Baseball's Week

AMERICAN LEAGUE

Frank Lane, Kansas City GM , and Charles Finley, club president, were not pleased with their team (which slipped to seventh) or with each other. When Pitchers Ken Johnson and Norm Bass were to be sent to the minors, Finley intervened and each was given another start. Johnson was hit hard, Bass pitched very well. This gave both Lane and Finley something to smile—and growl—about. Snapped Lane, "He thinks he knows as much in 29 minutes as I learned in 29 years." Jackie Jensen wasn't mad at anyone any longer and returned to the Boston Red Sox . He had quit because he felt he couldn't hit, run or field any more. In his first game he proved he could do all three. He went two for two (including a homer), scored from first on a single that was bobbled in the outfield and made a fine backhand catch. Bill Monbouquette beat the Senators 2-1 and struck out 17, one short of the record. Jim Gentile, Baltimore first baseman, did set a record, hitting two consecutive grand slam home runs against the Twins. "I thought the only way I'd ever get in the record book was by kicking water coolers," Gentile said. Although the Orioles won four of five they gained just half a game on the Detroit Tigers (see page 26), who were no longer regarded as mere upstarts. They not only hit (.279) and pitched well but they were running, too. In one three-game span, the Tigers stole eight bases. Chicago also got good pitching, edging Cleveland 4-2 when Herb Score pitched a two-hitter. Like Score, Cleveland's Gary Bell also won his first game when the Indians came up with their only offensive thrust of the week, scoring six runs in the 11th against the White Sox. With Hector Lopez hitting .154, Roger Maris .125 and Mickey Mantle .111, and with the pitchers giving up five runs a game, the New York Yankees barely hung on to second place. Washington didn't get many runs but the pitching (just three runs and 11 hits in four games with Boston) was the best in the majors and the Senators won five, lost three. The Los Angeles Angels concluded a successful home stand (27 home runs, eight wins, six losses) then went on the road, did not hit a home run in their first two games and lost them both. The Minnesota Twins were still at home and were still hitting home runs (13 in five games). Seven players were injured, and Manager Cookie Lavagetto said his team was "going on guts." Go they did, getting 54 hits and 40 runs while winning three of five.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Eddie Mathews heard strange sounds in the Milwaukee Braves' infield, learned that Roy McMillan was the culprit. "He not only covers shortstop like a vacuum cleaner, he even sounds like one," Mathews said. "When he gloves the ball he wheezes, and when he throws he snorts." McMillan confessed, "It's the way I breathe when I make a play," he explained. "I may make a sudden move and I exhale air through my teeth." Nine home runs helped the Braves win three of four. The big noise, however, came from the Los Angeles Dodgers, who stretched their win streak to six. In the ninth inning of a 5-2 victory over the Phillies, a boy jumped onto the field. Outfielder Ron Fairly helped him back to his seat by boosting him over the wall, but Fairly gave even more of a lift to his team by driving in five runs in two games. In that 5-2 victory Manager Walt Alston started Jim Gilliam (hitting .228 at the time) for Tommy Davis (.330) at third. "1 heard it was supposed to rain early," Alston said. " Gilliam makes them get the ball over and maybe he'll get on and we'll get a run or two real quick." Gilliam did get on, he did score, and the game was rained out after five innings and the Dodgers won. The Philadelphia Phillies also won—after 10 losses. Art Mahaffey went nine innings for the Phillies for the fifth time and beat the St. Louis Cardinals . Ernie Broglio defeated the Phillies 5-1, but that was the team's only win in three tries. While the Cardinals skidded to sixth, the Pittsburgh Pirates moved up to third. Bobby Shantz and Clem Labine pitched fine relief and beat Cincinnati's streaky Reds, who had won nine in a row. Cincinnati pitchers allowed a paltry 25 runs during their string, then gave up 21 in two games with the Pirates. The only team to stop the Pirates was the San Francisco Giants (see page 22). Mike McCormick pitched a three-hitter, and Willie Mays drove in�six runs in one game as the Giants split four games. No one pitched or hit very well for the Chicago Cubs and their losing streak stretched to eight.

[This article contains a table. Please see hardcopy of magazine or PDF.]

Boxed statistics through Saturday, May 13