1956 Index 1956 Post Season Game 1 Game 3 Game 4 Game 5 Game 6 Statistics

Thursday, October 4, 1956, Milwaukee @ Cleveland – Cleveland Municipal Stadium

ROSEN, COLAVITO DELIVER BIG HITS TO EVEN SERIES; TRIBE WINS 11-8

The Cleveland Indians squandered an early five run lead, but rallied late to defeat the Milwaukee Braves in Game Two of the World Series by a score of 11-8. The win for the Indians knots the series up at one game each.

The contest was billed as a battle of Cy Young Award winners, Herb Score for the Indians, Lew Burdette for the Braves, but by the end of the second inning one was already driven from the mound and by the end of the sixth the other banished for his inability to find home plate.

After a scoreless first inning, the Indians put up a five spot on Burdette, though the Braves right-hander could hardly be held responsible for all of the damage. Rocky Colavito worked a lead-off walk from Burdette, and one out later he moved to second on a single by Chico Carrasquel. Hal Naragon followed with what should have been a routine double play ball, but Johnny Logan let the ball go between his legs for an error, loading the bases. Herb Score then stepped in with a chance to help his own cause, and bounced a single through the right side for a single. Colavito scored from third, but when Hank Aaron bobbled the ball in right field, Carrasquel scored as well to make it a 2-0 game. Aaron’s miscue allowed both trail runners to move up 90 feet setting up the next gaffe, a fly ball by Al Smith that Andy Pafko lost in the sun in left field allowing both runners to score. The play was graciously scored a double since Pafko never got close enough to lay a finger on it, but clearly it should have been an easy catch for an out. Pafko’s mistake was further compounded when Vic Wertz drove a two-out single through the left side to score Smith with the fifth run of the frame. In the inning, the Indians collected four hits, one of those generously credited, but two Braves errors contributed to three unearned runs and a 5-0 Cleveland lead.

Meanwhile Score rolled through the first four innings, allowing nary a hit, though walking three and having to pitch around an error by Al Rosen.

In the fifth Milwaukee finally broke through, first in the hit column then in the run column. Del Rice led off the inning with a drive into the gap in right-center field, and lumbered all the third base with a triple. Chuck Tanner then stepped in as a pinch-hitter and drew a walk, the fourth of the game issued by Score. After Danny O’Connell popped out for the first out, Logan also drew a walk to load the bases. Hank Aaron then dropped a single into shallow right field scoring Rice from third, and moving the trail runners up a base. Joe Adcock brought home the Braves second run with a sacrifice fly to left, making it a 5-2 game.

The sixth inning went even worse for Score and the Indians. Score struggled again to find home plate, walking Bobby Thomson to lead things off. Score retired the next two batters, Pafko and Rice, but the third out proved elusive for the powerful left-hander. Del Crandall worked a walk, as did O’Connell who followed him, Score’s eighth of the contest, loading the bases with two out. With Johnny Logan due up next, Cleveland called on Ray Narleski to shut down the Braves threat. Logan took one pitch off the plate, then connected on the second for a long fly ball over the left field wall for a grandslam homerun to give Milwaukee it’s first lead of the game, 6-5. Narleski retired Aaron on a ground ball for the third out, but the damage was done.

The Indians retaliated in the home half off the sixth, getting the huge home crowd back into the game as well. With Ernie Johnson on the mound for Milwaukee, Smith started things by drawing a walk. Bobby Avila put down a sacrifice to move Smith into scoring position. Johnson got Vic Wertz on a ground ball for the second out, but then walked Al Rosen to put two on with two out. The rookie Colavito belted a 2-2 pitch into left center field scoring both Smith and Rosen and the Tribe was back on top, 7-6.

But the Braves were far from done. Del Rice, owner of two triples during the entire regular season, made it two in his first World Series game when he hit a soft liner toward Colavito in right field. Colavito came up short of catching the ball and let the ball get under his glove and roll toward the warning track. By the time Colavito retraced his steps Rice was sliding into third base with his second three-bagger of the game. Two pitches later Rice trotted home on Bill Bruton’s pinch single, tying the game 8-8.

Dave Jolly took over for the Braves on the mound to begin the bottom of the eighth, but there was nothing jolly to happen for Milwaukee. The Braves reliever hit Al Smith with a 1-2 pitch giving the Indians a lead-off base runner. Avila then squared to bunt and pushed it past a charging Adcock at first base for what would be an infield single. Wertz then drove a fly ball to center field deep enough for Smith to tag up and move to third, putting runners at the corners. With the Braves playing the corners in, Rosen rifled a line drive into the gap in left-center field. Both Smith and Avila scored as Rosen rolled into second base with a double to give Cleveland a 10-8 lead. Colavito then added to Cleveland’s jolly rally blasting a two-run homerun over the left field fence to make to a four run lead.

The Braves rallied to score one in the top of the ninth on a triple by Bobby Thomson and ground ball by Wes Covington, but the Braves were out of outs and three runs short. The Indians had the home field win to even up the series at a game apiece.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E LOB DP

Milwaukee 0 0 0 0 2 4 0 1 1 8 7 2 9 0

Cleveland 0 5 0 0 0 2 0 4 x 11 12 1 9 0

Braves AB R H BI AVG Indians AB R H BI AVG

O'Connell 2b 3 1 1 0 .333 Smith,A lf 3 3 1 2 .286

Logan ss 3 1 1 4 .400 Avila 2b 4 1 1 0 .125

Aaron rf 5 0 1 1 .222 Wertz 1b 4 0 2 1 .375

Adcock 1b 4 0 0 1 .125 Rosen 3b 4 2 1 2 .429

Mathews 3b 4 0 0 0 .250 Colavito rf 4 2 3 4 .375

Thomson cf 3 1 1 0 .250 Pope cf 4 0 1 0 .250

Pafko lf 3 1 0 0 .000 Busby cf 1 0 0 0 .200

Covington ph 2 0 0 1 .200 Carrasquel ss 3 1 2 0 .571

Rice c 4 2 2 0 .500 Naragon c 4 1 0 0 .000

Burdette p 0 0 0 0 .000 Score p 3 1 1 1 .333

Mantilla ph 1 0 0 0 .000 Narleski p 0 0 0 0 .000

Conley p 0 0 0 0 .000 Woodling ph 1 0 0 0 .000

Tanner ph 0 1 0 0 .000 Mossi p 0 0 0 0 .000

Trowbridge p 0 0 0 0 .000 McLish p 0 0 0 0 .000

Crandall ph 0 1 0 0 .000 35 11 12 10

Johnson,E p 0 0 0 0 .000

Bruton ph 1 0 1 1 .200

Jolly p 0 0 0 0 .000

Crone p 0 0 0 0 .000

33 8 7 8

Braves INN H R ER BB K PCH STR ERA

Burdette 2.0 5 5 2 1 1 52 29 9.00

Conley 2.0 2 0 0 2 2 37 18 0.00

Trowbridge 1.0 1 0 0 1 1 20 10 0.00

Johnson,E BS 1 2.0 1 2 2 2 0 31 18 9.00

Jolly L 0-1 0.1 3 4 4 0 0 20 13 99.99

Crone 0.2 0 0 0 1 0 10 4 0.00

8.0 12 11 8 7 4 170 92

Indians INN H R ER BB K PCH STR ERA

Score 5.2 2 5 5 8 6 133 71 7.94

Narleski BS 1 1.1 1 1 1 1 1 20 10 6.75

Mossi BS 1 0.0 3 1 1 0 0 6 6 6.75

McLish W 1-0 2.0 1 1 1 0 0 22 14 6.75

9.0 7 8 8 9 7 181 101

Mil: Mantilla batted for Burdette in the 3rd

Tanner batted for Conley in the 5th

Crandall batted for Trowbridge in the 6th

Covington batted for Pafko in the 7th

Covington moved to lf in the 7th

Bruton batted for Johnson,E in the 8th

Cle: Busby inserted at cf in the 7th

Woodling batted for Narleski in the 7th

E-Logan, Aaron, Rosen. 2B-Smith,A(1), Rosen(1), Colavito 2(2), Carrasquel(1).

3B-Thomson(1), Rice 2(2). HR-Logan(1), Colavito(1). RBI-Logan 4(4), Aaron(1),

Adcock(1), Covington(1), Bruton(1), Smith,A 2(2), Wertz(1), Rosen 2(2),

Colavito 4(4), Score(1). K-O'Connell, Adcock, Mathews 2, Pafko 2, Covington,

Smith,A 2, Score 2. BB-O'Connell 2, Logan, Mathews, Thomson 2, Rice, Tanner,

Crandall, Smith,A, Wertz, Rosen, Colavito, Carrasquel 2, Naragon. SH-Logan,

Avila. SF-Adcock. HBP-Smith,A. PB-Naragon. HB-Jolly.

GWRBI: Rosen

Temperature: 46, Sky: partly cloudy, Wind: out to center at 9 MPH.

Attendance: 73,878

Game Time: 3:03