Baseball in the 1960's

Monday, February 14, 2022

Steve Carlton Gets His Start

TRIVIA WINNER: Congrats to Jacob Kribel of Canonsburg, PA, who correctly stated Dick Groat played for the Ft. Wayne Pistons of the NBA. The Prize: Starbucks Gift Card.

NEW TRIVIA CONTEST: By answering the TRIVIA QUESTION CORRECTLY you are automatically entered into a weekly drawing for a Starbucks Gift Card. YOU MUST ENTER VIA THE EMAIL AT THE END OF THIS COLUMN. Don't forget to put your mailing address in with the answer so if you win we can send you the gift card in the mail.

Just a note to add; If you look at the top right hand corner of the side bar you will see a link to daily sports scores. We made an agreement with Baseball 24 in a mutual sharing situation. Hope its helpful to fans of several sports.

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NEW TRIVIA QUESTION: Steve Carlton made his major league debut against Chicago in 1965 and the only batter he faced, he walked. Who was that Cubs outfielder whom he walked?

ANSWER to the Trivia question in the previous column: Dick Groat played for the Ft. Wayne Pistons of the NBA.

Steve Carlton made his major league debut in a relief role April 12, 1965 and while he didn't pitch much that season he did get a couple of starts. He failed to get a win. On August 5, 1966 however, he proved "Lefty" had arrived.

The Cardinals were barely above .500 and the Mets were, well the Mets. Eleven games under .500 New York was playing out the string, but then again so was St. Louis. The Cards were a solid hitting team with some power and would show it in backing Carlton this day. Orlando Cepeda was the club's big gun along with Mike Shannon and Lou Brock. Curt Flood was his usual self and players such as Charlie Smith and Julian Javier were solid as well. They were two years removed from a World Series and one year away from another title. Carlton was just beginning.

He started off shaky, giving up six hits and tossing a wild pitch in the first five innings. Tito Francona had homered earlier for St. Louis but a fly ball out tied the game in the fifth. It was the only run the Mets would get.

In later innings Javier and Tim McCarver would also go deep. The Mets were held in check as Carlton settled down allowing only one hit and three walks the rest of the way, pitching a complete game victory 7-1. Interestingly enough, the future strikeout king only whiffed one batter in his first MLB win. Al Luplow watched as a third strike crossed the plate in the fourth inning.

Carlton would finish the year 3-3, with a 3.12 ERA. He started nine games and completed two, including one shutout. He struck out 25 batters in 52 innings. A far cry from what he would later do with the Phillies in becoming one of the most dominant pitchers of the era on his way to the Hall of Fame. He was a five time 20-game winner with 329 victories.

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Monday, February 7, 2022

NL Batting Race 1960 - The Bull Durham Case

TRIVIA WINNER: Congrats to Craig McGraw of Middletown, DE, who correctly stated Lou Gehrig and Mike Schmidt were the only two current Hall of Famers who hit four consecutive home runs. The Prize: Starbucks Gift Card.

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NEW TRIVIA QUESTION: What NBA team did Dick Groat play for?

ANSWER to the Trivia question in the previous column: Lou Gehrig and Mike Schmidt were the two Hall of Famers who hit four consecutive home runs. Gil Hodges also hit four consecutive and was this year elected to the Hall but is not there yet.

The 1960 national Laague batting race was among the closest in history. It came down to the final game of the season between league MVP Dick Groat of the Pirates and Norm Larker of the Dodgers. Either one could have sat out game no. 154 and taken their chances but with the title on the line, both chose to play.

Going into the final game Groat was hitting .32513 to Larker's 3226. If Groat gets a hit against Milwaukee, Larker must get at least two hits against the Cubs. Pittsburgh is at home for a Sunday day game three hours ahead of the Dodgers in Los Angeles. Vin Scully and the Dodger broadcast team would know well in advance what Larker would need to do to beat out Groat. It was Forbes Field versus the L-A Memorial Coliseum, and Lew Burdette for the Braves while Dick Drott was on the mound for the Cubs.

Through four innings Groat was hitless in two at bats. He led off the fifth with a single. Now 1-for-3 that meant in all likelihood Larker would need at least two hits. Groat would fly out in his final at bat in the 6th. He was scheduled to hit in the 8th inning but manager Danny Murtaugh chose to pinch-hit with Bill Mazeroski with the Bucs leading 9-5.

Was it to bring in the defensive whiz at second base and move Dick Schofield to short, or was Murtaugh trying to preserve the batting title for his MVP candidate? There is no evidence of that we could find but it has been suggested. Groat would finish with .32460. Larker would need two hits to take the crown.

Larker had gone two-for-nine in his last three games. He usually hit in the middle of the order. However, in game no. 154 manager Walt Alston had him batting second. Perhaps to give him more chances to hit. He was foiled in his first at-bat. After a lead off single by Maury Wills, Drott walked Larker. No official at bat there.

Larker led off the third and grounded out to second base facing Dick Burwell. Moe Drabowsky came on in the fifth and with one out Larker hit a ground ball back toward the mound which Drabowsky couldn't handle and it went for a single. Larker had the first hit and at 1-for-3, he was one shy of a batting title.

In the seventh, facing Don Cardwell, Larker hit a flyball. It would all come down to the ninth inning with the score tied 3-3. Bob Lillis led off the inning for the Dodgers and hit a groundball back to Cardwell who threw wildly to first for an error. Pinch-hitter Wally Moon walked and Johnny Roseboro laid down a bunt. It was perfect and the bases were loaded as Roseboro reached first base.

Maury Wills stepped to the plate with Larker in the on-deck circle. If Wills just got out without a run scoring, Larker could be the hero in the final at bat of the season and with a hit, win the NL batting title. It wasn't to be. Wills lifted a fly ball to left field deep enough to bring home Lillis from third and a 4-3 Dodger win. Larker would go back to the dugout wondering what might have been.

Groat would win the batting title by .19. What was it Crash Davis said in "Bull Durham?" Let me paraphrase; One more flair, one Texas Leaguer, one squib through the infield, one dink more on the season and you are a legend forever. Groat lives on as the legend, Larker is pretty much forgotten to all but baseball purists. Larker died in 2007 at the age of 76.

Monday, January 31, 2022

Mays and Aaron Blast Six Homers in One Game

EDS NOTE: Last week's column on Frank Howard solicited more feedback and comments as well as great personal stories of meetings with Howard than any other column of the past four years. Thank you.

TRIVIA WINNER: Congrats to Dylan Woodyatt, of Ontario, Canada, who correctly named Phil Ortega and Dick Nen as the only players in the Frank Howard trade who did not appear on a World Series roster. The Prize: Starbucks Gift Card.

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NEW TRIVIA QUESTION: Of the six players who hit four "consecutive" home runs only two of them are in the Hall of Fame, one from each league. Who are they?

ANSWER to the Trivia question in the previous column: Phil Ortega and Dick Nen were the only players in the Frank Howard trade who never appeared on a World Series roster.

It was April 30, 1961 when a mere 13,000 fans in Milwaukee County Stadium witnessed an historic yet bizarre game which saw Braves pitchers give up eight home runs to the Giants who scored 14 runs on those eight blasts. The historic part was Willie Mays had four of them! It was also the day the other "greatest" player of the era, Hank Aaron, blasted two homers in a losing cause. To be one of those 13,000 would have been a fans dream date.

Lew Burdette opened the game for the Braves and promptly served up a gopher ball to Mays hitting third in the inning. A blast to deep center. Billie Loes started for the Giants and gave up singles to Roy McMillan and Frank Bolling before Aaron took him deep for a 3-1 lead.

Things were quiet until the third when the Giants Jose Pagan lifted a Burdette pitch into the seats to make it 3-2. It was Pagan's first of two homers on the day as well. Three batters later and after Jim Davenport was hit by a pitch, Mays took Burdette deep again, to left-center. Giants 4 - Braves 3.

Leading off the top of the fourth Orlando Cepeda homered to send Burdette to the showers and bring on Carl Willey. Felipe Alou greeted him with a home run. Just a few batters later Pagan would stride to the plate and belt his second homer of the game. Giants lead 7-3.

In the fifth Moe Drabowsky was pitching for Milwaukee and was the only pitcher to get Mays out that day. Willie lifted a flyball out to center fielder Aaron in a scoreless inning. By the sixth Seth Morehead was hurling for the Braves and with two men on faced Mays. Again Say-Hey would go deep; this time to left field for a three run blast. Giants 11-3. In the bottom of the inning Hammerin' Hank would take Loes deep one more time to make it 11-4.

It was in the eight inning Mays would tie the record of four homers in a game and finish with eight RBI. This time with Don McMahon pitching Jim Davenport tripled in a run to bring Mays to the plate. Mays timed a McMahon pitch and again sent it over the left-center field wall. Final score Giants 14-Braves 4. Billy Loes went the distance for his second win.

In the end, who in the world would have ever guessed Hank Aaron and Jose Pagan hitting two homers in a game each, would be a footnote to history?

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