June 18, 1953: 17 Runs In 1 Inning

June 18, 1953: The Boston Red Sox beat the Detroit Tigers, 23-3 at Fenway Park in Boston. The Sox score 17 runs in the 7th inning, a record for a single inning in Major League Baseball.

Well, not quite: On September 6, 1883, at Lakefront Park in Chicago. the Chicago White Stockings (forerunners of the Cubs) scored 18 runs in the 7th inning against the Detroit Wolverines (who went out of business after the 1888 season), en route to a 26-6 win.

They scored these 17 runs on 14 hits, 6 walks (1 of them intentional), and a wild pitch – but, surprisingly, no errors. Also surprisingly, only 1 of the hits was a home run, a 3-run drive to left field by Dick Gernert.

Perhaps the most surprising thing of all is that the Red Sox did this without Ted Williams, who was still flying for the U.S. Marine Corps in the Korean War.

The Red Sox had already taken a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the 2nd inning. The Tigers scored 2 in the top of the 4th, and tied it 3-3 in the top of the 6th. The Red Sox scored 2 in the bottom of the 6th, and led 5-3. So far, the game was rather ordinary.

It did not stay ordinary. Here's how the record-setting inning happened:

* Batting against Steve Gromek, catcher Sammy White singles to center.

* Left fielder Gene Stephens singles to right. Stephens goes to 3rd base on the play. Stephens subsequently steals 2nd.

* Center fielder Tom Umphlett singles to left, scoring White and Stephens. 2 runs.

* Shortstop Johnny Lipon strikes out.

* 3rd baseman George Kell doubles.

* 2nd baseman Billy Goodman is intentionally walked

* Right fielder Jimmy Piersall singles to center, scoring Umphlett and Kell. 4 runs.

* 1st baseman Gernert hits the aforementioned home run, driving Goodman and Piersall in ahead of him. 7 runs.

* Pitcher Ellis Kinder singles to right.

* White bats again, and walks. Only now does Tiger manager Fred Hutchinson, himself once a very good pitcher, relieve Gromek, with Dick Weik. He then throws a wild pitch.

* Stephens doubles to center, scoring Kinder and White. 9 runs.

* Umphlett walks.

* Lipon singles to left, scoring Stephens. 10 runs.

* Kell flies to left, for the 2nd out.

* Goodman singles, scoring Umphlett. 11 runs. Hutchinson now replaces Weik with Earl Harrist. Red Sox manager Lou Boudreau sends Ted Lepcio in to pinch-run for Goodman, and Al Zarilla up to pinch-hit for Piersall.

* Zarilla walks, loading the bases.

* Gernert walks, forcing Lipon home. 12 runs. Gernert now has 4 RBIs in the inning.

* Kinder -- the opposing pitcher, mind you -- collects his 2nd single of the inning, to center, scoring Lepcio and Zarilla. 14 runs.

* White bats for the 3rd time in the inning, and also singles to center, scoring Gernert. 15 runs.

* Stephens singles, scoring Kinder. 16 runs.

* Umphlett singles, scoring White. 17 runs.

* Lipon walks.

* Finally, the carnage comes to an end, as Harrist gets Kell -- with Williams away in the service, the only future Hall-of-Famer on the Boston roster -- to fly to left.

The Red Sox sent 23 batters to the plate in the inning. That is also a modern major league record.

The Red Sox scored 1 more run in the bottom of the 8th, forging the final score, 23-3. In spite of the big score, the game took only 3 hours and 3 minutes to play.

Interestingly enough, the Tiger lineup included 2 notable former Red Sox: 2nd baseman Johnny Pesky, once the Boston shortstop; and 1st baseman Walt Dropo. And Kell, now with the Sox, was a former Tiger: In 1949, he had just beaten Williams out for the American League batting title, denying Williams what would have been a record 3rd Triple Crown. (Williams and Rogers Hornsby are the only players to have 2 of those.)

Seventeen runs in one inning remains a modern record. In a 1959 game, the Chicago White Sox scored 11 runs on only 1 hit.

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June 18, 1953 was a Thursday. These other games were played that day:

* The New York Yankees swept a doubleheader from the St. Louis Browns, 5-0 and 3-0 at Yankee Stadium. In the opener, Eddie Lopat pitched an 8-hit shutout. Mickey Mantle hit a home run. In the nightcap, Jim McDonald pitched 4-hit shutout ball for 7 innings, and Tom Gorman pitched 2 perfect innings to complete the shutout. Billy Martin hit a home run.

This doubleheader sweep would not be the final indignity in St. Louis Browns history, but that history would come to an end at the end of that season, as they were moved to become the Baltimore Orioles.

* The New York Giants beat the Cincinnati Reds, 6-3 at Crosley Field in Cincinnati.

* The Brooklyn Dodgers lost to the St. Louis Cardinals, 12-4 at the 1st Busch Stadium in St. Louis. The ballpark, formerly the last Sportsman's Park, had just been renamed. Stan Musial went 2-for-4 with a walk and 4 RBIs. Jim Gilliam hit a home run. Jackie Robinson went 0-for-3.

* The Cleveland Indians beat the Philadelphia Athletics, 6-4 at Connie Mack Stadium in Philadelphia. The ballpark, formerly Shibe Park, had just been renamed. Al Rosen, in a season that would see him named the AL's Most Valuable Player, brought home the winning run with a sacrifice fly in the top of the 12th inning. Larry Doby, the AL's 1st black player, then singled home another run. Bob Lemon pitched the 1st 11 innings for the win, with Art Houtteman getting the save.

* The Chicago White Sox beat the Washington Senators, 8-4 at Griffith Stadium in Washington. 

* The Chicago Cubs beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 8-4 at Wrigley Field in Chicago.

* And the Milwaukee Braves and the Philadelphia Phillies were rained out at Milwaukee County Stadium. It was made up as part of a doubleheader on July 31. The Phillies won the 1st game, 5-1. The 2nd game was tied, 0-0 after 10 innings, when it was called due to rain again.