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LEON CULBERSON |
THE CURSE OF THE BAMBINO, PART 2 ...
A POWERFUL RED SOX TEAM FAILS
IN THE WORLD SERIES ...
The Red Sox sweep the A's and take first place
April 28, 1946 ... On the brilliant pitching of Tex Hughson and and Mickey Harris, the Boston Red Sox not only preserved their perfect road record, but leapt into the American League leadership here today at Shibe
Park in Philadelphia. The Sox won by scores of 2-1 and 5-1.
For the first time in four starts this season, Hughson was his pre-service-days self. He spaced eight hits and was terrific in the clutch, as he whiffed ten batsmen to win a decision over Luther Knerr. Then Bobo Newsom stepped on the mound, confident that he would not only stop Ted Williams,
but the Red Sox themselves, just as he'd done in Boston last Sunday. But today there was no Sunday curfew to rescue Newsom. He hung on grimly for the first six innings in another pitching duel with Mickey Harris, but in the seventh, he was escorted to the showers.
Hughson had to struggle along for seven frames without any batting support, but the Sox gave him elegant support in the field. A bunt by Johnny Pesky started Boston's game-winning eighth inning. Williams rifled a long single to right and Pesky rolled into third base. Bobby Doerr's long fly
to right field brought in Pesky and Williams made it all the way from first on George Metkovich's sliced doubled to left.
In the second game, Leon Culberson singled to left and took third when Pesky doubled. Williams was intentionally passed, and as Doerr rounded out to McQuinn, Culberson scored the first marker of game number two. The Athletics tied it up in the sixth inning, but the big eruption occurred in
the seventh when Newsom was shelled into submission. Once more, Culberson launched the drive, this time with a 400 foot triple off the centerfield wall. Philly then enabled Culberson to come home with the tiebreaking run on a passed ball.
Then came the deluge. Pesky walked and Ted Williams, Bobby Doerr and Rudy York ripped singles to score three runs. A fourth one scored as Eddie McGah got his first big-league hit, driving home Doerr.
Mickey Harris is now won three straight and the Sox have won six in a row on the road. |
