The Waterbury Democrat., 1946-09-30
WATERBURY wkIERguRY
Mort Cooper WorkedMound Masterpiece

New York, Sept. 3o-CUP)-Brook- lyn fans, temporarily sane again, stood by today for the post-season playoffS between their Dodgers and the St. Louis Cardinals and hoped that the history made yesterday both dropped their final games to won't repeat itself.
 They just couldn't stand it. For with the history came hyste- ria as the Dodgers and Cardinals wind up in baseball's first tie for a pennant in its 70-years of Major League existence.
 The Dodgers were crushed to earth by a man who took almost fiendiSh delight in levelling them. That man was Morton Cooper, an inspired giant of pitching machine, who hurled four-hit, 4 to 0 victory for the Boston Braves that will go down with the truly great games ever pitched.
 And then when all hope seemed to have ebbed and the faithful gathered around the scoreboard to watch the progress of the Cardinal game with the Chicago Cubs, mi racle occurred. The Cubs arose in five-run indignation rally to crush the Cardinals as group in the same way that Cooper had laid low the Dodgers as an individual.
 The 3O,756 fans had found little to cheer about as Cooper kept burn | ing in his fast one against the Dodgers, but they went zany with delight as the Cubs finally won, 8 to 3, and the National League race ended in an exact tie.
 For Cooper, a disappointment since he left the Cardinals early last season to go with the Braves, the victory was as important as any he ever pitched as the ace of the Redbirds. The Big Fellow was a fairly consistent winner against Brooklyn in the 1942, 43, and "A seasons when he was the Cardinal ace in three straight successful pen nant drives. But since going to Bos- ton he had lost to the Dodgers five straight times, four this year.
 Didn't Walk Man
 And it seemed like questionable strategy on the part of Manager Billy Southworth to start him yes- terday. since he had rested only two days since pitching a three Init shut out against the Giants But the will to win countered any weariness he might have felt along the route and at the finish he still was full of fire. He didn't walk a man and all of the four hits he yielded were s1r1- gles.
 His closest brush with trouble came in the eighth when Bruce Ed wards was safe on shortstop DICK l Clller's wide throw Dodger Man ager Leo Durocher sent in Joe Med wick to hit for pitcher Vic Lomoar- di and he responded with a single. Eddie Stanky's force-out sent Ed wards to third, but Cooper bore down on Cookie Lavagetto and forced him to lift weak fly to left to end the threat.
 The removal of Lonfbardi, who had pitched a four-hitter himself, led to more trouble as the Braves blasted relief pitchers Kirby Hlgoe and Hugh Casey for three runs on a walk and four hits. Finally Joe Hat ten. who had beaten the Braves on Saturday, came in to put out the fire, but by then the Dodger hopes of victory had been burned crisp.
 Always before throughout the tingling duel, there had been a hope that the Dodgers would overcome the 1 to 0 lead that had been pro- duced on Cooper's single and eX- Dodger Billy Hernan's revengeful double in the third. From that 1n- ming until the seventh Lombardi pitched hitless ball and was touched for meaningless singles in the sev- enth and eighth.
 Durocher Picks Branca
 But the Dodgers, who had beaten the Braves IT out of 21 times before yesterday, couldn't do anything against Cooper so they lost the one game they needed most of all.
 Before the Dodgers left for St.
 Before the Dodgers left for St. Louis Durocher nominated Ralph Branca, his fast young right handler, to pitch the opener of the three game playoff series there Tuesday.
 The Dodgers, who once held a ' 1-2 game lead on July 2, led the race for 98 days in the l67-day campaign while St. Louis was out in front 40 days and the teams were tied 25. The Cubs led for the first four days of the season.