One-Two Punch

April 21, 1949

One-Two Punch

Much ink has been spilled and many words have been crafted over the years about just how important lineup selection really is. We know that players that hit at the top of the order tend to have slightly more plate appearances than other players in the order. However, is it really important to put power hitters in the middle of the lineup? Is the traditional approach of putting the worst hitters at the bottom really efficient?

I don’t have final answers for those questions, but I can cetainly say that it helps to have good hitters at the top of the order.

Red Sox at Athletics

I know that some of you will want to string me up for batting Ted Williams leadoff. I’ll tell you, though, that it seems to be working quite well.

Williams and number 2 hitter Vern Stephens were on base all afternoon in this one. The Red Sox seemed to have runners on first and second all game long. It’s simply a different game if you’ve got runners on base: a lot more can happen.

Remember, though, that the Athletics are pretty good at turning double plays.

Boston loaded the bases with one out in the top of the first, but wound up with no runs. And Eddie Joost made them pay, knocking a two run homer with nobody out in the bottom of the first.

That’s one of the frustrating aspects of managing a baseball team. You have your lineup right, you’ve got runners on base all day long, and yet you find yourself behind, even though your opponent isn’t getting any base hits at all.

Boston wound up tying the game in the top of the 6th. And that’s where the fun started.

Late Inning Drama

With one out in the top of the 8th of a tight 2-2 game, Johnny Pesky hit a fly ball to left that looked like trouble. But then this happened:

I guess you’ll have to use your imagination for this one. Elmer Valo made an incredible play, a play that would have certainly been a “web gem” decades later. And the game went on.

The top of the 9th was a bit more difficult for the Athletics.

Williams walked on a 3-2 pitch that just missed. And then came Stephens, and out she went:

Stephens enjoyed a 3 for 5 day with two extra base hits, and Williams went 2 for 3 himself with two walks. You know you’re going to have a rough day if you let those two on base 7 times.

The Athletics made a game of it in the bottom of the 9th, however. Mel Parnell got two quick outs, but then came Hank Majeski:

I wonder if that one should have been an error on Billy Goodman. As it stood, that was only Philadelphia’s 4th hit of the ballgame — and yet the tying run was up to the plate.

Pete Suder came up next. I thought about a pinch hitter, but the Athletics didn’t have anybody better. And so he stayed in — and Goodman had a chance to quickly redeem himself:

Philadelphia managed to turn 2 more double plays in their losing cause. Boston stranded 8; Philadelphia managed to strand 5, mostly because of Parnell’s wildness. It was a close game in the end, with an ending that was certainly memorable.