IN THE NEWS: Elmer Valo is the first American League player to hit two bases-loaded triples in a game when he leads the A's to a 159 win in the first of two against the Senators. Valo will have a 3rd bases-loaded triple during the season, to tie the AL mark of Shano Collins in 1918. The A's take game 2, 73, called after seven innings.
IN THE NEWS: Taking advantage of the shortened fence installed by White Sox GM Frank Lane, the Senators belt seven homersand need them allin beating Chicago, 1412 in 10 innings. This is only time a team has collected seven homers in an extra inning contest. Clyde Vollmer leads the hit parade with 2, followed by Mark Christman, Gil Coan, Al Evans, Eddie Robinson, and Bud Stewart. The Sox get homers from Joe Tipton and Gus Zernial.
IN THE NEWS: White Sox infielder Floyd Baker, who will play 874 games in his 13 year ML career, hits his only home run, off Sid Hudson, into "Home Run Lane," named for GM Frank Lane, in an 87 loss to Washington.
A day after the two teams played to a 13-inning, 14-14 tie, the Tigers beat the Red Sox, 51, behind Virgil Trucks 3-hitter. The Tigers shell Mickey Harris for 14 hits in five 2/3 innings.
IN THE NEWS: Charlie Gehringer, star 2B of the Tigers between 1925-41, is picked for the Hall of Fame. Two days later, the Old-Timers committee will select Kid Nichols and Three-Finger Brown.
At the Polo Grounds, Johnny Mize pounds a 10th-inning homer and the Giants beat the Pirates 32 to sweep their three-game series. The homer, off Murry Dickson, is Big John's 300th. Reliever Hank Behrman, in for Sheldon Jones, pitches out of tight jams in the 9th and 10th to win. Wally Westlake is stranded in the 10th after reaching Behrman for a leadoff triple.
Before the start of a series with the Yanks, the White Sox abandon their trick LF fence. The 5-foot chicken wire fence, erected to cut the distance by 20 feet, resulted in 11 home runs in eight games, but opponents hit seven of them. The American League will subsequently rule that fences cannot be moved more than once a season. The Yanks still win today, 75, to go 133. Tommy Henrich has the only homer, while Johnny Lindell, Yankee left fielder, twice makes catches that would've cleared the wire fence. Allie Reynolds, with help from Joe Page, is the winner.
At Cleveland, Bob Feller, making his first start since pitching two innings in the season opener and coming up with a sore shoulder, beats the Red Sox, 73. The Tribe scores six in the 2nd inning, including Ken Keltner's three run homer off Jack Kramer. On the next pitch, Minnie Minoso making his second start, hits his first major-league homer. Ted Williams and Bobby Doerr hit 8th-inning homers for Boston, while Joe Gordon adds a homer in the 5th for Cleveland.
The Red Sox acquire outfielder Al Zarilla from the Browns for Stan Spence, who pinch-hit today, and cash.
IN THE NEWS: Bobby Shantz makes a sensational debut, tossing nine hitless innings in relief in a 13-inning, 54, Athletics' win over the Tigers. Shantz finally gives up two hits and a run in the 13th, but old-timer Wally Moses, now back with the A's, saves him with a 2-run home run in the bottom of the 13th.
IN THE NEWS: In Philadelphia, the Reds score five in the 9th to take a 73 lead, but the Phils tie to go into extra innings. Cincinnati then scores seven runs in the 12th to win, 147.
IN THE NEWS: At Detroit, the Tigers set back the first-place Yankees, 41, behind the five-hit pitching of Ted Gray. Vic Raschi also allows just five hits, including a homer by Dick Wakefield, in taking the loss.
IN THE NEWS: Roy Sievers has a double and home run to drive in four runs in the Browns 83 win over the Tigers. Slick-fielding Tiger first baseman Paul Campbell ties the major-league record by making two unassisted DPs; while with Montreal (IL) in 1941, Campbell started 26 DPs at 1B.
IN THE NEWS: White Sox hurler Bill Wight coasts to a 100 win over the Indians, and Al Gettel follows with a 20 whitewash of the Tribe.
Boston's Vern Bickford stops the Dodgers, 40, allowing just four singles. One is by Gil Hodges, extending his hitting streak to 17 games. Jim Russell switch hits a homer and double to pin the loss on Morrie Martin. The Braves start Al Lakeman at 1B in place of Earl Torgeson, who separated his shoulder yesterday when he attempted to block Jackie Robinson on a double play. Torgeson will be operated on tomorrow and will be sidelined several months.
IN THE NEWS: The Pirates trade Johnny Hopp (.218) to the Dodgers for Marv Rackley. Hopp will go 0-for-14 while Rackley will be 11-for-35 before the trade is canceled on June 7.
IN THE NEWS: Brooklyn's Don Newcombe makes his first ML start a dandy, shutting out the Reds, 30 in Cincinnati. It's the first shut out in a National League debut in eleven years and extends Brooklyn's win streak at Cincinnati to 19 games going back to June 1947. Newk gives up hits to the first two batters, then allows just three more hits while walking none. He drives in two runs as well. Ken Raffensberger then matches Newk by firing a one-hitter to beat Brooklyn, 20, tossing only 83 pitches. The only hit is a leadoff single by Gil Hodges in the 8th. Raffensberger pitched two one-hitters against the Dodgers in 1948.
IN THE NEWS: Striking out the last six St. Paul batters, Maurice McDermott of Louisville (American Association) fans a total of 20 for a new league record. McDermott wins, 31, striking out the side in the 3rd, 5th, 6th, 8th, and 9th innings.
IN THE NEWS: The Indians start so badly, 1217, that owner Bill Veeck arranges a "2nd Opening Day." Behind Al Benton, the Indians make it a success, beating Chicago, 40. The Indians do rise to 2nd place, within two 1/2 games of the top, but they will finish 3rd, eight games back.
IN THE NEWS: White Sox rookie LF Gus Zernial breaks his collarbone making a diving catch against Cleveland. He will be out of action for two months. The Indians push across a run in the 9th against Howie Judson to win for Early Wynn, 32.
IN THE NEWS: Cleveland druggist Charley Lupica boldly climbs to a 20-foot platform atop a flagpole after announcing that he was staying there until the Indians repeat as pennant winners. The 7th-place Indians will move up to 4th by the time Lupica descends on September 25, but the disappointed druggist will be rewarded for his loyalty with a new car by Bill Veeck.
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