The Covid Baseball League - nee' Hosford

Are all pitchers for the 1941 playoffs now considered well rested?

White Sox Unleash Full Arsenal of Losing Baseball, Still Prevail over Indians

CLEVELAND - Today’s tilt between the Cleveland Indians and the Chicago White Sox finally settled humanity’s ages-old question, “what happens inside a tiny car crammed with 50 clowns?” as the Pale Hose outlasts the Tribes 5-3 in front of a crowd of 23,000 slack jawed fans despite only getting 5 hits, committing 4 errors and being skippered by the most inept manager in the league.

As they have all season, the White Sox climaxed very early, scoring 3 runs in the first two frames. Indians hurler Al Milnar struggled to find the plate as he issued 3 consecutive walks to bring Pete Hill home who lead off the game with a double. Cleveland, finding the Chicago philosophy of play too intoxicating to resist, gifted the Southsiders with two more runs in the 2nd. Milnar walked 2 more batters and gave up a bloop single to Wild Bill Wright which loaded the bases with one out. Buck Leonard then lifted Milnar’s fastball out to right field that Willard Brown lost in the sun, bringing home 2 and giving Chicago the 3-0 lead.

White Sox starter Johnny Rigney pitched solidly, keeping Indians traffic to a dull roar by striking out 3, walking 2 and surrendering a single while shortstop Luke Appling committed one of his 2 errors of the day.

Then in the top of the 5th, the greatest chess match between two Major League Baseball managers took place, except one was playing chess and the other Shoots and Ladders. With the Sox batting, Homer Johnson hit a single and moved to 2nd when Milnar walked Taffy Wright. Two outs later, Milnar issued his eighth free pass of the game, walking Billy Knickerbocker to load the bases, bringing up the pitcher’s spot. White Sox skipper Weber, desperate for a few more runs to give his beleaguered squad a little cheer as they prepare entry into the abattoir of the postseason, decided to pinch hit for Rigney with the aging slugger Moose Solters. Cleveland manager Lutz had seen enough, and retaliated by calling for righty Jim Bagby to take the ball. Weber chuckled, muttering gutterally, “you have fallen into my trap!” and called back Solters and sent out Ben Chapman, his righty killer. Lutz burst into laughter and pulled off his mask, revealing himself to be none other than the Devil and chortled, “pitiful human worm! Check and mate!” as he removed Bagby from the mound and replaced him with southpaw Harry Eisenstat, knowing that Chapman was utterly helpless against lefties. Weber’s face fell as he realized he forgot that the Cleveland pen was a breeding ground for lefties. With the grace of an exposed charlatan, he wanely replaced Chapman with Dario Lodgiani. Now, the final pieces of this drama were finally moved into place, leading to the thrilling resolution!

Lodgiani flew out to Oscar Charleston in center. And the Sox’ woes were just beginning.

Taking over for Rigney was seldom used paperweight Bill Dietrich, and an audible sigh of relief reverberated throughout the Cleveland dugout. Dietrich gave up singles to the first three batters he faced, with Jeff Heath’s safety sending pinch hitter Roy Heatherly home. Then, with runners on the corners, Dietrich muffed a comebacker from Hal Trotsky, allowing Charleston to score from 3rd. And in the 6th, Home Run Johnson reached base on Appling’s second error, advanced to 3rd after two infield outs to first, and then scored when pitcher Al Smith hit a ball out to center that Hill also lost in the sun, and Cleveland tied the game at 3-3.

But as madness rushes in, it too must also recede. In their half of the 7th, Chicago uncharacteristically showed some grit. Mike Tresch, replacing Heavy Johnson at catcher for defensive purposes, led off with a double in his first AB of the season. He would come home one batter later on Joe Kuhel’s triple, and Kuhel would score on pinch hitter Mike Kreevich’s double to give a very rare late inning lead that the Sox would hold on to. Weber then turned to his ace fireman Johnny Humphries and he silenced the Cleveland lumber for the remainder of the game.

In the 9th, Weber wanted to replaced his stone gloved 3rd baseman Kuhel with Bob Kennedy, only to be reminded by the opposition that Kennedy (who he had yet to use this season) was not even on the team anymore, and suddenly realized that the man who he thought was Kennedy was just a pile of dirty laundry left on the bench wearing a ballcap. Weber’s only other third baseman was…Dario Lodgiani, who he burned in his ineffectual battle of wits with Lutz. So Kuhel stayed in, but it didn’t hurt the Pale Hosers lurch to victory.

Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than to be good.

Final week (14) schedule:
Sun 8pm. #1 Boston (Wagner) at NY Yankees (Donald) - Red Sox 6 Bombers 2
Mon 6pm. #8 White Sox at Cleveland - Chisox 5 Tribe 3
Thurs. 6/30 7pm. NY Giants at Phillies (BP game) - Giants 11 Phillies 3
Wed. 6pm-ish. Cardinals (Lanier) at Pirates (Wilkie)

Week 13 schedule and standings-

Mon. #2 Red Sox (Johnson) at #5 Tribe - Bosox 5 Tribe 4
Sun. #8 White Sox (Lee) at #6 Yankees (Breuer) - Yanks 3 White Sox 2
Tues. 7pm. #7 Giants (McGee) at #3 Pirates (Butcher) - Giants 3 Bucs 1
Sat. 8pm. #4 Cardinals (Nahem) at #1 Phillies (Dihigo) - Cards 10 Phillies 8

Week 12 schedule and standings:
Sun. 4:30pm. White Sox (Lyons) at Red Sox (McDonald) - Bosox 17 Chisox 9
Sat. 7pm Tribe (Manning) at Yanks (Chandler) - Tribe 8 Yanks 4
Cards at Giants - Giants 6 Cards 5
Pirates at Phillies

Week 11 schedule and standings. 4 games left in the regular season. Get your rotations set! One day of rest before Round 1 of the playoffs.

Sun. 6pm. Phillies (Grissom) at White Sox (Smith) Phillies 9 White Sox 5
Tues. 7pm. Tribe (Heving) at Cardinals
Fri. 7pm. Yankees (Bonham) at Giants (Hubbell) - Bombers 18 Giants 1
Mon. 7pm. Pirates (Dietz) at Red Sox (Jones) Bucs 8 Bosox 6

Bullet Joe Rogan does it all (nearly) as Phillies outlast Red Sox 15-13 in Fenway bloodbath.

Fans left the ballpark exhausted and devastated after witnessing a spectacular slugfest between the Philadelphia Phillies and the Boston Red Sox. Despite manager Fong’s brilliant and myriad machinations, the Phillies emerged victorious in a game that was a nail-biter up to the final out.

The bats were fairly silent in the early going. Boston starter Tex Hughson allowed a lot of traffic in the first 2 innings but didn’t allow any runners to cross home, while Philly superstar Bullet Joe Rogan set down the first six batters in order and retired 9 of the first 10 Bosox hitters through 3 innings.

Hughson’s dam burst in the 3rd when the Phillies sent 9 men to the plate and plated 4, with three coming on a blast by third sacker John Beckwith. Beckwith’s dinger came after megastar catcher Josh Gibson was intentionally walked, as apparently Fong thought giving up a 3-run jack was a better idea than allowing Gibson a two-run tater. Hughson’s day was done after 3 innings when Joe Cronin pinch hit for him in the 3rd. Down 4 nil, Fong abandoned his defense first lineup, making wholesale changes to bring in big bats at the cost of stone gloves, and the move paid off. The Beaneaters struck back thunderously in the 4th and 5th frames, putting up 3 and 4 runs respectively, sending 4 batters to the dish in the latter inning. Fong looked into the souls of his men and picked those he found stout of heart and certain of pinch hit, as his pinch hitters drove in 3 runs from the 7th slot in those two innings.When Lou Finney lined out to Martin Dihigo to end the 5th, Boston was on top 7-5.

The mighty Philadelphia nine would not remain silent for long. They quickly pushed two across in their half of the 6th, as Rogan remained red hot at the dish with his 4th single of the game followed by his 3rd stolen base, and reached home on Gibson’s single. Like the god he is, Bullet Joe shook off the damage of the 4th and 5th innings and set down 6 of the next seven Red Sox batters. Meanwhile, Philly plated 2 more in the top of the 6th and 7th aided by the static footwork and metal glove of Cronin at shortstop and the ineffectiveness of the Boston bullpen. After Rogan drove in Litwhiler (who reached on a Cronin error) with his FIFTH single of the game, Philadelphia had regained the lead 9-7.

In the Boston half of the 8th inning, the wheels finally came off for Rogan on the mound. After surrendering a single to Finney and walking Cronin on a close 3-2 pitch and with Jimmy Foxx looming, visiting manager Weber waved in Ike Pearson to put out the fire, but sent the Renaissance man Rogan out to centerfield to keep his boom stick in the game. Pearson quickly showed how he was an instrumental element in the 43-111 team: he walked Double X on 4 pitches, then ill-advisedly served up a non-breaking curveball to Ted Williams, and the Splendid Splinter destroyed the pitch which went straight to Valhalla. The grand slam gave the lead back to the Boston club, 11-9. The Fenway faithful were ecstatic and the dugout was throbbing with exultations and back pats for Teddy Baseball.

But they had forgotten that Bullet Joe was still loaded in the chamber. Rogan reasoned, if he couldn’t win the game with his arm, he’ll damn well do it with his bat.

In the 9th, Fong sent out his 6th and last available pitcher, his trusted closer Bill Fleming. The action ignited ominously when Danny LItwhiler got his first hit of the game, a single to center. Dihigo got on base with a fielder’s choice that erased Litwhiler, but Pinky May’s pinch hit single put runners at first and second, setting the table for Bullet Joe Rogan. Rogan began the at bat with 5 singles and 3 stolen bases. He ended it by blasting a 1-2 fastball over the Green Monster and driving in 3 runs, pushing the Phils to a 12-11 lead. All souls on the Boston side as well as the spectators gasped and were silent, and when Chino Smith added another 3 run blast 4 batters later, the only sound that could be heard over the jubilant Philadelphia dugout was the mass sobbing of a city with a broken heart. For the second time in the match, Philly sent 9 batters to the dish.

But with a team like the Red Sox and a manager like Fong and a bullpen like the Phillies, it was a long way from being over.

Johnny Podgajny took over to hold a 4 run lead in the bottom of the 9th. He left his control in the locker room, as he walked Jim Tabor on 5 pitches, bringing up the 7th slot, which had become the pitcher’s spot and was about to see its 10th player. Fong, having used all his position players, tapped pitcher Webster McDonald for his 5th pinch hitter of the night, and his good eye also took advantage of Podgajny’s lack of control. Finney then rocketed a 2-0 fast ball into centerfield to score Tabor and send McDonald to 3rd, with no one out. Boston sobs were drying up and elation slowly made its way through the masses. Cronin came up, wanting to make amends with his clanktankerous fielding, hit into a double play that scored McDonald to make the tally 15-13. Notable stains began to appear on several Phillie players’ trousers when Foxx came to the plate and Williams in the on deck circle. Podgajny, sweating 3 centimeter goblets, threw a 2-1 fast ball at the letters and Foxx uncoiled a mighty swat…but was just a little too underneath. The ball kissed the sky, but then returned to earth in the inviting confines of who else, Bullet Joe Rogan’s glove, and the drama was complete.

In spite of the upgrade at manager, Phillies lose to Devil Yankees as Joltin' Joe walks it off with a single 4-3. Martin Dihigo undoes Satchel Paige's gem with an inadvisable boot of a certain double play grounder in the bottom of the 9th, setting up DiMaggio's heroics.

This was a brilliant pitcher's duel as Paige and Devil Yank newcomer Hilton Smith both went the distance. Josh Gibson and Moose Suttles hit massive home runs.

Week 10 Schedule
Sat. 5/15 7:15. Phillies (Rogan) at Red Sox (Hughson). Phillies 15 Red Sox 13
Tribe (Feller) at Giants (Carpenter. Tribe 6 Giants 4.
Sun. 5/15 6pm. Yankees (Ruffing) at Cardinals (Gumbert). Cards 11 Yanks 10
Pirates (Lanning) at White Sox (Rigney). Bucs 2 Chisox 1

Keith Hernandez sighting

Strat-O-Matic: Not the real thing, but an incredible simulation Strat-O-Matic: Not the real thing, but an incredible simulation

White Sox win thriller in Extra Innings over Giants as Chicago take advantage of their out-making ability.

In a nail-biting game at Comiskey Park between the Covid Baseball League Cellar Dwellers, the Chicago White Sox prevailed in the 11th inning when new center fielder and Negro League legend Pete Hill laced a 2 out single into the gap to bring home Luke Appling from 3rd and give the South Siders their second consecutive win since the break 4-3, sweeping the season series from the New York Giants.

The game was a southpaw pitcher’s duel between the Pale Hose’s Thornton Lee and Gotham’s Big Bill Foster, with Lee going 9 innings and Foster 8. New York touched Lee for 2 runs in the second inning. Billy Jurges reached on first baseman Buck Leonard’s error and eventually scored on Jo-Jo Moore’s single, and Spoony Palm would drive in Dick Bartell on a double play ball. The Windy City struck back mightily in the bottom of the 3rd on Heavy Johnson’s two run blast, his second home run of the season. Johnson would give the Sox the lead in the 7th 3-2 when he drew a bases loaded walk from Foster, who gave up four of his 7 bases on balls in the frame. The Giants knotted the score in their half of the 8th when Hill, an excellent cannon-armed outfielder, made his second two base error in as many games on Jud Wilson’s fly ball, and Wilson would score on Bill “Blue Moon over Kentucky” Monroe’s banjo single. In the top of the 11th, things looked bad for the boisterous hometown crowd as the Giants loaded the bases on a single and two walks off ace reliever John Humphries, but the threat was squelched when Gabby Hartnett pinc-popped and Cool Papa Bell flew out.

In the bottom of the 11th, Luke Appling lead off with a single. With the 8th and pitcher’s spot coming up, manager Dykesweber decided to use his team’s best skill, making outs, towards his advantage. He had Billy Knickerbocker sac bunt Appling over to 2nd, and pinch hitter Mike Kreevich bunt Appling to 3rd. Turning the lineup over brought Hill to the plate, who has been en fuego (as the kids say) at the plate since joining the team. Pete, 1-3 with a bunt single, two walks and a steal in the game, rewarded his skipper’s faith in him and redeemed his costly fielding error by stroking Jumbo Brown’s curve ball into no-man’s land to bring home Appling and setting off a jubilant celebration of fans and team alike.

Giants score 3 runs (1 earned) on 7 hits, 5 walks and 2 errors, and left 7 runners on base. LP - Brown.

White Sox score 4 runs on 6 hits and 8 walks and left 9 runners on base. WP- Humphries

Week 9 standings and schedule

Boston (Harris) at St. Louis (Lanier) - Fri. 7pm - Bosox 8 Cards 3
NY Giants (Foster) at Chicago (Lee)- Thurs. 7pm - Chisox 4 Giants 3 (11)
Pittsburgh (Butcher) at Cleveland (Matlock) - Tues. 7pm - Tribe 7 Bucs 2
Philadelphia (Paige) at NY Yankees (Smith) - Sun.5/8 7:30 - Yanks 4 Phillies 3