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TED WILLIAMS |
THE BEST OFFENSIVE SEASON IN SOX HISTORY
...
Ted Williams
slugs two homers and the Sox score
19 runs and sweep a doubleheader from the A's
April 30, 1950 ... The
Red Sox pounded out 19 to 0 and 6 to 5 wins, as they extended their
Fenway Park winning streak over the Philadelphia Athletics to 14
straight games, in a doubleheader before 34, 697 fans.
Ted Williams, who missed seven of the last eight games, clouted a
pair of three-run homers in the opening game, during which Vern
Stephens and Bobby Doerr also homered.
The Sox saw nothing resembling major league pitching in the first
game, until Bobby Shantz became the fourth Philly pitcher in the
fourth inning. They banged out a total of 17 hits, good for 34 total
bases. The victims were A's starter Dick Fowler, Harry Byrd and Joe
Coleman.
In the first inning Fowler walked Dom DiMaggio to start the game.
Johnny Pesky followed up with a triple and he came home on Williams'
base hit. Vern Stephens homered and the Sox were up 4-0 after one
inning.
Ted's first homer of the game scored DiMaggio and Pesky, who had
drawn free passed from Fowler, putting the Sox ahead 7 to 0. Given a
seven run lead after two innings, Joe Dobson put together an easy
five hit shutout.
Dobson started the 11 run assault in the fourth, with a single to
left field. DiMaggio walked for the third straight time and Pesky
singled to score Dobson. The runners advanced on a wild pitch and
trotted home when Ted banged out his second three-run homer of the
game.
Vern Stephens walked and Bobby Doerr blasted another homer for two
more runs to send Byrd off to the showers and brought in Coleman.
Singles to Al Zarilla, Billy Goodman and Birdie Tebbetts added
another run. DiMaggio's double scored Goodman and Tebbetts and when
Coleman walked Pesky, his day ended. Shantz took the mound and walked
Ted to load the bases. Stephens bounced a ball back to Shantz, but he
made a wild throw to the plate, allowing DiMaggio and Pesky in, for
an 11-run inning, eight hit inning, with 15 batters coming to the
plate and giving them an 18-0 lead.
That was all the Sox could do as Shantz held them scoreless until the
ninth inning. They scored their 19th run on DiMaggio's second double
of the game, an infield out and error by Billy Hitchcock at short.
The Sox built up a 5-0 lead in the second game for Chuck Stobbs. The
Sox scored one run in the first inning on a single, a walk and a base
hit by Doerr. A double by Ted in the third inning, preceded another
double by Al Zarilla for the second run. Pesky's sacrifice fly with
the bases loaded in fourth gave the Sox another run before Hank Wyse
walked Vern Stephens with the bases loaded for their fifth run of the
game.
But Stobbs weakened. He gave up three runs in the fifth inning and
the A's were able to put the tying run on first with nobody out in
the ninth inning. Al Papai came in to save the game by retiring the
last three Philly batters in order. |
