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“DIARY OF A WINNER”
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THE CURSE OF THE BAMBINO, PART 6 ... June 30, 1967 ... Tony Conigliaro celebrated his selection to the American League All-Star team with a tape measure three run homer, that carried the Red Sox to a 5 to 3 victory over the Kansas City Athletics. Conigliaro's homer, carried Gary Bell two another victory while pitching a very fine game. Bell won his fifth game against just one loss in a Red Sox uniform. He needed help from his closer, John Wyatt, who snuffed out a rally in the eighth-inning and put the A's down with a scoreless ninth. Conigliaro drove in three runs, scored one himself and made a great catch to take a triple away from Bert Campaneris. George Scott also homered for the Red Sox, who beat the A's Jim Nash for the first time ever. The Athletics were the first to score in the game, on a beautifully executed hit and run play. Catcher Dave Duncan, after reaching for a walk to open the third, took off for second base with John Donaldson at the plate. Donaldson hit a line double into the right-field corner that sent Duncan all the way home. Through the first four innings the Sox looked hopeless against Nash. The big right-hander came up from the minor leagues in the middle of last year and the Sox had not been able to beat him. But opening the fifth inning, Scott smashed a home run to left-field to tie up the game at 1 to 1. It was his 10th home run of the year and the first time he had ever hit one off Nash. In the sixth, after two were out, Joe Foy doubled to left and Nash walked Carl Yastrzemski. Up came Conigliaro and he belted the second pitch almost out of sight. The ball went out of the park over the 370 foot sign, over a 20 foot fence. It traveled across the street in the air and about 30 more feet into the parking lot. Veteran observers estimated that it traveled 450 feet. It was his 10th of the season and his eighth in the last 19 games, and put the Red Sox ahead, 4 to 1. Bell, with his uniform completely drenched with perspiration, looked stronger as the game progressed. After Donaldson's double in the third, he gave up just two singles until two were out in the eighth. Then he wore out and the A's started a rally. Mike Hershberger started things off with a bloop single to left and Ramon Webster followed him with a double to right. Rick Monday then lined Bell's next pitch into center, scoring two runs and knocking Bell out of the game. John Wyatt came in and struck out Danny cater to end the threat. Leading now just 4 to 3, the Sox picked up an insurance run off A's relief pitcher, Jack Aker, in the ninth-inning. Conigliaro scored this one, when he reached second base on an error by third baseman Danny Cater. Cater overthrew first after picking up Tony's ground ball. The A's next intentionally walked George Scott to pitch to Jerry Adair, who promptly singled up the middle to score Tony with the fifth and final Red Sox run. Before the game Tony Conigliaro was notified, by the American League office, that he had been selected as a spare outfielder for the All-Star game. He is going to replace the injured Al Kaline. |
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