FINAL SECOND HALF STANDINGS
W L Pct. GB
Spokane ..... 46 32 .590 —
Lewiston .... 42 30 .583 1
Vancouver ... 44 35 .557 2½
Yakima ...... 40 34 .541 4
Edmonton .... 38 34 .528 5
Salem ....... 39 35 .527 5
Calgary ..... 33 39 .458 10
Tri-City .... 32 42 .432 12
Wenatchee ... 30 44 .405 14
Victoria .... 29 46 .387 15½
KENNEWICK — Spokane backed into the Western International League's second half Championship Tuesday night despite a 3-2 loss to the Tri-City Braves in 11 innings.
Lewiston's 10-9 setback at the hands of the Victoria Tyees in the season's windup left Spokane seven percentage points ahead in the tight race to the wire.
Ernie Hockaday was both the goat and hero in Tri-City's extra-inning triumph before 1,236 hometown fans. His left field error in the third inning opened the gate for Spokane's two unearned runs Then he redeemed himself by singling home the tying run in the eighth and scored the winning tally in the last of the 11th.
Spokane .... 002 000 000 00—2 9 1
Tri-City ..... 000 000 110 01—3 12 1
Spring, Romero (8), New (11), Franks (11) and Sheets; Robertson and Warren.
LEWISTON, Idaho — The Lewiston Broncs tossed to the wind their chance of getting into the Western International League Baseball playoffs, bowing to last-place Victoria 10-9 Tuesday night.
The loss assures Spokane Indians of first place in the league's second half and a chance for the pennant in playoffs later this week with Salem, the first-half winner.
Loose pitching proved to be the Broncs' downfall, and manager Bill Brenner, who many times during the season pulled his team out of a tight squeere into a victory during the season, was charged with the loss.
Dwane Helbig led Victoria's 20-hit attack with four hits in five trips while Bill Prior, coming to the relief of Zeb Walker in the fourth, lasted to the finish to gain credit for the win.
Victoria ........... 000 521 200—10 20 3
Lewiston ......... 011 300 310— 9 14 1
Walker, Prior (4) and Harford; Perez, Brenner (4), Kime (5), Marshall (8) and Cameron.
CALGARY — Calgary Stampeders wound up their Western International League baseball season on a victorious note here Tuesday night by downing Edmonton Eskimos 10-5.
Stamps broke a nip-and-tuck contest wide open in the eighth inning when they plated six runs.
Thc Calgary victory was scored against the combined efforts of Ray McNulty and John Conant, aces of the Edmonton mound staff.
Don Bricker powered the Calgary victory with two homers. Dick Morgan and Bob Meisner homered for the Eskimos.
Ed Kapp was the winner and Conant the loser.
Edmonton ............. 000 210 020— 5 9 5
Calgary ................ 020 100 16x—10 13 1
McNulty, Conant (7) McNulty (8) and Morgan; Kapp, Stites (9) and Bricker.
VANCOUVER [Clancy Loranger, Province, Sept. 9]—They rang down the curtain on the 1953 Capilanos Tuesday, with K Chorlton taking the bows at the finish and the intended hero, general manager Dewey Soriano, wringing his hands in the wings.With fair-haired boy K showing the way with a home run in each game against Wenatchee—and his third in two nights—the Caps won their third straight doubleheader, their eighth and ninth straight starts, and their 11th game in 12 outings.
This “big” finish assured the locals of third place in the second-half standings, but all it did for Dewey, the bright young man who would have liked to run up a flag in centre field in his freshman year, was to leave him with that “what might have been feeling.”
The Caps had two slumps this season—both of then at crucial stages of the first and second halves. They were right in contention for the first-half crown, when they dropped four in a row to Edmonton and wound up fourth.
Losing Streak Disastrous
And they had moved into a contending position, with a much improved club, in the second half, when disaster struck. For eight games they did nothing right, and that losing streak left them too far back when they started their season’s best streak that saw them do little wrong at the finish.
There were other disappointments for Soriano, too, as he took over the job that Bob Brown held so long and vacated last winter for the WIL presidency. The Caps were the victims of foul weather—and, let’s face it, a club that never gripped the fans’ imagination—as they hit a new low in attendance in the new stadium.
They should total around 70,000 for the year, compared to 170,000 in 1951 and 119,000 last year.
The season wasn’t a complete flop, of course. There were pitchers Bob Roberts, bought for a bargain from Calgary, and Lonnie Myers—both sold to Seattle. And Dewey announced last night that Van Fletcher, a 17-game winner this season, is back in the Seattle fold and will return to the Coast League team next spring along with Pete Hernandez (18-10), who was recalled.
Storey Was Popular General
Soriano chose Harvey Storey, the ex-Coast Leaguer, as his field boss over several candidates, and what Storey lacked in color he made up for with his bat and his general competency as a tactician. And he was liked, too, in the same way Bill Brenner was here, if they pay off on that.
Other highlights: the improved play of Jack Bukowatz as a second baseman and hitter; the acquisition of the league’s best shortstop, Jim Clark; the development of Bob Duretto as a catcher; and the final emergence of Chorlton, who finished like the ball player who once was bought by the New York Giants.
The disappointments? Well, they won’t be around next April.
VANCOUVER [by EATON HOWITT, Sun, Sept. 9]—Well kiddies, it would seem we have come to the end of the Storey. (Please Mr. Editor that’s the right spelling).
Not only have we come to the end of the storey, but the story is finished, too. Confusing, eh, what?
There was a sad ending. Though it seems likely most of the lovable, kind characters we have been reading about since last springs when the first chapter opened in California, will live happily ever after.
The ending was unhappy because Capilanos finished in third place instead of first. The final paragraph or two were happy enough. ‘Smatter of fact the last nine paragraphs were pretty darn good.
A double win last night over those Wenatchee Chiefs brought Caps WIL win streak to nine. A little too late and a lot too late.
That’s the story. Now the Storey.
General Manager Dewey Soriano will not say whether manager Harvey Storey will be kept on for another year.
He will admit readily enough he was mightily disappointed with the final half of the ball season.
But the official announcement of what (if anything) is to happen to Harv, will have to wait. Don’t hold your breath kiddies.
The Cap dressing room was full of fond farewells after last night’s games. Most of the players are speeding home right away. It’s not that they don’t like Vancouver but home is still pretty sweet.
K. Chorlton won both games with a pair of neat home runs. A never-say-die kind of player he was pretty sad when it was all over. “If only I’d be hitting like that a month ago,” he sighed. Don’t worry K, your fielding kept Caps in there.
Van Fletcher has been sold outright to Seattle and Pete Hernandez has been recalled. And that’s just about it.
But hang on folks. Before many days have passed there’ll likely be a postscript from Dewey’s office.
First Game
Wenatchee ......... 000 000 0—0 4 0
Vancouver .......... 011 000 x—2 9 0
Klein, Oubre (8) and Helmuth; Hernandez and Duretto.
Second Game
Wenatchee ......... 002 500 001—8 9 3
Vancouver .......... 120 031 02x—9 10 2
DeCarolis and Bartolomei; Marshall, Thompson (5), Gunnarson (9) and Leavitt.
YAKIMA — Herman Lewis doubled off the centrefield fence to score Bob Wellman with the winning run in the bottom of the sixth inning Tuesday night to give the Yakima Bears a 2-1 Western International League victory over Salem.
Salem ............ 000 001 000—1 6 1
Yakima .......... 010 001 00x—2 6 1
Collins, Roenspie (6) and Masterson; Rios and Albini.
Plumbing Will Be No. 1 Sport Wih Capilanos In Off-Season
By KEITH MATTHEWS
[Vancouver News-Herald, Sept. 9, 1953]
What do ball players do in the off-season? Well, unless you’re a $20,000 a year man—which nobody in the WIL is—the answer is “work.”
The Capilanos, for instance, will be migrating from Vancouver in large bunches of confusion today and a run-down on off-season activities indicates that plumbing will be the favorite winter sport this year. Once, as recent as 1951, school teaching was the most popular trade—but this year there’s a school “larner” in the bunch.
Gene Petralli and Clarence Marshall are the plumbers—Gene definitely located with his father in Sacramento in a thriving “Petralli Plumbing Co.” business. For Marshall, plumbing will merely be an excuse to play winter ball and help him find that long lost control. “Cuddles” tentatively plans to play weekend ball in Los Angeles for the Roosevelt Plumbers, who sponsor a ball club which Bob Duretto also plays for.
HERE’S THE ADDRESS
Petralli and Duretto will be among the first to leave town. Bob, of course, goes back to his gas station in Glendale. “Tell everyone the station is right on highway 99,” Bob smiled. “You can’t miss it and Bill Schuster and I give away a free tank of gas to anyone who can guess exactly what his tank will take when he drives in.” The address, Duretto added, is 1742 South Brand.
Not long after the first migration will be K Chorlton, who will drive to Seattle this morning to get acquainted with his new daughter, Karen Dianne. “It’s easy to guess what I’ll be doing,” Chorlton laughed, “—fishing and changing diapers.”
After that K will either sell industrial insurance or drive an oil truck.
Harvey Storey returns to a gas station like Duretto. Harvey is in Forest Grove, Oregon, some 20 miles the other side of Portland.
PETE UNDECIDED
Pete Hernandez is a little undecided, but it looks like he’ll take his old job as an order clerk with the Chevrolet factory in San Leandro, California. That’s just six miles from the Senor’s home in Hayward. Van Fletcher will pursue his career as a pitcher. After a short visit with brother Guy in Sacramento, “Doc” will high-tail for Mexico and a job pitching winter balls and strikes.
Dick Barrett makes his home just south of the border in Seattle and he hopes to locate employment with the sheriff’s office filing car licenses.
Frank Mascaro, who just got out of the army before spring training, wants to see a lot more pitching and swing some bats before he reports to San Francisco next spring. “I may get a job in Sacramento moving furniture,” the Moose said, “but I’m taking a bat home with me.”
Jack Bukowatz will return to his home in Susanville, California, and go back to his old job of being a city policeman. Jim Leavitt will help his dad on his pear farm in Placerville, California. Jim Clark and his “pa” operate a machine shop building airplane parts in Santa Monica, but Jim is in no immediate hurry. He wants to see more of Vancouver and its scenery and fishing. He won’t be leaving for a week.
TAYLOR A COP
Gale Taylor is also a cop. He’s on the gambling detail (as if there were any other) in Las Vegas. Rod MacKay is a local boy and has the help wanted sign out. Dale Thomason will return to Spokane but he doesn’t know what’s in the offing. Last year he was a Fuller brush salesman. Nick Castas will do some typing for a Seattle shipbuilding firm and play semi-pro basketball on the side.
Carl Gunnarson? He has nothing in mind except a busman’s holiday in his birthplace, Oslo, Minnesota, to meet old friends and relatives.
Which leaves the Capilanos, for one more year, just a memory.
The Sports Herald
Keith Matthews
[Vancouver News-Herald, Sept. 9, 1953]
Just guessing …
At this very instant another baseball season is being recorded for posterity, or poverty as the case may be, and locally the fans are asking, who among the ’53 Capilanos will return for another season?
Explicitly, they are wondering if Harvey Storey cut the mustard sufficiently to earn himself another managerial contract.
Naturally, it is far too soon to say for sure. Dewey Soriano, like his predecessor Bob Brown, saves his press releases on this subject until the winter when the first sign of spring training lurks in the air. Therefore, anything we say here in merely a guess.
You have to know Storey adequately to appreciate him. To the casual observer, Harv would impress merely as a quiet, unobstructing soul with a milquetoast temperament. This is not exactly the case, because the Capilano leader can point to the year 1953 as the first in which he was thrown out of a baseball game. Regarding his refusal to speak his piece, Storey has never been known yet—at least by his teammates—pass up a situation which calls for a good punch-line.
One night when Dick Barrett and Clarence Marshall were discussing good hitters, somebody mentioned the name of Augie Galan—the old Dodger star and present Oakland skipper. “He is a mighty fine hitter,” is what somebody supposedly supposed.
Storey has never made a [unreadable] friend in his baseball career, but there are some [unreadable] more than others. [Unreadable] is not one of the [unreadable]. Sensing an appropriate statement was necessary, Harvey spoke: “Galan was a good hitter? Why I’ll bet if I walked across home plate real slow [unreadable], he couldn’t even hit me.
Gag a minute …
Mind, his availability with a gag will have little to do with his re-hiring next season. He will be judged solely on his worth to the club as a manager and his talent to mold the Capilanos into a winner.
A feeling is still prevalent that the Caps choked in the clutch this year. Twice they strolled down Heartbreak Lane with a chance to take it all. Twice, they broke down and started losing streaks which pit them on the outs.
Storey has recorded this in his mind’s eye. If he is elected to be the one to lead the [unreadable] cast, of lost of his ’53 []cks will be missing—in case Harvey realised when it counted the most, they didn’t come through.
On the whole, the job of strategy that Harvey turned in this season was well [unreadable]. His entry in the first half might have been swinging magazine covers instead of bats for all the results they had. Still, Storey had them in the first division all the way. When the team was improved for the first-half fight, Harvey improved the standing for the entry. What more could you ask?
Also, in a day when cutting to be important, Harvey stands out as an asset instead of a liability. Never in his career has he asked for [unreadable]e. The chance they gave [unreadable] to play was favor enough.
[remaining two paragraphs unreadable]
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