BASEBALL'S WEEK
AMERICAN LEAGUE
Chicago (4-3) had trouble with its pitching for a change, but the hitherto puerile hitting exploded. The Sox batted .322 as a team over a seven-game stretch, and Tom McCraw belted three home runs in one game. Gary Peters, the hard-hitting pitcher, had eight base hits in his last 16 at bats. The DETROIT (3-3) home-run pace, which was averaging seven a week, fell off to three though the second-place Tigers stayed close to the White Sox. BALTIMORE (4-2) hitting picked up, but the Orioles were still looking for consistent pitching (see below). Dave McNally was angry when Manager Hank Bauer took him out in the fifth inning of one game. "I make my living on wins," he complained later. Bauer replied, "They're thinking too much of themselves." Reports said the Orioles were trying to get Jim Lonborg, who has a 6-1 record, from BOSTON (3-3), but Red Sox Vice-President Haywood Sullivan retorted, "They tried last winter and last spring, and they're still trying. I told them to pretend that Lonborg has gone away for 10 years and let's talk about somebody else." Rocky Colavito was still mad at CLEVFLAND (5-2) Manager Joe Adcock about being platooned. Rocky hurled his bat when Adcock lifted him for a left-handed pinch hitter, but two days later, with a right-hander on the mound in the 10th inning, Adcock let the right-handed Colavito bat and Rocky responded with a three-run, game-winning home run. Dean Chance of MINNESOTA (4-4) lost after seven straight wins, but Jim Merritt, given an opportunity to start because of 25-game winner Jim Kaat's abject failure, tossed a shutout. Although Tony Oliva was batting only .204, Bob Allison took up some of the slack when he either drove in or scored all the Twins' runs in successive 4-1, 4-3 victories over the Athletics. The bright young KANSAS CITY (2-5) pitchers were getting tarnished. Jim Nash was 5-4 with a 3.59 ERA, Lew Krausse was 2-7 and Blue Moon Odom had a 5.00 ERA. Manager Al Dark looked enviously on Jack Sanford of CALIFORNIA (4-2), who won 24 games for Dark in 1962 when both were with the Giants. Sanford beat the A's twice in seven days for his sixth win over them in two years without a loss. Mickey Mantle continued to hit (11 home runs for the season), but the other Yankees did not. NEW YORK (2-4) won only when it got shutout pitching from Al Downing and Mel Stottlemyre. WASHINGTON (2-5) had hitting and relief pitching woes. Even Darold Knowles, who had gone 18 2/3 innings in relief without yielding a run, was beaten.
Standings: Chi 24-13, Det 24-14, Balt 19-18, Cleve 19-19, Bos 19-20, Minn 19-20, KC 19-21, NY 16-21, Cal 18-24, Wash 16-23
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Previously unbeaten relievers Ted Abernathy and Gerry Arrigo of CINCINNATI (2-4) both lost, but Pete Rose, aiming at the batting title, raised his average above .325 and extended his hitting streak to 23 games. Before a doubleheader with the Cubs, Rose told a friend, "I need six hits today. You know, I haven't had a 4 for 5 day once this year yet. I must have had seven of them last year." Rose went only 4 for 8 in the doubleheader, but one was a homer over the bleachers against the wind. Nearsighted Dick Hughes of ST. LOUIS (3-3) shut out the Braves on two hits. A folksy type from Arkansas, Hughes says, "Before I wore glasses, I couldn't recognize my mother." Most PITTSBURGH (4-2) batters were fighting slumps, but Roberto Clemente, hitting in the .380s, stayed hot. He went hitless in only four of his first 36 games, three of which the Pirates lost. Amazing Roy Face, 39, had an 0.00 ERA after 16 innings of relief spread over 13 games. He's now known as the "late, late reliever." SAN FRANCISCO (4-1) had weather trouble. With Juan Marichal (who later beat the Dodgers for his eighth straight) scheduled to pitch against them, the Phillies canceled a game because the 55° weather was "too cold." Then the Giants lost a weird 10-5 game to LOS ANGELES (3-3) in Candlestick Park when a 45-mph wind swirled dust into the players' eyes and baseballs out of their gloves. Don Drysdale's scoreless streak ended at 25 2/3 innings when Willie Mays's windblown pop-up fell safely near first base for a two-run double. CHICAGO (2-3) beat the league-leading Reds two out of three and then blew two straight to the last-place Astros. Adolfo Phillips won one game when he bunted safely with two strikes, stole second, went to third on an overthrow and scored on an infield chopper. ATLANTA (3-4) lost three straight to NEW YORK (4-3) for 12 defeats in 15 road games, and General Manager Paul Richards fumed. A club official said, "If this keeps up, there'll be some changes made, whether Billy Hitchcock [the Braves' manager] likes them or not." Star left-hander Chris Short of floundering PHILADELPHIA (1-4) collided with a teammate in pregame practice, damaged a ligament in his knee and was put on the disabled list, prompting a local newspaper to comment, "The Phillies were found dead here yesterday." Hit-hungry HOUSTON (3-2) rapped out a 17-4 win over the Cubs. During the 17-run uprising, John Bateman, eager to swing, protested that a Ray Culp pitch had not hit him, but adamant, the plate umpire ordered the grumbling Bateman to take first base.
Standings: Cin 28-16, StL 23-14, Pitt 22-16, SF 22-18, Chi 20-18, Atl 21-20, LA 17-23, Phil 16-22, NY 14-23, Hou 14-27
PHOTO
HIGHLIGHT
No longer do players and not-so-perfect strangers point a finger at Moe Drabowsky (right) of the Baltimore Orioles and say, "There he is. There's the guy who gave up Stan Musial's 3,000th hit, the guy who was the losing pitcher when Early Wynn finally got his 300th victory, the guy who was born to be a loser." Moe Drabowsky was not born to lose, though for a while it seemed that way. Before joining the Orioles last year the former Cub, Brave. Red and Athletic pitcher had a 48-81 lifetime record. But as a reliever for the Orioles he has been nothing but a winner (6-0 last year. 3-0 plus three saves this season), and he has been a distinct comfort to Manager Hank Bauer. About the only thing that makes Bauer's hair stand on end (hair spray aside) is the thought of his star pitchers who, after their superb work last fall against the Dodgers, have been as erratic this season as Bauer feared they might be. Steve Barber walked 42 men in 37‚Öì innings. Dave McNally finished none of his first nine starts and in 43 innings gave up 58 hits, nine of them homers. Jim Palmer has shoulder trouble. Wally Bunker has been exiled to the bullpen. Tom Phoebus pitched two shutouts last week, but until then had been ineffective. Even Stu Miller, the old master of relief, was limping along with an 0-4 record. Baltimore's pitching crisis would have been an utter disaster had it not been for Drabowsky. Now, when people point at Moe they say, "There he is. There's the guy who struck out 11 men in relief in the World Series, the guy with the three wins, the three saves and the 0.76 ERA this year. There's the unbeatable Oriole."
