Evening star., 1949-10-03
Stenge| Is Acclaimed
Year. S Top Pilot After
|Cripp|es Win Flag
By Burton Howkias
Star Sfoff CORRESPONDENT

crop OF 0rama mas Deen squeezed
from unforgettable pennant races.
The New York Yankees and Brook
lyn Dodgers. their bitterly. con-
tended championships insecure
until the last pitches on the tense
final day Of generally exciting
season, will clash in the World
Series starting Wednesday at Yam
kee Stadium.
From the midst OF a gallant
gang of athletes, afflicted with
some II assorted ailments during
the course of the season, emerges
wry, ashen-faced Casey Stengel as
manager of the year.
Stengel. repeatedly forced to
resort to wholesale shifts due to
! injuries and illnesses, still was
making fancy checkerboard moves
with his Yankees as late as the
ninth inning here yesterday when
New York survived Boston's 3-run
rally to escape with 5-3 decision
and the American League cham
pionship.
With one out in the ninth Joe
Di Maggie, who shakily hauled
himself out Of bed to provide the
Yankees an inspirational and ar
tistic lift In the final two games
Of the year after being leveled by
virus infection, trotted dizzily
10 the dugout. He was whipped
after a long pursuit Of Bobby
Doerr's triple.
Big Three Seldom United.
That was the way it went all
year for Casey. Ip a 154-game
season he had the dynamite IN
his batting order-Di Maggie. Yogi
Berra and Tommy Henrich-in
action only 10 times together: in
three Of those contests one Of the
trio was employed merely as a
pinch h-hitter.
The Red Sox had the two top
home run producers and the most
prolific runs-batted-in specialists
| in the league in Ted Williams and
Vern Stephens. They had a 25-
game winner in Mel Parnell and
a 23-game winner in Ellis Kinder.
They had five 800 hitters, but the
Yankees won the pennant.
The Yankees won with one 800
hitter-Di Maggio-and he missed
the first IS games of the season
with a bum heel. Joe was out,
too, when the Red Sox were press
ing the Yankees and took the lead
in the waning days Of the cam
paign.
One game back with only two
remaining, the Yankees provided
baseball one Of its most thrilling
chapters by beating Boston, Sd,
on Saturday, to lock the race
after trailing by 40.
Sox Make Fighting Finish.
Yesterday the Yankees FASH
ioned q run in the first inning
on tiny. Phil Rizutto's triple and
Henrich's grcunder. and for eight
innings burly Vic Raschi clung
tenaciously to that slim margin
until the Yankees exploded to pre-
sent him with a SO lead.
That advantage came Just in
time, for the Red Sox surged back
to jeopardize Raschi with one out
In the NINTH Williams walked
and Stephens singled. Bobby
|Doerr supplied a triple which
scored tow runs and prompted
|Di Maggio's exit.
AL Zarilla flied out, but Bill
Goodman kept the Red Sox's
fast-fading pennant hopes alive
with q single to center that
fetched Doerr across. Birdie Teb-
belts stepped to the plate repre-
senting the potential tying run,
but he fouled meekly to First
Baseman Heinrich. The pennant
belonged to the Yankees and most
Of throng of So, ,055 roared their
pleasure at New York's thrilling
comeback to scale the heights.
Raschi had it when he needed
lit. That lone run the Yankees
gave him stood up for eight in
nings while Vic stopped Boston
with two hits-successive singles
by Doerr and Zarilla in the fourth
inning. Meanwhile the polished
Kinder was checking New York
on four hits before being lifted
for q pinch-hitter.
Heinrich Sparks Rally.
Then the Yankees rewarded
Raschi with a 4-run outburst in
the eighth. Heinrich launched it
by drilling Parnell's second pitch
into the right field seats.
Berra singled, but Di Maggie
hit into a double-play. Johnny
Lindell and Bill Johnson immersed
Parnell in additional difficulty,
though, with successive singles,
Pinch Runner Hank Bauer scoot-
ing to third when Williams
fumbled Johnson's single.
Cliff Mapes walked to fill the
bases and in that crisis Jerry
Coleman lifted a timid fly to
right. Zarilla made a desperate
diving attempt to grab the ball,
but 1t plopped safely in front Of
him and Bauer, johnson and
Mapes clattered across the plate
on the double. Coleman was out
attempting to stretch the hit
when Goodman cut OF Doerr's
throw and whipped it to Johnny
Pesky at third base.
Raschi, who posted his 21st
triumph on a 5-hitter. walked five
and famed four and until the
ninth particularly was effective
with men on base.
Sox Impotent in Pinches.
With Williams on first In the
first inning and two out Stephens
popped cut. With Goodman on
third and two out In the second
Tebbetts popped out. With run
MARC m f1rsf and third in the