1964 Round 1 – Bombers struggle to get past Bosox in 4

GAME 1 - 8/1 - Yankee Stadium
Red Sox 4, Yankees 2
Bob Heffner (7-9, 4.09 vs Whitey Ford (17-6, 2.13)
A colossal mismatch on paper yet the relatively unheard of Bob Haffner one upp-ed the winningest pitcher in World Series history.  Felix Mantilla' two run dinger in the first off of Whitey Ford gave the Sahx a quick 2-0 lead.  Heffner gave up a lead off triple to slow footed Elston Howard to lead off the bottom of the 2nd.  Roger Maris line shot to right would easily score Howard to make it 2-1.  New York could not capitalize any further even though Joe Pepitone would single to put runners on 1st and 2nd with nobody out.  Lee Thomas a .115 hitter vs lefties would single home Mantilla to make it 3-1 in the 5th.  Dr. Strangeglove, Dick Stuart's RBI poke would make it 4-1 heading into the bottom of the 9th.  Arnold Early, who came on with 1 out in the 8th was able to get the first 2 batters out easily.  Clete Boyer refused to become the final out of the contest and got on board with an excuse me single to right.  Pinch hitter Hector Lopez would single home Boyer to make it 4-2, so Dick Radatz was called upon to bring the heat.  Johnny "Doc" Blanchard's pinch hit stint would end in a weak fly to left to end the game.
Red Sox lead series 1-0

GAME 2 - 8/2
Yankees 5, Red Sox 3
Bill Monbouquette (13-14, 4.04) vs Jim Bouton (18-13, 3.02)
If you lose your home opener in a 5 game set, game #2 automatically becomes a "must"  game.  New York went to their 25 year old phenom, the Bulldog, Jim Bouton.  The man who loses his hat after every pitch won 23 games last year and 18 this season to kind of supplant Ford as the go to guy.  New York would give Bouton 3 quick runs in the bottom of the first.  Tommy Tresh would walk with the bases loaded and Brooklyn's own Joe Pepitone would single Mantle and Maris (both walked) home to make it 3-0.  Back to back doubles by Tony C and Dr. Strangeglove made it a 3-1 ball game after 2.  Both teams would exchange solo tallies in the 4th to make it 4-2 New York.  Mantilla would hit a sac fly to score Yaz in the 5th to again make it a 1 run ball game, but New York would answer right back with Richardson doing the same to score Pepi.  Bouton would pitch into the 8th, but leave after getting Bob Tillman to pop out for the second out of the inning.  Bob Meyer would be brought in for the lefty/lefty matchup vs Lee Thomas, but Boston would go to their bench and bring in righty Lou Clinton, who would single.  With runners on 1st and 3rd and 2 outs Hal Reniff was brought in to get Frank Malzone, who popped out to Mantle in center.  Reniff would give up a lead off double to Russ Nixon to start the 9th and once again put the pressure on the Yankees to hold off Boston.  Bressoud fanned on 3 pitches and Bud Daley came in to face Yaz.  New York's lefty reliever got the best of Boston's young lefty slugger.  Pete Ramos struck out Mantilla swinging to end this nail biter.
Series tied 1-1

GAME 3 - 8/4 - Fenway Park
Yankees 3, Red Sox 2
Mel Stottlemyre (9-3, 2.06) vs Earl Wilson (11-12, 4.49)
Once again New York would jump out to a 3-0 lead in the first.  Earl Wilson was wild.  Phil Linz and Mickey Mantle walked with one out.  When Ellie Howard grounded out to short for out number 2 it looked like Wilson would escape his malapropos.  The "true" single season home run record holder Roger Maris had something to say about that. Raj creamed a 2-1 pitch that sliced into the left center bleachers to make it 3-0.  New York's 22 year old whiz kid, Mel Stottlemyre, who singlehandedly saved NY's season, felt some early game jitters.  Mel put a 3-1 pitch over the heart of the plate and Boston's backstop Bob Tillman crushed it over the Green Monstah to make it a 3-2 game after 2 innings of play.  Most fans braced themselves for a wild high scoring event.  Misters Stottlemyre and Wilson would have nothing of it and both proceeded to post goose eggs on the scoreboard the rest of the way.  Wilson would go 7 innings and not allow a run after he gave up 3 in the first.  Stotts would leave the game with runners on 1st and 3rd with 2 out in the 8th.  Hal Reniff would make one pitch, which Tony C turned on and hit a missile to Boyer at third.  Mere mortals don't make that play, but Boyer makes the hot corner look like a walk in the park.  Boyer scooped up the ball and threw a pea over to Pepi at first to end Boston's rally, but not their day.  The Bosox were not about to go down without a fight.  Stuart led off the bottom of the 9th with a double off the Monstah off of Pete Ramos, who was poised to close it out.  New York's late season acquisition got his affairs in order quickly and fanned Tillman and got Thomas and Malzone to ground out weakly.
Yankees lead series 2-0

GAME 4 - 8/5
Yankees 4, Red Sox 3
Rollie Sheldon (5-2, 3.61) vs Dave Morehead (8-15, 4.97)
After The Mick and Roger Maris hit homers in the 4th the Bombers were up 4-0 and looked to put this game away.  Boston rallied for two in the bottom of the 4th when Dick Stuart took Rollie Sheldon deep.  Sheldon would give up an RBI single to Stuart in the 5th to make it a 1 run ball game, but the Bosox could never push across the tying run to stay alive in the series.  Sheldon was done after 7 innings and a chance to win the game.  Pete Mikkelsen, Bud Daley and Hal Renif combined to shutout the Bosox over the final 3 innings with Renif notching the save.  Maris was swinging the bat like it was 1961 all over again in this series by posting 3 homers, including 2 today.
Yankees win series 3-1