Yankees vs A's
September 3
Athletics 4, Yankees 2
What was billed as a matchup between two top pitchers just a week before turned out to be a battle between two young hurlers. First, Alan Hack had to beg off with a tired arm mere days before his scheduled start against semi-contending Philadelphia. This left Yankees skipper Dan Elder to grant 26-year old Jeff Olson (0-1, 2.57) his major league debut. This would seem to make it advantage: Athletics, but just one batter into the contest starter Al "Hellraiser" Montieth (19-8, 2.75) felt a twinge in his own elbow and was replaced by long man Walt Eberley (2-0, 2.70).
As it turned out, Eberley was just a little bit better over seven innings, not quite baffling the Bronx Bombers with his hard sinkers (10 of his 19 outs did come in the air, with 1 strikeout and an additional batter erased by double play) but pitching well enough to hand it off to Bob McKamey (2.22, 14 saves) for the victory. Olson scattered 9 hits through 7 frames and looked like a man the Yankees may be able to rely on in the future. For now, however, all he could give them was the loss.
Catcher Herman Cain (.277, 11, 58) added a homerun for the winning side.
September 4
Yankees 3, Athletics 1
This victory was all about ace Yankee pitcher Bob "Eeyore" Meyers (23-12, 1.55) but it took the Yankees 9 innings to come up with the runs they needed to beat the Athletics in this one. Nathan Christy (6-4, 3.57) came out of the bullpen to start for Philly and very nearly pulled this one out, giving up just one run on 8 hits through his first eight innings.
Then in the 9th, 1B Ken Flake (.239, 6, 37) leaned into a pitch and received a questionable trip to first. This clearly rattled Christy, who was seen talking to himself before giving up a single to utility man Paul McVey (.261, 0, 4) and then what proved to be the game-winner, a double by Quincy Hudson (.245, 10, 61).
Eeyore Meyers struck out 7 men, adding to his career high of 196 whiffs this season. On the A's side, 2B Jaime Gonzales (.313, 4, 51) had to leave with a strained ribcage muscle and may be back in time for the playoffs if the A's are lucky enough to get there.
A's 10, Yankees 3
The A's won the series at Shibe Park in a rather boring way that was nonetheless pleasing to hometown fans. They launched a 5-spot in the first inning off of hapless Yankees starter Carl Parham (8-14, 3.83) and never looked back. 1B Corey Jones (.360, 5, 41) added to his MVP credentials with a 3-4, 2 run day, while struggling RF Jay Carbaugh (.242, 2, 32) had a bases-loaded triple in the first to put the game on ice early.
The A's also completed a rare injury trifecta, losing SP Peter Brewer (14-16, 2.57) for a week with a sore shoulder.
Other Key Games
---------------
Chicago (A) sweeps Detroit, 8-2 and 8-3
WPs: Bob Hinman (27-7) and Ted Carson (6-5)
LPs: Alan Marable (7-11) and Stephen Mudge (11-4)
Cincinnati sweeps Pittsburgh 9-6 and 6-1
WPs: Lyndon Key (15-8) and Earl Crockett (26-9)
LPs: Cesar Fernando (9-7) and Kent DeLong (2-13)
New York (N) sweeps Philadelphia (N) 11-7 and 8-7
WPs: Dave Mathew (1-0, MLB debut) and Tom Kelley (3-1)
LPs: Bob Hazard (7-12) and Alarico Hein (6-4)
Other Notes
---------------
Fred Harris (CHN) hit for the cycle in game 1 of the Cubs-Cards doubleheader. Unfortunately, it was in vain as he was thrown out at home to lose it 7-6.
As often happens in these leaguewide doubleheaders, there were lots of injuries today:
Detroit Tigers: MR M. Sheets is ill. The Diagnosis: earache. This is a day-to-day injury expected to last 2 days.
Philadelphia Athletics: SS J. Gonzáles was injured on a defensive play. The Diagnosis: strained rib cage muscle. He's expected to miss about 2-3 weeks.
Philadelphia Athletics: SP P. Brewer was injured while pitching. The Diagnosis: sore shoulder. He's expected to miss about 6 days.
Philadelphia Athletics: MR R. Danford was injured while pitching. The Diagnosis: sore elbow. This is a day-to-day injury expected to last 5 days.
St. Louis Browns: 1B C. Shoemake was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: twisted ankle. He's expected to miss about 2 weeks.
Washington Senators: 3B S. Hunter was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: quadriceps strain. He's expected to miss about 4 weeks.
Washington Senators: MR D. MacNeil was injured while pitching. The Diagnosis: sore ankle. This is a day-to-day injury expected to last 3 days.
Boston Red Sox: 2B E. Race was injured while running the bases. The Diagnosis: quadriceps strain. He's expected to miss about 3 days.
Boston Red Sox: 2B T. Donahoe was injured in a collision at a base. The Diagnosis: sore hamstring. This is a day-to-day injury expected to last 5 days.
Code:
American League Standings
Team W L PCT GB
Chicago White Sox 82 52 0.612 -
New York Yankees 80 52 0.606 1
Philadelphia Athletics 73 58 0.557 7.5
Boston Red Sox 65 67 0.492 16
Detroit Tigers 65 69 0.485 17
Washington Senators 62 69 0.473 18.5
Cleveland Indians 53 81 0.396 29
St. Louis Browns 51 83 0.381 31
National League Standings
Team W L PCT GB
New York Giants 89 43 0.674 -
Cincinnati Reds 87 46 0.654 2.5
Philadelphia Phillies 75 57 0.568 14
Brooklyn Dodgers 60 71 0.458 28.5
St Louis Cardinals 59 74 0.444 30.5
Pittsburgh Pirates 57 75 0.432 32
Chicago Cubs 57 77 0.425 33
Boston Braves 46 87 0.346 43.5