United League Baseball

Back in the Race
Washington Surges to Second, Campy Sparks Maroons, as Pennant Race Tightens
NEW YORK (Aug. 16) -- The Washington Monuments climbed nine games and two positions, as superior pitching fueled a 10-2 run in early August. The hot streak coincided with first place Chicago's worst slump of the year, reopening a pennant race that once seemed in the bag for the Colts. Washington's pitching, which was already good in July, became nearly unhittable in August. The Monuments have allowed only 23 runs in their last 9 games (2.6 per game), and have held their opponents to 2 runs or less an incredible 18 times in the last 30 games.
   Leading the charge in August are 1-2 starters Steve "One-Hit Two-Hit" Gromek and Larry Jansen. The top two hurlers in the Monument rotation have combined for an 8-0 record and 1.54 ERA in August. The bottom of the rotation isn't slouchign either, with Harry Perkowski (2-0, 2.91) winning both of his August decisions and Dave Koslo (2-1, 3.20) maintained his July form. Koslo, Pitcher of the Month for July, has been the biggest surprise for the Monuments. The 22nd round draft pick figured to be in and out of the rotation, battling for the fourth slot, but has become a stalwart, with an 11-6 record and 72 strikeouts, second only to Jansen.
   Offensively, rookie centerfielder Willie Mays has stepped up this month. After batting .266 or less for the first four months, Mays is hitting .412, and slugging .667 in August, and his 14 RBI already tops his previous single-month high. Mays was 3-for-3 on Aug. 5, including a game-winning 3-run homer that beat Boston in the ninth 7-4. But the club's offensive mainstay remains Duke Snider, who drove in 17 runs in a seven-run stretch July 1-8.
   Washington managed to eliminate two-thirds of its 13.5-game deficit in just over two weeks, creating the prospect of a dog, cat, and bird fight heading into the last six weeks of the season.

Campy Revitalizes Maroons
BOSTON (Aug. 16) -- Roy Campanella went 0-for-4 in his debut as a St. Louis Maroon, but didn't take long to establish himself as a team leader. The backstopper drove in 13 runs in 13 August games, and led or co-led the club in hits, doubles, home runs, RBIs, and runs. Meanwhile, Sad Sam Zoldak (18-7 extended his streak to seven wins in seven starts, with three successive complete games in early August.
   The Maroons swept Chicago at Sportsman's Park Aug. 12-14. Campy hit 6-for-12 for the three-game set, driving in six runs, and Sal "The Barber" Maglie tossed a 5-hitter in the 3-1 series finale Tuesday. Despite a 9-5 fortnight that lifted them within five games of first, the Maroons were overtaken by red-hot Washington and fell to third.

Hot Detroit Joins Race
Sound Overtakes Gothams With Four Wins in the Bronx
NEW YORK (Aug. 10) -- The Detroit Sound entered this week's four-game set 3.5 games behind New York, but emerged in fourth place today, a half-game ahead of the Gothams. Vic Raschi tossed a five-hitter and Ralph Kiner was 4-for-5 with a home run in a 10-2 blowout in the opener Tuesday. The next day, New York blew a 3-1 lead in the ninth. Joe DiMaggio's lead off double sparked a five-run inning, which culminated with Ewell Blackwell's wild pitch and George Kell's two-run single. On Thursday, Robin Roberts got his 14th win with a seven-hit complete game. Kell and Kiner had three hits each, including Kell's first home run. In the Friday finale, Bob Porterfield got his fourth win in four starts, as the Sound completed the sweep with a 6-5 win. Porterfield's win streak is more than welcome after the 27-year-old righthander started the season 3-10, including six straight losses in June.
   Aside from much improved pitching, the Sound have built their success on the UL's most productive outfield trio: Ralph Kiner, Monte Irvin, and Joe DiMaggio, who have combined for 61 home runs, 68 doubles, and 246 RBI in 115 games. Kiner leads the league with 28 home runs, 94 RBI, and 1.003 OPS and Irvin is fourth in hits (135) and sixth in total bases (221). DiMaggio went late in the draft (21st round) based on the general consensus among UL owners that his best years were behind him. But Joltin' Joe is second in batting (.323), sixth in RBI (82), and 7th in OPS. DiMaggio has nearly twice as many hits and RBIs on the road than at Briggs Stadium, where he is batting just .247 (compared to his league-best .393 road average). Detroit GM Brad McNeely recently rewarded the living legend with a three-year contract extension. "We don't expect him to keep this up forever, but if this season is any indication, Joe's still got a few good years left in him."

Washington Only Team to Sell Out
The Washington Monuments are the only UL club to play in front of a packed house at home this season. The first sellout in UL history was June 16, Noddin Head Doll Day, which filled every seat in the 32,000-seat Griffith Stadium. The Monuments also sold out their next home game, a Sunday date with Detroit June 24, which the Sound won 9-5 in 12 innings, spoiling Bat Day for everyone. Special promotion days have since been banned by the league because "some cities just don't have enough crap to hand out." St. Louis' "Turn Ahead the Clock" day was a disaster when fans balked at the $5 hot dogs and the 'devil music' between pitches. "What the hell's a chardonnay?" one fanned complained as he left the park hungry.
Griffith Park has one of the smaller parks in the league, but with two-thirds of "Willie, Mickey, and the Duke" and the second coming of Babe Ruth in Steve Gromek, the Monuments are second in attendance, with 1.24 million paying customers to date (about 21,000 per game). New York still leads the league in attendance, with 1.38 million in cavernous Yankee Stadium. The lowest attendance teams are Louisville, Detroit, and Brooklyn, none of which it yet to exceed 1 million fans.

AROUND THE HORN

66-48 -- 2-11	CHICAGO · 1-10 since Aug. 1, swept at Louisville and St. Louis, lost 3 of 4 vs. Washington... August pitching: Newcombe 0-3, 10.26, Roe 0-3, 7.78, Rogovin 1-2, 2.66, Parnell 1-0, 2.75... Westlake 5 HR, 11 RBI in last 12 games... Thomson .444 (8-18) in last 5 games, including 4-5 at St. Louis Aug. 13... Reese .150 (3-20) in last 6 games.
62-53 4.5 12-3	WASHINGTON · Won 6 straight, 4 game sweep of Brooklyn (7 straight wins over Superbas)... August batting: Mays .412-3-14, Adcock .385, Goodman .364... Slumping: Kluszewski .172, H Thompson .156 in August... Byerly allowed earned run July 1, ending streak of 25 games, 29 IP without an earned run, let in 5 earned runs in 1.2 innings Aug 3.
61-53 5 9-5	ST. LOUIS · 15-4 at home since July 1, six straight home wins (sweeps of New York, Chicago)... Beat New York 9-8 on Gil Hodges error in 13th inning Aug. 4... Zoldak 3-0, 3.00 in August... Pierce 1-3, 6.75 ERA in last 5 starts... August batting: Mullin .419, 8 RBI, .839 SLG, Schoendienst .387, Joost .354, Campanella .298-3-13, Pesky .194, Ennis .190.
59-56 7.5 10-3	DETROIT · Won 8 straight Aug. 4-13, including 3 one-run wins and a four-game sweep at Yankee Stadium... Raschi 3-0, 1.38 in August, 4-hit Boston Aug. 12... Porterfield 3-0, 3.75 in last 3 starts... Labine 6 SV, 1.50 ERA in last 6 games... August batting: Irvin .438, Scheffing .341, J DiMaggio leads team with 3 HR, 13 RBI... Kiner .400 (10-25) in last 7 games.
57-57 9 3-11	NEW YORK · Lost 11 of last 12, swept at St. Louis and by Detroit (four games)... Lost six straight at home, 3-8 in last 11 home games... Breechen 2-1, 3.43 in August, 5-hit shutout of Boston Aug. 13... Church 0-3, 7.90 in last 3 games... Robinson .365, 11 runs in last 13 games... Williams .455 (10-22) in last 7 games... Batts .175, Wertz .204 in August.
52-62 14 7-7	BOSTON · Won 3 of 4 over Louisville Aug. 7-10, 6-1 in last 7 home games... Reynolds 4-1, 3.95 in last 5 starts... Spahn beat St. Louis 12-1 Aug. 15, 0-5, 5.44 in 6 previous starts... Zernial .545 (18-33), 4 HR, 16 RBI in seven-game span Aug. 2-9, including 6-RBI game in 8-2 win over Louisville Aug. 7... Cooper .346, 14 RBI in August... Cold: Stanky .045 (1-22), Zernial .136 (3-22), Torgeson .143, (3-21)
50-64 16 5-9	BROOKLYN · Lost 5 straight, swept in Washington (four games)... 4-13 in last 17 road games, including six straight losses... Hutchinson shines in first 3 starts: 2-1, 1.80 ERA... Other four starters: 2-8, 8.13 in last 10 starts... Woodling .351, Doby .349 in August... Stephens ruptured bicep tendon July 31 (5-6 weeks)... Minoso .105 (2-19) in last 6 games, .216 in August.
50-64 16 7-6	LOUISVILLE · Swept Chicago Aug. 3-5: 9-5 (Collins 3-4, 3 RBI), 3-1 (Chambers 8.1, 1 R, 9 K), 11-6 (Morgan 7.2, 1 ER, Collins 3-4, 4 RBI)... Morgan/Chambers 4-0, 2.53 in last 4 starts... Kennedy/McDermott 0-5, 8.33 in last 6 starts... Hot August: Jensen .362-4-12, Collins .333-3-12... Cold August: Lowrey .182, Valo .200, Dark .211.
DAY-BY-DAY
Tue Jul 31 BRO 6, CHI 0 - Shantz 7-hit SHO, Woodling 3-5, HR, D Williams 3-4 LOU 12, DET 3 - Morgan 4-hit CG, Collins 2 HR, 6 RBI, Jensen HR, 3 RBI NYG 11, BOS 2 - Friend 8-hit CG, Hodges 3-4, HR, 5 RBI, Batts 3-4 STL 4, WAS 3 (10) - Jethroe HR, Coan game-tying single in 3-run 9th, W Jones GW RBI in 10th
Wed Aug 1 CHI 5, BRO 3 - Westlake, Berra HR, Rosen 4 BB; Cavarretta 3 RBI DET 4, LOU 3 - Irvin 3-5, RBI, J DiMaggio 2-4, RBI, Porterfield 2-4 NYG 3, BOS 2 - Breechen 8.0, 2 R, Hodges HR, Noren, Williams RBI 2Bs in 6th WAS 6, STL 2 - Jansen 7.1, 1 ER, Lollar HR, 4 RBI; Musial 2-5, HR
Thu Aug 2 BRO 9, CHI 6 - Cavarretta 3-3, Woodling 2-4, 2 R, D Williams 2-4, 2 RBI; Berra HR, 3 RBI DET 6, LOU 3 - Raschi 8.0, 2 ER, J DiMaggio 2 HR, 5 RBI; Jensen HR, 2 RBI BOS 10, NYG 3 - Zernial 3-4, HR, 3 RBI, Abrams 2-5, 2 RBI; Noren 3-4 WAS 15, STL 2 - Snider 4-5, HR, 5 RBI, H Thompson 3-5, 5 R, Mays 3-5, HR, 3 RBI, Slaughter 3-6
Fri Aug 3 BRO 5, DET 1 - Hutchinson 7-hit CG, Minoso HR, 2B, 3 RBI, McCullough 2 RBI BOS 13, WAS 6 (10) - Torgeson 3-5, 3-run HR in 7-run 10th, Cooper 3-6, 2 RBI STL 11, NYG 3 - Mullin 2-4, HR, 3 R, 2 RBI, Schoendienst 3 RBI, Musial, Coan 2 RBI LOU 9, CHI 5 - Collins 3-4, 3 RBI, Bauer 2 RBI; Westlake, Thomson HR
Sat Aug 4 DET 8, BRO 6 - J DiMaggio, Priddy 3-5, Irvin, Fain, Scheffing 2 RBI WAS 6, BOS 2 - Koslo 9-hit CG, McDougald HR, 3 RBI, Snider 2 RBI; Zernial 4-4, HR STL 9, NYG 8 (13) - Hodges E in 13th, Coan 3 R, Schoendienst, W Jones 2 RBI; Williams, Hodges, Wertz, Yost HR LOU 3, CHI 1 - Chambers 8.1, 3 H, 1 R, 9 K, Hemus 2 RBI
Sun Aug 5 DET 3, BRO 2 - Porterfield 8.0, 2 R, Rojek 2-3; Doby 2-4, RBI WAS 7, BOS 4 - Mays 3-3, GW 3-run HR in 9th, McDougald 2-4, RBI in 9th; Cooper 2-4, HR, 2 RBI STL 6, NYG 5 - Joost GWRBI in 4-run 9th, Coan, Jethroe 3 H, Ginsberg HR, 4 RBI LOU 11, CHI 6 - Morgan 7.2, 1 ER, Collins 3-4, HR, 4 RBI, Fox 3-3, 2 RBI
Mon Aug 6 NO GAMES
Tue Aug 7 BRO 6, STL 5 - Cavarretta 2-4, RBI, Woodling, Hitchcock 2-3; Vernon HR, 3 RBI WAS 10, CHI 2 - Gromek 6-hit CG, Snider HR, 5 RBI, McDougald 2 RBI, Slaughter 3 R DET 10, NYG 2 - Raschi 5-hit CG, 1 ER, Kiner 4-5, HR, Elliott 3 RBI, Irvin 3-5 BOS 8, LOU 2 - Garcia 3-hit CG, 1 ER, Zernial 4-5, HR, 6 RBI, Rizzuto 3 R
Wed Aug 8 STL 10, BRO 2 - Zoldak 6-hit CG, Jethroe HR, 4 RBI, Schoendienst 4-4, 4 RBI WAS 4, CHI 1 - Perkowski 8.1, 1 R, Snider 2-run HR in 2nd; Roe 2-3 DET 6, NYG 4 - Kell 2-run 1B in 5-run 9th, Irvin 2-4, 2 R; Williams 3-4, Robinson 2-5, HR BOS 14, LOU 6 - Cooper 3-5, 6 RBI, Zernial 3-5, Lopat 3-4, Philley 4 R
Thu Aug 9 BRO 4, STL 2 - Hutchinson 8.0, 2 R, Woodling 2-5, HR; Musial 3-4, RBI CHI 6, WAS 3 - Rogovin 7.2, 2 ER, Westlake, Thomson, Berra, E Robinson HR DET 6, NYG 2 - Roberts 7-hit CG, Kell 3-4, HR, Kiner 3-4; Boudreau 2-4, RBI BOS 8, LOU 7 - Torgeson 3-5, 3 RBI, Mantle 3-5, Reynolds 2 RBI; Mitchell 2-4, 2 RBI
Fri Aug 10 STL 7, BRO 2 - Pierce 8-hit CG, HR, Campanella, Joost HR, Coan 2 RBI; Hitchcock 3-4 WAS 3, CHI 2 (10) - Jansen 9.0, 1 ER, Mays, Lollar RBIs in 10th, Adcock 2-4, HR DET 6, NYG 5 - Irvin 2-2, 3 W, Kiner 4 W, J DiMaggio 2 RBI; Wynn 2-run 2B LOU 4, BOS 2 - Chambers 8.0, 2 R, Jensen 2-4, HR, 2 RBI, Kluttz 2-4, Fox HR
Sat Aug 11 WAS 8, BRO 5 - Gromek 8.0, 1 ER, 2-4, 3 RBI, Adcock 3-4, 2 RBI; Reiser, Cavarretta 2 RBI
Sun Aug 12 WAS 14, BRO 3 - Adcock 2-3, 3 RBI, Suder 3-5, 2 RBI, Adcock HR, 3 RBI, Sauer 3-4 STL 6, CHI 3 - Campanella HR, 3 R, Mullin HR, 2 RBI; Lockman 3-4, HR LOU 7, NYG 5 - Collins, Bauer PH, 2 RBI in 4-run 8th; Wertz 3 RBI DET 11, BOS 2 - Raschi 4-hit CG, 7 K, 5-run 3rd, 5-run 6th, Kiner HR, 3 RBI, Kell 3 RBI
Mon Aug 13 WAS 4, BRO 1 - Koslo 8.1, 1 R, 2-3, RBI, Slaughter 2 RBI; Cavarretta 2-4 STL 9, CHI 5 - Joost 4-5, 2 RBI, Campanella 3-5, 3 RBI; Thomson 4-5, HR, Ryan 2 RBI NYG 7, LOU 0 - Breechen 5-hit SHO, Robinson 2B, 3B, 2 R, Boudreau 2 RBI DET 5, BOS 4 - Cooper E in 9th, Fain 3-4, Kiner 3B, 2 RBI; Cooper 2-3, RBI
Tue Aug 14 WAS 2, BRO 1 - Jansen 8.0, 0 ER, 2-3, RBI, Goodman 2-4; Hutchinson 6-hit CG loss STL 3, CHI 1 - Maglie 5-hit CG, Joost 2-3, HR, Campanella 2B, 3B, RBI; Westlake 2-3, HR LOU 9, NYG 8 (11) - Easter GWHR in 11th, Jensen 2 HR, 5 RBI, Ashburn 4-6, SB, 2 R; Robinson HR, 3 RBI BOS 6, DET 1 - Reynolds 8-hit CG, Abrams HR, 2 R, Brown 2-5, RBI, R; Irvin 3-5
Wed Aug 15 WAS 4, NYG 2 - McDougald inj (HBP), Mays HR, 3 RBI, Snider HR; Williams 3-5 BOS 12, STL 1 - Spahn 7-hit CG, Boone HR, 5 RBI, Dom 3-4, Rizzuto 3-5, Zernial 2 RBI