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“DIARY OF A WINNER”
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THE CURSE OF THE BAMBINO, PART 6 ... May 7, 1967 ... John Wyatt snuffed out a rally by the Minnesota Twins in the ninth-inning, to preserve a 9 to 6 victory for the Red Sox. He got the Sox out of a bases-loaded jam in the ninth by striking out Harmon Killebrew and getting Bob Allison to pop up. That ended a four-game losing streak and topped off a strange day for the Red Sox. It all started with Carl Yastrzemski being benched and ended with forgotten men like Dan Osinski, Don Demeter, José Tartabull and Tony Horton all playing key roles. Osinski came in from the bullpen after the Twins had built up a 5 to 1 lead against starter Dennis Bennett in three innings. He then limited the Twins to one run until John Wyatt got him off the hook in the ninth. Demeter, who had been in the doghouse all season, started his first game and collected two hits. Tartabull came into the game as a replacement for the injured George Thomas, in left field, and collected three hits with two of them coming in big Red Sox rallies. Tony Horton, who had spent most of the season on the bench, lashed out a vital pinch hit double to tie up the game in a four-run outburst in the fourth inning. The Sox then won it with another four-run inning in the seventh. This time Rico Petrocelli, after striking out his first three times at bat, knocked in the winning run and then Twins thirdbaseman, Ron Clark, helped the Sox to a couple more with a two run throwing error. But the Red Sox, who at the end of three innings, looked like sure losers once again. Jim Kaat, the winningest pitcher in the league last year, was on the mound for Minnesota and appeared to be on his way to an easy win. On the other hand, Bennett was getting slapped around and his fielding support heard him even more. In the second inning George Thomas played a fly ball in left field by Bob Allison, for a double, which should've been caught. Clark then singled Allison home for the first Twins run. In the third inning, an error by Joe Foy opened up the gates for a four-run Minnesota inning. With one out and a man on first, he bobbled a sure doubleplay ball for an error that kept the rally alive. Zoilo Versalles then tripled to left when Thomas tried to make a diving catch of a soft fly ball and injured his hand on top of it. Both runners scored and then Harmon Killebrew stepped up to slam a long home run into the left-field seats, completing a four-run inning.
With Kaat ahead, 5 to 1, Reggie Smith doubled and went to third on an error on the relay by Rod Carew. Kaat then committed a balk which allowed Smith to score. Then in the fourth the Sox jumped on the big lefty for four runs. José Tartabull opened up the inning with a single to left and George Scott followed with another single. Kaat bore down and got the next two hitters, only to have Mike Andrews rip a double to left that scored Tartabull. Bob Tillman then scored George Scott with a single and Tony Horton knocked in the Andrews and Tillman with a pinch double to left-center that tied up the game at 5 to 5. Dan Osinski gave up one run in 5 1/3 innings of relief after that, when Allison tripled and Clark singled him in in the eighth. But by that time the Sox were already ahead 9 to 5 at the expense of Jim Perry, the relief pitcher for the Twins. The Sox winning rally started in the seventh inning with two outs and nobody on. Scott walked and Demeter doubled him to third. Petrocelli then lined a single to left that scored two runs. Ron Kline came in to replace Perry and Andrews singled off him. Bob Tillman hit a bouncer to third after that, which Clark fielded cleanly but threw it over Killebrew's head into right field. That allowed two runners to race around the bases and score, making it 9 to 5. It wasn't over yet because the Twins added another run in the eighth and knocked out a Osinski in the ninth when pinch-hitter, Rich Reese walked and Cesar Tovar singled. John Wyatt was then called upon to make his seventh relief appearance of the year and struck out Rod Carew with one out. Then he walked Versalles to load up the bases, bringing Harmon Killebrew up to the plate. But Wyatt bore down and struck Killebrew out and then got Bob Allison to pop up to second and end the game. Wyatt has now pitched 15 1/3 innings, in relief, without giving up a single run. |
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