Thursday, July 19, 1951

W L PCT GB
Vancouver ... 62 31 .667
Spokane ..... 60 33 .645 2
Salem ....... 46 46 .500 15½
Wenatchee ... 45 46 .459 16
Tri-City .... 42 51 .452 20
Victoria .... 40 54 .426 22½
Tacoma ...... 38 54 .413 23½
Yakima ...... 37 55 .402 24½

VANCOUVER [Clancy Loranger, Province, July 20]—The oddsmakers wouldn’t have given you much for Vancouver Capilano’s chances against Tacoma Tigers before last night’s baseball game at new Capilano Stadium. [Vancouver 13, Tacoma 4]
Caps’ league-leading hitter, John Ritchey, was riding the bench with an ankle injury, and Dick Sinovic, number two man in the WIL leaders’ one-two punch, was in a batting slump. And with the rest of the attack looking peaked, to say the least, things appeared grim for George Nicholas’ return to action after more than two weeks with a sore arm.
THREE EXTRA-BASERS
But Sinovic is too good a ball player to let a slump tie him in knots for long. The classy centre-fielder busted out all over leading the winners’ 11-hit attack on five Tacoma pitchers with four-for-four, his output including two doubles and a triple.
Gordie Brunswick took up the slask left by Ritchey’s rest—Reno Cheso replaced him behind the plate—the young infielder-outfielder slapping out a double and three singles in five tries.
McGUIRE SLUGS TOO
Bob McGuire provided whatever other punch was needed for Nicholas to coast to his 10th win against six losses, coming through with a bases-loaded double good for three runs.
CUFF NOTES—The win left Vancouver with a 3-1 advantage in the series with Tacoma. . . The Brownies repair to Victoria for a three-game series with the Athletics, the same two teams returning here Monday for four more. . . Pete Hernandez is down to pitch the Victoria opener tonight.
Tacoma .......... 000 004 000— 4 10 1
Vancouver ...... 102 060 40x—13 11 1
Kipp, Mishasek (5), Schulte (6), Clark (7), Brillheart (8) and Lundberg; Nicholas and Cheso.

YAKIMA, July 19—The Spokane Indians salvaged a victory from their series with the celler-dweling Yakima Bears on Thursday night. Ken Richardson's two doubles were the big blows in Spokane's 5-1 truimph but the busiest man on the field was Ed Murphy, the Indians outfielder.
Murphy laced out four hits in five appearances, stole three bases and accounted for seven put-outs and one assist.
Spokane .......... 010 030 001—5 13 1
Yakima ............ 000 000 010—1 7 0
Bishop and Sheets; Boemler, Anderson (5), Savarese (8) and Tiesiera.

SALEM, July 19—Bill Bevens pitched his 14th victory of the season Thursday night as the Salem Senators downed Tri-City, 10-2, to sweep a three-game Western International baseball league series.
Bevens let the Braves down with eight well-scattered hits.
Jack Brewer started on the Tri-City hill but after being found for four hits and three runs, Buzz Berriesford took over before the first inning was finished, But a five-run fourth inning derrlcked the young rookie. The Senators scored those five on four walks as Berriesford lost his control, an error and a line drive by shortstop Richie Meyers.
Dick Stone, who then walked to the mound, became the third Tri-City hurler. . .Stone finished the game giving up two runs over the four and one-third inning distance.
Both of Tri-City's runs were unearned. Clint Cameron, back in the cleanup batting position, led the Braves at the plate with a single and a double.
Bill Spaeter, Salem outfielder, lead their offense by driving in three runs on a double and a single in five trips to the plate.
Friday is "Husband's Night" at Sanders Field. The woman buys the tickets paying full price for her own, but only the tax on her husband's, or boy friends, as the case may be.
Tri-City ........ 001 000 001— 2 8 1
Salem .......... 300 511 00x—10 13 2
Brewer, Beriesford (1), Stone (4) and Pesut; Bevens and McKeegan.

VICTORIA [Colonist, July 20]—Victoria Athletics continued in their hitting slump last night and made it very easy for Tom Breisinger and the Wenatchee Chiefs to register a 7-2 win at Royal Athletic Park.
CAPS HERE TONIGHT
The victory, second in a row for the Chiefs, squared the four game series. Vancouver’s leading Capilanos move in tonight for three games with John Tierney slated to start for the A’s. Pete Hernandez looms as the possible Vancouver choice although there is a chance that Bud Beasley, the eccentric southpaw is almost as good as he is entertaining, will get the starting assignment.
First baseman Hal Jackson did his best in his first starting assignment to give the A’s a series win but with bad support in the early innings and his teammates’ inability to do much with Breisinger prevented him from cashing in on a creditable job.
STAYS IN GAME
Started mainly because the Chiefs are overloaded with left-handed hitters, Jackson was touched for 12 hits, but all of them were singles. He stayed in the game until the ninth inning, when he tired and the visitors iced it with a three-run rally.
A bad throw by Shortstop Jim Clark on a double steal gave Wenatchee one of its two runs in the fourth inning. Catcher Milt Martin’s error on a force play at the plate gave the Chiefs two more unearned runs and a 4-0 lead in the seventh.
SMITH STOPS RALLY
The A’s, helped by an error, got back into contention in the eighth when they scored their only runs, but three hits and two walks to open the ninth sent in two runs and left the bases loaded for Ron Smith. The relief pitcher got out neatly, forcing Len Neal to hit into a double play and whiffing Breisinger, but it was too late.
On the bright side was the showing of Clark on the bases and at the plate. The little infielder singled twide against a tough lefthander and flashed some of the speed the A’s have lacked.
Defensively, the plays of the game were turned in by Don Pries, with a leaping snatch of Neal’s terrific liner, and Martin, with a diving catch of a low pop foul.
Wenatchee ....... 000 200 203—7 12 2
Victoria ............ 000 000 020—2 1 3
Breisinger and Neal; Jackson, Smith (9) and Martin.

NO PRO BALL FOR EDMONTON
—John Ducey Says
EDMONTON, July 20—(CP)—John Ducey, Edmonton's top baseball executive, said Thursday Calgary “can’t have Western International League baseball without Edmonton in the picture.”
Ducey intimated Edmonton is not interested in lining up with the class “B” professional league at the west coast.
He was commenting on reports that Calgary may be on the verge of taking up the Tacoma franchise in the W.I.L.
Ducey said Calgary wouldn’t be able to make a go of it without Edmonton because “the distances are too great for the coast teams to be coming into Alberta just to play in Calgary.”
“If they (W.I.L.) weren’t in trouble they wouldn't be looking up our way,” Ducey said. “We're not interested without normal commitments. We don't have to go out of our way to get into an organized league.
“We won't be buying any (W.I.L.) franchise.”
Rather than the coast, Ducey said he feels the first move by Calgary and Edmonton into organized baseball should be to the south—as a section of the Pioneer League with the principal Montana cities.

Outfielder, Pitcher Bought by A’s for Playoff Drive
[Colonist, July 20, 1951]
Determined to finish in the first division if at all possible and attempting to find more speed and pitching, Victoria Athletics yesterday purchased a pitcher and an outfielder from Klamath Falls of the Far West League.
HERE TOMORROW
The new players will report to the club tomorrow and will probably see action almost immediately. Their arrival and the arrival next week of pitcher Bill Carr will mean three of the players currently on the roster will have to be sold, traded or released. Just who the trio will be will probably be determined tomorrow before the club embarks on another road trip.
The new Athletics are southpaw Ben Lorino and Ben Jaffey, an outsider who swings from the first-base side. They were procured through the co-operation of Don McShane, scout of the Philadelphia Phillies, who own the Klamath Falls club.
GET SCOUT’S APPROVAL
McShane explained he had recently signed some young players for the Klamath Falls club and that they were blocked from playing regularly by the presence of Jaffey and Lorino on the Klamath Falls roster. McShane believes that Lorino will win in the W.I.L. and states that Jaffey, only 22 years of age, has prospects of becoming a good player for the A’s.
No information was available last night on Lorino’s previous baseball record but it was reported that he had a 7-2 rating this season.
RECORD GOOD
Jaffey was hitting .330, had batted in 78 runs and was leading the league in home runs at the time of his purchase. He played with Klamath Falls last season and although he batted only .269, his record showed 93 runs batted in, 25 doubles, five triples and 12 home runs among his base hits, 29 stolen bases, 109 bases on balls and 66 strikeouts.
Reg Patterson, business manager of the Victoria club, was particularly intrigued by Jaffey’s 29 stolen bases and the fact that he swings lefthanded. The A’s had only Hal Jackson batting from the port side among the regulars and little speed on the club until shorstop Jim Clark reported. Clark, incidentally, has made a good impression in the two two games he has played and looks as if he will be around for some time.
LOSE OUT ON BENTON
At the same time, it was learned that the A’s had failed in their bid for Al Benton, former star relief pitcher of the Detroit Tigers. The big veteran, released earlier this week by Sacramento, has caught on with San Diego and pitching in relief for the Padres last night.


ON THE INSIDE
By DON BECKER, Herald Sports Editor [from July 20, 1951]
Floyd Bill Bevens who once stood on the threshold of immortal baseball fame by virtue of an almost no-hitter in a World Series, and who is currently pitching with Salem in this league, is the subject of an article in this week's issue of Collier’s. Tom Meany, a former sports writer but now an associate editor of the magazine, authored the story following a personal trip to Salem.
Naturally the highlight of the story is how Cookie Lavagetto slammed a double after two were out in the ninth, inning to beat Bevens. Following that historic game in Oct. 1947, Bevens never again started a game for the Yankees.
One of the highlights of Meany’s story tells of the desperate measures Bevens took to bring his “dead” arm back to life. It included a trip to the doctor who first game Bevens a slug of novocain, followed by saline solution shots. “Now try your arm,” said the medico. “Well,” said Bevens, “my arm really felt good. I dashed into the clubhouse and just as I was peeling off my jacket, the effects of the novocain wore off. Brother, did I have a sore arm then.”
It’s a story well worth reading if you're a sports fan. . . and more particularly if you follow baseball at all.
HELP WHEN HE NEEDED IT
Coming right down to cases you have a good example on the Tri-City Braves. Early in the season the pressure was really on Manager Charlie Petersen to drop Bob Costello from the pitching staff. However, Petersen shook off the opposition and stuck firmly by his decision to keep Costello, To say that Bob achieved his fine record this year as a result of Petersen’s faith in him wouldn't be doing justice to the bespectacled speedball whiz. Yet, it's reasonable to believe that his manager’s faith must have instilled a lot of confidence in Cos’. . . and when he needed it most.
JOTS AND DOTS ... HERE AND THERE
Some insiders are whispering that Frank Gillihan’s trip to Canada to peddle the Tacoma WIL franchise was done more to prod along the Tacomans than anything else.

Alberta Here We Come??

WIL Clubs May Dispose of Franchises in Alberta
Tacoma, Salem to be Auctioned on Prairies?
By JACK DE LONG [Vancouver Sun, July 17, 1951]
Will Calgary and Edmonton be represented by teams in the Western International Baseball League next year?
The Alberta centres will be completing with the coast professional clubs next spring if determined efforts to sell franchises of the Tacoma and any other shaky WIL clubs are crowned with success.
Frank Gillihan, general manager of the Tacoma Club, left today for Calgary and Edmonton to talk business in the Alberta centres.
Mr. Gillihan said the Tacoma franchise, with players, can be bought for $25,000. He had high hopes of finding buyers in either Calgary or Edmonton.
SALEM ALSO
The Tacoma official said he is also authorized to sell the Salem franchise and thinks prospects are good for selling one club to each Alberta city.
(At Salem Donald Young, chairman of the directors of the Salem Baseball Club today termed Gillihan’s report “childish.”
(“We’re third in attendance among the eight teams in the league, with only Vancouver and Spokane ahead of us. Our attendance is double what it was last year. I hope this report is quashed quickly.”
(With the season only about half over, Salem’s attendance this year is 65,000. Last year was only 56,000 for the entire season.
(The Salem club now is owned by 832 local stockholders who bought the team this year from Portland’s Pacific Coast League club.)
Regardless of whether or not he is successful in finding a buyer for Tacoma, that club will definitely not operate in the WIL next season.
Said Mr. Gillihan:
“We could not possibly carry on next season judging by the way things have been going. Attendance has scarcely been averaging 1000 per game.
FANS PREFER VIDEO
“Proximity to Seattle, (30 miles) and television, have ruined attendance in Tacoma. People won’t go to WIL games when they can drive 20 miles to Seattle or watch Pacific Coast League games on their television sets.”
The Tacoma business manager said he would recommend to any potential buyer that it sever connections with the San Diego Pacific Coast League club.
“They can’t do us any good in the way of players as they have trouble enough getting players themselves. Only a major league arrangement can help a minor league club to any extent in these times.” Gillihan thinks Philadelphia Phillies would be interested in sponsoring a ball club in Western Canada.

WILfan note: It seems the Sun wasn't the one to break this story.

Report Two WIL Teams Moving North
Tacoma Franchise On Block For $25,000
VANCOUVER, B. C., July 17 (CP) — The News - Herald says in a sports page story that Tacoma Tigers of the Western International baseball league will be offered today to both Edmonton and Calgary interests for $25,000.
“. . .And if it goes through,” the story adds, “The Prairie centres will likely both be represented in W. I. L. baseball in 1952.”
The story says Frank Gilihan [sic], Tacoma business manager, flew to Calgary early today to meet with John Duice [sic], who “apparently has put together a syndicate which is interested in the Tacoma purchase.”
“Should one of the two Prairie cities scare up the $25,000, it is quite possible that the Salem franchise will move to the other Prairie town.”
The News - Herald quotes Gilihan as saying the $25,000 figure includes both the franchise in the W. I. L. and the players already owned by the Tigers.
SALEM LAUGHS AT STORY
SALEM, July 17— A report that Salem's Western International league baseball franchise might be transferred to Calgary or Edmonton is "childish," Donald Young, chairman of the directors of the Salem baseball club, said today.
“We’re third in attendance among the eight teams in the league, with only Vancouver and Spokane ahead of us,” Young said.
“Our attendance is double what it was last year. I don’t know where these stories start that Salem is in danger of losing its franchise. I hope this report is squashed quickly,” he continued.
With the season only about half over, Salem’s attendance this year is 65,000. Last year it was only 56,000 for the entire season. The club directors think this year’s total will be around 120,000.
The attendance total so far this year doesn't include the record 5,540 persons who saw last night’s Portland-Salem exhibition game. This brought in a nice piece of change for the club treasury.
The Salem club now is owned by 832 local stockholders who bought the team this year from Portland’s Coast league club.
NOT YET SAYS ABEL
TACOMA, July 17 — President Robert Abel of the Western International baseball league said today no transfers of franchise could be made until the meeting of league directors at the end of the season.
Abel’s comment followed a report in the Vancouver, B. C., News Herald that the Tacoma Tigers would be offered today to both Edmonton and Calgary interests for $25,000. Abel said such a transfer would require approval of six of the eight members of the board of directors.

Tacoma Rumored to Canada
VANCOUVER, B. C., July 17 — The annual rumor that the Western International League might switch a couple more of its baseball teams into Canada blossomed again Tuesday and this time appeared to be bearing a crop.
Frank Gillihan, business manager of the Tacoma Tigers, said here the Tacoma is for sale at $25,000 and that he hoped to find a buyer either in Edmonton or Calgary.
Gillihan was quoted as saying also that the Salem team was on the block for the same price and this brought an indignant rebuttal from the Oregon city.
Donald Young and other directors of the Salem club called the report “absurd.” They said there hasn’t even been a meeting of the 832 stockholders—all local fans who bought the team from Portland’s Coast league Beavers.
What’s more, the team has been making money, ranking third in the league in attendance to date.
At Tacoma, president Robert Abel of the W.I.L. said no franchises could be transferred until a meeting of league directors at the close of the season.
Sports promoters in Edmonton and Calgary said they were interested.
Gillihan said Spokane and Wenatchee members of the league have approved the possible Alberta entries.
If the sale doesn’t go through, said Gillihan, Tacoma won’t operate a team in the league next year. He charged that television and Seattle baseball have ruined attendance in Tacoma.

Canada Wants WIL Franchise
TACOMA, July 19 — If Tacoma doesn't want its Western International league baseball franchise, Calgary does, Frank Gillihan business manager of the Tigers, reported from Vancouver, B. C., today.
Gillihan was enroute here from a conference with Calgary interests and said he planned within the week to give them a 30-day option on the Tacoma franchise unless Tacomans made a move to retain it.
Gillihan said Tacoma, at the insistence of Bill Starr, president of the parent San Diego club, had first chance at the franchise. The Tacoma business manager said that Calgary “is willing to go” and that it has he facilities to handle class B ball except that the stands may need some rebuilding.
Gillihan said that he talked with Sam Timmins, brewer, John McFarlane, a sporting goods dealer, and Harold Gundal, oilman.
A Tacoma group is being organized to explore the possibilities of keeping Western International baseball here since Starr has announced that the Padres will not operate in Tacoma next season.
Gillihan said he was somewhat astounded to read that he had been authorized to sell the Salem franchise—an item that he emphatically denied. “The only possible basis for such a statement was that I remarked if Tacoma withdrew, it would be difficult for Salem to operate,” he said.
Previously, Gillihan had been reported as saying he would approach both Edmonton and Calgary and offer to sell them the Tacoma club for $25,000.
It was too bad for Edmonton that Gillihan’s plane landed in Calgary first and that, after the conference, he thought things had progressed so favourably, he wouldn’t even bother to approach John Ducey of Edmonton on the subject.
“Why go on to Edmonton?” said Gillihan. “Everything went fine here and I’m pretty sure that if everything works out right you’ll be seeing W.I. ball next summer.
“Futhermore, if Calgary gets the Tacoma franchise, there’s little doubt in my mind that Edmonton will have little trouble buying another club.”