Top-notch pitching, with each hurler going three innings or less,
today silenced the bats of the best hitters in the world. And so the National League’s renowned sluggers, on a walk, a hit batter and two infield
singles, scored a sixth-inning run that gave them a 1-to-1 tie with the American League. The game, witnessed by a paid attendance of 31,851, was called at the end of nine innings because of persistent downpour of rain.
The American League scored its run, simply, in the first inning. The second batter, Rocky Colavito, hit a changeup pitch by right-hander Bob Purkey into the left field net. And in the sixth, without hitting the ball out of the infield, the
National League tied the score.
Except for those two scoring
moments, the game was featured by superb pitching … by the magic
performance of the National League’s finishing pitcher, Stuart Miller
of Northampton, and by the base-running, hitting and first-basing of
Bill White of the St. Louis Cardinals.
Jim Bunning opened the game for the American League with three perfect innings of pitching.
Don Schwall was the second pitcher
for the American League and gave up the only run. But he pitched a
terrific game. He came in to start the fourth inning. He gave up a
base hit to Maury Wills, got Eddie Mathews on a fly to left, and gave
up a hit to Willie Mays. Then he got Orlando Cepeda to pop out and
Roberto Clemente on a grounder.
In the fifth inning he had Bill
White on third base with only one out. He got John Roseboro on six
pitches (three strikes and three foul balls), Then Stan Musial went
down swinging.
He was one pitch away from retiring
the side twice. He hit Orlando Cepeda with a pitch in the sixth with
two outs and Eddie Mathews on first. But Eddie Kasko and Bill White
reached on infield hits for the NL's only run.
Camilo Pascual, except for one walk, pitched perfect baseball for the final three. But the crowd
went home talking of the National League finisher,
the Giants' Stu Miller.
With the score tied, Miller opened the seventh. He started by striking out Aparicio and Temple, then making Brooks Robinson
ground out to short. In the eighth, he made Pascual foul out, Cash and Colavito ground out. And after Al Kaline opened the ninth with a single to center.
With one out, Kaline stole second. Then Miller, in order, struck out
Mickey Mantle, Elston Howard and pinch-hitter Roy Sievers. And
so it was Miller and rain that ended the American League’s hopes.
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