United League Baseball

Even Without Willie, Monuments are Simply A-Mays-Ing
More Shutouts, More Wins, As Miller, Gromek, Jansen Extend Monuments' Lead
WASHINGTON (June 15) -- Monument pitchers logged five more shutouts since June 1, including three straight against defending champions St. Louis, to build a five-game lead in the United League.
   Larry Jansen tossed a four-hit shutout at Boston on June 2, which was followed by Stu Miller's four-hit gem at home two days later vs. Detroit. After a couple of bad outings at Louisville and against Chicago, Washington hurlers regained their form with 6-2 and 4-1 wins over the Colts Sunday and Monday, but those were mere precursors to the performances later in the week. After losing to the Maroons 4-3 on Wednesday, Miller, Gromek, and Jansen shut out St. Louis three straight times, a UL record, on 2 hits, 4 hits, and 7 hits, respectively.
Miller, the rookie phenom, has been untouchable of late. After pitching 37 shutout innings for three straight shutouts in May, the 24-year old from Northampton, Mass. added two more in June. All told, Washington pitchers account for 11 of the UL's 23 shutouts this season, with Miller's five and Jansen's four pacing the league. The Monuments' Big Three are 9-1 in 10 June starts, with a 1.52 ERA.

Bob Rushed to Hospital
Detroit Hurler Tops Lengthy June Injury List
Detroit starter Bob Rush (7-5, 4.41) pulled a rotator cuff on June 2 and will miss 7 weeks. Rush, a 25-year-old right-hander who was 18-13 last year, was the biggest name on a very long injury list for the first half of June:
- New York's Johnny Schmitz (0-1, 4.20) strained a bicep muscle June 1 and will sit for 5 weeks.
- Louisville's Hank Sauer (.250-6-24) was hit in the face by a pitch on June 3, breaking a cheekbone that will sideline him 4-5 weeks.
- Chicago's Murry Dickson (0-1, 3.72) strained a tricep muscle June 4, from which he isn't expected to fully recover for 7 weeks.
- Detroit's only catcher Joe Tipton (.196-1-28) will miss 5-6 weeks with a broken hand suffered during a home plate collision June 8, forcing Ralph Kiner and Monte Irvin to share catching duties.
Jerry Priddy, Ellis Kinder, Steve Souchock, Art Houtteman, and Mike Fornieles all picked up bumps and bruises.

Teddy Ballgame Back in Stride
Williams Leads League with .512 Average in June
NEW YORK (June 15) - After a lackluster beginning, Ted Williams found his sweet stroke in June. The former Red Sox legend hit just .276 through May 30, but cranked out 21 hits in 41 at bats in June, for a league best .512 average, lifting his season average to .324, two points ahead of his final 1951 average. Williams' power numbers are down this year (SLG -88 pts from last year), but his walks are way up, accounting for an OBP of .453 (second only to Minnie Minoso of Brooklyn). The Splendid Splinter won POW honors for the first time on June 10. He hit .571 with 3 HR and 6 RBI.

Boston Splashes for Mathews
Boston Beacons' GM Charlie Qualls has a thing for Eddie Mathews -- and now he has Eddie Mathews. Boston traded two quality starters and their first round pick in the 1953 Reentry Draft to acquire the hottest prospect in this season's rookie crop, third baseman Eddie Mathews. The 27-year-old Mike Garcia, Boston's sixth round pick in the Initial Draft and a San Gabriel, California native, was established in the Beacons' rotation. The "Big Bear" was 20-16 with a 4.82 ERA in 44 starts with Boston. With Warren Spahn, Ed Lopat, and Allie Reynolds, Boston remains deep in pitching talent. Qualls more laments the loss of prospect Vinegar Bend Mizell, the Beacon's third round rookie pick who is quickly developing into big league talent. Mizell posted a 2.05 ERA in 3 starts with AA Atlanta before moving up to AAA Philadelphia, where he was 3-3 with a 3.42 ERA in 8 starts. The addition of Garcia and Mizell should have an immediate impact on Louisville's ailing pitching staff. The Colonels have improved marginally in 1952, shaving a half-point off their team ERA, but are still the second worst staff in the league (4.92 ERA, league-worst .294 OBA).
   Mathews, a 20-year-old Texarkana, Texas native, was the first overall pick in this year's rookie draft and went straight to the big team, where he struggled with a .197 average and 16 RBIs in his first 52 games.
   Boston shed $2.5 million of payroll in the deal, and goes from the second highest to the second lowest payroll in the league ($51.6 million). Louisville, with the lowest attendance and the smallest revenue stream, now tops the league with a $56.5 million payroll and may be forced to part with a number of its million-dollar contracts at the end of the season. RF Elmer Valo ($1.75m), RP Monte Kennedy ($1.25m), LF Dale Mitchell ($1m, military service), and C Harry Chiti ($1m) are among the targets for a possible payroll slash.

AROUND THE HORN

39-23 - 9-5	WASHINGTON · 5-1 in last 6 games, 21-11 at home, 4-1 in extra innings... June pitching: Jansen 4-0. 1.30, Gromek 3-0, 1.31, Miller 2-1, 2.10... June batting: Snider .429, .800 SLG, Goodman .326... June slump: Adcock .170, Garagiola .176, Kluszewski .233.
34-28 5 5-9	ST. LOUIS · 4-9 in last 13, scored 5 runs just once, averaged 2.4 runs/game... Maglie 2-1, 1.11 in last 3 starts... Ridzik 15.63 in last 6 games... Musial .295, .446 OBP, team high 2 HR, 6 RBI in June... June slump: Pesky .143, Jethroe .190... Campanella 1 HR in last 15 games.
32-30 7 6-8	DETROIT · Rush 4-1, 1.69 in last 5 starts... Porterfield 3-0, 1.71 in last 3 starts... Raschi 0-3, 8.75 in last 4 starts... Roberts 0-2, 5.01 in last 3 starts... Marion team-high 10 RBI in June, Metkovich .419... Kiner .149 in June, 2 HR in last 16 games.
30-32 9 8-6	BOSTON · Winless in extra innings (0-4)... 4-game sweep of New York June 12-15: Spahn, Lopat 6-hitters, Garcia 5-hit SHO... Garcia 3-0, 2.35 in last 4 starts... Lopat 2-0, 2.25 in last 3 starts... Zernial .500 (10-20), 4 HR, 14 RBI in last 6 games... Dillinger .385 (10-26) in last 8 games... D DiMaggio .378 in June.
29-33 10 7-7	BROOKLYN · Last 4 wins all by one-run (7-11 overall)... Raffensberger 3-1, 2.12 in last 4 starts... Hearn 1-2, 6.75 in last 3 starts... Wilhelm 0.00, 5 SV in last 8 games... June batting: Minoso .377, 11 RBI, Woodling .333, 11 RBI, Hodges .220... Souchock .053 (1-19) in last 9 games.
29-33 10 7-7	CHICAGO · xx
29-33 10 5-9	NEW YORK · xxx
26-36 13 9-5	LOUISVILLE · xxx
DAY-BY-DAY
Saturday, June 1 DET 6, BRO 4 - Kell 3-5, 2 R, Vernon 2-4, 2 RBI, Marion 2 RBI, Priddy inj LOU 3, CHI 2 - Houtteman 8.0, 2 R, Jensen 2-3, RBI, Easter GW PH in 8th BOS 4, WAS 3 - Garcia 8-hit CG, 7 K, McCullough GWRBI in 9th; Big Klu 2 RBI STL 13, NYG 6 - Schoendienst 4-6, 4 RBI, Jethroe, Coan, Pierce 2 RBI
Sunday, June 2 BRO 10, DET 4 - Woodling 3-5, 6 RBI, Reiser 2-3, 2B, 2 R, Rush inj; Kiner HR LOU 6, CHI 5 - Valo 4-4, 2 R, Fox 2 RBI, Chiti 2 R; Westlake HR, 2 RBI WAS 6, BOS 0 - Jansen 4-hit SHO, 6-run 9th: H Thompson GSHR NYG 7, STL 3 - Blackwell 7-hit CG, 7 K, 2-3, 2 RBI, Robinson HR, 2 RBI
Monday, June 3 BRO 9, BOS 8 (11) - Stephens 3-6, GWHR, Minoso 3-5, 4 RBI, Doerr HR, 3 RBI CHI 7, NYG 5 - Thomson 2-4, HR, 3 RBI, Berra HR, 3 RBI, Ryan 2-4 DET 3, WAS 2 - Porterfield 8.1, 2 ER, 7 K, Kell 2-4; Gordon 2-run HR in 9th LOU 4, STL 1 - Morgan 8.1, 1 R, 3 RBI, Jensen 2-4; Pillette 5-hit CG loss
Tuesday, June 4 BOS 5, BRO 2 - Lopat 8.0, 2 R, Brown 2-run PH 2B, McCullough 2-3, RBI CHI 10, NYG 9 - Westlake 2-5, HR, 3 RBI, Delsing 3 RBI, E Robinson HR, 2 RBI WAS 2, DET 0 - Miller 4-hit SHO, 11 K, Slaughter, Piersall RBI; Raschi 6-hit CG loss STL 4, LOU 1 - Maglie 8.0, 1 R, Campanella 2-4, HR, 3 RBI, Jethroe 2-4, SB
Wednesday, June 5 BOS 6, BRO 2 - Garcia 6-hit CG, Kuenn 3-run HR in 4th, McCullough 2-4, 3B, 2 R CHI 6, NYG 5 - Rosen 2-4, HR, 3 RBI, Lockman 3-5, Bell 2-3; Yost, Noren 2 RBI WAS 3, DET 1 - Gromek 8.1, 1 R, Goodman 2-4, H Thompson HR; Marion 2-4, HR LOU 7, STL 2 - Houtteman 4-hit CG, Mathews 2 HR, 4 RBI, Lowrey 2-3, 3 RBI
Thursday, June 6 WAS 8, LOU 5 - Lollar 2-4, 3 RBI, Snider 2 RBI, Michaels HR, McDougald 2 R STL 6, DET 3 (10) - 4-run 10th, Joost 3-4, 2 RBI, Pesky 2 RBI; Gray 9.0, 2 R BRO 12, NYG 5 - Westrum 2 HR, 5 RBI, Stephens 3-4, 3 RBI, Minoso 2-4, 3 RBI CHI 9, BOS 7 - Rosen, Westlake, Berra HR, Reese 2-4, 2 RBI; Kuenn 4-4
Friday, June 7 LOU 19, WAS 1 - Dark 2 HR, 5 RBI, Jensen 4-5, 2 HR, 3 RBI, Valo 4-5, 3 RBI DET 8, STL 2 - Porterfield 8-hit CG, 2-4, Kiner 2-4, 2 RBI, Tipton 2 RBI NYG 7, BRO 5 - Batts 2-5, 3 RBI, Doby 2-run PH, Boudreau 2-5, HR; Minoso 4-4 BOS 6, CHI 2 - Spahn 6-hit CG, D DiMaggio 3-5, 3 RBI, Torgy, Dillinger 2 H, 2 R
Saturday, June 8 STL 4, BRO 1 - Maglie 8.1, 3 H, 1 R, Ennis 2-3, 2 RBI, Coan 2-4, 2 RBI CHI 8, WAS 2 - Parnell 8.0, 2 R, Reese 3-5, HR, Westlake HR, 3 RBI, Delsing 2 RBI LOU 4, BOS 3 - Castiglione GWPHRBI in 9th, Bauer, Easter 2-4, RBI, Valo RBI NYG 10, DET 1 - Wynn 6-hit CG, Williams 2 HR, Doby 3-4, HR, 3 RBI, Batts 3-5, 3 RBI
Sunday, June 9 BRO 2, STL 1 (10) - Hodges 3-5, GW 2B in 10th, Jackson 2-4; Wyrostek 3-4 WAS 6, CHI 2 - Gromek 3-hit CG, Snider 3-4, HR, 2 RBI, Lollar, Piersall HR LOU 14, BOS 13 (10) - Easter 4-6, GWRBI in 3-run 10th, Fox 4 RBI, Jensen HR, 3 RBI, Collins 4 R; Zernial 2 HR, 4 RBI, 5 R, Morgan 3 RBI, McCullough 3-4, 2 RBI NYG 16, DET 8 - Batts 5 RBI, Yost 3-4, 4 RBI, Busby 3-5; Pafko, Marion 3 RBI
Monday, June 10 BRO 5, STL 4 - Reiser 2 RBI, ejected, Rizzuto 3-5; Ennis 4-4, Musial 3-run HR WAS 4, CHI 1 - Jansen 8.0, 5 H, 1 R, RBI, Adcock 2-run HR; Westlake 3-4, RBI LOU 5, BOS 1 - Kennedy 7.1, 4 H, 0 ER, Kluttz 3-5, Fox 4 RBI NYG 7, DET 1 - Loes 8.0, 5 H, 1 R, Batts 4-5, Busby 3 RBI, Thomas 2 RBi
Tuesday, June 11 NO GAMES
Wednesday, June 12 STL 4, WAS 3 - Musial 3-5, Coan 3-4, RBI, Joost HR, Kolloway 2-4, RBI; Garagiola HR BOS 9, NYG 4 - Spahn 6-hit CG, Zernial HR, 4 RBI, Morgan 2-4, HR, Mantle HR DET 6, LOU 2 - DiMaggio 3-run HR in 5th, Edwards 2-4, 3 RBI; Mathews HR, 2 RBI CHI 5, BRO 4 (11) - Bell GWRBI, Rosen 3-5, 2 HR, Westlake 3-5; Hodges HR, 2 RBI
Thursday, June 13 WAS 1, STL 0 - Miller 2-hit SHO, 8 K, McDougald RBI 2B in 4th; Maglie 8-hit CG loss BOS 8, NYG 3 - Lopat 6-hit CG, Dillinger 3-5, 2 RBI, Zernial 3 RBI, Mantle HR, 2 RBI DET 10, LOU 8 - Priddy 3-5, Pafko 3-run 3B, Marion HR, 2 RBI, Elliott 2-3, 2 R CHI 7, BRO 2 - Bell 3-run HR in 8th, E Robinson 2-4, HR, Ryan HR; Hodges HR
Thursday, June 14 WAS 12, STL 0 - Gromek 5-hit SHO, Goodman 4-5, 3 R, Big Klu 3-5 BOS 5, NYG 0 - Garcia 5-hit SHO, McCullough 2-4, 2 RBI, Zernial 2-3; Williams 2-4 DET 6, LOU 3 (10) - Kiner 2-5, GWRBIs, Metkovich 2-5, Vernon 2-4 BRO 6, CHI 5 - Jackson 2-2, 3B, 3 R, Doerr, Reiser 2 RBI; Westlake HR, 4 RBI
Friday, June 15 WAS 4, STL 0 - Jansen 7-hit SHO, McDougald 2-4, HR, 2 RBI, Michaels 2 RBI BOS 3, NYG 2 - Hiller 8.0, 2 R, Zernial HR, 2 RBI, Morgan 2-3, RBI; Robinson 3-4 LOU 6, DET 5 - Kluttz 2-4, RBI, Dark 2-5, 2 R, Lowrey GWRBI; Fain 3-4, HR, 2 RBI BRO 7, CHI 6 - Hodges HR, 3 RBI, Atwell 3-5, Reiser 2 RBI; Seminick 3 RBI