With his team still in a deep hole, Lou Boudreau called on his star rookie southpaw Gene Bearden to start Game 5. Frankie Frisch gave the ball to Dizzy Dean, who had thus far in the tournament allowed only one earned run in 23 innings. The Cardinals were confident they could wrap up the series with their 30-game winner on the mound.
This optimism increased when Pepper Martin led off the game with a double and later scored on a Ripper Collins groundout. The Indians, however, had other plans. In the bottom of the first they tagged Ol' Diz for five runs, with Boudreau and Keltner contributing RBI doubles and Gordon belting a two-run homer. St. Louis garnered an unearned run in the second, but Cleveland soon answered when Larry Doby scored on a wild pitch.
The Cardinals roughed up Bearden with four straight hits in the top of the sixth to cut the deficit to 6-5. Dale Mitchell pushed the lead back to two in the bottom of the frame with an RBI double. Rothrock delivered an RBI single for the visitors in the seventh, but a Keltner home run and Hegan sac fly plated two more for the Indians. In the top of the eighth, Cleveland reliever Steve Gromek allowed two hits and three walks, which the Redbirds converted into two runs. With the home team again clinging to a one-run lead, Boudreau stuck with Gromek in the ninth. The right-hander rebounded to send the Cardinals down in order and preserve the win.
The momentum has shifted as the series moves back to St. Louis for Game 6.
Cleveland 9, St. Louis 8
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