Thursday, June 10, 1948

STANDINGS
              W  L Pct. GB
Tacoma ..... 27 20 .574 --
Bremerton .. 27 23 .540 1½
Salem ...... 26 23 .531 2
Wenatchee .. 26 24 .520 2½
Vancouver .. 23 25 .479 4½
Victoria ... 25 28 .472 5
Spokane .... 23 26 .469 5
Yakima ..... 21 29 .420 7

VICTORIA, June 10—Charlie Balassi bounced a single through the middle with runners on third and second with one out in the 13th inning to give the Victoria Athletics a 6-5 decision over the Spokane Indians here tonight.
Manager Buddy Ryan elected not to intentionally walk the pitcher with first base open to set up a force at every base, even though intentional passes were followed by outs four times earlier in the game.
With Sal Recca hitting a home run and double to bat in four runs, and Jim Propst in his best form, the A's were sporting a 5-1 lead at the end of six innings. Babe Jensen started Propst's downfall with a boot on John Cordell's grounder after Changaris had singled. Jack Palmer then dropped Lou Kubiak's toss at second in a double-play attempts. Singles by Thomas and Roy Younker scored three runs.
Valine led off the Spokane eighth with a double and all hands were safe when Vic Buccola took Nelson's ground ball and tried to make an impossible play at third. Joe Blankenship took over for Propst, who gave up an outfield fly to Changeris to tie the score.
From there, Victoria kept the Indians off the board, and not without trying.
Kubiak made a throw from deep short in the ninth for the third out as a run crossed the plate. In the 11th, Gene Petralli led off with a double and Jensen bobbled Thomas' sacrifice bunt to put runners at first and third with non out. But Blankenship struck out Younkers, walked Bud Sheely intentionally, then got Valine to hit into a double-play.
The A's had the winning run on second in the ninth, loaded the bases in the tenth, and had two runners on in the 12th before breaking through in the 13th.
Jensen led off with a single and Buccola hustled out a bunt for a base hit. Blankenship sacrificed to set the stage for Balassi's game-winning bounder.
Only 900 fans took in what was likely the most suspenseful game in three years of Western International League play here.
Spokane ......... 000 001 310 000 0—5 11 0
Victoria .......... 000 203 000 000 1—6 12 4
Cordell, Babbitt (10) and Sheely; Propst, Blankenship (8) and Recca.

BREMERTON, June 10—Bremerton Tars took over second place in the Western International League tonight with a 5-3 win over Salem as Keith Simon held the Senators to two hits. Salem failed to score until the ninth when Al Spaeter clouted a three-run triple after an error and two walks had filled the sacks.
The victory was Simon's eleventh against two defeats.
Salem ........... 000 000 003—3 2 1
Bremerton ..... 000 131 00x—5 10 1
Lazor, McMillan (7) and Stumpf; Simon and Volpi.

TACOMA, June 10-Tacoma Tigers broke loose with an eight-run uprising in the fifth inning to defeat Yakima 12-3.
The big inning was highlighted by Dick Greco's two-run double and Hank Vallee's three-run triple. Ray Fortier, Tacoma left-hander, pitched a near six-hitter.
Yakima .......... 200 000 001—3 6 1
Tacoma ......... 000 080 40x—12 15 3
Drilling, Harder (5), B. Fortier (7) and Eastwood; R. Fortier and Rossi.

VANCOUVER, June 10—The Wenatchee Chiefs arrived in Vancouver with only 13 players, so they likely were a little pleased when rain called a halt to the proceedings after six innings here tonight, as Vancouver pulled off an 11-3.
The Caps slapped out a dozen hits, two of them homers by Frank Mullens and Charlie Mead. Mullens also banged a triple and Orrin Snyder collected three hits.
Tom Rose went the distance for the losers. Nine of the runs against him were earned.
Bob Costello might have had a shutout except for a tough fifth inning when the Chiefs scored three to bring the score close at 4-3. Len Tran threw away a double-play ball and Jack Warren dropped a perfect strike thrown after the catch by Mullens to aid the foes.
Mead's two-run homer bumped the lead, and five runs, along with the rain, ended the game in the sixth.
Wenatchee ...... 000 030—3 5 1
Vancouver ....... 201 125—11 12 3
(called after six innings due to rain)
Rose and Dalrymple; Costello and Ward.