Baltimore Orioles vs Detroit Tigers - August 15, 1961

Today in 1961, in the second game of a doubleheader, the Baltimore Orioles visited the Detroit Tigers in Tiger Stadium.  The game was scoreless until the sixth inning when Gus Triandos and Brooks Robinson each hit an RBI and Baltimore led 2-0.

The Orioles led the game into the bottom of the ninth when the Tigers came alive.  Starting pitcher Hal Brown was on the mound for the Orioles.  There were two outs and Chico Fernandez reached base on a double.  Pinch hitter Reno Bertoia hit a single into left field and Fernandez scored.  The score was now 2-1.

Pinch hitter Bubba Morton got a hit, getting on base with an infield single.  Bertoia advanced to second base.  Brown was relieved on the mound by Billy Hoeft.  Brown allowed nine hits, walked four and struck out five.

Hoeft faced pinch hitter George Alusik, who hit a single into left field.  Bertoia scored and Morton advanced to second.  The score was now tied 2-2.  Hoeft was replaced by Wes Stock.

Stock’s first batter was Tiger great Al Kaline.  He had Kaline at two balls and two strikes when Kaline got a hit into deep left-center field.  Morton scored and the Tigers won the game 3-2.

The three runs Detroit scored were charged to losing pitcher Hal Brown, who went to 9-4.  Relief pitcher Gerry Staley went to 2-4 with the win. Tiger starting pitcher Don Mossi was relieved in the seventh and remained at 13-2.  Like Brown, Mossi struck out five batters.

Detroit went to 75-42 for the season and was two games behind the AL leading NY Yankees, who lost to the Chicago White Sox 2-1.  Baltimore went to 67-53; 11.5 games behind the Yankees and nine games behind Detroit.

Notables

• Two Hall of Famers played in this game: Detroit’s Al Kaline and Baltimore’s Brooks Robinson.
• Baltimore manager Paul Richards played for the Detroit Tigers from 1943-46.  1961 was also Richards’ last year as manager of the Orioles.  He would coach one more season (1976) with the Chicago White Sox.
• This was Detroit manager Bob Scheffing’s first and best year (101-61, 2nd place) as manager of the Tigers.  He had managed the Chicago Cubs to losing seasons from 1957-59, though they finished each season with a better record than the previous one.  He spent most of his playing career with the Chicago Cubs.  Scheffing would coach the Tigers for two more seasons and was fired during his last season.  He never managed in the majors again.
  
  
  Game stats and other data can be found on Baseball-Reference.com at Baltimore Orioles vs Detroit Tigers - August 15, 1961