Feb. 28, 1963 - Mickey Vernon (pictured between President Kennedy and Al Lopez in 1961), like Casey Stengel with the National League Mets, is tackling the intricate job of extricating his Washington Senators from the cellar in their second year in the American League. “If you look up last season’s records,” points out Vernon, “you’ll note we finished seventh in hitting, seventh in fielding, and seventh in pitching. Now, why didn’t we finish seventh in team standing instead of last? Because we were dead last scoring runs. It’s as simple as that. Also, the left side of our infield was very weak. Those are the two items we’ve got to correct.” In pitching, Vernon rates his staff as perhaps the best ever going to the post for a second division club, let alone a tail-ender. Heading the starters is Tom Chaney, who last summer set a major league record when he struck out 21 Orioles in a 17-inning effort. No pitcher ever fanned more in a game, regardless of length. Others in that front line are Dave Stenhouse, Bennie Daniels, Don Rudolph, and Claude Osteen. In the outfield there still is Jimmy Piersall, who this year has promised not to talk so much. Jimmy seems to have learned from last year that a guy who pops off must have something more to offer than pop-ups. When his average dipped from .322 in 1961 to .244, the volatile and voluble Jimmy decided that he had better concentrate on letting his bat do his talking.
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