Spokane ....... 55 38 .591 —
Bremerton ..... 56 39 .589 1
Salem ......... 53 39 .576 1½
Victoria ...... 54 45 .545 4
Tacoma ........ 47 48 .495 9
Vancouver ..... 44 50 .468 11½
Yakima ........ 35 55 .396 18½
Wenatchee ..... 31 62 .333 24
VICTORIA, July 18 — Joe Blankenship hurled seven scoreless innings as the Victoria Athletics roared back from a 7-2 deficit to tie the count with two out in the ninth, then rally in the 11th to beat the Bremerton Bluejackets, 8-7 in a Western International League thriller tonight.
Jack Harshman put Victoria back in the game with a two-run homer in the eighth, doubled in the ninth to tie it, then hit a stinging single to left field in the 11th to score John Hooper with the winning run.
Harshman was five for six, batted in five runs, and made a stop at first base on the last Bremerton out to prevent a run.
Johnny Cavalli had three hits, including his 14th home run and double.
Bill Rose started for the A's but was lifted in the third with four runs charged against him. Ray Fortier relieved but was pulled in the fifth after giving up two talks then watching Bill Barisoff take one out of the park.
The loss was tagged on Hub Kittle, his third in four nights.
Bremerton ....... 022 030 000 00—7 10 1
Victoria ...........200 001 031 01—8 15 2
Ahearn, Kittle (9) and Volpi; Rose, Fortier (3); Blankenship (5) and Mastro.
VANCOUVER [The Sun, July 19]—Though it wasn’t the hit that brought in the winning runs, Bob Hedington’s ninth inning homer last night at Capilano Stadium made 1700 WIL ball fans wonder what happened to the Caps and their inside baseball tactics.
Hedington, since he smacked three four-masters in the series opener, has been starved to death on a diet of curve balls. He had not seen a fast one for over two nights and last night it was all curves and pulled strings for Hedington again.
But it only lasted until the ninth. With the Caps in front 4-3 and Ronnie Bryant coasting along on his next to best performance of the season, Hedington stepped in as the ninth inning’s first batter.
Bryant fed him a fast ball and it was over the right centre field fence before Ron could say “sorry” and try his curve again. Now the question is, who was responsible for the change in strategy in pitching to Hedington?
BRYANT HAD IT
It’s likely that catcher Bob Stumpf asked for the pitch—but he should have been shaken off. He wasn’t and it’s all water over the dam, for what happened thereafter broke the Caps’ whammy over the Bengals at two straight.
With Hedington’s circuit came the 4-4 sawoff. Then Dick Greco worked Bryant for a pass but Ronnie got to Hank Bartolomei. Rival pitcher “Mitch” Chetkovich bounced one in the hold which Bjelmaa fielded, but couldn’t complete in time. Base knocks by Pete Tedeschi and Roy Paton gave the Tigers their two-run lead and a faint Cap rally in the ninth was put down.
Bryant, in his nine inning stretch, showed he was ready to move in with the regular starters. He had full command of his stuff as he dealt a string of five goose-eggs at the game’s start.
WINDS UP TONIGHT
Ron faded in the later innings, but with some of the luck the Caps had the previous two nights, he would have pulled out. That’s baseball, though. The Tigers were due and they made their hits count.
DIAMOND DUST: Tonight the Caps and Tigers wind up their long series at 8 o’clock with Bob Snyder looking for his first win in three tries against Tacoma.
- - -
VANCOUVER, July 18 — A ninth-inning rally by the Tacoma Tigers scored three runs to defeat the Vancouver Capilanos 6-4 in a Western International League game tonight.
With the Caps leading 4-3, Ron Bryant served up a waist-high fastball to Bob Hedington that sailed high out of the yard to tie the game.
Dick Greco then worked Bryant for a walk, and one out later, Mitch Chetkovich bounced one in the hole which Buddy Hjelmaa fielded but couldn't throw to first in time. RBI singles by Pete Tedeshi and Ray Paton followed.
Hedington smacked three homers in the opener and had been fed a steady diet of curves since then — until Bryant's pitch in the ninth.
Vancouver took a 1-0 lead in the first when Lee Mohr sprinted home on Charlie Mead's fly. Tacoma got to Bryant for three in the six, thanks to three hits and two walks. Those runs came back in the seventh, as Buddy Hjelmaa doubled in two and a fly ball by Lou Estes, the other.
Tacoma ......... 000 003 003—6 12 1
Vancouver ..... 100 000 300—4 8 1
Chetkovich and Kuper; Bryant and Stumpf.
Yakima ......... 000 000 001— 1 2 4
Salem ........... 200 420 020—10 9 1
Simon, Knoll (8) and Phillips; Mossor and Beard.
Wenatchee ..... 201 011 123—11 13 3
Spokane ......... 300 020 08x—13 17 3
McCollum, Frost (8), and Pesut; Spitzer, Miller (9), Samson (9) and O'Neill.
THE HOME PLATE
By KEITH MATTHEWS
[Vancouver Sun, July 19, 1947]
Tom Weedon, Whistler’s brother-in-law, is a great baseball fan and a popular guy to boot. But everybody’s friend is getting himself into trouble by becoming too pally with nobody’s friends, the umpires.
The Weedon-whistle in the seventh inning may be what attracts the umps to Mr. Weedon. Anyway they like our Tom.
And Tom has passed along a letter, he just received from Frank DeHaney, whom you no doubt recall.
Weedon, incidentally, will tell you that DeHaney is the best umpire he has ever watched. DeHaney in turn says Vancouver is the best town he has ever worked. And we can only add that isn’t it nice that we are all getting along so well today?
DeHaney, in his letter to our throaty baritone, says he is still in the hospital after taking that crack on the ankle from a line drive. The drive broke a bone in his ankle and Frank says he will be out for another couple of weeks yet.
* * *
Fans have asked us on occasion “what is in a bat?” They wonder why these ball players use different types, different weights and different lengths.
Little fellows like Len Tran and Buddy Hjelmaa like a “Chick” Hafey or Augle Galan model. This type is light with the weight all in the business end. The other day Bob Brown received a shipment of Hank Greenberg models. They are so heavy it is doubtful if any of the Caps will ever wheel one.
Frank Mullens the other night used two bats through one game. He had a dark brown model and a tanned wagon-tongue. His brown bomber brought him nothing but pop-ups. He changed and wound up with two-for-five for the evening. That’s what’s in a bat.
* * *
Bill Brenner, the Brownie boss, received a letter from Don Osborn, pilot of our 1942 pennant winner. The Wizard of Oz, now in Los Angeles, reports he is strictly a relief pitcher and doesn’t like it. Makes him feel too old, sez he.
But Osborn did say he would like to be back in Vancouver. He added that Clarence Maddern, centre fielder on the flag winner of ’42, would like to tag along with him.
There is not much chance that Vancouver will ever see Osborn again, however. A smart man with the baseball, Don, when his pitching career is finished, is slated for managerial duties on one of the Chicago Cub farms.
* * *
Robert Abel, president of the WIL, is daily checking on his umpires. Just this week he warned his board of officials about “fraternization with players.”
Last week Abel added a ruling in his red book whereby the umpire behind the plate is no longer allowed to ask his co-worker on the bases help on a decision.
But the league president is apparently not keeping a close enough tab on his umpires. One of them on two different occasions was in no shape to call balls and strikes. His ability to see them too straight cost one of the WI’s teams at least one game, maybe two. We think it rather unnecessary to mention names.
While speaking of the WIL’s boss, we will mention that there has been no word about that protested game of two weeks ago in which Umpires Martin Slavich and Hugh Day were rabid participants.
That was the Victoria game which centered around the hidden ball play, or was it the two balls on the field which caused the beef? Abel has requested umpire Slavich to file a written report. Meanwhile there isn’t a man in the know anywhere who will bet a plug nickel on that game going into the official records. Word is that the protest will be allowed and a replay ordered.
That was the night that Slavich was given one of the roughest rides by fans an official has ever received here. And here’s the payoff. Thursday night Slavich said, “I like this town. I’m asking for a switch so I can umpire here once more and bring my wife up. These are the best fans you’ll find anywhere.”
The Weedon-whistle in the seventh inning may be what attracts the umps to Mr. Weedon. Anyway they like our Tom.
And Tom has passed along a letter, he just received from Frank DeHaney, whom you no doubt recall.
Weedon, incidentally, will tell you that DeHaney is the best umpire he has ever watched. DeHaney in turn says Vancouver is the best town he has ever worked. And we can only add that isn’t it nice that we are all getting along so well today?
DeHaney, in his letter to our throaty baritone, says he is still in the hospital after taking that crack on the ankle from a line drive. The drive broke a bone in his ankle and Frank says he will be out for another couple of weeks yet.
* * *
Fans have asked us on occasion “what is in a bat?” They wonder why these ball players use different types, different weights and different lengths.Little fellows like Len Tran and Buddy Hjelmaa like a “Chick” Hafey or Augle Galan model. This type is light with the weight all in the business end. The other day Bob Brown received a shipment of Hank Greenberg models. They are so heavy it is doubtful if any of the Caps will ever wheel one.
Frank Mullens the other night used two bats through one game. He had a dark brown model and a tanned wagon-tongue. His brown bomber brought him nothing but pop-ups. He changed and wound up with two-for-five for the evening. That’s what’s in a bat.* * *
Bill Brenner, the Brownie boss, received a letter from Don Osborn, pilot of our 1942 pennant winner. The Wizard of Oz, now in Los Angeles, reports he is strictly a relief pitcher and doesn’t like it. Makes him feel too old, sez he.
But Osborn did say he would like to be back in Vancouver. He added that Clarence Maddern, centre fielder on the flag winner of ’42, would like to tag along with him.
There is not much chance that Vancouver will ever see Osborn again, however. A smart man with the baseball, Don, when his pitching career is finished, is slated for managerial duties on one of the Chicago Cub farms.
* * *
Robert Abel, president of the WIL, is daily checking on his umpires. Just this week he warned his board of officials about “fraternization with players.”
Last week Abel added a ruling in his red book whereby the umpire behind the plate is no longer allowed to ask his co-worker on the bases help on a decision.
But the league president is apparently not keeping a close enough tab on his umpires. One of them on two different occasions was in no shape to call balls and strikes. His ability to see them too straight cost one of the WI’s teams at least one game, maybe two. We think it rather unnecessary to mention names.
While speaking of the WIL’s boss, we will mention that there has been no word about that protested game of two weeks ago in which Umpires Martin Slavich and Hugh Day were rabid participants.
That was the Victoria game which centered around the hidden ball play, or was it the two balls on the field which caused the beef? Abel has requested umpire Slavich to file a written report. Meanwhile there isn’t a man in the know anywhere who will bet a plug nickel on that game going into the official records. Word is that the protest will be allowed and a replay ordered.
That was the night that Slavich was given one of the roughest rides by fans an official has ever received here. And here’s the payoff. Thursday night Slavich said, “I like this town. I’m asking for a switch so I can umpire here once more and bring my wife up. These are the best fans you’ll find anywhere.”
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