1967 – Boston Red Sox pitcher Jim Lonborg, who was 22-9 with 246 strikeouts for the American League champions, is named the 1967 American League Cy Young Award winner.
As the overwhelming choice of 23 of the 24 experts surveyed, Dick Williams is selected as the United Press International’s American League Manager of the Year. The 38 year-old skipper guided the underdog Red Sox to a pennant, emerging on top from a fierce four-team pennant race that went down to the last day of the season.
1967 – San Francisco Giants pitcher Mike McCormick, the National League leader with 22 victories, is honored with the 1967 National League Cy Young Award. It is the first year in which pitchers are honored in both leagues.
On October 22, 1967, Kansas City A’s’ owner Charlie Finley hires Hall of Famer Joe DiMaggio as vice-president. “Joe D.” will also serve as a coach with the A’s.
On October 18, 1967, The American League owners grant Charlie Finley permission to move the Kansas City Athletics to Oakland, California, in time for the start of the 1968 season. Kansas City is promised a new team by 1971, but when Senator Stuart Symington and Kansas City Mayor Ilus Davis threaten action against the move, AL President Joe Cronin reopens talks. The expansion deadline is moved forward to 1969, and will award new franchises to Kansas City and Seattle, the Pilots, will play in Seattle, an ill-advised decision given the fact that new owners will prove to be under-financed.
Roberto Clemente hits 2 home runs off Don Drysdale, accounting for all of Pittsburgh’s runs in a 4 – 1 victory over Los Angeles. Clemente’s first bomb travels 400 feet to tie the score at 1 – 1 in the fifth. Facing him again in the seventh with 2 on and 2 out, Drysdale makes two mistakes: first, he flattens him; then, to compound his gaffe, rather than walk Clemente outright, he tries to pitch around him. The celebrated free-swinger lays off balls two and three and fouls off ball four, before slugging another potential ball four 420 feet away. Speaking with the Pittsburgh Press after the game, Clemente confides: “I was hoping he wouldn’t walk me. I wanted one good swing and I got it. It was a thrill but the biggest thrill came when I went back to the field and the [Dodger] fans applauded me. This doesn’t happen very often.”
Dick Williams is selected as the American League’s Manager of the Year, being named by 324 of 397 baseball writers and broadcasters in an Associated Press poll, easily outdistancing runner-ups Eddie Stanky of the White Sox and the Angels’ Bill Rigney. The 38 year-old rookie skipper led the 92-70 Red Sox through a tight four-team pennant race to their first pennant since 1946.
On October 12, 1967, Boston’s Impossible Dream comes to an end as future Hall of Famer Bob Gibson hits a home run and strikes out 10 batters in leading the St. Louis Cardinals to the World Championship over the Boston Red Sox. Gibson allows only three hits as the Cardinals win Game Seven, 7-2. It…
October 11, 1967 Lou Brock slides head first in to home to beat the tag by Red Sox catcher Elston Howard in Game 6 of the 1967 World Series. @ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF90YWdzIiwic2V0dGluZ3MiOnsiYmVmb3JlIjoiIiwiYWZ0ZXIiOiIiLCJsaW5rX3RvX3Rlcm1fcGFnZSI6Im9uIiwic2VwYXJhdG9yIjoiIHwgIiwiY2F0ZWdvcnlfdHlwZSI6InBvc3RfdGFnIn19@ [jetpack_subscription_form title=”Join the Community” subscribe_text=”We bring you cool stories about the game, players, ballparks and the people that shaped the game!”  subscribe_button=”Join us!” show_subscribers_total=”1″] Subscribe…
Gil Hodges, with a year remaining on his contract to manage Washington, inks a three-year deal to become the Mets skipper, ending the speculation Yogi Berra, now a coach with the team, would be offered the job to replaced the recently-resigned Wes Westrum. New York agrees to pay significant reparations to the Senators and to send a player from the 40-man roster to Washington to get the fan-favorite former Dodger.
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