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“DIARY OF A WINNER”
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THE CURSE OF THE BAMBINO, PART 6 ... July 7, 1967 ... The Red Sox lost another in a series of heartbreaking games, this one going to Detroit, 5 to 4, in the 11th inning. Once again, the Red Sox had lost, after fighting back and nearly pulling it out. After being blinded by the two hit pitching of Joe Sparma for 8 2/3 innings, the Sox were one out away from a 4 to 1 defeat. But they rallied for three runs to send the game into extra innings. In the 11th, Jim Northrup reached first when Mike Andrews couldn't come up with a hard ground ball hit to him near second base. Bill Freehan then slammed a low liner into the left-field corner and Northrup raced all the way around to score the walk-off winning run For eight innings the game belonged to Detroit. Sparma had given up just two hits, both singles, while he was mowing down Red Sox batters. Norm Cash gave him a cushion by driving in three runs with a single and also with a two run homer. The Tigers jumped into a 2 to 0 lead in the first inning against Gary Waslewski. Lenny Green doubled and scored on a single by Jerry Lumpe. Waslewski committed a balk that allowed Lumpe to move to second, where Cash was able to drive him home. The Sox did get a run back in the seventh, when Tony Conigliaro walked and took third on the first of three singles by George Scott. Rico Petrocelli sent him home with a sacrifice fly to right to make it 2 to 1. But in the seventh, Cash with one swing, made it 4 to 1. Against Galen Cisco, who came in in the sixth inning, Dick McAuliffe singled with one out. Cash then pounded a one and one pitch off the facing of the roof in right field, for his 10th home run of the year. It stayed that way into the ninth-inning when Sparma got the first two batters out before the Sox made a charge. Conigliaro started by bombing his 13th homer of the season over the fence in deep center. Scott and Petrocelli then both singled and Sparma was lifted in favor of Mike Marshall. He faced Reggie Smith, who singled to right, scoring Scott and cutting the lead to just one, 4 to 3. Jerry Adair, pinch-hitting for Bob Tillman, then sliced a double to right that scored Petrocelli with the tying run. The Tigers nearly took the game in the ninth against John Wyatt. Cash singled to center for his third hit of the game. Wyatt threw one in the dirt that got between the legs of Russ Gibson and allowed Cash to move up. Then Jim Northrup was intentionally passed and Wyatt threw another wild pitch, that allowed both runners to move up one base, to second and third. Wyatt pitched out of the jam, however, as Bill Freehan grounded to short for the first out. Mike Stanley hit a grounder to second and Cash was thrown out at home, trying to score, for the second out. The third out came with a blazing third strike past Willie Horton and the game was sent into extra innings. It was the 10th one run loss in a row for the Sox, and it dropped them six games behind the league-leading Chicago. |
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