4/24/2007

Braves: April 24, 1982

The '57 Milwaukee Braves welcomed the Cardinals to County Stadium on April 24, 1957. They beat them to with a 8-7 decision on a game winning homer in the bottom of the ninth from an unlikely source.



This was a back-and-forth game right to the end. St. Louis scored twice in the first inning off Ray Crone. Stan Musial (RBI single) and Del Ennis (sacrifice fly) got the Cards the early lead.



Joe Adcock homered in the bottom of the second, but the Cards scored twice more in the top of the third on a two run homer by Ennis.



Then, the Braves scored three times in the bottom of the third to tie the score 4-4. The three-run home run came from a very likely source, Hank Aaron. The homer for 'The Hammer' was his 3rd of the season.



St. Louis scored three times in the top of the fifth. Alvin Dark doubled in a run. Musial drove him home with a single. Stan The Man scored on a double by Ken Boyer. That 7-4 lead didn't make it through the bottom of the fifth.



The Braves tied the game on a three-run homer from another very likely source. Hall of Famer Eddie Matthews picked a good time to hit his first home run of the '57 season and evened the game 7-7.



After giving up the three runs in the top of the fifth, Milwaukee reliever Taylor Phillips kept the Cardinals off the board for the rest of the game. He onlly allowed a single to Musial in his final four innings of work.



Billy Bruton started the Braves ninth inning, but flew out for the first out. The hero of the game with the game winning home run





Yep, Del Crandall! Future Brewer manager and broadcaster Del Crandall. Baseball card from BaseballAlmanac. Crandall hit 15 homers in 1957 and 179 over a sixteen year career so it shouldn't be unlikely that he would hit a home run. But, on a team with Adcock, Thomson, Aaron, and Matthews Crandall is probably the last guy you would expect to hit a game-ending home run.

Complete box score and play-by-play are HERE.

The Braves ended the day 6-1. They are still tied with the Dodgers atop the NL. Brooklyn beat the Giants 4-3 today.

Milwaukee is off on April 25...(One game series with the Cards?) They head to Crosley Field to face the Reds in a series that begins on April 26.

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