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TED WILLIAMS HOMERS |
BOSTON RED SOX ...
THE
CURSE OF THE BAMBINO, PART 3
A
SUBWAY SERIES DISAPPEARS ...
The Sox continue to slide, losing two
to Washington, but
Ted shines at the plate
May 29, 1948 ... The
Red Sox are still losing ballgames. They dropped two more this
afternoon to Washington, a team of castoffs, 5 to 4 and 7 to 6. That
makes three defeats in a row at the hands of the Senators, and 10
losses in 12 tries since leaving Fenway Park. A crowd of 14,052
people sat through a drizzling rain over the last three innings, as did manager
Joe McCarthy, who was getting a close-up on how his boys and managed to lose so
regularly. The seventh place Red Sox are now 11 games out of first and only 4
1/2 games out of the cellar.
It looked as if the team were going to win one for a change in the opening
game. They had a 4 to 2 lead the ninth-inning, but a two run lead is peanuts is
far as Jack Kramer, or just about any other Red Sox pitcher is concerned. Tom
McBride and Al Kozar, a couple of guys who failed to make the Red Sox, teed off
on Kramer; for Washington, to knock in the tying and winning runs. McBride's
pinch single with the bases full squared up the game and Kozar's clean base hit
brought home the winning run in the ninth-inning, giving the Nationals a 5 to 4
victory.
For eight innings Kramer was good allowing only a hit and inning and walking
nine. Bad breaks started his demise in the ninth-inning,, but he did not have
the stop work out of the jam Mickey Vernon's hard ground ball hopped over Billy
Goodman's head into right field to open the rally. Carden Gillenwater attempted
to check his swing on an outside curve, but accidentally got the fat end of the
bat on the ball for single right, with Vernon stopping at second. Jake Early
laid down a sacrifice and manager Joe Kuhel sent out Early Wynn to hit. Wynn was
intentionally walked and pitcher Marino Paretti was sent in to run. McBride came
up to pinch-hit for pitcher Mickey Haefner and he drilled Kramer's first pitch
into left field for a single to tie up the game at 4 to 4.
Pieretti was held at second and Eddie Yost came up next and hit one to
right-center that Stan Spence ran down, crossing the front of DiMaggio. On the
play Pieretti tag up and went to third. It matters little because Kozar came up
next and singled over second to bring in the winning run.
In the second game the Red Sox artillery found the range in the ninth-inning.
Down 6 to 1, they picked up three runs against relief pitcher Forrest Thompson.
Singles by Williams and Spence, DiMaggio's double, an error by Kozar on
Goodman's ground ball, and Matt Batts' two-run single to the trick. That brought
in Walt Masterson the pitch
There were two men on base when Masterson came in and birdie Tebbetts came up
to bat for Maury McDermott. Tebbetts walked, Bobby Doerr struck out, but Johnny
Pesky and Williams drew consecutive walks to force in the fifth and sixth runs,
tying up the game. Stan Spence came up now and tag one to center that
Gillenwater ran down to end the game.
The Red Sox scored five runs in the ninth-inning, a fine rally but not enough
to win. For the second consecutive day Stan Spence had a chance to deliver with
the bases loaded and for the second straight day he flied out. The Red Sox had
one standout his usual, by the name of Ted Williams. Williams collected a homer,
a triple, a double, two singles and two walks for the afternoon. |
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