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SAM MELE STEALS SECOND |
BOSTON RED SOX ...
THE
CURSE OF THE BAMBINO, PART 3
A
SUBWAY SERIES DISAPPEARS ...
Tebbetts leads
the Sox in the
Series sweep of the Browns
July 20, 1948
... The Red Sox will be sorry to see the
Browns leave town tonight, as in the afternoon at Fenway Park, they
made it four straight and a clean sweep of the series, as they batted
their way to an 8 to 3 victory. Birdie Tebbetts struck the big blow
for the Red Sox with a base clearing double in the four-run fifth
inning. That put the Sox out front 5 to 2 and was all that Jack
Kramer needed to register his ninth straight win and eleventh victory
of the season. Entering the last half of the fifth, the Sox trailed
2 to 1 by virtue of the ninth home run of the year from Les Moss. Bill Kennedy,
the starter for the Browns was moving along quite nicely, keeping the Sox in
hand up until the fifth. Lack of control was Kennedy's downfall, as he walked
the first two batters, Johnny Pesky and Stan Spence, to open the inning. He then
made one too good for Vern Stephens, who whistled a two bagger down the
left-field line to score Pesky and send Spence to third. After getting the next
two batters, Billy Goodman got the third walk of the inning to load the bases.
Tebbetts quickly emptied them and won the ballgame, when he smashed the first
pitch he saw between the outfielders in deep right center, giving the Sox a 5 to
2 lead.
Base on balls figured in the other runs that the Sox collected off Kennedy.
Dom DiMaggio walked to open the Red Sox first and went all the way to third when
shortstop Andy Anderson threw Johnny Pesky's grounder into right field, trying
to get Dom at second. DiMaggio scored on a sacrifice fly to deep right.
In the seventh inning after Sam Mele had tripled and scored on Goodman
sacrifice fly to center, Tebbetts walked and raced to third when Whitey Platt
lost Kramer's sinking liner, as he slid trying to make the catch. The ball
rolled all the way to the fence and Kramer made it to third. He scored on
DiMaggio's fly ball out to Al Zarilla.
The final score was made in the eighth when Vern Stephens greeted reliever Al
Widmar with a double right, his third hit of the afternoon, coming home on
Mele's third hit also, a single to left.
In the meantime, Kramer put down the Browns and regular fashion. He made two
mistakes with curveballs that the Browns it for home runs, accounting for their
three runs.
For the Sox, it was their seventh win in the last eight games. Vern Stephens'
three hits put him at the .300 mark, and he got his league leading, 78th RBI
with his double in the fifth. |
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