratings, out of last year’s draft, and Chris Cannizaro, the catcher we took that year, is up to #86. And once we get ratings back on the current year’s draftees, I think he’ll be even happier. Just have to stay off the hot seat long enough to keep building the team’s foundation. We have a list of guys we’d like to offload, but owners around the league are being incredibly stingy with their cash, and apparently they think that just because we’re based in Kansas City we’re a bunch of rubes who would trade a stud like Pizarro for $25K and the keys to a rusted out junk bucket. No sale. So my goal for the offseason is to have us in a position to be cash positive and then play with the hand we’ve been dealt. I think we have the groundwork laid for a significant improvement this year. February 4, 1957: We got some great news out of our development facility about right fielder Thomas Paddock, 23, who got 52 games and 163 plate appearances last season at the MLB level. Paddock had outstanding results training to improve his defense in right field, and he saw significant improvement. He’s still essentially a bench-level option because of his weak contact, but he hits well via gap power (four doubles and six homers in limited action) and with his solid defensive improvements, he’s not a bad late-game option beyond just pinch hitting. February 17, 1957: We just got solid news from Richard Doyle, our owner ... he’s happy enough with how the draft went that he’s increased our budget from $950,000 to $1.1 million, which will allow us to not have to sell off any contracts to remain solvent. It won’t, however, allow us to go out and buy anybody off another team and increase our payroll by any significant measure, so mostly he’s saying he won’t be actively trying to penny pinch us to death all year ... or at least for the time being. Last year we averaged 8,400 fans in attendance, and this year advance ticket sales suggest we could see closer to 9,500 this year, with tickets selling for $1.25 per fan, which is only a 4.8% increase. So we’ll see ... there’s room for those prices to come down early in the season if it means packing more fans into the place as we fight to stay above .500 ... Spring training begins March 11th, and this year we open at home in Kansas City April 16-17 with games against the Detroit Tigers. And unlike last year we have the bulk of our early games at home ... aside from five games (three in Chicago and two in Detroit), 16 of our first 21 games are on our own field -- that should help us find firmer footing early on. We also don’t have any doubleheaders until May 12th, and there are only six of those before the All Star break and 13 during the season as a whole. March 11, 1957: Spring training starts today against the Yankees, and we’ve got 43 players currently invited to participate: *Catcher* Del Crandall Joe Astroth Chris Cannizaro Cannizaro is likely to remain in the minors, but we want to see what he can do. *First Base* Harry Walker Don Bollweg Walt Bond Walker is now 40 years old, and Bollweg is 36 ... Bond may need a little time in the minors to gain some seasoning, but he’s almost certain to come up at some point this season ... he’s definitely our future at the position at the moment. *Second Base* Danny O’Connell Spook Jacobs Bob Lillis Lillis has to stay up as a Rule 5 pick, so most likely Spook Jacobs is going to remain at AAA this year, but it’s good to see what he can handle. The 31-year-old is aware that he’s been kept around as middle infield insurance, but still wants to be able to play so this is his chance to show he can still keep up. Everyone at the position is 30+ though, and O’Connell put up 3.4 WAR last year so his starting spot is pretty much assured. *Third Base* Daryl Spencer Martin Rosell Rosell only played in two September games last year, so the 21-year-old is untested. But he hit .247/.335/.388 in AAA and put up 1.3 WAR. He’s definitely a solid backup, and is definitely going to make the official opening day roster out of necessity. *Shortstop* Joe DeMaestri George Wilson Wilson played 38 games for us last year as DeMaestri’s backup, and he was pretty much an even prop ... didn’t help, didn’t hurt, really didn’t show much either way. But he didn’t have to -- DeMaestri played in 145 games and hit .229 with 22 doubles, with a +4.5 zone rating at short and a +1.1 zone rating as an occasional backup at catcher. Shortstop is our weakest position, however, and I’m constantly on the lookout for a player we can snag to improve at the position. *Left Field* Andy Pafko Ross Sullivan Both are old, and Sullivan played last year entirely at AAA ... the 34-year old still put up 1.9 WAR at that level. Does he have the stuff to be a legitimate backup to Pafko, who played in 150 games last year, with a .287 average, 25 doubles, 20 homers and 95 RBIs at age 36? *Center Field* Catfish Metkovich Bill Wilson Metkovich was excellent last year even into his mid-30s, playing in 133 games and hitting .294 with 34 doubles, five triples, six homers and 3.7 WAR, and Wilson played in 40 games across all three outfield positions, though most of his were at center ... he hit .193 and lost us about half a game in WAR, so beyond shortstop, our critical area of need is anywhere we can get folks in the outfield. Right now he’s our backup by default, but needs to show improvement in almost every area. *Right Field* Thomas Paddock Joe Frazier At age 23, Paddock has shown such significant improvement that as of now he’d be our starter at the position. He played in 52 games for us at the MLB level last year, hitting .227 but with a negative zone rating. We’re hoping to see that improve after his time in the offseason development facilities, because Frazier, at 34, is merely a stopgap at his age and ability level. *Starting Pitching / Emergency SP* Juan Pizarro Milt Pappas Don Mossi Vic Raschi Larry Jansen Carl Erskine Johnny Gray Walt Craddock Bob Spicer If I had to pick a starting five right now, Pizarro, Pappas and Mossi are the guarantees ... so Raschi, Jansen, Erskine, Gray, Craddock and Spicer are fighting over who gets those final two spots. If they miss out and are lucky, they could make the bullpen, but if they aren’t lucky they could find themselves as trade bait. *Bullpen - Long Relief* Charlie Bishop Dutch Romberger Sonny Dixon Bill Harrington None of these four are assured a bullpen spot at the moment. Right now Harrington has the edge, but they’re all fighting for their right to keep a roster spot as we develop more quality arms for higher leverage situations. Dixon and Bishop may not have the stuff to continue playing as more than filler at the upper levels of the minors, so now’s their chance to prove me wrong. *Bullpen - Middle Relief* Bob Miller Charlie Rabe Al Gettel Lou Sleater Arnie Portocarrero Sam Jones Miller is our third rounder this year, and my scout says he’s ready to come up, but if he needs time at AAA I’m willing to give it to him. Gettel, Portocarrero and Jones are the most likely ones to be fighting for a permanent bullpen spot, but Rabe at 24 has a great mix of pitches and could earn a spot ... we’d traded for him from Cincy back in May and he spent the year in Columbus (AAA) putting up 3.6 WAR, going 7-10 with a 4.28 ERA and 98 K’s. Our bullpen is definitely going to start to skew significantly younger, so if you’re pitching and nearing 30, better bring your stuff and control this spring! *Bullpen - Setup / Stopper / Closer* Don Bessent Art Ditmar Johnny Sain Moe Drabowsky Bob Lee Bessent and Drabowsky will be up this year, no question. Bob Lee, our third rounder last season, spent most of last year at the single-A level, going 5-5 with 18 saves, a 3.68 ERA and 58 K’s, a strikout per inning -- he has the stuff to succeed at this level but if his control needs more work, he’s likely to end up at AA. So Ditmar and Sain are the two who are truly fighting for a spot .. Ditmar would still be valuable to have at AAA at his age, but Sain, if he doesn’t make it, will either wind up as trade bait or a potential DFA after spring is done. __________________ "Campus Chronicles" -- The Indiana Hoosiers in a New College World (An OOTP 27 Dynasty) Online Leagues Modern Baseball (Chicago White Sox) Championship Baseball League (Winnipeg Goldeye) WPORBL 55 (Chicago Cubs) WPORBL 74 (Oakland A's) WPORBL 94 (Montreal Expos) WPOBL (Cincinnati Reds)

09-15-2024, 12:26 PM	#58
jksander All Star Starter Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Indianapolis IN Posts: 1,908	March 11, 1957: We won our first spring game of the season in an overtime affair that lasted 11 innings, beating the Yankees 6-5! Daryl Spencer walked in the top of the ninth to drive in Joe Astroth, tying it up at five each, and then Lou Sleater hit a solo homer in the top of the 11th to win it. Juan Pizarro threw 51 pitches to start the game, allowing just three hits and a walk, but he allowed four runs, two earned, and only struck out one batter. Sleater got the win as the pitcher and drove in the winning run, so he’s definitely riding high in the spring sun. The bullpen looked good ... Gettel, Harrington, Miller, Drabowsky, Sleater and Sain combined for seven innings with four hits, two walks, four strikeouts and no earned runs. We outhit them 12-11, two of those coming to 40-year-old Harry Walker, who hit twice but went nowhere. “Harry The Hat” still has skills, and he’s a guy the young players look up to. Hoping to see that translate to good things on the field this year. March 12, 1957: Bill Wilson hit a two-run homer to tie the game at 2-2 in the bottom of the second, but Milt Bolling put Boston up 3-2 in the top of the fourth and the one-run lead held ... they won it 3-2. We again had a good hitting day, outhitting them 11-5, but just couldn’t get runs around ... but I’m liking that we’re getting hits from a variety of players, these early spring games are hard to gauge who’s making big improvements. Walt Bond is hitting .333 through the first two games, and the 19-year-old seems to be adjusting well to major league action. Milt Pappas looked good in his three innings of work, allowng three hits and two runs with three strikeouts, throwing 48 pitches, and Sonny Dixon took the loss off the unearned run in the third. Ditmar, Bessent, Rabe and Jones kept the strong bullpen pitching coming. March 13, 1957: Detroit beat us 5-3 in this one, but for most of the game it was a real pitching duel. Detroit took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first, but Andy Pafko hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the seventh to give us a lead. Bob Spicer had a rough one in the top of the eighth, allowing four runs, and that did us in. But we outhit the Tigers 8-7, so our hitting is still looking strong. Martin Rosell hit twice and scored a run, as did Joe DeMaestri, and Don Mossi lasted four innings in his start with four hits, a walk, a strikeout and an earned run while throwing just 42 pitches. Spicer got two outs and allowed three hits, three walks and four earned runs, and is looking like the first player who truly isn’t ready to be part of the roster this year. Too bad nobody else wants him either ... March 14, 1957: Del Crandall hit a two-run homer in the top of the first, but we gave up six unanswered in the first, third and eighth as the Guardians beat us 6-2. Vic Raschi struggled, allowing five hits, a walk and four earned runs in his three innings (no hits, two walks, two strikeouts between them through four innings), but Bomberger and Bishop were great out of the pen ... Johnny Sain gave up two earned runs off three hits and a walk in his inning to seal the deal. They outhit us just 8-7, and Martin Rosell continues to shine -- two hits and a run, he’s now hitting .857 so far this spring in admittedly limited exposure. Daryl Spencer has suffered a mild oblique strain and will be benched until he’s completely healthy ... no sense having something small become a big problem with a key player. March 15, 1957: The White Sox gave us a hell of a fight, leading 4-2 heading into the bottom of the sixth, but in the bottom of the inning Joe Frazier hit an RBI double to score George Wilson, and Charlie Bishop hit an RBI single that scored Frazier and Chris Cannizzaro! In the bottom of the eighth, tied up at five apiece, Cannizzaro hit an RBI single that scored Frazier, and we won this one 6-5! We outhit them 11-10, led by Paddock, Frazier and Cannizzaro who each hit twice. Larry Jansen pitched three innings with a hit, two strikeouts and an unearned run, keeping his ERA unblemished in his first spring start through 44 pitches. Don Bessent got the win and Art Ditmar the save, neither giving up a run, though Craddock and Bishop combined for four innings with eight hits and four earned runs. March 16, 1957: This one was all Washington all the time, as they stumped us 4-0. Each team hit seven times, but none of our hitters stood out. Carl Erskine had his first spring start and went three innings with a hit, three strikeouts and an earned run through 41 pitches. March 17, 1957: Juan Pizarro made his second spring start today, and we gave him a quick lead with a two run homer by Catfish Metkovich and a solo homer by Del Crandall in the top of the first. He pitched four innings with a hit, two strikeouts and no runs against us, throwing 39 pitches and getting the win. And when Wes Covington hit a two-run blast in the bottom of the seventh to make it interesting, we got a Spook Jacobs RBI single in the top of the ninth to insure the win, beating the Orioles 4-2. We outhit them 11-6, led by Crandall who hit three times for a run and an RBI. He’s going to be a great asset for our team this year, and is a reason I will never stop trolling the waiver wire. After a week of spring baseball, we’ve got a 3-4 record and are seeing good things from our bats, while our bullpen arms are looking particularly solid. We’ve decided to demote Bob Spicer back to AAA, along with Walt Craddock, and we’ve put Johnny Sain on waivers. We’ve also made decisions on the long relievers on our early list -- Charlie Bishop and Sonny Dixon did not make the cut, Bishop will return to AAA Buffalo, but Dixon is out of option years and has been put on waivers alongside Sain. As for hitters, our owner wants us to stick with rookie Walt Bond as our backup at first, so Don Bollweg is heading down to AAA. We’re not going to have a ton of cuts to make from the hitting side of our lineup, and this week’s going to be a big one for paring down our pitching roster which is definitely overstuffed with borderline players, particularly among middle relievers. __________________ "Campus Chronicles" -- The Indiana Hoosiers in a New College World (An OOTP 27 Dynasty) Online Leagues Modern Baseball (Chicago White Sox) Championship Baseball League (Winnipeg Goldeye) WPORBL 55 (Chicago Cubs) WPORBL 74 (Oakland A's) WPORBL 94 (Montreal Expos) WPOBL (Cincinnati Reds)

09-15-2024, 04:39 PM	#59
jksander All Star Starter Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Indianapolis IN Posts: 1,908	March 18, 1957: New York beat us 3-1 in a game that was a scoreless duel until the top of the fifth when Lee Thomas hit a two-run homer for the Yankees ... they never looked back. They outhit us 7-4, our only offense coming off a Pafko homer in the bottom of the eighth as we lost 3-1. Milt Pappas looked really good in his second outing, going four innings with two hits, a walk and four strikeouts, throwing 52 pitches without an earned run. Our 19-year-old closer candidate Bobby Lee had another good inning, a hit and a walk in 23 pitches without an out, and he’s still got a 0.00 ERA ... with our owner’s obsession with youth, it’s very likely he’ll make the cut this year, though the competition for the top bullpen spots is going to be fierce. March 19, 1957: Another pitching duel early, this one broke open for the Red Sox in the bottom of the seventh, a Dick Gernert three-run homer winning the game for them after being tied 1-1 since the top of the fifth when Bob Lillis had tied it up for us with an RBI single. Boston won 4-1, but Don Mossi had another good spring start, going four innings with a hit, a walk, four strikeouts and an earned run through 56 pitches. Art Ditmar took the loss, giving up three runs thanks to a hit (the Gernert homer) and two walks. They outhit us 7-6, with Pafko’s homer our only real hitter’s moment. March 20, 1957: The Tigers had home advantage in this one, but we scored first, getting a run off a wild pitch and then scoring a second with a Daryl Spencer RBI double, both in the top of the third. We held them off nicely from there and Frazier scored off a passed ball in the top of the eighth to seal it as a 3-1 win. Vic Raschi had a good start, with four innings and six hits, just allowing one earned run through 60 pitches. Five pitchers from the bullpen combined to keep them from adding any more runs or even getting a single hit. We had a good hitting night, outhitting them 10-6, and Spencer’s two hit one RBI night has him hitting .357 this spring. We’ve demoted Johnny Gray to AAA and waived Bill Harrington who is out of minor league options. Art Ditmar needs to show improvement or he may no longer have a spot in the bullpen, with an 8.10 ERA so far through 8.1 innings. Sonny Dixon cleared waivers and has been sent to AAA, but Johnny Sain has refused to be demoted, and nobody wants him on the trade market. We’ve had to bite the bullet and released him outright, adding $2,472 to our player expenses in the process. March 22, 1957: Cleveland blew us out 4-0 tonight as we were no-hit by a combination of five of their pitchers. Larry Jansen took the loss for us with four innings and five hits, two strikeouts and three earned runs, while Sleater out of the pen allowed two hits and the other run with a walk and a strikeout. Our pitchers held their own as best they could, but we were outhit in the end 11-0. Brutal. March 23, 1957: Today we took an early lead with Pizarro on the mound -- in the top of the second Paddock hit a triple that drove in two runs, and George Wilson pushed Paddock home with a sac-fly. Daryl Spencer hit a two-run homer in the top of the eighth to add on, and even with a pair of runs given up in the bottom of the ninth we held tough to win 5-2 over the White Sox. Pizarro improved to 2-0 with a 1.64 ERA in spring games, going four innings with two hits, a walk and three strikeouts, and Drabowsky, Ditmar, Rabe and Gettel combined for four hitless innings before Romberger took a bit of a beating with two hits and two earned runs in the ninth. We outhit them 9-4 and nobody on our team hit twice, though Paddock and Spencer each knocked in two runs. March 24, 1957: Washington took an early lead in this one, scoring early and then keeping their foot on the gas. They’d go on to win easily, 5-0, outhitting us 9-5. Pappas got roughed up a bit, with six hits, a walk and three runs with three strikeouts through four innings, throwing 72 pitches, and we only had seven baserunners all day. March 25, 1957: Harry Walker singled in a run in the top of the first with help from an E8 error, driving in O’Connell to score the only run of the entire game, but the entire pitching staff held it, and we won 1-0! This was a real duel ... we outhit them 4-3, and Mossi only allowed a pair of hits and a walk in his four innings. Lee, Gettel, Drabowsky and Erskine got holds, and Bessent earned the save ... those five combined for one hit and five walks in their five innings of work. March 26, 1957: We had the Yankees on the ropes in this one, Pafko hitting an RBI double in the top of the fifth that gave us a 4-3 lead. But Charlie Rabe hit a rough patch big time in the bottom of the eighth, giving up five hits, a walk and four earned runs as he blew the save and took the loss -- the 24-year-old has been solid until now, but remains raw and untested. Vic Raschi went four innings off 58 pitches with five hits, a walk and three earned runs, as he continues to struggle as well. With 15 games left in the spring slate, we’ve moved Rabe back down to AAA along with Spook Jacobs and Joe Astroth. Meanwhile, Daryl Spencer has strained his tricep now and will be out for weeks ... he’s been added to the 15 day IL, so Martin Rosell will now be starting at age 21, and catcher Chris Cannizzaro will be backing him up at third while also playing as a backup catcher. That brings our roster down to 31 men at the moment, with tough cuts still to come to the pitching corps. March 27, 1957: Boston took the lead in the top of the first thanks to a Jackie Jensen homer, but Martin Rosell answered with a two-run blast of his own in the bottom of the fifth, and we held our ground to win this one 2-1, outhitting the Red Sox 6-2. Larry Jansen only pitched four innings, with a hit, a walk, two strikeouts and the earned run, but Erskine lasted two innings and took the win, and Sleater, Romberger and Gettel combined for three innings without a single baserunner. Rosell picked up two RBIs and improved his average to .263 this spring. Lou Sleater, Al Gettel, and Dutch Romberger have been placed on waivers, and Bill Harrington has been assigned to AAA after clearing waivers himself. Our bullpen is now down to eight men, and unless we choose to keep six men in the pen and cut an offensive player, we’ll have three more cuts to make by opening day to get down to a 25-man roster. __________________ "Campus Chronicles" -- The Indiana Hoosiers in a New College World (An OOTP 27 Dynasty) Online Leagues Modern Baseball (Chicago White Sox) Championship Baseball League (Winnipeg Goldeye) WPORBL 55 (Chicago Cubs) WPORBL 74 (Oakland A's) WPORBL 94 (Montreal Expos) WPOBL (Cincinnati Reds)

09-15-2024, 07:54 PM	#60
jksander All Star Starter Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Indianapolis IN Posts: 1,908	March 28, 1957: This game wasn’t going our way early, with Detroit scoring runs in the third and eighth without our bats making a peep. But in the bottom of the ninth Walt Bond hit a solo homer, and then a few minutes later Del Crandall walked it off with a three-run homer to win the game! Pizarro went five innings with one hit, five walks, four strikeouts and the one earned run, throwing 78 pitches, but it was Drabowsky who got the win, throwing a strikeout without a hit or a walk in the top of the ninth. We outhit them 7-4, led by Bond with two hits, a run and an RBI, while Crandall’s three RBIs bring his total to seven so far this spring. March 29, 1957: In a game that showed why spring games probably should have innings limits, this one was tied 4-4 at the end of regulation and then went ten more scoreless innings before, in the top of the 19th, Danny O’Connell hit an RBI single to get us our fifth run. Then, just a minute later, George Wilson came to the plate and slammed a grand salami out of center field, giving us the 9-4 lead we’d eventually win by. The entire game took nearly six hours, and we outhit them 14-10, using 10 pitchers to get it done to their 14. Milt Pappas went four innings, allowing two hits, three walks and an earned run with a strikeout, and Lee, Ditmar, Miller, Bessent, Portocarrero, Jansen and Jones combined for seven innings with just four hits, three walks and three runs between them. But it was Moe Drabowsky who had a star-making performance even if the stats don’t count ... he pitched 7.1 INNINGS and threw 96 pitches, with three hits, two walks and six strikeouts -- he improved to 2-0 with an 0.00 ERA now through 12.2 spring innings. Mossi then finished them off with two outs and a single hit, giving him a 1.42 ERA. I knew Drabowsky was durable, but never suspected anything like this was possible! O’Connell led with three hits, two runs and two RBIs, George Wilson hit twice with four RBIs, and Bob Lillis had six at-bats as our backup shortstop and picked up three hits, improving his average to .273. March 30, 1957: The White Sox scored five in the third inning and never looked back, beating us 5-0 in a game our offense never woke up for despite outhitting Chicago 7-6. Vic Raschi is in danger of losing his starting spot ... he went five innings with six hits, a walk and five earned runs, striking out one, and he has a 7.31 ERA through his four spring starts -- at age 38, he may not have what it takes to handle a starter’s workload. March 31, 1957: Juan Pizarro lasted six innings with four hits, a walk, five strikeouts and a single earned run, throwing 75 pitches in his fifth spring start, improving his ERA to 1.64. But Washington took the lead with a pair of runs in the top of the eighth and we had no countermove, losing this one 3-2. They outhit us 6-3, led by Bill Wilson with a hit, a run and an RBI. April 1, 1957: We took on Baltimore today and won a hard fought game by a 3-2 margin, taking the lead in the fourth and never letting them get back in. Carl Erskine started the game, pitching four innings with a hit, a walk and four strikeouts, improving to 2-1 this spring with an 0.82 ERA. We outhit the Orioles 12-5, led by Harry Walker and George Wilson who each had two hits, a run and an RBI. April 2, 1957: Mossi had four good innings and a bad fifth one, giving the Yankees back SIX RUNS in the fifth en route to a 10-1 beatdown. He finished with 4.1 innings and five hits, with six earned runs and two strikeouts. Vic Raschi then gave up six hits, a walk and two earned runs in relief as the damage compounded. We were outhit 14-7, led by Paddock who hit twice to nowhere. Al Gettel has refused to be demoted after clearing waivers, and is going to cost us $3,600 to release him from his contract. We’ve traded Vic Raschi to Cincinnati in exchange for 32-year-old reliever Tom Gorman and $10,000 in cash, however, so we were able to balance it out on the books. Gorman, who has had issues in the past with his motivation or lack thereof, is still a solid addition to the team due to his excellent control -- we’re going to promote him back to the major league club, and have waived Arnie Portocarrero who will move back to AAA once he clears. Interestingly, when we traded him to Cincinnati they paid us $15,000 and they paid us $10,000 to bring him back, so he’s been a very profitable trading chip. In another move, Art Ditmar has moved down to AAA, so we only have one more cut we’ll need to make before finalizing our opening day roster. As of right now Joe Frazier is fighting with our bullpen for the final spot, and if I decide to keep a six-man bullpen he’ll likely drop down to AAA. April 4, 1957: We won another close battle, this time against the Red Sox, by a 3-2 margin today. An RBI triple by Martin Rosell was the deciding factor in the top of the seventh, after which the bullpen refused to give an inch. We outhit them 8-6, and Pappas had himself a solid five inning start, with two hits, three walks, three strikeouts and an earned run through 68 pitches. Tom Gorman blew a save but got the win in his first spring appearance for us, and Sam Jones picked up his second save. Andy Pafko had two hits and a run, while Rosell had his hit and RBI. April 5, 1957: We dug ourselves an early 3-0 hole in the first three innings against Detroit, but Walker hit an RBI single in the fourth, Crandall hit an RBI double in the fifth, and we took control in the sixth thanks to an RBI single by Bob Lillis (aided by an E7 error) and a two-run double by Pizarro as a pinch-hitter. From there we cruised, winning 5-3. We outhit them 12-7, led by Pizarro with his two RBIs, and Jansen was able to recover from a rough start, lasting five innings with six hits, two strikeouts and three runs (two earned) as he improved to 1-1 with a 3.18 ERA. April 6, 1957: Pizarro made his sixth start of the spring today against Cleveland, and he pitched a quality start, lasting six innings with one hit, two walks and three strikeouts. We led 2-0 when he left the game for Bessent, and he, Miller and Gorman combined for one hit and three strikeouts as we shut the Guardians down in the remainder, winning by the same 2-0 margin. We outhit them 5-2 in the duel, led by Danny O’Connell with two hits, a run and an RBI. That will be Pizarro’s last spring start, as he’ll be our opening day starter on April 16th ... in these final five spring games we’ll start the rest of our rotation and then give the final game to Sam Jones, who is likely going to be our spot starter / long reliever this season. April 7, 1957: Carl Erskine got the start against the White Sox today, and he got through five shutout innings before Drabowsky took over, the score 0-0 in the bottom of the sixth. The White Sox came unleashed in the bottom of the eighth, scoring four runs, and that lost the game for us. But Erskine looked good with three hits, a walk and a strikeout through 66 pitches, and it was the first bad inning for 19-year-old Bob Lee out of the pen, allowing all four earned runs. We were outhit 8-4. April 8, 1957: Don Mossi got his final spring start against Washington, and he had a quality start, six innings with just a hit and a pair of strikeouts. Gorman came out leading 1-0 in the bottom of the seventh, and we’d go on to win this one in the end 2-0. We outhit the Senators 9-3, with O’Connell and George Wilson hitting twice each, but Metkovich led the way with two hits, two runs and an RBI. April 9, 1957: Milt Pappas started against the Orioles tonight, and he left the game after five innings with our lead at 4-1, having allowed just four hits with a walk, a run and three strikeouts through nearly 70 pitches. That wound up being the final score, as our bullpen remains locked in. We outhit them 9-7, led by Joe DeMaestri who hit three times for three RBIs. April 10, 1957: Larry Jansen got his final start of the spring season, facing the Yankees and the insanely good Vinegar Bend Mizell. Unfortunately he gave up two runs in the bottom of the second and only lasted four innings before he got pulled at 79 pitches. We’d go on to lose 3-0, which is about what you’d expect going up against Mizell in a game where the results don’t count and nobody wants to risk overuse. They only outhit us 7-6, we just didn’t string any good runs together. April 11, 1957: Sam Jones got the start in our final spring game against the Red Sox, and he had five solid innings with three hits, three walks, three strikeouts and three earned runs. We went into the bottom of the eighth trailing 3-0, but Bob Lillis hit an RBI single, Del Crandall hit an RBI single, Harry Walker hit a three-run double and Walt Bond hit an RBI double ... six unanswered runs, as we’d go on to win 6-3! Don Bessent pitched three innings with three hits, a walk and a strikeout as he picked up the win, improving to 2-1 with a 1.88 spring ERA, and Gorman saved his second game as we finished the spring season with a 16-14 record, good for fourth place behind Detroit, New York and Cleveland. We outhit them 10-9, mostly in that killer eighth inning, led by Crandall who had two hits, a run and an RBI, while Bond had two hits and an RBI. Bob Lee had to go back down to AA to make room for Daryl Spencer, who is coming off the IL just in time for the real games to start. Lee is young but needs a little testing at the upper minors level while he develops firmer control over his pitches. He’s likely to get a call-up at some point this season as wear and tear on the bullpen becomes more evident, but I’d rather have an extra bat on the bench than risk overplaying a young arm when he’s not ready. April 15, 1957: Tomorrow is our opening day, though games officially start today, so what better time to announce our official opening day rosters? The prospect rankings for the current class have also been announced ... Milt Pappas comes in at #14, while third-rounder Bob Miller came in #41 and second-rounder Walt Bond came in #48! Bob Lee is ranked 65th, and fourth-rounder Dean Skidgel rounds out the top 100 at #93. *Lineup* C - Del Crandall 1B - Harry Walker 2B - Danny O’Connell 3B - Daryl Spencer SS - Joe DeMaestri LF - Andy Pafko CF - Catfish Metkovich RF - Thomas Paddock Bench: Chris Cannizzaro, Juan Pizarro, Walt Bond, Bob Lillis, Martin Rosell, George Wilson, Russ Sullivan *Starters* 1 - Juan Pizarro 2 - Milt Pappas 3 - Don Mossi 4 - Carl Erskine 5 - Larry Jansen *Bullpen* Closer - Don Bessent Stopper - Moe Drabowsky Setup - Tom Gorman Middle - Bob Miller Long - Sam Jones Attached Images __________________ "Campus Chronicles" -- The Indiana Hoosiers in a New College World (An OOTP 27 Dynasty) Online Leagues Modern Baseball (Chicago White Sox) Championship Baseball League (Winnipeg Goldeye) WPORBL 55 (Chicago Cubs) WPORBL 74 (Oakland A's) WPORBL 94 (Montreal Expos) WPOBL (Cincinnati Reds)