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JOEL HORLEN |
THE CURSE OF THE BAMBINO, PART 6 ...
"THE IMPOSSIBLE DREAM"
Joel Horlen
shackles the Red Sox bats
September
2, 1967 ... The Red Sox lost 4 to 1, to the
Chicago White Sox, and tumbled into second place. Joel Horlen, the
pitcher for the White Sox, was the difference in the game.
Jim Lonborg had one of his occasional weak starts at Fenway. He got the first
two men out easily and had a two strike and one ball count on Tommy Agee before
walking him. Pete Ward singled to right-field and Agee went to third. Rocky
Colavito was down two strikes and then got jammed by a fastball. He hit it off
his fists towards center. The wind was blowing in from left and the ball landed
between Rico Petrocelli, Mike Andrews and in front of Reggie Smith, before
skidding away from him, for a rather cheap two base hit. Meanwhile, Agee scored
while Ward held at third. Tom McCraw then lined a hard single to right and the
White Sox are ahead 3 to 0 in the first inning.
The other White Sox run came in the sixth on a pop bunt by Ron Hansen and
Walt Williams' double to left-center. Hansen scored and Williams was thrown out
at third, trying to stretch a double.
Lonborg lasted through seven innings and pitched well after the first. He
went more with his curveball for the rest of the game and wound up with five
strikeouts.
Horlen, meanwhile, was digging out of occasional trouble with a good
curveball and a great change. He had two men on in the first inning but got
George Scott to ground into a doubleplay.
With two out the third inning, Mike Andrews and Jerry Adair singled. Horlen
got a ball in on Yastrzemski's fists to force a ground ball to Tom McCraw at
first, ending the inning. In the fourth inning, Reggie got a little help from
the wind and rattled the ball against the fence in center field for a triple.
The White Sox played their infield back and Reggie scored on Ken Harrelson's
grounder to Hansen at short, making it 3 to 1.
In the sixth inning with two outs, Harrelson doubled to center and Rico
Petrocelli was walked. But Elston Howard grounded one to second, to end any idea
of anyone scoring in that inning.
Joel Horlen located his pitches so the Red Sox players would hit the ball to
left-field, into the stiff wind. Few Red Sox players were able to hit the ball
to right-field.
The Red Sox announced that Ken Brett, the 18-year-old left-hander, who spent
this year in Pittsfield will join the team in Washington. Russ Gibson is also
due back. |
