OPENING DAY 1964

Boston 3, Manhattan 2
Bob Allison and Willie Davis went deep back-to-back in the ninth inning to spoil Herm Wehmeier's Manhattan debut.  In their UL debuts, the Sox' Jimmie Hall picked up a sac fly and Pete Ward was 1-4.  Bob Friend, a 24-game winner last year, got the W with a four-hit complete game. 

St. Louis 18, Dallas 4
Floyd Robinson put on a hitting clinic, going 6-for-7 with 7 RBI, as the Maroons unleashed a 22-hit barrage at Turnpike Stadium.  Don Blasingame had four hits, and Albie Pearson and Moose Skowron had three each, as Herb Score cruised to victory.  Rookie Gaylord Perry was tapped for 5 hits and 5 runs in 1.1 innings in his UL debut.

San Francisco 6, Louisville 3
Juan Pizarro pitched seven innings of two-hit ball, and Harmon Killebrew homered and scored three times at Parkway Field.  Joe Ginsberg drove in a pair without a hit or even an official at bat, and Lou Brock swiped a pair and scored twice.  The tenure of the new Colonels ace got off to an inauspicious beginning.  Ken Johnson managed to pack a trifecta of a wild pitch, hit batter, and balk, and 8 walks, all in just 4 innings. 

Washington 4, Brooklyn 1
Johnny Antonelli sparked in his Monuments debut, allowing just two hits and striking out nine at the Frank.  Willie Mays doubled and tripled, and Carl Yastrzemski had two RBIs.  Only Al Kaline's ninth inning sac fly off Robin Roberts stood between Herb De Spain and a shutout win in his Monuments managerial debut.

Detroit 5, Cleveland 1
In the last Opening Day in Briggs Stadium before Detroit opens a new ballpark in 1965, Ed Bouchee broke the game open with a bases-clearing double, but had to leave the game with a strained groin and will miss up to two weeks.  Mike Hershberger collected three hits in the leadoff spot, and Pedro Ramos rolled to an easy win over John Tsitouris.  Baron shortstop Harvey Kuenn was 3-for-4 with a triple.

Chicago 5, Los Angeles 3
Dom Demeter, last year's revelation, and Norm Cash, who had exactly 100 HRs in his first four seasons (which must be some kind of record) contributed clutch RBIs off Art Mahaffey to break open a 3-3 game in the bottom of the seventh.  Spanky Spanger was 3-for-5 and Billy Pierce went the distance in a two-hit effort for career win #251.  Ted Lepcio celebrated his generous arbitration hearing by hitting a two-run homer off Pierce in the third inning.

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Dark Side of Maroon
Grooving With the Floyd
ST. LOUIS (Apr. 3) -- One of These Days Maroons LF Floyd Robinson may Eclipse Ted Williams on the career batting list.  Floyd has been On the Run and Fearless since he was Welcomed to the Machine in 1961.  He came into 1964 #4 on the all-time batting list (.324), and Had A Cigar after hitting 6-7 on Opening Day and 11-for-18 in the opening series, boosting his average to .3285, just .0017 behind Teddy Ballgame.  The Maroons' first round pick in 1961, hit .320 in his rookie year, then .360 in 1962 and .302 in an injury-plague 1963.
   Robinson has helped launch St. Louis' offense into Interstellar Overdrive.  The Maroons are averaging 6.1 runs per game through 14 games.  The Atom Heart Mother of the Maroons' lineup features four players in the top 10 in RBIs: Floyd, Don "Blazer" Blasingame, Bill "Moose" Skowron, and "Careful With That Axe" Joe Torre.

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No Riddle Here, “The Sphinx” Stays
Mossi signs 2-year extension with the Colts
CHICAGO (Apr. 2) – You could hear the corks popping off the fizzy water all over Calistoga California as news hit that hometown hero Don Mossi had re-upped with the West Division Champs. The Colts took little time at the start of the 1964 season to lock down one of their most solid rotation contributors. “Don has been an important part of the Colts recent run of success,” said GM Lance Mueller at a packed press conference following the team’s 3-2 victory over the visiting Outlaws, “we are proud and honored to say he won’t be blowing out of the Windy City any time soon.” Pundits and analysts were quick to point out that with Chicago’s shortage of young arms ready to take over spots in the starting rotation, the Colts really didn’t have a better option then to hang tough with the 35 year old one-time World Series MVP. However, others noted that the Colts seem to have hit a real groove with their four veteran starters, and many feel Mueller may be reluctant to mess with the chemistry on his team. The fact that the Colts have five other veterans heading toward arbitration or outright free agency has many around town buzzing at the possibility of similar press conferences to come…but as the Chicago GM is fond of saying, only time will tell.