1953 Playoffs     

Semi-finals :

Two chums from Exeter, California pitched Moose Jaw to stunning victories in the first two games of their semi-final series with North Battleford.  Max Weekly and Darrell Martin held the powerful Beavers to just three runs.

August 18 : Weekly scattered five hits as the Maples scored a  5-1 upset win in the opening game. The big lefty got home run support from Rip Robinett, Jackie Harbourne and Bob Linck.  

MJ 5 NB 1
Weekly (W) and Robinette, Linck (5)  
Coleman (L) and Green.

August 19 : The Maples scored four times in the third inning and held on to beat North Battleford 4-2 in the second game. Hits by Johnny Thompson, Johnny Ford and Walter Tyler combined with two errors by Del St. John provided the Maples with the margin of victory.  Darrell Martin went the distance allowing just seven hits.

MJ 4 NB 2
Darrell Martin (W) and Linck
Blackman (L), Dean (4), Richardson (8) and Green.

August 20 : North Battleford scored four times in the first inning and held on to beat Moose Jaw 5-3 for their first win in the semi-final series. Mike Dzingelowski went the distance for the win.  At the plate, Rufus Johnson was 4-4 for the Maples and Jesse Blackman had three hits in four trips for the Beavers.

NB 5 MJ 3 
Dzingelowski (W) and Green
Garrett (L), King (1) and Linck.

August 21: North Battleford scored in the top of the ninth to salvage a 5-5 tie with Moose Jaw in a game called because of darkness.  The Maples were cruising along with a 5-0 lead into the seventh when Max Weekly had a bout of wildness.  He allowed three walks and two hits.  Those, combined with a crucial error, resulted in four runs for the Beavers. Pinch hitter Curtis Tate drove in the tying run, following singles by Louis Green and Ken Nelson.

NB 5 MJ 5
Holdaway, McLeod (4) and Green
Weekly and Linck.

August 22 : Pitcher Jesse Blackman singled home two runs in the eighth inning as North Battleford shaded Moose Jaw 5-4 and evened their semi-final series at two games apiece. Bob Herron accounted for the other Beavers runs with a three-run homer.  The Beavers finally stopped Rufus Johnson who had come into the game with 10 straight hits.  Johnson walked in his 11th appearance and then struck out the next time up.

NB 5 MJ 4
Blackman (W) and Green
Darrell Martin (L) and Linck.

August 23 : Louis Green's bases-loaded single in the ninth inning scored the winner as North Battleford edged Moose Jaw 8-7 and moved within one victory of taking the semi-final series.

NB 8 MJ 7
Dean, Coleman (5), Dzingelowski (9) and Green
White, Garrett (3), King (5), Ford (9) and Linck.

August 24 : Bob Herron's bases-loaded single in the fifth was the key blow as the Beavers beat Moose Jaw 8-4 to win their best-of-seven semi-final series. Beavers' manager Emile Francis wasn't to be seen, having been suspended for two games. 

NB 8 MJ 4
Dzingelowski (W) and Green
Weekly, Darrell Martin and Linck.


August 18 : There was an upset in the opening game of the semi-final between Regina and Saskatoon.  The Caps got a five-hitter from Bill Wilder and trounced the Gems 9-1.

Reg 9 SK 1
Wilder (W) and Williams
Wills (L), Morrow (2) and Shirley.

August 19 : The Gems pounded out 20 hits and whipped Regina 17-3 to even the semi-final series at a game apiece.  Bennie Griggs, who went the distance on the hill for Saskatoon, was a star at the plate with two triples and a double. Gems scored eleven times in the fourth inning on eight hits, four walks and a pair of errors.  Charlie Gray had a homer for the losers.

SK 17 Reg 3
Griggs (W) and Shirley
Pickens (L), Martinez (3), Donaldson (4) and Williams.

August 20: In a zany affair, Regina blew leads of 9-3 and 11-10 as the Gems bounced back for a 17-14 victory.  Saskatoon scored seven runs in the fifth and five in the sixth to take the win.  A three-run triple by Sherman Watrous in the sixth was the key blow for Saskatoon. The contest featured 12 errors, 9 by the Caps.

SK 17 Reg 14
Doig, Morrow (W) (2) and Shirley
Latham, Pickens (5), Wilder (7) and Williams.

August 21: Ted Wills was all the Gems needed.  Wills tossed an eight-hitter and blasted a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth to break a 1-1 tie and give Saskatoon a 3-1 victory.  Sergio Martinez allowed just eight hits in going the distance for the Caps.

SK 3 Reg 1
Wills (W) and Shirley
Martinez (L) and Rivers.

August 22:  A three-run homer by Bill Rivers in the first inning was the key blow as Regina scored seven times and beat Saskatoon 7-1 in a game called after five innings by rain. 

Reg 7 SK 1
Wilder (W) and Marshall
Doig (L) and Shirley

August 24 : Bennie Griggs pitched a gem as Saskatoon shutout Regina 4-0 and won a spot in the Saskatchewan Baseball League final.  Griggs allowed just two hits.

SK 4 Reg 0
Griggs (W) and Shirley
Pickens (L) and Marshall.


Final series :

August 26 : A two-run homer by catcher Jim Shirley in the 8th inning carried Saskatoon to a 7-6 win over North Battleford in the opening game of the final series.  Down 6-5, Cy Snead singled for the Gems and Shirley promptly put one out of the park. 

SK 7 NB 6
Morrow (W) and Shirley
Coleman (L) and Green.

August 27 : Murray Richardson, who had just finished an inning of relief work on the mound, belted a two-run homer in the fifth inning to give North Battleford a 6-6 tie with Saskatoon in a game called after five innings by darkness.  Bob Herron also had a homer for the Beavers.  Jim Shirley had the only homer for Saskatoon.

SK 6 NB 6
Griggs and Shirley
Blackman, Les Dean (4), Richardson (5) and Green.

August 28 : Before 4-thousand fans at Saskatoon, Jackie McLeod fanned Cy Snead with the bases-loaded and two out in the ninth to preserve a 4-3 win for North Battleford and even the best-of-seven final series at one game each. McLeod had come on in relief in the first inning after starter Mike Dzingelowski suffered a dislocated finger on his pitching hand when hit by a line drive. Bennie Griggs went all the way on the hill for Saskatoon.  Roy Dean had a homer for the Beavers, Mario Herrera had an inside-the-park homer for the Gems. 

NB 4 SK 3
Dzingelowski, McLeod (W) (1) and Green
Griggs (L) and Shirley.

August 29 : Bennie Griggs belted a three-run, pinch-hit homer as Saskatoon scored five times in the sixth inning and held on to beat the Beavers 6-4 in a game called after six innings by darkness. Len Karlson also homered for the Gems. 

SK 6 NB 4
Doig, Morrow (6) and Shirley
Coleman, Richardson (6) and Green.

August 30 : Home runs were the difference as the Beavers shaded the Gems 8-7 to even the series at two games apiece.  Sherman Watrous had put Saskatoon out front with a two-run homer in the first, but Bob Herron replied with a three-run shot in the bottom of the inning.  Jackie McLeod had a two-run homer in the fourth and Art Stone belted a solo shot in the sixth inning.

NB 8 SK 7
Blackman, Dzingelowski (W) (4) and Green
Morrow (L) and Shirley.

August 31 : With a crowd of 5-thousand looking on at Cairns Field, Bennie Griggs held North Battleford to just five hits as he shutdown the Beavers 4-0.  Griggs fanned eight and allowed just one base on balls. Chuck Holdaway gave up only seven hits in going the distance for the Beavers.

SK 4 NB 0
Griggs (W) and Shirley
Holdaway (L) and Green.

September 01 : Jesse Blackman and Bob Herron hit homers as North Battleford forced a deciding game in the Saskatchewan Baseball League final with a 3-1 win over the Gems.  Max Bentley had three hits for Saskatoon giving him 12 in the series, the most of any player.

NB 3 SK 1
Coleman (W) and Green
Doig (L), Morrow (6) and Shirley.

September 02 : North Battleford captured the Saskatchewan Baseball League title for the second straight year with an 11-4 trouncing of Saskatoon in the deciding game of the final series. Third baseman Curtis Tate and right fielder Roy Dean led the Beaver attack.  Tate had a homer, two singles and four RBI.  Dean chipped in with a double and two singles good for three RBI. Del St. John also had a homer for the Beavers. Mike Dzingelowski started for North Battleford but had to give way to Murray Richardson after facing just two batters. Dzingelowski had injured a finger on his pitching hand earlier in the series. Tate's three-run homer in the fourth inning gave the Beavers a 6-2 lead which they never relinquished. 

NB 11 SK 4
Dzingelowski, Richardson (W) (1), McLeod (5) and Green
Griggs (L) Morrow (5) and Shirley.