CLEVELAND 9, MINNESOTA 3 IN CLEVELAND

Date:  Wednesday, April 28.

Batting stars:  Jimmie Hall was 2-for-4 with two home runs, his third and fourth.  Bob Allison was 1-for-3 with a home run (his third) and a walk.  Earl Battey was 2-for-4.

Pitching stars:  Dave Boswell pitched two shutout innings, giving up a hit and a walk.  Johnny Klippstein pitched 1.1 scoreless innings, giving up a walk.  Jerry Fosnow pitched a perfect innings.

Opposition stars:  Rocky Colavito was 2-for-3 with a home run (his third) and a walk, scoring three times and driving in four.  Sonny Siebert pitched 7.2 innings of relief, allowing one run on three hits and two walks with five strikeouts.  Max Alvis was 1-for-3 with a two-run homer and two runs.

The game:  Starter Jim Kaat retired the first two Indians, but then came a two-base error, Colavito's RBI single, and Alvis' two-run homer to put Cleveland up 3-0 in the first.  The Twins got back-to-back home runs from Hall and Allison in the second to cut the lead to 3-2, but they made two errors in the third, leading to three unearned runs and a 6-2 Indian lead.  Hall hit another homer in the sixth to trim the margin to 6-3, but Colavito hit a three-run homer in the seventh to put the game out of reach.

Of note:  Zoilo Versalles was 1-for-4.  Rich Rollins was 0-for-4.  Tony Oliva was 0-for-4.  Harmon Killebrew was 0-for-4.  Cesar Tovar was 1-for-3 with a walk.  Kaat pitched 2.2 innings, giving up six unearned runs on five hits and a walk with one strikeout.

Record:  The loss made the Twins 7-3 and dropped them into second place, a half game behind Chicago.

MINNESOTA 11, CLEVELAND 1 IN CLEVELAND

Date:  Tuesday, April 27.

Batting stars:  Camilo Pascual was 2-for-5 with a grand slam and a walk, driving in five.  Earl Battey was 2-for-2 with two walks, scoring twice and driving in one.  Bob Allison was 3-for-5 with a double, scoring once and driving in one.

Pitching star:  Pascual also pitched a complete game, giving up one run on two hits and two walks with five strikeouts.

Opposition stars:  Dick Howser was 1-for-4 with a double and a run.  Gary Bell struck out two in a scoreless inning, allowing one hit.  Lee Stange pitched two scoreless innings, allowing a hit and a walk with one strikeout.

The game:  The Twins blitzed Sam McDowell, scoring six runs off him in a third of an inning.  Tony Oliva singled in the first run, Allison brought one home on a ground out, and a bases-loaded walk to Jerry Kindall (one of three walks McDowell issued) made it 3-0.  Stan Williams then came in and gave up a grand slam to Pascual to make it 7-0.  Pascual gave up a double and two walks in the first inning, when the Indians scored their only run, but then retired twenty-one batters in a row before giving up a single to Camilo Carreon in the eighth.

Of note:  Zoilo Versalles was 1-for-5 with a double and a run.  Rich Rollins was 1-for-5.  Oliva was 1-for-4 with a run and two RBIs.  Harmon Killebrew was 2-for-4 with a double and a walk, scoring once.

DETROIT 7, MINNESOTA 4 IN DETROIT

Date:  Saturday, April 24.

Batting stars:  Bob Allison was 1-for-4 with a two-run homer, his second.  Tony Oliva was 2-for-4 with a run.  Jimmie Hall was 1-for-3 with a walk and a run.

Pitching stars:  Jim Perry pitched 1.2 scoreless innings, giving up three walks.  Mel Nelson pitched a scoreless inning, giving up two hits.

Opposition stars:  Willie Horton was 2-for-5 with two home runs.  Phil Regan pitched eight innings, allowing four runs (two earned) on seven hits with three walks and seven strikeouts.  Dick McAuliffe was 2-for-2 with three walks and a stolen base, scoring once.

The game:  Allison hit a two-run homer in the second that put the Twins up 2-0.  A single, two walks, and a sacrifice fly put the Tigers on the board in the third.  The score stayed 2-1 until the seventh, when Don Demeter and Horton hit back to back homers to give Detroit a 3-2 lead.  In the ninth, a pinch-hit single by Sandy Valdespino tied the score and Oliva's sacrifice fly gave the Twins a 4-3 advantage.  Jerry Fosnow came in to close it out, but Horton led off the bottom of the ninth with his second home run of the game to tie it up.  The Tigers got a pair of walks to put men on first and second with two out and Gates Brown delivered a pinch-hit three-run homer off Al Worthington to win the game for Detroit.

Of note:  Zoilo Versalles was 2-for-5.  Jerry Kindall was 0-for-4.  Harmon Killebrew was 0-for-3 with two walks.  Don Mincher and Valdespino were each 1-for-1 as pinch-hitters.  Dick Stigman started but pitched only two innings, giving up one run on three hits and four walks.

Record:  The loss put the Twins at 6-2, tied for first with the White Sox based on games back, though in first based on winning percentage.

MINNESOTA 8, DETROIT 6 IN DETROIT (10 INNINGS)

Date:  Friday, April 23.

Batting stars:  Jimmie Hall was 1-for-4 with a double and a walk, scoring three times.  Harmon Killebrew was 2-for-4 with a walk and two runs.  Tony Oliva was 2-for-4 with a run and an RBI.

Pitching stars:  Dave Boswell pitched four shutout innings of relief, giving up one hit and two walks with two strikeouts.  Al Worthington struck out two in two shutout innings, giving up one walk.  Bill Pleis pitched 1.2 scoreless innings, giving up two hits and a walk with one strikeout.

Opposition stars:  Al Kaline was 2-for-4 with a home run (his second) and a walk, scoring twice.  Dick McAuliffe was 1-for-3 with two walks and a run.  Norm Cash was 1-for-4 with a walk, scoring once and driving in one.

The game:  The Tigers scored five in the first inning off Mudcat Grant, who retired only one of the six batters he faced.  The Twins got back into the game two by two.  They scored two in the second and got a pair of unearned runs in the third to cut the lead to 5-4.  Kaline homered in the seventh to make it 6-4, but the Twins got two more in the eighth, with an RBI single by Earl Battey tying the score.  The Twins opened the tenth with two walks, Hall put the Twins ahead with a run-scoring single, and an error allowed an insurance run to score.  The Tigers did not get a hit after Kaline's homer leading off the seventh.

Of note:  Zoilo Versalles was 1-for-6 with a run.  Rich Rollins was 1-for-5 with an RBI.  Bob Allison was 0-for-5 with two RBIs.  Grant pitched only a third of an inning, giving up five runs (four earned) on four hits and a walk with one strikeout.

Record:  The win gave the Twins a five-game winning streak and made them 6-1 on the season, in first place, a game ahead of Chicago.

MINNESOTA 8, NEW YORK 2 IN NEW YORK

Date:  Thursday, April 22.

Batting stars:  Zoilo Versalles was 3-for-5 with a home run, a double, and a stolen base, scoring twice and driving in three.  Tony Oliva was 2-for-4 with two home runs (his second and third), driving in four.  Harmon Killebrew was 3-for-5 with a run.

Pitching star:  Jim Kaat pitched a complete game, giving up two runs (one earned) on five hits and a walk with five strikeouts.

Opposition stars:  Rollie Sheldon struck out four in 3.1 scoreless innings of relief, giving up three hits.  Bob Schmidt was 2-for-4.  Joe Pepitone was 1-for-2 and was hit by a pitch, scoring once.

The game:  A walk, an error, and a ground out put the Yankees on the board 1-0 in the first.  The Twins came back with three in the second, tying it on a Jerry Kindall RBI single and taking the lead on a two-run single by Versalles.  It stayed 3-1 until the seventh, when Oliva hit a two-run homer.  Hector Lopez delivered a two-out RBI single in the bottom of the seventh to cut the Twins lead to 5-2.  The Twins added three in the ninth when Versalles hit an inside-the-park home run and Oliva hit another two-run homer.

Of note:  Rich Rollins was 0-for-4 with a walk and a run.  Bob Allison was 1-for-3 with a walk and a run.  Kaat was 1-for-4, dropping his average to .300.

Record:  The win made the Twins 5-1, in first place, a half-game ahead of Detroit.

MINNESOTA 7, NEW YORK 2 IN NEW YORK

Date:  Wednesday, April 21.

Batting stars:  Rich Rollins was 2-for-5 with a home run, scoring twice and driving in three.  Jimmie Hall was 3-for-4 with a two-run homer, his second.  Tony Oliva was 1-for-4 with a two-run homer.

Pitching stars:  Camilo Pascual pitched seven innings, giving up two runs on seven hits and one walk with six strikeouts.  Jerry Fosnow pitched two shutout innings, giving up one hit and four walks with one strikeout.

Opposition stars:  Mickey Mantle was 1-for-3 with a home run (his third) and a walk.  Bobby Richardson was 2-for-4 with a walk.  Tom Tresh was 2-for-5 with a run.

The game:  The Yankees struck first, getting a two-run homer from Mantle in the first inning to take a 2-0 lead.  The Twins came back in the third, as Rollins had an RBI single followed by Oliva's two-run homer to put Minnesota up 3-2.  The first two Twins of the fifth went out, but Zoilo Versalles drew a walk followed by a Rollins two-run homer to make it 5-2.  Hall followed Harmon Killebrew's walk with another two-run homer in the eighth to build the lead to 7-2.  The Yankees put men on first and third in the fifth, first and second in the eighth, and loaded the bases in the ninth, but were turned aside each time.

Of note:  Versalles was 1-for-3 with a walk and a stolen base, scoring once.  Bob Allison was 1-for-3 with a walk and a stolen base.

Record:  The win made the Twins 4-1, tied for first with Detroit, though ahead based on winning percentage.

MINNESOTA 6, CLEVELAND 3 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Sunday, April 18.

Batting stars:  Jimmie Hall was 1-for-3 with a two-run homer and a walk, scoring twice.  Jerry Kindall was 1-for-4 with a home run.  Bob Allison was 2-for-4 with a stolen base and an RBI.

Pitching star:  Dave Boswell struck out three in 3.2 scoreless innings of relief, giving up three hits and a walk.  Al Worthington pitched 2.2 scoreless innings, giving up a hit and a walk.

Opposition stars:  Leon Wagner was 2-for-4 with a double and a walk, scoring once.  Chuck Hinton was 2-for-4 with a walk, scoring once and driving in one.  Rocky Colavito was 1-for-5 with a double and two RBIs.

The game:  With two out and none on in the third, the Indians put together three singles and a double off Mudcat Grant to take a 3-0 lead.  In the third, Kindall hit a solo homer and another run scored on Rich Rollins' single-plus-error to cut the lead to 3-2.  The Twins took a 4-3 lead in the fourth on Hall's two-run homer.  They added two more in the eighth when Allison singled in a run and then, with men on first and third Allison and Hall pulled off a double steal of second and home.  The Indians threatened in the fourth, putting two men on with none out, and again in the ninth when they had two on with one out, but never scored again.

Of note:  Zoilo Versalles was 0-for-3 with a walk and a run.  Rollins was 1-for-4.  Tony Oliva was 1-for-4 with a double and a run.  Harmon Killebrew was 2-for-4 with a run.  Grant pitched three innings, giving up three runs on seven hits and one walk with two strikeouts.  Five of the Twins eight position players, Versalles, Rollins, Oliva, Earl Battey, and Kindall, were all hitting below .200 at this point in the season.

Record:  The win made the Twins 3-1, tied for second with Boston, a half game behind Detroit.

MINNESOTA 3, CLEVELAND 0 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  Saturday, April 17.

Batting stars:  Bob Allison was 2-for-4 with a home run.  Zoilo Versalles was 1-for-3 with a double and a walk, scoring once.  Jimmie Hall was 1-for-4 with a triple and an RBI.

Pitching star:  Jim Kaat pitched a complete game shutout, giving up seven hits and one walk with no strikeouts.

Opposition stars:  Sonny Siebert struck out three in three shutout innings of relief, allowing two hits.  Joe Azcue was 2-for-3.  Max Alvis was 2-for-4.

The game:  In the first inning, Versalles doubled, Harmon Killebrew had a two-out RBI single, and Hall followed with a triple to put the Twins up 2-0.  Allison led off the fourth with a home run to make it 3-0.  The Indians only once got a man as far as third base, in the second inning.

Of note:  Rich Rollins was 0-for-4.  Tony Oliva was 1-for-4.  Killebrew was 1-for-4 with a run and an RBI.  Kaat was 1-for-3.

Record:  The win made the Twins 2-1, tied for second with Boston, a half game behind Detroit.

DETROIT 6, MINNESOTA 4 IN MINNESOTA

Date:  April 15.

Batting stars:  Bob Allison was 2-for-4 with a stolen base and two RBIs.  Zoilo Versalles was 2-for-5 with a double and a run.  Harmon Killebrew was 1-for-4 with a run and an RBI.

Pitching stars:  None.

Opposition stars:  Norm Cash was 2-for-4 with a three-run homer.  Al Kaline was 1-for-3 with a two-run homer, a walk, and a stolen base.  Dave Wickersham pitched a complete game, allowing four runs on nine hits and one walk with four strikeouts.

The game:  Allison had a two-run single in a four-run third that put the Twins ahead 4-1.  In the fifth, Cash hit a three-run homer off Camilo Pascual to tie it up.  In the seventh, Kaline hit a two-run homer off Jerry Fosnow to give the Tigers the lead.  The Twins had only two hits after the third inning.  Both came in the ninth, but a double play meant they did not get a man past first.

Of note:  Cesar Tovar was 1-for-4 with a run.  Tony Oliva was 0-for-4.  Earl Battey was 1-for-2 with an RBI.  Camilo Pascual pitched five innings, giving up four runs on six hits and three walks with four strikeouts.

Record:  The loss put the Twins at 1-1, tied for third, a game and a half behind Detroit.

MINNESOTA 5, NEW YORK 4 IN MINNESOTA (11 INNINGS)

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