Wake Up The Bats!

Braves at Pirates, May 21, 1949

Wake Up The Bats!

Sometimes you can’t say a whole lot to adequately describe just how exciting a game was.

The Pirates came into this game in a slump, having struggled to keep pace with the amazing Giants.

Boston came out to an early 3 run lead that Pittsburgh only just managed to break.

And then came Ralph Kiner in the bottom of the 7th inning:

Sure, the “review” here is kind of gimmicky — but it sure provided a lot of tension. Kiner had fouled a ball off deep down the left field line just a few pitches before, and I didn’t know if this one actually was going to go out or not.

That turned out to be enough for the Pirates to hold on.

Bill Werle actually outdueled Warren Spahn. Spahn had one more strikeout but two more walks, and, crucially, gave up an additional run.