Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1957-10-03
THE BASEBALL
BEAT
The Ford With Clutch Control
by SUTTON HAWKINS

NEW YORK. OCT. S-The Yankees spacious club
house trimmed by cubicles about four times the
Of phone booth and in these no-door closets players
park their bats. gloves uniforms change Of clothes
and two or three sets Of spikes.
Whitley Ford made it to the edge Of his allotted space
and found two reporters standing in his compar
ment They had surmised correctly that 1t would be
vantage point to CLEAN nuggets Of from the little
lefthander who had Just beaten the Braves
Hemmed BY perhaps 20 other reporters Ford leaned
against the corner Of his booth and explained the day,
arrived late *N
With two out in the sixth inning the Yankees owning
10 lead. Johnny Logan third and I'd Mathews on
second Manager Casey stengel had desired conversation
with his pitcher He walked erab-like, to the mound
impaired advice and departed with Short fistclenched
lab Of his right arm.
What did Casey say2" writer asked
He told me he didn't if walked Pafko" Ford
responded land for me not to give him anything good
to hit We had nrst base open and lefthander yves
CovingtOn) up next Pafke wasn't going to get fat
one" PafkO went down swinging.
FORD HAD RESTRICTED his rivals to five hits and
made them appear exceedingly feeble Of the
he said There aren't weak spots in that lineup
Covington and Mathews will hit lefthanders Mathews
fooled me. thought he'd be wild swinger like Duke
Snder chase sidearm and high balls But he
gives the bah good look He didn't have any luck but
he's good hitter. Yeah. the my money pitch"
Ford wasn't wearied by his magnificent effort Two
beads Of pespraton nestled his face Just below the
right sdeburn Otherwise there indication he had
been laborng He had been subjected couple of
situations but extricated himself neatly Now he dis
eussed the days events in subued tones with obvious
elation over job well done
1t had been a rather dull game with Ford making It
so The Braves had chance in the fourth the game
was scorees after Mathews had walked and Hank Aaron
singled him to third with out But huge Joe Adcock
smacked into q double-pay.
The Braves had another opportunity in the sixth
when they railed by run. Ford walked Logan and
Mathews to start the inning got too careful with
them but Aaron struck out Adcock grounded out and
Pafko struck out.
BY the time the Braves got their run it didn't much
matter for Ford functioning with 80 lead 1t was
apparent that the Braves going beat him they'd
have TO wait for another day. Covngton double Red
Schoendiensts single produced the with two down in
the seventh The could have headed for their
hotel at that point for that the end their hitting
STENCILS PACKED OFFICE was getting such It'd
bits as, Il got this Larsen who's got fast ball who
amt afraid to pitch tomorrow But amt gonna pitch
him tomorrow because I'm pitching Shantz"
Over in the Braves clubhouse Warren SPAIN was sit
ting on bat trunk stripped to the waist From the
point OF ptcher feel made two mistakes" the left
handler said, but neither Of them hurt me. hung
curve to Berra in the fourth, but he flied out got
pitch too high to Bauer and he grounded out
The hits they got of me l can't complain about
Spahn continued Il got the ball where wanted to get
1t and they hit Coleman fooled on the pitch he
hit for double to right in the fourth Carey hit low
outside sinker to hurt in the SIXTH but don't feel
aDoue uSe pltcnes Iney MT EN- and that's part OF
the game I'd throw two pitches differently next time
the one TO Berra and the to Bauer was lucky to
get them out making those mistakes against them but
that's part Of the game, too.
They didn't chase out of the ball park" SPAIN
said 4 think our gang realizes that they're not
monsters, that they're just another ball club We know
little more about those now what they'll GER
tain situations and II should help u.s."
The hot-and-cold Braves can't be helped though,
unless they start TO hit Winding up the season against
Cincinnati they got hit Saturday FIVE Sunday Their
ve hits against Ford provide indication they're about
TO emerge from their slump.
eere is time in l54-game schedule, to weather
spSc0 hitting But four-game slump in the World
Series means it's all over except the reflections on what
mSnt have been.