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“DIARY OF A WINNER”
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THE CURSE OF THE BAMBINO, PART 6 ... July 1, 1967 ... The Red Sox got All-Star performances out and Jim Lonborg and Tony Conigliaro, to hammer the Kansas City Athletics, 10 to 2. Lonborg stopped the Athletics' attack to collect his 10th win of the season. Lonborg gave up just a two-run homer to Ramon Webster, while he, Conigliaro, Mike Ryan and George Scott were driving in two runs apiece for the Red Sox. Conigliaro, with three hits, including his 11th home run, paced a Red Sox assault that belted for Kansas City pitchers for a dozen hits. Conigliaro has now hit nine home runs in his last 72 trips to the plate, or one in every eight times at bat. A's manager, Alvin Dark, pulled a pregame surprise, by switching pitchers at the last moment. Left-hander Paul Lindblad was supposed to start, but instead, right-handed Chuck Dobson was inserted against the predominately right-handed hitting Red Sox lineup. After holding the Sox scoreless in the first, Dobson was touched for single runs in the second and third as the Sox took an early 2 to 0 lead. Jerry Adair led off the second inning with a line single to center and moved to third on Reggie Smith's bloop to the same area. Adair then scored when Mike Ryan grounded into a force play. The Sox added another run in the third, but ran themselves out of the real big inning with some erratic baserunning. After one out, Carl Yastrzemski singled and Dobson threw a wild pitch by Tony Conigliaro, that bounced high in the air over catcher Dave Duncan's head, finally ending up near the Red Sox dugout. By the time Duncan recovered the ball, Yaz was on third. Conigliaro next hit a hard shot off thirdbaseman Dick Green's glove for a single that sent Yaz home. Tony then stole second. Scott followed with a single to center. Tony ran through the stop sign given by Dick Williams, who was coaching at third, and was thrown out at the plate on a nice throw by Rick Monday. Scott took second on the throw, but was wiped out on the next play. Adair singled up the middle and secondbaseman John Donaldson cut the hit off, on the grass behind second. When he didn't have a play at first, he fired to third where Scott had made a wide turn and was trapped off base for the third out. So all the Sox got out of four straight hits was just one run. Lonborg, meanwhile, had breezed through the first three innings allowing just one hit. In the third, however, Kansas City exploded for two runs with one swing of the bat, to tie up the game at 2 to 2. With Monday at first and two out, firstbaseman, Ramon Webster, lined a long home run over the right-field screen to even up the game. It was his fourth home run of the season and only the fourth that Lonborg had given up in 122 innings pitched. But the Sox charged back with three runs in the sixth when Conigliaro stroked his 11th home run and his ninth in the last 20 games, to put the Sox in front 3 to 2. Blue Moon Odom came in to relieve Dobson and walked George Scott, Reggie Smith and Mike Ryan to load the bases. That brought up Lonborg, and with everybody in the park looking for a squeeze play, he lined one the single to score two runners. In the seventh, the Athletics gave the Red Sox three runs to build up an 8 to 2 margin. Diego Segui was now on the mound and he walked Yaz and Scott to bring Adair to the plate with two out. Jerry hit a slow roller to third that Green bobbled. Yaz rounded third on the play and would've been picked off, except shortstop Bert Campaneris, who was covering the base, dropped the throw which allowed Yaz to score. Smith was intentionally walked to load the bases and Mike Ryan, with the only hit of the inning, singled home two more runs. Lonborg completed the seventh inning but then left the game in favor of José Santiago. However, the Sox had more scoring to do when they added two more runs in the eighth. Adair now has a five-game hitting streak besides playing well in the field. Rico Petrocelli took some batting practice before the game and should return to the regular lineup in Anaheim. Dick Williams was coaching third base, as Eddie Popowski was excused to attend his daughter's wedding in New Jersey. Jim Lonborg is second in the major leagues to only Juan Marichal with 120 strikeouts in 125 innings. Marichal has 127 strikeouts. Yastrzemski, when he walked in the first inning, has now reached base for 56 consecutive games. It is their second win in a row for the Sox, and they now have won three out of the five games played on the trip. As a result of the win and a loss by Detroit, the Red Sox are now tied with the Tigers for second place. |
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