Skip to main content

BASEBALL'S WEEK

NATIONAL LEAGUE

The San Francisco Giants had a few other ballplayers in the lineup besides the sensational Willie McCovey (see page 58). A chap named Willie Mays did a bit of key hitting (8 for 19), Jack Sanford and Sam Jones allowed the Braves only one run apiece in pitching complete-game wins, and Johnny Antonelli four-hit the Reds. Young Mike McCormick lost the only two games the Giants dropped since McCovey came along. The Los Angeles Dodgers got encouraging performances from two pennant-winning pros and moved right along with the fast-stepping Giants. Duke Snider batted .512 and drove in 15 runs in 11 games (the Dodgers won eight of them), and Johnny Podres threw a four-hitter, his first complete game in eight starts. Just when the Milwaukee Braves looked as if they were going to take charge of things in the National League (they had beaten the Giants and had moved into first place), the defense fell apart and nobody hit in the clutch. The Braves lost three in a row, to the Giants and Dodgers, and slipped two and a half games behind. The Pittsburgh Pirates erupted for 23 hits and 18 runs in one game and 12 hits, seven runs in another. But when Bob Friend pitched they didn't score any runs at all. It's been that way in three of Friend's last five starts. "I'm snake-bit this year," commented Bob (4-14 for the season). In his 15 most recent games Friend had a sparkling 2.86 ERA, but he lost seven of them and won only three. Roy Face, on the other hand, gave up 15 hits and seven earned runs in 10 relief innings without losing. His record went up to 15-0. The Chicago Cubs floundered into the second division for lack of hitting, especially in the outfield. During a seven-game losing streak, Cub outfielders batted a dismal .125, drove in only five runs. The St. Louis Cardinals' youth movement started to pay off. Rookies Bob Gibson, Bob Miller and Ernie Broglio all pitched strong games last week, and young Manager Solly Hemus was rehired for next year. Broglio's four-hit shutout was his sixth win (against two losses) since he started using a wind-up. "Ernie said he felt more comfortable without the wind-up," said Hemus. "I asked him if he preferred to be uncomfortable in the majors or comfortable in the minors." Without a wind-up Broglio had lost five, won none. The Cincinnati Reds slowed down when their hitting collapsed in successive games with the Dodgers and Giants; in each they made only four hits. The Philadelphia Phillies continued to get good pitching but they won only when the hitters woke up and helped out a little.

Standings: SF 63-47, LA 62-49, Mil 59-48, Pitt 54-57, Chi 52-57, StL 53-60, Cin 51-58, Phil 46-64.

AMERICAN LEAGUE

The Chicago White Sox won four out of six although their anemic hitting fell off even more. "If they keep up the way they've been going," said Owner Bill Veeck, "they're going to change the entire concept of baseball. Who ever thought a team could win the pennant without a big RBI man, the No. 3 or No. 4 hitter who drives in runs?" The Cleveland Indians lost Billy Martin for the season (broken jaw and fractured cheek) and Vic Power temporarily (jammed finger). Herb Score made his first start in 12 days and gave up four walks, seven hits and four runs in 3‚Öî innings. Said Manager Gordon: "He's through as a starter unless somebody gets hurt, or one of the Big Four [McLish, Bell, Grant and Perry] becomes ineffective." The Baltimore Orioles got good pitching from, of all people, Billy Hoeft and Arnold Portocarrero, whose combined record was 2-11. And each beat the White Sox. Then O'Dell and Wilhelm combined to hold the Sox to an 18-inning 1-1 tie. This was progress, of a sort, since the Orioles had lost two 17-inning games to the White Sox earlier in the season. It was all or nothing for the New York Yankees. In four successive games the winning pitcher threw a shutout. Happily, three of them were Yankees. After weeks of bad news, the Yankees finally had something to smile about: Bob Turley came back after a long layoff (bruised chest) and pitched a brilliant four-hit shutout, striking out 10. The Kansas City Athletics frittered away the profits of their recent 11-game-win streak by losing nine of the next 11 games. The sudden slump of Roger Maris, the team's big power hitter, hurt badly. Since leading the league at .344, he has had only four hits in 44 at bats, and has dropped to .304. The Detroit Tigers clinched the season's series from the Yankees for the third time in the past four years. It didn't mean much this time, since the Yanks aren't going any place. For that matter, neither are the Tigers. They immediately lost two out of three. In one of those losses, they had a 3-0 lead in the ninth with two out and nobody on base. The Boston Red Sox got good hitting at the right times and won four in a row (three by 4-3 scores). Speedy Gary Geiger, now a regular in center, batted in nine runs, hit .320 for the week. Frank Malzone knocked in seven, batted .409. The Washington Senators' monumental losing streak reached 18 games before Tex Clevenger ended it with his first major league shutout. "Maybe I can sleep now," muttered Manager Lavagetto. "I feel as if I can breathe again."

Standings: Chi 66-42. Clev 64-46, Balt 56-55. NY 55-54, Det 54-58, KC 52-58, Bost 50-60, Wash 44-68.

[originallink:10492711:42793]

Boxed statistics through Saturday, August 8

TWO PHOTOS

SOLID PITCHING by Chicago's Bob Shaw and Cleveland's Jim Perry helped both teams. Shaw has 11 wins, Perry eight.