The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1954-05-10
Detroit, Red
SOx Battle To
1O-In,,ing Tie
BY JOE RElcHLE
AP Sports Writer


AP Sports Writer
Rival American League clubs
are beginning to take the amazing
Detroit Tigers seriously.
Last Sunday, after the Tigers
had blanked the Yanks at Yankee
Stadium, New York Manager
Casey Stengel called them the
most improved club in the league.
Yesterday, after the Tigers had
whipped the Chicago White Sox
30 in the first game of a double
header and held them to 10
! inning 90 standoff in the second
game, White Sox Manager Paul
Richards voiced Stengel's senti-
mentS.
Today, the Tigers are in first
place with II victories against only
five defeats, a hall game in front
of Chicago, full game ahead of
Cleveland and two ahead of the
defending champion Yankees.
They return home with brilliant
Sill record for their first road
tour.
Improved is hardly the word for
the Tigers. A complete change is
more like it. Tight fielding, timely
hitting and superb pitching had
given them "the new look"
A year ago today, they were
buried in last place with five vic
tories and 10 defeats. They were
last in fielding. The pitching was
| atrocious. The staff had completed
only three games.
This years Tigers are second
in fielding. The pitchers, headed
by veteran Steve Gromek, own
10 complete games in II starts,
one tie. They have hurled four
shutouts, twice as many as they
did all last year.
Yesterdays victory was De-
| troit's eighth in nine road deci-
sions, Last year at this time the
Tigers had dropped all seven road
| games.
In other American League
games, Baltimore defeated Cleve.
land FL in 10 innings, and the
Yankees whipped and tied Phila'
delphia in a doLble-header. Three
home runs gave the Yanks IA
opening-game triumph and rookie
Bill Skowron's run-scoring single
in the eighth gave them IL tie
in the second game, halted after
nine innings on account of dark
ness. Rain washed out a SEIZED
uled double-header between Wash
ington and the Red Sox in Boston
Brooklyn opened up a half-gamt
lead in the National League, nip
ping the Philadelphia Phils q
while the second-place Cincinnati
Redlegs split double-header will
st. Louis. The Redlegs came bacl
to win the second game 6-5 aftel
the Cardinals had captured thu
opener 1O-7. The New York Giant
walloped Pittsburgh 81 and thu
Chicago Cubs edged out Milwaukee
SO.
1t took Detroit II innings to de
feat the White Sox in the opener
The winning run crossed the plat
when Cass Michaels committed
throwing error with two OFT ant
the bases loaded in the 18th.
Gromek went all the way, givin'
UP nine hits and walking one fol
his fifth victory without defeat
Virgil Trucks, who relieved startel
Sandy Consuegra in the 10th, wa
charged with the defeat. South
paws Billy Hoeft of Detroit ant
Billy Pierce of Chicago hooked W
in the scoreless second-game duel
Pierce famed IL to Hoeft's eight
The Indians missed an op
portunity to pass Chicago for thu
runner-up spot when Turley helt
them to four hits. Gil Coan's single
scored Neil Berry with the rul
that hung the tough defeat upol
Art Houtteman.
Home runs by Andy Carey, Yog
Berra and Enos Slaughter account
ed for all but one New York rul
as the Yankees inflicted the frs
defeat of the season upon Boil
Trice, the AS rookie Highlander
Trice has won his first four starts
Skodron's single off Alex Kellnel
scored Mickey Mantle, who hat
doubled to wipe out Philadelphia
one-run lead in the nightcap es
tablished by ex-Yankee Bill Rem
mas fifth-inning home run.
Carl Erskine outpitched Robir
Roberts as the Dodgers swept The
three-game series from Philadel
phia. Erskine permitted five hit
but was in constant hot water witt
nine bases on balls. Five double
plays helped him immeasurably
The Dodgers snapped scoreles:
duel in the seventh when Sandy
Amoros doubled in a run an(
scored on Billy Cox's single. Tht
Pills got one back in the eight
but Jim Hughes replaced Erskins
with two on and one out and 60
Johnny Wyrostek to. hit into ,