Red Sox catcher Elston Howard is sprawled in the mud after lunging and tagging Baltimore's Paul Blair in the first inning of Sunday afternoon's tilt at Fenway Park. Blair thought Howard had missed the tag and cannot believe that plate umpire Bill Valentine is making the "out" call.

Blefary's two-run first inning triple the crucial hit

(BOSTON Jun 2 1968) The Baltimore Orioles defeated the Boston Red Sox 4-3 Sunday in a game shortened to just 5½ innings due to rain. Tom Phoebus went the distance for the Birds, scattering seven hits over five innings while improving his record to 5-4 on the year. Lee Stange (2-1, 4.15) took the loss.

Carl Yastrzemski hit a solo homer, his eighth round tripper of the season, in the bottom of the first but it wasn't enough to offset Baltimore's three run outburst in the top of the inning.

Stange had a rough start, walking Don Buford and Paul Blair to open the game. After getting Curt Motton on strikes, Boog Powell rapped a single to center which scored Buford and sent Blair to third. Brooks Robinson followed with a sharp grounder to Joe Foy at third; Blair was running on contact and Foy's throw to Ellie Howard caught the Oriole centerfielder at home.

The Red Sox appeared ready to escape the inning with minimal damage at that point: the lumbering Powell at second and a plodding Brooksie at first, two outs, and Curt Blefary (hitting just .212 entering the game) at the plate... but Blefary hammered a pitch into the gap in right-center, scoring both runners and allowing him a chance at an inside-the-park home run. Only a sparkling Ken Harrelson to Dalton Jones to Howard relay prevented further carnage.

The Sox knotted the game at 3-3 in the bottom of the fourth when Stange's two-out single scored Howard from second, but Baltimore came right back in the top of the fifth, combining a two-out walk to Buford, a single from Blair, and a single from Motton to plate the go-ahead run. Phoebus held Boston scoreless in the bottom of the inning, and then the rains started in earnest. The umpiring crew decided to call the game after the Orioles sloshed about without scoring in the visitors' sixth.

The Orioles closed the weekend series with a record of 27-20 and sit three games back of first place Detroit. Baltimore opens a home stand Monday night vs. the California Angels. The Red Sox are now tied with Oakland for fifth place in the AL. Boston's homestand continues Monday when Denny McLain and the Tigers visit Fenway.

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