1968 Detroit tigers clinch the Pennant

Detroit clinches the 1968 American League pennant

ByThis Day in Baseball

Detroit clinches the American League pennant with a 2 – 1 win over the Yankees. Detroit is ahead, 1 – 0, when Red Sox owner Tom Yawkey phones Tiger general manager Jim Campbell with the news that the Sox have beaten the Orioles, clinching the pennant for the Tigers. Campbell keeps the score off the radio and the scoreboard, fearing the news will send fans rampaging onto the field. Don Wert singles home the winner in the 9th and the fans tear down the left field screen.

One day after seeing their team mathematically eliminated, Candlestick Park’s patrons show up in “record” numbers, the smallest crowd to see a game since the team moved to San Francisco in 1958. The story of today’s 8 – 4 Giants win over Cincinnati, the latest installment in the two teams’ ongoing battle for second-best, will itself be second best (at least as judged by tomorrow’s sports page editors) as compared to the following unfortunate incident. UPI reports: “A gathering of only 2,361, the smallest in San Francisco’s major league history, was on hand and witnessed the rare sight of Willie Mays engaged in a shouting match with two spectators. Mays, in fact, had to be restrained from charging into the stands to confront the two hecklers, both Air Force sergeants dressed in civilian clothes. ‘Nice catch, Willie,’ they jeered from the front row after Mays made a spectacular catch in the 4th. ‘For a $100,000 bum you’re finally earning your money'”. “Mays was approaching the dugout in the middle of the 4th when he went after the two men,” adds AP. “He was intercepted by Bobby Bonds and manager Herman Franks and the sergeants were ejected from the park.”

ByThis Day in Baseball

One day after seeing their team mathematically eliminated, Candlestick Park’s patrons show up in “record” numbers, the smallest crowd to see a game since the team moved to San Francisco in 1958. The story of today’s 8 – 4 Giants win over Cincinnati, the latest installment in the two teams’ ongoing battle for second-best, will itself be second best (at least as judged by tomorrow’s sports page editors) as compared to the following unfortunate incident. UPI reports: “A gathering of only 2,361, the smallest in San Francisco’s major league history, was on hand and witnessed the rare sight of Willie Mays engaged in a shouting match with two spectators. Mays, in fact, had to be restrained from charging into the stands to confront the two hecklers, both Air Force sergeants dressed in civilian clothes. ‘Nice catch, Willie,’ they jeered from the front row after Mays made a spectacular catch in the 4th. ‘For a $100,000 bum you’re finally earning your money'”. “Mays was approaching the dugout in the middle of the 4th when he went after the two men,” adds AP. “He was intercepted by Bobby Bonds and manager Herman Franks and the sergeants were ejected from the park.”

Denny McLain
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Denny McLain of the Detroit Tigers wins his 30th game of the season

ByThis Day in Baseball

  On September 14, 1968, In a nationally televised game, Denny McLain becomes a thirty-game winner when the Tigers rally for two runs in the bottom of the ninth inning to beat Oakland 5-4. McLain becomes the first major leaguer to win 30 games in a season since Dizzy Dean in 1934 and will finish…

Jerry Koosman ties the National League rookie record when he hurls his seventh shutout of the season

Jerry Koosman ties the National League rookie record when he hurls his seventh shutout of the season

ByThis Day in Baseball

Jerry Koosman ties the National League rookie record when he hurls his seventh shutout of the season, blanking Pittsburgh on just three singles. The left-hander’s 2-0 victory, the Mets’ 67th win of the season – a franchise high, equals the mark shared by Irving Young (Braves, 1905) and Grover Cleveland Alexander (Phillies, 1911).

Ralph Garr steals the first of his 172 stolen bases, swiping home as a pinch runner for Joe Torre in the Braves’ 4-1 victory over Houston. In 1973, the ‘Road Runner’ will break Atlanta’s record for stolen bases with 35, surpassing his mark of 30 he established in 1970 during his rookie season.

ByThis Day in Baseball

Ralph Garr steals the first of his 172 stolen bases, swiping home as a pinch runner for Joe Torre in the Braves’ 4-1 victory over Houston. In 1973, the ‘Road Runner’ will break Atlanta’s record for stolen bases with 35, surpassing his mark of 30 he established in 1970 during his rookie season.

It is a tough month for Mets P Jim McAndrew, as he takes his National League-tying 5th shutout loss. Steve Carlton wins for the Cards, 2 – 0. McAndrew gave up just six runs in the four losses, losing 2 – 0 to Bob Gibson on July 21, and to the Dodgers and Mike Kekich, 2 – 0, on August 4. On August 10 and 17th, he narrowed the margin to 1 – 0 losses, to the Giants and Houston respectively. The four losses are McAndrew’s first major league decisions.

ByThis Day in Baseball

It is a tough month for Mets P Jim McAndrew, as he takes his National League-tying 5th shutout loss. Steve Carlton wins for the Cards, 2 – 0. McAndrew gave up just six runs in the four losses, losing 2 – 0 to Bob Gibson on July 21, and to the Dodgers and Mike Kekich, 2 – 0, on August 4. On August 10 and 17th, he narrowed the margin to 1 – 0 losses, to the Giants and Houston respectively. The four losses are McAndrew’s first major league decisions.

Rocky Colavito pitches in relief and picks up a win and homers in the game

Rocky Colavito pitches in relief and picks up a win and homers in the game

ByThis Day in Baseball

The Tigers, ahead 5 – 0, fail to score with two on in the 4th inning when the Yanks bring in Rocky Colavito to pitch. The 35-year-old slugger retires Al Kaline and Willie Horton and tosses 2 2/3 innings of scoreless relief to earn the win. In Rocky’s only other appearance, in 1958, he also faced Kaline, and the victory by a non-pitcher will be the last this century. Bill Robinson and Bobby Cox crash successive homers to tie the score and, after a walk, Rocky comes around to score the winning run. In the 8th, Yankees reliever Lindy McDaniel ties the American League record for consecutive batters retired by setting down the first Tiger he faces, giving him 32 straight batters retired over four appearances. New York sweeps, winning 6 – 5 and then topping Mickey Lolich, 5 – 4. The four losses in New York leaves the Tigers just five games ahead of the Orioles.

After walking on a 3-2 count, which included pitches sailing over his head to the backstop and a ball being thrown behind him, Dick McAuliffe charges the mound and drives his knee into White Sox hurler Tommy John, causing the pitcher’s shoulder to separate. Tommy John (10-5, 1.98) will be lost for the rest of the season, and the Tigers’ shortstop is suspended for five games and fined $250 by AL president Joe Cronin as a result of the bench-clearing incident.

After walking on a 3-2 count, which included pitches sailing over his head to the backstop and a ball being thrown behind him, Dick McAuliffe charges the mound and drives his knee into White Sox hurler Tommy John, causing the pitcher’s shoulder to separate. Tommy John (10-5, 1.98) will be lost for the rest of the season, and the Tigers’ shortstop is suspended for five games and fined $250 by AL president Joe Cronin as a result of the bench-clearing incident.

ByThis Day in Baseball

After walking on a 3-2 count, which included pitches sailing over his head to the backstop and a ball being thrown behind him, Dick McAuliffe charges the mound and drives his knee into White Sox hurler Tommy John, causing the pitcher’s shoulder to separate. Tommy John (10-5, 1.98) will be lost for the rest of the season, and the Tigers’ shortstop is suspended for five games and fined $250 by AL president Joe Cronin as a result of the bench-clearing incident.