By IAIN HIGGINS
An aggressive offense kept pressure off rookie pitcher Cal Browning as the Red Wings peppered Toronto with 13 runs by the time the stands cleared at Silver Stadium on this day in 1958. The young lefty gave up 10 hits , but he was never in much trouble holding the Maple Leafs to one run through eight innings in a 13-6 Wings win.
The Rochester lineup went to work quickly, racking up nine runs by the fifth inning thanks to critical early cracks from rookie Joe Christian and second baseman Roy Smalley. Christian homered and singled, Smalley doubled and singled. Each tallied three RBI.
Other big producers were Tommy Burgess and Don Lassetter, with three hits apiece, and Browning, who smacked a triple and a single. Leafs starter Jim Pearce, who hadn’t had a win since May, was pulled after giving up four runs in the second inning. Pearce managed to single before he was pulled, driving in Toronto’s only run in the first eight innings.
Browning, who threw 173 pitches and fanned 10 batters by the end of the night, stayed consistent and allowed the Wings to run up the score. Following a pair of strikeouts, he briefly lost his vise grip on the Toronto lineup in the ninth inning when he issued two walks and a single, followed by home runs from Mike Goliat and the dangerous Rocky Nelson. Nelson was a feared hitter in the minor leagues, having won the triple crown twice.
Smalley’s son, Roy Smalley III, played 13 seasons in the majors including all or parts of 10 years with the Minnesota Twins. The younger Smalley appeared in the 1979 All Star game.
RED WINGS 13
MAPLE LEAFS 6
| Toronto | AB | R | H | BI | Rochester | AB | R | H | BI | |
| Rodriguez ss | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | Babe 3b | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Smith cf 2b | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | Christian cf | 5 | 2 | 2 | 3 | |
| Jok 3b | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | Katt c | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| Nelson 1b | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | Burgess rf | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | |
| Wilson lf | 5 | 2 | 2 | 0 | Lassetter lf | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | |
| Goliat 2b cf | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | Oliver c | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
| Hannah c | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Smalley 2b | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Morton rf | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | Amaro ss | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Pearce p | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | Browning p | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | |
| Richards p | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||
| Dixon p | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||
| aBlake | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||
| Totals | 37 | 6 | 10 | 6 | Totals | 39 | 13 | 16 | 11 |
Toronto 010 000 005- 6
Rochester 041 420 20x- 13
E- Smith, Hannah, Amaro; PO-A- Toronto 24-15, Rochester 27-5; DP- Jok, Goliat, Nelson; LOB- Toronto 10, Rochester 9; 2B- Smalley; 3B- Lassetter, Browning; HR- Christian, Nelson, Goliat; SB- Oliver.
| Toronto | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
| Pearce L, 4-3 | 1.2 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 1 |
| Richards | 1.2 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 1 |
| Dixon | 4.2 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 0 |
| Rochester | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
| Browning W, 9-4 | 9 | 10 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 10 |
HBP- Lassetter by Dixon; U- Betz, Linsalata, Drummond; Time- 2:55; Attendance- 3,663.
Also On This Day- July 3, 1971- Grich supplies offense as Wings shutout Colonels a day removed from using five different hurlers in outlasting Louisville. Rochester manager Joe Altobelli only needed his starting pitcher, Roric Harrison, to shutout the Colonels 5-0. Harrison was stellar on the hill, throwing a complete game three-hitter, striking out seven, en route to his seventh win of the 1971 season. Harrison even helped his own cause, going 2-for-2 at the plate, including stroking his third home run of the year. Clinging to a 1-0 lead entering the bottom of the fifth, the Wings turned to their star shortstop, Bobby Grich, and Grich delivered with a clutch three-run homer, putting Rochester ahead 4-0, and the Wings would cruise from there. Center fielder Richie Coggins played the leadoff role perfectly, reaching base two times, and scoring a run, sparking the Wings to victory. After the win, Rochester sat in fourth place, 41-34, and trailing first-place Syracuse by 3.5 games.
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