It Only Counts As One Loss……

Posted on May 7, 2012 by fenwaypark100

Yesterday at Fenway Park, the Red Sox and Orioles played a 17-inning contest. The Orioles prevailed in a game in which Red Sox outfielder Darnell McDonald was the losing pitcher.

Darnell McDonald pitching yesterday at Fenway Park.

There have only been 14 longer games in Red Sox history and of those only four longer at Fenway Park.

Joe Harris pitched for three seasons with Boston. His lifetime record was 3-30.

The longest game in Red Sox history was a 24-inning contest which took place at the Huntington Avenue Grounds on September 1, 1906. The Boston Americans entered the game with a record of 38-81 and 34 games behind the White Sox. The only thing worse than the Americans of 1906 was their starting pitcher, Joe Harris who carried a 2-18 record into the Saturday afternoon contest with the A’s. His counterpart Jack Coombs was in his rookie year with Philadelphia. What transpired was; both pitchers went the distance, Harris pitched 20 consecutive scoreless innings, (a record that is sure to never be broken) and Philadelphia won the game 4-1.

Fenway Park’s longest game took place on September 3rd and 4th, 1981 against the Seattle Mariners. Only 13, 355 members of the Fenway Faithful showed up for this Thursday night game which saw Mike Torrez pitching against Mariner lefty Floyd Bannister.

Mike Torrez called Fenway Park home from 1978 through 1982.

Torrez was laced, giving up five runs in 4 1/3 innings and the Red Sox came to the bottom of the eighth inning down 7-3. An RBI single by Joe Rudi brought them to 7-4 and that is how they entered their half of the ninth.

Jerry Remy went 6-10 in Fenway Park’s longest game.

Second baseman Jerry Remy lead of the ninth with a single and following a walk to Dwight Evans, a Rice fly out and a single by Tony Perez, Dave Stapleton stepped in, the winning run at the plate. After he popped out to short, it was up to Joe Rudi as the Red Sox were down to their last out. Just as he had done in the eighth, he delivered, a two run single to center which left the tying run, in the person of Tony Perez at second.

Red Sox DH Rudi went 3-9 with three RBI in Fenway’s longest game.

Rich Gedman batted for catcher Gary Allenson and promptly singled in Perez. Rudi was thrown out at third, but the Red Sox had tied the game and had life. What a life it turned out to be. The Mariners left two men on in the 11th and again in the 13th. In the 17th they left the bases loaded and the only time the Red Sox put two men on base was in the 12th.

 American League curfew rules suspended the game following the 19th inning, to be resumed the next day before the scheduled game. In the top of the 20th Mariner center fielder Joe Simpson tripled in Dave Henderson giving Seattle an 8-7 lead. The Red Sox countered by loading the bases in their half of the 20th but when Jim Rice forced Dwight Evans at second, the Mariners had prevailed in this historic Fenway contest.

Bob Stanley took the loss in Fenway Park’s longest game.

There have been two 18 inning games at Fenway Park, and they were played 74 years apart.

It was Labor Day 1927 when the Yankees came to town for a holiday double-header. The Red Sox had a strangle hold on last place as they were 40-86 on their way to 103 losses while the Yankees were, well the 1927 Yankees!

The first game was one for the ages as the Sox got three in the first only to find themselves trailing 6-3 when they came to bat in the fourth. They went ahead 7-6, added one more in the fifth and took an 8-6 lead into the ninth. The Bronx Bombers tied it with a pair in the ninth and the marathon was on.

Lou Gehrig hit the only homer in Fenway’s 18 inning Red Sox/Yankee game of September 5, 1927.

The game remained scoreless for the next seven innings and in the top  17th the Yankees added three runs to take an 11-8 lead. The Sox countered with three of their own in the bottom half of the frame and then won it with a run in the bottom of the 18th. Two teams in two very different places, the Red Sox 18 inning Labor Day win against those mighty Yanks was a bright spot in a most dismal season.

Hal Wiltse relieved Red Ruffing in the 16th inning and got the win despite surrendering three Yankee runs in the 17th. He was 18-35 in three years with the Red Sox.

The fourth and last Fenway contest to get to the 18th inning took place on June 5, 2001 against the Detroit Tigers.

The Red Sox held a 3-2 lead in the top of the seventh when Sox hurler Hideo Nomo uncorked a wild pitch which scored Tiger shortstop Deivi Cruz and knotted the game at three. What followed was 11 innings of pitching, pitching and then a little more pitching. Only two runners even reached third base, both Tigers, one in the 10th and one in the 12th. The only Red Sox player to touch third the remainder of the game was rookie third baseman Shea Hillenbrand and he did so on his way home after homering to lead off the 18th, making a winner of the Red Sox and Tim Wakefield.

Shea Hillenbrand played three seasons at Fenway, 2001-2003.

 Yesterday at Fenway Park, the Red Sox and Orioles played a 17-inning contest. The Orioles prevailed in a game in which Red Sox outfielder Darnell McDonald was the losing pitcher.

The Red Sox are now 11-16 and 7 1/2 games behind first place Baltimore, four games out of the wild card and four games away from the worst record in the league. They have lost five in a row and are now 3-9 at Fenway, 3-9 at Fenway! UGH!

One hundred years ago today, they beat the Tigers 5-4 at Fenway to run their record to 11-7. They were in second place, three games out.

And so it is on this date in Fenway Park history, May 7, 2012.

Posted in Fenway Park Baseball | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

On the seventh day He rested…..

Posted on May 6, 2012 by fenwaypark100

And Bill Russell and David Ortiz played golf.

Some interesting tid bits about Mr. Russell.

  • When playing for the University of San Francisco, Russell led the “Dons” to back to back undefeated NCAA championships in 1955 and 56.
  • In one basketball year from spring of 1956 to spring of 1957 he won, an NCAA Championship, an Olympic Gold Medal and an NBA Championship, the Boston Celtics first.
  • In 13 seasons with the Celtics, he won 11 championship rings,(eight of them in a row from 1959-1967) more than any other player in NBA history.
  • No professional athlete has won more championships than Russell.
  • He was a 12 time NBA all-star and he was the MVP of the 1983 All Star game.
  • He was named the NBA MVP five times.
  • He was the first black man to coach a team in either major league baseball, the NBA, the NFL or the NHL.
  • He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1975.
  • He was named to the NBA’s 25th, 35th and 50th anniversary teams.
  • A champion of the Civil Rights Movement, he was awarded the American Medal of Freedom by President Obama.
  • In 2011, the city of Boston announced plans to honor him with a statue which will be unveiled and displayed at City Hall Plaza, recognizing his contributions to the city in which he played and the country in which he lives!
  • He is believed by many to be the greatest player in the history of the NBA!

And, he likes Fenway Park!

And so it is on this date in Fenway Park history, May 6, 2012.

Posted in Fenway Park Baseball, Fenway Park Other | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Anything, Anything at all but a Shutout…..

Posted on May 5, 2012 by fenwaypark100

Yesterday I wrote about seven Red Sox pitchers who hurled shutouts in their major league pitching debuts. The first one was Rube Kroh in 1906, the last Billy Rohr in 1967. Interestingly enough none of them did it at Fenway Park!

Today, add the names of Ben Flowers, Russ Kemmerer and Jim Wright to a list of Fenway Park quirkiness. Who and Why you ask? Well these guys are the three Red Sox pitchers who pitched shutouts in their first major league START! The difference between these three dudes and yesterdays seven is, these guys actually pitched in relief before their start! Oh and all three of these shutouts were hurled at Fenway Park.

Ben Flowers, a knuckleballer, was the first to etch his name in Fenway Park history when he shutout the St. Louis Browns 5-0 at Fenway on August 5, 1953.

Ben Flowers pitched in 33 games for the Red Sox in 1951 and 1953.

He had made 21 relief appearances in 1953, his longest had been a 5 1/3 inning stint at Fenway Park against the Indians in June; a game in which the Cleveland team thumped four different Sox pitchers for 17 hits and 13 runs. The Sox came up on the short end that afternoon but Ben had actually stemmed the tide allowing only two runs in his five plus innings.  

From July 25th to August 1 Ben set, what at the time was a major league record, when he appeared in eight consecutive games out of the bull pen. Four days later he made his first start and he shut down the Browns, allowing nine hits, striking out but one and walking only two.

First baseman Dick Gernert provided the offense for Flowers going 2-4 with three RBI including a home run.

Flowers shutout was his only win in a Red Sox uniform but it was historic, the first Red Sox pitcher to hurl a shutout at Fenway Park in his first major league start!

A year later on the 18th of July,Russ Kemmerer joined Flowers on the Fenway list of historic first starts. The team he faced was the same, although now they were called the Baltimore Orioles, the Browns having moved to Baltimore during the winter of 1953.

The 22-year-old Kemmerer strolled to the Fenway Park mound that Sunday afternoon with only five relief stints on his resume. His team was mired in 6th place, 23 1/2 games behind the Indians who were reeling off wins at a record-setting pace. The 16, 782 members of the Fenway Faithful who spun the turnstiles on that summer afternoon had no idea they were about to witness a brush with history.

Jackie Jensen

In the first three innings, a couple of Orioles had walked, one reached on an error but none had scored. The Sox had wasted a leadoff triple by Jackie Jensen in the second but when Jackie came to bat in the third the bases were loaded and he rifled a double scoring Kemmerer who had walked and Williams who had singled.

Taking the hill in the fourth with a two run lead, the kid continued to induce Oriole outs. Undeterred by two walks, and the beneficiary of a solo homer by Jimmy Piersall in the fifth, Kemmerer carried a 3-0 lead and a no-hitter into the seventh inning.

His no-hit dreams were shattered by a line single to left by Oriole left fielder Sam Mele leading off the seventh. Kemmerer remained undaunted getting the next three Orioles on an infield pop out and two ground balls. He set the next six down in a row finishing with a most impressive one hitter and a 4-0 win.

Kemmerer would pitch but 27 games for the Red Sox in three seasons. He was 6-4 and hurled a total of 96 2/3 innings. He would go on to pitch for the Senators, White Sox and Astros but he would never again find the brilliance that was his on a Sunday July afternoon at Fenway Park.

Twenty eight year old Jim Wright had only three relief appearances behind him when he found the ball in his locker on May 6, 1978. Coming off a performance in which he had surrendered five hits to the 12 batters he faced, including two homers, he must have been feeling a bit of trepidation when he went to work. 

 Jim Wright pitched two years for Boston, 1978 and 79.

It was the second game of a double-header and his mates had taken the first game in 10 innings. Trepidation aside, Wright took control of the pale hose. He scattered seven hits and only twice did he allow two men on base. He only struck out three but he walked no one and when the day ended he had his first career shutout and the Red Sox had a sweep.

Jim Wright was the last Red Sox pitcher to throw a shutout in his first start. He would hurl two more shutouts during the ’78’ season but by the end of 1979 he was gone, joining the list of Red Sox hurlers who flipped shutouts beginning their careers and then slipping away into relative obscurity.

I’m not sure what it all means but it almost makes me think that the next time a phenom pitcher makes his debut in a Red Sox uniform, he does anything, anything at all but throw a shutout.

And so it was at this time in Fenway Park history, shutout debut time.

 

Posted in Fenway Park Baseball | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Red Sox Shutout Pitching Debuts……

Posted on May 4, 2012 by fenwaypark100

What do Billy Rohr, Dave Morehead, Dave ‘Boo” Ferris, George Hockette, Buck O’Brien, Larry Pape and Rube Kroh have in common?

Herb Kroh was the first Red Sox pitcher to throw a shutout in the first game he ever pitched. He beat the St. Louis Browns in St. Louis 2-0 allowing just two hits, on September 30, 1906. He appeared in only eight games for Boston in two seasons going 2-4.

They all pitched shutouts in their major league debuts with the Red Sox and none of those games came at Fenway Park. Kroh, Pape and O’Brien made their debut’s before Fenway Park was here and only Larry Pape did it at home, a 2-0 win against the Senators at the old Huntington Avenue Grounds. All the rest did it on the road.

George Hockette was the first lefty to do it, also beating the Browns in St. Louis 3-0 in September of 1934. George was 4-4 in a major league career that spanned 1934 and’35’ with the Red Sox.

In an interesting meaningless quirk, all seven pitchers won 2-0 (four of them) or 3-0 (three). And in a far more meaningful interesting quirk, only two of them pitched for more than three years with the Red Sox and only one of them became a full-blown star.

“Buck” O’Brien and Larry Pape both pitched for the Red Sox during Fenway Parks inaugural season of 1912.  O’Brien is forever immortalized as the man who hurled the first ever pitch at America’s Most Beloved Ball Park as he was the pitcher on April 20, 1912.

O’Brien (above) was 29-23 pitching for the Red Sox in 1911, ’12’ and ’13’. Pape was 13-9 in 1909, ’11’ and ’12’.

Kroh and Hockette combined to pitch 131 2/3 innings for the Red Sox and they started a total of only 13 games. Hockette threw another shutout in one of his starts but the brilliance that both exhibited in their debuts quickly dissipated.

On April 29, 1945 “Boo” Ferris took to the hill at Shibe Park in Philadelphia. The 24 year product of Mississippi State had a bit of control trouble yet despite walking six, he did not allow a run as he outdueled Bobo Newsome beating him and the A’s 2-0. And just for good measure he got three hits in his three at bats.

Ferris’ debut season of 1945 was two years before the Rookie of the Year Award or he may have been the winner going 21-10 with a 2.96 ERA. He was the ace of the pennant winning staff of 1946 with a 25-6 mark and he was 1-0 in the ’46’ World Series.

“Boo” was on the threshold of superstardom when in July of 1947 he snapped of a curveball and heard his shoulder pop. He struggled to a 12-11 mark in 1947, went 7-3 in ’48’ and though he pitched in ’49’ and ’50’ he had no decisions, his arm and his career were gone leaving the Fenway Faithful to mutter “what might have been”?

Dave Morehead was 20 years old when he took to the mound at DC Stadium on April 13, 1963 and following his debut the word “phenom” was heard to describe him. He struck out 10 Senators that day on his way to a five hit 3-0 victory.

Morehead showed not only flashes of brilliance but flashes of dominance early in his career, including a no-hitter in 1965.

Like Ferris, Morehead also fell victim to a shoulder pop. His came on Patriots Day (April 19, 1965) while pitching in a drizzle at Fenway Park. Delivering a pitch, he slipped a bit on the wet mound and when he let go of the pitch, his shoulder and essentially his career went with it. He pitched six years with the Red Sox going 35-56, his promise never fulfilled.

Perhaps the most dramatic pitching debut in Red Sox history came in Yankee Stadium on April 14, 1967. Twenty-two year old William Joseph Rohr was on the hill making his first start in the majors and he was pitching against Yankee Hall of Fame lefty Whitey Ford. The 6′ 3″ southpaw had shown promise winning 14 games for the Red Sox AAA team in Toronto in 1966 and he impressed new Red Sox manager Dick Williams enough in the spring to earn a trip north.

Fellow rookie Reggie Smith led off the game with a home run giving Rohr and the Red Sox a 1-0 lead. Little did anybody know that was all the young lefty would need or that a drama for the ages was about to unfold.

The first 10 Yankees went down and then Yankee right fielder Bill Robinson walked with one out in the fourth. The Yankees first base runner was followed by Rohr’s first strikeout as he got Tom Tresh. Joe Pepitone walked and Elston Howard stepped in with two on and Rohr induced a fly to right, preserving both his nascent ho-hitter and the Red Sox 1-0 lead.

The two leftys battled through the seventh inning with Rohr allowing but two walks and as the Sox came to bat in the eighth, they held on to a 1-0 lead and Rohr was clinging tight to his no-hitter!

Joe Foy hit a two run homer in the eighth giving Rohr and the Sox some breathing room and the drama meter spiked when Mickey Mantle was announced as a pinch hitter leading off the Yankee eighth. Rohr got him on a fly to right and then made an error allowing pinch hitter Lou Clinton to reach. He walked Horace Clarke but got Bill Robinson to hit into an inning ending double play.

He was three outs from a no-hitter in his major league debut!

Tom Tresh led off the ninth inning and he scorched a ball to left field in the direction of Carl Yastrzemski. Yaz went back and….well forget me telling you about, let Ken Coleman do it! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1BoD1xEJSXo

Following “one of the greatest catches we’ve ever seen” Joe Pepitone flied to Conigliaro in right and now only Elston Howard stood between Rohr and history. The Yankee catcher slammed history’s door in Rohr’s face with a single to right center and the kid lefty settled for a one hitter when third baseman Charley Smith flied to Conigliaro to end the game.

Billy Rohr pitched in only 27 games in his big league career, 10 with Boston and all of them in 1967. He was 2-3 with the Red Sox in 42 1/3 innings yet he is and forevermore will remain a part of Fenway’s most jubilant year!

And so it was at this time in Fenway Park history, major league debut shutout time!

 

 

 

 

 

Posted in Fenway Park Baseball | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Thumb Down Four Fingers To Go……..

Posted on May 3, 2012 by fenwaypark100

Last night the Venice High School baseball team, of which I am privileged enough to have a small role with, won their first game in the Florida State regional playoffs. An outstanding pitched game by Tyson and Cooper led the way to a 2-1 victory of Martin County High who came into the contest with a 26-1 record.

Congrats to the boys! Three more wins and they will play for the  Florida State Championship!

Meanwhile at Fenway Park last night the Red Sox dropped the rubber game of a three game set to the A’s 4-2.

Papi continues to pound the ball as he went 2-4 with two doubles.

However, the Sox are still scuffling and they are now 11-13, last in the AL East five and a half games behind the first place Rays. They are 4 1/2 behind the Orioles for the first wild card spot and 2 1/2 behind the Blue Jays for the win a game and move on spot.

A century ago today, the Red Sox were in the Nations Capital playing at Griffith Stadium and lost to the Senators 10-5. They were in second place 1 1/2 games out.

And so it is on this day in Fenway Park history, May 3, 2012. 

 

 

Posted in Fenway Park Baseball, Fenway Park Other | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

“For it’s one, two, three strikes you’re out at the old ball game”…..

Posted on May 2, 2012 by fenwaypark100

In case you have not noticed I am an “Old School” baseball guy.

Now for those of you who may be unaware as to just what that means, it can be summed up in the following six statements:

1. I understand and love stats and playing the odds however there are times when all of the percentages should be thrown out the window and a player/manager simply must follow his gut.

2. I know that “chicks dig the long ball” and I love watching a baseball rocket of the bat of a hitter as much as the next guy or even any “chick”, however, nothing, NOTHING matches an old fashion pitching duel. There is nothing like a baseball game in which the game rides on EVERY pitch.

3. The games all time greats would be all time greats no matter when and in what era they played!

4. Good pitching will beat good hitting!

Sandy Koufax was one of the most dominant pitchers in the game’s history.

5. A pitching duel will bring people to the park, a great hitter will keep people in the park. Huh? People will buy tickets to see a great pitching matchup, people will stay in the park to see a great hitter come to bat one more time.

On July 2, 1963 Juan Marichal and Warren Spahn hooked up in a game that went 16 innings. The Giants beat Spahn and the Braves 1-0 on a home run by Willie Mays in the bottom of the 16th. Both pitchers went the distance.

6. There is nothing as aesthetically beautiful, on a baseball diamond, as a pitcher dominating a game.

All that said, I wrote a few days ago about no-hitters at Fenway Park. Red Sox pitchers have hurled 18 no-hitters in their history, eight of them coming at Fenway Park. They have been no-hit by their opponents 12 times, four times at Fenway.

Senator Jim Bunning was the last opponent to no-hit the Red Sox at Fenway Park, July 20, 1958.

As rare as a no-hitter has been at Fenway Park you might be surprised to learn that there are pitching occurrences which are even more rare and they all began with this man,

 Jack Harshman pitched eight games for the Red Sox in 1959.

Who? I know you, in all probability, never heard of him. However, on July 25, 1954, while pitching for the White Sox, he became the first pitcher in Fenway Park history to strikeout more than 15 batters in a game at Fenway. He fanned 16 Red Sox in the first game of a double-header.

Red Sox pitchers have struck out more than 15 batters in a game at Fenway Park only five times! Five times! I wonder if any of you know when the first time it happened. It was not all that long ago and this is the guy who did it!

Roger Clemens struck out 20 Seattle Mariners at Fenway Park on April 29, 1986.

Ten years later, in Detroit, Clemens duplicated this feat striking out 20 Tigers in the departed Tiger Stadium. Twenty strikeouts in a nine inning game has occurred on but four occasions in the long history of the game; Clemens owns half of them! And as Clemens remains embroiled in his steroid controversy, these two phenomenal games took place before he met his alleged juice man while pitching for Toronto.

“The Rocket” also had a 16 strikeout game at Fenway which came in July of 1988 against the Royals. So he not only owns half of the 20 strikeout games in baseball history, he owns 40% of the 16+ strikeout games by a Red Sox pitcher at Fenway as well.

The other three belong to guess who?

Who else?

Four times while pitching for the Red Sox Pedro Martinez punched out more than 15 batters in a game, three of those games came at Fenway Park. He struck out 16 Braves in June of 1999, 17 Devil Rays in May of 2000 and 17 Devil Rays again in April of 2001. Pedro averaged 10.95 strikeouts per nine innings while he called Fenway Park his home. No one in Red Sox history has done it better!

The man who held the Red Sox record for strikeouts in a game before Clemens rewrote baseball history was this guy,

Bill Monbouquette.

It was May 12, 1961, I was eight years old and this was the first year that I really started to pay attention. On this particular Friday night that meant listening to “Monbo” mow down the Washington Senators in Washington. I lay in bed listening to Curt Gowdy and Ned Martin tell me about one strikeout after another and when it was over, 17 Senators had gone down on strikes and the Red Sox and “Monbo” had a 2-1 win. It remains to this day, the best game I have ever heard!

Besides Jack Harshman, there are two other visiting pitchers who have reached the 16 strikeout plateau at Fenway Park. Nolan Ryan sent down 16 Red Sox in July of 1972 and Roger Clemens did the same in July of ’97’ while pitching for the Blue Jays.

Roger Clemens is the only pitcher to strikeout more than 15 in a Fenway Park game wearing two different uniforms.

Those of you heading to Fenway tonight are twice as likely to see Daniel Bard pitch a no-hitter as you are to see him punch out 16 Oakland A’s. For it is a short list of legendary names who have struck out more than 15 batters in a game at Fenway Park, Nolan Ryan, Roger Clemens, Pedro Martinez, names of which tales will be told and yarns will be spun for as long as the game is played. Oh, and then there’s Jack Harshman!

God do I love this game!

 And so it is on this date in Fenway Park history, May 2, 2012.

 

Posted in Fenway Park Baseball | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Anatomy of a Rivalry, The Seventh Stanza, 1950 and 51……

Posted on May 1, 2012 by fenwaypark100

The story of the 1950 and 1951 Red Sox is part of my aforementioned “Litany of Futility” visa vie the Red Sox/Yankee rivalry. It would prove to provide the closing act on this version of the passion play which would take nearly three decades to resume.

 The 1950 season saw a raw kid from Moosup Connecticut ensconced at the Red Sox first base position and he responded splendidly hitting .322 with 34 dingers and he knocked in 144 of his mates as well on his way to becoming the first Red Sox player to win the Rookie of the Year Award.

He joined a starting lineup in which Bobby Doerr had the lowest batting average at .294, three players had 120 RBI or more, five players scored 100 runs or more, and they had a utility man who hit .354 with 424 at bats.

Ted Williams, Vern Stephens and Walt Dropo hit third, fourth and fifth in the Red Sox lineup in 1950. Between them they hit 92 homers knocked in 385 runs and batted .313.

The 1950 Red Sox won 94 games which today would pretty much assure them of reaching a post season berth. In 1950 it earned them third place, four games behind the Yankees and one game behind the second place Tigers. But you have to know we’re talking Red Sox/Yankees here so there is, of course, more to the story.

On August 1st, the Red Sox were in fourth place, seven games out of first. They had been floundering between six and nine games off the lead since the middle of June but they were about to explode. They went 6-1 the first week in August and then in mid month they won 11 straight and 16 out of 17 to climb within 2 1/2 games. Their hot play continued into September and when Mel Parnell beat the White Sox in Chicago on the 12th of the month it was Boston’s 32nd win in 40 games. They were a game out of first place and heading into St. Louis to play the Browns whom they had beaten in 18 of the 19 games they had played them.

They dropped two of three in St. Louis, rebounded to sweep two from the Tigers and then it was on to Cleveland for two and then Yankee Stadium, the pennant was still within their grasp and their destiny was in their hands.

Bob Lemon and Early Wynn.

Lemon and Wynn beat them in doubleheader in Cleveland and they headed to Yankee Stadium for a two game showdown with the Yankees. If they won two they would tie them.

Red Sox pitchers Mel Parnell and Williard Nixon.

There were 131,000 fans who jammed Yankee Stadium for the two game set and they witnessed the Yankees drive the stake through the heart of the Red Sox. Eddie Lopat beat Mel Parnell in the first game throwing an 8-0 shutout and Willard Nixon didn’t get to the third inning as the Yankees shelled him early on their way to a 9-5 win.

The Red Sox left Yankee Stadium four games out and that is exactly where they would finish, four games out and in third place. After going 32-8 from August 1st through September 12th, they went 8-9 the rest of the way, foiled again!

September of 1951 brought more of the same.

On September 16th and 17th, the Red Sox swept the White Sox in a short two game series making them 6-1 on the homestand. There were 13 games left and Cleveland was coming in for two games followed by the Yankees for three. They would then hit the road and close the season with three in Washington against the lowly Senators (whom they had beaten 15 of 19 times) and close out the campaign with a five game series in Yankee Stadium. Their destiny was in their hands, again, they were only 2 1/2 games back.

I am not sure that the word ugly can adequately describe what transpired the last 13 games of the season and I must say that hearing my daddy tell me about it a decade later, I was glad I did not witness it. The Red Sox dropped 12 of the last 13 games. That’s right, 12 of the last 13 games finishing in third place 11 games out!

Ted Williams and Joe DiMaggio, the true founders of the Red Sox/Yankee rivalry a decade earlier, faced each other for the last time in 1951.

The 1951 season marked the passing of the Yankee baton from Joe DiMaggio to Mickey Mantle. Ted Williams was bound for Korea for the 1952 and ’53’ seasons and the rivalry was heading into a dormancy as the Red Sox and Yankees were heading in different directions. The Yankees were on the verge of a greatness they had never known, even in the Ruth/Gehrig/DiMaggio eras, and the Red Sox were about to slip back into the abyss.

Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle 1961.

And by the time I started paying attention 10 years later, I thought the name of the baseball team in New York was the Damn Yankees!

It would be nearly three decades for the rivalry to be rekindled with the names of Yastrzemski, Jackson, Fisk, Munson, Rice, Dent, Guidry, Eckersley and a whole new cast of characters who would take it to yet another level.

to be continued…..

And so it was at this time in Fenway Park history,1950 and 51, Red Sox/Yankee rivalry time.

Posted in Fenway Park Baseball | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

“Courage is the mastery, not the absence of fear”…..Mark Twain

Posted on April 30, 2012 by fenwaypark100

When you speak of Red Sox second basemen, the current man at that position, Dustin Pedroia is as good as any Red Sox player who has played the position.

Hall of Famer Bobby Doerr’s number one hangs on Fenway’s venerable right field facade and he is bronzed outside of the park with three of his “Teammates”.

 Both of these players are nominated for the All Fenway team and in fact they both made my All Fenway squad. The other nominees for the All Fenway second base position include the ever popular Jerry “The Remdawg” Remy, two-time AL batting champ Pete Runnels, Marty Barrett (1986) and Mike Andrews (1967) who played the position during two pennant winning seasons.

I have been watching baseball since 1959 and it was a Red Sox second baseman who was the author of the most courageous action I have ever seen on a major league baseball diamond.

Doug Griffin called Fenway Park home from through 1977.

He came to the Red Sox in October of 1970 from the California Angels in one of the most controversial trades in Red Sox history as one of Fenway’s most popular players, Tony Conigliaro, was part of the package which headed west.

He hit seven career homers and never hit higher than .266. The most RBI he had in a season was 35 and the closest he came to leading the league in anything was third in sacrifice hits in 1972 and 1973. He was however, a Gold Glove winner in 1972.

His tale of courage began thirty-eight years ago tonight! The California Angels were at Fenway Park and this guy was slated to start for the Halos.  

Nolan Ryan came to the American League from the Mets in 1972, he had 329 strikeouts in 1972 and 383 in 1973, a major league record for strikeouts in a season that still stands.

The proverbial “gun” regularly clocked Ryan at 100 miles per hour with at times it reaching up around 103 or 104, so a night of facing him in the batters box was not something that any hitter looked particularly forward to.

The Red Sox were in the midst of a tough stretch having lost six of their previous seven games and they were scuffling around the bottom of the AL East. Griffin however was on the best offensive streak of his career, he had a 15 game hitting streak in which he was hitting .347.

The Angels scored a run in the first inning and Red Sox center fielder Rick Miller led off the game for the Sox with a single to center. Up stepped Griffin and in his usual competitive fashion, he dug in.

Ryan uncorked a fastball which got away from him and hit Griffin in the head. He was knocked unconscious and for a brief period of time, his life was endangered. He suffered a concussion and temporary loss of hearing but he recovered and returned in July after 60 plus days on the disabled list. He doubled in his first came back but the real test of courage awaited.

It was August 12th and the Red Sox were at Anaheim Stadium to face the Angels and, you guessed it, Nolan Ryan was on the mound. It is important to understand that Anaheim Stadium in the summer time meant what was referred to as pitching in the twilight. That included shadows. The mound would be in the sunshine while the batters box would be in the shade. Imagine digging in to face a Nolan Ryan fastball at anytime let alone in the shadows. Then imagine digging in against Nolan Ryan in the shadows after he nearly killed you three months earlier.

Well Ryan got Griffin his first time up with a punch out, however the second baseman was undaunted and his next time up singled to lead off the fifth inning. He scored the Sox first run of the game riding home on a Rick Miller triple.

In June of 1975, the Red Sox acquired second baseman Denny Doyle from the Angels which affectively ended Griffin’s career with the Red Sox.

On August 30, 1975 he was beaned again by Oakland A’s pitcher Dick Bosman and suffered equilibrium and hearing problems once again. An ear flap protected him from further damage.

He batted once in the 1975 World Series but would play only 49 games in 1976 and he was released in June of 1977, ending his baseball career. However, his story of overcoming fear, conquering adversity and sheer courage is forever a part of Fenway folklore.

And so it was at this time in Fenway Park history, April 30, 1974.

Posted in Fenway Park Baseball | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

And on the seventh day He rested…..

Posted on April 29, 2012 by fenwaypark100

And I believe Carlton Fisk played golf!

Red Sox Hall of Famer Carlton Fisk.

Since 2008 Carlton Fisk has hosted a tournament at The Founders Club in Sarasota Florida for charity. The beneficiaries have been charities benefiting children of Florida’s Suncoast.

This year the event will take place in November with all proceeds going to Suncoast Charities for Children.

 http://www.fiskandfriends.org/index.html

Another one of the good guys working toward “improving the lot of others”.

Yesterday the Red Sox thundering bats of the past week fell silent as they could muster but one run. However the pitching put forth its best effort of the year as Jon Lester, Franklin Morales, Vincent Padilla, and Alfredo Aceves combined to shut out the White Sox as Fenway’s inhabitants won their sixth straight and are now, finally at .500 (10-10). Even though they remain in last place in the AL East, they gained a game and are only 2 1/2 games behind the first place Rays.

Jon Lester got his first win of 2012 yesterday going seven innings allowing no runs on five hits. He walked a batter and fanned seven.

One hundred years ago today, the Red Sox played the American League defending champion Philadelphia A’s and took it on the chin 7-1. It ran their record to 8-4 and they fell a game and a half behind the Chicago White Sox. In seven of their wins, they had come from behind.

And so it is and so it was on this date in Fenway Park history, April 29, 2012 and April 29, 1912.

Posted in Fenway Park Baseball, Fenway Park Other | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Give Mom Fenway Park for Mothers Day…..

Posted on April 28, 2012 by fenwaypark100

Give Mom Fenway Park for Mother’s Day. What could be better than that?

There are over 200 photos in this book. Here is one of them with the caption which accompanies it.

“Smokey” Joe Wood (right) is seen glancing toward the Fenway Park outfield before Game Four of the 1912 World Series. Wood was the ace of the Boston staff in 1912 with an astounding 34-5 record. His 34 wins, and .872 winning percentage remain records for a Red Sox starting pitcher in a season. He was 3-1 in the 1912 World Series. The Red Sox catcher to the far left is Hick Cady.” 

Available here…..

http://www.arcadiapublishing.com/9780738576886/Fenway-Park

http://www.amazon.com/Fenway-Images-America-David-Hickey/dp/0738576883/ref=sr_1_63?ie=UTF8&qid=1328968948&sr=8-63

For a personalized autographed copy, email fewnaypark100@gmail.com.

Last night the Red Sox bats kept pounding as they trounced the White Sox 10-3 for their fifth straight win. They are now 9-10, still in last place in the AL East 3 1/2 games behind the leading Tampa Bay Rays who have won six straight. 

One hundred years ago today was a Sunday and baseball was not played on Sundays. The Red Sox were 8-3 and had won three straight. They were in second place, 1/2 game out!

And so it is and so it was on this date in Fenway Park history, April 28, 2012, April 28, 1912. 

 

Posted in Fenway Park Baseball | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment