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Great MomentsSportsiBy United PressThe World series is over — but before packing baseball away in moth balls until next spring, let’s have one more story about theNew York Yankees.This took place back in 1942. It was a warm afternoon in May — one that Yankee first baseman Buddy Hassett was to remember for a long time. The Yankees were playing the Boston Red Sox that day and Dom Di Maggio opened the game with a walk.Bud Chandler — a crafty right hander — picked up the resin bag and wiped his hands. Skeeter Newsome walked to the plate.Chandler pitched — and New-some bunted back toward thetmound. Hassett charged it, butit was the pitcher’s ball to field. Chandler pounced on the bunt, and Hassett stopped still. Maybe he thought the second baseman was covering first, or maybe he just forgotAs Chandler came up with the ball and whirled, Hassett saw he was standing directly in the way of a peg to first. He dropped to the ground, and Chandler fired.It was a perfect peg — chest hight and right to the bag. Therewas only one thing wrong — no one was covering first base. The ball sailed into right field.Dom DiMaggio, leading off first, turned second, then put on an extra burst of speed as the third base coach waved him home.the inning. And they gave Buddy more of the same when he made out his first time at bat.It was an unusual situation for Buddy He usually was one of the more popular members of the Yankees, a better than average player. Hassett seldom had trouble with routine plays, let alone pulling a boner like that. And he felt worse because it happened in New York, his hometown.Hassett started major league baseball with another home-town t^am — the Dodgers — and then had spent three years with the Boston Braves. This was his first year with the Yankees, and he wanted to stay.Hassett got a chance to redeem himself when he came up in the third inning. Chandler was on third and Phil Rizzuto on second.(■iThe boo-boos got busy as Hassett walked up to the plate.Buddy didn’t let the jeers bother him. He sliced a single down the first base line, scoring both runners. That made it 2-1 inNewsome wound up at second. It was the first run of the game . . . purely a gift . . . compliments of Buddy Hassett.The Yankee fans gave Hassett a terrific booing at the end of\favor of the Yankees. The booingstopped.But Hassett wasn’t through yet. He came up in the sixth with one out and the score still 2-1. Buddy caught a fast ball and whacked a line drive. It rolled to the wall in right-center, Hassett wound up at third. Momens later he scored on a sacrifice fly ball. That made it 3-1, in favor of the Yankees. And that turned out to be the final scoreAll in all, it was a busy day for Hassett. He had accounted for all the runs in the game — three for New York and one for Boston.
Newspaper Details
Lovington Leader
Lovington, New Mexico, US
Thu, Nov 03, 1955
Page 9
Full Page
Clipped by
Brian T.
TN, USA 30 Jan 2019
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