1967 Vancouver, Lower Mainland, Fraser Valley
1967 BC Interior
1967 Vancouver Island
VICTORIA SENIOR AMATEUR LEAGUE
Moving back into renovated Royal Athletic Park for the 1967 season, the four returning Victoria entries added Lake Cowichan as a fifth franchise, replacing Chemainus and Courtenay of the season previous.
Greave’s Moving & Storage
King’s Hotel
Lake Cowichan
Rawlings Plumbing & Heating
Transport Workers
(May 31) Playing-manager Barry Harvey and the Transport Workers took an immediate liking to the new facilities for baseball at Royal Athletic Park. Playing in the first game of the 1967 Victoria Senior Amateur Baseball League season, the Transports struck for ten runs in the second inning and went on to bounce Rawlings Plumbing & Heating 20 to 4. Receiving confident pitching from Gordie Strongman, who struck out and walked seven batters, the Workers banged out 13 hits against three Rawlings pitchers. Harvey led the way, rapping three hits in four trips to the plate to drive in four runs. Jim Heighton also had three hits while Art Worth drove in three runs on two hits. The Transports put together their ten-run outburst on five hits, five walks an error and a hit batsman.
Peters (L), Wallace (2), Hill (7) and Lezetc
Strongman (W) and McAvoy
(June 1) Reliable southpaw Stan Thame pitched the defending champion Greave’s Mover’s to a convincing 10 to 4 win over Rawlings Plumbing and Heating. Thame allowed only four hits, three of them coming in the sixth when the Plumbers scored all their runs. Lanky flychaser Vic Skinner led the Movingmen offensively, tagging three singles , scoring twice and driving in another pair.
Thame (W) and Lumley
Peters (L), Hill (5), Wallace (6) and Lezetc
(June 3) Concerns about the arm trouble which plagued left-hander George Hemming during the past two seasons were eased after his initial performance at Royal Athletic Park. Hemming set the Transport Workers down on three hits and walked only two as Greave’s Moving & Storage blanked the hard-hitting Workers 1 to 0 in the first half of a Saturday doubleheader. Rawlings Plumbing & Heating broke into the win column in the late portion of the twin-bill, downing King’s Hotel 11 to 7 in extra innings.
Bill James scored the lone run of the matinée contest, teaming up with shortstop Gerry Lister on a first-and-third double steal with two out in the top-of-the-sixth stanza. The Transports had the potential tying run aboard, and in scoring position, in the bottom-half of that frame but Hemming rose to the occasion by retiring veteran sluggers Barry Harvey and Art Worth on infield outs. The Movers had four hits, two of them infield singles off losing chucker Bob Mabee who, despite walking five, looked strong in clutch situations.
Hemming (W) and Lumley
Mabee (L) and McAvoy
Rawlings came to life with the bat in the second overtime session of the finale, pushing four counters across the pan. Sharp singles by John Martin and Lee Doney and a long, two-run double by Barry Cosier contributed to the outburst.
Hill (W) and Lezetc, B. Cosier (3)
Siddons , Montgomery (L) (2) and Orr
(June 4) Gerry MacAdam hurled King’s Hotel to a 7 to 5 win over hosting Lake Cowichan before Laker right-hander Larry Paradis squared things with an 8 to 1 trouncing of the Hotelman in twin-bill action at Cowichan. Al Cuthbert had three hits for King’s in their opening-game triumph.
(June 5) Trailing 7 to 6, the Transport Workers scored four times in the top-of-the-eighth and final inning to notch a 10 to 7 over Rawlings at Royal Athletic Park. Playing-manager Barry Harvey’s double off the left field wall drove in Brian McKenzie with the equalizer. Harvey later charged home after a wild pitch to put the Workers in front. An intentional pass, a hit batsman, a single by winning pitcher Mike McAvoy and an error added two insurance runs to the Transport total. Jim Heighton led the winners at the plate with three hits.
Jolly, McAvoy (W) (7) and McAvoy, Brian McKenzie (7)
Peters, Wallace (L) (4), Baker (8) and Lezetc
(June 7) George Hemming looked unbeatable at Royal Athletic Park while hurling six shutout innings of relief to propel undefeated Greave’s Movers to a 7 to 3 conquest of Kings Hotel. Entering the game in the-top-of-the-fourth with the bases loaded and the Movers clinging to a 5 to 3 lead, Hemming struck out the side. He repeated the triad of successive whiffs in each of the fifth and sixth as well, making it nine in a row. He didn’t allow a baserunner until King’s rookie catcher Terry Orr looped a single into right field with nobody out in the ninth. Finishing in grand style, Hemming notched his 12th and 13 strikeouts before forcing playing-manager John Yankoski of the Hoteliers to ground out to third. Yankoski also turned in a fine relief performance, ascending the hill in the fifth and allowing only one Greave’s baserunner on an error. Two run-singles by Jerry Ciochetti and Gerry Lister in the fifth led to a five-run inning which launched the Movers on their way to victory.
Siddons (L), Yankoski (5) and Orr
Kubicek (W), Hemming (4) and Lumley
(June 8) A 6 to 1 conquest of King’s Hotel improved the Transport Workers grasp on second-place in the Senior Amateur Baseball circuit. Youthful right-hander Gord Strongman scattered five hits, whiffed nine and walked three in pitching the Workers to the win. He also smacked a pair of singles as part of the Transports’ 12-hit attack. Three teammates, Terry Whitman, Mike McAvoy and Jim Heighton, also registered a two-hit batting output. Two former Transports stood out for the Hotelmen in the Royal Athletic Park scuffle. Pitcher Bruce McKenzie struck out 13 including his former manager, Barry Harvey, three times in a row. Outfielder Keith Dagg drove home King’s only run in the third panel with his second single of the game. New arrival, Jim Leard, formerly of Greave’s, also shone for King’s. Leard collected two hits, one a solid triple in the fourth.
Strongman (W) and McAvoy
Bruce McKenzie (L) and Cuthbert, Leard (3)
(June 10) Pitching-strong Greave’s Movers are still high-gearing it in unbeaten fashion during the early part of the Senior Amateur Baseball League season. In double-dip action at Royal Athletic Park, the Movingmen clipped invading Lake Cowichan twice, 5 to 4 in a difficult and very-challenging opener and 10 to 2 in a much-easier second-game conquest.
Lake Cowichan built up an early 4 to 0 lead in the first clash, largely on the strength of Jerry Brown’s double, but Greave’s patiently chipped away at the deficit against the Lakers’ Rick Larson who, heading into the ninth inning, appeared to be getting stronger and had retired 13 in a row. Third baseman Bob Bowles led off the Movers’ last turn at bat with an off-field single and, before the inning had ended, the visitors had self-destructed with a pair of costly throwing errors which allowed the league-leaders to plate a deuce and scrape out a narrow walkoff win. Southpaw Les Brice went all the way on the bump for the winners, earning the decision with a four-hitter.
Larson (L) and Greenwood
L. Brice (W) and Lumley
Greave’s were in command all the way in the nightcap as Stan Thame pitched a steady five-hitter. Dave Rivers with a triad of safeties and Bob Moysey with a brace, sparked the winners at the dish.
Wise (L), Paradis (2), J. Jubenville (5) and Gunderson, Greenwell (4)
Thame (W) and Lumley
Standings W L Pct. GBL
Greave’s Moving & Storage 5 0 1.000 ----
Transport Workers 3 1 .750 1.5
Rawlings Plumbing & Heating 1 3 .250 3.5
Lake Cowichan 1 3 .250 3.5
King’s Hotel 1 4 .200 4.0
(June 12) Rookie right-hander Brent Baker, in his first start for Rawlings, pitched the first eight innings of an 8 to 5 triumph over King’s Hotel at Royal Athletic Park. Recently acquired from the Transport Workers in a move to bolster Rawlings’ pitching corps, Baker struck out a dozen, walked five and scattered eight hits during his tenure on the bump. Reliever Myron Wallace, working with a four-run cushion after the Plumbers plated three markers in the top half of the ninth, yielded one run before closing the door. Glen Moffat doubled and Frank Lezetc poled a run-scoring two-bagger in sparking the victors’ ninth-inning outburst. The Hotelmen, with an 8 to 6 margin in base hits, trailed throughout the contest but almost pulled even in the bottom-of-the-eighth when Dennis Thompson scorched a run-scoring triple and then crossed the platter on an error. Thompson had earlier smashed an RBI single while teammate Jim Leard picked up a single and double.
Baker (W), Wallace (9) and Lezetc
Montgomery (L), Yankoski (9) and Orr
(June 15) The Transport Workers knocked Greave’s Movers from the ranks of the unbeaten by battering the Movingmen 12 to 5 to move within a half-game of the pace-setters. The free-swinging Workers banged out 13 hits, four of them during a five-run outburst in the top-of-the-second stanza. Starting and winning pitcher Bob Mabee made a key contribution to the rally. Three runs scored as his sharp single single up the middle got away from centre fielder Bob Moysey. Mabee later came home on a sacrifice fly to plate the fifth tally of the inning. Mabee was riding a strong three-hit shutout before he was sidelined with a pulled muscle in the fifth. Pete Jolly mopped up for the winners. The powerful Transport duo of Jim Heighton and Mike McAvoy drilled ninth-inning back-to-back triples off almost the same spot on the left field wall. Heighton also hit two singles while McAvoy earlier blasted a two-run double. Catcher Bob Lumley connected for a double and two singles in driving home a pair of tallies for Greave’s while teammate Dave Rivers slapped out three singles.
Mabee (W), Jolly (5) and McAvoy
Lister (L), Hemming (2), Kubicek (6) and Lumley
(June 17) Lake Cowichan flinger “Rocky” Wise was involved in both pitching decisions at Royal Athletic Park as his club split a doubleheader with hosting Rawlings Plumbing & Heating. Wise hurled 4-2/3 innings of shutout relief in the first game as the Lakers scored two runs in the eighth inning to win 6 to 5. Rawlings, in turn, got to starting pitcher Wise for four counters before he was derricked after three innings and went on the capture the nightcap 6 to 3.
In the early contest, Lake Cowichan scored its tying an winning runs on a sacrifice fly by Bob Gunderson and an error charged to catcher Jim Moody of the Plumbers who fumbled the ball when Bill Greenwell missed in making contact on a bunt attempt while trying to squeeze home Mike Hodgins.
J. Jubenville, Larson (1), Hodgins (2), Wise (W) (5) and Greenwell
Hill (L) and Moody
Perennial ace George Brice, making his first mound appearance of the season, sore flipper and all, was under siege in the opening canto of the finale as the Lakers lit him up for a three-spot. He survived, however, and blanked the visitors for the remainder of the match as Rawlings came back to take a 6 to 3 decision and gain a split. Frank Lezetc and Barry Cosier of the winners each stroked a double and single to drive in a run.
Wise (L), Paradis (4) and Davis
G. Brice (W) and Lezetc
(June 19) Greave’s Movers moved a full-game ahead of the Transport Workers in the Senior Amateur standings by disposing of King’s Hotel in relative ease 9 to 1. Lefthander Les Brice yielded six hits, walked one and fanned eight in a route-going hillock effort. With the stick, he also helped his club by lacing a brace of singles. Infielders Bob Bowles and Gerry Lister, as well as catcher Bob Lumley, all had two RBI’s for the victors
Bruce McKenzie (L), Yankoski (6) and Heath, Craig (5)
L. Brice (W) and Lumley
(June 21) Even though the first four hitters in the lineup of the Transport Workers went hitless, that didn’t stop the supporting cast from collecting seven hits en route to a 5 to 2 conquest of cellar-dwelling King’s Hotel. John McKeachie took up most of the slack, poling a single and two doubles in driving home two runs and scoring a pair. Third baseman George Fuller contributed a brace of safeties with the second one plating McKeachie with the fifth run for the winners. Winning pitcher Gord Strongman struck out ten, walked five and allowed six hits while embellishing his record to 3 – 0.
Yankoski (L) and Heath
Strongman (W) and McAvoy
(June 22) Greave’s Moving & Storage continue to ride on top of the Senior Amateur Baseball League standings after coming from behind to grab a 6 to 4 victory over Rawlings Plumbing & Heating. Greave’s manager Larry McKinty used all three of his reliable southpaw chuckers on the hillock as Les Brice, the second tosser, was credited with the win. Outhit by an 8 to 5 margin, the Movers pulled away by scoring four times in the seventh stanza on singles by Gerry Lister and Bob Moysey, three walks and a two-run error. Lister had three of his team’s base hits.
Baker(L), G. Brice (7) and B. Cosier
Thame, L. Brice (W) (5), Hemming (9) and Burrows
(June 24) Rawlings doubled King’s Hotel 8 to 4 and the Transport Workers edged Greave’s Movers 8 to 7 in a two-game set at Royal Athletic Park involving the four Capital City entries.
A five-run third inning by the Plumbers, when losing pitcher Brian Craig hit four batters, led to the demise of the Hoteliers in the matinée match. Myron Wallace scattered five hits in picking up the win.
Craig (L), Siddons (3) and Heath, Craig (3)
Wallace (W) and B. Cosier
The combatants combined for 23 base hits in the late tilt as 38-year old Art Worth of the Transports outlasted speedballer George Hemming of the Movers in a mound showdown of portsiders with first place at stake. Neither slabster was close to their best as the Workers charged from behind three times to eventually prevail. A two-run error by outfielder Vic Skinner in the eighth was the turning point in the game. Catcher Mike McAvoy stung the pill for three hits and drove in a pair of runs for the victors who were outswatted 13 to 10.
Hemming (L) and Burrows
Worth (W) and McAvoy
(June 25) King’s Hotel battled with Lake Cowichan for 18 innings at Royal Athletic Park before pushing ahead 7 to 6 to take the first of two clashes from the Lakers 7 to 6. The same two clubs tangled for seven more stanzas after the marathon as the Hotelmen completed the sweep by grabbing an 8 to 7 victory. The twin triumphs eased King’s slightly ahead of their last-place victims in the standings on percentage points.
Only incredible relief pitching by King’s playing-manager John Yankoski and Cowichan’s Larry Paradis made the 18-inning classic possible. Yankoski hurled 12 sparkling shutout innings without walking a batter. Paradis matched Yankoski goose egg-for-goose egg on the scoreboard until surrendering a run-scoring triple to Brian Grexton in the eighteenth.
Nicholson, Paradis (L) (5) and Greenwell
Bruce McKenzie, Yankoski (W) (7) and Grexton
An extra-base hit also won the second battle for King’s in the bottom-of-the-final frame. Dennis Thompson pulled a double down the left field line to score John Russell from first base for the walkoff win.
Larson, J. Jubenville (1), Martin (L) (2) and Davis
Craig, Siddons (W) (5) and Grexton, Craig (5)
Standings W L Pct. GBL
Transport Workers 6 1 .857 ----
Greave’s Moving & Storage 7 2 .778 ----
Rawlings Plumbing & Heating 4 5 .444 3.0
King’s Hotel 3 8 .273 5.0
Lake Cowichan 2 6 .250 4.5
(June 26) Rawlings’ 19-year old rookie Doug Hill limited the Transport Workers to four hits while posting an 8 to 2 victory to knock the Workers out of first place. Mixing up his assortment of pitches well, the strong right-hander fanned 13 and walked six. The fired-up Plumbers collected nine hits, almost all of which contributed directly to scoring plays. Clean-up hitter Pete Songhurst had a pair of run-scoring singles for the winners while catcher Barry Cosier padded his league-leading total of RBI’s to 11 by drilling a two-run double.
Jolly (L) and McAvoy
Hill (W) and B. Cosier
(June 28) The proud Transport Workers, riled by their upset loss to Rawlings 24 hours previous, vented their wrath on King’s Hotel at Royal Athletic Park, annihilating the Hotelmen 24 to 0. The Workers started early, tagging King’s playing-manager John Yankoski, a former Transport star, for six runs on seven hits in the first inning. Winning pitcher Gord Strongman led the 25-hit barrage with four base raps while Art Worth, Jim Heighton, John McKeachie and Tony Cosier each had a double and two singles. Mike McAvoy singled twice to accumulate four RBI’s.
Yankoski (L), Craig (2) and Craig, Heath (2)
Strongman (W), McAvoy (7) and McAvoy, Brian McKenzie (7)
(June 29) After knocking the Transport Workers out of first place two evenings previous, Rawlings stung Greave’s Movers 8 to 7 for their second win in a row against upper-echelon pace-setters. Credit George Brice with a major part of the victory. The tall hurler, just starting to regain some of the natural magic, kept Greave’s off balance for seven innings while his mates were building up an 8 to 1 lead. The stubborn Movers, refusing to go down without a fight, erupted for five runs in the eighth, primarily on the strength of Bob Bowles’ two-run triple and Stu Mitchell’s run-scoring two-bagger, to narrow the gap to 8 to 6 and push Brice off the bump, at least temporarily. Brice returned to the knoll after second reliever Doug Hill walked the first two Greave’s batters in the ninth. After allowing one run on two infield outs, Brice fanned Mitchell with a low slider to end the game. Providing much of the thunder for the Plumbers was catcher Barry Cosier who bashed a three-RBI double. Lloyd Murphy plated three more with a pair of singles
G. Brice (W), Baker (8), Hill (8), G. Brice (9) and B. Cosier
Hemming (L), L. Brice (5) and Rivers
(July 1) Art Worth’s dominance at the plate powered the first-place Transport Workers to a two-game Senior Amateur Baseball League sweep over the hosting Lake Cowichan nine. Worth went seven-for-eight from the batter’s box and drove in five runs during the twin-bill.
The veteran left-handed swatsmith stroked three singles in four trips to help Bob Mabee record an 11 to 0, three-hit victory over the Lakers in the first contest. Teammate Gord Strongman clipped an offering from losing chucker Jim Jubenville for an inside-the-park dinger.
Mabee (W) and Brian McKenzie
J. Jubenville (L) and Davis
Worth hit even better during the Transports’ 12 to 6 second-game win, lashing two singles and a double as well as pulling one of Larry Paradis’ benders over the right field fence for a two-run tater.
Jolly (W) and Brian McKenzie
Wise (L), Paradis (3) and Greenwell, K, Jubenville (7)
(July 2) Southpaw flinger Les Brice sparkled in Greave’s 3 to 2 conquest of Lake Cowichan in a ten-inning thriller that made up the first half of double-dip. The Movers tasted a 6 to 0 setback in the other portion of the two-game set to avoid being swept for the second consecutive day.
Greave’s led 2 to 0 from the second inning on in the opener and, with Brice throwing peas, appeared to have things wrapped up until the Lakers knotted the count in the bottom-of-the ninth. In the overtime session, Brice scored the winning run on a passed ball and then went back on the knoll and threw his ninth shutout inning, finishing with a four-hitter, to end the contest.
L. Brice (W) and Rivers
Nicholson (L) and Davis
Cowichan’s Mike Martin was up to the task in the finale, blanking the Movers on six scattered hits.
Dunc (L), Kubicek (6) and Jones, Rivers (4)
Martin (W) and Greenwell
(July 3) First baseman Gary Rowlands, a newcomer to King’s who has seen only limited action so far this season, hammered two triples and a single as the Hotelmen pounded 12 hits off three Rawlings’ pitchers to stun the Plumbers 11 to 5 and move out of the basement of the Senior Amateur League. Playing-manager John Yankoski, who collected two hits, earned the pitching win by throwing shutout ball after relieving starter Gerry MacAdam in the fifth.
MacAdam, Yankoski (W) (5) and Craig
Wallace (L), Baker (1), G. Brice (4) and Lezetc, B. Cozier (5)
(July 5) Gord Strongman, unbeaten so far this season when the ascends the hillock, exhibited his usual fine control, walking just two while scattering seven hits as the Transport Workers mowed down second-place Greave’s Movers 10 to 1 at Royal Athletic Park. In notching his fifth mound triumph without a defeat, Strongman was touched for a first-inning unearned counter and blanked the Movingmen the rest of the way. The right-hander also led the Workers’ nine-hit attack off loser Les Brice and reliever George Hemming with three RBI’s, acquired through a double and a one-bagger. Clubmate Jim Heighton ripped a triple and single as well.
Strongman (W) and McAvoy
L. Brice (L), Hemming (2) and Rivers
(July 6) Unable to field a team beyond eight players, King’s Hotel forfeited their scheduled game to the Transport Workers which gave the Workers a full three-game cushion atop the Senior Amateur Baseball circuit.
(July 8) Bob Mabee picked up his third knoll verdict of the campaign as the high-flying Transport Workers crushed Rawlings Plumbing & Heating 11 to 0 in the first game of a Royal Athletic Park doubleheader. King’s Hotel upset second-place Greave’s Moving & Storage 4 to 2 in the second tilt of the day to push the Movingmen four games off the pace.
Mabee struck out 13 and walked six in tossing the four-hit, opening-tussle shutout. Pacing the 14-hit offensive thrust of the Workers were Mike McAvoy with a single, double and triple as well as playing-manager Barry Harvey with three one-baggers and four RBI’s.
Peters (L), Holt (7) and Lezetc
Mabee (W) and McAvoy
The Hotelmen, outhit 7 to 4 in the late fracas, went ahead 3 to 0 in the opening inning, primarily on the strength of Brian Craig’s two-run single, and rode the superb pitching of playing-manager John Yankoski the rest of the way. Yankoski fanned seven and ran his scoreless streak to 11-2/3 innings until giving up a deuce in the final frame.
Hurst (L), Thame (7) and Rivers
Yankoski (W) and Craig
(July 9) Third-place Rawlings took it on the chin twice at Lake Cowichan and missed a glorious chance to gain ground on second-place Greave’s Movers. The hosting Lakers edged Rawlings 5 to 4 in the first of two and then handed the visitors their third setback of the weekend by administering a 6 to 0 blanking in the finale.
Southpaw reliever Jim Jubenville of the Cowichan nine saved the win in the matinée scuffle by stranding baserunner Pete Songbird after the Victoria slugger had led off the ninth inning with a double. Rawlings’ catcher Frank Lezetc had kept his team in the game by throwing out three would-be base thieves and belting a two-run single in the fifth.
Baker (L) and Lezetc
Larson (W), J. Jubenville (5) and Greenwell
The Plumbers could do nothing against Cowichan’s Larry Paradis, who handcuffed them on two hits, in the wind-up match.
Hill (L) and B. Cosier
Paradis (W) and Davis
Standings W L Pct. GBL
Transport Workers 12 2 .857 ----
Greave’s Moving & Storage 8 6 .571 4.0
Rawlings Plumbing & Heating 6 9 .400 6.5
Lake Cowichan 5 9 .357 7.0
King’s Hotel 5 10 .333 7.5
(July 10) The front-running Transport Workers came from behind to nose out Greave’s Movers 5 to 4 in a classic Senior Amateur League contest characterized by solid line-drive hitting, clutch defensive play, tense moments of pitching brilliance and one clear, cruel swing of Jim Heighton’s bat. Heighton, the husky Transport centre fielder, stepped to the plate in the bottom-of-the-seventh stanza with nobody out, two mates aboard and his club trailing 5 to 3. Facing hard-throwing George Hemming, who had just entered the game as a reliever, Heighton lit into a belt-high curveball and sent it soaring out of the park to put the Workers in front to stay, 6 to 5. Hemming was effective after yielding the long-distance bomb, retiring the next six batters in order. A strong relief effort by Bob Mabee preserved the knoll victory for starting pitcher Gord Strongman of the Workers. Strongman tagged three solid hits, including a run-scoring double, while Movers’ catcher Dave Rivers was his toughest foe with the lumber, nicking the young right-hander for three safeties and a pair of RBI’s.
Lister, Hemming (L) (7) and Rivers
Strongman (W), Mabee (8) and McAvoy
(July 12) King’s Hotel baseballers were literally ground into the Royal Athletic Park turf, 21 to 3, by Rawlings Plumbing & Heating. George Brice, freed of the pressure of pitching with the huge lead his mates provided him, enjoyed his time in the batter’s box for the winners, slamming out a double and two singles, good for four RBI’s, as well as walking three times and crossing the plate on four occasions.
G. Brice (W) and Lezetc
Siddons (L), Peters (2), Grexton (7) and Craig
(July 13) Rookie outfielder Ken Geary smashed two doubles and a single to help Rawlings advance to within a half-game of second-place Greave’s Movers with a 10 to 5 victory over the Movingmen at Royal Athletic Park. Right-hander Doug Hill was credited with his third pitching win of the season after relieving Connie Mack Leaguer Bill Cool in the fourth frame. Shortstop Barry Cosier doubled and singled while driving in his 15th run for Rawlings while keystone sacker Glen Moffat collected two singles.
Thame (L) and Rivers
Cool, Hill (W) (4) and Moody
(July 15) George Hemming hurled an impressive four-hit shutout with 15 punchouts as Greave’s Movers broke out of their recent funk by waltzing to a 7 to 0 victory over King’s Hotel in the first of a pair of Royal Athletic Park tussles. Rawlings’ George Brice looked effective on the hill while stifling the league-leading Transport Workers 10 to 2 in the other scheduled match. Gerry Lister and Dave Rivers each collected two hits and a pair of RBI’s for the victorious Movers in the curtain-raiser.
Hemming (W) and Lumley, Rivers (6)
Craig (L) and Grexton
Brice struck out eleven while Transport pitchers’ Pete Jolly and Bob Mabee couldn’t find the plate in the second tilt, combining for 12 walks and a pair of hit batters as the Plumbers won handily despite having only four base hits. Playing-manager Herb Wetherall singled twice for the winners and drove in four runs while Barry Cosier tripled off the left field wall to garner his 16th RBI this season.
Jolly (L), Mabee (3) and Spittal, Brian McKenzie (3)
G. Brice (W) and Lezetc
(July 16) Playing-manager John Yankoski pitched King’s Hotel to a two-game sweep of Lake Cowichan at Royal Athletic Park. Expecting to toil on the bump only once, Yankoski led his charges to an 11 to 2 conquest in the opener but, with a shortage of relievers available, was forced to mount the bump once more when the Hoteliers fell behind early in the second affair which they eventually pulled out of the fire, under Yankoski’s guidance, 10 to 6.
The steady right-hander fanned ten and didn’t issue a walk in his route-going, opening-game effort. Second baseman Jim Leard smacked a triple and two singles, driving in four runs, to lead the victors at the pan.
Nicholson (L), Paradis (6) and Greenwell
Yankoski (W) and Grexton
After King’s starter Wayne Peters proved ineffective into the third spasm of the late encounter, Yankoski abandoned his shortstop position and stopped the bleeding from the hillock while his clubmates clawed their way back to set down the Lakers. Leard collected two more safeties in this clash while Brian Grexton stroked a double and two singles. Another teammate, Dennis Thompson, also had a hot bat, nailing a single and double to drive in three runs.
Paradis (L), J. Jubenville (5) and Davis
Peters, Yankoski (W) (3) and Craig
(July 23) The Transport Workers clubbed four home runs, eight doubles and a triple while piling up 27 hits off Lake Cowichan pitchers in a Senior League doubleheader but the best the league-leaders could manage against the last-place club was a split. Lake Cowichan won the opener 9 to 8 in eleven innings before the Workers evened the score with a 15 to 3 victory in the nightcap.
The Transports appeared to have a first-game win sewn up after scoring twice in the top-of-the-eleventh but the Lakers came back with three runs in their half of the second round of overtime on Rick Larson’s run-scoring double and Mike Martin’s two-run single to sting Gord Strongman with his initial mound setback. Art Worth and Jim Heighton blasted solo home runs for the Workers in a losing cause.
Strongman (L) and McAvoy
J. Jubenville. Martin (4), Nicholson (9) and Davis
Undeterred with the disappointing first-game result, the dynamic duo of Worth and Heighton started the Transports rolling in the concluding clash. Worth connected for a three-run tater in the opening panel and Heighton delivered a grand-slam dinger in the second stanza. Terry Whitman, who had lined a three-run triple in the matinée contest, laced two doubles in the second tilt to help Worth breeze to a six-hit knoll victory. Infielders George Fuller and Barry Harvey, who had picked up two safeties each in the extra-inning battle, both stroked a double and one-bagger in the late contest.
Worth (W) and McAvoy
J. Jubenville (L), Nicholson (2) and Hodgins
(July 24) After a week-long hiatus in which the provincial Babe Ruthers occupied the facility, Senior Amateur League baseball returned to Royal Athletic Park and the result was an exciting, topsy-turvy skirmish in which Greave’s Movers edged past Rawlings 8 to 7 . The Plumbers had twice erased deficits to knot the count at 3 – 3 and 5 – 5 and were once again threatening to do it again with the potential tying run parked at third base in the final frame but Gerry Lister preserved his winning relief effort by fanning tough Lloyd Murphy to end the game. Don Bell, in one of his infrequent starting assignments, drove in the tying and winnings runs with a bases-loaded single while going two-for-three.
Hill (L) and Lezetc, Morgan (2)
L. Brice, Lister (W) (7) and Lumley
(July 25) Lanky right-hander George Brice held to roost-ruling Transport Workers to eight spaced hits and drove in Frank Lezetc with the winning run in the sixth inning as third-place Rawlings Plumbing & Heating subdued the Transports 6 to 4 at Royal Athletic Park. A two-run double by the teammate Barry Cosier had tied the score in the fifth.
G. Brice (W) and Morgan
Karpiuk, Brian McKenzie (L) (5), Worth (7) and McAvoy
(July 26) High-kicking slabster Pete Jolly had his overhand fastball humming and a curve sinking sharply at Royal Athletic Park, stinging King's Hotel with a no-hitter as his Transport Worker teammates battered the Hotelmen 19 to 1. The hard-throwing right-hander fanned seven, walked only two but lost his shutout on a passed ball in the seventh inning. 20-year old Jolly cuffed a double and single as part of the Transports’ 13-hit attack. Art Worth drove in four runs with two sacrifice flies and a booming double while Mike McAvoy had three RBI’s with a double and two singles..
Craig (L), Robertson (4), Yankoski (5) and Grexton
Jolly (W) and McAvoy, Brian McKenzie (6)
(July 27) Playing-skipper John Yankoski demonstrated pinpoint control, walking just two, and rang up 17 punchouts while pitching lowly King’s Hotel to a 9 to 4 Senior Amateur League victory over Rawlings Plumbing & Heating at Royal Athletic Park. Second baseman Jim Cowie, with three singles and an equal number of RBI’s, did much of the offensive damage for the winners.
Cool (L), Hill (2), G. Brice (7) and Morgan
Yankoski (W) and Craig
(July 28) King’s Hotel were awarded a default victory over second-place Greave’s Movers. The Movingmen had nine players in uniform ready to go but Victoria Senior Amateur Baseball League rules require a spare player as well.
(July 29) The Transport Workers clinched the 1967 regular-season pennant by smearing overmatched Lake Cowichan twice, pummelling the visitors 19 to 2 and 22 to 2 at Royal Athletic Park. Veteran Art Worth drove in four runs in each game including a bases-loaded triple in the first game. Gord Strongman had a walk-in-the-park in improving his pitching record to 7 – 1 in the opener, taming the Lakers on five hits.
Wise (L), Pearce (4), Hodgins (5) and Hodgins, Greenwell (5)
Strongman (W) and McAvoy
Connie Macker Terry Karpiuk picked up his first Senior Amateur League win by spinning a four-hitter in the sunset event. Jim Heighton doubled and singled, scoring six runs in the rout, crossing the platter every time he got to bat.
Larson (L), Wise (3), Pearce (4), Hodgins (4) and Hodgins, Greenwell (4)
Karpiuk (W) and McAvoy, Heighton
(July 30) Shortstop Gerry Lister blasted a Tom Nicholson delivery out of the park in the top-of-the-ninth to break up a scoreless tie and provide Greave’s Movers with a 1 to 0 first-game conquest of the Lake Cowichan diamond pastimers, hosts of a double-bill. The Movers handed the Lakers their fourth setback of the weekend with a 6 to 1 triumph in the follow-up tilt.
Lister’s solo shot allowed George Hemming to claim the opening game win on a one-hit shutout in which he buzzed third strikes past 15 batters. Lister gathered two other hits in the clash other than his dinger.
Hemming (W) and Lumley
Nicholson (L) and Hodgins
Greave’s Stan Thame gave up just two hits in the second game as teammate Bob Bowles belted a bases-empty four-bagger in his support.
Thame (W) and Lumley
Paradis (L) and Davis
(July 31) Hard-swinging third baseman George Fuller made a number of outstanding defensive plays which helped preserve the shutout pitching of ageless Art Worth as the pennant-winning Transport Workers added another scalp to their belt with a 7 to 0 whitewashing of King’s Hotel at Royal Athletic Park. The Workers put a bow on this one with a six-run first inning. Mike McAvoy and Gord Strongman both had a double and single for the winners while Fuller laced a pair of singles.
Worth (W) and McAvoy
Peters (L), Yankoski (2) and Craig
Standings W L Pct. GBL
Transport Workers 18 5 .783 ----
Greave’s Moving & Storage 12 9 .571 5.0
Rawlings Plumbing & Heating 10 11 .476 7.0
King’s Hotel 9 14 .391 9.0
Lake Cowichan 6 16 .273 11.5
(August 2) Continuing to show a definite rejuvenation of late after a mid-season sag, Greave’s Movers pasted the pennant-winning Transport Workers 10 to 3 at Royal Athletic Park. Gerry Lister choked the Workers’ usual potent offence with a strong three-hit performance. The rookie right-hander breezed ten and walked six in the seven-inning contest shortened by darkness. He helped his own cause with the hickory by singling twice to drive in a run and score once.
Jolly (L), McAvoy (4) and McAvoy, Brian McKenzie (4)
Lister (W) and Lumley
(August 3) The hustling band of Greave’s Movers clinched second place in the Senior Amateur circuit with a 6 to 3 win over Rawlings Plumbing & Heating. Gerry Lister singled home two runs and saved Al Hurst’s pitching victory in relief. Clubmate Dave Rivers smacked three hits to score twice and drive home a run.
Hurst, Lister (8) and Lumley
Duncan (L), Hill (8) and Morgan, Bunyan (7)
(August 5) Greave’s Movers battered King’s Hotel 12 to 2 as both teams ended their regular-season schedule at Royal Athletic Park. The two squads will lock horns again in semi-final playoff action although it playing-manager John Yankoski of the Hotelmen, with an injured throwing arm, is not expected to see mound action.
Peters (L) and Craig
G. Hemming (W), Thame (8) and Lumley
(August 6) Rawlings evened their season’s record even-steven at 12 – 12 by copping a last-day doubleheader sweep from the cellar-dwelling Lake Cowichan nine by scores of 19 to 2 and 3 to 2. Pete Duncan, up from the Connie Mack ranks, clouted a home run for the Plumbers in the early blowout.
Cool (W) and Morgan
Nicholson (L), Martin (2), Kosovic (7), Hodgins (9) and Davis
A three-hit pitching effort by Lorne Bunyan, another late-season Connie Mack promotee, was enough for Rawlings to eke out a second-game victory.
Bunyan (W) and Morgan
Hodgins (L) and Davis
Final Standings W L Pct. GBL
Transport Workers 18 6 .750 ----
Greave’s Moving & Storage 15 9 .625 3.0
Rawlings Plumbing & Heating 12 12 .500 6.0
King’s Hotel 9 15 .375 9.0
Lake Cowichan 6 18 .250 12.0
PLAYOFFS
SEMI-FINALS King’s Hotel vs Greave’s Moving & Storage and Rawlings Plumbing & Heating vs Transport Workers (best-of-five series)
(August 7) Greave’s Movers took advantage of 13 walks issued by Gordy Benn and eleven stolen bases, exploded for nine runs in the sixth inning to run away with a 10 to 3 decision over King’s Hotel in the first game of the Senior Amateur Baseball League semi-finals. Starting pitcher Benn of the Hoteliers, up from the Connie Mack League, was able to dodge bullets during his first five frames on the rubber but the Movingmen finally erased a 3 to 1 deficit in the sixth to rip into his offerings. Gerry Lister’s two-run double and singles by Dave Rivers, Les Brice and Jerry Ciochetti enabled Greave’s to pull well out in front. Lefthander George Hemming retired King’s in order in the top-of-the-seventh and final frame to wrap up Stan Thame’s pitching victory.
Benn (L), Perkins (6) and Craig
Thame (W), Hemming (7) and Lumley, Burrows (7)
(August 8) Rawlings, third-place finishers during the regular season, spanked the pennant-winning Transport Workers 16 to 8 as the two combatants began their semi-final playoff series. The Transports, shaky afield, committed ten errors and were outswatted 12 to 6 by the Plumbers. The spirited Rawlings nine stung several timely raps. George Brice had five RBI’s on two singles and a line-drive double. Pete Duncan smacked three hits and scored five times while Barry Cosier and Dave Morgan clipped the horsehide for two-run singles.
Hill (W), Duncan (5) and Morgan, Bunyan (5)
Strongman (L), Karpiuk (4) and McAvoy
(August 9) Greave’s Movers pecked away with singletons in the fourth, sixth and seventh frames to pick up a 3 to 0 victory over King’s Hotel, their second straight win in the best-of-five semi-final series. The fourth stanza counter, plated when Bob Lumley drilled a liner off shortstop John Yankoski’s glove to drive in hustling Dave Rivers, was all that 19-year old right-hander Gerry Lister of the Movers needed as he blanked the Hotelman for nine innings with a masterful four-hitter while swishing 13 and walking two.
Lister and Lumley
MacAdam, Yankoski (8) and Craig
(August 10) Dangerous Art Worth was intentionally walked on two occasions and, both times, the decision came back to haunt manager Herb Wetherall and his band of Rawlings baseballers who dropped a 10 to 5 decision to Worth and the Transport Workers at Royal Athletic Park, squaring their semi-final series at a game apiece. After Worth had driven in a run with a first-inning one-bagger, Wetherall decided to issue free passes to the veteran left-handed slugger when he strode to the plate in both the third and seventh spasms with ducks on the pond and first base open. Not taking kindly to the decision, Mike McAvoy, who followed Worth in the batting order, delivered key run-scoring hits both times, driving in four runs including the winner in the seventh. John McKeachie added a two-run double after that to put the game on ice.
Jolly (W) and McAvoy
G. Brice (L), Cool (7) and Morgan
(August 11) Pitching depth carried Greave’s Moving & Storage to an 8 to 0 triumph and a sweep of their semi-final series with King’s Hotel. Al Hurst took care of the pitching chores in the clincher at Royal Athletic Park. He shut out the Hotelmen 8 to 0 on seven hits, stranding ten runners in the process. Bob Burrows had two hits for the winners.
Perkins (L) and Craig
Hurst (W) and Lumley
(August 12) The Transport Workers captured twin wins at Royal Athletic Park to annex their semi-final series with Rawlings Plumbing and Heating three games to one. Veteran left-hander Art Worth scattered five hits in the 5 to 2 opening-game win, driving in a brace of seventh-inning insurance runs. Outfielder Jim Heighton also had a pair of RBI’s for the victors.
Duncan (L) and Bunyan
Worth (W) and McAvoy
Gord Strongman also allowed five hits in the nightcap as the Workers prevailed 12 to 2. Heighton continued his hot pace with the willow in this affair, clipping the horsehide for a triad of safe swats. Both Barry Harvey and Mike McAvoy had two singles and a double with Harvey’s blows resulting in three RBI’s and McAvoy’s raps a pair.
Strongman (W) and McAvoy
Hill (L), G. Brice (4) and Morgan
FINALS Greave’s Moving & Storage vs Transport Workers (best-of-seven series)
(August 14) Smooth southpaw George Hemming stubbornly held down the Transport Workers’ hard-hitting lineup and drilled the key hit of the contest to give Greave’s Movers a 3 to 2 victory in the opener of the Senior Amateur Baseball League finals. Hemming fanned ten and walked only two while notching the seven-hit win. In the top-of-the-eighth and final canto with the game deadlocked at 2 – 2, Hemming lashed a two-out line double to drive in Bob Bowles with the run that decided the contest. The Movers had earlier plated a deuce on Jerry Ciochetti’s two-run single in the fourth while the Workers had drawn even in the fifth when Mike McAvoy drove in a pair with a one-bagger.
Hemming (W) and Lumley
Jolly (L) and McAvoy
(August 15) Greave’s Plumbing & Heating continued their scorching late-season play when they hammered the Transport Workers 14 to 1 to grab a two-game lead in the Senior Amateur finals. The Transports never had the lead in this tilt but trailed only 4 to 1 until the fifth inning when Bob Burrows skied a two-run homer to put the game out of sight. Burrows stroked a single in addition to his circuit-jack, walked three times and had four RBI’s. Winning chucker Gerry Lister, receiving errorless support, held the Workers to six hits and issued only four bases-on-balls. Greave’s Vic Skinner singled three times off losing twirler Terry Karpiuk. Mike McAvoy launched a solo dinger in the second spasm for the lone counter plated by the Transports.
Karpiuk (L) and McAvoy
Lister (W) and Lumley
(August 16) Playing in semi-darkness, Tony Cosier’s high drive to the middle garden, with two retired in the bottom-of-the-ninth-inning, fell in for a base hit and allowed Pete Jolly to score the tying marker as the Transport Workers and Greave’s Movers battled to a 3 – 3 saw-off. With centre fielder Bob Moysey of the Movers unable to follow the ball in the twilight gloom, the Transports narrowly missed falling three games behind in the series. It was a bizarre ending to a well-played game that was featured by steady pitching and clutch hitting. Greave’s Bob Burrows did most of the hitting. He drilled a shot to the left-field fence to score Moysey in the sixth and then broke up a 1 – 1 tie with a lofty two-run homer in the eighth. John McKeachie tripled home the Workers’ first tally in the seventh while teammate Gord Strongman touched home on Barry Harvey’s sacrifice fly in the eighth.
Thame, Hemming (8) and Lumley
Strongman and McAvoy
(August 17) Southpaw Art Worth provided the pennant-winning Transport Workers with their first win of the Senior Amateur Baseball League final series at Royal Athletic Park. Worth held Greave’s Movers in check all the way while pitching the T-W’s to an 11 to 3 victory that shortened the Movers’ playoff lead to 2 – 1. Walking just one, the ageless veteran scattered six hits, struck out seven and drove in a pair of runs. Mike McAvoy, Worth’s batterymate, connected for two doubles in leading the winners’ seven-hit attack.
Hemming (L), Burrows (7) and Lumley
Worth (W) and McAvoy
(August 18) Pete Jolly was right and the Transport Workers looked their jolly old selves as they squared the best-of-seven Senior Amateur League finals at two games each. Backed by solid fielding support, Jolly shackled Greave’s Movers on three hits to give the pennant-winners a 4 to 0 shutout win at Royal Athletic Park. Jolly showed his best form after the Movers placed runners on base. Finishing with 11 punchouts, he struck out the side twice, including the eighth inning after Greave’s loaded the bases.
Jolly (W) and Brian McKenzie
L. Brice (L) and Lumley
(August 21) The Transport Workers built up a significant 7 to 0 lead but had to hang on at the end to slip by with a 7 to 5 win over Greave’s Movers to take a three-games-to-two lead in the Victoria Senior Amateur League finals. Six walks by starter and loser Gerry Lister enabled the pennant-winners to assume a 5 to 0 cushion in the second panel. A run-scoring liner by John Balloch in the third made it 6 to 0 and winning pitcher Gord Strongman’s counter in the fourth pushed the count to 7 to 0. With darkness closing in as the game entered the eighth chapter, Strongman was working on a two-hit shutout but the Movers suddenly came alive with the lumber to score a five-spot on five solid hits before Strongman, who had two singles and a sacrifice fly, could put out the fire and the game was called.
Lister (L), Thame (2) and Lumley
Strongman (W) and McAvoy
(August 22) 38-year old Art Worth, he of sinewy portside wing, toed the rubber for the Transport Workers at Royal Athletic Park and mowed down Greave’s Movers 4 to 1 as another season of Senior Amateur League Baseball came to a close with the Transports as 1967 titlists. Although touched for 11 safeties, Worth scattered them effectively while striking out ten, many in critical situations, without issuing a walk. It was the Workers’ fourth straight victory in the series after dropping the opening pair. Catcher Mike McAvoy was a standout defensively behind the plate, blocking a number of late-breaking pitches that hit the dirt and, with the reputation of his rifle-arm, discouraging all Greave’s runners from attempting any steal attempt. John McKeachie got things rolling for the champions when he lit up losing flinger George Hemming for a solo dinger in the second stanza. Outfielder Terry Whitman drove in a pair for the victors while Bob Lumley hammered a fifth-inning triple that produced the Movers’ lone marker. Hustling third sacker Dave Rivers stroked three hits for the vanquished nine and came up throwing on several tough shots hit his way.
Worth (W) and McAvoy
Hemming (L) and Lumley
(September) The Transport Workers dominated the Victoria All- Star team that will compete in the annual Labour Day Tournament at Kamloops for a shot at the provincial championship. The entire Transport infield - Mike McAvoy, Barry Harvey, Tony Cosier, Art Worth and George Fuller - was selected. Speedy outfielder Terry Whitman and Gord Strongman were two other Transport representatives. And an eighth Transport Worker, slugger Jim Heighton, may also make the trip. He's playing football for the Victoria Steelers Saturday but may be able to make it to Kamloops in time for the All-Stars' first game on Sunday.
Greaves players will be pitcher-infielder Jerry Lister, third baseman Dave Rivers and outfielder Jerry Ciochetti. Pitchers George Brice and Pete Duncan and infielder Barry Cosier are Rawlings players. Pitcher-shortstop John Yankoski is the lone King's Hotel representative on the team.
(September 2-4) Kamloops Labor Day weekend tournament