MLB: 1958 and Beyond...

[Romdawg88]

Great stuff as always KC.

[kenyan_cheena]

Originally Posted by Romdawg88

Great stuff as always KC.

Thanks, Romy. Although I'm thoroughly enjoying the 1959 season, I'm really looking forward to 1960 when you and Jeff's and the other fictional players will be introduced. That should be a great season.

[JGil050]

Now that I have caught up, I am glad that there are dynasties such as this one to keep me coming back every day to see if it has been updated. And I must admit I am looking forward to 1960 to see how my guy fares in this world.

[Romdawg88]

Originally Posted by kenyan_cheena

Thanks, Romy. Although I'm thoroughly enjoying the 1959 season, I'm really looking forward to 1960 when you and Jeff's and the other fictional players will be introduced. That should be a great season.

Yeah, I'm excited for next season as well. I'm interested in seeing where I end up hopefully it's not the Yankees.

[Jeff1787]

Originally Posted by Romdawg88

Yeah, I'm excited for next season as well. I'm interested in seeing where I end up hopefully it's not the Yankees.

I'll take any team even the Yankees!!!!!!! Just hope my guy doesn't flop!

[EMSoccerCoach]

Originally Posted by kenyan_cheena

THE OHIO EXPRESS

Wednesday, 14 July, 1959

BOYER'S TWO-RUN HOMER
HELPS AL EDGE NL
IN ALL-STAR GAME

Quick synopsis told well, realistic quote to end it. Perfectly done.

Looking forward to the second half of the year.

[kenyan_cheena]

Thanks for all the support you guys are showing for this thread. It makes me even more enthusiastic about writing it. I'll have another post when I get home from work tonight, which will concern the disaster that has been the Brooklyn Dodgers' season. It'll be posted when you all log on tomorrow.

Thanks again for all your kind words and encouragement.

k_c

[kenyan_cheena]

The New York Age

THURSDAY, 15 JULY, 1959

O'MALLEY DELIVERS ULTIMATUM
TO DODGERS MANAGER

Story by Louis Greenberg

The Brooklyn Dodgers' disasterous 1959 season has hit a new low with news emerging that the ballclub's owner Walter O'Malley and manager Walter Alston engaged in a heated phone conversation earlier this week, O'Malley apparently telling Alston that if the team fails to win at least 70 games by the end of the season he'll be out the door. With the Dodgers taking a dreadful 28-58 record into the All-Star break, they would have to win 42 of their remaining 68 games to achieve that task, which is highly, highly unlikely. O'Malley has been deeply disappointed by the team's slide into oblivion this year but there are many who believe that he should take at least some of the blame for the situation.

"It's amazing how their circumstances have turned in just a handful of years," said Baseball Weekly's Howard Notts. "They've gone from being a team playing attractive baseball in a run down stadium to the complete opposite, a bunch of bums in a penthouse. O'Malley prettied up Ebbets but he played Scrooge on player signings and now they're paying the price. Their pitching is an absolute disgrace and guys like Furillo and Hodges, they're mere shadows of the players they were during those World Series seasons."

Some reports have said that the renovations carried out on Ebbets Field went considerably over budget, something that Notts says would have to be the case considering the lack of quality signings the team has made.

"The biggest name they've picked up this year is Red Schoendienst," Notts continued. "Red Schoendienst, for god's sake! No offense, but he's 36 years old and was waived by the Braves! You look at their roster and almost from top to bottom it's a bunch of players whose best years are behind them. This ain't 1955 anymore but judging by the guys they're playing, you'd think it was. You can't blame Alston for that entirely because he's just working with what he's been given."

Alston was signed as Dodgers manager following O'Malley's standoff with Chuck Dressen in early '54 and was immediately facing high expectations as the ballclub was coming off back-to-back pennants and a 105-win season. They finished five games back from the Giants in 2nd place in his first season in charge but for Dodger fans their "next year" finally came in 1955 as the team went 98-55, won the pennant and defeated the Yankees in seven games in the World Series, their first and only triumph in the Fall Classic to date. Alston was hailed as a hero and when the team won their fourth pennant in five years in '56 the call went out for O'Malley to bite the bullet and sign him to a multi-year contract, which the owner refused to do.

In '57 the Dodgers recorded their fewest victories since accumulating an identical 84-70 record back in 1948. They finished 3rd, eleven games behind the National League and eventual World Champions, the Milwaukee Braves. There were a number of distractions during that campaign, most notably the constant talk of O'Malley's plans to leave Ebbets and move the team to Los Angeles. While they ended up staying, the fallout seemed to carry over into the 1958 season where they fell to their worst performance in fourteen years, a 68-86 record that had them finishing 6th. The descent has continued into this current shambles of a season and it looks almost certain that, after such a fantastic start, Walter Alston's career in Brooklyn will come to an end on the final Sunday in September...

Walter Alston's managerial record
with the Brooklyn Dodgers, as at 14 July 1959

1954: 92-62 (.597), 2nd place, 5.0 G.B.
1955: 98-55 (.641), 1st place, World Series Champions
1956: 93-61 (.604), 1st place, National League Champions
1957: 84-70 (.545), 3rd place, 11.0 G.B.
1958: 68-86 (.442), 6th place, 25.0 G.B.
1959: 28-58 (.325), 8th place, 22.5 G.B.

Overall record: 463-392 (.542)

[kenyan_cheena]

The Cleveland Courier

FRIDAY 16 JULY 1959

SCORE'S NEAR PERFECTION
BLANKS ORIOLES IN FIRST GAME
FOLLOWING ALL-STAR BREAK

Story by Larry Jacobson

Cleveland Blues starter Herb Score produced the best pitching performance of the season yesterday as the Ohio ballclub defeated the Baltimore Orioles 4-0 in both team's first outing following the All-Star break. Score was unhittable, unstoppable and unbelievable as he held the Orioles to just a single hit and struck out nine batters to improve to 17-6 on the season, his ERA 2.53. That single hit came when Baltimore 1st baseman Frank Torre singled to leadoff the 7th, bringing an end to Score's pursuit of a perfect game.

Batting in the five spot Blues leftfielder Minnie Minoso gave his pitcher a great head start when he smoked a two-out three-run home run in the 1st inning to make the score 3-0. It stayed that way all the way through until the 9th when Russ Nixon doubled to deep right field to bring Minoso home from 1st. The 33 year-old Cuban batted 2-for-3 with three RBI and two runs scored. He was out of the lineup for ten weeks with broken ribs before returning on July 7 and will play a huge roll in the ballclub's quest for the pennant.

"This was a great way to get started on the run home," said Blues manager Joe Gordon. "Herb was just incredible and Minnie made it a lot easier for him with that shot in the 1st. Hopefully we can produce something close to this for the rest of the series."

Already struggling, there was some bad news to come out of the game for the Orioles with their premier pitcher Billy O'Dell suffering a rotator cuff injury. He managed to go the full nine innings and was excellent while being completely overshadowed by Score. Orioles management confirmed that he'll probably need four weeks to recover from the injury and has been placed on the 15-day disabled list. In 25 starts this season O'Dell is 13-10 with an ERA of 3.76.

[kenyan_cheena]

The Boston Globe

SUNDAY 18 JULY 1959

GERNERT SMASHES TRIO OF HOMERS
AS RED SOX ROUT WHITE SOX

Story by James Wilks

Led by a trio of home runs from 1st baseman Dick Gernert the Boston Red Sox scored an 11-5 victory over the Chicago White Sox yesterday at a near sold-out Fenway Park. Gernert became the fourth player in the majors this season to achieve the impressive feat, clearing the fences in the 3rd, 4th and 8th innings and tallying four RBI in the game. He finished 3-for-4 and received able support from leftfielder Leon Wagner (3-for-4, 3 R, 1 HR, 2 RBI) and starting pitcher Tom Brewer, whose 4-for-4 two-RBI afternoon must certainly be the best produced by a pitcher this season.

Gernert ranked 5th in the American League last season with 111 RBI but doesn't look like getting close to that output this year as his efforts yesterday increased his total to just 47. The Red Sox batters knocked Chicago's Bob Gibson out of the game after four innings, the rookie going four innings, allowing ten hits and seven earned runs on 69 pitches. Regarded as a great prospect when signed during the off-season Gibson has proven to be a bust so far, as his 3-14 record and 6.21 ERA indicates. The win improved Boston's record to 43-47 while the last-placed Illinois ballclub fell to 34-55...

[LFC1892]

Ha, great performance from Tom Brewer, especially for a P!

[kenyan_cheena]

The Washington Post

MONDAY 19 JULY 1959

SENATORS STAGE REMARKABLE RALLY
TO OVERCOME TIGERS IN DETROIT

Story by Brian George

In what must rank as the game of the season the Washington Senators fought back from an 11-2 4th-inning deficit to defeat the Detroit Tigers 13-11 in twelve innings yesterday afternoon at Briggs Stadium. Led by a fantastic 4-for-6 effort from rightfielder Jim Lemon the Senators secured an encouraging 3-1 series win and improved to 45-46. Detroit could not have made a more explosive start to the game, Charlie Maxwell's three-run homer in the 1st followed by a four-run 2nd that knocked Senators starter Hank Mason out of the game. Three more came in the 3rd making the score 11-2, the crowd in raptures and the Senators dugout as silent as a morgue.

Pinch hitter Ted Kazanzki homered to left leading off the 4th before that Tigers lead suddenly looked less than secure when the Senators came up with four consecutive two-out singles in the 5th to trim the score back to 11-7. Having given up three runs in the 3rd Senators reliever Jack Spring kept the Tigers to just a pair of hits in the next two frames, the deficit cut to three when Washington added another run in the 6th.

That's how it stayed until the top of the 9th, a half-inning that had the Briggs Stadium crowd in shock. Al Smith led it off with a bomb over the centrefield wall, catcher Clint Courtney then singling before Lou Berberet went down swinging and Courtney was out at 2nd on a Whitey Herzog grounder. The game should have been over in the next at-bat when Eddie Yost hit a flyball to centrefield but Harvey Kuenn misjudged it running to his left, the ball catching the edge of his outstretched glove and falling safely to the green. The error saw Herzog score and Yost slide into 2nd, pinch runner Dick Hyde then taking 3rd on a wild Bob Buhl pitch. Faye Throneberry's single to shallow right on the very next pitch brought him home, tieing the scores at 11-11 before Joe Cunningham flied out to end the frame.

Detroit went three up-three down in the bottom of the inning, neither team threatening to score in the 10th or 11th. Jim Lemon then produced his Player of the Game moment, a one-out two-run homer down the right field line that gave the Senators their first lead of the game at 13-11. Once again, Detroit were retired in order in the bottom of the inning, Harvey Kuenn popping out to end the five-hour, 28-minute marathon. Kuenn's afternoon was a bittersweet one: he batted an incredible 5-for-7 with two runs and two RBI but his error in the 9th was the play that gave Washington a chance to tie the score and eventually win.

"Don't think I've ever been involved in a game like this," said Senators manager Cookie Lavagetto. "Not as a player or a manager. We were gone after the 3rd, you know? I mean, how many teams come back from a nine-run deficit? I've never been so proud of these guys, I have to say. It's been a tough month for us so far but hopefully this series will be the start of something special for us. Maybe we can get back to the form we were in early in the season. We're not out of the race by any stretch and if we can string some wins together, who knows what could happen?"

***

Washington Senators
0 1 1, 1 4 1, 0 0 3 (0 0 2) - 13 / 18 / 1
DETROIT TIGERS
4 4 3, 0 0 0, 0 0 0 (0 0 0) - 11 / 15 / 2

[kenyan_cheena]

THE OHIO EXPRESS

Wednesday, 21 July, 1959

SCORE INJURES BACK,
GONE FOR A MONTH

Story by Grady McCallum

The Cleveland Blues have been dealt a mighty blow in their quest for the American League pennant with Cy Young candidate Herb Score suffering a back injury during yesterday's important 9-4 win over the Detroit Tigers. Score went down during the 3rd inning with the Blues leading 4-0 and two men on base, reliever Cal McLish giving up a three-run homer to Ken Boyer in the very next at-bat. However, Cleveland's bullpen did a good job to hold Detroit to just six hits for the remainder of the game. Score had been struggling with his control before the injury, walking four of the eleven batters he faced.

At the plate Rocky Colavito, Willie Mays and Preston Ward all had good games for the Blues, Colavito hammering a three-run home run in the 3rd (his 30th of the season) for the first score of the game while Mays and Ward both collected a pair of hits. Chico Carrasquel contributed an important two-out two-RBI double in the 7th that pushed Cleveland's lead out to four runs. 3rd baseman Billy Harrell was 3-for-4 with a run and an RBI while Roger Maris hit a two-run home run in the 4th in his only plate appearance, pinch hitting for McLish.

While Score's injury will do a deal of damage to his chances of claiming the Cy Young award, it makes the Blues' task of staying at the top of the standings even more difficult. He'll be out for at least four weeks meaning he'll miss about seven starts. He's been close to a guaranteed win for the Ohio ballclub for most of the season so his absence will certainly be felt.

"It's been frustrating," said manager Joe Gordon in relation to his club's injury woes. "We just got Willie and Minnie back and now we lose Herb. We'll just have to tough it out. That's all we can do."

After splitting a four-game set in Baltimore to start the second half yesterday's win improved Cleveland's record to 52-41. By contrast Detroit have struggled out of the break, winning just one of five to fall to 53-40 and surrender the league lead to the Yankees, who are now 53-39 after defeating the Red Sox 8-4 at Fenway yesterday...

[Jeff1787]

Darn, that is a tough loss....

[kenyan_cheena]

KANSAS CITY TELEGRAPH

SUNDAY 25 JULY 1959

DUREN 3-0 SINCE
TRADE FROM YANKEES

Story by George Milton

Kansas City Athletics pitcher Ryne Duren has extended his win streak to three games since being surprisingly traded by the New York Yankees two weeks ago. The 30 year-old was less than impressed when the trade occured as he went from a team contending for the pennant to one floundering under .500 but it's clear that he's been channeling his disappointment into his performances on the mound. His first start for the Athletics was against the Yankees on the 15th, a game Kansas City won 10-3 with Duren going seven innings, giving up four hits and striking out seven. Five days later he was in fantastic form as he struck out twelve in a 4-2 victory over the Orioles in Baltimore before bettering that effort yesterday afternoon by registering a season-high thirteen Ks as Kansas City defeated Boston 5-2 at Fenway. Duren was the Player of the Game in both the Baltimore and Boston games.

"I ain't afraid to say that it really disappointed me," Duren said recently about the trade. "I felt like I would be a big part of New York's pennant chase and for them to just trade me out of nowhere, it cut pretty deep. But what can I do? Save for working as hard as I can for the Athletics, the answer is nothing. So that's what I'm doing."

Duren's addition has certainly had a positive effect on Kansas City. Since the All-Star break the team is 7-2, yesterday's victory over the Red Sox their sixth straight with the last five coming on the road. The ballclub is now 48-48 and all by themselves in 4th place, 6.5 games back from the three-way tussle for first place. Duren's numbers in his three starts read as mighty impressive: 3-0, 1.96 ERA, 23 IP, 32 K, 10 BB.

"All I can say is that I'm ecstatic they pulled the trigger on that deal," said Athletics manager Harry Craft. "This has been a different ballclub since Ryne came back and I just hope we can keep this run going. Folks thought them Yankees'd come out of the trade in front but I beg to differ and so does my team."

[kenyan_cheena]

THE CHICAGO TRIBUNE

MONDAY, 26 JULY, 1959

THOMSON GRAND SLAM HELPS
CUBS SECURE SWEEP OF PHILLIES

Story by Brian Davison

In front of a near-capacity 38,391 fans the Chicago Cubs scored a 4-2 win over the Philadelphia Phillies at Wrigley Field yesterday to complete a three-game series sweep of their closest rivals in the National League pennant race. The victory was the Cubs' thirteenth in seventeen games and saw them improve to 58-39, 3.5 games ahead of the Phillies (55-43). The win was built on another fantastic outing from 25 year-old starter Bob Conley who went 7.2 innings and gave up six hits, also striking out six as he upped his record to 16-5. However, the highlight of the game was a grand slam home run from centrefielder Bobby Thomson in the 5th, the shot to deep right-centre accounting for all the Cubs's scoring on the night.

One had to feel some sympathy for Phillies starter Camilo Pascual. The Cuban native conceeded just four hits in eight innings of work to fall to 11-8 on the season. The series was a missed opportunity for Philadelphia as they were only outscored by a combined total of four runs in the three games and outhit the Cubs 22-19. A 2-1 series win would have seen them with a half-game league lead but instead they now find themselves 3.5 behind and with some work to do to get back on level terms.

"This was a huge series for us and I'm pretty relieved we've come through it like this," said Cubs manager Bob Scheffing. "It gives us a little bit of breathing room which is always handy to have. I'm really proud with the way the boys have performed during these last couple of weeks. They've put themselves in a position where they control their own destiny and although there's still a long way to go, it's a good position to be in."

[kenyan_cheena]

The Cleveland Courier

TUESDAY 27 JULY 1959

COLAVITO HAMMERS HIS WAY
TO PLAYER OF THE WEEK AWARD

Story by Larry Jacobson

Defending MVP Rocky Colavito was yesterday named the American League's Player of the Week for the first time this season after a fantastic seven days in which he batted .444, hit five homers and knocked in ten runs. The Blues took series wins against the Tigers and Senators to go 4-2 for the week and stay right in the thick of the pennant race. In Sunday's 10-6 loss to Washington Colavito hit his MLB-leading 34th home run of the year and is on track to become the first player since Babe Ruth in '27 and '28 to record back-to-back fifty home run seasons.

"The guy has just been fantastic for us," said Blues manager Joe Gordon before yesterday's series-opening win over the Yankees in the Bronx. "I couldn't ask any more of him. You know, we brought in Mays to help us contend and Willie was out for a whole month. During that time Rocky stepped up big time and he's just kept that going since Willie's return. I've got so much admiration for him and at just 25 years old, he's got such a great future ahead of him."

It must still worry fans of the Ohio ballclub that his current contract expires at the end of the season, although Colavito has expressed a desire to stay with the Blues beyond this year. With the addition of Mays to the lineup he'd really have to be crazy to want to leave. Colavito not only leads MLB in home runs but he's also on top of the American League with 74 RBI and should easily top 100 for the second straight year. The Blues go into today's second game at Yankee Stadium tied for 2nd place with the New Yorkers and just a game behind the league-leading Tigers...

How it is at the top of the American League,
end of play 26 July 1959...

1ST: DETROIT TIGERS 57-42 (.576)
2nd: New York Yankees 55-42 (.567) (1.0 G.B.)
2nd: Cleveland Blues 56-43 (.566) (1.0 G.B.)

[kenyan_cheena]

The Pittsburgh Gazette

Tuesday, 27 June, 1959

CLEMENTE BAGS FIVE HITS
AS PIRATES DEFEAT DODGERS
IN 15-INNING MARATHON

Story by Michael Thomas

Pittsburgh Pirates leadoff hitter Roberto Clemente recorded five hits and scored three of his team's four runs in a 4-3 15-inning victory over the Brooklyn Dodgers yesterday. The five-hour, 25 minute epic finished just before 8.30pm local time, with every one of the 30,443 in attendance at Forbes Field staying until the victorious ending. Clemente batted 5-for-7 with an RBI and those three runs but he wasn't even the Player of the Game. That honor went to Pirates starting pitcher George Witt, who produced 9.1 innings of brilliance. Witt held the Dodgers to just three hits and one earned run, striking out five and walking five on 141 pitches.

This game was the definition of a pitching duel, 33 year-old Dodgers starter Ned Garver going nine innings and giving up seven hits. It was scoreless through the first seven innings before Clemente doubled and then scored on a throwing error by 3rd baseman Don Zimmer in the 8th. But the New York ballclub stayed in the game in the top of the 9th when Johnny Roseboro crossed home plate from 3rd on a fielder's choice, he and Walt Moryn both drawing walks earlier in the inning. Roseboro had advanced to 3rd on a wild pitch from Witt before Ron Fairly grounded to shortstop.

The Dodgers took a 2-1 lead in the 11th when 3rd baseman Bubba Phillips reached on an error in the outfield, made it to 2nd on an Elmer Valo single and then beat the throw to home after Carl Furillo's single into left. But Clemente tripled for his fourth hit of the game leading off the bottom of the frame, scoring on a Ted Kluszewski grounder that dribbled halfway up the line to 1st. The Dodgers had another chance in the 11th when their first two batters reached safely, Julio Becquer then finding himself at 3rd on a Red Schoendienst sacrifice bunt. But Roseboro grounded out to 2nd to end the threat. Veteran Duke Snider hit a solo blast over the left field wall to lead off the 15th but once again the Pirates responded. Gene Baker singled and then moved to 2nd on a sac bunt from pitcher Curt Raydon before Clemente brought him in, singling to centrefield and taking 2nd on the throw home. Dick Groat then singled down the right field line and Clemente almost ambled home without a throw, the game over, the crowd jubilant and the Pirates 4-3 winners.

"That was an incredible one," said Pirates manager Danny Murtaugh. "I'm amazed we pulled it out, to be honest. Roberto was fantastic for us today. I can't speak highly enough of him."

The Puerto Rican native's five hits followed up the four he recorded in a 7-1 win over the Reds on Sunday and saw his average improve from .342 to .349. It also ran his streak of multi-hit games to five, Clemente batting 16-for-26 during the period. He's certainly been one of the major factors in the Pirates' presence in the pennant race as he's 1st in the NL in batting average and 2nd in runs scored (67) behind Chicago's Bobby Thomson (73).

[kenyan_cheena]

MILWAUKEE * WISCONSIN
JOURNAL SENTINEL

Wednesday 28 July 1959

BRAVES RUN WINNING STREAK
TO FIVE IN SAN FRANCISCO

Story by Lomas Robertson

The Milwaukee Braves continued their late-July push to stay in the pennant race yesterday, defeating the Giants 7-5 at Candlestick Park for their fifth consecutive win. After sweeping the Cardinals at home to end last week's action the Braves took an extra-innings nailbiter on Monday to open the current series before winning an offensive slugfest yesterday afternoon, the two ballclubs combining for 29 hits and four home runs.

The defending World Champions had six players that recorded at least two hits, leftfielder Wes Covington batting 3-for-4 with a run scored while Eddie Mathews, Joe Adcock and Del Crandall each knocked in two runs and all three of them homered. Giants 1st baseman Orlando Cepeda was 3-for-5 with two RBI, 2nd baseman Danny O'Connell also collecting three hits while scoring twice. Despite all the heavy hitting that was going on both starters went deep into the game, Braves hurler Warren Spahn giving up twelve hits, three earned runs and striking out six in eight innings of work, improving his record to 6-3. Stu Miller went 8.2 for the Giants, the Braves getting fifteen hits off him as he lost for the fifteenth time this season.

The win sees Milwaukee move into 3rd place in the National League at 55-45, just one game behind the Phillies and 4.5 back from the Cubs. After concluding their Californian business today they'll travel to Pittsburgh for a vital series against the Pirates that will bridge July and August...

Standings at the top of the National League,
as at end of play 27 July 1959...

1ST: CHICAGO CUBS 59-40
2nd: Philadelphia Phillies 56-44 (3.5 G.B.)
3rd: Milwaukee Braves 55-45 (4.5 G.B.)
4th: Pittsburgh Pirates 54-45 (5.0 G.B.)

[kenyan_cheena]

The New York Age

WEDNESDAY, 28 JULY, 1959

ENCORE PERFORMANCE:
DODGERS AND PIRATES GO SIXTEEN
ONE DAY AFTER GOING FIFTEEN

Story by Louis Greenberg

On Monday the Brooklyn Dodgers and Pittsburgh Pirates slugged it out for almost five-and-a-half hours in a fifteen-inning epic that the Pennsylvanian ballclub won 4-3. Only twenty-four hours later they were at it again, the two teams producing another marathon matchup yesterday afternoon in which the Dodgers prevailed 7-4 in sixteen innings, the game lasting a handful of minutes under six hours. In an extraordinary situation one player from each team recorded six hits, marking the first time in any MLB game this season that the feat had been achieved. Player of the Game Duke Snider turned back the clock, batting 6-for-7 with three runs scored and three RBI which came on a pair of solo home runs and a two-out RBI-double in the 3rd.

Continuing what has been an unbelieveable run of hitting, Pirates rightfielder Roberto Clemente was 6-for-8. Unfortunately his teammates were unable to convert his great efforts into runs as he only scored twice and found himself stranded in scoring position on two other occasions. The Puerto Rican All-Star brought a remarkable 16-for-26 run into the game, yesterday's exploits improving that mark to a ridiculous 22-for-34 (.647). In the space of two games his batting average has improved from .342 to .357.

The Dodgers scored first, Snider's double in the 3rd bringing shortstop Bob Lillis home before the Pirates took the lead in the bottom of the frame, putting on two runs on four hits in an extended half inning. They added another in the 5th when Clemente singled, stole 2nd and then scored on Dick Groat's sizzling single down the 1st base line. The inning ended when Ted Kluszewski grounded into a 5-4-3 double play in the next at-bat. Snider's first solo shot pegged the lead back to one in the top of the 6th, the Pirates sending six men to the plate in the bottom of the inning but failing to score. The Dodgers were back in the lead in the 8th, Don Zimmer tripling and then scoring thanks to a sacrifice fly from Lillis that was followed by Snider's second homer, the smash down the right field line putting the New Yorkers up 4-3.

After their first two batters lined and grounded out to shortstop in the bottom of the 9th it looked like Pittsburgh's chances were over but Clemente doubled to deep left and then made it home without a throw when Groat singled to right, tieing the scores. When Kluszewski's single to shallow-right moved Groat over to 3rd they were one hit away from stealing it but Roman Mejias flied out to centre, sending the game to extra innings to the angst of the Forbes Field faithful. Neither team was able to trouble the scorebaord attendant through the next six frames, the Dodgers coming close in the 12th when they had Charlie Neal at 3rd with one out before Don Zimmer lined out to 3rd and Red Schoendienst was caught stealing 2nd. But they finally broke through in the 16th, Lillis and Snider both singling to start things off before Gino Cimoli scored them with a triple down the right field line. Cimoli then came home on Carl Furillo's sac fly to right-centre to make it 7-4. The Pirates went down quickly in the bottom of the inning, Clemente ending a fantastic outing by striking out looking, Groat walking and 1st baseman Dick Stuart grounding into a game-ending double play just after 9pm local time.

"Who'd have thought it, hey?" said Dodgers manager Walter Alston, smiling. "You don't expect this to happen, two games like this back-to-back. It's pretty incredible and I'm just happy we were able to win one of them."

Each team used seven pitchers during the game. With the exception of the starters most of them had worked in the previous day's thriller. 12-year veteran Bob Porterfield went seven innings for the Dodgers but it was reliever Sandy Koufax who picked up the win, the 23 year-old pitching two hitless frames. Don Gross pitched into the 8th for Pittsburgh and gave up six hits and three earned runs while striking out four.

Dodger fans will be aware of the dire situation that Alston finds himself in. The manager has not commented publicly about the ultimatum made by Walter O'Malley during the All-Star break but it must be on his mind. The team is 7-5 since then and will need to come up with an unlikely winning streak to get on the pace necessary for Alston to keep his job...