Week 17 Results (08/05/1957 - 08/11/1957)

Monday, August 5, 1957

 

Transaction List:

 

Brooklyn pitcher Carl Erskine was injured (?) on 08/04/1957 and did not return to the mound until 08/24/1957

 

New York (NL) catcher Ray Katt was injured (?) on 08/04/1957 and did not return to play until 08/30/1957

 

Baltimore pitcher Billy Loes was injured (?) on 08/04/1957 and did not return to the mound until 08/25/1957

 

Pittsburgh outfielder Roman Mejias was injured (?) on 08/04/1957 and did not return to play until 09/11/1957

 

Joe Black

Washington pitcher Joe Black (team debut 08/06/1957) was signed as a free agent. Black had been with both Cincinnati and Philadelphia earlier in the season, but DNP

Note: It's the first full week in a new month and it's a travel day, so a light schedule to get the week started. The AL Midwest teams are leaving the east coast to return to the Midwest while in the NL the east teams are leaving the Midwest to go back east.

 

Cleveland 6 New York (AL) (H) 3

 

The Yankees outhit the Indians 11-9, but the Indians drew eleven walks on the day and were able to take advantage of the gifs. Catcher Hal Naragon had a two-run single in the top of the fifth for the big hit and Mike Garcia (6-5, 3.59) and Cal McLish were able to hold off a late Yankee rally attempt.

 

Brooklyn (H) 6 New York (NL) 4

 

Gil Hodges hit a pair of two-run homeruns (#24, #25), the second coming in the bottom of the ninth and gave the Dodgers the win over their crosstown rivals. Clem Labine (5-2, 3.04) picked up the win in relief.

 

Tuesday, August 6, 1957

 

Transaction List:

 

Lou Boudreau was replaced by Harry Craft as the manager of the Kansas City Athletics.

 

Boston 11 Baltimore (H) 2

 

Ted Williams went 3-for-4 (.423) on the day and drove in six runs to spark the Red Sox to an easy win in Baltimore. Willard Nixon (9-4, 4.82) didn’t allow any runs until the eighth inning and went all the way for the victory.

 

Kansas City 2 Chicago (AL) (H) 1

 

A's catcher Tim Thompson snuck a two-out single into right field in the top of the ninth to score pinch-runner Vic Power with the lead run. Alex Kellner (6-5, 4.83) got the win and Virgil Trucks finished with a 1-2-3 ninth.

 

Detroit (H) 5 Cleveland 3

 

Vic Wertz hit a two-run homerun (#27) in the first to help spot the Indians to a 3-0 lead, but the Tigers roared back with a four-run fifth and regain the lead. Jim Bunning (14-5, 2.91) got the win with help from Harry Byrd to get out of a ninth-inning jam.

 

New York (AL) (H) 6 Washington 3

 

Bob Turley (10-3, 2.84) walked five but struck out fifteen to get the complete-game win, plus Turley drove in two runs with a single in a three-run second that put the Yankees ahead to stay.

 

New York (NL) 5 Brooklyn (H) 0

 

Ray Jablonski, playing first base today, had a two-run single in the three-run eighth to help put the game away and Curt Barclay (9-9, 4.85) shutout the Dodgers for the complete-game win.

 

Note: On this day in 1957 the Giants beat the Dodgers by the score of 5-0.

 

Milwaukee (H) 8 Cincinnati 0

 

Warren Spahn (14-5, 3.14) threw a shutout versus the powerful Reds plus he hit a two-run homerun (#3) in the fifth inning to give the Braves a 5-0 lead. The first three Braves runs came on a Red Schoendienst three-run homerun (#11) in the third.

 

Philadelphia 5 Pittsburgh (H) 1

 

Philadelphia left fielder Harry Anderson hit a two-run homerun (#12) in the first and then added a solo shot (#13) in the eighth to lead the way for the visiting Phillies. Jack Sanborn (12-6, 2.48) got the win with some late-inning help from Dick Farrell.

 

Chicago (NL) 10 S. Louis (H) 6

 

The Cardinals scored four times in the bottom of the first but the Cubs answered back by scoring five times in the third and then adding on late to cruise to an easy win. Chuck Tanner had a homerun (#6) and four RBI's on the day and Ernie Banks added a solo homerun (#28) to further the cause.

 

Wednesday, August 7, 1957

 

Transaction List:

 

Chicago (AL) outfielder Jim Landis was injured (?) on 08/06/1957 and did not return to play until 09/10/1957. Chicago (AL) pitcher Jim Hughes (team debut 08/11/1957) was purchased from Chicago (NL) (DNP) on 08/07/1957

 

Brooklyn catcher John Roseboro returned to play on 08/08/1957 following his injury (?) of 07/21/1957

 

Boston 1 Baltimore (H) 0

 

Slumping Sammy White singled home Ted Lepcio in the top of the fifth and Frank Sullivan (16-3, 1.83) outdueled Connie Johnson (10-8, 2.27) to get his fifth shutout victory of the season.

 

Chicago (AL) (H) 8 Kansas City 1

 

Larry Doby and Sherm Lollar (four hits each) accounted for eight of the White Sox sixteen hits as once they got the lead they just kept up the pressure on the A's. Jim Wilson (14-5, 3.15) didn’t give up a run until the eighth and got the win.

Al Kaline

Detroit (H) 8 Cleveland 3

Al Kaline led the way with two solo homeruns (#13, #14) and four RBI's to support Billy Hoeft (13-4, 2.51). Hoeft didn’t allow any Indians runs until the eighth inning.

Washington 6 New York (AL) (H) 2

 

The Senators scored single runs in each of the first three innings and then after the Yankees made it close ended the game with a three-run top of the ninth. Bud Byerly (4-3, 2.55) got the win in relief.

 

Note: After this game Washington starter Camilo Pascual didn’t appear again for three weeks. In the top of the fourth of this game Pascual developed arm trouble and had to come out of the game. That's a pretty amazing coincidence.

 

Brooklyn (H) 4 New York (NL) 0

 

Don Newcombe (11-8, 3.17) limited the Giants to only two hits on the day and went all the way for the shutout. Gil Hodges had a two-run homerun (#26) in the first to get the Dodgers a lead they never lost.

 

Milwaukee (H) 7 Cincinnati 6

 

The Reds scored five times in the first but it wasn't enough as the Braves scored three times in the third to keep it close and then they put up another three-spot in the seventh to take their first lead of the day. Eddie Mathews had a homerun (#29) to help get the comeback started and Wes Covington had a homerun (#21) and two RBI's to help make the comeback complete..

 

St. Louis (H) 5 Chicago (NL) 2

 

Del Ennis hit a two-run homerun (#19) in the first and Stan Musial hit a two-run homerun (#32) in the seventh to support Herm Wehmeier (7-6, 6.03). Wehmeier kept the Cubs off the scoreboard until a Dale Long two-run homerun (#15) in the top of the ninth.

 

Thursday, August 8, 1957

 

Transaction List:

 

Washington pitcher Camilo Pascual was injured (?) on 08/07/1957 and did not return to the mound until 08/27/1957

 

New York (AL) second baseman Bobby Richardson was injured (?) on 08/07/1957 and did not return to play until 08/27/1957

 

Philadelphia pitcher Jim Hearn returned to the mound on 08/09/1957 following his injury (?) of 07/20/1957

 

Boston shortstop Billy Klaus returned to play on 08/09/1957 following his injury (?) of 07/19/1957

 

Milwaukee infielder Mel Roach made his season debut on 08/09/1957

 

Boston 2 Baltimore (H) 1

 

The Orioles committed two errors on the day, both leading to Boston runs and spoiling a great pitching outing by Billy O'Dell (5-3, 2.27). The second error, a four-base error by left fielder Bob Neiman in the top of the eighth, allowed pinch-hitter Gene Stephens to come all the way around with the game-winning run.

 

Chicago (AL) (H) 13 Kansas City 2

 

After four batters the White Sox led 4-0 and went on to score six runs in the first. Minnie Minoso homered in the first, tripled in the second, and then added two more singles, but didn’t get a double to complete the cycle. Billy Pierce (17-5, 2.36) not only got the win but had three hits of his own on the day.

 

Cleveland 4 Detroit (H) 2

 

The Indians scored twice in the top of the first but the Tigers crawled back into the game and tied it at 2-2 after the seventh. Then Vic Wertz hit a two-run homerun (#28) and Ray Narleski (2-9, 3.91) made that lead stand up for the win.

 

Washington 8 New York (AL) (H) 7

 

The Senators scored three times in the top of the fourth on a three-run homerun from Art Schult (#3), but the Yankees second base and shortstop combo of Jerry Coleman (#3) and Gil McDougald (#17) both hit two-run homeruns as part of a five-run fourth to take a 5-3 lead. The Senators quickly roared back with a five-run inning of their own in the top of the sixth, but the Yankees stayed close with two runs in the bottom of the seventh. Bud Byerly came in to quiet down the Yankees and get the save.

 

New York (NL) 6 Brooklyn (H) 1 (Three Homerun Game!)

New York left fielder Hank Sauer hit three homeruns (five RBI's) to lead the Giants over Brooklyn, allowing Ruben Gomez (11-13, 4.03) to go all the way for the easy win. Gomez didn’t give up a run until one out in the ninth.

Note: The Giants became the first team to reach the 110 games played mark.

 

Cincinnati 7 Milwaukee (H) 1

 

A pinch-hit three-run homerun by Smoky Burgess (#9) in the eighth put the game out of reach and Joe Nuxhall (5-8, 4.78) got the win over Lew Burdette (11-9, 3.88). Nuxhall also pitched in with a 3-for-4 day at the plate and scored a run and had an RBI.

 

Pittsburgh (H) 6 Philadelphia 2

 

The Pirates blew open a tight game with a five-run seventh, the big hit being a three-run triple by Bill Virdon. Vern Law (10-7, 2.44) didn't go all the way but got the win.

 

Chicago (NL) 4 St. Louis (H) 1

 

The Cardinals scored a run in the bottom of the first but that was all Moe Drabowsky (10-5, 3.10) would give up today as the Cubs came back to grab a road win in St. Louis.

 

Friday, August 9, 1957

 

Transaction List:

 

Baltimore pitcher Milt Pappas made his major league debut on 08/10/1957. Pappas had signed as an amateur free agent on 06/26/1957

 

New York (AL) 3 Baltimore (H) 0

 

The game was scoreless until the ninth when an error by Baltimore reliever George Zuverink opened the door for a three-run outburst (all unearned). Following the error Tony Kubek came through with a two-out two-run single to secure the win for Whitey Ford (7-3, 2.04).

 

Boston (H) 6 Washington 5 (Three Homerun Game!) (10)

 

The Red Sox went ahead early on a solo homerun (#30) from Ted Williams but the Senators came back to take a 4-1 lead after the top of the fifth. Williams then hit a second homerun (#31) to keep it close, the Senators replied with a run, and then Williams hit a two-run homerun (#32) to make the score 5-4 after the seventh. Jackie Jensen tied the score at 5-5 with a homerun (#24) in the eighth, and the game soon moved into extra-innings. Boston shortstop Billy Consolo came through with a two-two single scoring Williams from second, giving Williams a 4-for-5 day (.426) with four runs scored, four RBI's, and three homeruns.

 

Note: Williams also had a three-homerun game on June 12, 1957.

 

Chicago (AL) 7 Detroit 1

 

The Tigers came into the game with a 4-5 record versus the White Sox so far this season and would have loved nothing more than to make a dent in Chicago's pennant chances, but first baseman Earl Torgeson hit a solo homerun (#6) in the third inning to get the scoring started and they soon led 4-0 through the end of the sixth. Torgeson then added a three-run homerun (#7) in the eighth to salt away the win for Dick Donovan (16-3, 2.28).

 

Cleveland (H) 6 Kansas City 5

 

The Indians had a 6-2 lead after the seventh but the A's forced their way back into one run when Gus Zernial tripled home two runs in the top of the ninth, but the Cleveland bullpen finally got the third out to preserve the win for Early Wynn (11-12, 3.63).

 

Chicago (NL) 3 Cincinnati (H) 2 (GM 1)

 

The Reds began the day in sixth place, three games behind the fourth-place Dodgers, but only two games ahead of the seventh-place Cubs. Chicago scored twice after two outs in the top of the first and Jim Brosnan (7-1, 4.40) and the Cubs bullpen refused to let the Reds back into the game.

 

Cincinnati (H) 10 Chicago (NL) 4 (GM 2)

 

Art Fowler (8-4, 3.86) gave up two-run homeruns to Bob Speake and Ernie Banks in the top of the first but settled down after that. The Reds bullpen pitched in to shut down the Cubs as well and the dormant Reds offense woke up and scored eight runs in their last three at-bats to run away with game two.

 

Philadelphia 7 New York (NL) (H) 3

 

The Phillies wasted no time in jumping on the Giants as they scored five runs in the top of the first before recording an out. Robin Roberts (10-11, 4.93) took over from there, inducing three double plays to help keep the Giants off the scoreboard.

 

Brooklyn 10 Pittsburgh (H) 2

 

Of the two rookie pitchers in the Dodgers rotation Don Drysdale has had an outstanding year, but Danny McDevitt (1-7, 4.33) has not, but he had the good stuff today and the Dodgers offense supported him as he got his second complete game of the season.

 

St. Louis (H) 7 Milwaukee 4

 

Both teams started the day with identical 63-44 records and both teams had their aces lined up for game one of the series. Both pitchers experienced control problems as Lindy McDaniel (16-2, 1.99) walked three batters in the first two innings and a two-run double by Red Schoendienst in the second put the Braves ahead. The lead didn’t last long as Bob Buhl (16-6, 1.60) walked five batters in the first three-plus innings, setting up Joe Cunningham to single home two runs in the third and then hit a three-run homerun (#4) in the fourth, giving the Cardinals a 7-3 lead.

 

Saturday, August 10, 1957

 

Transaction List:

 

Detroit pitcher Bob Shaw made his major league debut on 08/11/1957

 

New York (AL) 8 Baltimore (H) 7

 

The Orioles scored twice in the first and then two more times in the fourth to take a 4-0 lead, but then the Yankees responded with a run in the fifth and then a three-run sixth left the score tied at 4-4. Enos Slaughter hit a three-run homerun in the seventh to give the New Yorkers their first lead. Baltimore rallied, scoring twice in the bottom of the ninth, but Art Ditmar came in to get the final out.

 

Washington 6 Boston (H) 2

 

We might have a race for the AL homerun title after all as Roy Sievers hit two homeruns (#34, #35) and Ted Williams hit one (#33). Ted Abernathy (3-6, 5.17) got the better of Willard Nixon (9-5, 4.90) in this one.

 

Chicago (AL) 7 Detroit 5

 

The Tigers had a 4-0 lead after the top of the fifth but then the White Sox began their slow but inevitable climb back towards the lead. That came when Larry Doby (#11) and Bubba Phillips (#9) both hit two-run homeruns as part of a five-run eighth. Al Kaline hit two homeruns (#15, #16) on the day, but both were solo shots.

 

Cleveland (H) 4 Kansas City 3 (10)

 

The A's had leads of 2-0 and 3-1 but two runs by the Indians tied the score at 3-3 and the game soon went intro extra's. Cleveland wasted little time as Joe Altobelli lined a single to score Bobby Avila with the game-winner, making a winner of Mike Garcia (7-5, 3.53).

 

Cincinnati (H) 9 Chicago (NL) 0

 

Hal Jeffcoat (8-12, 3.91) twirled a five-hitter with plenty of run support from his teammates. The Reds led 6-0 after the third and then Don Hoak hit a three-run homerun (#14) in the eighth to put the game out of reach.

 

Brooklyn 4 Pittsburgh (H) 2

 

The Dodgers took their second in a row in Pittsburgh as Don Drysdale (11-6, 1.89) had another strong outing. Gil Hodges had the big hit when he tripled home Duke Snider in the sixth to put Brooklyn ahead to stay.

 

Milwaukee 4 St. Louis (H) 2

 

Red Schoendienst hit a homerun in the top of the ninth to provide a little cushion for Warren Spahn (15-5, 3.09) as the Braves regained their tie at the top of the NL.

 

Sunday, August 11, 1957

 

Note: It's a doubleheader Sunday again, with five doubleheaders on today's schedule.

 

Baltimore (H) 4 New York (AL) 2

 

First baseman Bob Boyd hit a two-run homerun (#4) in the first and errors by Yankees left fielder Elston Howard opened the door for additional Orioles runs in the first and eighth innings. Ken Lehman (2-1, 2.24) made the best of his spot start with a strong outing.

 

Washington 9 Boston (H) 5 (GM 1)

 

Jim Lemon hit a two-run homerun in the top of the first but the Red Sox slowly mounted a comeback, take a 4-2 lead after the fourth inning. Ted Williams homered (#34) in the seventh to put Boston up 5-3, but then the Senators jumped on the Red Sox bullpen with six runs in the top of the eighth, the big hit being a three-run homerun by Roy Sievers (#36).

 

Washington 7 Boston (H) 2 (GM 2)

 

Washington reliever Dick Hyde (2-1, 3.20) got a spot start today and he went eight innings and only gave up four hits, plus he went 3-for-4 on the day with two runs scored to help his own cause.

 

Chicago (AL) 6 Detroit 5 (GM 1)

 

A three-run third got the White Sox an early lead but the Tigers came back, tying the score at 3-3 in the top of the eighth. No matter - Earl Torgeson led off the bottom of the inning with a homerun (#8) and the Sherm Lollar added a two-run homerun (#11) before the inning was over. The Tigers came back with two in the ninth, but it wasn't enough.

 

Chicago (AL) 6 Detroit 5 (10) (GM 2)

 

Another barn burner in Chicago as a Larry Doby three-run triple gave the home team a 3-1 lead in the bottom of the first. The game tightened up until the White Sox committed two errors in the top of the eighth to open the doors for a four-run inning and a 5-4 lead for Detroit. Earl Torgeson hit a pinch-hit triple to drive home the tying run in the bottom of the eighth and the game soon moved into extra innings. A clutch two-out single from Jim Rivera in the bottom of the tenth was the win and the doubleheader sweep for the White Sox.

 

Kansas City 14 Cleveland (H) 1 (GM 1)

 

The A's worked out some of their offensive frustrations by combining for seventeen hits and scoring five runs in both the third and sixth innings. Ned Garver (7-8, 3.98) didn’t allow a run until the bottom of the eighth and limited the Indians to only six hits on for the game.

 

Cleveland (H) 10 Kanas City 9 (10) (GM 2)

 

The A's picked up right where they left off in game one by scoring six runs in the top of the first, the big hit being a three-run homerun (#10) by catcher Hal W. Smith. The Indians fought back, thanks to three-run homeruns in the first and third innings off the bats of Vic Wertz (#29) and Rocky Colavito (#13). The Indians finally tied the score at 9-9 with a run in the bottom of the ninth and then Colavito led off the bottom of the tenth with his second homerun (#14) of the day (thus making amends for hitting into two double plays in the interim).

 

New York (NL) (H) 5 Philadelphia 1 (GM 1)

 

The Phillies scored once in the top of the second but the Giants responded with five runs in the bottom half of the inning. That as all the scoring in this one as Curt Barclay (10-9, 4.61) outdueled the Philadelphia bullpen the rest of the way for the game one win.

 

Philadelphia 4 New York (NL) (H) 1 (GM 2)

 

The Phillies slowly built up a lead and Jack Sanford (13-6, 2.40) didn’t give up a run until the eighth inning to get the visitors a split in the day's doubleheader.

 

Brooklyn 5 Pittsburgh (H) 4 (GM 1)

 

The Dodgers took their third in a row in Pittsburgh by building up an early lead then holding off a belated Pirates rally. Johnny Podres (12-6, 3.16) got the game one win with help from Clem Labine to get out of some late-inning trouble.

 

Duke Snider

Brooklyn 11 Pittsburgh (H) 10 (GM 2) (Cycle!)

 

Another exciting game as the Dodgers scored five runs in the fourth to take a 6-0 lead, the big hit being a three-run homerun from Duke Snider (#24). The Pirates suddenly came alive and scored nine runs over the next three innings and went into the ninth with a 9-7 lead. The Dodgers managed to tie the score and then Snider came through with a two-run triple that not only put the Dodgers back ahead with an 11-9 lead but it also completed the first cycle of the season. The Pirates rallied (of course) but the Dodgers held on to sweep the doubleheader and the entire four-game series in Pittsburgh.

 

Milwaukee 6 St. Louis (H) 1

 

The two teams started the day with identical 64-45 records and both would love nothing more than to end the week with a solo hold on first-place. Hank Aaron had been relatively quiet recently but his three-run homerun (#37) was the big hit in a four-run third and Gene Conley (6-5, 4.05) went all the way with a clutch pitching performance.