GET ME REWRITE! How Ding-Dong rung up the Tigers

 Gary Bell enjoyed fine success as a starter and reliever in his MLB career, but in my 1961 Strat Advanced replay, he nearly joined another Indians pitching legend with an early-season no-no. Ding-Dong rung up the Tigers with 6-1/3 innings of no-hit ball, retiring the side in order in the 1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th innings, that 3rd-6th stretch alone netting 14 consecutive outs before former Indian Rocky Colavito ended the no-hit bid with one out in the 7th, a solid single to Tito Francona in left. Bob Feller's no-hitter in 1940 was the stuff of legend, but when Bell took the mound in the 9th, the way he finished was legendary, too for all the wrong reasons.

Pinch-hitter Bubba Morton opened the Tigers 9th with a base hit, then rookie sensation Jake Wood ended the shutout bid in dramatic fashion with a stand-up triple, cutting the Tribe lead to 3-1, the three runs scoring in the bottom of the 3rd. Bill Bruton then landed on one of Bell's fatigue results, a strikeout which became an RBI single, thus the end of Bell's amazing start, which now became a save opportunity for Frank Funk. Funk got Al Kaline to line to Bubba Phillips at 3rd, Bruton stole 2nd, then advanced to third on Colavito's bounce-out to Funk. The Cleveland faithful heaved a sigh of relief when dangerous Norm Cash hit a weak bouncer to John Temple at 2nd, securing Bell's Ding-Dong of a gem.

This would've been the high-water mark of Bell's career, as injuries shuttled him between starter and reliever for most of his career, but those Strat dice can create their own magic, a magic you can "ring" up anytime.

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