Yaz '67

Yesterday, I wrote a little something about George Brett and how he carried the 1985 Royals to the World Series. I suggested (I suppose) that Brett may have done as much for his team in 1985 as anyone ("It's hard to fathom any one player carrying a team more than Brett did in 1985" -- yes, I'm now quoting myself, it's pathetic).

Then, two things happened. I got a six-word email from someone: “Did you just forget Carl Yastrzemski?” And in the snail-mail I got Baseball Prospectus’ excellent upcoming book called “It Ain’t Over ‘Til It’s Over” The book is about pennant races (I believe it's coming out in August), and it’s just the good stuff you expect from Prospectus. The first chapter revolves around the amazing 1967 pennant race. It reminded me just how good Yaz was down the stretch that year – it’s unprecedented, really.

So, for fun, let’s go game-by-game down the stretch with Yaz in '67:

September 18: Red Sox 6, Detroit 5 (10 innings).

Yaz: Went 3 for 4 with a double, homer and 2 RBIs.

Key blow: With the Red Sox down 5-4 in the ninth inning, one out, Yaz banged a game-tying home run. Boston won it in the 10th when Dalton Jones homered. That victory pushed the Red Sox into a first-place tie with Minnesota. According to the Prospectus' IAOTIO, just before Yaz stepped to the plate in the ninth, Boston Globe columnist (and apparent loudmouth according to reputation) Ray Fitzgerald barked: "Right now is when an MVP should hit a home run."

September 19: Red Sox 4, Detroit 2

Yaz: Went 0 for 3 with a walk and a run scored.

Key blow: This was Yaz’s only hitless game during the streak, but even here he played a huge role. The Red Sox were down 2-1 going into the ninth inning, when Jerry Adair led off with a single against Mickey Lolich. Yaz never did much against Lolich – he hit .226 against Lolich in his career – but he worked a walk. George Scott then singled in Adair, Yaz went to third on a sacrifice bunt by Reggie Smith. Yaz scored the game winning run on a wild pitch. Boston remained in a tie with Minnesota for first (the Twins battered the Kansas City Athletics).

September 20: Red Sox 5, Cleveland 4

Yaz: Went 4 for 5 with a homer, two runs scored and an RBI.

Key blow: There were a couple of key blows, actually. With the Red Sox down 2-0 in the sixth, Yaz banged a home run off of Sudden Sam McDowell – the only homer he would ever hit off of Sudden Sam. In fact, he would only hit .173 in 73 at bats against McDowell in his career, hey, we’re talking here about one of the most unhittable left-handed pitchers in baseball history. But Yaz got three of his 12 career Sudden Sam hits on this day. The Red Sox, keyed by his home run, managed to tie the game entering the ninth.

The in the ninth, facing George Culver**, Yaz singled (thanks to a brilliant reader -- I had originally matched up Yaz with his '67 teammate Sparky Lyle. Culver is correct). He went to second on a wild pitch. He scored the game winning run on Reggie Smith’s single. Third straight game Yaz scored the game-tying or winning run.

Minnesota beat Kansas City again, so the two teams were still tied.

September 21: Red Sox 6, Cleveland 5

Yaz: Went 1 for 4 with a walk, a double and a run scored.

Key blow: There wasn’t really a key blow in this one. Yaz did drive in the Red Sox first run, but it was when he hit a fly ball that Cleveland’s Richie Scheinblum lost in the lights or something and dropped. That scored Mike Andrews – no RBI for Yaz on the error. In the sixth, Yaz walked and scored as part of a three-run Boston rally that gave the Sox a 4-0 lead. In the seventh, Boston tacked on two more – though Yastrzemski’s double did not play a role. And then they held on as Cleveland rallied to make the game close.

Minnesota beat Kansas City again – I’m sure Red Sox fans by now were ready for that never ending Athletics-Twins series to end.

September 22 (Game 1): Baltimore 10, Red Sox 0

Yaz: Went 1 for 3 with a walk.

Key blow: None. Baltimore scored two in the first – Curt Blefary’s triple being the big hit – and never looked back in the first game of a Friday doubleheader. Could you imagine a Friday doubleheader being played during a pennant race these days?

September 22 (Game 2): Red Sox 10, Baltimore 3

Yaz: Went 1 for 4 with an RBI, an intentional walk and 2 runs scored.

Key blow: Baltimore actually led this game 2-0 after three innings. But in the fourth, Yaz led off with a single to center field. He went to second on a walk to George Scott and scored on Reggie Smith’s single. And then everything fell apart for Baltimore. Luis Aparicio booted Ken Harrelson’s ground ball. One batter later, Aparicio booted Jose Santiago’s ground ball. Boston scored five and never looked back.

Minnesota smashed the Yankees 8-2 behind Jim Kaat, and the Twins had a 1/2 game lead on the Red Sox.

September 23: Baltimore 7, Red Sox 5

Yaz: Went 2 for 3 with a homer, a walk, an RBI, 2 runs scored and a stolen base.

Key blow: Well, the guy did all he could. Baltimore took an early 4-0 lead. In the fourth, Yaz singled and eventually scored on a groundout to make it 4-1. In the fifth, he came up with Boston down 4-3 and a man on base, and he crushed a long home run to give Boston a 5-4 lead. In the seventh, with Boston still leading, he singled and stole second with one out, but they could not drive him in.

And Boston pitching could not hold on. Brooks Robinson hit a two-run homer in the eighth that proved decisive. Yaz never came up again.

Minnesota finally lost, though. And the Red Sox still trailed by a 1/2 game.

September 24: Red Sox 11, Baltimore 7

Yaz; Went 1 for 4 with an RBI and a run scored.

Key blow: This one was over early – more or less. The Red Sox scored at least one run in each of the first five innings. Yaz was in the middle of two of those rallies, and he was pulled out of the game in the seventh with Boston up 7-0. Then things got a little bit screwy, Baltimore scored three runs to make a game of it. Boston scored four in the ninth, thanks in large part to a George Scott homer. But Baltimore scored four in the bottom of the ninth – thanks to five straight hits – and then Dan Osinski was finally able to slam the door shut.

The Twins beat the Yankees 9-4 to maintain their 1/2 game lead. But the Twins lost to the Angels the next day while the Red Sox were off, so it was tied up again at the top.

September 26: Cleveland 6, Red Sox 3

Yaz: Went 2 for 3 with a double, a homer, an intentional walk, a run scored and 3 RBIs.

Key blow: None. It's amzaing how, even when Boston lost, Yaz did just about all anyone could ask. With a man on second, Yaz was intentionally walked in the first inning – this is how much respect he was garnering by now – and then Luis Tiant struck out the next two batters.

In the fifth, with Cleveland ahead 3-0, Yaz doubled but George Scott could not drive him in. In the seventh, with Cleveland up 6-0, the Red Sox had two runners on and Yaz hit a three-run homer to make it a game again. But Tiant shut things down right there and Yaz did not get any more at-bats.

Minnesota beat California behind Jim Kaat and now had a full one game lead with three games to play.

September 27: Cleveland 6, Red Sox 0

Yaz: Went 1 for 3 with a walk.

Key blow: Sonny Siebert and two Indians relievers held Boston to just five hits, and the Indians scored four runs in the second to put the game on ice – Vic Davalillo’s two-run single was the decisive hit.

But the key blow on this day actually belonged to California’s Roger Repoz, whose RBI single proved the game-winner in California’s 5-1 victory over Minnesota. Had the Twins won that game they would have been up two on Boston with two games to play and would have clichéd at least a tie. Instead, the Red Sox and Twins would end up playing a two-game series in Boston for everything. And Yaz would be ready.

September 30: Red Sox 6, Minnesota 4

Yaz: Went 3 for 4 with a homer, run scored, 4 RBIs.

Key blow: I am making it sound like this was a two-team race when, as you almost certainly know, it was actually a four-team race. Detroit split a doubleheader on this day and was only a half game back. The White Sox came into this weekend with the pennant within their reach, but they got knocked out on this day by losing 4-0 to the Senators. It was the second straight day the White Sox were shut out by Washington.

Still the focus was in Boston. The Twins took a 1-0 lead in the first and had the bases loaded with just one out against Jose Santiago. Rod Carew lined out to second though, and Ted Uhlaender grounded out to end the threat.

Minnesota's Jim Kaat, who was pitching well, came out in the third becuase he heard a pop in his elbow. Jim Perry relieved him. The Twins held the lead until the fifth. Then Boston's Jerry Adair singled in a run to tie it. Yaz’s infield single gave Boston the lead. In the seventh, with Boston clinging to a 3-2 lead, Yaz decided to put the game away once and for all with a monstrous three-run homer against Jim Merritt. That did it, all right.

The Twins and Red Sox were tied with one game to play. Detroit had another doubleheader on Sunday and could still fit into the picture somewhere with a sweep.

October 1: Red Sox 5, Minnesota 3

Yaz: Went 4 for 4 with a double, a run scored and two RBIs.

Key blow: In one of the most famous games in Boston history (and Minnesota history, I guess), the Twins had a 2-0 lead going into the bottom of the sixth – Tony Oliva drove in one run, Harmon Killebrew the other. Yaz, once again, was doing everything. He singled in the first. He doubled to lead off the fourth (but was eventually doubled off on a George Scott line drive).

Then came the sixth inning against Dean Chance. Boston pitcher Jim Lonborg led off with a bunt single. I’m trying to imagine a pitcher in a big game today leading off with a bunt single. Jerry Adair singled. Dalton Jones singled to load the bases. And up came Yaz. It is probably the only time in baseball history when the BEST anyone rooting for the Twins that day could hope for was that Yaz would walk. If there was ever a time to intentionally walk someone with the bases loaded, this was it.

Instead Yaz singled, two runs scored to tie things up. Ken Harrelson’s fielder’s choice scored Jones to make it 3-2. Chance was pulled for Al Worthington.

And then it all fell apart for Minnesota. Worthington threw a wild pitch and Yaz went to third. Worthington threw ANOTHER wild pitch and Yaz scored to make it 4-2. After an out and a walk, Reggie Smith reached on Harmon Killebrew’s error, another run scored, and it was 5-2.

That was it. The Twins had a rally going in the eighth – they scored one on Bob Allison’s single – but then Allison tried to stretch that single into a double and got thrown out to end the threat.

Meanwhile in Detroit, the Tigers lost the first game of the doubleheader against the Angels – the fatal blow being a two-run homer by Don Mincher – and that ended their hopes. Boston had won. The Impossible Dream season.

In all, Yaz had hit .523 in those crucial 12 games. He hit five home runs, scored 14 runs, drove in 16, had an OPS of 1.559, and he played the crucial role in probably six of the Red Sox eight victories down the stretch.

He also won the Triple Crown that year, and it was this last stretch that did it. He came into the stretch hitting .314 – he ended up hitting .326 (15 points better than Frank Robinson). He tied Harmon Killebrew for the home run lead (44) – so those five he hit were critical. And he won the RBI title by eight over Killebrew (121-113). That year, Yaz also led the league in on-base percentage, slugging percentage, hits, total bases, times on base, extra base hits and adjusted OPS (an amazing 195).

Where does this year rank in baseball history? I think it probably has a special place. There were others who put up more impressive numbers – Ruth, Bonds, Williams, Mantle in ’56 and ’57, Musial in ’48, Hornsby, and so on and so on – but considering the place (Boston), the time (nobody was hitting in 1967), the situation (the Red Sox had not even been in a real pennant race in about 15 years), the fans hunger and the ridiculous and amazing tension of the final weeks, I think you could make a real argument that Yaz’s ’67 is a contender for the best season by any player ever.