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TOMMY HOLMES |
BOSTON BRAVES
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SPAHN & SAIN and PRAY FOR RAIN ...
Tommy Holmes leads the Braves in beating the Cards
August 24, 1948 ... The
Braves routed Harry Brecheen and the St. Louis Cardinals by a 9 to 3
score, under a torrid 97° at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis. As
result, they increased their National League lead to 3 1/2 games.
Johnny Sain, after his usual poor start, settled down to win his 16th
victory of the year.
Brecheen, the Cardinals ace, had won his last six straight until this
all-important game. But before manager Eddie Dyer had decided that it just
wasn't Brecheen's night, the Braves had knocked him around for twelve hits,
seven of which were doubles in less than seven innings. The score could have
been even higher except for the phenomenal play of Stan Musial in the outfield.
At least three times, Musial hauled down extra-base hits in center field, in
addition to launching his 31st home run in the first inning to give the
Cardinals a 2 to 1 lead.
Tommy Holmes led the Braves attack with two doubles and two singles, scoring
three runs. Even Sain got into the hitting column with a single and double.
Holmes doubled to start the game and scored after two were out on Bob
Elliott's drive down the left-field line. But even though they were hitting
Brecheen hard, Musial's home run put the Cardinals up in their half of the first
inning and it stayed that way until the third. In the second Clint Conaster
doubled to left after Frank McCormick had flied out, and then Sibbi Sisti
crossed up the Cardinal defense by dropping a bunt down the third-base line and
beating the play to first, as Conaster scored. Sain hit his double to left to
score Sisti, who slid in home under a cloud of dust. Holmes got his second hit,
a base hit to right, and Ron Northey fumbled the ball, allowing Sain to score
the third run of the inning, and putting the Braves up 4 to 2.
In the fifth and sixth innings, the Cardinals opened up with doubles, however
neither Marty Marion nor Babe Young made it any closer to the plate.
Brecheen was finally knocked out of the box in the seventh inning, when the
Braves scored three runs on six hits. Holmes doubled to start and Alvin Dark
beat out a bunt. Mike McCormick's fly ball to center got Holmes across the plate
for the fifth Boston run. Elliott doubled Dark home and Brecheen called it a
day. Ted Wilks came into the game and Frank McCormick got a base hit off him to
score another run.
Gerry Staley tried to keep the Braves down in the eighth but he was also
knocked around for three hits and a couple of runs. Now down 9 to 2, the
Cardinals got to Sain for another run in their half of the eighth, on a single
by Northey and Don Lang's double to right-center. Sain however mixed up the next
three batters with his sharp breaking curves, and they were easy outs.
Red Schoendinst was back at second base for the Cardinals after being out for
almost two months with torn ligaments in his right shoulder. |
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