A baseball season was best described in my opinion by the late baseball Commissioner A. Bartlett Giamatti in "The Greenfields of the Mind''.
In it he wrote, ''It breaks your heart. It is designed to break you r heart. The game begins in trhe spring when everything begins again, and it blossoms in the summer, filling the afternoons and evenings, and then as sooon aa the chill rains come, it stops and leaves you to face the fall alone. You count on it, rely on it to buffer the passage of time, to keep the memory of sunshine and high skies alive, and then just as the days are all twilight, when you need it most, it stops.''
Well the fans of the fromer Clevelanad Spiders, now Barons had a long winter of discontent that gave no slance even though the team under new management promised better orgainization and leadership in the front office and to put the most talented players possible on the field. Yet the 1950 version of the Barons, the Spiders, for the longest time managed to lose 61 games and somehow win only 19 with 13 A-rated players on the roster, the most of any team in the American League.
There were several changes made that will be chronicled as the season progresses. The starting rotation was revamped, an All Star third baseman was acquired and several players who were moved around in a haphazard manner last season are now in permanant solidified roles.
On July 2nd, the big day in Cleveland's, Opening Day at Baron Stadium, a new name for the ballpark, as well. The club welcomed 35,750 people in attendance, nearly a capacity 40,000 crowd, which happened nary a time in 1950 and gave them a very good ballgame.
The Baron hosted the Detroit Flints, who were 42-39 (.519) in sixth place, seven games behind first place Kansas City, in the American League standings last season.
Thirty-two year Willie Conyers, out of Mobile Alabama, got the surprise start for Detroit after a fine showing in spring training earned him consideration.
Ed Bemis, 3-9 w/a 3.79 ERA in 18 appearances, all starts, and a league leading 126 strikeouts in 126 innings pitched, made the Opening Day start for the home team.
Things began more like it was last season all over again for the Barons and for most of the game it would be frustratingly close to deju vu all over again for each and every fan here.
Detroit roughed up Bemis for two runs on four hits in the first inning and ran centerfielder Frankie Ortiz until he was gasping for breath when it finally ended. Dick Crawford singled to centerfield and stole second base. Detroit second baseman Jim Gallego singled in the first run of the year with a ground ball single to center field. Mark Gipson looped a soft single into centerfield that scored Gallego with the second run of the inning. Harry Luecken grounded a single slowly up the middle sending Gipson to third base. Gil Coffman, Detroit's first sacker, flied out to Ortiz in centerfield for the first out. Bemis struck out Jeff Voight swinging for his foirst strikeout of the season and the second out of the inning. Bryan Delahanty popped out to shortstop Mike Bucha, who ranged out into short centerfield to make the catch, for the final out. 2-0 Detroit.
Conyers retired Cleveland quickly in the bottom of the first inning, Foster was called out on strikes, on a pitch the crowd saw as outside and it continuous boos down on plate umpire Jasper Tuttle foir the rest of the inning that saw Callahan fly out to Luecken in centerfield, and Ortiz get called out on another querstionable pitch in the mind's eye of every amateur umpire in the stands.
Cleveland picked up its fifth hit in two innings off Bemis in the top of the second inning a single by Conyers, the pitcher. Crawford then bounced into a double play started by second baseman Enos Callahan.
Woodie Bruno singled to start the bottom of the second and stole second base. Conyers pitched around catcher Chick Turbeville and walked him putting runners on first and second with no one out. Third baseman Larry McCabe grounded into a double play started by third base counterpart Bryan Delahanty and sent around the horn.
Jim Gallego, having a marvelous game hit a solo homerun in the third inning to add on a run and make the score 3-0 Detroit.
The fourth inning was a turning point in the game. Bemis retired the first two batters, Jeff Voight and Bryan Delahanty routinely and then game up a single to right firld to Kelvin Onis and an infield single, a squibber to shortstop, by Conyers for his second hit of the game to put two on with two out. Dick Crawford hit a laser shot up the middle that was flagged down with an all out diving effort by Callahan at second. Callahan flipped the ball from his glove to Bucha covering second for the thrid out.
No one knew it at the time, but these were the last Detroit base runners in the game as Bemis and later Chris Correll, in the ninth inning, retired the last seventeen consecutive batters.
The Barons got a big break in the sixth inning when Conyers suddenly was pulled with two outs. It was latered said that it was for fatigue. Right hander Ernie Pierson replaced him and got the final out of that inning, but Conyers who went 5.2 shutout innings allowing only two hits, two walks and recorded six strikeouts was gone.
No one in the Cleveland dugout was unhappy about that.
George Miller pinch hit unsuccesfully for Pierson in the top of the seventh.
Right hander Homer Lane became the third Detroit pitcher used in the bottom of the seventh.
Enos Callahan singled past first baseman Gil Coffman. Ortiz singled to left field and Callahan raced around to third base. Woodie Bruno was robbed of a hit by second baseman Jim Gallego. A run scored on the play to make it 3-1 Detroit. Larry McCabe, a run producer for Kansas City in 1950, singled to left field and in a game of web gems, and left fielder Mark Gipson made another as he charged the sinking liner, fielded it on one hop, and made a strong accurate throw to catcher Dick Crawford to cut down Ortiz sliding hard into the plate.
Disappointment surged through the excited crowd who were enjoing the strong effort being put forth by their team in the opener. Instead dire and disturbing memories of past lost opportunities filled the air and killed the sence that victory was at hand. Some began slowly towards the exits convinced that this was going to be nothing more than a moral victory at best.
Pinch hitter Ivan Marshall, batting for Bucha, singled to centerfield with one out in the bottom of the eighth. Pinch hitter Joe Nitcholas batted for pitcher Ed Bemis. While he was at bat Marshall became the third base runner cut down by Crawford attempting to steal, and those in the aisles quickened their pace towards the exits. Nitcholas, infield single off third baseman Bryan Delahanty's glove, seemed to only deepen the sense of oncoming defeat for Detroit brought in their closer, Wilbur Johnsaon, to get a four out save. Foster fleid out to Gipson in left field to end the inning.
Chris Correll retired the 15,16th and 17th consecutive Detroit batter to set up what would be an exciting ninth inning for those remaining fans and those who were able to hear what was transpiring on their car radios and hustle back inside.
Callahan began the game winning rally with a single to left field and the Barons kept being aggressive on the bases as Callahan stole second base. Johnson was unruffled a bit on the mound after the steal, which was a bang-bang play at second and he walked Ortiz to put runners on first and second with no one out. Bruno made a frustrating out by swinging at ball four and fouling out to first baseman Coffman who reached into the box seats to make the catch.
Johnson still was unable to find the strike zone. Umpire Jasper Tuttle, who heard it from the Cleveland dugout earlier, now ran afoul of those in the visitors dugout. Johnson walked Turbeville to load the bases and then walked McCabe to force in a run to make the score 3-2. With the crowd suddenly reinvigorated and cheering madly the watched Mark Stricker single in Oritz and Turbeville with the tying and winning runs.
It after all is just one win. Cleveland goes up against a tough customer in right hander Doc Edelan, 5-2 3.80 ERA in 18 starts in 1950. Left hander Darrell Bourque (2-10 5.84), the winner of a Gold Glove in 1950 will square off on the mound.
Opening Day in Cleveland
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