W L Pct. GB
Spokane ..... 34 21 .618 —
Salem ....... 31 21 .596 1½
Lewiston .... 28 22 .560 3½
Vancouver ... 31 25 .554 3½
Yakima ...... 26 25 .510 6
Edmonton .... 25 26 .490 7
Calgary ..... 23 27 .460 8½
Wenatchee ... 22 29 .431 10
Victoria .... 22 32 .407 11½
Tri-City .... 21 33 .389 12½
AP has different standings for Lew, Edm and Vic
EDMONTON—John Conant gained his 21st win of the Western International baseball campaign Wednesday night by pitching Edmonton Eskimos to a 9-4 victory over the Vancouver Capilanos in the final game of a three-game series.
Paid attendance was 772.
Conant encountered rough treatment in the first four innings when he was tagged for nine hits. He settled down to pitch brilliant ball the rest of the route.
Esks smashed 14 hits off the combined offerings of Van Fletcher who hurled a no-hitter in his last game and Carl Gunnarson who took over with the sacks loaded, a run in and nobody out in the sixth inning. Bob Meisner and Andy Skurski led Edmonton each with three for five. Big blow of the game was Don Prentice's three-run homer to open Edmonton's scoring in the fifth inning.
Vancouver ............ 022 000 000—4 11 1
Edmonton ............. 000 034 11x—9 14 1
Fletcher, Gunnarson (8) and Duretto; Conant and Prentice.
CALGARY—(CP)—Trailing 8-1 going into the bottom of the second inning, Calgary Stampeders tied the count and then went on to outlast Victoria Tyees 19-16 in a Western International League Baseball game Wednesday night.
The cowboys battled through four Victoria pitchers while gaining their victory and a 2-1 edge in their series with the coast club. Tyees drove Stampeder starter Glenn Hittner from the mound with six hits and seven runs in the fust inning but could do little against the slants of reliefer Bill Francis.
Don Bricker homered twice for Calgary, driving in five runs. Charlie Mead also homered for Stamps. Granny Gladstone, Cec Garriott and Lou Branham drove out circuit blows for Tyees.
Victoria ......... 710 012 023—16 16 3
Calgary ......... 172 072 00x—19 22 5
Prior, Walker (5), Hodges (5), Lorino (6) and Martin; Hittner, Francis (7) and Bricker.
SALEM, Ore. — Terry Carroll's outfield fly in the 11th inning scored Jack Warren and Have Tri-City a 4-3 Western International League Baseball victory over Salem here Wednesday night.
Veteran Jess Dobernic, who came in as a reliever after Salem had pushed over the tying run in the ninth, was the winning pitcher. The run was scored by Chuck Essegian. He singled for one of his four hits, advanced to third on a sacrifice and a passed ball and came in on Dick Sabatini's outfield fly.
Dave Dahle pitched the distance break for Salem, allowing seven hits.
Tri-City .......... 000 020 010 01—4 7 2
Salem ............ 000 010 101 00—3 9 2
Robertson, Dobernic (9) and Warren; Dahle and Nelson.
LEWISTON — Lewiston chopped away at Spokane's dwindling Western International League lead Wednesday night with a humiliating 26-hit, 21-3 win Wednesday night.
Spokane ......... 003 000 000— 3 8 8
Lewiston ........ 606 013 14x—21 26 1
Franks, New (1), Giovannoni (3) and Sheets, Ogle (7); Butler and Cameron.
WENATCHEE — Wenatchee won a wild, rain-spattered Western International League game here Wednesday night, defeating Yakima 12-10 with a six-run uprising in the eighth inning.
Yakima ............. 211 113 001—10 12 2
Wenatchee ....... 210 003 06x—12 16 1
Rios, Rial (8), Townsend (8), Young (8) and Albini; Botelho, DeCarolis (5), Klein (9), Oubre (9) and Bartolomei.
Sunday, 13 July 2008
Tuesday, August 18, 1953
W L Pct. GB
Spokane ..... 34 20 .630 —
Salem ....... 31 20 .608 1½
Vancouver ... 31 24 .564 3½
Lewiston .... 27 22 .551 4½
Yakima ...... 26 24 .520 6
Edmonton .... 24 26 .480 8
Calgary ..... 22 27 .449 9½
Wenatchee ... 21 29 .420 11
Victoria .... 22 31 .415 11½
Tri-City .... 20 33 .377 13½
AP has different standings for Lew, Edm and Vic
EDMONTON [News-Herald, Aug. 19]—The Capilanos made an awful lot of good hitting make up for a lack of good pitching Tuesday as they clubbed the Edmonton Eskimos for the second straight time, 8-5.
Their bats humming a busy tune as of late, the Capilanos drummed up a crescendo of 16 hits—eight of them for extra bases—in beating the crippled Esks.
Lonnie Myers, with a helping hand from Carl Gunnarson in the ninth, picked up win No. 10 though he was no puzzle to the Edmonton attack himself. Lon was touched for 16 hits, too.
The Caps broke a scoreless ball game wide open in the third with three runs off their former team-mate, Don Tisnerat. Four straight doubles by Myers, K. Chorlton, Jack Bukowatz and Harvey Storey, plus Jim Clark’s infield out, accounted for the runs.
Vancouver came back with some more of that extra base power in the fifth and scored three more. Frank Mascaro tripled and Myers single him home. That kayoed Tisnerat and in came Jack Widner. K. Chorlton greeted the reliever with a triple and Jack Bukowatz drove K home with an outfield fly.
Edmonton scored four times in their half of the fourth. Six hits, with Don Herman’s triple the longest, accounted for them.
Myers got by fairly well after that. He kept his bases on balls down to three while striking out four.
It wasn’t until the ninth that Lonnie was troubled again. Three hits scored one run and when left-hander Don Meisner stepped in at the plate as the potential tying run, Storey waved southpaw Carl Gunnarson in from the bullpen. Carl had a job to do and make it as short as possible. He threw three pitches as Meisner, Don swung at every one and got nothing but air.
Tonight the clubs play the final game in the series with Van Fletcher (14-9), who pitched an almost perfect no-hitter last time out, going for the Capilanos.
Vancouver ........... 003 310 100—8 16 2
Edmonton ............ 000 400 001—5 16 3
Myers, Gunnarson (9) and Duretto; Tisnerat, Widner (4) Manier (8) and Prentice.
CALGARY—Victoria Tyees edged Calgary Stampeders 7-5 in Western International Baseball League game here Tuesday night.
Stampeders jumped into a three-run lead in the first inning, but Tyees tied the count on Granny Gladstone's three-run homer in the third. Tyees gained a 5-4 lead in the fifth and stayed ahead.
Gladstone added the insurance run with his second homer of the game in the top of the ninth. Bob Drilling picked up the victory, while Joe Orrell was tagged with the loss.
Victoria ........... 003 002 101—7 15 2
Calgary ........... 300 100 100—5 11 2
Drilling and Martin; Orrell and Brickell, Lillard (2).
LEWISTON, Idaho—Larry Barton stepped to the plate in the ninth inning Tuesday night and hit the second pitch out of the park to give Lewiston a 5-4 Western International League win over Spokane.
Barton's blast ended Lewision a comeback against the league leaders who had tied the game in the eighth inning on two walks and a home run by Will Hafey. Spokane had scored once in the sixth on a double by Jim Command and a single by Hafey, who had all of the Indians' RBI's for the night.
Lewiston broke into the scoring column first in the fifth inning, when Mel Wasley hit a home run with one on base. Singles by Glen Tuckett and Ken Richardson drove in runs for the Broncs in the sixth and seventh innings.
Spokane ..... 000 001 030—4 8 1
Lewiston ..... 000 021 101—5 9 0
Spring, Romero (7) and Sheets; Kine, Marshall (7) and Cameron.
WENATCHEE, Wash.—Righthander Keith Bowman pitched a three-hitter to lead Wenatchee duets to a 5-1 victory over Yakima Bears here Tuesday night.
Bob Wellman's line single leading off the sixth inning was the only safety until the final inning.
A walk, a single by pinch-hitter Danny Rios and a single by Phil Steinberg in the ninth accounted for Yakima's only run.
Jerry Green collected four hits in five times at bat, to lend the Wenatchee attack.
Bowman struck out seven Bears batters and walked four. His teammates supported him with three double plays.
Yakima ............. 000 000 001—1 3 0
Wenatchee ....... 020 021 00x—5 13 0
Del Sarto, Edmunds (5) and Albini; Bowman and Bartolomei.
SALEM, Ore. — Joe Nicholas set an all-time Salem record Tuesday night when he pitched his 21st win of the season as Senators defeated Tri-City 11-0.
Nicholas also became the first player of the Western International League to pitch 21 wins this year.
He was in trouble several times but managed to pitch his way out. He struck out five, walked five and gave up seven hits —two of them to Des Charouhas.
Salem's only extra base hit was Jim Deyo's double with the bases loaded in the fourth inning.
Tri-City .............. 000 000 000— 0 7 4
Salem ................ 004 600 10x—11 14 1
Snyder, Michelson (4) and Pesut; Nicholas and Masterson.
BLUE SERGE HARNESS
Umpire Nenezich Again Arbitrates WIL Issues
By KEITH MATTHEWS [News-Herald, Aug. 19, 1953]
WIL president Bob Brown announced Tuesday he had signed umpire Johnny Nenezich to finish out the season with the league’s umpiring teams.
Ordinarily, announcements of this kind are greeted with a “so what” attitude. But Nenezich is not just an ordinary umpire.
It’s been four years since Johnny last pulled on his blue serge in the Western International. However, he has never been forgotten.
John was always former president Bob Abel’s trouble-shooter. Whenever a riot would rear its ugly head in one of the league’s cities, in would come Mr. Nenezich to put of the fire. Some said he was a better fireman than old Hugh Casey.
Once in Spokane, after Alan Strange had pulled his team off the field and the game had been forfeited, Abel sent a hurried wire to Nenezich which said: “Trouble in Spokane. Get down there immediately and take over as umpire in chief.”
For John, A Tossed Salad
Johnny went. The minute he stepped on the field, he was greeted with a shower of fruit and vegetables from the fans which made he think he stepped into One Long Pan’s warehouse. Nenezich cutely returned Abel’s wire: “Thanks for the assignment. I sold the fruit and vegetables for $20.”
Two years ago Nenezich got a chance in the Pacific Coast League. He did well, but there again an old habit of liking the ball players too much and trying to associate with them, cost him his job.
Two items brought about Nenezich’s re-hiring. One is the fact that Mel Steiner soon will have to leave the league staff. His father is seriously ill and not expected to live.
The other is John Luksik, whom Mr. Brown fired last week.
Saga Of Luckless Mr. Luksik
John has been on the WIL’s umpiring staff since the opening of the season. Last week, however he was involved in a hot argument in Edmonton, in which the Eskimos’ manager, Bob Sturgeon, said he was playing the game under protest.
Luksik refused to announce the protest and further, he refused to report it to league headquarter.
Several days later Brown heard about it. He wired Luksik immediately: “It is my understanding that I am still president of this league and must be informed of all protest games. Wire me immediately night letter, not more than 50 words an explanation of your actions.”
“He wired me all right,” Bob groaned. “It was quite an explanation. It cost me $14 for the telegram.
Mr. Luksik is with us no longer.
Spokane Could Lose Pro Ball If More Fans Don't Turn Out
SPOKANE, Wash., Aug. 19 — Spokane, the city that filled Ferris Field with 287,185 fans in 1947 to break Minor League attendance records, may be without a professional baseball team in 1954 if the turnstiles don't start clicking soon.
Roy Hotchkiss, owner of the Western International League team, said Tuesday that he can't continue to operate with the slumping attendance and if an average of 4,000 fans don't turn up for the remaining home games he may have to give up.
Winning Club
Hotchkiss, a dairy farmer who has owned Indians since 1949, said he thought all the city needed to keep the park full was a winning club. But last year, when Indians were second all season, the attendance was 104,600 the lowest in years.
This year, with Spokane on top in the second half of the WIL split season, the team has pulled in only 68,400 paying customers for 56 playing dates.
"I didn't expect to make any money out of baseball when I took over the Indians in 1949. Still, they must come closer to breaking even—otherwise I can't afford to carry on," he said.
If Spokane drew 4,000 for the remaining nine home dates, total attendance for 1953 would be 104,400, approximately the same as last year.
Couldn't Break Even
Hotchkiss said even that attendance figure wouldn't allow him to break even, "but at least that kind of support would indicate to me that the people of Spokane are interested in keeping baseball here."
Spokane, the traditional attendance leader of the WIL, drew the record gate as a class B club in 1947.
It outdrew every B team in the nation, and had better attendance than 10 class A leagues and eight AAA teams.
The Indians' home park Ferris Field, burned in 1948, before Hotchkiss bought the team. He rebuilt it but admits the stands may not be as comfortable as before.
Spokane ..... 34 20 .630 —
Salem ....... 31 20 .608 1½
Vancouver ... 31 24 .564 3½
Lewiston .... 27 22 .551 4½
Yakima ...... 26 24 .520 6
Edmonton .... 24 26 .480 8
Calgary ..... 22 27 .449 9½
Wenatchee ... 21 29 .420 11
Victoria .... 22 31 .415 11½
Tri-City .... 20 33 .377 13½
AP has different standings for Lew, Edm and Vic
EDMONTON [News-Herald, Aug. 19]—The Capilanos made an awful lot of good hitting make up for a lack of good pitching Tuesday as they clubbed the Edmonton Eskimos for the second straight time, 8-5.
Their bats humming a busy tune as of late, the Capilanos drummed up a crescendo of 16 hits—eight of them for extra bases—in beating the crippled Esks.
Lonnie Myers, with a helping hand from Carl Gunnarson in the ninth, picked up win No. 10 though he was no puzzle to the Edmonton attack himself. Lon was touched for 16 hits, too.
The Caps broke a scoreless ball game wide open in the third with three runs off their former team-mate, Don Tisnerat. Four straight doubles by Myers, K. Chorlton, Jack Bukowatz and Harvey Storey, plus Jim Clark’s infield out, accounted for the runs.
Vancouver came back with some more of that extra base power in the fifth and scored three more. Frank Mascaro tripled and Myers single him home. That kayoed Tisnerat and in came Jack Widner. K. Chorlton greeted the reliever with a triple and Jack Bukowatz drove K home with an outfield fly.
Edmonton scored four times in their half of the fourth. Six hits, with Don Herman’s triple the longest, accounted for them.
Myers got by fairly well after that. He kept his bases on balls down to three while striking out four.
It wasn’t until the ninth that Lonnie was troubled again. Three hits scored one run and when left-hander Don Meisner stepped in at the plate as the potential tying run, Storey waved southpaw Carl Gunnarson in from the bullpen. Carl had a job to do and make it as short as possible. He threw three pitches as Meisner, Don swung at every one and got nothing but air.
Tonight the clubs play the final game in the series with Van Fletcher (14-9), who pitched an almost perfect no-hitter last time out, going for the Capilanos.
Vancouver ........... 003 310 100—8 16 2
Edmonton ............ 000 400 001—5 16 3
Myers, Gunnarson (9) and Duretto; Tisnerat, Widner (4) Manier (8) and Prentice.
CALGARY—Victoria Tyees edged Calgary Stampeders 7-5 in Western International Baseball League game here Tuesday night.
Stampeders jumped into a three-run lead in the first inning, but Tyees tied the count on Granny Gladstone's three-run homer in the third. Tyees gained a 5-4 lead in the fifth and stayed ahead.
Gladstone added the insurance run with his second homer of the game in the top of the ninth. Bob Drilling picked up the victory, while Joe Orrell was tagged with the loss.
Victoria ........... 003 002 101—7 15 2
Calgary ........... 300 100 100—5 11 2
Drilling and Martin; Orrell and Brickell, Lillard (2).
LEWISTON, Idaho—Larry Barton stepped to the plate in the ninth inning Tuesday night and hit the second pitch out of the park to give Lewiston a 5-4 Western International League win over Spokane.
Barton's blast ended Lewision a comeback against the league leaders who had tied the game in the eighth inning on two walks and a home run by Will Hafey. Spokane had scored once in the sixth on a double by Jim Command and a single by Hafey, who had all of the Indians' RBI's for the night.
Lewiston broke into the scoring column first in the fifth inning, when Mel Wasley hit a home run with one on base. Singles by Glen Tuckett and Ken Richardson drove in runs for the Broncs in the sixth and seventh innings.
Spokane ..... 000 001 030—4 8 1
Lewiston ..... 000 021 101—5 9 0
Spring, Romero (7) and Sheets; Kine, Marshall (7) and Cameron.
WENATCHEE, Wash.—Righthander Keith Bowman pitched a three-hitter to lead Wenatchee duets to a 5-1 victory over Yakima Bears here Tuesday night.
Bob Wellman's line single leading off the sixth inning was the only safety until the final inning.
A walk, a single by pinch-hitter Danny Rios and a single by Phil Steinberg in the ninth accounted for Yakima's only run.
Jerry Green collected four hits in five times at bat, to lend the Wenatchee attack.
Bowman struck out seven Bears batters and walked four. His teammates supported him with three double plays.
Yakima ............. 000 000 001—1 3 0
Wenatchee ....... 020 021 00x—5 13 0
Del Sarto, Edmunds (5) and Albini; Bowman and Bartolomei.
SALEM, Ore. — Joe Nicholas set an all-time Salem record Tuesday night when he pitched his 21st win of the season as Senators defeated Tri-City 11-0.
Nicholas also became the first player of the Western International League to pitch 21 wins this year.
He was in trouble several times but managed to pitch his way out. He struck out five, walked five and gave up seven hits —two of them to Des Charouhas.
Salem's only extra base hit was Jim Deyo's double with the bases loaded in the fourth inning.
Tri-City .............. 000 000 000— 0 7 4
Salem ................ 004 600 10x—11 14 1
Snyder, Michelson (4) and Pesut; Nicholas and Masterson.
BLUE SERGE HARNESS
Umpire Nenezich Again Arbitrates WIL Issues
By KEITH MATTHEWS [News-Herald, Aug. 19, 1953]
WIL president Bob Brown announced Tuesday he had signed umpire Johnny Nenezich to finish out the season with the league’s umpiring teams.
Ordinarily, announcements of this kind are greeted with a “so what” attitude. But Nenezich is not just an ordinary umpire.
It’s been four years since Johnny last pulled on his blue serge in the Western International. However, he has never been forgotten.
John was always former president Bob Abel’s trouble-shooter. Whenever a riot would rear its ugly head in one of the league’s cities, in would come Mr. Nenezich to put of the fire. Some said he was a better fireman than old Hugh Casey.
Once in Spokane, after Alan Strange had pulled his team off the field and the game had been forfeited, Abel sent a hurried wire to Nenezich which said: “Trouble in Spokane. Get down there immediately and take over as umpire in chief.”
For John, A Tossed Salad
Johnny went. The minute he stepped on the field, he was greeted with a shower of fruit and vegetables from the fans which made he think he stepped into One Long Pan’s warehouse. Nenezich cutely returned Abel’s wire: “Thanks for the assignment. I sold the fruit and vegetables for $20.”
Two years ago Nenezich got a chance in the Pacific Coast League. He did well, but there again an old habit of liking the ball players too much and trying to associate with them, cost him his job.
Two items brought about Nenezich’s re-hiring. One is the fact that Mel Steiner soon will have to leave the league staff. His father is seriously ill and not expected to live.
The other is John Luksik, whom Mr. Brown fired last week.
Saga Of Luckless Mr. Luksik
John has been on the WIL’s umpiring staff since the opening of the season. Last week, however he was involved in a hot argument in Edmonton, in which the Eskimos’ manager, Bob Sturgeon, said he was playing the game under protest.
Luksik refused to announce the protest and further, he refused to report it to league headquarter.
Several days later Brown heard about it. He wired Luksik immediately: “It is my understanding that I am still president of this league and must be informed of all protest games. Wire me immediately night letter, not more than 50 words an explanation of your actions.”
“He wired me all right,” Bob groaned. “It was quite an explanation. It cost me $14 for the telegram.
Mr. Luksik is with us no longer.
Spokane Could Lose Pro Ball If More Fans Don't Turn Out
SPOKANE, Wash., Aug. 19 — Spokane, the city that filled Ferris Field with 287,185 fans in 1947 to break Minor League attendance records, may be without a professional baseball team in 1954 if the turnstiles don't start clicking soon.
Roy Hotchkiss, owner of the Western International League team, said Tuesday that he can't continue to operate with the slumping attendance and if an average of 4,000 fans don't turn up for the remaining home games he may have to give up.
Winning Club
Hotchkiss, a dairy farmer who has owned Indians since 1949, said he thought all the city needed to keep the park full was a winning club. But last year, when Indians were second all season, the attendance was 104,600 the lowest in years.
This year, with Spokane on top in the second half of the WIL split season, the team has pulled in only 68,400 paying customers for 56 playing dates.
"I didn't expect to make any money out of baseball when I took over the Indians in 1949. Still, they must come closer to breaking even—otherwise I can't afford to carry on," he said.
If Spokane drew 4,000 for the remaining nine home dates, total attendance for 1953 would be 104,400, approximately the same as last year.
Couldn't Break Even
Hotchkiss said even that attendance figure wouldn't allow him to break even, "but at least that kind of support would indicate to me that the people of Spokane are interested in keeping baseball here."
Spokane, the traditional attendance leader of the WIL, drew the record gate as a class B club in 1947.
It outdrew every B team in the nation, and had better attendance than 10 class A leagues and eight AAA teams.
The Indians' home park Ferris Field, burned in 1948, before Hotchkiss bought the team. He rebuilt it but admits the stands may not be as comfortable as before.
Monday, August 17, 1953
W L Pct. GB
Spokane ..... 34 19 .642 —
Salem ....... 30 20 .600 2½
Vancouver ... 30 24 .556 4½
Lewiston .... 26 22 .542 5½
Yakima ...... 26 23 .531 6
Edmonton .... 24 25 .490 8
Calgary ..... 22 26 .458 9½
Wenatchee ... 20 29 .409 12
Victoria .... 21 31 .404 12½
Tri-City .... 20 32 .385 13½
AP has different standings for Lew, Edm and Vic
CALGARY — Grand-slam homers by Charley Mead and Gus Stathos gave the Calgary Stampeders an 11-7 victory over the Victoria Tyees in a Western International League game here Monday night.
Trailing 5-2 going into their half of the inning, the Cowboys unloaded five hits, including Mead's homer, and took advantage of two Victoria errors, to go ahead for the first time in the game.
Stathos slammed his in the eight put the issue beyond doubt. Don Hunter also homered for the Stamps, his 22nd of the season. Granny Gladstone hit a round-tripper for Victoria.
Earl Dollins, who was relieved by Bill Bottler in the eighth, was the loser.
Victoria ............ 000 013 102— 7 10 2
Calgary ............ 000 011 54x—11 15 4
Dollins, Bottler (8) and Martin; Kapp and Bricker.
(only game scheduled)
Soriano Holds Talks With Bob Roberts
[Vancouver News Herald, August 18, 1953]
While the Capilanos rested easily in Edmonton, enjoying their first off-day from baseball after 42 successive assignments, club general manager Dewey Soriano hurried to Richland, Washington to meet pitcher Bobby Roberts. Roberts left the club suddenly Thursday.
Soriano insisted the little right-hander was not a “jumper” and had asked permission to make the trip.
“His wife is going to have a serious operation,” Soriano said. “Bob wanted to be with her for a few days before she went under the knife. He did not say he might not rejoin the club and that’s why I’m making this trip to clarify the issue.”
Roberts has won eight and lost two since joining Vancouver from Calgary in July, He has pitched great ball and his loss would be felt by the slim-sized staff which is presently trying to carry the Caps to a second-half WIL championship.
However, Soriano feels that Roberts will rejoin the team. He reasons that Bobby will need the money to pay for such an operation and therefore will have to work out the remainder of the season. Besides which, Soriano now smells the blood of a second-half title and does not want to risk a chance of losing just because he is short-staffed.
Edmonton Has 3,659 Allies
EDMONTON — General Manager John Ducey of the Western International League Eskimos says he has 3,659 allies for the cause of legalized Sunday baseball in Edmonton.
A banner adorning the entrance to Renfrew Park Sunday afternoon mellowed the fans as they passed through the gates to see the Eskimo-Vancouver Caps game, first WIL game held here on the sabbath.
It said, in a gently kidding vein: "We think that this game is worth $1. What do you think?"
It developed that many of the bleacher bugs thought likewise, for the take amounted to a substantial $1,777.50. That averaged 48½ cents a head.
This was something like 12½ cents better than the Caps did recently when they staged a similar WIL offering on a Sunday collection basis. Vancouver fans turned out 5,000 strong for that game.
The Edmonton and Vancouver ball moguls would like to have Sunday ball as a regular diet, like they have it in Toronto, Montreal and in the United States.
Ducey said the best Sunday collection for baseball ever was an average 36 cents a head for a semi-professional playoff game in 1950 in the days of the defunct Calgary-Edmonton Big Four League. Before that, 25 cents a head was about tops.
Spokane ..... 34 19 .642 —
Salem ....... 30 20 .600 2½
Vancouver ... 30 24 .556 4½
Lewiston .... 26 22 .542 5½
Yakima ...... 26 23 .531 6
Edmonton .... 24 25 .490 8
Calgary ..... 22 26 .458 9½
Wenatchee ... 20 29 .409 12
Victoria .... 21 31 .404 12½
Tri-City .... 20 32 .385 13½
AP has different standings for Lew, Edm and Vic
CALGARY — Grand-slam homers by Charley Mead and Gus Stathos gave the Calgary Stampeders an 11-7 victory over the Victoria Tyees in a Western International League game here Monday night.
Trailing 5-2 going into their half of the inning, the Cowboys unloaded five hits, including Mead's homer, and took advantage of two Victoria errors, to go ahead for the first time in the game.
Stathos slammed his in the eight put the issue beyond doubt. Don Hunter also homered for the Stamps, his 22nd of the season. Granny Gladstone hit a round-tripper for Victoria.
Earl Dollins, who was relieved by Bill Bottler in the eighth, was the loser.
Victoria ............ 000 013 102— 7 10 2
Calgary ............ 000 011 54x—11 15 4
Dollins, Bottler (8) and Martin; Kapp and Bricker.
(only game scheduled)
Soriano Holds Talks With Bob Roberts
[Vancouver News Herald, August 18, 1953]
While the Capilanos rested easily in Edmonton, enjoying their first off-day from baseball after 42 successive assignments, club general manager Dewey Soriano hurried to Richland, Washington to meet pitcher Bobby Roberts. Roberts left the club suddenly Thursday.
Soriano insisted the little right-hander was not a “jumper” and had asked permission to make the trip.
“His wife is going to have a serious operation,” Soriano said. “Bob wanted to be with her for a few days before she went under the knife. He did not say he might not rejoin the club and that’s why I’m making this trip to clarify the issue.”
Roberts has won eight and lost two since joining Vancouver from Calgary in July, He has pitched great ball and his loss would be felt by the slim-sized staff which is presently trying to carry the Caps to a second-half WIL championship.
However, Soriano feels that Roberts will rejoin the team. He reasons that Bobby will need the money to pay for such an operation and therefore will have to work out the remainder of the season. Besides which, Soriano now smells the blood of a second-half title and does not want to risk a chance of losing just because he is short-staffed.
Edmonton Has 3,659 Allies
EDMONTON — General Manager John Ducey of the Western International League Eskimos says he has 3,659 allies for the cause of legalized Sunday baseball in Edmonton.
A banner adorning the entrance to Renfrew Park Sunday afternoon mellowed the fans as they passed through the gates to see the Eskimo-Vancouver Caps game, first WIL game held here on the sabbath.
It said, in a gently kidding vein: "We think that this game is worth $1. What do you think?"
It developed that many of the bleacher bugs thought likewise, for the take amounted to a substantial $1,777.50. That averaged 48½ cents a head.
This was something like 12½ cents better than the Caps did recently when they staged a similar WIL offering on a Sunday collection basis. Vancouver fans turned out 5,000 strong for that game.
The Edmonton and Vancouver ball moguls would like to have Sunday ball as a regular diet, like they have it in Toronto, Montreal and in the United States.
Ducey said the best Sunday collection for baseball ever was an average 36 cents a head for a semi-professional playoff game in 1950 in the days of the defunct Calgary-Edmonton Big Four League. Before that, 25 cents a head was about tops.
Sunday, August 16, 1953
W L Pct. GB
Spokane ..... 34 19 .642 —
Salem ....... 30 20 .600 2½
Vancouver ... 30 24 .556 4½
Lewiston .... 26 22 .542 5½
Yakima ...... 26 23 .531 6
Edmonton .... 24 25 .490 8
Calgary ..... 21 26 .447 10
Victoria .... 21 30 .412 12
Wenatchee ... 20 29 .409 12
Tri-City .... 20 32 .385 13½
AP has different standings for Lew, Edm and Vic
EDMONTON — Vancouver Capilanos opened a three-game Western International Baseball League series with Edmonton Eskimos Sunday by posting a 5-4 victory after holding back a ninth-inning Edmonton rally. Edmonton's first Sunday baseball game drew 3,659 fans.
Pete Hernandez held Eskimos to five hits for his 15th victory as against seven defeats.
Rookie Pat Utley responded with a brilliant relief chore for Edmonton but was unable to make up for damage done when Jack Widner allowed five runs in the first two innings. Utley shut out the Caps in his seven-inning stint.
Playing-Manager Harvey Storey batted in the first two runs for Vancouver with a bases-loaded single in the first inning.
Vancouver ............ 320 000 000—5 8 1
Edmonton ............ 002 000 003—4 5 1
Hernandez and Leavitt; Widner, Utley (2) and Prentice.
SPOKANE — An inside-the-park home run gave the Wenatchee Chiefs a 4 to 3 victory over the Spokane Indians in their Western International League tilt Sunday.
The Chiefs Jerry Green banged a long one off the center field boards, and scooted in home when Eddie Murphy stunned himself on the fence trying to drag it in.
Wenatchee scored three runs off three hits in the second inning to gain a lead they never gave up.
The Indians managed only lone runs in the third, sixth, and ninth innings. They had the bases loaded twice, but were not able to bring them in.
Wenatchee ......... 050 000 001—4 8 3
Spokane ............. 001 001 001—3 10 1
Beamon, Bowman (7) and Bartolomei; Nemes, New (3), Cordell (9) and Sheets.
LEWISTON — Lewiston Broncs banged out a total of 27 hits in two games to sweep a Sunday Western International League doubleheader from the Tri-City Braves 12-4 and 6-1.
The Broncs picked up 17 safeties in taking their 12-4 victory in the regulation nightcap, hitting two homers in the process.
Al Heist added two triples to lead the league with 16.
Lewiston picked up an easy win in the seven inning opener as they downed Tri-City 6 to 1.
First Game
Tri-City ................. 000 001 0—1 9 1
Lewiston ............... 120 201 x—6 10 0
Michelson, Hedgecock (4) and Pesut; Butler and Garay.
Second Game
Tri-City ................. 000 020 101— 4 10 4
Lewiston ............... 300 205 02x—12 17 0
Bloom, Hedgecock (6), Michelson (8) and Warren; Brenner and Cameron.
Only games played.
Spokane ..... 34 19 .642 —
Salem ....... 30 20 .600 2½
Vancouver ... 30 24 .556 4½
Lewiston .... 26 22 .542 5½
Yakima ...... 26 23 .531 6
Edmonton .... 24 25 .490 8
Calgary ..... 21 26 .447 10
Victoria .... 21 30 .412 12
Wenatchee ... 20 29 .409 12
Tri-City .... 20 32 .385 13½
AP has different standings for Lew, Edm and Vic
EDMONTON — Vancouver Capilanos opened a three-game Western International Baseball League series with Edmonton Eskimos Sunday by posting a 5-4 victory after holding back a ninth-inning Edmonton rally. Edmonton's first Sunday baseball game drew 3,659 fans.
Pete Hernandez held Eskimos to five hits for his 15th victory as against seven defeats.
Rookie Pat Utley responded with a brilliant relief chore for Edmonton but was unable to make up for damage done when Jack Widner allowed five runs in the first two innings. Utley shut out the Caps in his seven-inning stint.
Playing-Manager Harvey Storey batted in the first two runs for Vancouver with a bases-loaded single in the first inning.
Vancouver ............ 320 000 000—5 8 1
Edmonton ............ 002 000 003—4 5 1
Hernandez and Leavitt; Widner, Utley (2) and Prentice.
SPOKANE — An inside-the-park home run gave the Wenatchee Chiefs a 4 to 3 victory over the Spokane Indians in their Western International League tilt Sunday.
The Chiefs Jerry Green banged a long one off the center field boards, and scooted in home when Eddie Murphy stunned himself on the fence trying to drag it in.
Wenatchee scored three runs off three hits in the second inning to gain a lead they never gave up.
The Indians managed only lone runs in the third, sixth, and ninth innings. They had the bases loaded twice, but were not able to bring them in.
Wenatchee ......... 050 000 001—4 8 3
Spokane ............. 001 001 001—3 10 1
Beamon, Bowman (7) and Bartolomei; Nemes, New (3), Cordell (9) and Sheets.
LEWISTON — Lewiston Broncs banged out a total of 27 hits in two games to sweep a Sunday Western International League doubleheader from the Tri-City Braves 12-4 and 6-1.
The Broncs picked up 17 safeties in taking their 12-4 victory in the regulation nightcap, hitting two homers in the process.
Al Heist added two triples to lead the league with 16.
Lewiston picked up an easy win in the seven inning opener as they downed Tri-City 6 to 1.
First Game
Tri-City ................. 000 001 0—1 9 1
Lewiston ............... 120 201 x—6 10 0
Michelson, Hedgecock (4) and Pesut; Butler and Garay.
Second Game
Tri-City ................. 000 020 101— 4 10 4
Lewiston ............... 300 205 02x—12 17 0
Bloom, Hedgecock (6), Michelson (8) and Warren; Brenner and Cameron.
Only games played.
Saturday, August 15, 1953
W L Pct. GB
Spokane ..... 34 18 .654 —
Salem ....... 30 20 .600 3
Vancouver ... 29 24 .547 5½
Yakima ...... 26 23 .531 6½
Lewiston .... 24 22 .522 7
Edmonton .... 24 24 .500 8
Calgary ..... 21 26 .447 10½
Victoria .... 21 30 .412 12½
Tri-City .... 20 30 .400 13
Wenatchee ... 19 29 .396 13
SPOKANE —The Spokane Indians took to the field on the hottest night of the year Saturday and proceeded to sweep a Western International League double header from Wenatchee by scores of 7-1 and 10-4.
Victoria native Art Worth pitched a five-hitter in the first game for the Indians.
First Game
Wenatchee .......... 001 000 0— 1 5 2
Spokane .............. 015 001 x— 7 11 2
Oubre and Bartolomei; Worth and Ogle.
Second Game
Wenatchee .......... 000 003 010— 4 9 2
Spokane .............. 015 030 10x—10 12 0
Klein, DeCarolis (3) and Bartolomei; Franks and Sheets.
VICTORIA [Doug Peden, Colonist, Aug. 16]—Salem Senators, apparently determined to add the second-half Western International League championship to their first-half title, made it four straight over the off-color Victoria Tyees as they swept both ends of a double-header at Royal Athletic Park, Saturday.
Battling to overhaul the front-running Spokane Indians after losing four in a row at Vancouver, the Senators pounded Victoria pitching for 16 hits and a 15-6 triumph in the afternoon and made 14 safeties good for an 11-5 victory under the lights.
The Senators, who managed only four runs in their series with the Capilanos, rebounded for a total of 44 in their four games with Victoria and collected 50 hits against an overworked Tyee pitching staff.
Leaving on a 10-game road trip this morning, the Tyees will make the trip without first baseman Chuck Abernathy, who drew his unconditional release from the club Saturday. Abernathy, a .277 hitter with the Tyees last season, missed some of this year’s season with a chronic leg condition. In latest official averages the first baseman was hitting at a.270 clip through 88 games with 82 hits in 304 times at bat and had batted in 51 runs.
Abernathy played in the first game but handyman Don Pries took over at first base for the nightcap with Bob Moniz again moving in at third base.
OVERWORKED
Bob Drilling, again forced to make a start with only two days rest, opened on the mound for Victoria in the night game and was driven to cover with one out in the fourth inning after giving up eight runs and nine hits.
Zeb Walker then made his fourth relief appearance in four games. He was lifted for a pinch hitter in the fifth and Ben Lorino finished up, yielding two runs and three huts in his four inning stint.
Righthander Jack Hemphill went all the way for the Senators, gaining his 15th win against nine losses as he limited the Tyees to eight hits. He gave up the first Victoria run in the sixth when Granny Gladstone poled his 14th home run of the season and weakened in the ninth, giving up four runs on five bases on balls and Dwane Helbig’s two-run single.
Gene Roenspie, third Salem pitcher in the afternoon encounter, was credited with the victory when starter Larry Borat failed to complete the required five innings. It was Roenspie’s second victory in two days and gave him a record of 15 victories and three defeats.
Bill Bottler took the loss, loosely played games, [sic] going four innings before being followed by Walker and, in the sixth, Bill Prior.
The Tyees, who played errorless ball at night, committed six errors in the day contest, giving Salem seven unearned tallies.
Dwane Helbig supplied the brightest moment from a Victoria standpoint with a pinch homer run in the fifth inning. It was his 13th of the season.
First Game
Salem ........... 300 060 303—15 16
Victoria ........ 100 050 000— 6 10 6
Borst, Dahle (5), Roenspie (7) and Masterson; Bottler, Walker (5), Prior (6) and Harford, Martin (6).
Second Game
Salem ........... 004 500 110—11 14 1
Victoria ........ 000 001 004— 5 8 0
Hemphill and Nelson; Drilling, Walker (4), Lorino (6) and Martin.
VANCOUVER — The wildness of Clarence Marshall, who hurled a no-hitter the last time out, helped the Yakima Bears to an 11-6 Western International League baseball win over the Vancouver Capilanos here Saturday night.
Marshall ran into trouble right from the start as the Bears took advantage of five walks and two hits in a pair of innings to score four opening runs.
Winning pitcher Danny Rios hit two doubles and three a single and big Bob Wellman batted in three runs with three hits. White accounted for three runs for the winners as well, while John Albini smacked a solo homer.
Gene Petralli batted in three Capilanos, while Moose Mascaro led Vancouver in hits with three.
Yakima ............... 132 020 210—11 13 2
Vancouver .......... 000 003 300— 6 14 0
Rios and Albini, Novick (8); Marshall, Thomason (2), Castas (8) and Duretto, Leavitt (6).
LEWISTON — Manny Perez hurled a shutout Saturday night as Lewiston took a quick, clean 2-0 Western International League win from Tri-City.
Tri-City ............ 000 000 000— 0 6 0
Lewiston .......... 100 100 00x— 2 7 0
Robertson, Dobernic (8) and Warren; Perez and Garay.
EDMONTON — Calgary Stampeders made it three straight over Edmonton Eskimos by trimming Esks 4-0 in the first game of a Western International Baseball league split doubleheader Saturday, but Edmonton salvaged one win in the four-same series, edging the Stamps 8-7 in the nightcap.
Jerry Levinson hurled a magnificent two-hit shut-out in the first contest. Eskimos' only hits were seventh inning singles by Andy Skurski and Dick Morgan.
Stamps counted for two runs in the sixth, and two more in the seventh when Gus Stathos drove in a pair of runners with a single.
John Conant became the first pitcher in the league this year to post his 20th victory when he went the route in the second tilt before 1,087 fans.
First Game
Calgary ........... 000 002 200—4 11 0
Edmonton ........ 000 000 000—0 2 2
Levinson and Bricker; McNulty and Morgan.
Second Game
Calgary ............ 210 130 000— 7 10 0
Edmonton ......... 001 001 15x— 8 11 4
Stites, Orrell (8) and Lillard; Conant and Morgan.
Spokane ..... 34 18 .654 —
Salem ....... 30 20 .600 3
Vancouver ... 29 24 .547 5½
Yakima ...... 26 23 .531 6½
Lewiston .... 24 22 .522 7
Edmonton .... 24 24 .500 8
Calgary ..... 21 26 .447 10½
Victoria .... 21 30 .412 12½
Tri-City .... 20 30 .400 13
Wenatchee ... 19 29 .396 13
SPOKANE —The Spokane Indians took to the field on the hottest night of the year Saturday and proceeded to sweep a Western International League double header from Wenatchee by scores of 7-1 and 10-4.
Victoria native Art Worth pitched a five-hitter in the first game for the Indians.
First Game
Wenatchee .......... 001 000 0— 1 5 2
Spokane .............. 015 001 x— 7 11 2
Oubre and Bartolomei; Worth and Ogle.
Second Game
Wenatchee .......... 000 003 010— 4 9 2
Spokane .............. 015 030 10x—10 12 0
Klein, DeCarolis (3) and Bartolomei; Franks and Sheets.
VICTORIA [Doug Peden, Colonist, Aug. 16]—Salem Senators, apparently determined to add the second-half Western International League championship to their first-half title, made it four straight over the off-color Victoria Tyees as they swept both ends of a double-header at Royal Athletic Park, Saturday.
Battling to overhaul the front-running Spokane Indians after losing four in a row at Vancouver, the Senators pounded Victoria pitching for 16 hits and a 15-6 triumph in the afternoon and made 14 safeties good for an 11-5 victory under the lights.
The Senators, who managed only four runs in their series with the Capilanos, rebounded for a total of 44 in their four games with Victoria and collected 50 hits against an overworked Tyee pitching staff.
Leaving on a 10-game road trip this morning, the Tyees will make the trip without first baseman Chuck Abernathy, who drew his unconditional release from the club Saturday. Abernathy, a .277 hitter with the Tyees last season, missed some of this year’s season with a chronic leg condition. In latest official averages the first baseman was hitting at a.270 clip through 88 games with 82 hits in 304 times at bat and had batted in 51 runs.
Abernathy played in the first game but handyman Don Pries took over at first base for the nightcap with Bob Moniz again moving in at third base.
OVERWORKED
Bob Drilling, again forced to make a start with only two days rest, opened on the mound for Victoria in the night game and was driven to cover with one out in the fourth inning after giving up eight runs and nine hits.
Zeb Walker then made his fourth relief appearance in four games. He was lifted for a pinch hitter in the fifth and Ben Lorino finished up, yielding two runs and three huts in his four inning stint.
Righthander Jack Hemphill went all the way for the Senators, gaining his 15th win against nine losses as he limited the Tyees to eight hits. He gave up the first Victoria run in the sixth when Granny Gladstone poled his 14th home run of the season and weakened in the ninth, giving up four runs on five bases on balls and Dwane Helbig’s two-run single.
Gene Roenspie, third Salem pitcher in the afternoon encounter, was credited with the victory when starter Larry Borat failed to complete the required five innings. It was Roenspie’s second victory in two days and gave him a record of 15 victories and three defeats.
Bill Bottler took the loss, loosely played games, [sic] going four innings before being followed by Walker and, in the sixth, Bill Prior.
The Tyees, who played errorless ball at night, committed six errors in the day contest, giving Salem seven unearned tallies.
Dwane Helbig supplied the brightest moment from a Victoria standpoint with a pinch homer run in the fifth inning. It was his 13th of the season.
First Game
Salem ........... 300 060 303—15 16
Victoria ........ 100 050 000— 6 10 6
Borst, Dahle (5), Roenspie (7) and Masterson; Bottler, Walker (5), Prior (6) and Harford, Martin (6).
Second Game
Salem ........... 004 500 110—11 14 1
Victoria ........ 000 001 004— 5 8 0
Hemphill and Nelson; Drilling, Walker (4), Lorino (6) and Martin.
VANCOUVER — The wildness of Clarence Marshall, who hurled a no-hitter the last time out, helped the Yakima Bears to an 11-6 Western International League baseball win over the Vancouver Capilanos here Saturday night.
Marshall ran into trouble right from the start as the Bears took advantage of five walks and two hits in a pair of innings to score four opening runs.
Winning pitcher Danny Rios hit two doubles and three a single and big Bob Wellman batted in three runs with three hits. White accounted for three runs for the winners as well, while John Albini smacked a solo homer.
Gene Petralli batted in three Capilanos, while Moose Mascaro led Vancouver in hits with three.
Yakima ............... 132 020 210—11 13 2
Vancouver .......... 000 003 300— 6 14 0
Rios and Albini, Novick (8); Marshall, Thomason (2), Castas (8) and Duretto, Leavitt (6).
LEWISTON — Manny Perez hurled a shutout Saturday night as Lewiston took a quick, clean 2-0 Western International League win from Tri-City.
Tri-City ............ 000 000 000— 0 6 0
Lewiston .......... 100 100 00x— 2 7 0
Robertson, Dobernic (8) and Warren; Perez and Garay.
EDMONTON — Calgary Stampeders made it three straight over Edmonton Eskimos by trimming Esks 4-0 in the first game of a Western International Baseball league split doubleheader Saturday, but Edmonton salvaged one win in the four-same series, edging the Stamps 8-7 in the nightcap.
Jerry Levinson hurled a magnificent two-hit shut-out in the first contest. Eskimos' only hits were seventh inning singles by Andy Skurski and Dick Morgan.
Stamps counted for two runs in the sixth, and two more in the seventh when Gus Stathos drove in a pair of runners with a single.
John Conant became the first pitcher in the league this year to post his 20th victory when he went the route in the second tilt before 1,087 fans.
First Game
Calgary ........... 000 002 200—4 11 0
Edmonton ........ 000 000 000—0 2 2
Levinson and Bricker; McNulty and Morgan.
Second Game
Calgary ............ 210 130 000— 7 10 0
Edmonton ......... 001 001 15x— 8 11 4
Stites, Orrell (8) and Lillard; Conant and Morgan.
Friday, August 14, 1953
W L Pct. GB
Spokane ..... 32 18 .640 —
Salem ....... 28 20 .583 3
Vancouver ... 29 23 .558 4
Yakima ...... 25 23 .521 6
Lewiston .... 23 22 .511 6½
Edmonton .... 23 23 .500 7
Calgary ..... 20 25 .444 9½
Victoria .... 21 28 .429 10½
Wenatchee ... 19 27 .413 11
Tri-City .... 20 29 .408 11½
VANCOUVER, [Dick Beddoes, Sun, Aug. 15]—Last week, when the Vancouver Caps were floundering in a series with Victoria Tyees, folks were saying: “Now is the time for all good miracles to come to the Caps.” This week, they arrived as a phenomena of pitchers who pitch no-hit baseball games.
Clarence Marshall accomplished the feat Tuesday, impaling Salem Senators on a nine-inning no-hitter as the Caps won 12-1. The second was a spectacular seven-inning job, whipped up Friday night by Van Fletcher before 1938 delighted customers at Cap Stadium.
The cigar-chawing tobacco farmer from East End, North Carolina was so stingy toward the Yakima Bears that he wouldn’t give ‘em the right time unless they sneaked a peak [sic] at his watch. In blanking the Bruins 2-0 in the first half of a doubleheader, Fletcher came within one man of pitching a perfect game and that blot was a result of his own error in the first inning.
FAST BALL SANK
Van juggled Phil Steinberg’s ground ball long enough to give Phil a life at first, where he died. No other Bears got a chance to languish on the bases. Fletcher struck out three, walked nobody and only five of the 22 batsmen to face him knocked the ball out of the infield.
Owner of a 14-9 won-loss record, Fletcher’s chief weapon last night was a fast ball that sank. It served him well as he became the fifth hurler in Western International League history to stymie the opposition on no hits over a seven inning route.
And except for his own miscue, Fletcher would have become the seventh pitcher of all time to achieve a perfect game in organized baseball. The last such feat occurred April 30, 1922, Charles Robertson allowed no one to reach first base as Chicago White Sox shut out Detroit Tigers 2-0.
Fletcher was required for a brief relief chore in the ninth inning of the second game when manager Harvey Storey ran out of pitchers. The shortage of firemen was heightened when Storey used three in some last-second strategy, and the fact that Bob Roberts didn’t bother to appear for work forced the Cap leader to use Fletcher.
GUNNAR GREAT
With Vancouver ahead, 5-4, one out, a Yakima runner at second base and southpaw swinging Fuzzy White at bat, Storey relieved right-hander Dale Thomason in favor of Lefty Carl Gunnarson. The percentage worked, Gunnarson whiffing White on four pitches.
Then Storey’s skull whirred so warmly the smell of burning hair rose on the cool stadium air. He replaced Gunnarson with Fletcher, figuring a right thrower would have more success than a lefty with wicked walloping, right-handed Bob Wellman. As it developed, Wellman singled off Storey’s shins but Fletcher got Herman Lewis to ground out and thwart the rally.
- - -
VANCOUVER [CLANCY LORANGER, Province, Aug. 14]—Baseball historians, whose names are legion and whose memory is prodigious, were busily wracking their record books, trying to find another week when two no-hit games were pitched in one ball park in one week by one ball club.
Yes, it happened here. When Van Fletcher pitches seven innings of near-perfect baseball against Yakima Bears at Capilano Stadium Friday night, it was the second time this week that a Vancouver pitcher has trod the diamond game’s mythical hallowed halls. Clarence Marshall came up with the first one on Tuesday against Salem.
Although Fletcher’s performance came in a scheduled seven-inning game and as such rates a niche or two below a regulation effort, it was in many ways a superior offering. Where Marshall walked nine men, Van didn’t allow a base on balls. In fact, only one Yakima runner got on base, courtesy of an error by Fletcher himself in the third inning, and he never got beyond that point.
GOOD SUPPORT
Fletcher, younger brother of ex Coast League pitching ace Guy, retired the last 20 men in order, three of them by strikeouts, as he recorded his 14th win against nine losses. Van, who had terrific support, particularly by Jim Clark and Jack Bukowatz, was naturally thrilled by the turn of events.
Naturally, the Caps won that game, and they made a night of it by taking the nightcap, too, thanks mostly to the generosity of the Yakima fielders—plus some Durocher-type juggling of the pitching staff in the ninth inning.
HARVEY THINKING
Yakima threatened to get even in the ninth, but Cap Manager Harvey Storey, manipulating his pitchers like puppets, outsmarted ‘em. With one out and a man on second, Storey brought in left-hander Carl Gunnarson to pitch to southpaw swinger Al White. Gunnarson struck him out, then gave way to Fletcher.
PROVINCE STARS — Naturally, Van Fletcher, who with any luck would have close to 20 wins now … Jim Clark (again) who not only fielded superbly but gave the Caps a lesson in base running as he twice eluded fielders waiting for him at the keystone in stealing second … That’s all: Fletcher rates two stars.
- - -
VANCOUVER [KEITH MATTHEWS, News-Herald, Aug. 15]—Only once before has the same kind of lightning struck over baseball’s passive history. Friday, Van Fletcher pitched a seven-inning no-hit, no-run 2-0 victory for Vancouver and it was the second “dream” accomplishment by a local pitcher this week.
The once before was 1945 when Johnny Vander Meer, then at the peak of his career, twice walked out and pitched double-no efforts for the Cincinnati Reds. The Vancouver Capilanos must take a back seat to this one, but to no other.
With the Fletcher effort as their inspiration, Vancouver took both ends of a double set, winning the second game as Harvey Storey exerted his season’s best managerial strategy in winning 5-4. Harv used four pitchers, three of them in the last inning, in obtaining the win.
Fletcher, of course, was the story. Tuesday it had been Clarence Marshall, not long from the Majors, who pitched the first no-hitter in Vancouver’s history since Bill Richardson turned the trick in Bob Brown’s old semi-pro league in 1937. And now, just three days later, Fletcher walked out and did it again.
In a way, it was better than Marshall’s even though a seven-inning no-hitter is never considered in the same category as a full nine. But Fletcher came within one baserunner of pitching a completely perfect game.
Long Time Between Perfects
It was in the first inning that Phil Steinberg hit an easy tap back to the mound. Fletcher reached up to grab it and the ball hit the heel of his glove and rolled free for an error. Steinberg was the lone Yakima baserunner in the entire seven innings. Fletcher walked none. The Capilanos erred no more behind him. Had he managed that one other out, Fletcher would have become baseball’s second pitcher to turn the “perfect” trick. The last and only was Charley Robertson, the old Chicago White Sox hero, who beat the Detroit Tigers in 1917 and faced only the minimum 27 batters in so doing.
Fletcher was mobbed as he walked from the field, after the third out in the seventh. “It’s my first ever,” he yelled. “I knew it in the fifth inning and right then I said if they’re going to get a hit off me, they’re going to have to hit my best pitch!”
The 5-4 victory, even though it was every bit as dramatic in its intensity, became secondary.
Harv Played The Percentages
Jack Bukowatz set the stage when he drove in two runs in the seventh to attain the 5-4 margin. Then, with Dale Thomason pitching in the ninth, Yakima got a base runner in position through a walk and Andy Anderson sacrificed him along to a scoring station at second.
It was here that Storey reached into his bag of tricks. He hauled Carl Gunnarson from the bullpen to pitch to left-handed hitting Al Smith. Cal got his man out on four pitches with a strikeout. Then Storey yanked the “Gunner” and came in with Fletcher again to pitch to the right-handed Bob Wellman.
Wellman cracked a scorching grounder down the third base side and Storey held it to an infield hit with a valiant stop. Fletcher then got Herman Lewis on an infield out to wind it up. It was quite a night.
Tonight the same clubs play a single game with the Capilanos, now winners of their last seven out of nine, pitching Clarence Marshall, the other no-hit hero. Danny Rios goes for Yakima.
First Game
Yakima .............. 000 000 0—0 0 1
Vancouver ......... 000 200 x—2 5 1
Edmunds, Townsend (6) and Novick; Fletcher and Duretto.
Second Game
Yakima ............. 100 201 000—4 9 4
Vancouver ........ 102 000 20x—5 9 2
Carter, Rial (8) and Albini; Myers, Thomason (3), Gunnarson (9), Fletcher (9) and Duretto.
EDMONTON — Calgary Stampeders made it two straight Friday night in their four-game Western International Baseball League series with Edmonton Eskimos as they drubbed Esks 10-5 before 1,029 fans.
Glenn Hittner went the route for Calgary, hurling his third win over Esks and his 11th of the season against 12 losses.
Bob Bonebrake and Jim Wert blasted home runs for Stamps while Whitey Thomson hit a three-run homer for Edmonton.
Included in Calgary's 15 hits against Leon Day and Pat Utley was a double by Don Hittner. The teams meet Saturday in a day-night double-header.
Calgary .......... 000 311 500—10 15 1
Edmonton ....... 000 200 300— 5 8 3
Hittner and Bricker, Lillard (9) ; Day, Utley (7) and Morgan.
VICTORIA [Colonist, Aug. 15]—Salem Senators, still smarting from the sting of four straight setbacks at Vancouver, threw their two righthanded aces—Joe Nicholas and Gene Roenspie—at Victoria Tyees at Royal Athletic Park Friday night to sweep both ends of their WIL doubleheader.
Nicholas, the pitcher the Lewiston Broncs didn’t want this season, racked up his 20th victory in 24 decisions with a five-hit, 13-4 triumph in the opener and Roenspie collected his 14th win against three losses as the Senators took the seven-inning nightcap, 5-3.
TWO TODAY
The two clubs conclude their series with a double bill at Athletic Park today. Bill Bottler is due to start the afternoon game and Bob Drilling may take the mound in the “Family Night” game which starts at 8.
Ben Lorino, a 24-game winner with the Tyees last year, made his first Victoria start and was shelled out in the midst of a seven-run outburst in the fourth inning, after giving up eight runs on six hits, three bases on balls and two errors.
GRAND SLAM
Earl Dollins, who relieved Lorino with two out and, two on, gave a base on balls to Jim Deyo to load the bases then served up a home run pitch to first baseman Gerry Ballard. Ballard collected his second homer—this one with the bases empty—off Zeb Walker in the seventh.
Catcher Jim Harford picked up the first two hits against Nicholas, singling in each of the third and fifth frames. He scored on Bob Moniz’fly ball in the third and crossed the plate in the fifth on Moniz’ single. Lu Branham, who ahs been swinging from the left side of the plate in recent games, doubled to open the Victoria eighth. Cec Garriott tripled to score Branham and came in with the final Tyee run on Don Pries’ ground out.
PRIOR LOSES
Bill Prior, away to a shaky start in the first inning of the second game, was charged with the loss, which dropped the Tyees down into a last-place tie with Tri-City Braves.
An error and four successive singles gave the Senators a 3-0 lead in the opening frame. They added another in the fourth, when Jim Deyo stole home as Milt Martin failed to hold Prior’s pitch to Roenspie. Deyo scored the fifth Salem run in the fifth.
Granny Gladstone doubled and scored for the Tyees in the second inning and Don Pries poled a two-run double in the fifth to bring the Tyees closer.
Martin with three singles in three times at bat and Pries and Gladstone, each with two for four, led the Victoria attack.
First Game
Salem ............ 201 700 111—13 12 1
Victoria .......... 001 010 020— 4 5 3
Nicholas and Masterson; Lorino, Dollins (4), Walker (8), Hodges (8) and Harford.
Second Game
Salem ........... 301 010 0—5 8 0
Victoria ......... 010 020 0—3 8 3
Roenspie and Nelson; Prior, Collins (6), Walker (7) and Martin.
LEWISTON, Aug. 14—The Lewiston Broncs moved ahead in the standings Friday night with a double victory over Tri-City which left the Braves sharing the cellar with the Victoria Tyees.
The Broncs eased through, 4-3, in the first game, then pounded out a 26-3 triumph in the second with a barrage of extra-base hits which included five home runs and six doubles. Mel Wasley, Bob Williams and Clint Cameron each batted in five runs.
First Game
Tri-City ........... 000 000 3—3 8 0
Lewiston ......... 004 000 x—4 6 2
Dobernic and Warren; Kine and Garay.
Second Game
Tri-City ........... 200 010 000— 3 6 2
Lewiston ......... 500 424 0(11)x—26 21 0
Hedgecock, Snyder (2), Dobernic (5), Hockaday (7), Tran (8) and Pesut; Marshall and Cameron.
Wenatchee ........ 000 210 000—3 8 0
Spokane ............ 000 000 001—1 5 0
Botelho and Bartolomei; Giovannoni, New (5), Romero (9) and Sheets.
(story unavailable)
Baseball Wife’s Gypsy Life Suits Her to a ‘T’
By THELMA ROOT
[Vancouver Sun, Aug. 14, 1953]
Dewey Soriano wasn’t “the boy next door” but he was a constant visitor to the boy next door.
“So I had to go all the way to California to meet him,” recalled his attractive wife, who is one of her husband’s Capilano baseball team’s most avid fans.
With the Capilanos fighting strong for the second half pennant in the Western International League play-offs, Mrs. Soriano sees “even less” of her manager-husband than usual, but she still insists she wouldn’t trade being a “baseball wife” for any other job in the world.
FAN SINCE BABYHOOD
“I’ve been a baseball fan ever since I was two,” she said, “and I guess I’ll be a baseball fan when I’m an old lady.”
Daughter of Royal Brougham, sports editor of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Mrs. Soriano used to cast admiring looks at the young ball-player who visited her neighbor.
“But we were never introduced,” she said. “So one year I went to spring training in California with my Dad. And that’s how I met Dewey.”
Their seven-and-a-half-year-old son, Gary, is a constant fan of the Capilanos and even two-and-a-half-year-old Patti can recognize a foul ball when she sees one.
NEVER MISS GAME
“We never miss a game,” Mrs. Soriano said. “The children just sleep in late in the morning and Patti has a long nap in the afternoon.”
Maybe some wives would object to the constant travelling about that goes with being a baseball wife, but not Mrs. Soriano.
“We’re all good travellers, and the children see a lot of the country they wouldn’t see otherwise,” she said.
And neither does she object to it when Dewey “goes on the road” with the team and leaves her behind.
THIS IS HEAVEN
“He used to be in the Merchant Marine, and be gone fro three or four months,” she laughed. “This is heaven when he’s only gone for a week or so.”
And she’s never once looked back and thought she should have married a business man who went to work at 9 a.m. and came home at 5 p.m.
“Sure,” she said, “I guess ball-players are a little more temperamental than ordinary men. They’re bound to be with the fans spoiling them. But they’re still pretty wonderful.”
MISSES WASHER
There’s only one tiny touch of sorrow in it.
“There’s my wonderful automatic washer and dryer sitting in our house in Seattle nd I’m doing washing in an old machine here!” she mourned.
WILfan note: This story just reeks of the 1950s. And nowhere in the story do we learn her first name. It’s like she’s her husband’s property.
Spokane ..... 32 18 .640 —
Salem ....... 28 20 .583 3
Vancouver ... 29 23 .558 4
Yakima ...... 25 23 .521 6
Lewiston .... 23 22 .511 6½
Edmonton .... 23 23 .500 7
Calgary ..... 20 25 .444 9½
Victoria .... 21 28 .429 10½
Wenatchee ... 19 27 .413 11
Tri-City .... 20 29 .408 11½
VANCOUVER, [Dick Beddoes, Sun, Aug. 15]—Last week, when the Vancouver Caps were floundering in a series with Victoria Tyees, folks were saying: “Now is the time for all good miracles to come to the Caps.” This week, they arrived as a phenomena of pitchers who pitch no-hit baseball games.
Clarence Marshall accomplished the feat Tuesday, impaling Salem Senators on a nine-inning no-hitter as the Caps won 12-1. The second was a spectacular seven-inning job, whipped up Friday night by Van Fletcher before 1938 delighted customers at Cap Stadium.
The cigar-chawing tobacco farmer from East End, North Carolina was so stingy toward the Yakima Bears that he wouldn’t give ‘em the right time unless they sneaked a peak [sic] at his watch. In blanking the Bruins 2-0 in the first half of a doubleheader, Fletcher came within one man of pitching a perfect game and that blot was a result of his own error in the first inning.
FAST BALL SANK
Van juggled Phil Steinberg’s ground ball long enough to give Phil a life at first, where he died. No other Bears got a chance to languish on the bases. Fletcher struck out three, walked nobody and only five of the 22 batsmen to face him knocked the ball out of the infield.
Owner of a 14-9 won-loss record, Fletcher’s chief weapon last night was a fast ball that sank. It served him well as he became the fifth hurler in Western International League history to stymie the opposition on no hits over a seven inning route.
And except for his own miscue, Fletcher would have become the seventh pitcher of all time to achieve a perfect game in organized baseball. The last such feat occurred April 30, 1922, Charles Robertson allowed no one to reach first base as Chicago White Sox shut out Detroit Tigers 2-0.
Fletcher was required for a brief relief chore in the ninth inning of the second game when manager Harvey Storey ran out of pitchers. The shortage of firemen was heightened when Storey used three in some last-second strategy, and the fact that Bob Roberts didn’t bother to appear for work forced the Cap leader to use Fletcher.
GUNNAR GREAT
With Vancouver ahead, 5-4, one out, a Yakima runner at second base and southpaw swinging Fuzzy White at bat, Storey relieved right-hander Dale Thomason in favor of Lefty Carl Gunnarson. The percentage worked, Gunnarson whiffing White on four pitches.
Then Storey’s skull whirred so warmly the smell of burning hair rose on the cool stadium air. He replaced Gunnarson with Fletcher, figuring a right thrower would have more success than a lefty with wicked walloping, right-handed Bob Wellman. As it developed, Wellman singled off Storey’s shins but Fletcher got Herman Lewis to ground out and thwart the rally.
- - -
VANCOUVER [CLANCY LORANGER, Province, Aug. 14]—Baseball historians, whose names are legion and whose memory is prodigious, were busily wracking their record books, trying to find another week when two no-hit games were pitched in one ball park in one week by one ball club.
Yes, it happened here. When Van Fletcher pitches seven innings of near-perfect baseball against Yakima Bears at Capilano Stadium Friday night, it was the second time this week that a Vancouver pitcher has trod the diamond game’s mythical hallowed halls. Clarence Marshall came up with the first one on Tuesday against Salem.
Although Fletcher’s performance came in a scheduled seven-inning game and as such rates a niche or two below a regulation effort, it was in many ways a superior offering. Where Marshall walked nine men, Van didn’t allow a base on balls. In fact, only one Yakima runner got on base, courtesy of an error by Fletcher himself in the third inning, and he never got beyond that point.
GOOD SUPPORT
Fletcher, younger brother of ex Coast League pitching ace Guy, retired the last 20 men in order, three of them by strikeouts, as he recorded his 14th win against nine losses. Van, who had terrific support, particularly by Jim Clark and Jack Bukowatz, was naturally thrilled by the turn of events.
Naturally, the Caps won that game, and they made a night of it by taking the nightcap, too, thanks mostly to the generosity of the Yakima fielders—plus some Durocher-type juggling of the pitching staff in the ninth inning.
HARVEY THINKING
Yakima threatened to get even in the ninth, but Cap Manager Harvey Storey, manipulating his pitchers like puppets, outsmarted ‘em. With one out and a man on second, Storey brought in left-hander Carl Gunnarson to pitch to southpaw swinger Al White. Gunnarson struck him out, then gave way to Fletcher.
PROVINCE STARS — Naturally, Van Fletcher, who with any luck would have close to 20 wins now … Jim Clark (again) who not only fielded superbly but gave the Caps a lesson in base running as he twice eluded fielders waiting for him at the keystone in stealing second … That’s all: Fletcher rates two stars.
- - -
VANCOUVER [KEITH MATTHEWS, News-Herald, Aug. 15]—Only once before has the same kind of lightning struck over baseball’s passive history. Friday, Van Fletcher pitched a seven-inning no-hit, no-run 2-0 victory for Vancouver and it was the second “dream” accomplishment by a local pitcher this week.
The once before was 1945 when Johnny Vander Meer, then at the peak of his career, twice walked out and pitched double-no efforts for the Cincinnati Reds. The Vancouver Capilanos must take a back seat to this one, but to no other.
With the Fletcher effort as their inspiration, Vancouver took both ends of a double set, winning the second game as Harvey Storey exerted his season’s best managerial strategy in winning 5-4. Harv used four pitchers, three of them in the last inning, in obtaining the win.
Fletcher, of course, was the story. Tuesday it had been Clarence Marshall, not long from the Majors, who pitched the first no-hitter in Vancouver’s history since Bill Richardson turned the trick in Bob Brown’s old semi-pro league in 1937. And now, just three days later, Fletcher walked out and did it again.
In a way, it was better than Marshall’s even though a seven-inning no-hitter is never considered in the same category as a full nine. But Fletcher came within one baserunner of pitching a completely perfect game.
Long Time Between Perfects
It was in the first inning that Phil Steinberg hit an easy tap back to the mound. Fletcher reached up to grab it and the ball hit the heel of his glove and rolled free for an error. Steinberg was the lone Yakima baserunner in the entire seven innings. Fletcher walked none. The Capilanos erred no more behind him. Had he managed that one other out, Fletcher would have become baseball’s second pitcher to turn the “perfect” trick. The last and only was Charley Robertson, the old Chicago White Sox hero, who beat the Detroit Tigers in 1917 and faced only the minimum 27 batters in so doing.
Fletcher was mobbed as he walked from the field, after the third out in the seventh. “It’s my first ever,” he yelled. “I knew it in the fifth inning and right then I said if they’re going to get a hit off me, they’re going to have to hit my best pitch!”
The 5-4 victory, even though it was every bit as dramatic in its intensity, became secondary.
Harv Played The Percentages
Jack Bukowatz set the stage when he drove in two runs in the seventh to attain the 5-4 margin. Then, with Dale Thomason pitching in the ninth, Yakima got a base runner in position through a walk and Andy Anderson sacrificed him along to a scoring station at second.
It was here that Storey reached into his bag of tricks. He hauled Carl Gunnarson from the bullpen to pitch to left-handed hitting Al Smith. Cal got his man out on four pitches with a strikeout. Then Storey yanked the “Gunner” and came in with Fletcher again to pitch to the right-handed Bob Wellman.
Wellman cracked a scorching grounder down the third base side and Storey held it to an infield hit with a valiant stop. Fletcher then got Herman Lewis on an infield out to wind it up. It was quite a night.
Tonight the same clubs play a single game with the Capilanos, now winners of their last seven out of nine, pitching Clarence Marshall, the other no-hit hero. Danny Rios goes for Yakima.
First Game
Yakima .............. 000 000 0—0 0 1
Vancouver ......... 000 200 x—2 5 1
Edmunds, Townsend (6) and Novick; Fletcher and Duretto.
Second Game
Yakima ............. 100 201 000—4 9 4
Vancouver ........ 102 000 20x—5 9 2
Carter, Rial (8) and Albini; Myers, Thomason (3), Gunnarson (9), Fletcher (9) and Duretto.
EDMONTON — Calgary Stampeders made it two straight Friday night in their four-game Western International Baseball League series with Edmonton Eskimos as they drubbed Esks 10-5 before 1,029 fans.
Glenn Hittner went the route for Calgary, hurling his third win over Esks and his 11th of the season against 12 losses.
Bob Bonebrake and Jim Wert blasted home runs for Stamps while Whitey Thomson hit a three-run homer for Edmonton.
Included in Calgary's 15 hits against Leon Day and Pat Utley was a double by Don Hittner. The teams meet Saturday in a day-night double-header.
Calgary .......... 000 311 500—10 15 1
Edmonton ....... 000 200 300— 5 8 3
Hittner and Bricker, Lillard (9) ; Day, Utley (7) and Morgan.
VICTORIA [Colonist, Aug. 15]—Salem Senators, still smarting from the sting of four straight setbacks at Vancouver, threw their two righthanded aces—Joe Nicholas and Gene Roenspie—at Victoria Tyees at Royal Athletic Park Friday night to sweep both ends of their WIL doubleheader.
Nicholas, the pitcher the Lewiston Broncs didn’t want this season, racked up his 20th victory in 24 decisions with a five-hit, 13-4 triumph in the opener and Roenspie collected his 14th win against three losses as the Senators took the seven-inning nightcap, 5-3.
TWO TODAY
The two clubs conclude their series with a double bill at Athletic Park today. Bill Bottler is due to start the afternoon game and Bob Drilling may take the mound in the “Family Night” game which starts at 8.
Ben Lorino, a 24-game winner with the Tyees last year, made his first Victoria start and was shelled out in the midst of a seven-run outburst in the fourth inning, after giving up eight runs on six hits, three bases on balls and two errors.
GRAND SLAM
Earl Dollins, who relieved Lorino with two out and, two on, gave a base on balls to Jim Deyo to load the bases then served up a home run pitch to first baseman Gerry Ballard. Ballard collected his second homer—this one with the bases empty—off Zeb Walker in the seventh.
Catcher Jim Harford picked up the first two hits against Nicholas, singling in each of the third and fifth frames. He scored on Bob Moniz’fly ball in the third and crossed the plate in the fifth on Moniz’ single. Lu Branham, who ahs been swinging from the left side of the plate in recent games, doubled to open the Victoria eighth. Cec Garriott tripled to score Branham and came in with the final Tyee run on Don Pries’ ground out.
PRIOR LOSES
Bill Prior, away to a shaky start in the first inning of the second game, was charged with the loss, which dropped the Tyees down into a last-place tie with Tri-City Braves.
An error and four successive singles gave the Senators a 3-0 lead in the opening frame. They added another in the fourth, when Jim Deyo stole home as Milt Martin failed to hold Prior’s pitch to Roenspie. Deyo scored the fifth Salem run in the fifth.
Granny Gladstone doubled and scored for the Tyees in the second inning and Don Pries poled a two-run double in the fifth to bring the Tyees closer.
Martin with three singles in three times at bat and Pries and Gladstone, each with two for four, led the Victoria attack.
First Game
Salem ............ 201 700 111—13 12 1
Victoria .......... 001 010 020— 4 5 3
Nicholas and Masterson; Lorino, Dollins (4), Walker (8), Hodges (8) and Harford.
Second Game
Salem ........... 301 010 0—5 8 0
Victoria ......... 010 020 0—3 8 3
Roenspie and Nelson; Prior, Collins (6), Walker (7) and Martin.
LEWISTON, Aug. 14—The Lewiston Broncs moved ahead in the standings Friday night with a double victory over Tri-City which left the Braves sharing the cellar with the Victoria Tyees.
The Broncs eased through, 4-3, in the first game, then pounded out a 26-3 triumph in the second with a barrage of extra-base hits which included five home runs and six doubles. Mel Wasley, Bob Williams and Clint Cameron each batted in five runs.
First Game
Tri-City ........... 000 000 3—3 8 0
Lewiston ......... 004 000 x—4 6 2
Dobernic and Warren; Kine and Garay.
Second Game
Tri-City ........... 200 010 000— 3 6 2
Lewiston ......... 500 424 0(11)x—26 21 0
Hedgecock, Snyder (2), Dobernic (5), Hockaday (7), Tran (8) and Pesut; Marshall and Cameron.
Wenatchee ........ 000 210 000—3 8 0
Spokane ............ 000 000 001—1 5 0
Botelho and Bartolomei; Giovannoni, New (5), Romero (9) and Sheets.
(story unavailable)
Baseball Wife’s Gypsy Life Suits Her to a ‘T’By THELMA ROOT
[Vancouver Sun, Aug. 14, 1953]
Dewey Soriano wasn’t “the boy next door” but he was a constant visitor to the boy next door.
“So I had to go all the way to California to meet him,” recalled his attractive wife, who is one of her husband’s Capilano baseball team’s most avid fans.
With the Capilanos fighting strong for the second half pennant in the Western International League play-offs, Mrs. Soriano sees “even less” of her manager-husband than usual, but she still insists she wouldn’t trade being a “baseball wife” for any other job in the world.
FAN SINCE BABYHOOD
“I’ve been a baseball fan ever since I was two,” she said, “and I guess I’ll be a baseball fan when I’m an old lady.”
Daughter of Royal Brougham, sports editor of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Mrs. Soriano used to cast admiring looks at the young ball-player who visited her neighbor.
“But we were never introduced,” she said. “So one year I went to spring training in California with my Dad. And that’s how I met Dewey.”
Their seven-and-a-half-year-old son, Gary, is a constant fan of the Capilanos and even two-and-a-half-year-old Patti can recognize a foul ball when she sees one.
NEVER MISS GAME
“We never miss a game,” Mrs. Soriano said. “The children just sleep in late in the morning and Patti has a long nap in the afternoon.”
Maybe some wives would object to the constant travelling about that goes with being a baseball wife, but not Mrs. Soriano.
“We’re all good travellers, and the children see a lot of the country they wouldn’t see otherwise,” she said.
And neither does she object to it when Dewey “goes on the road” with the team and leaves her behind.
THIS IS HEAVEN
“He used to be in the Merchant Marine, and be gone fro three or four months,” she laughed. “This is heaven when he’s only gone for a week or so.”
And she’s never once looked back and thought she should have married a business man who went to work at 9 a.m. and came home at 5 p.m.
“Sure,” she said, “I guess ball-players are a little more temperamental than ordinary men. They’re bound to be with the fans spoiling them. But they’re still pretty wonderful.”
MISSES WASHER
There’s only one tiny touch of sorrow in it.
“There’s my wonderful automatic washer and dryer sitting in our house in Seattle nd I’m doing washing in an old machine here!” she mourned.
WILfan note: This story just reeks of the 1950s. And nowhere in the story do we learn her first name. It’s like she’s her husband’s property.
Thursday, August 13, 1953
W L Pct. GB
Spokane ..... 32 17 .648 —
Salem ....... 26 20 .585 4½
Yakima ...... 25 21 .543 5½
Vancouver ... 27 23 .540 5½
Edmonton .... 23 22 .511 7
Lewiston .... 21 22 .488 8
Victoria .... 21 26 .447 10
Calgary ..... 19 25 .432 10½
Tri-City .... 20 27 .426 11
Wenatchee ... 18 27 .400 12
AP has 20-27 for Victoria
SPOKANE, Aug. 13—A fellow alumnus of Washington State College spoiled Jack Spring's effort at a no-hit Western International League game Thursday night as Spokane beat Tri-City 4-1.
Terry Carroll, Spring's former teammate at Washington State College, accounted for both Tri-City safeties. He beat out a bunt in the seventh to wreck Spring's bid for a no-hitter, and singled in the ninth.
Tri-City....... 000 001 000—1 2 1
Spokane ..... 000 002 11x—4 11 4
Snyder and Warren; Spring and Sheets.
EDMONTON, Alta., Aug. 13—Behind six-hit pitching by Eddie Kapp, the Calgary Stampeders trounced the Edmonton Eskimos 10-4 Thursday night in the opener of a four-game Western International Baseball league series.
Paid attendance was 1,058.
Capp was seldom in trouble in a dull contest between two travel-weary clubs. Calgary scored a pair of runs in the first inning and recaptured the lead to win going away after Edmonton scored three runs in the third.
The big righthander fanned 10 in claiming his sixth victory of the season against as many losses. Charlie Mead led Calgary's 12 hits against two Edmonton hurlers with a single, a double and a triple in live trips.
Calgary ....... 200 230 120—10 12 2
Edmonton .... 003 001 000— 4 6 2
Kapp and Bricker; Manier, Johnson (8) and Morgan.
VANCOUVER [By Dick Beddoes, Sun, Aug. 14]—Peter Hernandez’s right-handed hooks snagged 13 Yakima Bears Thursday night but enough big ones got away to wreck the Senor’s bid for his 15th win.
Peter’s curve came in alive and crackling, humiliating 13 Yakima batsmen who swung where there wasn’t any ball. However, the challenging Bruins gobbled up whatever else he had to offer, winning 5-2 to shatter Vancouver’s five-game win streak and bust past the Caps into third place in the Western International League.
The loss shoved the Cap Stadium residents 5 ½ games to the rear of the front-running Spokane Indians, who whacked Tri-City Braves 4-1. Caps get two chances tonight to shake off their temporary lapse on the route to a second-half pennant, playing Yakima in a double-header beginning at 7 o’clock.
NEW PUNCH SHOWS
In the very first inning the locals demonstrated their new-found punch at the plate, Jimmy Clark singling to centre and Harvey Storey screaming a triple to The Sun sign 400 feet from home base. Storey’s shot scored Clark, and the Vancouver manager came home himself on a passed ball.
Following that rally, however, the Caps were never again able to mound a serious threat. This was a tribute, in part, to the pitching of Lefty Tom Del Sarto, who seems to have licked the damaging habit of choking up in the late innings.
But Yakima’s hustle in the field and hammer with the bat complemented Del Sarto’s performance. The Bears have been re-staffed and revitalized since the spring, experiencing a housecleaning that detached all but first-baseman Irv Noren and right-fielder Herman Lewis from their jobs.
ROBERT RAPS
One of the newcomers is Robert Joseph Wellman, who muscled up in the seventh inning and crashed a low-inside curve over the left field wall. It was Wellman’s 20th home run of the year and was accomplished with third-baseman Phil Steinberg on base.
Wellman’s wallop provided Yakima with two insurance runs, the Bears having squared it with two in the fifth and moved ahead with another in the sixth. Their tie-breaker was the product of singles by Lewis and Noren and a lengthy fly swatted by Andy Anderson.
- - -
VANCOUVER, B. C., Aug. 13—Pete Hernandez struck out 13 batters Thursday, but he allowed enough base hits in between to allow Yakima a 5-2 baseball victory, thereby ending Vancouver's five game win streak in the Western International League.
When big Bob Wellman hit his 20th home run of the season in Vancouver Thursday night he erased another Yakima Western International baseball league record set by Harlond Clift.
Clift, Yakima's former major league, now coaches the San Francisco Seals in the Pacific Coast League.
Clift set the former record for Yakima at 19 home runs seven years ago.
Wellman, who was leading the WIL hitters with .363 in the last official averages, also tied Don Hunter, Calgary, for the league's home run leadership. However, Hunter had an advantage in playing half of his games in Calgary's bandbox park.
Although Wellman didn't join the Bears until a third of the season had gone, he stands a good chance of leading the league in home runs, total bases, two-base hits and runs-batted-in if he keeps up his present pace.
The 6-foot-4-inch 225-pound outfielder, who is 26, played briefly with the Philadelphia Athletics several years ago. Most of his career has been in the WIL.
Wellman's 350-blast over the left field wall also scored Phil Steinberg in the seventh inning and ensured the win for Tom Del Sarto.
Vancouver got its two runs in the first inning on a single by Jim Clark and manager Harvey Storey's single.
Yakima ............ 000 021 200—5 10 0
Vancouver ....... 200 000 000—2 7 0
Del Sarto and Albini; Hernandez and Duretto.
Salem at Victoria postponed, teams unable to reach Victoria in time.
Only games scheduled.
Rock Slide Costly To Tyees
VICTORIA [Colonist, Aug. 14]—One of the worst slides in the history of Snoqualmie Pass prevented the Victoria Tyees from arriving home in time for a scheduled double-header with the Salem Senators last night, cost the financially-embarrassed club an estimated $1,500, and came uncomfortabaly close to causing an accident.
En route by bus to Seattle from Yakima, where they had concluded a series Wednesday night, the Tyees missed the slide, which took two lives and caused plenty of damage, by a matter of minutes. It was at Snoqualmie Pass in 1946 that the Spokane club bus went over the side, killing players and cutting short the baseball careers of others.
The Tyees were forced to detour to Wenatchee and finally reached Seattle late yesterday by way of Blewett and Stevens Passses. They arrived in town last last night.
Infielder Bought
CALGARY, Alta. — Calgary of the Western International League had purchased First Baseman Jim Wert from Vancouver, also of the WIL.
Broncs Sign New Pitcher
LEWISTON, Aug. 14—Pitcher Larry Powell, who was with Lewiston of the Western International League in 1952, has signed with the Broncs for the remainder of the season.
Bleak Outlook for Wenatchee Chiefs; $4,400 in Red
WENATCHEE, Wash., Aug. 14 - Wenatchee's Western International League baseball club has dropped $4,400 in operations through June 30, President Paul F. Thomas said Wednesday.
Thomas said reports for July will show further losses, as attendance at home games declined during the month. Expenses for the team are $710 a game on the road and $740 at home, he said, and many times these figures have not been reached.
Spokane ..... 32 17 .648 —
Salem ....... 26 20 .585 4½
Yakima ...... 25 21 .543 5½
Vancouver ... 27 23 .540 5½
Edmonton .... 23 22 .511 7
Lewiston .... 21 22 .488 8
Victoria .... 21 26 .447 10
Calgary ..... 19 25 .432 10½
Tri-City .... 20 27 .426 11
Wenatchee ... 18 27 .400 12
AP has 20-27 for Victoria
SPOKANE, Aug. 13—A fellow alumnus of Washington State College spoiled Jack Spring's effort at a no-hit Western International League game Thursday night as Spokane beat Tri-City 4-1.
Terry Carroll, Spring's former teammate at Washington State College, accounted for both Tri-City safeties. He beat out a bunt in the seventh to wreck Spring's bid for a no-hitter, and singled in the ninth.
Tri-City....... 000 001 000—1 2 1
Spokane ..... 000 002 11x—4 11 4
Snyder and Warren; Spring and Sheets.
EDMONTON, Alta., Aug. 13—Behind six-hit pitching by Eddie Kapp, the Calgary Stampeders trounced the Edmonton Eskimos 10-4 Thursday night in the opener of a four-game Western International Baseball league series.
Paid attendance was 1,058.
Capp was seldom in trouble in a dull contest between two travel-weary clubs. Calgary scored a pair of runs in the first inning and recaptured the lead to win going away after Edmonton scored three runs in the third.
The big righthander fanned 10 in claiming his sixth victory of the season against as many losses. Charlie Mead led Calgary's 12 hits against two Edmonton hurlers with a single, a double and a triple in live trips.
Calgary ....... 200 230 120—10 12 2
Edmonton .... 003 001 000— 4 6 2
Kapp and Bricker; Manier, Johnson (8) and Morgan.
VANCOUVER [By Dick Beddoes, Sun, Aug. 14]—Peter Hernandez’s right-handed hooks snagged 13 Yakima Bears Thursday night but enough big ones got away to wreck the Senor’s bid for his 15th win.
Peter’s curve came in alive and crackling, humiliating 13 Yakima batsmen who swung where there wasn’t any ball. However, the challenging Bruins gobbled up whatever else he had to offer, winning 5-2 to shatter Vancouver’s five-game win streak and bust past the Caps into third place in the Western International League.
The loss shoved the Cap Stadium residents 5 ½ games to the rear of the front-running Spokane Indians, who whacked Tri-City Braves 4-1. Caps get two chances tonight to shake off their temporary lapse on the route to a second-half pennant, playing Yakima in a double-header beginning at 7 o’clock.
NEW PUNCH SHOWS
In the very first inning the locals demonstrated their new-found punch at the plate, Jimmy Clark singling to centre and Harvey Storey screaming a triple to The Sun sign 400 feet from home base. Storey’s shot scored Clark, and the Vancouver manager came home himself on a passed ball.
Following that rally, however, the Caps were never again able to mound a serious threat. This was a tribute, in part, to the pitching of Lefty Tom Del Sarto, who seems to have licked the damaging habit of choking up in the late innings.
But Yakima’s hustle in the field and hammer with the bat complemented Del Sarto’s performance. The Bears have been re-staffed and revitalized since the spring, experiencing a housecleaning that detached all but first-baseman Irv Noren and right-fielder Herman Lewis from their jobs.
ROBERT RAPS
One of the newcomers is Robert Joseph Wellman, who muscled up in the seventh inning and crashed a low-inside curve over the left field wall. It was Wellman’s 20th home run of the year and was accomplished with third-baseman Phil Steinberg on base.
Wellman’s wallop provided Yakima with two insurance runs, the Bears having squared it with two in the fifth and moved ahead with another in the sixth. Their tie-breaker was the product of singles by Lewis and Noren and a lengthy fly swatted by Andy Anderson.
- - -
VANCOUVER, B. C., Aug. 13—Pete Hernandez struck out 13 batters Thursday, but he allowed enough base hits in between to allow Yakima a 5-2 baseball victory, thereby ending Vancouver's five game win streak in the Western International League.
When big Bob Wellman hit his 20th home run of the season in Vancouver Thursday night he erased another Yakima Western International baseball league record set by Harlond Clift.
Clift, Yakima's former major league, now coaches the San Francisco Seals in the Pacific Coast League.
Clift set the former record for Yakima at 19 home runs seven years ago.
Wellman, who was leading the WIL hitters with .363 in the last official averages, also tied Don Hunter, Calgary, for the league's home run leadership. However, Hunter had an advantage in playing half of his games in Calgary's bandbox park.
Although Wellman didn't join the Bears until a third of the season had gone, he stands a good chance of leading the league in home runs, total bases, two-base hits and runs-batted-in if he keeps up his present pace.
The 6-foot-4-inch 225-pound outfielder, who is 26, played briefly with the Philadelphia Athletics several years ago. Most of his career has been in the WIL.
Wellman's 350-blast over the left field wall also scored Phil Steinberg in the seventh inning and ensured the win for Tom Del Sarto.
Vancouver got its two runs in the first inning on a single by Jim Clark and manager Harvey Storey's single.
Yakima ............ 000 021 200—5 10 0
Vancouver ....... 200 000 000—2 7 0
Del Sarto and Albini; Hernandez and Duretto.
Salem at Victoria postponed, teams unable to reach Victoria in time.
Only games scheduled.
Rock Slide Costly To Tyees
VICTORIA [Colonist, Aug. 14]—One of the worst slides in the history of Snoqualmie Pass prevented the Victoria Tyees from arriving home in time for a scheduled double-header with the Salem Senators last night, cost the financially-embarrassed club an estimated $1,500, and came uncomfortabaly close to causing an accident.
En route by bus to Seattle from Yakima, where they had concluded a series Wednesday night, the Tyees missed the slide, which took two lives and caused plenty of damage, by a matter of minutes. It was at Snoqualmie Pass in 1946 that the Spokane club bus went over the side, killing players and cutting short the baseball careers of others.
The Tyees were forced to detour to Wenatchee and finally reached Seattle late yesterday by way of Blewett and Stevens Passses. They arrived in town last last night.
Infielder Bought
CALGARY, Alta. — Calgary of the Western International League had purchased First Baseman Jim Wert from Vancouver, also of the WIL.
Broncs Sign New Pitcher
LEWISTON, Aug. 14—Pitcher Larry Powell, who was with Lewiston of the Western International League in 1952, has signed with the Broncs for the remainder of the season.
Bleak Outlook for Wenatchee Chiefs; $4,400 in Red
WENATCHEE, Wash., Aug. 14 - Wenatchee's Western International League baseball club has dropped $4,400 in operations through June 30, President Paul F. Thomas said Wednesday.
Thomas said reports for July will show further losses, as attendance at home games declined during the month. Expenses for the team are $710 a game on the road and $740 at home, he said, and many times these figures have not been reached.
Wednesday, August 12, 1953
W L Pct. GB
Spokane ..... 31 17 .646 —
Salem ....... 26 20 .565 4
Vancouver ... 27 22 .551 4½
Yakima ...... 24 21 .533 5½
Edmonton .... 23 21 .523 6
Lewiston .... 21 22 .488 7½
Victoria .... 21 26 .447 9½
Tri-City .... 20 26 .435 10
Calgary ..... 18 25 .419 10½
Wenatchee ... 18 27 .400 11½
LEWISTON, Aug. 13—Calgary subdued Lewiston with a three-run rally in the ninth as the Stampeders came from behind to defeat the Broncs, 5-4, in a Western International League thriller on Wednesday night.
Calgary ........ 101 000 003—5 9 0
Lewiston ...... 000 010 300—4 11 0
Orrell, Stites (9) and Bricker; Butler and Garay.
WENATCHEE, Aug. 13—Centrefielder Andy Skurski sparked Edmonton to an 11-5 triumph over Wenatchee on Wednesday night.
Skurski drove in four runs on two hits in three times at bat in the opener and scored both Edmonton runs in the second game.
First Game
Edmonton ....... 000 055 1—11 11 1
Wenatchee ..... 220 100 0— 5 6 3
Tisnerat, Utley (5) and Morgan; DeCarolis, Beamon (5), Monroe (6) and Bartolomei.
Second Game
Edmonton ...... 000 001 010 —2 7 0
Wenatchee .... 000 000 000—0 8 0
Widner, Conant (8) and Prentice; Morgan, Bowman (3) and Bartolomei.
VANCOUVER, Aug. 13—Vancouver fashioned back-to-back wins over Salem Wednesday and all but knocked the wandering Senators into second place in the Western International baseball league.
Carl Gunnarson limited Salem in the opener in Vancouver. The Senators scored only one run on a seventh inning double by Les Witherspoon, an error by Jim Clark and a single by Don Masterson.
The Caps led the second game in the first inning, scoring twice on three hits and a walk.
Bob Roberts picked up his eighth victory in the second encounter, aided by Clark's two-run double that got the Caps away to a 2-0 lead in the first frame.
The Senators managed only one run in each of their four games.
- - -
VANCOUVER [Keith Matthews, News-Herald, Aug. 13]—So many times in past years one man has joined the Capilanos late in the year and sparked a resurgence which brought about a championship—or at least a thrilling year.
This is the case again in 1953, the Caps now being at full gallop following a clean sweep of the Salem series. Wednesday they won both games 3-1 and 6-1 before the year’s largest crowd, 3300.
The one man right now is Jimmy Clark, a little bit of a shortstop who does large chunks of everything in that big hole. Wednesday he made some unbelievable plays, as did each of the Capilanos, and extended his strange record of batting in the Caps’ first run each game to four in a row.
JOB EASY
The winning pitchers this time were Carl Gunnarson with his No. 5 and Bobby Roberts with his No. 8. Both of them received the kind of support, offensively and defensively, which made the job easy.
The good plays were too many to identify one by one. However, Clark robbed Bob Nelson blind in the fourth inning of the second game by going way behind second base for Nelson’s trickler and flipping to first in the same motion for the out. Jack Bukowatz rivalled his keystone companion in the second inning of the same game. He dived on his “tummy” for a one-bounce liner from Chuck Essegian’s bat, got up and flipped to Clark for a force at second.
The crowd, off their hands and enjoying this stuff immensely for the first time this year, ate it up.
NOT SLUMP
Hugh Luby, the Salem manager, did everything in his power to snap the Salems out of their slump and give the Caps the what-for. He had a clubhouse meeting both before and after the twin set. However, he found that this was not a Salem at all—merely a Capilano resurgence.
DIAMOND DUST – Doug Hepburn flexed his muscles in between games and the crowd liked the show so much that they chipped in $725.26 toward the fund to send Doug to Stockholm for the world’s weight-lifting championship . . . The donations put the fund over the top . . . Tonight Pete Hernandez (14-6) tries to extend Vancouver’s win streak to six when he pitches against Yakima . . . Tonight is Ladies’ Night, incidentally, all the gals getting in on the house.
First Game
Salem ............ 000 000 1—1 6 2
Vancouver ..... 210 000 x—3 8 1
Hemphill and Masterson; Gunnarson and Duretto.
Second Game
Salem ........... 010 000 000—1 7 3
Vancouver .... 210 210 00x—6 10 0
Dahle and Nelson; Roberts and Duretto.
YAKIMA, Wash. [Colonist, Aug. 13]—Herman Lewis ruined Bob Drilling’s bid for his 10th straight victory by cracking a two-run single with the bases loaded and two out in the ninth inning to give Yakima Bears a 6-5 victory over the Victoria Tyees at Yakima Wednesday night.
It was a close struggle all the way with the Tyees twice coming from behind to start the final inning with a 5-4 advantage.
Pitcher Danny Rios opened the Yakima ninth with a single through the middle then moved to second as Jim McNamara beat out a bunt for a single. Drilling forced Rios at third on Phil Steinberg’s attempted sacrifice and Al White grounded out as the runners moved up.
Manager Cec Garriott ordered Bob Wellman, a .350 hitter who had doubled in the fourth and tripled in the fifth, intentionally passes to bring up Lewis, a southpaw swinger with a .283 batting mark. Drilling worked the count to two balls and two strikes before Lewis bounced a single into right field to break up the game.
The result left Drilling with a record of 12 wins and 13 losses for the season and gave Rios, who went all the way for the Bears, his 16th victory.
Victoria ....... 000 023 000—5 9 0
Yakima ........ 001 120 002—6 12 0
Drilling and Harford; Rios and Novick.
SPOKANE, Aug. 13—Spokane used three pitchers to quell a seventh-inning rally as the Indians held off the Braves 6-5 in the first game of a twin-bill Wednesday night.
John Cordell put out the last-inning fire after one run scored.
The Braves out-hit the Indians 16-13 in the afterpiece, but fell short in the run department, losing 12-8.
First Game
Tri-City ...... 200 020 1—5 7 0
Spokane ..... 003 120 x—6 8 1
Bloom and Warren; Nemes, New (7), Cordell (7) and Ogle.
Second Game
Tri-City ..... 200 002 121— 8 16 4
Spokane .... 225 020 107—12 13 3
Michelson, Dobernic (3), Hockaday (5) and Warren, Pesut (6); Romero and Sheets.
Spokane ..... 31 17 .646 —
Salem ....... 26 20 .565 4
Vancouver ... 27 22 .551 4½
Yakima ...... 24 21 .533 5½
Edmonton .... 23 21 .523 6
Lewiston .... 21 22 .488 7½
Victoria .... 21 26 .447 9½
Tri-City .... 20 26 .435 10
Calgary ..... 18 25 .419 10½
Wenatchee ... 18 27 .400 11½
LEWISTON, Aug. 13—Calgary subdued Lewiston with a three-run rally in the ninth as the Stampeders came from behind to defeat the Broncs, 5-4, in a Western International League thriller on Wednesday night.
Calgary ........ 101 000 003—5 9 0
Lewiston ...... 000 010 300—4 11 0
Orrell, Stites (9) and Bricker; Butler and Garay.
WENATCHEE, Aug. 13—Centrefielder Andy Skurski sparked Edmonton to an 11-5 triumph over Wenatchee on Wednesday night.
Skurski drove in four runs on two hits in three times at bat in the opener and scored both Edmonton runs in the second game.
First Game
Edmonton ....... 000 055 1—11 11 1
Wenatchee ..... 220 100 0— 5 6 3
Tisnerat, Utley (5) and Morgan; DeCarolis, Beamon (5), Monroe (6) and Bartolomei.
Second Game
Edmonton ...... 000 001 010 —2 7 0
Wenatchee .... 000 000 000—0 8 0
Widner, Conant (8) and Prentice; Morgan, Bowman (3) and Bartolomei.
VANCOUVER, Aug. 13—Vancouver fashioned back-to-back wins over Salem Wednesday and all but knocked the wandering Senators into second place in the Western International baseball league.
Carl Gunnarson limited Salem in the opener in Vancouver. The Senators scored only one run on a seventh inning double by Les Witherspoon, an error by Jim Clark and a single by Don Masterson.
The Caps led the second game in the first inning, scoring twice on three hits and a walk.
Bob Roberts picked up his eighth victory in the second encounter, aided by Clark's two-run double that got the Caps away to a 2-0 lead in the first frame.
The Senators managed only one run in each of their four games.
- - -
VANCOUVER [Keith Matthews, News-Herald, Aug. 13]—So many times in past years one man has joined the Capilanos late in the year and sparked a resurgence which brought about a championship—or at least a thrilling year.
This is the case again in 1953, the Caps now being at full gallop following a clean sweep of the Salem series. Wednesday they won both games 3-1 and 6-1 before the year’s largest crowd, 3300.
The one man right now is Jimmy Clark, a little bit of a shortstop who does large chunks of everything in that big hole. Wednesday he made some unbelievable plays, as did each of the Capilanos, and extended his strange record of batting in the Caps’ first run each game to four in a row.
JOB EASY
The winning pitchers this time were Carl Gunnarson with his No. 5 and Bobby Roberts with his No. 8. Both of them received the kind of support, offensively and defensively, which made the job easy.
The good plays were too many to identify one by one. However, Clark robbed Bob Nelson blind in the fourth inning of the second game by going way behind second base for Nelson’s trickler and flipping to first in the same motion for the out. Jack Bukowatz rivalled his keystone companion in the second inning of the same game. He dived on his “tummy” for a one-bounce liner from Chuck Essegian’s bat, got up and flipped to Clark for a force at second.
The crowd, off their hands and enjoying this stuff immensely for the first time this year, ate it up.
NOT SLUMP
Hugh Luby, the Salem manager, did everything in his power to snap the Salems out of their slump and give the Caps the what-for. He had a clubhouse meeting both before and after the twin set. However, he found that this was not a Salem at all—merely a Capilano resurgence.
DIAMOND DUST – Doug Hepburn flexed his muscles in between games and the crowd liked the show so much that they chipped in $725.26 toward the fund to send Doug to Stockholm for the world’s weight-lifting championship . . . The donations put the fund over the top . . . Tonight Pete Hernandez (14-6) tries to extend Vancouver’s win streak to six when he pitches against Yakima . . . Tonight is Ladies’ Night, incidentally, all the gals getting in on the house.
First Game
Salem ............ 000 000 1—1 6 2
Vancouver ..... 210 000 x—3 8 1
Hemphill and Masterson; Gunnarson and Duretto.
Second Game
Salem ........... 010 000 000—1 7 3
Vancouver .... 210 210 00x—6 10 0
Dahle and Nelson; Roberts and Duretto.
YAKIMA, Wash. [Colonist, Aug. 13]—Herman Lewis ruined Bob Drilling’s bid for his 10th straight victory by cracking a two-run single with the bases loaded and two out in the ninth inning to give Yakima Bears a 6-5 victory over the Victoria Tyees at Yakima Wednesday night.
It was a close struggle all the way with the Tyees twice coming from behind to start the final inning with a 5-4 advantage.
Pitcher Danny Rios opened the Yakima ninth with a single through the middle then moved to second as Jim McNamara beat out a bunt for a single. Drilling forced Rios at third on Phil Steinberg’s attempted sacrifice and Al White grounded out as the runners moved up.
Manager Cec Garriott ordered Bob Wellman, a .350 hitter who had doubled in the fourth and tripled in the fifth, intentionally passes to bring up Lewis, a southpaw swinger with a .283 batting mark. Drilling worked the count to two balls and two strikes before Lewis bounced a single into right field to break up the game.
The result left Drilling with a record of 12 wins and 13 losses for the season and gave Rios, who went all the way for the Bears, his 16th victory.
Victoria ....... 000 023 000—5 9 0
Yakima ........ 001 120 002—6 12 0
Drilling and Harford; Rios and Novick.
SPOKANE, Aug. 13—Spokane used three pitchers to quell a seventh-inning rally as the Indians held off the Braves 6-5 in the first game of a twin-bill Wednesday night.
John Cordell put out the last-inning fire after one run scored.
The Braves out-hit the Indians 16-13 in the afterpiece, but fell short in the run department, losing 12-8.
First Game
Tri-City ...... 200 020 1—5 7 0
Spokane ..... 003 120 x—6 8 1
Bloom and Warren; Nemes, New (7), Cordell (7) and Ogle.
Second Game
Tri-City ..... 200 002 121— 8 16 4
Spokane .... 225 020 107—12 13 3
Michelson, Dobernic (3), Hockaday (5) and Warren, Pesut (6); Romero and Sheets.
Tuesday, August 11, 1953
W L Pct. GB
Spokane ..... 29 17 .631 —
Salem ....... 26 18 .591 2
Vancouver ... 25 22 .532 4½
Yakima ...... 23 21 .523 5
Edmonton .... 21 21 .500 6
Lewiston .... 21 21 .500 6
Victoria .... 21 25 .457 8
Tri-City .... 20 24 .455 8
Wenatchee ... 18 25 .419 9½
Calgary ..... 17 25 .405 10
VANCOUVER [by CLANCY LORANGER, Province, Apr. 12]—When Clarence Marshall joined the Capilanos last week, he said he was down there for one thing: To get to pitch regularly and prove that at 28 he still had a future in baseball.
The big righthander, a former member of the New York Yankees and St. Louis Browns, obviously isn’t through. He proved that Tuesday night at Capilano Stadium in the most convincing language a pitcher knows—he threw a no-hitter at the Salem Senators.
It wasn’t a no-hit, no-run game because Clarence was wild, and in the eighth inning, with one out, he walked three men in a row to fill the bases. Then another Marshall, another former major leaguer, a big outfielder named Max who once played for Cincinnati, poled a long fly to centre field to score the man from third [Hugh Luby] and spoil his namesake’s shutout.
But it was the first no-hit game in the new ball park, and the first pitched by a Vancouver hurler since 1951, when George Nicholas came up with a no-hit effort at Spokane.
And it was a well-deserved effort. Not until the ninth did the Senators give Clarence, and the fans, a scare. Jim Deyo started that frame with a hard-hit ball down third that Harvey Storey blocked with his body, glove and legs for the first out.
TOUGH MOMENT FOR A SCORER
Then Les Witherspoon fired another live shot down third, but it went foul, and Witherspoon finally grounded out for No. 2.
Huge Gerry Ballard came to bat, then, and he slammed one between left-fielder Gale Taylor and K Chorlton in centre. The two desperately set sail after the ball, Taylor got there first, and called for the ball. He got his glove on it, but when Chorlton passed in front of him, he dropped it. It was scored an error.
“I had it in my glove,” Taylor said later. “It just bounced out.”
Marshall then went to work on Salem’s Bob Nelson, and the catcher grounded to Gene Petralli at first base for the third out and Clarence’s ticket to the Hall of Fame.
The 205-pound Marshall, “little” brother of Lewiston’s colorful John, was a tired boy at the finish. And with reason—it was only his second start of the year for the Caps, and the first time that he has pitched nine innings since 1948. He was with Newark then, went 12 innings, and lost, 2-1. Clarence was soundly racked in his first start Friday in Victoria.
Marshall, who’s always had a good fast ball, displayed a sharp-breaking curve as he struck out four and allowed just two men to get as far as third. Control was his only trouble—he walked nine.
The Cap management was naturally elated with Marshall’s performance, not to mention the general improvement the club has shown against Salem.
Double-Bill On Menu Tonight
“If we’d had this club all year we’d have romped through that first half,” said happy manager Harvey Storey. “And Clarence looked great, didn’t he?”
He did indeed, and so did the ball club, as they produced 15 base hits including a home run by Chorlton, and gave Marshall near-perfect support.
The win was the second straight against the second-place Senators, who will toss Dave Dahle and Jack Hemphill against the Caps tonight in an attempt to recoup. Storey will counter with Van Fletcher and Bob Roberts.
There’ll be added attractions, too. They include Miss Canada—Kelowna’s Kathy Archibald—the former Mr. America, Roy Hilligan, and local weight-lifter Doug Hepburn. The last-named will not, rumors to the contrary, attempt to lift Dewey Soriano and Dick Barrett.
PROVINCE STARS — Clarence Marshall, who demonstrated why he was in the major leagues … Little Jack Bukowatz, who batted in three runs with three hits, and handled 11 chances successfully at second … And Harvey Storey, who confessed he had trouble following the left-handed pitches of Bob Collins—so only got three hits.
- - -
VANCOUVER [By EATON HOWITT, Sun, Aug. 12]—Joltin’ Joe. Rapid Robert. Larrupin’ Lou. Real he-men names in baseball. Now add to these yet another … Clarence Cuddles.
Doesn’t sound very impressive, does it? Not a name to exactly make your blood tingle or your eyes light up.
But remember, what’s in a name? You can’t tell a book by its cover.
The name of Clarence (Cuddles) Marshall will be engraved for all time in the records of baseball. He’ll have a place of honor, especially in the WIL. Or more especially in the history of the Capilano Baseball Club.
For, Tuesday night, a big right hander whop really is called Clarence Cuddles realized a hurler’s dream, or a batter’s nightmare.
He tossed a no-hitter.
It was the first time since George Nicholas did it against Spokane in 1950 that a Cap had managed the trick. Only four WIL pitchers have ever done it.
This time Salem Senators were the victims.
His Biggest Thrill
Guys who have pitched for New York Yankees, or St. Louis Browns, like Cuddles can become pretty darn blasé about things.
Not Clarence. He admitted after the game that last night’s effort was his biggest thrill. And remember he was a member of the world champion Yankees in 1949.
He’s done it before too. Last time was a long way from green, green Capilano. It was in Austria, when he was pitching ‘em for Uncle Sam. He did it twice when he was in high school.
But this was his first in “real” baseball.
Even pitching coach Kewpie (another real he-man handle) Barrett only turned the trick once in 28 years of organized ball. Marshall has been living just as long as Kewpie has been playing ball.
“Yes sir, it’s a great feeling,” grinned the big fellow as he poked his head from a steaming shower. “I honestly think that’s all I needed. From here on in I should be OK:” (Ed’s note … we’ll forget those nine walks last night, Cuddles old boy.)
he could have been referring to the fact that in his first start with Vancouver last week he hit two batters and walked four in two innings over in Victoria. All is forgiven.
Clark Sparkled, Too
But, oh yes, the game. There were some other fellows out there too.
Jim Clark continues to be worth his weight in diamonds (sparking not baseball) to Harvey Storey. Lots of people are muttering that perhaps when Dewey Soriano bought Jim from Victoria he came wrapped in the WIL pennant. He singled in Jack Bukowatz in the first inning last night and was also really sharp at short.
Poor K. Chorlton. If it hadn’t of [sic] been for Cuddles he would have been right at the top of this epic. For in the sixth frame he lifted one over the left fence, a good 340 feet away with Gene Petralli perched aboard.
All in all, it was a good night for the Caps. They’ve won three in a row now, and are flying.
Salem committed five (count ‘em) errors, some of them mighty glaring. Senators’ only run came in the eighth when another Marshall, Max, filed out to centre after Clarence had walked three.
The series continues tonight with a doubleheader starting at 7 o’clock.
- - -
VANCOUVER [By KEITH MATTHEWS, News Herald, Aug. 11]—Until Tuesday, Clarence Marshall’s most prized possession was a solid-gold, diamond-studded 1949 World Series ring which he received for his part in just another Bomber conquest.
Tuesday, the ring became No. 2 on Cuddles’ list. Now he will look back to the day when he pitched his first no-hitter in organised baseball, a 12-1 defeat of Salem in which he served the dream of every pitched in the game today.
It was quite a feat for the 28-year-old. Just out of the Army this year, this was only his second start in his past three years. It was his first complete job since 1948 when he went a full nine innings for Newark. And naturally enough, when Tuesday’s job became the toughest (the ninth inning) Marshall was dog-tired.
What gone before was a brilliant, though slightly erratic, job of pitching. Clarence knew he had the no-hitter on his hip, though he lost the other half of the double-no job in the eighth when he walked three straight and allowed a scoring outfield fly.
BIG THREE
But the no-hitter was on his mind all the way through. And when he persuaded his 205 pounds to follow him out for the final three outs, they looked as big as a house.
In was quite an inning. The first batter, Jim Deyo, hit a terrific one-hop smash right at Harvey Storey. The manager jumped on the ball like it was a lost gold piece and got his man well in time.
Then Les Witherspoon stepped in. He looked at one pitch then smashed a line drive down the left field line. It curved foul by inches, but foul nonetheless. Then the Salem outfielder grounded out.
WIPED EYES
Marshall was one out away from his lifetime dream—the greatest reward for all pitchers. The perspiration dripped down from his face in a constant flow. Twice he stepped off the rubber and wiped his eyes clear.
He threw a darting fast ball at Jerry Ballard and the husky first baseman lined it into the left centre field hole. Over 1200 fans gasped for air. Then at the last second Gale Taylor game over with the speed of light, stuck out his glove—and the ball popped out of it onto the ground!
Correctly, the scorer ruled an error.
Now it was Bob Nelson, and Bob didn’t stop the tension from mounting. He bounced out weakly to first base and it was over!
SHOULDERS STOOPED
The entire Capilano club came off the bench and swarmed over Marshall. And Clarence, his shoulders stooped from the weight of the achievement, accepted the congratulations with the bashfulness of a two-year-old.
Salem ............ 000 000 010— 1 0 5
Vancouver ...... 100 203 51x—12 15 1
Collins, Peterson (7), Ballard (7) and Nelson; Marshall and Duretto.
SPOKANE — Spokane kept to its winning ways and the Western International League lead Tuesday night with a 4-3 victory over Tri-City on the seven hit pitching of Bill Franks.
Spokane collected runs in the third and fifth innings and then had its lead erased when Tri-City scored three in the seventh on three singles and two errors.
Indians tied up the score in their half of the seventh and gained the winning margin in the eighth on a single by Eddie Murphy.
Tri-City .......... 000 000 300—3 7 1
Spokane ......... 001 010 11x—4 10 2
Robertson and Pesut, Warren (8); Franks and Sheets.
LEWISTON — Four timely home runs told the tale Tuesday night as Lewiston came from behind in the ninth inning to take a 10-9 Western International League victory from Calgary.
Calgary .......... 302 200 002— 9 13 3
Lewiston ........ 002 000 224—10 13 2
Levinson, Francis (9) and Bricker; Brenner, Marshall (4) and Cameron.
YAKIMA — Victoria beat out a 13-hit tattoo off two Yakima pitchers Tuesday night to win a Western International League baseball game, 8-3.
Tyees were scoreless until the fifth inning when three runs were scored. Jim Harford and Bob Moniz singled. Pitcher Don Carter then walked Cece Garriott and Don Pries for the first run and Granny Gladstone singled in two more.
The Bears came back with a pair in the sixth when a decision on Gladstone's throwing error resulted in a protest from Yakima manager Walt Novick.
The Tyees clinched it with another counter in the eighth when Duane Helbig doubled and came home on Harford's single.
Ben Jeffey’s three-run homer in the top of the ninth—his first four-base clout since rejoining the Tyees this season—highlighted a four-run outburst that made it reasonably safe.
Yakima picked up one run in their half of the inning but Bottler ended the rally and preserved his eighth win by taking the league’s top hitter, Bob Wellman, for the final out.
Former Vancouver shortstop Chuck Davis, who missed Monday’s encounter through cross-border difficulties, had a line-drive single in five trips and handled five chances flawlessly in his debut as a Tyee.
Victoria ..... 000 030 014—8 13 2
Yakima ...... 000 002 001—3 7 2
Bottler and Harford; Carter, Rial (9) and Albini.
WENATCHEE — Catcher Harry Bartolomei singled home the winning run in the tenth inning to give the Wenatchee Chiefs a 3-2 victory in the second game of a Western International League baseball twinbill here on Tuesday. Edmonton won the opener, 5-1.
First Game
Edmonton ......... 001 200 2—5 8 1
Wenatchee ....... 000 100 0—1 7 1
McNulty and Prentice; Monroe and Bartolomei.
Second Game
Edmonton ........ 000 000 011 0—2 5 3
Wenatchee ...... 000 020 000 1—3 13 2
Conant and Morgan; Oubre and Bartolomei.
today’s fanfare
Some Views on Speedsters By Kewpie The Comet
By Eric Whitehead
[Vancouver Province, August 12, 1953]
Spokane ..... 29 17 .631 —
Salem ....... 26 18 .591 2
Vancouver ... 25 22 .532 4½
Yakima ...... 23 21 .523 5
Edmonton .... 21 21 .500 6
Lewiston .... 21 21 .500 6
Victoria .... 21 25 .457 8
Tri-City .... 20 24 .455 8
Wenatchee ... 18 25 .419 9½
Calgary ..... 17 25 .405 10
VANCOUVER [by CLANCY LORANGER, Province, Apr. 12]—When Clarence Marshall joined the Capilanos last week, he said he was down there for one thing: To get to pitch regularly and prove that at 28 he still had a future in baseball.
The big righthander, a former member of the New York Yankees and St. Louis Browns, obviously isn’t through. He proved that Tuesday night at Capilano Stadium in the most convincing language a pitcher knows—he threw a no-hitter at the Salem Senators.
It wasn’t a no-hit, no-run game because Clarence was wild, and in the eighth inning, with one out, he walked three men in a row to fill the bases. Then another Marshall, another former major leaguer, a big outfielder named Max who once played for Cincinnati, poled a long fly to centre field to score the man from third [Hugh Luby] and spoil his namesake’s shutout.
But it was the first no-hit game in the new ball park, and the first pitched by a Vancouver hurler since 1951, when George Nicholas came up with a no-hit effort at Spokane.
And it was a well-deserved effort. Not until the ninth did the Senators give Clarence, and the fans, a scare. Jim Deyo started that frame with a hard-hit ball down third that Harvey Storey blocked with his body, glove and legs for the first out.
TOUGH MOMENT FOR A SCORER
Then Les Witherspoon fired another live shot down third, but it went foul, and Witherspoon finally grounded out for No. 2.
Huge Gerry Ballard came to bat, then, and he slammed one between left-fielder Gale Taylor and K Chorlton in centre. The two desperately set sail after the ball, Taylor got there first, and called for the ball. He got his glove on it, but when Chorlton passed in front of him, he dropped it. It was scored an error.
“I had it in my glove,” Taylor said later. “It just bounced out.”
Marshall then went to work on Salem’s Bob Nelson, and the catcher grounded to Gene Petralli at first base for the third out and Clarence’s ticket to the Hall of Fame.
The 205-pound Marshall, “little” brother of Lewiston’s colorful John, was a tired boy at the finish. And with reason—it was only his second start of the year for the Caps, and the first time that he has pitched nine innings since 1948. He was with Newark then, went 12 innings, and lost, 2-1. Clarence was soundly racked in his first start Friday in Victoria.
Marshall, who’s always had a good fast ball, displayed a sharp-breaking curve as he struck out four and allowed just two men to get as far as third. Control was his only trouble—he walked nine.
The Cap management was naturally elated with Marshall’s performance, not to mention the general improvement the club has shown against Salem.
Double-Bill On Menu Tonight
“If we’d had this club all year we’d have romped through that first half,” said happy manager Harvey Storey. “And Clarence looked great, didn’t he?”
He did indeed, and so did the ball club, as they produced 15 base hits including a home run by Chorlton, and gave Marshall near-perfect support.
The win was the second straight against the second-place Senators, who will toss Dave Dahle and Jack Hemphill against the Caps tonight in an attempt to recoup. Storey will counter with Van Fletcher and Bob Roberts.
There’ll be added attractions, too. They include Miss Canada—Kelowna’s Kathy Archibald—the former Mr. America, Roy Hilligan, and local weight-lifter Doug Hepburn. The last-named will not, rumors to the contrary, attempt to lift Dewey Soriano and Dick Barrett.
PROVINCE STARS — Clarence Marshall, who demonstrated why he was in the major leagues … Little Jack Bukowatz, who batted in three runs with three hits, and handled 11 chances successfully at second … And Harvey Storey, who confessed he had trouble following the left-handed pitches of Bob Collins—so only got three hits.
- - -
VANCOUVER [By EATON HOWITT, Sun, Aug. 12]—Joltin’ Joe. Rapid Robert. Larrupin’ Lou. Real he-men names in baseball. Now add to these yet another … Clarence Cuddles.
Doesn’t sound very impressive, does it? Not a name to exactly make your blood tingle or your eyes light up.
But remember, what’s in a name? You can’t tell a book by its cover.
The name of Clarence (Cuddles) Marshall will be engraved for all time in the records of baseball. He’ll have a place of honor, especially in the WIL. Or more especially in the history of the Capilano Baseball Club.
For, Tuesday night, a big right hander whop really is called Clarence Cuddles realized a hurler’s dream, or a batter’s nightmare.
He tossed a no-hitter.
It was the first time since George Nicholas did it against Spokane in 1950 that a Cap had managed the trick. Only four WIL pitchers have ever done it.
This time Salem Senators were the victims.
His Biggest Thrill
Guys who have pitched for New York Yankees, or St. Louis Browns, like Cuddles can become pretty darn blasé about things.
Not Clarence. He admitted after the game that last night’s effort was his biggest thrill. And remember he was a member of the world champion Yankees in 1949.
He’s done it before too. Last time was a long way from green, green Capilano. It was in Austria, when he was pitching ‘em for Uncle Sam. He did it twice when he was in high school.
But this was his first in “real” baseball.
Even pitching coach Kewpie (another real he-man handle) Barrett only turned the trick once in 28 years of organized ball. Marshall has been living just as long as Kewpie has been playing ball.
“Yes sir, it’s a great feeling,” grinned the big fellow as he poked his head from a steaming shower. “I honestly think that’s all I needed. From here on in I should be OK:” (Ed’s note … we’ll forget those nine walks last night, Cuddles old boy.)
he could have been referring to the fact that in his first start with Vancouver last week he hit two batters and walked four in two innings over in Victoria. All is forgiven.
Clark Sparkled, Too
But, oh yes, the game. There were some other fellows out there too.
Jim Clark continues to be worth his weight in diamonds (sparking not baseball) to Harvey Storey. Lots of people are muttering that perhaps when Dewey Soriano bought Jim from Victoria he came wrapped in the WIL pennant. He singled in Jack Bukowatz in the first inning last night and was also really sharp at short.
Poor K. Chorlton. If it hadn’t of [sic] been for Cuddles he would have been right at the top of this epic. For in the sixth frame he lifted one over the left fence, a good 340 feet away with Gene Petralli perched aboard.
All in all, it was a good night for the Caps. They’ve won three in a row now, and are flying.
Salem committed five (count ‘em) errors, some of them mighty glaring. Senators’ only run came in the eighth when another Marshall, Max, filed out to centre after Clarence had walked three.
The series continues tonight with a doubleheader starting at 7 o’clock.
- - -
VANCOUVER [By KEITH MATTHEWS, News Herald, Aug. 11]—Until Tuesday, Clarence Marshall’s most prized possession was a solid-gold, diamond-studded 1949 World Series ring which he received for his part in just another Bomber conquest.
Tuesday, the ring became No. 2 on Cuddles’ list. Now he will look back to the day when he pitched his first no-hitter in organised baseball, a 12-1 defeat of Salem in which he served the dream of every pitched in the game today.
It was quite a feat for the 28-year-old. Just out of the Army this year, this was only his second start in his past three years. It was his first complete job since 1948 when he went a full nine innings for Newark. And naturally enough, when Tuesday’s job became the toughest (the ninth inning) Marshall was dog-tired.
What gone before was a brilliant, though slightly erratic, job of pitching. Clarence knew he had the no-hitter on his hip, though he lost the other half of the double-no job in the eighth when he walked three straight and allowed a scoring outfield fly.
BIG THREE
But the no-hitter was on his mind all the way through. And when he persuaded his 205 pounds to follow him out for the final three outs, they looked as big as a house.
In was quite an inning. The first batter, Jim Deyo, hit a terrific one-hop smash right at Harvey Storey. The manager jumped on the ball like it was a lost gold piece and got his man well in time.
Then Les Witherspoon stepped in. He looked at one pitch then smashed a line drive down the left field line. It curved foul by inches, but foul nonetheless. Then the Salem outfielder grounded out.
WIPED EYES
Marshall was one out away from his lifetime dream—the greatest reward for all pitchers. The perspiration dripped down from his face in a constant flow. Twice he stepped off the rubber and wiped his eyes clear.
He threw a darting fast ball at Jerry Ballard and the husky first baseman lined it into the left centre field hole. Over 1200 fans gasped for air. Then at the last second Gale Taylor game over with the speed of light, stuck out his glove—and the ball popped out of it onto the ground!
Correctly, the scorer ruled an error.
Now it was Bob Nelson, and Bob didn’t stop the tension from mounting. He bounced out weakly to first base and it was over!
SHOULDERS STOOPED
The entire Capilano club came off the bench and swarmed over Marshall. And Clarence, his shoulders stooped from the weight of the achievement, accepted the congratulations with the bashfulness of a two-year-old.
Salem ............ 000 000 010— 1 0 5
Vancouver ...... 100 203 51x—12 15 1
Collins, Peterson (7), Ballard (7) and Nelson; Marshall and Duretto.
SPOKANE — Spokane kept to its winning ways and the Western International League lead Tuesday night with a 4-3 victory over Tri-City on the seven hit pitching of Bill Franks.
Spokane collected runs in the third and fifth innings and then had its lead erased when Tri-City scored three in the seventh on three singles and two errors.
Indians tied up the score in their half of the seventh and gained the winning margin in the eighth on a single by Eddie Murphy.
Tri-City .......... 000 000 300—3 7 1
Spokane ......... 001 010 11x—4 10 2
Robertson and Pesut, Warren (8); Franks and Sheets.
LEWISTON — Four timely home runs told the tale Tuesday night as Lewiston came from behind in the ninth inning to take a 10-9 Western International League victory from Calgary.
Calgary .......... 302 200 002— 9 13 3
Lewiston ........ 002 000 224—10 13 2
Levinson, Francis (9) and Bricker; Brenner, Marshall (4) and Cameron.
YAKIMA — Victoria beat out a 13-hit tattoo off two Yakima pitchers Tuesday night to win a Western International League baseball game, 8-3.
Tyees were scoreless until the fifth inning when three runs were scored. Jim Harford and Bob Moniz singled. Pitcher Don Carter then walked Cece Garriott and Don Pries for the first run and Granny Gladstone singled in two more.
The Bears came back with a pair in the sixth when a decision on Gladstone's throwing error resulted in a protest from Yakima manager Walt Novick.
The Tyees clinched it with another counter in the eighth when Duane Helbig doubled and came home on Harford's single.
Ben Jeffey’s three-run homer in the top of the ninth—his first four-base clout since rejoining the Tyees this season—highlighted a four-run outburst that made it reasonably safe.
Yakima picked up one run in their half of the inning but Bottler ended the rally and preserved his eighth win by taking the league’s top hitter, Bob Wellman, for the final out.
Former Vancouver shortstop Chuck Davis, who missed Monday’s encounter through cross-border difficulties, had a line-drive single in five trips and handled five chances flawlessly in his debut as a Tyee.
Victoria ..... 000 030 014—8 13 2
Yakima ...... 000 002 001—3 7 2
Bottler and Harford; Carter, Rial (9) and Albini.
WENATCHEE — Catcher Harry Bartolomei singled home the winning run in the tenth inning to give the Wenatchee Chiefs a 3-2 victory in the second game of a Western International League baseball twinbill here on Tuesday. Edmonton won the opener, 5-1.
First Game
Edmonton ......... 001 200 2—5 8 1
Wenatchee ....... 000 100 0—1 7 1
McNulty and Prentice; Monroe and Bartolomei.
Second Game
Edmonton ........ 000 000 011 0—2 5 3
Wenatchee ...... 000 020 000 1—3 13 2
Conant and Morgan; Oubre and Bartolomei.
But Listen!
Alf Cottrell
[Vancouver Province, August 12, 1953]
When I asked Art Jacobs what is so tough about umpiring, he said, “Wearing an inside chest protector behind the plate in Tri-City or Lewiston when it’s a hundred in the shade.”
Jacobs, a stocky fellow in his mid-forties, has only been in the umpiring business about five years. Prior to that he was a Paramount employee in Hollywood. Before that, he was a good left-handed pitcher in the top minor leagues.
“I had two good years with Portland in the Coast League,” he said. “In fact one year old Spence Abbott gave me credit for winning the pennant.”
He was the Joe Black of the Portland staff. While he had a 14-won record on his own, he saved many games for faltering team-mates with his relief pitching.
He was in the International and American Association for several years. He saw some good ones, notably Lou Boudreau and Phil Rizzuto. And he likes to talk about them.
Phil The Guide
Rizzuto, of course, went up with his second base mate, Jerry Priddy. Everybody said, “That Priddy will wow them in Yankee Stadium. But Rizzuto, guess he is just going along to see that Priddy finds the stadium all right.”
Priddy has been bounced around the majors from one club to another. The Yankees kept Rizzuto.
“Fast some folks say Rizzuto has kept the Yankees,” Jacobs said.
It was that way, too, he relates, when Ray Mack and Lou Boudreau went up. Mack was a cinch, but Boudreau, all he had was personality.
“Seems like they went for Lou’s take-charge ways up there,” said Jacobs. “While Mack, I just plumb lost track of where he got to.”
Jacobs decided to have a shot at umpiring when things got slack at Paramount, after the war. He started in the Class C Sunset loop. That league took in southern California, plus parts of Nevada and New Mexico.
Two years in the league and Clarence Rowland, Coast League president, took an option on him. That’s fairly fast promotion in this business.
And Two Suits
“While I’m waiting around for an assignment, though, Johnny Nenezich quit his WIL job. So Rowland asks how would I like to come up here. I said that was fine and, well here I still am, nearly three years later,” he said.
I asked him about reports the WIL arbiters were well paid.
He said they were. On the other hand there were expenses. An umpire has to buy clothes and equipment. He needs two pairs of shoes, one for behind the plate, one for the bases. Roughly they cost $18 each. The plate shoes have metal toe and instep guards.
The late suit has to be freer, to go outside the protector. Its pockets are bigger, to hold balls. On the bases the cap is long-billed. For plate work you have a short-billed cap. Indicators, white shirts, etc. all cost money.
Traveling, you drive your own car. His sidekick, Amby Moran, rides with him. The league pays 7 cents a mile for that.
All in all it wasn’t bad, he agreed. And as old Tim Hurst said for himself and for all the umpires who cam after him, “You can’t beat thim hours.”
Alf Cottrell
[Vancouver Province, August 12, 1953]
When I asked Art Jacobs what is so tough about umpiring, he said, “Wearing an inside chest protector behind the plate in Tri-City or Lewiston when it’s a hundred in the shade.”
Jacobs, a stocky fellow in his mid-forties, has only been in the umpiring business about five years. Prior to that he was a Paramount employee in Hollywood. Before that, he was a good left-handed pitcher in the top minor leagues.
“I had two good years with Portland in the Coast League,” he said. “In fact one year old Spence Abbott gave me credit for winning the pennant.”
He was the Joe Black of the Portland staff. While he had a 14-won record on his own, he saved many games for faltering team-mates with his relief pitching.
He was in the International and American Association for several years. He saw some good ones, notably Lou Boudreau and Phil Rizzuto. And he likes to talk about them.
Phil The Guide
Rizzuto, of course, went up with his second base mate, Jerry Priddy. Everybody said, “That Priddy will wow them in Yankee Stadium. But Rizzuto, guess he is just going along to see that Priddy finds the stadium all right.”
Priddy has been bounced around the majors from one club to another. The Yankees kept Rizzuto.
“Fast some folks say Rizzuto has kept the Yankees,” Jacobs said.
It was that way, too, he relates, when Ray Mack and Lou Boudreau went up. Mack was a cinch, but Boudreau, all he had was personality.
“Seems like they went for Lou’s take-charge ways up there,” said Jacobs. “While Mack, I just plumb lost track of where he got to.”
Jacobs decided to have a shot at umpiring when things got slack at Paramount, after the war. He started in the Class C Sunset loop. That league took in southern California, plus parts of Nevada and New Mexico.
Two years in the league and Clarence Rowland, Coast League president, took an option on him. That’s fairly fast promotion in this business.
And Two Suits
“While I’m waiting around for an assignment, though, Johnny Nenezich quit his WIL job. So Rowland asks how would I like to come up here. I said that was fine and, well here I still am, nearly three years later,” he said.
I asked him about reports the WIL arbiters were well paid.
He said they were. On the other hand there were expenses. An umpire has to buy clothes and equipment. He needs two pairs of shoes, one for behind the plate, one for the bases. Roughly they cost $18 each. The plate shoes have metal toe and instep guards.
The late suit has to be freer, to go outside the protector. Its pockets are bigger, to hold balls. On the bases the cap is long-billed. For plate work you have a short-billed cap. Indicators, white shirts, etc. all cost money.
Traveling, you drive your own car. His sidekick, Amby Moran, rides with him. The league pays 7 cents a mile for that.
All in all it wasn’t bad, he agreed. And as old Tim Hurst said for himself and for all the umpires who cam after him, “You can’t beat thim hours.”
today’s fanfare
Some Views on Speedsters By Kewpie The Comet
By Eric Whitehead
[Vancouver Province, August 12, 1953]
A group of fans out at the ballpark were overheard recently discussing the relative merits of Capilano centre-fielders past and present: Dick Sinovic and K Chorlton.
It wasn’t an argument, because, with a bow to recent memory, there is no basis for an argument. Sinovic, the husky, moody, hustling Cap centrefielder of three years back, is now one of the big men with the bludgeon in the AA Southern Association. As the outstanding star of the Atlanta Crackers, big Dick has just been nominated to the League’s All-Star team and is one of the soundest minor league ballhawks in the business. As many a local fan will fondly testify, he can hit, run, field and hustle with the best. Only a weak throwing arm keeps him out of the big show.
Chorlton hasn’t had a shot at Double A ball; he almost, but not quite, clicked with the Seattle Rainiers of the Coast League. But his Vancouver record can’t rate with Sinovic.
But one of the prettiest local sights on a summer’s evening is that of Chorlton scudding around the basepaths out at the ballpark.
Graceful as a young gazelle and almost as speedy, Chorlton would rate a quick boost up the ladder if he could only develop the elusive knack of getting on the basepaths more often.
It is sheer speed that has kept him knocking at the door of the Coast League this past several seasons.
One of K’s admirers is the club’s newest and largest pitcher-coach, Kewpie Barrett. Kewpie himself has at least one claim (self-made) to game as a speedster.
“I,” he proclaims loudly, “would place at least one-two in a race to first base with Dewey Soriano.”
But Kewpie admits Chorlton would be very hard to catch.
“On the coast,” says Mrs. Barrett’s pride and joy, “you have to rate Chorlton with the top speed merchants—maybe the fastest of them all. Two Coast League centrefielders, Seattle’s Jim Tobin and Portland’s Bob Marquis, can make K stretch out, but Chorlton will at least stay with them.
And A Vote For Jo-Jo
Who does Kewpie figure as the outstanding speed merchants during his span in baseball?
“Well,” drawled the big boy, “this Minnie Minoso who went to the Chicsox from San Diego really had a pair of winged heels. So has Jim Rivera who moved up to the majors from the Rainiers. So had a guy named Jo Jo White who used to play a little baseball out this way and in Detroit. Then there was that jet-propelled rabbit named Jigger Statz who used to cover the outfield and most of suburban Los Angeles for the Angels of that town.”
How about DiMaggio?
“A good question,” said Kewpie. “Any pitcher was saved a couple of hits a game with Joe patrolling centrefield behind him. Joe could cover so much ground that before he left ‘Frisco for New York, a coast manufacturer wanted to patent him as a tarpaulin.”
Twenty-Eight Down ?? To Go
What player in all of Kewpie’s experience, figures as the fastest, smartest base-runner of them all?
“Well,” he began, slipping a Confederate dime in the coke machine, “in all my 28 years in baseball I’ll take the old Pittsburgh Pirate himself. Easy.”
He stopped as we counted rapidly on our fingers. Then our toes.
“Yup,” he said, “that’s right. Twenty-eight years. You know, to my knowledge, there’s only one other living man who has played baseball actively for that length of time. That’s Cy Young. He used up his time winning 511 major league ball games. Turned out to be quite a hobby.”
Barrett himself has done more than collect stamps during his 28-year life-span (to be continued) as an active player, as his 366 wins in pro ball can testify, 234 of them in the Coast League.
“Yep,” he admitted under pressure, “ten of those years did all right all of one spell. Averaged 21 wins a year for ten years with Seattle.
“Figure with a good month here I might go back next spring and make it 11 years.”
“And have you noticed,” said Soriano, “how young Carl Gunnarson has been looking lately?”
“Look,” said Kewpie pleasantly, “please keep my older brother out of this.”
It wasn’t an argument, because, with a bow to recent memory, there is no basis for an argument. Sinovic, the husky, moody, hustling Cap centrefielder of three years back, is now one of the big men with the bludgeon in the AA Southern Association. As the outstanding star of the Atlanta Crackers, big Dick has just been nominated to the League’s All-Star team and is one of the soundest minor league ballhawks in the business. As many a local fan will fondly testify, he can hit, run, field and hustle with the best. Only a weak throwing arm keeps him out of the big show.
Chorlton hasn’t had a shot at Double A ball; he almost, but not quite, clicked with the Seattle Rainiers of the Coast League. But his Vancouver record can’t rate with Sinovic.
But one of the prettiest local sights on a summer’s evening is that of Chorlton scudding around the basepaths out at the ballpark.
Graceful as a young gazelle and almost as speedy, Chorlton would rate a quick boost up the ladder if he could only develop the elusive knack of getting on the basepaths more often.
It is sheer speed that has kept him knocking at the door of the Coast League this past several seasons.
One of K’s admirers is the club’s newest and largest pitcher-coach, Kewpie Barrett. Kewpie himself has at least one claim (self-made) to game as a speedster.
“I,” he proclaims loudly, “would place at least one-two in a race to first base with Dewey Soriano.”
But Kewpie admits Chorlton would be very hard to catch.
“On the coast,” says Mrs. Barrett’s pride and joy, “you have to rate Chorlton with the top speed merchants—maybe the fastest of them all. Two Coast League centrefielders, Seattle’s Jim Tobin and Portland’s Bob Marquis, can make K stretch out, but Chorlton will at least stay with them.
And A Vote For Jo-Jo
Who does Kewpie figure as the outstanding speed merchants during his span in baseball?
“Well,” drawled the big boy, “this Minnie Minoso who went to the Chicsox from San Diego really had a pair of winged heels. So has Jim Rivera who moved up to the majors from the Rainiers. So had a guy named Jo Jo White who used to play a little baseball out this way and in Detroit. Then there was that jet-propelled rabbit named Jigger Statz who used to cover the outfield and most of suburban Los Angeles for the Angels of that town.”
How about DiMaggio?
“A good question,” said Kewpie. “Any pitcher was saved a couple of hits a game with Joe patrolling centrefield behind him. Joe could cover so much ground that before he left ‘Frisco for New York, a coast manufacturer wanted to patent him as a tarpaulin.”
Twenty-Eight Down ?? To Go
What player in all of Kewpie’s experience, figures as the fastest, smartest base-runner of them all?
“Well,” he began, slipping a Confederate dime in the coke machine, “in all my 28 years in baseball I’ll take the old Pittsburgh Pirate himself. Easy.”
He stopped as we counted rapidly on our fingers. Then our toes.
“Yup,” he said, “that’s right. Twenty-eight years. You know, to my knowledge, there’s only one other living man who has played baseball actively for that length of time. That’s Cy Young. He used up his time winning 511 major league ball games. Turned out to be quite a hobby.”
Barrett himself has done more than collect stamps during his 28-year life-span (to be continued) as an active player, as his 366 wins in pro ball can testify, 234 of them in the Coast League.
“Yep,” he admitted under pressure, “ten of those years did all right all of one spell. Averaged 21 wins a year for ten years with Seattle.
“Figure with a good month here I might go back next spring and make it 11 years.”
“And have you noticed,” said Soriano, “how young Carl Gunnarson has been looking lately?”
“Look,” said Kewpie pleasantly, “please keep my older brother out of this.”
Saturday, 12 July 2008
Monday, August 10, 1953
W L Pct. GB
Spokane ..... 28 17 .622 —
Salem ....... 26 17 .605 1
Yakima ...... 23 20 .535 4
Vancouver ... 24 22 .522 4½
Edmonton .... 20 20 .500 5½
Lewiston .... 20 21 .488 6
Tri-City .... 20 23 .465 7
Victoria .... 20 25 .444 8
Calgary ..... 17 24 .415 9
Wenatchee ... 17 24 .415 9
LEWISTON, Idaho, Aug. 10—It was give-away Monday as Calgary Stampeders gave away nineteen hits, nineteen bases on balls, and lost a 25-4 ball game to Lewiston Broncs in their Western International League tilt.
The hapless Stampeders got but one home run among their four tallies. Rocky Tedesco laced one out in the eighth with none on.
Lewiston picked up two homers along the way. Al Heist homered in the second inning with none aboard, and Ken Richardson repeated the performance in the sixth with the bases loaded. Richardson also accounted for eight of the Lewiston runs.
Calgary .... 000 201 010— 4 6 3
Lewiston .. 521 037 52x—25 19 0
Hittner, Bonebrake (1), Shulte (4), Stites (7) and Lillard; Kine and Cameron.
YAKIMA, Wash., Aug. 10— Reliefer Danny Rios whipped three strikes past Dwane Helbig in the top of the eighth after two runs had scored to lead Yakima Bears to a 6-5 decision over Victoria in Western International League baseball play here Monday night.
Rios left the tying and winning runs at the plate.
Trailing by three runs, Tyees got two runs off Ted Edmunds, who had replaced Yakima starter Don Townsend, before Rios came in. The tallies came off a hit batter, two walks and Granny Gladstone's single.
Bears got all the runs they needed in the bottom of the seventh on two singles, a walk and an error.
Bill Prior took the loss. He gave up only six hits but was hurt with two errors.
Victoria ...... 000 030 020—5 10 2
Yakima ....... 030 000 00x—6 6 0
Prior and Harford; Townsend, Edmunds (5), Rios (8) and Albini.
VANCOUVER [Keith Matthews, News-Herald, Aug. 11]—Revitalized through the addition of the “take charge” guy they’ve been looking for all year, the Capilanos stomped heavily on the toes of proud Salem Monday winning 5-1.
It was hardly coincidental—more poetic justice in fact—that Jimmy Clark, the most recent and important acquisition, batted in the runs which won the game with a 380-foot, third inning triple. It accounted for two runs and the Salems never recovered from that wallop.
Clark was in on a pair of double plays besides, and helped spark an infield which looked somewhat like the traditionary Vancouver inner defences. Jack Bukowatz, Jim’s partner at the keystone, came up with a couple of beautiful grabs and Gene Petralli wound up the game with a leaping one-hander of Jerry Ballard’s line smash which Gene turned into an unassisted double play.
The ball club as a whole gave fans something to cheer about. They played with a new abandon and color which has been lacking all year. Lonnie Myers, who picked up his No.8 win, showed a distinct benefit from Dick Barrett’s coaching by coming up with a chance of pace which he had never thrown before.
Myers’ contribution was a seven-hitter in which he showed far more control than he had been displaying. It is Barrett’s feeling that Myers throws too many fast ball, even though it is by far his best pitch.
“He doesn’t set up the pitch the right way,” Dick explained. “If we can get him to throw more curves and the odd change, then come in with that fast ball, he won’t be walking many and he’ll be winning a lot more.”
Tonight the same clubs do it again at 8:30.
- - -
VANCOUVER, Aug. 10—Lonnie Myers' seven-hit pitching led Vancouver Capilanos to a 5-1 win over Salem Senators in a Western International League baseball game here Monday.
Myers struck out four and picked up his eighth win against six losses as he didn't allow Salem an extra-base hit.
Salem got its run in the fifth inning on a single, a fielder's choice and another single.
Jim Clark, who joined Vancouver Monday from Victoria Tyees, hammered out a triple in the third inning to drive in three runs, and played errorless ball at short.
Salem ............... 000 010 000—1 7 1
Vancouver ......... 003 001 01x—5 9 0
Borst, Peterson (8) and Nelson; Myers and Duretto.
ONLY GAMES SCHEDULED
Spokane ..... 28 17 .622 —
Salem ....... 26 17 .605 1
Yakima ...... 23 20 .535 4
Vancouver ... 24 22 .522 4½
Edmonton .... 20 20 .500 5½
Lewiston .... 20 21 .488 6
Tri-City .... 20 23 .465 7
Victoria .... 20 25 .444 8
Calgary ..... 17 24 .415 9
Wenatchee ... 17 24 .415 9
LEWISTON, Idaho, Aug. 10—It was give-away Monday as Calgary Stampeders gave away nineteen hits, nineteen bases on balls, and lost a 25-4 ball game to Lewiston Broncs in their Western International League tilt.
The hapless Stampeders got but one home run among their four tallies. Rocky Tedesco laced one out in the eighth with none on.
Lewiston picked up two homers along the way. Al Heist homered in the second inning with none aboard, and Ken Richardson repeated the performance in the sixth with the bases loaded. Richardson also accounted for eight of the Lewiston runs.
Calgary .... 000 201 010— 4 6 3
Lewiston .. 521 037 52x—25 19 0
Hittner, Bonebrake (1), Shulte (4), Stites (7) and Lillard; Kine and Cameron.
YAKIMA, Wash., Aug. 10— Reliefer Danny Rios whipped three strikes past Dwane Helbig in the top of the eighth after two runs had scored to lead Yakima Bears to a 6-5 decision over Victoria in Western International League baseball play here Monday night.
Rios left the tying and winning runs at the plate.
Trailing by three runs, Tyees got two runs off Ted Edmunds, who had replaced Yakima starter Don Townsend, before Rios came in. The tallies came off a hit batter, two walks and Granny Gladstone's single.
Bears got all the runs they needed in the bottom of the seventh on two singles, a walk and an error.
Bill Prior took the loss. He gave up only six hits but was hurt with two errors.
Victoria ...... 000 030 020—5 10 2
Yakima ....... 030 000 00x—6 6 0
Prior and Harford; Townsend, Edmunds (5), Rios (8) and Albini.
VANCOUVER [Keith Matthews, News-Herald, Aug. 11]—Revitalized through the addition of the “take charge” guy they’ve been looking for all year, the Capilanos stomped heavily on the toes of proud Salem Monday winning 5-1.
It was hardly coincidental—more poetic justice in fact—that Jimmy Clark, the most recent and important acquisition, batted in the runs which won the game with a 380-foot, third inning triple. It accounted for two runs and the Salems never recovered from that wallop.
Clark was in on a pair of double plays besides, and helped spark an infield which looked somewhat like the traditionary Vancouver inner defences. Jack Bukowatz, Jim’s partner at the keystone, came up with a couple of beautiful grabs and Gene Petralli wound up the game with a leaping one-hander of Jerry Ballard’s line smash which Gene turned into an unassisted double play.
The ball club as a whole gave fans something to cheer about. They played with a new abandon and color which has been lacking all year. Lonnie Myers, who picked up his No.8 win, showed a distinct benefit from Dick Barrett’s coaching by coming up with a chance of pace which he had never thrown before.
Myers’ contribution was a seven-hitter in which he showed far more control than he had been displaying. It is Barrett’s feeling that Myers throws too many fast ball, even though it is by far his best pitch.
“He doesn’t set up the pitch the right way,” Dick explained. “If we can get him to throw more curves and the odd change, then come in with that fast ball, he won’t be walking many and he’ll be winning a lot more.”
Tonight the same clubs do it again at 8:30.
- - -
VANCOUVER, Aug. 10—Lonnie Myers' seven-hit pitching led Vancouver Capilanos to a 5-1 win over Salem Senators in a Western International League baseball game here Monday.
Myers struck out four and picked up his eighth win against six losses as he didn't allow Salem an extra-base hit.
Salem got its run in the fifth inning on a single, a fielder's choice and another single.
Jim Clark, who joined Vancouver Monday from Victoria Tyees, hammered out a triple in the third inning to drive in three runs, and played errorless ball at short.
Salem ............... 000 010 000—1 7 1
Vancouver ......... 003 001 01x—5 9 0
Borst, Peterson (8) and Nelson; Myers and Duretto.
ONLY GAMES SCHEDULED
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