Oct. 10, 1962 - When Tom Tresh struck the blow that beat the Giants today, he did it as a left-handed swinger against the right-handed Jack Sanford. This is pointed out for the benefit of those not aware of the numerous Tresh talents, one of which is that he is a switch-hitter. The 24-year-old athlete is as much at home batting from either side of the plate as he is playing the infield or the outfield. His switch-hitting ability was one of the reasons for the estimated bonus of $30,000 the 6-foot-1-inch, 180-pound youth received when he signed with the Yankees in 1958. The knack of hitting from different sides against different pitchers was drilled into Tom by his father, Mike, from the time the lad was 3 years old. Tom seems to have learned well. As his proud father, who caught for the White Sox and the Indians, said today: “I played a dozen years, never made the World Series, and managed to hit only two homers. And here is Tom, in his first full year with the Yankees, already in a World Series, already with a World Series homer, and already with 20 homers in the regular season.” The younger Tresh is an upper junior at Central Michigan University, where he is majoring in physical education. A day or so after the 1962 World Series is concluded, Tom will return to college. Tresh said today he is intent on completing college and earning his degree so that he would have “insurance” after his playing days are over. His wife, Cherie, was a sophomore at Central Michigan, but she left college to have her baby, born a month ago. Like her husband, Mrs. Tresh plans to return to school shortly.
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