Dick Donovan's five-hit shutout of Cleveland on Aug. 29, 1959, gave the Chicago White Sox a 3 1/2-game lead on the Indians in the American League, and the Tribe were no closer than three games the rest of the season.
By Phil Ellenbecker
The Chicago White Sox entered their game at Cleveland on Aug. 29, 1959, with a 1 1/2-game lead on the Indians in the American League after Bob Shaw pitched the ChiSox to a 7-4 victory to open a three-game make or break weekend series at Municipal Stadium.
Dick Donovan then gave the Pale Hose a further booster toward winning their first pennant in 40 years with a five-hit shutout of the Tribe on Saturday, and at 3 1/2 games back Cleveland could pull no closer than three games the rest of the way.
Donovan walked three and struck out four in going the distance and improving his record to 8-6. Although he and Billy Pierce weren't as effective in '59 (9-10 and 14-15 respectively) as in other years during this span, together with Shaw and Early Wynn they gave Chicago a starting foursome capable of shutting down the opposition on any given night, as this game showed. The White Sox's AL-leading 3.77 ERA was a major reason they copped the flag.
The Indians' only threat to score came in the second inning. They put runners at second and third when Jim Baxes walked, Woody Held singled after George Strickland struck out, and the two advanced on Jim Landis' error in center.
But Donovan escaped when, after an intentional walk to Ed Fitz Gerald, pitcher Jim Perry hit into a fielder's choice.
Donovan didn't allow any more than one base runner in an inning after that, and nobody got into scoring position.
The White Sox, meanwhile, as they did so often this season, did just enough on offense to get by.
After Perry had shut out Chicago through six innings on three hits, the White Sox scratched out an unearned run in the seventh when Landis beat out a grounder to short, went to third on Earl Torgeson's single to left and scored when Gold Glover Minnie Minoso erred on Torgeson's hit.
(Minoso, a fan favorite in Chicago throughout the '50s, was in his second year with the Tribe after being dealt to Cleveland in December 1957).
The Sox gained 2-0 insurance in the eighth when Jim Rivera scored on Nellie Fox's sacrifice fly. Rivera led off the inning with a single, was advanced by Donovan's sacrifice bunt and moved to third on Luis Aparicio's infield single before crossing the plate after Fox's fly out to center.
Landis (3 for 4) and Aparicio (2 for 4) got all but two of Chicago's hits.
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