September 23, 1961 Cleveland Indians at Kansas City Athletics Box Score and Play by Play

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NYY 8
@BOS 3 CLE 9
@KCA 5 DET 4
@LAA 2 WSA 6
@MIN 4 MIN 10
WSA 0 CIN 10
SFG 6 MLN 6
CHC 3
(7) PHI 5
PIT 4
(16) LAD 8
@STL 5

Standings at end of play this day

Municipal Stadium, Attendance: 1,612

Saturday, September 23, 1961
Time of Game: 2:37

Indians

75-80

Won 1

5th, 29½ GB

                1  2  3   4  5  6   7  8  9    R  H  E
                -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -    -  -  -
Indians         0  0  4   0  0  0   0  1  4    9 14  2
Athletics       0  0  3   0  0  0   2  0  0    5  9  1

W: B Dailey (1-0), L: D Wickersham (2-1)

Athletics

58-96

Lost 1

9th, 46 GB

BATTING

Cleveland Indians            AB   R   H RBI   BB  SO    BA   OPS  Pit   PO   A  Details
M de la Hoz 3B                4   0   1   0    1   2  .262  .669    0    0   0   
V Power 2B-1B                 5   2   2   0    0   0  .265  .674    0    4   2   2B,GDP
C Essegian LF                 4   1   1   2    0   1  .288  .889    0    1   0   HR
  T Francona PH-LF            1   1   1   0    0   0  .298  .819    0    0   0   
B Nieman RF                   3   0   1   0    1   0  .392  .999    0   14  14   
  T Cline PR-RF               0   2   0   0    0   0  .167  .551    0    2   2   HBP
J Piersall CF                 5   2   2   1    0   0  .324  .823    0    0   0   SB
J Romano C                    4   1   2   3    1   1  .298  .859    0    4   0   HR
W Held SS                     4   0   1   1    0   1  .262  .802    0    1   1   SF
H Jones 1B                    3   0   0   0    0   1  .156  .456    0    1   0   
  W Kirkland PH               1   0   1   1    0   0  .259  .791    0    0   0   
  K Aspromonte 2B             1   0   1   1    0   0  .226  .623    0    0   1   2B
M Grant P                     3   0   1   0    0   1  .181  .457    0    0   1   
  D Stigman P                 0   0   0   0    0   0  .133  .266         0   0   
  W Bond PH                   1   0   0   0    0   0  .106  .380    0    0   0   
  B Dailey P                  1   0   0   0    0   1  .000  .000    0    0   1   
Totals                       40   9  14   9    3   8                    27  22

BATTING

2B: K Aspromonte (16, off J Wyatt); V Power (33, off D Wickersham).

HR: J Romano (21, off B Kirk; 3rd inn, 1 on, 2 outs); C Essegian (12, off B Kirk; 3rd inn, 1 on, 1 out).

SF: W Held (5, off J Wyatt).

HBP: T Cline (1, by D Wickersham).

TB: J Romano 5; C Essegian 4; V Power 3; J Piersall 2; K Aspromonte 2; W Held; B Nieman; T Francona; W Kirkland; M de la Hoz; M Grant.

GIDP: V Power (17).

RBI: J Romano 3 (77); C Essegian 2 (36); W Held (70); K Aspromonte (18); J Piersall (39); W Kirkland (89).

2-out RBI: J Romano 2; W Kirkland; K Aspromonte.

Team LOB: 9.

With RISP: 5 for 9.

FIELDING

DP: 1. W Held-V Power-H Jones.

E: W Held (26); H Jones (2).

BASERUNNING

SB: J Piersall (8, 2nd base off B Kirk/H Sullivan).

Kansas City Athletics        AB   R   H RBI   BB  SO    BA   OPS  Pit   PO   A  Details
D Howser SS                   4   1   2   0    0   0  .275  .728    0    0   1   SH
W Causey 3B                   4   2   1   1    1   1  .273  .749    0    0   0   
J Lumpe 2B                    4   0   2   1    1   0  .293  .736    0    1   2   
N Siebern 1B                  3   0   1   1    2   1  .302  .865    0    2   0   
D Johnson LF                  3   0   1   1    0   0  .216  .609    0    0   0   SF,GDP
L Posada RF                   4   0   0   0    0   1  .257  .697    0   14  14   
B Del Greco CF                4   0   0   0    0   0  .237  .687    0    1   0   
H Sullivan C                  4   0   0   0    0   1  .243  .686    0    9   0   
B Kirk P                      0   0   0   0    0   0                     0   0   
  F Cipriani PH               0   1   0   0    1   0  .217  .497    0    0   0   
  E Rakow P                   1   0   0   0    0   0  .107  .240    0    0   0   
  B Bryan PH                  1   0   1   0    0   0  .176  .616    0    0   0   
  J Hankins PR                0   1   0   0    0   0  .171  .464         0   0   
  B Kunkel P                  0   0   0   0    0   0  .125  .347         0   0   
  J Rivera PH                 1   0   1   0    0   0  .238  .687    0    0   0   
  D Wickersham P              0   0   0   0    0   0  .667 1.667         0   0   
  J Wyatt P                   0   0   0   0    0   0                     0   0   
Totals                       33   5   9   4    5   4                    27  17

BATTING

SF: D Johnson (4, off M Grant).

SH: D Howser (7, off M Grant).

TB: J Lumpe 2; D Howser 2; B Bryan; J Rivera; D Johnson; W Causey; N Siebern.

GIDP: D Johnson (11).

RBI: D Johnson (40); J Lumpe (44); N Siebern (93); W Causey (49).

Team LOB: 8.

With RISP: 2 for 9.

FIELDING

DP: 1. D Howser-J Lumpe-N Siebern.

E: W Causey (16).

BASERUNNING

PO: J Rivera (1st base by B Dailey).

PITCHING

Cleveland Indians             IP     H   R  ER   BB  SO  HR    ERA   BF  Pit-Str  Ct·Sw·Lk   GB·FB·LD· ?   GmSc  IR-IS   LevI    WPA
M Grant                        6.1   6   5   2    5   2   0   3.73   30     -       ·  ·     16· 1· 0· 6     44    -     1.54  -0.16
D Stigman                      0.2   1   0   0    0   1   0   4.92    3     -       ·  ·      1· 0· 0· 1          2-1    2.55  -0.10
B Dailey, W (1-0)              2     2   0   0    0   1   0   0.52    7     -       ·  ·      5· 0· 0· 1          0-0    1.05   0.13
Totals                         9     9   5   2    5   4   0          40     -       ·  ·     22· 1· 0· 8          2-1

Kansas City Athletics         IP     H   R  ER   BB  SO  HR    ERA   BF  Pit-Str  Ct·Sw·Lk   GB·FB·LD· ?   GmSc  IR-IS   LevI    WPA
B Kirk                         3     6   4   4    1   3   2  12.00   17     -       ·  ·      7· 0· 0· 6     33    -     0.87  -0.24
E Rakow                        4     2   0   0    0   3   0   4.71   13     -       ·  ·      7· 1· 0· 2          0-0    0.94   0.22
B Kunkel, BS (3)               1     2   1   1    1   0   0   4.97    6     -       ·  ·      3· 0· 0· 2          0-0    3.42  -0.14
D Wickersham, L (2-1)          0.1   3   4   4    1   1   0   5.50    6     -       ·  ·      1· 0· 0· 2          0-0    3.28  -0.45
J Wyatt                        0.2   1   0   0    0   1   0   2.45    3     -       ·  ·      0· 1· 0· 1          3-2    0.43  -0.03
Totals                         9    14   9   9    3   8   2          45     -       ·  ·     18· 2· 0·13          3-2

Balks: None.

WP: M Grant (8).

IBB: None.

PO: B Dailey (2; J Rivera, 1st base).

HBP: D Wickersham (1; T Cline).

OTHER

Umpires: HP - Frank Umont, 1B - Bob Stewart, 2B - Joe Linsalata, 3B - Charlie Berry.

Time of Game: 2:37.

Attendance: 1,612.

Field Condition: Unknown.

Weather: Unknown.

LINEUPS

   Cleveland Indians             Kansas City Athletics                
1. M de la Hoz          3B    1. D Howser             SS 
2. V Power              2B    2. W Causey             3B 
3. C Essegian           LF    3. J Lumpe              2B 
4. B Nieman             RF    4. N Siebern            1B 
5. J Piersall           CF    5. D Johnson            LF 
6. J Romano             C     6. L Posada             RF 
7. W Held               SS    7. B Del Greco          CF 
8. H Jones              1B    8. H Sullivan           C  
9. M Grant              P     9. B Kirk               P

TOP 5 PLAYS (wpa explanation)

   Inn Out Score RoB  Pt wWPA  wWE  Batter          Pitcher         Play Detail
  +---+---+-----+---+---+----+----++---------------+---------------+--------------------------------------------------------------+
   t 8   2  5-4  12-      24%  48% W Kirkland      B Kunkel        Single; Cline Scores; Romano to 2B
   b 7   2  4-4  12-     -22%  21% D Johnson       D Stigman       Single to SS; Causey Scores/Adv on E6 (throw)/unER; Lumpe to 3B; Johnson to 2B
   b 7   1  4-3  12-     -20%  35% J Lumpe         M Grant         Single; Hankins Scores; Causey to 2B
   t 3   1  0-0  1--      19%  69% C Essegian      B Kirk          Home Run; Power Scores
   t 9   1  5-5  123      18%  90% J Piersall      D Wickersham    Single to P/Bunt; Power Scores; Francona to 3B; Cline to 2B

PLAY BY PLAY (explanation)

Top of the 1st, Indians Batting, Tied 0-0, Bill Kirk facing 1-2-3
  Scr/Out RoB  Pt  wWE  Batter          Play Detail
  +------+---+---+----++---------------+--------------------------------------------------------------+
          ---      53%  M de la Hoz     Walk
   O      1--      50%  V Power         Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
   O      1--      47%  C Essegian      Strikeout
          1--      50%  B Nieman        Single; de la Hoz to 3B
   O      1-3      45%  J Piersall      Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
                  0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 2 LOB. Indians 0, Athletics 0.

Bottom of the 1st, Athletics Batting, Tied 0-0, Mudcat Grant facing 1-2-3
   O      ---      47%  D Howser        Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
          ---      45%  W Causey        Single
          1--      39%  J Lumpe         Single; Causey to 3B
          1-3      36%  N Siebern       Walk; Lumpe to 2B
   OO     123      50%  D Johnson       Ground Ball Double Play: SS-2B-1B
                  0 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB. Indians 0, Athletics 0.

Top of the 2nd, Indians Batting, Tied 0-0, Bill Kirk facing 6-7-8
   O      ---      48%  J Romano        Strikeout
          ---      50%  W Held          Single
   O      1--      47%  H Jones         Strikeout
   O      1--      45%  M Grant         Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
                  0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Indians 0, Athletics 0.

Bottom of the 2nd, Athletics Batting, Tied 0-0, Mudcat Grant facing 6-7-8
   O      ---      47%  L Posada        Strikeout
   O      ---      49%  B Del Greco     Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
   O      ---      50%  H Sullivan      Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
                  0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Indians 0, Athletics 0.

Top of the 3rd, Indians Batting, Tied 0-0, Bill Kirk facing 1-2-3
   O      ---      47%  M de la Hoz     Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
          ---      50%  V Power         Single
   RR     1--      69%  C Essegian      Home Run; Power Scores
   O      ---      68%  B Nieman        Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
          ---      69%  J Piersall      Single
          1--      70%  J Romano        Piersall Steals 2B
   RR     -2-      84%  " "             Home Run; Piersall Scores
          ---      85%  W Held          Reached on E5 (Ground Ball)
   O      1--      84%  H Jones         Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
                  4 runs, 4 hits, 1 error, 1 LOB. Indians 4, Athletics 0.

Bottom of the 3rd, Athletics Batting, Behind 0-4, Mudcat Grant facing 9-1-2
                  Frank Cipriani pinch hits for Bill Kirk batting 9th
          ---      80%  F Cipriani      Walk
          1--      72%  D Howser        Single; Cipriani to 3B
   R      1-3      66%  W Causey        Reached on E3 (throw) (Ground Ball); Cipriani Scores; Howser to 2B
          12-      58%  J Lumpe         Walk; Howser to 3B; Causey to 2B
   R      123      47%  N Siebern       Walk; Howser Scores/unER; Causey to 3B; Lumpe to 2B
   RO     123      52%  D Johnson       Flyball: LF/Sacrifice Fly; Causey Scores/unER
   O      12-      57%  L Posada        Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
   O      12-      62%  B Del Greco     Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
                  3 runs, 1 hit, 1 error, 2 LOB. Indians 4, Athletics 3.

Top of the 4th, Indians Batting, Ahead 4-3, Ed Rakow facing 9-1-2
                  Ed Rakow replaces Frank Cipriani pitching and batting 9th
          ---      66%  M Grant         Single
   O      1--      62%  M de la Hoz     Strikeout
   OO     1--      57%  V Power         Ground Ball Double Play: SS-2B-1B
                  0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Indians 4, Athletics 3.

Bottom of the 4th, Athletics Batting, Behind 3-4, Mudcat Grant facing 8-9-1
   O      ---      60%  H Sullivan      Strikeout
   O      ---      62%  E Rakow         Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
   O      ---      64%  D Howser        Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
                  0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Indians 4, Athletics 3.

Top of the 5th, Indians Batting, Ahead 4-3, Ed Rakow facing 3-4-5
   O      ---      61%  C Essegian      Foul Flyball: C
   O      ---      60%  B Nieman        Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
   O      ---      58%  J Piersall      Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
                  0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Indians 4, Athletics 3.

Bottom of the 5th, Athletics Batting, Behind 3-4, Mudcat Grant facing 2-3-4
   O      ---      62%  W Causey        Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
   O      ---      64%  J Lumpe         Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
          ---      62%  N Siebern       Single
          1--      61%  D Johnson       Wild Pitch; Siebern to 2B
   O      -2-      66%  " "             Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
                  0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Indians 4, Athletics 3.

Top of the 6th, Indians Batting, Ahead 4-3, Ed Rakow facing 6-7-8
   O      ---      63%  J Romano        Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
   O      ---      62%  W Held          Strikeout
   O      ---      60%  H Jones         Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
                  0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Indians 4, Athletics 3.

Bottom of the 6th, Athletics Batting, Behind 3-4, Mudcat Grant facing 6-7-8
   O      ---      64%  L Posada        Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
   O      ---      67%  B Del Greco     Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
   O      ---      69%  H Sullivan      Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
                  0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Indians 4, Athletics 3.

Top of the 7th, Indians Batting, Ahead 4-3, Ed Rakow facing 9-1-2
   O      ---      67%  M Grant         Strikeout
          ---      69%  M de la Hoz     Single
   O      1--      66%  V Power         Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
   O      1--      64%  C Essegian      Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
                  0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Indians 4, Athletics 3.

Bottom of the 7th, Athletics Batting, Behind 3-4, Mudcat Grant facing 9-1-2
                  Billy Bryan pinch hits for Ed Rakow batting 9th
          ---      56%  B Bryan         Single
                  Jay Hankins pinch runs for Billy Bryan batting 9th
   O      1--      59%  D Howser        Bunt Groundout: P-2B/Sacrifice; Hankins to 2B
          -2-      56%  W Causey        Walk
   R      12-      35%  J Lumpe         Single; Hankins Scores; Causey to 2B
                  Dick Stigman replaces Mudcat Grant pitching and batting 9th
   O      12-      43%  N Siebern       Strikeout
   R      12-      21%  D Johnson       Single to SS; Causey Scores/Adv on E6 (throw)/unER; Lumpe to 3B; Johnson to 2B
   O      -23      26%  L Posada        Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
                  2 runs, 3 hits, 1 error, 2 LOB. Indians 4, Athletics 5.

Top of the 8th, Indians Batting, Behind 4-5, Bill Kunkel facing 4-5-6
                  Bill Kunkel replaces Jay Hankins pitching and batting 9th
          ---      34%  B Nieman        Walk
                  Ty Cline pinch runs for Bob Nieman batting 4th
   O      1--      26%  J Piersall      Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
          1--      35%  J Romano        Single; Cline to 2B
   O      12-      24%  W Held          Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
                  Willie Kirkland pinch hits for Hal Jones batting 8th
   R      12-      48%  W Kirkland      Single; Cline Scores; Romano to 2B
                  Walt Bond pinch hits for Dick Stigman batting 9th
   O      12-      39%  W Bond          Groundout: 2B-1B
                  1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB. Indians 5, Athletics 5.

Bottom of the 8th, Athletics Batting, Tied 5-5, Bill Dailey facing 7-8-9
                  Bill Dailey replaces Walt Bond pitching and batting 9th; Vic Power moves to 1B; Ken Aspromonte replaces Willie Kirkland playing 2B batting 8th; Ty Cline moves to RF
   O      ---      44%  B Del Greco     Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
   O      ---      47%  H Sullivan      Batted Ball: Unknown out on play
                  Jim Rivera pinch hits for Bill Kunkel batting 9th
          ---      45%  J Rivera        Single
   O      1--      50%  D Howser        Rivera Picked off 1B (P-1B)
                  0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0 LOB. Indians 5, Athletics 5.

Top of the 9th, Indians Batting, Tied 5-5, Dave Wickersham facing 1-2-3
                  Dave Wickersham replaces Jim Rivera pitching and batting 9th
   O      ---      44%  M de la Hoz     Strikeout
          ---      56%  V Power         Double to LF
                  Tito Francona pinch hits for Chuck Essegian batting 3rd
          -2-      58%  T Francona      Single to 3B; Power stays at 2B
          12-      71%  T Cline         Hit By Pitch; Power to 3B; Francona to 2B
   R      123      90%  J Piersall      Single to P/Bunt; Power Scores; Francona to 3B; Cline to 2B
   R      123      95%  J Romano        Walk; Francona Scores; Cline to 3B; Piersall to 2B
                  John Wyatt replaces Dave Wickersham pitching and batting 9th
   RO     123      96%  W Held          Flyball: CF/Sacrifice Fly; Cline Scores
   R      12-      99%  K Aspromonte    Double to RF; Piersall Scores; Romano to 3B
   O      -23      98%  B Dailey        Strikeout
                  4 runs, 4 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB. Indians 9, Athletics 5.

Bottom of the 9th, Athletics Batting, Behind 5-9, Bill Dailey facing 1-2-3
                  Tito Francona moves to LF
          ---      96%  D Howser        Single to 3B/Bunt
   O      1--      98%  W Causey        Strikeout
   O      1--      99%  J Lumpe         Groundout: 1B-SS/Forceout at 2B
   O      1--     100%  N Siebern       Groundout: 2B-1B
        0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB. Indians 9, Athletics 5.

Retrosheet.org Boxscore:KC1196109230

Play-by-Play Explanation

Scr/Out- This has a "O" for every out on the play and an "R" for every run that scored on the play. Some plays will have both in no particular order.
RoB- This gives the baserunner (Runners on Base) configuration at the start of the play. "1-3" would mean runners on first and third. Clicking on this will show the defensive players and baserunners on the field for this play. This is a subscriber feature, so non-subscribers are limited as to the number of times they can use this feature in a day.
Pt- When available, the number of pitches in this plate appearance. Clicking on this number will show the sequence of pitches thrown including, when available, things like runner going, ball blocked, attempted pickoffs and the like. We believe this data to be as accurate as humanly possible, but there are going to be some errors in the data, so please take it with a grain of salt. Clicking on this will show the defensive players and baserunners on the field for this play. This is a subscriber feature, so non-subscribers are limited as to the number of times they can use this feature in a day.
Batter- The batter at the plate when this play occurred. If the play is a baserunning event, then the batter's name will be repeated as indicated by quotes.
Play Detail- This is an explanation of the play that occurred. In some cases, batted ball location and type will be indicated within parentheses. Again, these are best efforts to the record the game as it happened. Also, plays made on the baserunners (including the batter as a baserunner) will be indicated in parentheses after the baserunner's name. Advancement of baserunners is given in cases where the advancement is not easily deduced or obvious from the play. For example, advancement for a walk will not be given, but for a single or double it will be given.

Please report any issues or strangeness you see with the description of plays given above. We have tested several hundred different types of plays, but, in all likelihood, there are still some errors or misinterpretations of the play-by-play data.

The information used here was obtained free of charge from and is copyrighted by Retrosheet. Interested parties may contact Retrosheet at 20 Sunset Rd., Newark, DE 19711.

In some cases, the results from play-by-play data will contradict results in the official record. The official record has many, many errors, but we have not undertaken to reconcile those errors. Pitch-by-pitch data should not be taken as completely accurate, though we believe it to be as accurate as is currently possible.


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You Are Here > Baseball-Reference.com > Boxes > 1961 > KCA \| CLE > Sep 23, 1961, Indians at Athletics Play by Play and Box Score

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BATTING

PITCHING

OTHER

LINEUPS

TOP 5 PLAYS (wpa explanation)

PLAY BY PLAY (explanation)

Play-by-Play Explanation