June 15th, 1934 - AL Standings and Leaders

NEWSPAPER STYLE RECAP FOR 1934 American League Date: 6/16/1934 TEAM WON LOST BATTING AVERAGE HOME RUNS RUNS BATTED IN 1934 WAA 32 21 J.Stone WAA .448 L.Gehrig NYA 20 L.Gehrig NYA 69 1934 DEA 31 21 J.Vosmik CLA .412 J.Foxx PHA 18 J.Foxx PHA 47 1934 BOA 28 23 P.Higgins PHA .381 E.Averill CLA 15 C.Gehring DEA 46 1934 PHA 26 23 H.Manush WAA .368 B.Johnson PHA 12 B.Johnson PHA 40 1934 NYA 26 23 E.Averill CLA .362 OTHERS TIED W 9 M.Owen DEA 38 1934 CLA 24 22 1934 CHA 20 30 WINS SAVES ERA 1934 SLA 12 36 E.Whitehi WAA 10 H.Pennock BOA 5 B.Weiland *** 2.30 S.Rowe DEA 7 C.Hogsett DEA 5 L.Gomez NYA 2.64 L.Gomez NYA 7 F.Ostermu BOA 4 S.Rowe DEA 2.76 M.Weaver WAA 7 A.McColl WAA 4 M.Harder CLA 2.86 OTHERS TIED W 6 OTHERS TIED W 3 R.Ruffing NYA 3.01 CUR HIT STREAK STOLEN BASES STRIKEOUTS H.Manush WAA 11 B.Werber BOA 15 L.Gomez NYA 61 F.Bordaga CHA 8 J.White DEA 11 T.Bridges DEA 51 P.Higgins PHA 7 P.Fox DEA 10 S.Rowe DEA 50 J.Stone WAA 7 B.Chapman NYA 9 B.Newsom SLA 50 OTHERS TIED W 6 G.Walker DEA 8 R.Ruffing NYA 42 YESTERDAY'S GAMES TODAY'S SCHEDULE AND PROBABLE STARTERS CHA at WAA CHA-Tietje(2-3, 4.31) at PHA-Benton(3-3, 5.08) CLA at PHA CHA-Galliva(0-4, 7.47) at PHA-Marcum(5-3, 4.83) DEA 6 at BOA 2 CLA-Weiland(2-0, 1.42) at WAA-Thomas(2-2, 4.81) SLA at NYA CLA-Pearson(6-5, 3.44) at WAA-Stewart(2-5, 5.52) DEA-Bridges(6-5, 3.47) at NYA-Ruffing(5-3, 3.01) SLA-Blaehol(2-6, 6.27) at BOA-Ferrell(1-0, 4.15) WHO'S HOT - BEST IN LAST 10 DAYS BATTER TM AVG AB H RB BB HR PITCHER TM IP H ER BB Ks HR WLS C.Gehringer DEA .379 29 11 10 7 3 S.Rowe DEA 31 21 8 8 14 1 210 J.Foxx PHA .318 22 7 6 5 2 T.Bridges DEA 18 17 2 6 15 0 200 S.West SLA .308 26 8 4 4 3 B.Weiland CLA 18 12 2 8 5 0 200 B.Johnson PHA .346 26 9 6 2 2 J.Broaca NYA 16 9 2 2 9 1 100 J.Cronin WAA .321 28 9 10 2 1 J.Russell WAA 17 12 2 7 8 0 200 WHO'S NOT - WORST IN LAST 10 DAYS BATTER TM AVG AB H RB BB HR PITCHER TM IP H ER BB Ks HR WLS H.Clift SLA .133 30 4 1 0 0 F.Marberry DEA 12 18 14 4 5 1 020 D.Cramer PHA .214 28 6 1 0 0 T.Lyons CHA 16 22 14 3 5 3 020 J.Burns SLA .214 28 6 0 1 0 T.Thomas WAA 8 9 6 3 1 1 010 M.Hoag NYA .120 25 3 1 3 0 J.Murphy NYA 11 19 11 5 5 1 110 M.Owen DEA .200 30 6 1 2 0 B.Newsom SLA 8 8 7 5 5 0 010 INJURY REPORT No injuries to report

LEAGUE STANDINGS FOR 1934 American League WON LOST PCT GB MAGIC# ACTWON ACTLOST ACTPCT 1934 Washington WAA 32 21 .604 ---- 102 66 88 .429 1934 Detroit DEA 31 21 .596 .5 101 53 .656 1934 Boston BOA 28 23 .549 3.0 76 76 .500 1934 Philadelphia PHA 26 23 .531 4.0 68 82 .453 1934 New York NYA 26 23 .531 4.0 90 64 .584 1934 Cleveland CLA 24 22 .522 4.5 85 69 .552 1934 Chicago CHA 20 30 .400 10.5 53 99 .349 1934 St. Louis SLA 12 36 .250 17.5 67 85 .441 OVERALL RECORD Team WON LOST PCT HOME ROAD LEFT RIGHT EXTRA 1-RUN LAST 10 STREAK BOA 28 23 .549 17-12 11-11 6- 4 22-19 3- 3 11- 6 5-5 Lost 1 CHA 20 30 .400 9-16 11-14 3- 2 17-28 1- 3 2- 7 4-6 Lost 5 CLA 24 22 .522 15- 7 9-15 5- 7 19-15 1- 1 5- 5 6-4 Won 1 DEA 31 21 .596 15-12 16- 9 5- 9 26-12 2- 2 10- 7 6-4 Won 1 NYA 26 23 .531 13-10 13-13 6- 4 20-19 2- 1 5- 7 5-5 Won 2 PHA 26 23 .531 13-10 13-13 5- 3 21-20 3- 1 7- 2 4-6 Lost 1 SLA 12 36 .250 7-15 5-21 4-10 8-26 1- 3 2-11 2-8 Lost 4 WAA 32 21 .604 19- 9 13-12 5- 8 27-13 2- 1 7- 4 8-2 Won 3 TOTAL 199 199 .500 TEAM -APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUG SEPT+ BOA 8- 3 13-14 7- 6 0- 0 0- 0 0- 0 CHA 6- 4 10-17 4- 9 0- 0 0- 0 0- 0 CLA 6- 3 11-15 7- 4 0- 0 0- 0 0- 0 DEA 5- 5 17-12 9- 4 0- 0 0- 0 0- 0 NYA 4- 7 16-11 6- 5 0- 0 0- 0 0- 0 PHA 5- 7 17- 9 4- 7 0- 0 0- 0 0- 0 SLA 2- 7 8-20 2- 9 0- 0 0- 0 0- 0 WAA 6- 6 17-11 9- 4 0- 0 0- 0 0- 0 WINS ARE ACROSS, LOSSES ARE DOWN: TEAM BOA CHA CLA DEA NYA PHA SLA WAA BOA - 2 2 5 5 3 3 8 CHA 3 - 3 4 1 0 6 3 CLA 3 3 - 4 1 4 7 2 DEA 5 8 3 - 3 3 7 2 NYA 2 5 3 2 - 6 5 3 PHA 3 4 5 3 6 - 3 2 SLA 2 1 3 0 4 1 - 1 WAA 5 7 3 3 3 6 5 -

June 15th, 1934 - NL Standings and Leaders

NEWSPAPER STYLE RECAP FOR 1934 National League Date: 6/15/1934 TEAM WON LOST BATTING AVERAGE HOME RUNS RUNS BATTED IN 1934 NYN 34 19 J.Medwick SLN .412 R.Collins SLN 14 M.Ott NYN 50 1934 CHN 33 20 E.Allen PHN .387 G.Hartnet CHN 13 R.Collins SLN 42 1934 BRN 29 22 L.Koeneck BRN .380 M.Ott NYN 13 W.Berger BON 41 1934 SLN 28 22 M.Ott NYN .378 W.Berger BON 9 G.Suhr PIN 40 1934 PIN 22 25 A.Vaughan PIN .376 OTHERS TIED W 7 OTHERS TIED W 38 1934 BON 19 30 1934 PHN 18 30 WINS SAVES ERA 1934 CIN 16 31 L.Warneke CHN 10 W.Hoyt PIN 4 C.Hubbell NYN 1.74 C.Hubbell NYN 10 J.Haines SLN 4 L.Warneke CHN 2.26 OTHERS TIED W 7 B.Smith BON 3 C.Davis PHN 2.88 H.Bell NYN 3 P.Derring CIN 2.88 D.Luque NYN 3 F.Fitzsim NYN 2.97 CUR HIT STREAK STOLEN BASES STRIKEOUTS H.Lee BON 10 P.Martin SLN 9 D.Dean SLN 64 M.McManus BON 10 J.Rothroc SLN 7 V.Mungo BRN 63 J.Stripp BRN 9 D.Taylor BRN 6 L.Warneke CHN 54 W.Schulme *** 7 L.Chiozza PHN 5 C.Hubbell NYN 46 J.Medwick SLN 7 C.Fullis PHN 5 H.Schumac NYN 43 YESTERDAY'S GAMES TODAY'S SCHEDULE AND PROBABLE STARTERS BON 5 at SLN 11 BON-Brandt(3-6, 3.83) at SLN-Mooney(3-1, 3.26) BRN 9 at PIN 2 BRN-Zachary(0-0, 1.42) at PIN-Lucas(2-5, 7.01) NYN 3 at CIN 2 NYN-Fitzsim(7-5, 2.97) at CIN-Freitas(0-2, 7.50) PHN 5 at CHN 7 PHN-Collins(5-5, 5.09) at CHN-Warneke(10-1, 2.26) WHO'S HOT - BEST IN LAST 10 DAYS BATTER TM AVG AB H RB BB HR PITCHER TM IP H ER BB Ks HR WLS R.Collins SLN .424 33 14 12 1 6 T.Kleinhans CIN 17 10 1 4 7 0 100 D.Taylor BRN .378 37 14 11 10 2 V.Mungo BRN 25 25 5 4 5 2 300 S.Leslie BRN .408 49 20 19 4 3 D.Leonard BRN 26 25 6 1 6 1 200 L.Koenecke BRN .556 27 15 6 9 0 L.Warneke CHN 18 11 5 0 6 1 200 B.Herman* CHN .324 34 11 13 4 2 S.Johnson PHN 10 2 1 1 6 1 000 WHO'S NOT - WORST IN LAST 10 DAYS BATTER TM AVG AB H RB BB HR PITCHER TM IP H ER BB Ks HR WLS T.Thevenow PIN .154 26 4 0 0 0 R.Grabowski PHN 11 22 14 3 2 3 020 H.Critz NYN .108 37 4 0 3 0 A.Herring BRN 10 13 10 12 3 0 000 M.Koenig CIN .222 36 8 1 1 0 L.Mangum BON 5 9 5 1 3 3 000 L.Durocher SLN .167 30 5 2 2 0 R.Birkofer PIN 8 15 8 5 5 1 110 C.Fullis PHN .237 38 9 3 3 0 P.Collins PHN 15 24 14 8 4 2 110 INJURY REPORT No injuries to report

LEAGUE STANDINGS FOR 1934 National League WON LOST PCT GB MAGIC# ACTWON ACTLOST ACTPCT 1934 New York NYN 34 19 .642 ---- 101 93 60 .608 1934 Chicago CHN 33 20 .623 1.0 86 65 .570 1934 Brooklyn BRN 29 22 .569 4.0 71 81 .467 1934 St. Louis SLN 28 22 .560 4.5 95 58 .621 1934 Pittsburgh PIN 22 25 .468 9.0 74 76 .493 1934 Boston BON 19 30 .388 13.0 78 73 .517 1934 Philadelphia PHN 18 30 .375 13.5 56 93 .376 1934 Cincinnati CIN 16 31 .340 15.0 52 99 .344 OVERALL RECORD Team WON LOST PCT HOME ROAD LEFT RIGHT EXTRA 1-RUN LAST 10 STREAK BON 19 30 .388 9-12 10-18 1- 6 18-24 2- 2 6- 9 3-7 Lost 7 BRN 29 22 .569 11-11 18-11 9- 5 20-17 1- 0 5- 8 9-1 Won 1 CHN 33 20 .623 19- 9 14-11 10- 3 23-17 1- 1 12- 6 7-3 Won 5 CIN 16 31 .340 11-16 5-15 3- 5 13-26 2- 2 8- 7 5-5 Lost 2 NYN 34 19 .642 17- 9 17-10 9- 3 25-16 1- 3 11- 9 4-6 Won 2 PHN 18 30 .375 13-10 5-20 4- 7 14-23 1- 1 6- 8 2-8 Lost 3 PIN 22 25 .468 12-12 10-13 7- 9 15-16 1- 1 4- 7 3-7 Lost 1 SLN 28 22 .560 17-11 11-11 5- 6 23-16 3- 2 6- 4 7-3 Won 4 TOTAL 199 199 .500 TEAM -APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUG SEPT+ BON 5- 6 9-16 5- 8 0- 0 0- 0 0- 0 BRN 6- 5 12-14 11- 3 0- 0 0- 0 0- 0 CHN 8- 4 17-12 8- 4 0- 0 0- 0 0- 0 CIN 4- 7 6-18 6- 6 0- 0 0- 0 0- 0 NYN 6- 5 22- 8 6- 6 0- 0 0- 0 0- 0 PHN 5- 6 11-13 2-11 0- 0 0- 0 0- 0 PIN 7- 3 11-14 4- 8 0- 0 0- 0 0- 0 SLN 3- 8 17-10 8- 4 0- 0 0- 0 0- 0 WINS ARE ACROSS, LOSSES ARE DOWN: TEAM BON BRN CHN CIN NYN PHN PIN SLN BON - 5 2 4 5 1 2 0 BRN 7 - 1 4 2 7 5 3 CHN 4 6 - 7 3 5 2 6 CIN 2 0 5 - 2 2 3 2 NYN 3 5 2 7 - 7 5 5 PHN 4 2 4 1 4 - 2 1 PIN 1 3 4 4 1 4 - 5 SLN 9 1 2 4 2 4 6 -

June 14th, 1934 - NL Game Summaries

Cards Bomb Braves, 11-5
Carleton gets win number 6


Braves.......... 3 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 - 5 11 1

Cardinals....... 0 1 0 0 4 1 2 3 - 11 13 0

The St. Louis Cardinals had very little trouble at Sportsman's Park, downing the floundering Boston Braves. The score was 11 to 5. Boston was unable to recover after St. Louis went ahead in the 6th inning, scoring a single run utilizing 2 base hits. St. Louis had 13 hits for the afternoon. Tex Carleton(6-4) got the win, allowing 5 runs in 6 innings. Ben Cantwell(2-4) ended up with the loss. He allowed 3 homeruns in 6 and 2/3 innings of work.

Dodgers Strike Again in 9-2 Win at Forbes

Pirates unable to score runs on Mungo

Dodgers......... 0 6 1 0 0 2 0 0 0 - 9 14 2

Pirates......... 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 - 2 12 1

Left fielder Danny Taylor (pictured) collected 2 extra-base hits and had 3 RBI at Forbes Field where the Brooklyn Dodgers beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 9 to 2. Brooklyn had 6 runs cross the plate in the top of the 2nd inning when they had 5 base hits. That scoring would be all that was needed. Brooklyn totaled 14 on the afternoon. Van Lingle Mungo (7-7) picked up the victory, allowing 2 runs in 7 and 2/3 innings. Larry French(5-4) was the losing pitcher. He got hit pretty hard, allowing 8 hits and 4 walks in 5 innings.

Giants Nick Reds in Late Innings

Pitchers dominate most of afternoon

Giants.......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 1 - 3 8 2

Reds............ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 - 2 9 0

The New York Giants edged the Cincinnati Reds at Crosley Field by the score of 3 to 2. Hal Schumacher (7-4) delivered a fine performance for New York. He surrendered 9 hits and 3 walks in 8 and 1/3 innings. The teams had been locked in a scoreless duel until the 7th inning. Slick Castleman earned his 2nd save. Benny Frey (1-7) was the losing pitcher. He surrendered 8 hits and 2 walks in 8 and 1/3 innings.

Cubs Rally, Score 4 in Ninth for 7-5 win
Herman is "clutch" for home town fans

Phillies........ 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 1 1 - 5 16 0

Cubs............ 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 4 - 7 7 1

In a close game it was the Chicago Cubs 7, the Philadelphia Phillies 5 at Wrigley Field. Chicago won the game with a rally in the 8th inning when they tallied 4 runs on 2 hits. The key at-bat was by Babe Herman who thrilled the crowd when he hit a 'grand salami' to the delight of his teammates (his 7th of the season). Philadelphia threatened in the 9th but Chicago was able to put down the rally. Dick Ward(1-1) picked up the victory, allowing 1 run in 1 inning. Ward was helped out by Roy Joiner who recorded his 2nd save. Snipe Hansen (2-3) wasthe loser. Despite losing Jimmie Wilson was optimistic after the game. 'We'll get over this one. Sometimes the breaks fall your way, sometimes they don't. Any one of a dozen little things go different, and we come out on top.'

June 14th, 1934 - AL Game Summaries

Nats Pound Sox for 12-6 Win with Late Heroics

Harris rips two triples for Washington

White Sox....... 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 4 1 - 6 15 4

Nationals........ 0 0 4 0 0 0 5 3 - 12 14 1

Dave Harris smacked 2 triples and had 4 RBI as the Washington Nationals defeated the Chicago White Sox 12 to 6 at Griffith Stadium. The Washington fans enjoyed the offense provided by Harris. He lined a single in the 2nd inning, tripled scoring two base runners in the 3rd inning and tripled which was good for two runs in the 7th inning. Washington managed 14in their victory. The victory went to Monte Weaver(7-5) who went 7 innings, allowing 1 run.George Earnshaw(4-7) absorbed the loss. He allowed 4 runs and 7 hits in 6innings. Washington continued their winnings ways improving their record to a league leading 32-21. They are 8-2 in their last ten games. With the loss, Chicago has a record of 4-6 lately, 20-30 overall.

Indians Prevail in Philly, 5-3

Harder tames A's sluggers

Indians......... 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 2 - 5 8 0

Athletics....... 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 1 - 3 10 1

Mel Harder tossed a complete game as the Cleveland Indians topped the Philadelphia Athletics by a score of 5 to 3 at Shibe Park. The game was won by Cleveland with a run in the 8th inning. Hal Trosky drew a walk. Frankie Pytlak was next and he slapped a base-hit. Pytlak was safe ona stolen base. Bob Seeds was up next and he singled scoring the run.Cleveland banged out 8 on the afternoon. The win was credited to Harder(6-1) who went the whole way allowing 3 runs.Joe Cascarella(4-3) took the loss. He surrendered 7 hits and 9 walks in 8and 1/3 innings.

Yanks Come from Behind to Nip Browns, 5-3

Dickey hits dramatic 3 run homer in 8th

Browns.......... 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 - 3 7 1

Yankees......... 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 3 - 5 5 0

In a two run game the New York Yankees got by the St. Louis Browns by the score of 5 to 3. New York won the game with a rally in the bottom of the 8th inning scoring 3runs utilizing 2 base hits. After two outs Lou Gehrig was the spark plug when he drew a walk. Ben Chapman next to the plate and he lashed a single. Bill Dickey then smacked a three-run homer (his 4th of the season). New York had only 5 hits for the afternoon. Jimmie Deshong (3-1) went 2 innings allowing 1 run for the win. Ivy Andrews (1-6) was charged with the loss. He gave up 4 hits and 4 walks in 7and 2/3 innings.

June 14th, 1934 - How're They Doin? - Joe Kuhel

Strat-O-Matic Report

---

Batter            Avg  AB   H  2B  3B  HR RBI  BB IBB   K    OBP  Slug OB+Sl

J.Kuhel          .288 208  60   7   7   1  34  25   0   8   .364  .404  .768

vs. Left         .304  46  14   2   0   0   5   3   0   3   .347  .348  .695

vs. Right        .284 162  46   5   7   1  29  22   0   5   .370  .420  .789

Batting 1        .323  62  20   2   4   0   8  12   0   2   .432  .484  .916

Batting 2        .277  83  23   2   3   1  12   6   0   3   .326  .410  .735

Batting 3        ----   0   0   0   0   0   0   0   0   0   ----  ----  ----

Batting 4        .400  10   4   1   0   0   2   3   0   0   .538  .500 1.038

Batting 5        .167   6   1   0   0   0   1   2   0   1   .375  .167  .542

Batting 6        .231  39   9   2   0   0   8   2   0   1   .268  .282  .550

Batting 7        .375   8   3   0   0   0   3   0   0   1   .375  .375  .750

Batting 8        ----   0   0   0   0   0   0   0   0   0   ----  ----  ----

Batting 9        ----   0   0   0   0   0   0   0   0   0   ----  ----  ----

Clutch           .310  29   9   0   0   0  10   0   0   0   .310  .310  .621

Loaded           .167   6   1   0   0   0   3   0   0   0   .167  .167  .333

 

          G  PA SH SF HBP CI GDP  PAvg PAB  PH PHR LOB GWRBI GS   TB Streak

Misc.    53 243  4  4   2  0   7  ----   0   0   0  51   1    0   84   1-13

 

          GB  FB  G/F  Pitch P/PA    RC  RC/27 TotAvg  Prod IsoPw  AB/HR

Averages 126  82 1.54    929 3.82  28.6   4.54   .685  .768  .115 208.00

 

                  Run  SB  CS  SB% SB2 CS2 SB3 CS3 SBH CSH BRC BRA BRO

Baserunning        38   0   7  .00   0   6   0   0   0   1  18  13   2

 

Fielding            G  GS    Inn   PO    A   E  DP TP  Pct.

1st Baseman        53  53  467.2  524   55   4  64  0  .993

• Go to Strat-O-Matic Homepage

Book Review: Branch Rickey: Baseball's Ferocious Gentleman

Branch Rickey: Baseball's Ferocious Gentleman

Lee Lowenfish

University of Nebraska Press

683 pp. incl. notes, bibliography and index

It is possible to write a 683 page biograhy of a baseball executive and leave the reader wanting more? Lee Lowenfish convinces me that it can be done.

Lowenfish's biography of baseball executive Branch Rickey is a very well written, exhaustive examination of Rickey's life and times. Covering Rickey from his time as a stern school teacher through his death in 1965, Lowenstein's history follows Rickey on a year by year basis. Accordingly, the book also serves as a history of the National League, which Rickey was a vital part of from when he joined the St. Louis Cardinals in 1919 to his tenure as a Cardinals' consultant in the early 1960s.

Lowenfish does not only discuss Rickey's baseball activities, but his political (Republican) activities and community work as well. In doing so, he shows how Rickey led a vigorous, deeply principled life that was spent in service to family, church, community and baseball. Rickey's philosophy is also discussed at length, and Lowenfish shows how it helped guide him in some of his most important decisions. By taking the time to read and contemplate Rickey's own words, and take them seriously rather than as mere rationalization, Lowenfish is able to paint a vivid picture of a man who was both generous and tight-fisted, fiercely competitive, but who refused to work on Sundays.

As amazing as it is, there are still questions that Lowenfish doesn't fully answer. Was Rickey really tight fisted or does he come off looking worse than other parsimonious executives due to his own financial success? There's a great history PhD thesis to be written in settling the question of whether Rickey was really the "tightwad" he was portrayed or whether he appeared that way because his lack of financial charity at contract time seemed to contrast with the Christian principles he espoused on Sunday.

My own sense is that Rickey was probably even tighter with the dollar than other executives generally, but I think part of this was due to Rickey's sense of morality. It wasn't, after all, his own money he was paying players (as it was, for example, Connie Mack's). If he paid a player more than he needed to retain his services, Rickey was failing in his duty to the team's owners. Such would have been seen as a failure of duty by the devout Calvinist. We may disagree, but Rickey was being true to his convictions - not contradicting them.

Another unresolved question is how to measure Rickey's contributions to the Dodgers and Pirates championships. Rickey was with both teams for several years, but left before they won the World Series. I would have liked to have seen Lowenfish assess to what degree they were the residue of Rickey's earlier activities before he left. I would have also liked to have had a better idea of what Rickey contributed (if anything) to the Cardinals' 1964 World Championship. In his book on the 1964 season, David Halberstam portarys Rickey as an over the hill medler. It would be interesting to hearing Lowenfish's take.

(Note: Lowenfish DOES answer the question on Rickey and Pittsburgh in an interview, which can be accessed at the link below):

in the long view of history (which is the hat as a historian I am proud to wear), his work in Pittsburgh established the nucleus of the 1960 World Series champion. He and his scouts plucked relief ace Roy Face from the Dodger farm system in 1952, the same year he signed shortstop Dick Groat out of Duke. His scouts signed Bill Mazeroski and Bob Skinner, and of course, most famously, they plucked Roberto Clemente out of the Dodger system after 1954.

These are fairly minor quibbles, though. This is an extraordinarily fine book about an extraordinary man, and a must read for all serious lovers of baseball history.

Rating: **** (worth buying new)

Purchasing information: Available from the publisher directly or from Amazon or Barnes and Noble.

For an interview with Lowenfish, see this AmericanHeritage.com interview.

June 13th, 1934 - NL Game Summaries

Cardinals Win in Cakewalk Over Braves

Collins blasts 3 homers on the afternoon

Braves.......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 - 1 8 2

Cardinals...... 1 0 0 10 0 1 0 1 x- 13 13 2

First baseman Rip Collins ripped 3 homeruns and had 4 RBI and Bill Hallahan tossed a complete game as the St. Louis Cardinals ball club embarrassed the floundering Boston Braves by the count of 13 to 1. Collins had a great day at the plate. He had the crowd cheering his every move. He smashed a bases-empty 'big-fly' in the 4th inning, bombed a two-run dinger in the 4th inning and blasted a solo shot (his 14th of the season) in the 6th inning. St. Louis rapped out 13 hits for the afternoon. The victory was credited to Hallahan (4-3) who went the distance, allowing 1 run. Fred Frankhouse (5-6) suffered the loss. St. Louis scored big getting 7 runs off him in 3 and 2/3 innings. The St. Louis ballclub's record now stands at 27-22. With the loss Boston now has a record of 19-29.

Pirates Rally in 8th to Snap Dodgers' Streak

Traynor leads team as new manager

Dodgers......... 1 0 2 0 0 1 3 0 1 - 8 12 2

Pirates.......... 3 1 2 0 0 0 0 4 x - 10 10 2

Pie Traynor had 3 base hits and 2 RBI as the Pittsburgh Pirates outscored theBrooklyn Dodgers 10 to 8. Waite Hoyt(2-5) got the win with a nice relief outing. He was stingy on themound, allowing just 1 hit and 1 walk in 2 innings. Brooklyn had a chance inthe 9th but they came up short. Hoyt got help from Bill Harris who earned his 1st save. Harry Smythe(0-1)suffered the loss in relief. He was knocked around pretty good, giving up 3runs in 2 and 2/3 innings.

Giants Win with Strong 9th, 4-1

Terry sparks offense as Bowman controls Reds

Giants.......... 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 - 4 10 0

Reds............ 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 1 8 1

Joe Bowman pitched a complete game and first baseman Bill Terry hit 2 doublesand had 3 RBI at Crosley Field where the New York Giants beat the CincinnatiReds 4 to 1. New York had the winning rally in the 9th inning scoring 3 runs using 4 hits.Gus Mancuso got things going when he laced a base-knock. After an out wasrecorded, Jo-Jo Moore stepped up to the plate and he banged out a single.Hughie Critz then delivered a one-base hit to load the bases. Terry followedand he doubled scoring two teammates. Mel Ott struck out, unable to help therally. Travis Jackson contributed to the rally and drew a walk to load thebases. Dazzy Vance then let one slip out of his hand for a wild pitchscoring the final run of the inning. New York had 10 hits for the afternoon. The winning pitcher was Bowman(2-2) who allowed 1 run for the game. Vance(0-2)ended up with the loss in relief. He surrendered 3 runs and 4 hits in 1inning. New York now has a record of a league leading 33-19. Cincinnati has a recordof 16-30, worst in the league after the loss.

Cubs Rally in 9th with 3 to Top Phils

Hartnett doubles in two in clutch situation

Phillies........ 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 0 - 3 10 0

Cubs............ 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 3 - 4 7 0

With the hometown crowd on the edge of their seats, Chicago Cubs came from behind to top Philadelphia Phillies, 4 to 3. Chicago scored the decisive runs in a big bottom of the 9th inning scoring 3runs using 3 hits. Chuck Klein opened up the inning nicely when he lashed asingle. Babe Herman* stepped into the batter's box and he drew a walk. After an out was recorded, Gabby Hartnett stepped in and he doubled scoring two baserunners. Charlie Grimm followed and he stroked a one-base hit giving Chicago the victory as 8,511 happy fans celebrated wildly.

Although they lost, Philadelphia did out-hit Chicago 10 to 7. The win went to Bill Lee (4-2) who allowed no runs in 1 inning. Curt Davis(5-5)was the losing pitcher. Despite the loss, he struck out 11 Chicago batters in 8 and 1/3 innings.

'What a win!', Lee said. 'These are the kind of games that stand out in your mind at the end of a season.'