Monday, August 15, 1949
The Boston (NL) front office announced that manager Billy Southworth had been replaced by Johnny Cooney. Southworth reportedly could be "caustic" with his players at times, but it is one thing when you are winning like they did in 1948. The 1949 Braves have suffered by not having a consistent set of outfielders able to play, they lost their first baseman early, they are trying to bring in a rookie catcher, and a pitching staff that, besides Warren Spahn, has been very inconsistent. All that, plus St. Louis is absolutely running away with it and Boston has been falling farther and farther behind in the standings despite having put up a valiant fight, so Southworth was let go.
Boston (AL) (H) 9 Washington 0
Boston completed its six-game home sweep of Washington in typical Red Sox fashion. Vern Stephens hit a homerun (#39, 119) in the fourth that gave Boston a 1-0 through the end of the fifth, and then they exploded for four homeruns in their final three at-bats coming from Birdie Tebbetts, Al Zarilla, Ted Williams (#35, 118), and Dom DiMaggio. Joe Dobson (11-8) got the shutout victory to end the series.
Note: The Boston (AL) front office announced that third baseman Johnny Pesky had aggravated a muscle in his side and would likely miss the next week. Merl Combs will take over third base duties in Pesky's absence.
Detroit 4 Cleveland (H) 1
Detroit got off to a fast start and led 4-1 after the third, but that was all the scoring today and Hal Newhouser (14-7) had the good stuff today. Left fielder Dick Wakefield went 2-for-4 with a double and a first inning two run homerun to get the Tigers their early lead.
New York (AL) 8 Philadelphia (AL) (H) 3
Philadelphia took a 1-0 lead in the first but New York quickly responded and walked away with the series ending victory. Joe DiMaggio hit a three run homerun (#16, 46) in the Yankees four-run third and Eddie Lopat (17-2) was able to cruise home for the victory. The same time Boston was going 6-0 at home versus Washington New York lost 3-of-5 in Philadelphia.
Chicago (AL) 18 St. Louis (AL) (H) 8 (Cycle!)
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| Chuck Kress |
Chicago's first five batters in the first all scored before an out was recorded and while no more runs scored in the first, the White Sox added two more in the second. Unfortunately, this meant they led by only two runs after the second as Bill Wight (12-7) allowed five runs in the first two innings, three of which were unearned. Undeterred, Chicago had a five-run seventh and a five-run ninth as they pounded a series of Browns pitchers for the easy win. The hitting star of the day was first baseman Chuck Kress who went 4-for-6, drove in seven runs and hit for the cycle, the first cycle of the season.
St. Louis (NL) 3 Chicago (NL) (H) 2
St. Louis first baseman Nippy Jones hit a two run homerun in the first but Chicago finally broke through against Harry Brecheen (18-4) in the seventh when catcher Mickey hit a two-run single to tie the game at 2-2. Marty Marion doubled home Enos Slaughter in the top of the ninth to regain the St. Louis lead and Ted Wilks came in to close it out for the Cardinals.
Pittsburgh 3 Cincinnati (H) 2 (12)
The score was tied at 2-2 after the fifth and there it stayed until Ralph Kiner homered in the top of the twelfth. Bill Werle (6-11) went all the way for the win and Buddy Lively (0-8) got the loss for his one inning of relief work.
Tuesday, August 16, 1949
Detroit 1 Cleveland (H) 0
Virgil Trucks (11-13) allowed nine hits but no runs as he shutout Cleveland. Al Benton (8-3) took the loss but only allowed three hits, one being a second inning Don Kolloway triple that scored Aaron Robinson with the game's only run.
Philadelphia (AL) (H) 8 Boston (AL) 7
Philadelphia scored five times in the second and knocked Mickey McDermott (4-5) out of the box and then added a few more runs that turned out to be necessary. Joe Coleman (14-8) didn't allow a run until the eighth when Ted Williams hit a solo homerun, but then Boston jumped up and scored six times in the ninth to get it close. Williams added a three run homerun (#37, 122) in the ninth, but it just wasn't quite enough.
St. Louis (AL) (H) 1 Chicago (AL) 0
St. Louis starter Joe Ostrowski (5-7) shutout Chicago, outdueling Bob Kuzava (4-7) for the win. Kuzava threw away a sacrifice bunt and allowed the eventual game-winning run to reach third base, followed by a Whitey Platt sacrifice fly for the only run of the game.
Boston (NL) (H) 11 New York (NL) 8
Boston led after five by a score of 5-0 and Warren Spahn was cruising. New York scored a couple of times in the sixth but then Spahn got two outs and just when the inning was over Wes Westrum's long fly ball went over the fence and suddenly the Giants led 6-5. Boston regained the lead with a five-run eighth, a two-run double from Ed Sauer being the big hit, and held on for the win from there.
Philadelphia (NL) 4 Brooklyn (H) 0
Philadelphia starter Ken Heintzelman (14-6) didn’t allow a hit until the sixth inning as he easily shutout Brooklyn. Left fielder Del Enns hit a two run homerun (#12, 77) in the sixth to give the Phillies some needed cushion.
Note: Before the game, the Philadelphia (NL) front office announced that second baseman Eddie Miller would miss the next four weeks to an undisclosed injury.
St. Louis (NL) 7 Chicago (H) 6 (11)
Chicago scored four times in the second but immediately gave that lead up when St. Louis tied it in the third. The teams traded runs until extra innings was required. In the tenth the Cardinals had the bases loaded with no outs but couldn't score, and in the bottom of the tenth the Cubs had a leadoff triple but couldn't score. Enos Slaughter doubled in the eleventh and was quickly doubled home by Ron Northey with the eventual game-winner. Slaughter continues to clobber the Cubs, today going 4-for-6 and bringing his average up to .415.
Cincinnati (H) 19 Pittsburgh 6
Early in the second inning shortstop Virgil Stallcup hit a three run homerun and while Pittsburgh was rushing a reliever to come in third baseman Grady Hatton hit another and suddenly the Reds had a seven-run inning. The excitement didn't stop there as the Reds had 25 hits on the day as they pounded a series if Pirates pitchers. Howie Fox (9-10) got the win and went 3-for-5 with three runs scored on the day.
Wednesday, August 17, 1949
Detroit 9 Chicago (AL) (H) 2
Detroit right fielder Vic Wertz hit a three run homerun (#16, 86) to cap off a seven-run fourth and the Tigers cruised home from there. George Kell chipped in with a 4-for-5 day with three RBI's in support of Ted Gray (11-8).
New York (AL) (H) 5 Washington 4
Washington scored three times in the third, the final two runs coming home on a Joe DiMaggio error. New York tied it up when Tommy Henrich hit a three run homerun (#28, 81) in the sixth, only to see the Senators regained the lead when Gil Coan successfully bunted home Jake Early in the top of the eighth. Just when Ray Scarborough (7-8) looked like he had pitched out of trouble in the bottom of the eighth, Washington committed errors on consecutive plays and the Yankees had their first lead of the day. Joe Page came in to seal the win for Vic Raschi (16-7).
Boston (AL) 13 Philadelphia (AL) (H) 9
Boston scored two in the top of the first but Philadelphia answered back with a six-run outburst in the bottom half of the inning, knocking Chuck Stobbs out of the game. There the score stood until the Red Sox had a six-run inning of their own in the sixth. Both teams scored three times in the eighth, but then Ted Williams added a two run homerun in the ninth to salt this one away. Williams ended up with a 5-for-6 day that included two doubles, a homerun, and six RBI's (#38, 128).
St. Louis (AL) (H) 6 Cleveland 5 (12) (GM 1)
Cleveland slowly built an early 4-2 lead but St. Louis outfielder Whitey Platt hit a two-run single in the eighth to tie it up and the game soon moved into extra innings. Both teams scored a run in the tenth, and then in the twelfth Platt came through again when he singled home Jack Graham with the game-winner.
Cleveland 9 St. Louis (AL) (H) 2 (GM 2)
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| Satchel Paige |
Cleveland quickly built a 6-0 lead and Satchel Paige (3-3) didn’t allow a run until the seventh inning and the Indians were able to split the doubleheader in St. Louis. Joe Gordon went 2-for-5 with three RBI's and a double to spark the offense.
New York (NL) 8 Boston (NL) (H) 5
Bobby Thomson hit a two run homerun (#24, 96) in the first and then added a two-run double in the fourth and New York held on to take the win. Clint Hartung (6-15) has had a rough season and he did walk eight Boston batters today, but today he was able to go all the way for the win.
Philadelphia (NL) 13 Brooklyn (H) 11 (14)
Philadelphia led early 3-0 but then Brooklyn scored seven times in the fifth to take a 7-3 lead. Undeterred, the Phillies came right back to tie the score at 7-7 with a four-run sixth, the tying runs coming home on reliever Schoolboy Rowe's two run homerun. Both teams continued to score, but the game eventually moved to extra innings. After five scoreless innings, the Phillies scored four times in the fourteenth, the big hit being a two-run single form reliever Curt Simmons (4-11). Simmons was a little shaky in the bottom of the inning but struck out Duke Snider with two runners on base to end the game.
Cincinnati (H) 3 St. Louis (NL) 2
Cincinnati got their second win versus St. Louis this year as Ken Raffensberger (8-17) went all the way for the complete game victory. Lead-off hitter Grady Hatton had two crucial RBI's that helped to put the Reds on top.
Thursday, August 18, 1949
Detroit 5 Chicago (AL) (H) 3
Detroit led 2-1 early but scored three times in the eighth to put it away. Fred Hutchinson (4-8) went all the way for the win, although Chicago did score twice in the ninth to make it close.
New York (AL) (H) 7 Washington 5 (14)
New York scored twice in the second to take an early lead but couldn’t hold it Tommy Byrne's control problems returned and in the fifth inning once he loaded the bases he surrendered a grand slam homerun to Eddie Yost. Tommy Henrich came through again though, this time with a two-run homerun (#29, 83) in the bottom of the eighth and it was soon off to extra innings. The Senators pushed across a run in the top of the fourteenth but in the bottom of the inning, Johnny Lindell launched a three run homerun to get Allie Reynolds (8-10) the win in relief.
St. Louis (AL) (H) 2 Cleveland 0
St. Louis starter Karl Drews (8-12) limited Cleveland to only three hits and pitched a complete game shutout to end the Browns series with the Indians. Shortstop Andy Anderson, batting eighth, doubled twice and came around to score both times.
Boston (NL) (H) 4 New York (NL) 1
Boston starter Johnny Sain (11-11) didn't allow a run until the ninth inning and went all the way in the win over New York. Tommy Holmes hit a solo homerun in the fourth to put the Braves ahead but it was a three run homerun from Bob Elliott (#20, 89) that was the big hit in this game.
Philadelphia (NL) 3 Brooklyn (H) 2
Philadelphia starter Hank Borowy (8-14) didn’t allow a run until the seventh and then held off a furious Brooklyn rally in the ninth to get the win and complete a three-game sweep in Brooklyn. Right fielder Stan Hollmig contributed two doubles critical to the Phillies offense.
Chicago (NL) 8 Pittsburgh (H) 2
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| Phil Cavarretta |
Chicago took an early 4-0 lead and Doyle Lade (4-8) kept Pittsburgh off the scoreboard until the sixth and went all the way for the easy win. Phil Cavarretta, playing left field today while Hank Sauer is resting, went 3-for-4 with a double and triple to spark the Cubs offense.
Friday, August 19, 1949
Cleveland 3 Chicago (AL) (H) 2
Cleveland managed to score three runs early and Mike Garcia (12-8) didn’t allow any runs until the eighth and got the win. The Chicago runs scored when Bud Souchock hit a pinch-hit two-run homerun, but that was all the White Sox could do today.
Philadelphia (AL) 5 New York (AL) (H) 2
Philadelphia scored one in the second but New York answered with two in the fifth. Philadelphia got on the scoreboard again with two in the eighth to regain the lead and then Sam Chapman added a two-run homerun (#19, 89) in the ninth to give Alex Kellner (12-7) a little cushion.
Note: ATMgr had Joe Astroth as the starting catcher for Philadelphia but Baseball-Reference.com shows Mike Guerra.
Detroit 14 St. Louis (AL) (H) 2 (GM 1)
Detroit bunched their hits effectively as they scored four runs in the third, five in the fifth, and then five more in the eighth. Art Houtteman (11-6) gave up two homeruns to Roy Sievers (#8, 47), but that was all the Browns could do against him today.
Detroit 13 St. Louis (AL) (H) 5 (GM 2)
With the score tied 3-3 after the second Detroit pounded a series of Browns pitchers for ten runs in the next three innings to put this one away early. Hal Newhouser (15-7) was happy for the run support and got the win. Neil Berry, batting eighth, had four RBI's as did Newhouser from the ninth spot in the lineup, plus leadoff hitter Don Kolloway had three RBI's.
Boston (AL) 12 Washington (H) 1
Boston scored five times in the second and led 8-0 after the third and then tacked on for more runs in the ninth, just for good measure. Ellis Kinder (19-2) went all the way for the win with Vern Stephens going 3-for-6 with two doubles and three RBI's to lead the offense. Three Washington runs made six of the twelve runs allowed unearned.
Brooklyn 5 Boston (NL) (H) 4
Both teams took their turn with the lead but neither could hold it and the score was tied 4-4 after eight. Pee Wee Reese then led off the ninth with a homerun and Jack Banta (6-1) stayed in the game and closed it out for the Dodgers.
Cincinnati (H) 7 Chicago (NL) 2
Cincinnati led 3-2 going into the bottom of the seventh when they got their first two batters on, so Chicago brought in Bob Muncrief in relief and on his first pitch he gave up a two-run double. On the next pitch he gave up a two run homerun and Herm Wehmeier (3-12) and the Reds picked up an easy win.
New York (NL) 6 Philadelphia (NL) (H) 3
Whitey Lockman hit a grand slam in the third inning to put New York up early and then Sid Gordon added a two-run shot in the eighth to put it away. Dave Koslo (11-4) went all the way for the win.
Pittsburgh (H) 4 St. Louis (NL) 2
Eddie Bockman hit a two run homerun in the second and then Ralph Kiner added a two run homerun in the third and Pittsburgh defeated St. Louis in the first game of their series. Cliff Chambers (6-6) went all the way for the win.
Saturday, August 20, 1949
New York (AL) (H) 7 Philadelphia (AL) 2
Philadelphia starter Carl Scheib (5-11) lost his control in the second and walked in two runners, balked in another and then gave up a three run homerun to Joe DiMaggio (#15, 49). Eddie Lopat (18-2) was able to coast home with the complete game victory from there.
St. Louis (AL) (H) 5 Detroit 4
Detroit led 3-0 after the second inning but St. Louis was able to climb back into it and eventually take the lead and hold on for the win. Roy Sievers is beginning to assert himself at the plate as he had two run-scoring doubles in support of Ned Garver (7-15).
Boston (AL) 14 Washington (H) 1
The score was 1-0 at the end of the fifth and then the Boston offense woke up. Third baseman Merl Combs is making the most of his opportunity while Johnny Pesky is out as he went 3-for-5 today with three runs scored, five RBI's, hit his second double of the year and bumped his batting average to .429. Mel Parnell (18-6) didn’t allow a run until the eighth and picked up another complete game victory.
Boston (NL) (H) 4 Brooklyn 0
Boston first baseman Elbie Fletcher, batting second, hit a two run homerun in the first inning and the Braves never looked back. Warren Spahn (18-5) threw his seventh shutout of the season.
Note: On this date in 1949 Boston defeated Brooklyn 4-0.
Chicago (NL) 7 Cincinnati (H) 3
Chicago starter Johnny Schmitz (12-9) got the complete-game victory over Cincinnati, plus he chipped in with a 2-for-4 day to help his own cause. Catcher Bob Scheffing went 3-for-5 with two RBI's and a double and a homerun to spark the Cubs offense.
New York (NL) 5 Philadelphia (NL) (H) 2
New York scored twice in the second and then two more times in the third and Monty Kennedy (12-6) did the rest. Russ Meyer (9-6) could have used some help both defensively and offensively. Combined with Brooklyn's loss, New York is now alone in second place in the NL.
Pittsburgh (H) 13 St. Louis (NL) 3
In the bottom of the first Pittsburgh catcher Phil Masi hit a homerun that should have given the Pirates a five-run first, but then this happened:
Undeterred, the Pirates continued to hammer the Cardinals with a Ralph Kiner grand slam (#36, 116) in the third being the big hit. Tiny Bonham (7-4) pitched a good game and got the win and extended the Cardinals losing streak to three games.
Sunday, August 21, 1949
It's a Sunday and there are five doubleheaders scheduled to make it another doubleheader Sunday.
Cleveland 6 Chicago (AL) (H) 3 (GM 1)
Cleveland shortstop and player/manager Lou Boudreau broke open a tight game with a three run homerun in the top of the fifth. Bob Feller (11-6) tired late but Cleveland held on to get the game one win.
Cleveland 11 Chicago (AL) (H) 7 (GM 2)
Chicago outhit Cleveland 18-11, but Cleveland outwalked Chicago 7-0, plus Cleveland got the hits when they needed them and wept the doubleheader. Joe Gordon was the hero for the Indians as he went 2-for-5 with five RBI's and homerun. Both teams committed crucial errors that helped their opponents scoring opportunities.
Note: Chicago outfielder Gus Zernial returned from a two-month injury stint a few weeks ago but made his first appearance in the outfield today's games after previously having been limited to pinch-hitting appearances.
Philadelphia (AL) 14 New York (AL) (H) 4
New York led 4-3 after the first inning, but both starters were left in the game and both were able to quiet things down, at least until the fourth when the A's scored three times and knocked Vic Raschi (16-8) out of the box. Lou Brissie (8-11) kept New York scoreless for the remainder of the game while the Philadelphia offense, now awakened, pounded the Yankees bullpen. Over the past two weeks, the Athletics have taken 5-of-8 games versus the Yankees.
Detroit 17 St. Louis (AL) (H) 3 (GM 1)
St. Louis led 1-0 after the first, but then Detroit put up a six-run third and a six-run fifth to run away with it. George Kell went 4-for-5 with four runs, three RBI's and a double and a triple, and Vic Wertz hit a three-run homerun (#17, 91) in the third that really started the scoring bonanza. Ted Gray (12-8) got the game one win.
St. Louis (AL) (H) 5 Detroit 4 (GM 2)
St. Louis jumped on Detroit starter Lou Kretlow (2-7) early and led 5-2 after the fourth, and then held on for the win and the doubleheader split. Bill Kennedy (4-6) got the win with some help from Tom Ferrick in the ninth.
Note: After the game the Detroit front office announced that outfielder Johnny Groth would miss the remainder of the season due to a broken wrist.
Boston (AL) 12 Washington (H) 6
Washington led 3-2 after the sixth but then Boston regained the lead with three in the seventh and then followed that with six runs in the eighth to put it away. First baseman Billy Hitchcock knocked a three-run double in the eighth as the big hit in the big inning and Jack Kramer (9-4) was able to grab the easy win. Boston has now gone 9-0 versus Washington in the past two weeks and the Senators are currently in the midst of a sixteen game losing streak.
Boston (NL) (H) 12 Brooklyn 6
Brooklyn led 5-1 after the top of the fifth but then Boston started putting runners on base and one Al Dark three run homerun after the score was tied at 5-5. Both teams scored a single run in the sixth, but then the Braves blew the game open with a five-run seventh. Reliever Bob Hall (2-6) went 3.2 innings to get the win and also went 2-for-2 with a run and two RBI's to help spur on the comeback.
Chicago (NL) 5 Cincinnati (H) 4 (GM 1)
Cincinnati slowly built a lead but could never pull away. In the top of the ninth Hank Sauer hit a two-out two run homerun (#22, 68) to give Chicago its first lead of the game and stun the Cincinnati fans. Bob Chipman (5-5) shut down the Reds in the ninth and picked up the game one win.
Cincinnati (H) 11 Chicago (NL) 5 (GM 2)
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| Ken Raffensberger |
Cincinnati exploded for six runs in the third and roared past Chicago to gain a split in the doubleheader and in the series. Ken Raffensberger (9-17) went all the way for the win.
New York (NL) 1 Philadelphia (NL) (H) 0 (GM 1)
New York shortstop Bill Rigney doubled home Monte Irvin in the top of the seventh for the game's only run and Sheldon Jones (16-2) made it stand up. Ken Heintzelman (11-9) was the hard-luck loser in game one.
New York (NL) 10 Philadelphia (NL) (H) 0 (GM 2)
Two games and two shutouts as New York swept their doubleheader in Philadelphia. Larry Jansen (12-10) got the shutout victory and was the beneficiary of a five-run first inning as the New York offense bedeviled the Phillies bullpen. Whitey Lockman got his third double of the day and now has 29 for the season.
St. Louis (NL) 6 Pittsburgh 1 (GM 1)
Stan Musial hit a two run homerun in the first and then added a three run homerun (#29, 102) in the fifth and that was all the offense the Cardinals needed today. Fred Martin started but got pulled in the fourth when his shoulder tightened up and the Cardinals bullpen took over from there, not allowing a run until the eighth inning.
Pittsburgh (H) 1 St. Louis (NL) 0 (GM 2)
Ralph Kiner hit a solo homerun (#37, 117) in the fifth and Murry Dickson (7-7) made that run stand up as Pittsburgh split the doubleheader with St. Louis and completed their St. Louis by winning 3-of-4 games.
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