Even the Braves

[petrel]

1967 World Series
Game 1
October 26, 1967

The first game of the World Series would take place at the National League home park. In this case, the Yankees would come to Braves field for a rematch of the World Series of 1960.


The dimensions of Braves Field in 1967.

One thing that caused no end of discussion was the first game of the World Series being moved to six days after the end of the ALCS. With the two-three-two format, Game 5 (if necessary) would take place on October 31st, 1967. No one expected the Series to be that simple, with betting odds favoring the Yankees taking it in seven games. The sportswriters were calling it the "November Classic", and with the temps in the 30s and low 40s during some of the League Championship Series games, writers suggested it would be a "struggle agianst the elements".

Commissioner Pete Rozelle, however, liked the longer season. He consider it a chance to build interest in the first World Series since Braves-Yankees '60 that didn't have two New York teams challenging each other. Rumor had it that the Commissioner wanted it to be a Braves-Seals series, which would increase West Coast viewership. However, the sportswriters were generally pleased, as there was nothing more vicious than a Boston-New York rivalry.

(* * *)

The manager of the Yankees was Ralph Houk, the former manager of the World Champion New York Giants and former GM of the Yankees. He had moved to the dugout with the death of Johnny Keane at the beginning of 1967. New York newspapers expected him to beat the Braves -- handily -- and carry on "the Yankee tradition". If he didn't, rumor had it, they had Yogi Berra next in line to take Houk's job.

Houk started out the Series with a controversial move: the Yankees rotation was currently Proctor-Genser-Hendley, but Houk went with Bob Hendley (22-4, 2.53 ERA), the #3 starter to start Game 1 in Boston. The Boston newspapers immediately termed it a slight; the New Yorkers saw it as a strategy: if Hendley failed, the Yanks lost nothing and if they won Game 1, they took the advantage.

Hendley had been free of the arm trouble that bothered him in the minors, and his hard curve had taken him to the All-Star Game for a second year in a row. He said, "A few years ago, if you had told me that I would be pitching the first game of the World Series...I wouldn't have believed you."

As for the Braves, it was Manager Gil Hodges's first appearance in a World Series since he wore a Dodger uniform. Hodges had won over 100 games in each of the three years he had managed, and part of the reason for that was pitcher Cecil Perkins (26-3, 1.95 ERA). Perkins's lifetime record as a Braves pithcher was 51-6 with a 2.09 lifetime ERA.

The scouting report in the Yankees dugout read, "Perkins mixes his fast ball and change well. He can also throw the slider and a wicked curve, not with authority, but enough to keep a batter guessing. What makes him so hard to beat is that there isn't a book. He can put the ball where he wants to, any way he wants to." Since this was Perkins's arbitration year, Hodges was determined to get the most out of his ace.

(* * *)

After an uneventful first inning, the Yankees would score first. With one out in the second, Harmon Killebrew would single to left, and Rafael DeJesus would double into the left field corner, scoring the lumbering Killebrew all the way from second. Yankees 1, Braves 0. After Stuart Petty struck out, Lee Maye singled to left and scored DeJesus from second, who beat Tommy Davis's throw from left field. Yankees 2, Braves 0.

Tommy Davis would single in the bottom of the third, but Cecil Perkins would ground into a double play to end the third inning. Hendley had retired the first nine Braves batters, and the Braves fans had to hold their breath.

In the bottom of the fourth, Joe Morgan would lead off with a single, and steal second. However, his Braves teammates abandoned him there as the game went into the fifth inning with the Yankees up 2-0. However, Cecil Perkins kept the Yankees off base as the game crossed its halfway point.

Ellis Burton would lead off the bottom of the fifth with a hit that went all the way back to the right field wall. Burton was given the single to stretch the run, and with a slide he turned a double into a triple, beating the throw to Don Wert.

Pumpsie Green and Tommy Davis would both be walked by Bob Hendley, and the Yankees pitcher had loaded the bases with no one out. Willie McCovey was called in to pinch-hit for light-hitting catcher Tim McCarver. With the bases loaded, McCovey could only fly out to left, but Burton came home on the sacrifice fly. Yankees 2, Braves 1.

Cecil Perkins, who hit .167 in the regular season, hit a curve ball over left fielder Lee Maye's head to score a double and bring in another Braves run, tying the game and putting runners at second and third. Yankees 2, Braves 2. The Yanks brought the infield in, but Joe Morgan hit a single up the middle and the Braves were suddenly in the lead! Braves 3, Yankees 2. But Manny Mota would line out to left and Dick Smith would fly out to center, ending the fifth.

Perkins kept the Yankees off base in the top of the sixth. In the bottom of the sixth, Jim Brady made his very first appearance of 1967 after going 11-5 in 1966 and spending 1967 in the minors. Brady, however, would give up a home run to left after one out to Ellis Burton, and the Braves extended their lead. Braves 4, Yankees 2.

With a two run lead, it was up to the Braves to keep the Yankees off the basepaths. During the seventh inning, neither side reached base, and in the top of the eighth, Cecil Perkins dispatched pinch-hitter Len Boehmer, Jay Ward, and Don Wert, brining the Braves to within a half-inning of a Game 1 victory.

In the top of the ninth, Don Carpenter (8-4, 2.03 ERA, 35 saves) came in to close the game for the home team. With two out, he gave up a walk to Harmon Killebrew to put the tying run at the plate. However, Rafael DeJesus popped up to Tom Carroll at short, and the Braves had their win.

FINAL SCORE: Braves 4, Yankees 2

(* * *)

It was a great win for Cecil Perkins. Not only did his get a double and an RBI, going 1 for 5 as a batter, but he pitched eight solid innings, giving up six hits without a single walk. The Braves had indeed gotten their money's worth.

As for the Yankees, the Yankees went through four different pitchers and only got one extra base hit. Still, Yankees fans were not too worried. They had beaten the Seals 3 games to 2 after being down 2-0 and "the American League is a tougher league". Yankees fans hoped the visiting Yankees would prove that in Game 2.

[petrel]

All,

I've had some requests in the past for the general "Template" of the Even the Braves thread. I've decided to post a document here which might give people ideas and resources for creating a dynasty thread.

--Pet

(* * *)

The "Template" to the Even the Braves Thread

Hopefully, the template will:

a) show you how text is displayed in the Even The Braves (ETB) thread
b) show you how images are transferred to the thread
c) give you an idea of Internet sources which can be used to personalize the thread
d) tell you of freeware one can use to alter publicly available images, and
e) inspire you to experiment with your own visual displays:

FORMAT FOR DISPLAYING TEXT

If something is inside curved brackets, that's something you fill in yourself: you don't include the brackets filling it in.
If something is inside square brackets, that's something you don't mess with. The words inside the square brackets are commands to the message board that tell it to display text in particular ways. The only change you make is that you get rid of the asterisk (*), and the only reason I put it in there is because if it wasn't there, the square brackets would be interpreted as an actual command by messageboard software.

[*size=4]{your date here}[*/size]

I use the above as the header. For the date you can put "July 2005" or "August 14th-19th, 1945" or whatever.

[*size=4]{dates spanning three or four game series}
[*color={visitor color}]{visiting team}{visiting record}[*/color] at [*color={home color}]{home team}{home record}[*/color][*/size]

Okay, that's a lot to swallow. Look at a practical example:

[*size=4]September 16th-18th, 1967
[*color=blue]Brooklyn Dodgers (55-95)[*/color] at [*color=red]Boston Braves (98-46)[*/color][*/size]

If you get rid of the asterisks, it turns into:

September 16th-18th, 1967
Brooklyn Dodgers (55-95) at Boston Braves (98-46)

Changing the number for "size" makes text larger or smaller. Size = 1 is tiny, Size = 4 is larger. I've not experimented with other sizes.
You can choose just about any color, and the computer will recognize it. I don't recommend yellow or orange though as it won't show up very well.

To display how games turn out, I use:
{date}: {description of game} [*b]{score of game}[*/b].
W: {winning pitcher and record} L: {losing pitcher and record}

Example:

September 18: Floyd Robinson's long fly out to right with one out in the 9th allows George Smith to tag up and reach home, allowing the Braves to sweep the Dodgers at home. [*b]Braves 3, Dodgers 2[*/b].
W: Don Carpenter (6-4) L: Tom Butters (1-2)

Removing the asterisks gives you:

September 18: Floyd Robinson's long fly out to right with one out in the 9th allows George Smith to tag up and reach home, allowing the Braves to sweep the Dodgers at home. Braves 3, Dodgers 2.
W: Don Carpenter (6-4) L: Tom Butters (1-2)

As you can guess, [*b]{text}[*/b] makes anything between the square brackets bold. [*i]{text}[*/i] makes anything between the brackets italic, and [*u]{text}[*/u] underlines text.

At the end of the game summaries, I put three bold headers:

[*b]Around the world[/*b]

Underneath this header is a list of real world events that took place when these games were played. I'll show you where to find such material later.

[*b]In baseball[*/b]

I usually will list important milestones and important injuries here, as well as important retirements.

The above is pretty much it. Just use the examples of code up above, making sure to put your own words in and make sure you don't use those asterisks!

(* * *)

How to do images in a thread:

Suppose you want a pitcher of Babe Ruth in a thread. You find a great one here at:

http://www.yale.edu/terc/democracy/m...48BabeRuth.jpg

This is an image of Babe Ruth saying farewell. There are just two problems with this picture:

a) you don't know the code that puts it into a thread, and
b) it's too big -- the size will cause the thread to overflow and readers will become cranky.

First, the code for putting images in a thread:

[*img]{URL of image}[/*img]

So we could use the code

[*img]http://www.yale.edu/terc/democracy/may1text/images/NatFein1948BabeRuth.jpg[*/img]

to get our picture. The problem is that
a) the picture is too big, and
b) you're stealing the owner's bandwidth -- the message board has to go to where the pic is stored on the Internet, copy, and paste it.

This is where you use the wonderful URL:

http://imageshack.us

Imageshack is a free image hosting service that I use to post pictures. I have the URL I want, so I paste it in the window where it says "browse" (don't push the "browse" button though, since "browse" is only used when you have files on your computer you want to host at Imageshack). It gives me a choice to upload "image", "url" or "video". You want to choose "url", as "image" is saved for images stored on your own PC.

Once you see your URL in the window, make sure that the "resize image" option is checked, and in the accompanying drop-down menu you choose "640x480 (for message boards)"

Click the "host it!" button below. Imageshack will take you to another page with a variety of options to recall the displayed image.

I choose "direct link to image". The URL that Imageshack spit out is "http://img300.imageshack.us/img300/8778/natfein1948baberuthtm4.jpg". I'll use this in my code, typing:

[*img]http://img300.imageshack.us/img300/8778/natfein1948baberuthtm4.jpg[*/img] on a separate line, and the computer will give me:

, a properly sized image.

(* * *)

Now, my list of Internet sources:

1. Google. Duh. You can find just about any information there.
2. Wikipedia. To find out what happened in a certain month and year in the real world, go to http://en.wikipedia.org.

On the left, you'll see a "search" window and you can just type in a year. Or, if you want to do it directly:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/{year}

For example, to find significant events from the year 1953,

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1953

will get you there. If you go down to April 1953, you find that Dag Hammarskjold was elected UN secretary-general, and that Ian Fleming published the first James Bond novel -- and you have links to find out more about those matters, if you want to.

3. The Charlton Baseball Chronology at:

http://www.baseballlibrary.com/chronology/

You can look up any significant year in baseball and find out what happened in the real world that year in baseball. Note that real world events might diverge -- greatly -- from what happens in Baseball Mogul.

4. Sports Illustrated Cover Search at

http://dynamic.si.cnn.com/covers/advancedSearch

for any Sports Illustrated Cover, ever, from 1954 to the present.

5. Time Magazine Cover Search at

http://www.time.com/time/coversearch/

This coversearch is broken, but I know a way to "cheat" it. If you want a cover from 1924, ask it to find a "birthday cover" for you and give the birthday of 1924. Time Magazine covers exist from 1923 on up.

6. LIFE Magazine Cover Search at

http://www.life.com/Life/cover_search/0,26375,,00.html

This gives every LIFE magazine cover from 1936 to the present.

7. The Inflation Calculator at

http://www.westegg.com/inflation/

This calculates the value of money in a past year given an amount in the present year, and vice versa. Just don't put commas in the numbers.

8. Google Image at

http://images.google.com

For really old dynasties. You might have to type "baseball 1905" with or without the quotes. Older images are sometimes hard to find; you just have to keep looking. There's no good source.

More later....

--Pet

[jianoran]

So far so good i made an Even The Braves spin-off dynasty with Ancestor sign ups called Making it Thru it wlll be viewed at http://sportsmogul.com/vbulletin/sho...d.php?t=151076 so possibly in the future we will see more spin-offs of the Even The Braves dynasty.

[Xen_Antares]

Drats it had to be the Athletics to leave Philadelphia didnt it? I love it still. Good work, keep it up!

[CatKnight]

Thanks for the sources, pet! Here are a few I use.

http://www.brainyhistory.com/years/1901.html
Another source for 'what happened in x year.' As you can see the above link is for 1901. Just change the address.

http://minneapolisfed.org/Research/d...c/hist1800.cfm
This is also effectively an inflation calculator. For BM 2008 dynasties, the League Setup screen will give you identical information.

http://www.sportslogos.net/index.php
Logos by team by year. Between 1977 and today, for example, only two MLB teams DON"T change their logos.

http://www.sportsline.com/mlb/teams/history/ATL
A good summary page for each team's history, here defaulted to the Atlanta Braves. You can just switch 'ATL' for your team - it's pretty intuitive (PHI for Phillies for example), or you can click on 'teams', select who you want, then select 'history.'

http://www.baseball-almanac.com/
The holy grail - if you can live with annoying pop ups. World Series and All Star stats, player and team stats, it's all here if you're willing to look around.

http://www.mlb.com
Go to players, and (if needed) historical player search. If baseball has records on the guy, he's here.

[petrel]

Xen,

I did my very best to keep the Athletics where they were, but it didn't work out. On the other hand, the city of Philadelphia owns the Athletics trademarks, so if there's another expansion...hmmm....

CatKnight,

Mucho thanks for the links. I have some more links, but can't add them -- out of town visiting my mother right now. I'll compose a "master list" of links and add your links to it. As soon as I get back, I'll write up Game 2 of the World Series.

--Pet

[jianoran]

Earlier my dynasty Even the A's has female players, so will you add a Miss USA Team when we reach another expansion in 1972, along with a expansion vote?

[Xen_Antares]

Xen,

I did my very best to keep the Athletics where they were, but it didn't work out. On the other hand, the city of Philadelphia owns the Athletics trademarks, so if there's another expansion...hmmm....

CatKnight,

Mucho thanks for the links. I have some more links, but can't add them -- out of town visiting my mother right now. I'll compose a "master list" of links and add your links to it. As soon as I get back, I'll write up Game 2 of the World Series.

--Pet

I still love it Pet, Ive been doinngi some work in photoshop and paint creating uniforms and the like. I may restart my old dynasty with the Phillies moving to Baltimore becoming the Orioles just in time for the Whiz Kids to make it big.

[petrel]

Earlier my dynasty Even the A's has female players, so will you add a Miss USA Team when we reach another expansion in 1972, along with a expansion vote?

I don't think so. I'm probably more liberal than anyone else on the board -- I make Cindy Sheehan look like Bill O'Reilly -- but I think it will be decades, or maybe a century, for women to close the physiology gap that will let them compete with men in Major League Baseball.

--Pet

[petrel]

October 27, 1967
1967 World Series
Game 2


Boston City Hall, built in 1967. In 2004, the Project for Public Spaces wrote, "There is no square as terrible and as bleak as this one." A blight on Boston.

As Braves fans enjoyed their first World Series win in seven years, and this against the hated Yankees, Manager Gil Hodges of the Braves knew that Game 2 would be a much more difficult undertaking.

"Undertaking" was the correct word as the Old Undertaker, Jim Proctor (24-7, 2.01 ERA) would pitch for the Yankees. He was the designated "big man" of the Yankees and possibly the most feared pitcher in the American League, a four-time Cy Young Award winner, a Rookie of the Year winner, and a 30-game winner. He had won 167 games during his career and was only 31 years old. His "out pitches" -- the change and the slurve -- were not as impressive as the more showy pitchers, but he had pinpoint control that seemed only to have gotten better.

Proctor, of course, had little to say to the New York (or Boston) press. Rumor had it that he was "confident" and looking forward to meeting a team besides the Giants. Years later, he had said, "We had learned so much about the Giants over the last five or six years that it seemed like I faced that Giants lineup in my sleep. To actually have to learn a new lineup, new players and their respective approaches was quite refreshing." He wanted a good performance today more than almost any other Yankee, and his dour "game face" was on tight.

For the Braves, Bill Graham (23-5, 2.09 ERA) would be the starter. He was 30 years old, and this was only his third "true" season with the Braves, as Braves pitching was so deep that one had to be amazing to break out of the Braves minor league system. However, he was an intelligent man and he assessed his situation realistically. "1967 was my contract year with the Braves," Graham said, "and if I could get a few World Series wins, my bargaining position would be all that much better come 1968."

Graham's big pitch was the curve. Most pitchers that rely on the curve as their main pitch develop arm trouble, but Graham didn't have to throw a major league curveball that often. He only had a lifetime 57-30 record and only 809 IP. Aside from a 6-0 record in 1965, this was his best year as a pitcher and he was still relatively new to the National League. Hodges hoped he would be all the more new to the American League.

(* * *)

In the first inning, Graham permitted the Yankees to score a couple of hits off him. The first was a single to lead-off batter Jay Ward to start the game, and the Yankees made good use of the opportunity. He ended up on second, and Joe Torre hit a single to center off Graham, which scored the very first run of the game for the Yankees. Yankees 1, Braves 0. As for the Braves, Joe Morgan would lead off with a single to first, but the Braves left Morgan abandoned at second.

The Braves would make up for their mistake in the bottom of the second, as it seemed that the Braves were looking for...something to happen in right field. Ellis Burton hit a fly ball to Roberto Clemente in right, and Pumpsie Green lined out to Clemente, but Tommy Davis hit a ball to right that Clemente would never reach, hitting it into the bleachers and tying the game at the end of two. Yankees 1, Braves 1.

Both teams would put a runner on second in the third, but the inning would end 1-1. However, with one out in the top of the fourth, Yankees shorstop Rafael DeJesus hit his very first post-season homerun off a Bill Graham curveball that put the visitors back in the lead. Yankees 2, Braves 1.

The one run Yankee lead would hang over the heads of the Braves in both the fourth and the fifth. With Proctor still on the mound, catcher Tim McCarver would single with one out in the bottom of the fifth. McCarver had attempted to steal bases 35 times in his career...and had only been successful nine times. However, Manager Gil Hodges sent McCarver, and McCarver caught the Yankees unawares, stealing his very first base as a Boston Brave. However, McCarver would be left at second as the fifth inning concluded and the Braves still needed a run.

Aside from an error by Manny Mota that would allow the Yankees Stuart Petty to reach second base, the sixth inning was uneventful and Braves fans were starting to fret. Proctor was exactly the type of pitcher that could make a one run lead hold up, and the Braves would only have three innings to score off one of the best pitchers in baseball.

In the top of the seventh, Jim Proctor was one of the Yankees who went three up and three down, with Graham also still on the mound for the Braves. This brought Proctor to the moun in the bottom of the seventh to face the Braves. With one out, Pumpsie Green of the Braves singled to left and Tommy Davis would ground back to the pitcher, forcing the runner at second for the second out.

Tim McCarver, on the other hand, singled with two out in the bottom of the seventh to put runners on first and second. Manager Gil Hodges called in Willie McCovey to pinch-hit for Bill Graham. McCovey, who had hit 38 home runs in 1967, had lost his starting role at first base to Dick Smith, who not only hit 29 home runs but hit .347 as opposed to McCovey's .240.

On a 1-2 count, Proctor challenged McCovey with a change up, flying in the face of "the book". McCovey ate change-up pitches alive, and he made damned sure that Proctor would go back to New York remembering that fact. He homered to right center field, driving in three runs and bringing the Boston fans to their feet. Braves 4, Yankees 2.

Manager Ralph Houk came to the mound, and that was it for Jim Proctor. Replacing Proctor would be Jim Brady (0-0). Brady was 29-9 lifetime for the Yankees, but he found himself stuck in AAA. He was as suprised as anyone to find himself named to the World Series roster, and lead-off pitcher Joe Morgan would be the very first major league batter he'd face that year.

On a 1-1 count, Brady threw the change-up, a weakness of Morgan's. But it wasn't the freshest of change-ups, and Morgan clobbered it to right-center, not far from where McCovey's home run ball landed. Braves 5, Yankees 2. At least Brady got Manny Mota out on a groundball to end a four-run, four-hit seventh for the Braves.

Lindy McDaniel (11-9, 3.26 ERA, 7 saves) came in at the top of the eighth to replace Graham, with Tony Taylor replacing Tom Carroll at short. McDaniel, however, got into trouble early. After Roberto Clemente grounded to short, McDaniel walked Joe Torre. Harmon Killebrew would single to right, and the slow Joe Torre was given the go-head for an extra base, sliding into third with a hook-slide and beating the throw. The tying run was on-deck with just one out.

However, McDaniel recovered and struck out Rafael DeJesus on a called third strike. Stuart Petty grounded to second, and the Yankees eighth inning was over.

Despite an error by DeJesus and a single by Ellis Burton, the Braves could not add to their run total in the bottom of the eighth. This gave the Yankees one more try in the top of the ninth. Lee Maye would fly out to left field for the first out, and pinch-hitter Len Boehmer would fly out to center for the second. Finally, Jay Ward hit a pop-fly, Joe Morgan stood under it for the catch, and the Braves had their second victory.

FINAL SCORE: Braves 5, Yankees 2.

(* * *)

The Braves had made home field advantage work for them, sweeping the Yankees at home in the first two. However, they would have to travel to Yankee Stadium for the next three games and face the Yankees rude and rowdy crowds, which almost acted like a tenth player.

The Yankees had been two-down in the post-season before. They were two-down against the Seals in the ALCS before reeling off three straight. Yankees sportswriters were still optimistic. However, no matter how the Series went, Yankee fans would still remember that fateful pair of change-ups that changed the tide of Game 2 of the 1967 World Series.

[petrel]

October 29, 1967
1967 World Series
Game 3

The World Series returned to Yankee Stadium in the Bronx for Game 3.

With my wife, Phyllis in attendance (she was only slightly "showing" her pregnancy), we took our box seats and prepared to sweat out the results of Game Three. Once again, celebrities -- particularly, CBS celebrities -- crowded the stands, as CBS was the corporate owner of the Yankees. Someone stated that with CBS executives and celebrities in the Yankees owners box, one could have filmed a Oscar-winning film. Rumor had it that Jackie Gleason and Frank Sinatra were both in attendance at Game Three.

Myself, I was praying for a Braves win. I felt a 3-0 lead against the Yankees would be semi-secure. Frankly, if it were up to me, a thought a 4-0 lead
would be even more secure.

Up two games, Manager Gil Hodges started Don Drysdale (12-8, 3.93 ERA, 169 K). Drysdale was looking forward to his first World Series game in seven years. He was mad, but it was a "game mad". "I hate all hitters," said
Drysdale. "I start a game mad and I stay that way until it's all over." Someone once asked Don Drysdale if he looked forward to a World Series check. "I don't know, I'd just rather have the championship,"
Drysdale said. "The World Series check screws up your taxes."

Despite his sometimes annoying manner, and despite the lack of faith I often showed in Drysdale, he had been with the Braves his entire career, save for a couple of games in Pittsburgh at the very start. I was willing to trade any player and any time but there was something appealing to me about Drysdale finishing his career in a Braves uniform. (Although, truthfully, I would have rather had Hank Aaron.)

As for the Yankees, Manager Ralph Houk started Wayne Genser (12-13, 4.49 ERA, 210 K in 210 2/3 IP), a mid-season acquisition from the Pirates. Dick Young, the Daily News reporter, wrote about Genser, "Genser is the type of player that every 'true Yankee' wishes he secretly was -- serious,
faithful and in love with the game of baseball. All he needs is the winning pedigree to be immortalized."

Genser was likeable with his Yankees teammates from the start. Joe Torre said of Genser, "He's hard to catch, because he's such a power pitcher. He wants 27 strikeouts in a game." Genser, according to the Braves batters who faced him when he was a Pirate, "challenged everyone. He'd come with his best stuff, right at you, never lay off. There would be no trick pitches. Every inning was a battle of your best skills versus his best." I knew that we'd have an uphill battle against such a fiery competitor.

(* * *)

The first inning was an uneventful one. Both pitchers gave up a hit, both teams left a runner on base. However, even Braves batters were surprised by Genser. "He's throwing really hard out there; he's gonna hurt his arm," said Joe Morgan.

In the second inning, the Braves' Pumpsie Green and Tommy Davis managed back-to-back singles off Genser, but couldn't capitalize on it, with Tim McCarver popping up and Don Drysdale striking out to end the
inning.

Drysdale would have to hold up his end of the pitching duel. However, Drysdale faltered in the bottom of the second. He gave up a double to Harmon Killebrew to lead off the bottom of the second.

Then he gave up another double to Rafael DeJesus, scoring the first run of the game. Yankees 1, Braves 0. Drysdale then gave up another double, this time to Stuart Petty, scoring yet another run. Yankees 2, Braves 0.

Lee Maye's flyout to right field would move Stuart Petty to third, and Wayne Genser watched as Ellis Burton in center underthrew a grounder to Dick Smith
at first. Burton would be charged with an error, and Petty would score from third. Yankees 3, Braves 0.

Jay Ward grounded to first for a 3-4 putout for the second out. But the Yankees scored three straight singles off Drysdale, by Don Wert, Roberto Clemente and Joe Torre scoring two runs. Yankes 5, Braves
0. Harmon Killebrew would walk for his second plate apprearance in the second to load the bases, but Rafael DeJesus would strike out to mercifully end the five run, six-hit second inning.

In the top of the third, it seemed that the Braves would make a run of their own. Joe Morgan led off the third with a home run. Yankees 5, Bravers 1. Both Roberto Clemente and Don wert would give up back-to-back errors on ground balls that would put two Braves on base with no one out -- but once again, the Braves could not take advantage of Yankee generosity.

Drysdale struck out two batters to end the third, but the Braves couldn't advance their runners, limited to singles by Tim McCarver and Joe Morgan that added up to no further runs on the board. But in the bottom of
the fourth, Don Wert of the Yankees would hit a solo-home run off Drysdale that moved the Yankees that much further away. Yankees 6, Braves 1.

With two outs in the fifth and two men on, the Braves were finally able to advance a runner, this time off a double to Pumpsie Green. Yankees 6, Braves 2. Manager Gil Hodges would substitute Willie McCovey for catcher Tim McCarver, but McCovey couldn't make up for the lack of Braves offense, popping up to short with men on second and third.

With one out and a man on first in the bottom of the fifth, Don Drysdale was still on the mound for the Braves. He would give up a single to second, and
DeJesus would advance to third on the strength of Stuart Petty's single.

Lee May would strike out, and Yankees Manager Ralph Houk would let Bill Kern pinch-hit for Genser with runners on first and third and a four-run lead. Kern
singled to left, and the Yankees now had a five-run lead. Yankees 7, Braves 2. Jay Ward would then walk to load the bases, and Manager Gil Hodges would send Drysdale to the showers, bringing in Hank Aguirre (3-3, 3.35 ERA) to get the Braves out of the inning.

The Braves would not score again. Ellis Burton would let a ball drop for a base hit in the bottom of the sixth, his second error of the night which allowed
another Yankee run to score. Yankees 8, Braves 2. Kelly Osbourne (12-1, 3.01 ERA, 117 K) would pitch the final four innings for the Yankees, despite giving up three straight singles to the Braves with just one out in
the top of the ninth. As in earlier innings, the Braves made nothing of their chances, as Pumpsie Green popped up to second and Tommy Davis grounded to short to end the game.

FINAL SCORE: Yankees 8, Braves 2

(* * *)

The manager of the Braves, Gil Hodges, told me that he wasn't going to put too much pressure on the ballclub. "You put pressure on them when they're winning, not when they're losing." Little did I he know that the next person to put pressure on him as a manager would be me, during the next day.

As for the Yankees, Manager Ralph Houk said that managing the Yankees was "a crucible". You were not respected until you won your first championship. When asked when that would be, he just sighed and said, "we take that one game at a time here."

[petrel]

1967 World Series
October 30, 1967
Game 4

I was staying at the Essex House in Manhattan with Phyllis during the World Series, having a car take me over to Yankee Stadium during the games. The Braves were staying at another, less publicized hotel. The last thing the Braves needed were to be bothered by a bunch of crazy Yankees fans.

That morning, I got a call from Manager Gil Hodges. "Pet," he said, "I want to experiment with a left-handed lineup for Game 4".

I didn't put much store in "left-handed" versus "right-handed" lineups. Morris Stark and I had done some calculations decades earlier and concluded that handedness didn't matter than much in performance. The Braves had always had the same lineup, regardless. (It also helped during contract negotiations, as someone couldn't claim that the Braves needed a "left-handed bat". I
kept an actual baseball bat in the office, and when someone made that argument, I picked up the bat, took both batting stances, and said, "looks like the same bat to me, either way".)

"So why do you want to change what's obviously working? That loss last night?"

"Pet," said Hodges, "the problem with that lineup is that everybody knows it and has memorized it. They know that Joe Morgan will always bat first and that McCarver will always bat before the pitcher. The Yankee bullpen has the "setups" figured out, no matter who is leading off in an inning. I want to throw a wrench in their plans."

"Okay," I said, "I'm listening."

Then Gil gave me his lineup. And that was when the conversation got heated. Two bench players, Johnny Briggs and Rene Lachemann, would get prime batting spots -- first and third. Floyd Robinson would play left field. Joe Morgan would bat eighth. "What the he ll?" I thought. "Is he crazy? Lachemann batting third? Lachemann's the last Braves player I'd want to see batting third!"

I told Gil that this dumbass lineup was out of the question. Then we had the argument that we had managed to put off for years -- did I, as a GM, trust him, as a manager, to make the right decisions...or was he a puppet?

"Pet," he said, finally, "this will work. I tell you what. I will guarantee you that we will win Game 4."

"Oh bulls hit!"

"No joke, I will guarantee a Game Four win if you do this. It will drive the **** Yankees crazy."

"Yeah, crazy laughing their asses off."

"No, it will throw off Bob Hendley's timing. We already beat him in Game 1; this will shake his confidence completely."

"**** no. We go with the standard lineup."

"You have to trust me Pet! Show me some trust! We can win Game 4! This club can win! Let it win!"

I sighed. "Fine. Fine, gahddammit. Put your crazy-*** lineup in Game 4 and make the Braves a laughing stock. But you guaranteed me a Game 4 win, and I expect one!"

"Oh, by the way, Pet, I wanna start Bulldog (Jim Bouton) in Game 4."

"Bouton? Perkins is ready to go! He won Game 1, for Pete's sake!"

That led to another argument. Once again, the Yanks would expect Perkins, but not Bouton. I didn't trust Bouton. Bouton didn't come through during big games in my opinion, but Hodges swore that Bouton was ready to go.

"You're determined to drive me to drink, aren't you, Hodges?"

There was silence. "A few beers might help you," Hodges said. "I know a bar."

(* * *)

To say I was nervous taking my seat in Game 4 was an understatement. I almost didn't want to watch. Screwy lineup, and Jim Bouton on the mound. I could just imagine the papers the next day. I'd be a genius or an idiot.

Jim Bouton (9-6, 2.93 ERA) indeed got the Game 4 call. Bouton was a fearless pitcher on the mound, but the word from the Braves clubhouse was that he was far too inquisitive to make a truly dominating pitcher. You couldn't tell Bulldog anything -- he always wanted to know "why" things were being done. "Why am I fourth in the rotation?" "Why are you sending me back to AAA, skip?" He was too much of a maverick to suit the Braves coaches, and he was too much of a pain in the *** during negotiations.

Furthermore, his 1967 stats were unimpressive. He was a true "fourth starter" on this club, but in for a penny, etc. etc. Bouton would have to do.

Manager Ralph Houk had planned on Bob Hendley (22-4, 2.53 ERA) for Game 4. Hendley had lost Game 1, and was looking forward to making it up to the Yankees. Sportswriters grumbled that Houk had "ruined" the Yankees rotation by not putting Proctor in the Game 1 position. "They're not really going to start Hendley three times, are they?" asked a Yankees sportswriter, in a half-rhetorical question.

(* * *)

I watched about as carefully as you can from a box seat during the exchange of lineups ceremony. If Houk was disturbed by the Braves lineup, he didn't show it. ("He just looked at me," said Hodges.) Houk waddled back into the Yankee dugout, and his pitching coach undoubtedly made a call to the bullpen.

The plan seemed to work. Johnny Briggs led off with a single for the Braves, and Ellis Burton followed up with a double to center field. Then, the Yankees infield chipped in. Rene Lachemann would reach first on a throwing error by Harmon Killebrew to Hendley covering first, allowing the first Braves run to score. One out later, Floyd Robinson would hit a ground ball to third, but Don Wert would somehow forget his throwing stance and take a split second to reposition himself before throwing. It was the second Yankee error of the inning, and it allowed another Braves run. Braves 2, Yankees 0.

This left men on first and third, and Manny Mota would single to right, scoring another run. Braves 3, Yankees 0. Joe Morgan would strike out to end the inning, but the Braves had scored three runs before the Yankees even had a chance to bat!

Bouton looked good, giving up a single but striking out two Yankees batters in the bottom of the first. And in the top of the second, he helped the Braves cause again, leading off with a single. Ellis Burton added another double, driving Bouton to third, and when Rene Lachemann flied out to right field, Bouton raced home and beat the throw for another Braves run. Braves 4, Yankees 0.

In the bottom of the second, Harmon Killebrew led off with a walk. Rafael DeJesus would single to the right side, and one out later, Lee Maye would single up the middle.

Then...Houk make a strange move of his own. With the bases loaded for the Yanks and Hendley up to bat, Houk pulled Bob Hendley. Hendley would only pitch two innings against the Braves! Bill Kern would come up to pinch-hit for the Yankees with one out. However, he grounded to Joe Morgan -- playing shortstop in this game -- who turned the 6-4-3 double play and kept the Yankees from scoring in the second!

Greg Hoover (8-2, 3.89 ERA) would pitch for the Yankees in the third, and limit the Braves to a Manny Mota single. However, the Yankees went hitless in the bottom of the third and remained scoreless going into the top of the fourth.

Aside from another walk given up to Killebrew, Bouton continued to dominate the Yankees, striking out Rafael DeJesus and Stuart Petty to end the fourth inning. In the top of the ffith, with two out, Floyd Robinson would step up to the plate against Greg Hoover, and hit a ball about 380 feet to right center field, just over the fence for a solo home run that put the Braves up by five runs! Braves 5, Yankees 0.

In the bottom of the fifth, Bouton gave up two singles, but the Braves turned a double play to eliminate the threat. With two out in the top of the sixth, Johnny Briggs would triple to left field and Ellis Burton would hit a two-run homer to put the game even further out of reach for the home team. Braves 7, Yankees 0.

It was all over for the Yankees. Bouton would only give up one single and one walk for the rest of the game, and no Yankee would reach second base. Gene Brabender (2-0, 1.89 ERA) would be called in to get the final out, as Stuart Petty grounded to Manny Mota at second to give the Braves their third win in four games with an amazing shutout!

FINAL SCORE: Braves 7, Yankees 0.

(* * *)

For now, we were celebrating our Game 4 victory as the New York fans confusedly filed out of Yankee Stadium. Many of them were absolutely convinced that the Yankees would win three straight and take the Series. "We did it to the Seals, and we'll do it to Boston!"

However, there were some repercussions to our victory that would not be clear until the next day. Until then, I didn't dare to dream of a World Series victory...but at least, I could countenance the thought.

Note: what was the inspiration for all of this? Somehow, I unchecked the box that said "Use same lineup vs. lefty and righty pitchers, and the AI chose the lineup for me. Didn't find out until the game started! -- Pet.

[petrel]

1967 World Series
Game 5
October 31, 1967

Halloween. I would be in my best costume today, and so would Phyllis, close to four months pregnant. We would disguise ourselves as patently interested in hanging out with Ron Stark Jr. at one of the upper-level boxes at Yankee Stadium.

Unfortunately, I was brought a trick instead of a treat that morning. After Game 4, Joe Morgan, who had hit two home runs in the cities, was complaining of pain in his "upper thigh" and waddling like a duck. He had pulled one of the adductor muscles in his upper leg -- a groin pull. There was no way on earth he would come back for the rest of the World Series -- he could barely walk. Manager Gil Hodges pencilled in Tony Taylor at second base and moved Pumpsie Green to the leadoff spot.


A groin pull, for the uninitiated.

It was the first question Ron Stark asked me. "Will Joe Morgan come back?"

"I don't think so."

I would be keeping Ron Stark Jr. company for hopefully, just this game. Our owner was a very boring man, managing to combine anecdotes about the state of business with his childhood baseball experiences in the dullest way possible. Phyllis was a lot better at pretending she was interested. I only thanked God that we were not the social equals of the Starks, and that the owner never saw fit to invite us to the country club or any of his parties.

However, there was another person visiting both boxes. That was Commissioner Pete Rozelle, who was ready to hand off the World Series trophy to the Braves, a beautiful thirty-pound trophy with 22 tiny flags with two flags at the base, one representing the Braves and the other the Yankees. It was in an armored car, ready to make an appearance should the Braves win it all.

Aside from an interview with CBS television, I was mostly let alone. If we won, it would be the first time in ten years that a team from New York had not won the World Series. So who was the last non-New York team to win? The Boston Braves, which beat the Washington Senators four games to three.

(* * *)

Yankees Manager Ralph Houk would start Jim Proctor (24-7, 2.01 ERA). Generally in the playoffs, one of two Jim Proctors has shown up. Once, he pitched eight innings and gave up less than a run. But the other two times, he gave up four earned runs and didn't make it to the seventh inning. Frankly, we wanted to face the second version of Jim Proctor.

As for the Braves, we had Cecil Perkins (26-3, 1.95 ERA). If there was a deciding game of a World Series, I'd want Perkins on the mound, and we was going to get a chance at a second win. As for whether or not Perkins could take the pressure -- Perkins was 52-6 lifetime, including his post-season Game 1 victory. I suspected that Perkins would do all right.

(* * *)

In the top of the first, the Yankees threatened to give up a run, when Manny Mota reached first on a fielding error by Stuart Petty in center field and Tom Carroll singled with two out, putting runners on first and third. However, Ellis Burton hit a weak grounder to first to kill Boston's chances. As for the Yankees, Roberto Clemente singled with two out -- and then stole second with a head-first slide, beating out McCarver's throw. Joe Torre, however, would help his former team by grounding out to end the inning.

Perkins, however, was now going to help the Braves merely with his pitching. Tommy Davis led off the second, and two outs later, found himself at third base with Perkins coming up to bat. Perkins got a single to center field off Proctor with a lucky swing, Davis scored, and the Braves went on the scoreboard first. Braves 1, Yankees 0.

However, the Yankees came back. Rafael DeJesus would walk with one and with two outs, Lee Maye would double down the deep left field line. DeJesus would race from first and beat Tommy Davis's throw from left, scoring the first Yankees run, but Jim Proctor would strike out and end the second. Braves 1, Yankees 1.

Aside from Proctor giving up a single and a walk in the third, there was no third-inning action as the top of the order for the Yankees went out 1-2-3. The Braves scratched out a lone single in the fourth, and the next three Yankees batters went down, with Rafael DeJesus striking out to end four innings with the score tied 1-1.

The Braves were unable to hit the ball out of the infield in the fifth inning. The Yankees were more fortunate. Lee Maye hit a sharp ground ball to Tommy Davis in left field, but he let the ball get past him! It was the first Braves error of the game, and it put Lee Maye on second. Jim Proctor then came to bat, and he hit a fastball into center field, scoring an unearned run and putting the home team in the lead. Yankees 2, Braves 1.

Jay Ward would strike out for the second out, but Don Werd would walk to put men on first and second. On a 2-2 count, Roberto Clemente would then double into the right field gap and bring both Proctor and Wert home, giving the Yankees a three run lead. Yankees 4, Braves 1.

However, the Braves got on base at the top of the sixth with lead-off man Ellis Burton reaching first on a bad throw by Yankees third baseman Don Wert. Tommy Davis then singled, bringing Burton to third, and Willie McCovey would pinch-hit for Tony Taylor. He grounded to Proctor, who had to follow the ball behind him and make the out at second base, scoring another run for Boston. Yankees 4, Braves 2. However, Tim McCarver would ground into a 1-6-3 double play, giving Proctor two assists and limiting the Braves to just one run in the sixth.

With Dick Green coming in for the Braves to play second, Perkins remained on the mound. However, he got into trouble fast. He gave up singles to both Harmon Killebrew and Rafael DeJesus, and then hit Stuart Petty in the thigh with a pitch to load the bases with no one out.

Lee Maye would fly to "Death Valley", the Yankees deep center field, and Killebrew would tag up and reach home, scoring a run. Yankees 5, Braves 2. Jim Proctor would line out hard to left, and Tommy Davis had the ball so quickly that the Yankees didn't dare run on him. But Jay Ward walked to load the bases again, and only Don Wert's lazy fly ball to center kept the Yankees from doing further damage.

The Braves managed only a single in the seventh. Jose Santiago (5-4, 3.01 ERA) came in to relieve Perkins in the bottom of the seventh, but couldn't solve the Yankees, either. After Roberto Clemente popped up, he allowed singles to Torre, Killebrew and DeJesus, and only Stuart Petty's double-play ground ball to short held the Yankees to a three-run lead.

In the top of the eighth, Tommy Davis would get his third hit of the night and second double with two out, but the Braves could not take advantage. However, Santiago kept the Yankees off the bases in the eighth, giving the Braves one final chance to tie.

Don McMahon (2-5, 3.83 ERA, 40 saves), the season saves champion, came in to close out the ninth. However, he gave up a lead-off walk to Tim McCarver, and Jimmy Wynn, pinch-hitting for Santiago, also walked. The Braves had the tying run at the plate, no outs, and were going to the beginning of the order!

However, Pumpsie Green struck out. Manny Mota hit a fly ball to center for the second out, and neither runner moved. Dick Smith got a piece of a McMahon fastball on a 2-1 count -- but the ball could not clear Stuart Petty in center field. The Yankees had a Game 5 win, their last game of the year at Yankee Stadium.

FINAL SCORE: Yankees 5, Braves 2.

(* * *)

It was disappointing. "Well, we'll be luckier in Boston," was all the solace that Ron Stark Jr. had to offer me. I knew that however bad I was taking it, Manager Gil Hodges was taking it worse. Usually, the Boston press was a nightmare to deal with, but this time, they asked no loaded questions -- they wanted us to win and break the New York streak.

The New Yorkers were very happy. We had not managed to squelch their confidence, and their fans still had their swagger. They felt they could beat us in two straight games even at home. We had to win Game 6, come what may -- but could we win that game without Joe Morgan?

[petrel]

1967 World Series
November 2, 1967
Game 6
Part I

The World Series returned to Boston for at least one game in November. November 2nd was the latest than any World Series game had taken place, and the baseball gods showed their displeasure by sending the temperatures down to the 40s in the AM. By gametime, the temperature would be 34 degrees.

I wouldn't be sitting down in the bleachers. I'd be up in the owner's box, along with Ron Stark Jr. and a cross-selection of the Boston elite. There would be a few politicians there, but most of the people were people that no one had heard of -- bankers, the ultra-wealthy, society people. The very few movers and shakers that happened to be real baseball fans. I enjoyed talking to them more than talking to Ron Stark; they had followed the Braves for years, even back when we were the "Bees".

The Yankees had moved their traveling road show to Boston, and Manager Gil Hodges was, as he put it, "keeping his hands off the whip". He was a firm believer that after a loss, you should act as if nothing had happened, but after a win, you should demand even more of your team. "This time," he said, "it was more difficult than ever, because players look to the manager. If the manager is worried, the players are worried. If you're worried, you can't ever let them see that."

Manager Ralph Houk of the Yankees made the decision to start Wayne Genser (12-13, 4.49 ERA ), who got the very first Yankees win in Game 3 against Drysdale. "His best weapon is intimidation", said Houk, referring to the fact that Genser threw very hard indeed. Dave Nicholson, now with the Spurs, referred to Genser's fastball as "like standing next to a train as it passes you -- all you feel is the wind going by, strong enough to give you the jitters". If Genser was intimidated by a potentially hostile Braves crowd, he didn't say so. "I've played here before" was all he said.

Hodges knew that the Yankees could win Game 6 very easily, which would force a Game 7 where anything could happen. At the very list, he knew he had Bill Graham (23-5, 2.09 ERA ), the Braves Game 2 winner. If Graham faltered, it would be Don Drysdale in Game 7. "Don said that he wanted to get a little acting in on the West Coast," said Graham, "and I told him that I wouldn't make him pitch a Game 7 if I could help it. Besides, Don's a California boy, and he don't like the cold weather."

(* * *)

However, Bill Graham had some difficulty in keeping that promise, at least at the start. Graham gave up three straight hits to the Yankees batters, singles to Jay Ward and Don Wert and a double by Clemente into the right field gap that scored the first run and put runners on second and third with no one out. Yankees 1, Braves 0.

Joe Torre, the next batter, grounded to shortstop Tom Carroll. Carroll was normally a third baseman but I had dragooned him into shortstop duty against Manager Gil Hodges wishes. Carroll, thinking quick, threw to McCarver at home as Wert made his slide.

OUT!! The Yankees bench immediately started booing, thinking that Wert should have been called safe. Manager Ralph Houk of the Yankees stepped partially out of the dugout and began jawing with Umpire Ed Runge, but Runge made it clear that he wasn't going to take any backtalk. Houk retreated to the dugout. It was too early in a game to get tossed.

Graham then caught Killebrew swinging for the second and DeJesus popped up to second. The Braves had escaped the first and had only given up one run.

In the bottom of the first, Genser was throwing that "express" pitch, but the Braves got help from DeJesus at short, who bobbled a Manny Mota grounder for too long, allowing Mota to reach first on an E-6 call by the scorer. With two out, Tom Carroll then doubled to right-center, scoring the first Braves run. Yankees 1, Braves 1. Genser then threw a wild pitch, and Carroll took third, but Ellis Burton would strike out to end an eventful first.

In the second, the only action came from Tim McCarver's double with two out, but Bill Graham grounded to first to end the second. In the top of the third, Don Wert struck out on a ball that must have clipped the top of the strike zone by a nose hair, and he gave an angry look at Umpire Ed Runge behind home plate. Even I thought it was a bad call. Genser, however, made up for it in the bottom of the third by striking out two Braves batters.

Aside from a Harmon Killebrew walk in the fourth, the inning was uneventful. As both sides went three up and three down in the fifth, Braves fans settled in for an uneasy pitcher's duel. The very last thing I wanted was a crushing extra-inning loss.

At the top of the sixth, with the score still 1-1, the first three Yankees went down in short order. Graham had not given up a hit to the Yankees since the first inning.

In the bottom of the sixth, with one out, Manny Mota singled to left. It was the first Braves hit since the second inning, bringing up Dick Smith.

Smith ate fastballs alive. He had a .347 AVG and a .422 OBP in 1967. Genser stayed away from the fastball, preferring to throw the slow curve – the "slurve" – that broke outside for ball one. Genser threw another slurve -- but Smith then hit the ball to deep right center field, well into the bleachers and broke the tie in the Braves favor! Braves 3, Yankees 1.

Tom Carroll then walked bringing up Ellis Burton…who hit a double right down the left field line. By the time Lee Maye got his hands on the ball, Burton was already on second and Carroll was standing on third base.

Tommy Davis then struck out swinging, leaving Braves on second and third with two out. Manager Gil Hodges made the decision to pull Tony Taylor out of the game for pinch-hitter Willie McCovey. McCovey already had a pinch-hit homerun in Game 2, and as McCovey had been delegated to pinch-hitting duty, he was determined to make an impact.

McCovey was the opposite of Smith – he was a curveball hitter, and Genser would make sure McCovey saw nothing but blazing heat. However, on a 1-1 count, Genser threw the fastball inside and to the astonishment of the crowd, McCovey homered to right center field -- not as deep as Dick Smith's homer, but deep enough to clear the bases and add three runs to the jubilant cheers of the Braves crowd. Braves 6, Yankees 1.

That was when Phyllis took my hand and squeezed it. By God, if Graham could hold on to the lead, we'd have our first World Championship in 10 years!!

That was it for Wayne Genser. Manager Ralph Houk sent him to the showers. He had given up five earned runs in the sixth off two homers to the Braves. Kelly Osborne (xxx-xx) replaced him to strike out Tim McCarver for the last out, but the Yankees had to make up five runs in three innings.

[petrel]

1967 World Series
Game 6
November 2, 1967
Part II

Dick Green came in to play second in the top of the seventh. Harmon Killebrew struck out on another dubious call by Umpire Ed Runge. As for DeJesus and Petty, they couldn't even hit the ball out of the infield. We were just six outs away!

In the bottom of the seventh, with Kelly Osborne on the mound, Bill Graham would lead off. Osborne plunked Graham with a pitch – a change up that didn't change -- and plunked him fairly hard, enough to send him to the dirt.

The entire Boston bench stood on its feet and Braves Field roared with boos and contempt for the Yankees. Kelly Osborne, a man who never liked to say two words when one would do, would be forced to defend the pitch after the game -- a suitable punishment for Osborne, who hated even talking to his own teammates.

However, there was no incident. In the top of the eighth, Bill Graham would appear on the mound to the applause of the headdress-wearing Braves faithful. Lee Maye would pop up to short, and Len Boehmer would come in to pinch-hit for Osborne. However, Boehmer grounded to third, and Jay Ward flew out to left field to end the top of the eighth.

In the bottom of the eighth, Dave Giusti (2-1, 2.24 ERA) came in to keep the Braves off the bases. Dick Green would single with two out, but Tim McCarver would ground out to third and the Braves would add no more runs to their 6-1 lead.

It would all come down to the ninth inning. Manager Gil Hodges put in Gene Brabender (2-0, 1.89 ERA) to pitch what might be the deciding inning. His first batter was Don Wert, who flew out to Tommy Davis in center field, for the first out.

The second batter was Roberto Clemente. After loading the pitch-count to 3-1, Clemente walked on the next pitch and the Yankees put a runner on first base.

Joe Torre would come up to bat. On a 1-2 pitch, Torre hit a fly ball to shallow center. Ellis Burton was under it, and the Braves were one out away from a win.

The potential final batter was Harmon Killebrew. I still remembered the three home runs Killebrew hit off of us in Game 5 of the 1960 World Series. Brabender's very first pitcher was a slider….

…then, Killebrew made contact. Everyone saw the ball go into left field -- but everyone knew it would not go far. Cautiously, Tommy Davis stood under it, grabbed it, and the crowd roared with joy as the Braves had won the 1967 World Series.

FINAL SCORE: Braves 6, Yankees 1

The Boston Braves are 1967 World Champions!

(* * *)

For New York fans, it was a major letdown. It's easy to be a fan of a franchise that wins all or most of the time, and the Yankees had a better record than the Braves. However, the Yankees didn't have a "Braves" of their own in the AL East. The Senators finished 20 games out and some Yankees fans wondered if they needed tougher opponents in their division. "The road was too easy," they told themselves. "We got soft."

The best word to describe Yankee reaction was "shock". But the fans shook it off. They were the YANKEES, and better than any sorry moth-eaten Boston Indian. They'd be back in 1968 with yet another pennant, so they said.

Manager Ralph Houk gave the Braves a great compliment. "I've played the Braves enough (as the Giants manager) and I'll tell you this was a great team. It could hit." However, Houk wondered if the Yankees could be perpetually carried on the backs of Killebrew and Clemente. He had a lot to think about going into 1968.

Boston fans went wild -- yippies, hippies, soldiers, sailors, activists, BU students, playboys, and everyone who was a Braves fan collected outside the stadium, not even wanting to leave after it was all over. There was none of the destruction one would associate with a modern Series victory. This was a different era.

New York's hold on the World Series trophy was broken over, and we hoped it was broken for good. Commissioner Pete Rozelle presented the 1967 trophy to Ron Stark Jr., who gave a speech and presented it to me. It would go in my office, next to the trophies from 1956 and 1957, the National League Championship Trophy from 1960 and the huge picture of the 1914 Miracle Braves.

The Boston Press were already typing their headlines. "THE GIL HODGES ERA HAS BEGUN" read a headline in the Boston Globe. The Herald had "BRAVES CLINCH CHAMPIONSHIP ON GROUND OF 'GREY LADY', BEAT YANKS 6-1".

None of us could avoid the spraying of beer in the clubhouse. We were soaked. The celebration was particularly loud and boisterous, because so many contracts were going to be up for renegotiation. Contracts such as Cecil Perkins, Bill Graham, Dick Smith, Willie McCovey, and others. The players knew that the 1967 Braves might be broken up and the next time they might see each other would be as opponents.

We finally got out of the clubhouse and Phyllis and I would simply head home, planning a private dinner the next night. "Well, Ron, you did it," she said.

"Yep. It's over. Until next year," I answered.

Oddly enough, I wasn't filled with the kind of joy that I associated with the 1956 and 1957 championships. The joy came after, when I woke up the next day. It was a great accomplishment, and well won. I could call myself a World Champion GM, and the Boston Globe confirmed it for me:

Braves are Boston's Team
The Torch is Passed, Red Sox are Runner-Up

BOSTON -- With three world championships in just over a decade, the ground has shifted. When you talk to kids in Beantown these days, they don't want to be Red Sox. They want to be Braves. They would rather be associated with three championships in eleven years than with the other franchise that hasn't won a World Championship since 1918. Twenty years ago, the Red Sox ruled the roost in Boston, and the Braves were an afterthought. Now, the Sox are considered the not-so-lovable losers….

(* * *)

The Braves. The Kings of Boston. I liked the sound of that. Finally, I could truly enjoy the championship.