Coming off of a pennant-winning year in 1952, the Dodgers were primed to make another run. They had a solid starting 8, and some decent pitching. In December of 1952, they drafted Don Bessent from the Yankees. They had lost Roy Face and George Freese in the draft. They signed Sparky Anderson, Don Demeter, Fred Kipp, and Larry Sherry as amateur free agents. They traded Andy Pafko to the Braves in January and Received Roy Hartsfield and $50,000 dollars. In a 4 team trade in February, they traded Jim Pendleton to the Braves, and Rocky Bridges to the Reds and got Russ Myer from the Phillies. The Braves sent Earl Torgeson to the Phils.
Tommy Lasorda was sold to the Browns in Feb, but they returned him a month later. Branca went to the Tigers in July on a waiver claim. But the team made no major trades at the deadline. Simply put, they were loaded.
Roy Campanella had a rebound from his 52 campaign, hitting .312,41,142. Hodges was .302,31,122. 24 yr old Jim Gilliam took over for Robinson at 2nd and was the ROY with a .278,6,63 effort. He also stole 21 bases, one behind team leader Pee Wee Reese who was .271,13,61. Cox, .291,10,44. The big improvement came from CF Duke Snider. Snider had an outstanding year hitting .336,42,126. Robinson, now in the outfield at age 34, .329,12,95, and RF Carl Furillo rebounded from an off-year to hit .344,21,92. Winning the NL batting title. Campy won his 2nd MVP.
Bobby Morgan was the main backup infielder, and Shuba was the 4th outfielder and main PH. Wayne Belardi at 22 got into 69 games with a .239 avg and 11 Hr’s and 34 RBI’s. Rube Walker was the backup catcher.
Russ Meyer joined the rotation and won 15, Erskine 20, Loes 14, Roe 11, and rookie Johnny Podres was 9-4. Hughes was the closer, saving 9. Milliken won 8 out of the pen and saved 2. Labine won 11 and saved 7. Joe Black was 6-3 with 5 saves. They were 9-5 in April, 18-9 in May, and 15-12 in June. They went into 1st place to stay on the 1st of July. In July, August, and September they went a combined 63-23 finishing with a 105-49 mark and a 13 game bulge on 2nd place Milwaukee. The Braves had moved from Boston.
Game 1 of the World Series was in Yankee Stadium. Erskine started for the Dodgers against Allie Reynolds. The Yanks jumped on Oisk for 4 runs in the 1st inning on 2 hits and 3 walks. Jim Hughes took over in the 2nd going 4 and allowing 1 run on a Berra HR in the 5th. The Dodgers scored 1 off of Reynolds in the 5th on a Gilliam HR.
They scored 3 more in the top of the 6th on a HR by Gil Hodges, and a 2 run shot by George Shuba. They tied the game in the top of the 7th when Carl Furillo singled in Campy off of Johnny Sain. In the 7th, Joe Collins homered off of Labine to end the scoring and the Yanks had a 6-5 win.
Roe started game 2 against Lopat. Both pitchers would go all the way. Berra drove in a run in the first. Cox doubled in 2 in the 4th. The Yanks tied the game in the 7th on a Martin HR. Then took the lead on a 2 run shot by Mantle in the 8th. Lopat retired the Dodgers in the 9th for a 4-2 win, and the Yanks were up 2-0 in the series as they went back to Brooklyn.
Erskine came back in game 3 against Vic Raschi and it was a pitcher’s duel. Erskine would strike out 14 Yankees to set a series record that would be broken by Koufax in 63. They were tied in the 8th when Campy, who was not hitting very well in the series, took Raschi deep for the 3-2 win. Of his 14 K’s, Erskine struck out Collins and Mantle 4 times each.
Game 4 featured Ford against Billy Loes. Ford allowed 3 in the first and was gone. Gorman, Sain, and Schallock followed and gave up 4 more. Loes gave up a 2 run HR to McDougald in the 5th, and then 1 in the 9th before Labine shut the Yanks down. Snider was 3-4 with a HR and 2 doubles and drove in 4. Gilliam added 3 doubles and scored 3 times. Series tied, 2-2. Podres made the start in game 5 but was gone in the 3rd after allowing 5 runs. Only 1 of the 5 was earned, an error by Hodges allowing the inning to continue. Meyer relieved Podres and would allow 2 more and 2 HR’s Woodling, Mantle, Martin, and McDougald all homered in the 11-7 win. The Dodgers scored 4 in the 8th and 1 in the 9th for the final margin. Cox hit a 3 run shot in the 8th, and Gilliam hit one in the 9th.
Erskine started game 6 in NY. He was not as sharp as game 3 giving up 3 runs in 4 innings. Miliken replaced him and was replaced by Labine in the 7th. After jumping out to a 3 run lead, they traded zeros until the 6th when the Dodgers pushed across a run. Campy singled in Robinson. In the top of the 9th, they tied it 3-3 on a Furillo HR with Snider aboard. In the bottom of the 9th, with 1 out, Billy Martin hit a single up the middle with a runner on second to score the winning and series-clinching run. Dream dashed by those Damn Yankees again.
1954
In the offseason, the main change was at the manager. Dressen had insisted on a multi-year contract. Owner O’Malley refused and hired the completely unknown Walter Alston to lead the team. Alston had managed for the Dodgers in the minors since 1944. Starting at Trenton and had been managing Brooklyn AAA teams since 1948. So he definitely knew the players.
They signed Don Drysdale and Stan Williams as free agents and in February a kid named Clemente. Again, they made no major moves in the winter. And none during the season.
Campy slumped again managing only a .207 mark in 111 games. He hit 19 long balls and drove in 51. Hodges had another good year with a .304, 42, 130 line. Gilliam followed his ROY year with a .282, 13, 52 mark. Reese, now 35, played in 141 games, hitting .309, 10, 69. Don Hoak did the bulk of the work at 3rd, .245, 7, 26. Amoros played 79 games in left, .279, 9, 34. Snider was outstanding at .341, 40, 130. Furillo followed his batting title year with a .294, 19, 96 line. Jackie Robinson was the main utility player getting into 124 games at .311, 15, 59. Jackie was also 35. Cox was in 77 games, Walker backing up Campy, 50. None of the other bench players were very good. Don Zimmer made his MLB debut and was in 24 games.
Erskine was 18-15, Meyer, 11-6, Podres, 11-7, Loes, 13-5 Newcombe, back from the Army went 9-8 and Roe was 3-4. Hughes and Labine were the workhorses out of the pen seeing action in 60 and 47 games respectively. Hughes added 8 wins and 24 saves. Karl Spooner made a spectacular debut, throwing 2 complete-game shutouts and striking out 27 in 18 innings. Lasorda got into 4 games.
They would win 92 games but finish 2nd to the eventual World Champion Giants by 5 games. They did lead the league in hitting and HR’s. So once again it was wait til next year which had been Brooklyn’s rallying cry for years.
1955….Next Year Arrives.
On the 22nd of November, 1954, in what today is considered one of the savviest draft choices ever, Pittsburgh plucked Roberto Clemente from the Dodgers. They had tried to hide him in the minors, but in retrospect, they really should have had him on their 40 man roster. Preacher Roe and Cox were traded to the Orioles on the 13th of December. But on the 14th, they signed a native Brooklynite to a bonus contract. Meaning they had to keep him on the MLB roster for two years. His name was Sandy Koufax.
Erv Palica was traded to the Orioles in March. Joe Black was sent to the Reds in June. But once again, no major trades during the off-season or at the deadline.
Campy continued his every other year excellence and rebounded with a .318,32, 107 season which would earn him his 3rd MVP. Hodges went .289,27, 102. Gilliam dropped to .249. Reese got into 145 games at age 36 and hit .282, 10, 61. Jackie Robinson returned to 3rd getting into 105 games. He had what was a subpar .256 year. Amoros, still the main guy in LF, .247, 10, 51.
Snider had his 3rd really good year in a row with a .309, 42, 136 line. Furillo went .314, 26, 95. Hoak was the main sub getting into 94 games. Zimmer was in 88 and Walker 48 as Campy’s caddy.
Newcombe in his first full year back won 20, Erskine 11, Podres won 9. Loes 10 and Meyer 6. Ed Roebuck made his debut and became the closer. He won 5 and saved 12, Labine had 13 wins and 11 saves. Spooner was 8-6, but suffered an arm injury that would end his career. Bessent went 8-1 his rookie year. Roger Craig made his first appearances and won 5 saving 2. Lasorda got into 4 games and was sent down so the bonus baby Koufax could stay. Koufax got into 12 games, starting 2, and went 2-2. He struck out 30 and walked 28 in a little over 40 innings.
They jumped out of the gate 14-2 and after the 4th game of the year, they were never out of first place the rest of the year. 14-2 in April, 18-9 in May, 20-8 in June, 19-13 in July, They suffered their only losing month in August going 13-14, and finished with a 14-9 September winning the pennant by 13.5 games.
The 1955 World Series started in Yankee Stadium on the 28th of September. Whitey Ford against Don Newcombe. They traded runs in the 2nd and 3rd, each team scoring 3. Howard and Collins driving in the runs off of Newcombe with HR’s. Howards came in his first WS at-bat. Furillo homered in the top of the 2nd to put Brooklyn up 1-0, and Robinson tripled and scored on Zimmer’s single. Snider homered to put them up 3-2, and the Yanks tied it on a HR by Collins. Yanks went up 4-3 in the bottom of the 4th. Collins then hit another HR, this time a 2 run shot off of Newcombe and the Yanks led 6-3. Bessent replaced Newk and he and Lavine silenced the Yankee bats on 1 hit the rest of the way. Ford allowed 2 runs in the top of the 8th when Zimmer hit a sac fly, and Robinson stole home, but Grim shut them out in the 9th.
Bryne and Loes were the starters. Snider drove in Reese who had tripled in the top of the 4th with a single, but the Yanks came right back to score 4 and knock Loes out of the game. Gilliam knocked in Robinson in the 5th, but Byrne shut them down and won a 4-2 complete game. Bob Turley and Johnny Podres were the starters in the 3rd game in Brooklyn.
Campy hit a 2 run shot putting the Brooks up in the first. Yanks came back to tie on a Mantle HR, he would only play in 3 games, and a single by Rizzuto scoring Skowron. Turley loaded the bases in the 2nd and walks to Gilliam and Reese plated 2 and now it was 4-2, Brooklyn, with Tom Morgan taking over. A Campy single and a sac fly by Furillo scored 2 more in the 4th. Yanks scored 1 in the 7th. Amoros and Reese plated runs with hits in the bottom of the 7th and the Dodgers led, 8-3 which was the final score. Podres pitched a complete game for the win. It would be the last series game ever played in September.
Erskine started and the Yanks jumped to a 2-0 lead after 2. Gilliam doubled in Amoros in the 3rd. Bessent relieved Erskine after a single and a walk to open the 4th. Martin drove in the 3rd Yankee run. But in the bottom of the 4th, Campanella homered to lead off, and after a single by Furillo, Hodges hit a 2 run HR putting the Dodgers up 4-3. Snider followed that up in the bottom of the 5th with a 3 run shot off of Johnny Kucks. Brooklyn 7-NY 3. The Yanks scored 2 off of Labine in the 6th. Now 7-5. But Brooklyn got one back in the 7th off of Rip Coleman and Labine shut the Yanks down the rest of the way. Series tied, 2-2.
Game 5 Roger Craig, a rookie started for the Dodgers. Bob Grim for the Yankees. Amoros hit a 2 run HR in the 2nd, and Snider added a solo shot in the 3rd. Martin singled in a run in the 4th, but Snider hit his 2nd of the game in the bottom of the 5th. Craig pitched 6 allowing only 4 hits but walking 5. Labine relieved in the 7th inning after Cerv homered off of Craig. Berra hit one off of Labine in the 8th. Brooklyn scored its final run in the 8th on a single by Robinson. Labine got the save and the win went to Craig.
The Dodgers were now 1 win from their first World Championship. Back to Yankee Stadium for game 6. Ford started against Karl Spooner. He set the Dodgers down in the 1st and the Yanks came up against Spooner. He did not get out of the inning. The Yankees scored 5 runs off of Spooner on 5 hits and 2 walks including a HR by Skowron. Brooklyn scored 1 in the 4th, but the contest was never in doubt.
Now there would be a game 7 for all the marbles, and the Dodgers pinned all of their hopes on 22 year old, Johnny Podres. Brooklyn scored first in the 4th on a single by Hodges. But, in the 3rd with Rizzuto on 2nd, Gil McDougald hit a ground ball that hit Rizzuto and he was out. This may have given the Dodgers a huge psychological boost since they had never beaten the Yanks. Erskine said later that he took it as an omen.
The Dodgers scored another in the 6th on a Hodges sac fly. Podres who had runners on base almost all the time kept wiggling out of tight spots. In the 6th, with 2 on and one out, Berra hit a drive down the left-field line, Amoros, who had just been inserted as a defensive replacement for Gilliam raced over and make a desperate stab and caught the ball. The RH Gilliam would have had no shot. He relayed the ball to Reese who fired the ball to Hodges, doubling up McDougald. Podres sent the Yanks down in the 9th, and when Pee Wee’s throw to first on Howard’s ground ball landed in Hodges mitt, the Dodgers were finally World Champs.
Brooklyn went berserk. The players were leaping all over the field. But the man who had led them for so many years and made so many clutch plays and hits was not on the field for the final out. Jackie Robinson was on the bench, replaced in the starting lineup by Don Hoak. His days as a Dodger Icon were on borrowed time.
1956
The winds of change were beginning to blow. And the first rumblings that the Dodgers might leave Brooklyn started. Ebbets Field was a relic. O’Malley wanted a stadium that could compete with Milwaukee’s County Stadium which held over 40,000 fans. Ebbets capacity was a little over 32,000, so financially the Dodgers were at a disadvantage.
They traded Hoak, Meyer, and Moryn to the Cubs for Elston and Randy Jackson. Tommy Davis signed as an amateur free agent. Lasorda was sold to the KC A’s, Loes was sold to the Orioles in May, and Hughes went to the Cubs. That same day they purchased Sal ” The Barber” Maglie from the Indians.
Those were pretty much their biggest moves. Snider at 29, had his 4th consecutive 40 HR season slugging 43 to lead the league. His average dipped to .292, and he drove in 101 runs. Campy had another down year, dipping to .219,20, 73. Hodges, still steady at 32 put up a .265, 32, 87 line. Reese, now 37 still played in 147 games. .257, 9, 46. Randy Jackson played in 101 games, .274, 8, 53. Amoros was the primary LF, .260, 16, 58. And Furillo playing 149 games at age 34 went .289, 21, 83. If anything, they were definitely getting a little long in the tooth. Robinson in his final year played 117 games going .275, 10, 43. He still managed to steal 12 bases. Charlie Neal got into 62 games his rookie year. He did a solid job hitting .287. Chico Fernandez, Gino Cimoli, Don Demeter and Bob Aspromonte got their first big league action.
Newcombe was outstanding going 27-7 to win the Cy Young and the MVP. Craig was 12-11, Maglie 13-5, and led the Dodger starters in ERA. Erskine was 13-11 and the kid Koufax, 2-4. Labine won 10, rookie Don Drysdale 5, Roebuck 5, Bessent 4, and Lehman 2 out of the pen. Labine added 19 saves and Bessent 9.
They stumbled out of the box and were as far back as 6 games in July. They stayed close and on the 29th of September, they won both ends of a doubleheader against the Pirates to go up 1 game on the Braves. A 8-6 win by Newcombe on the last day of the season clinched the pennant with Bessent getting the save.
The first two games were in Brooklyn, and they turned the table on the Yanks winning game 1 6-3 behind Maglie, and game 2 13-8 on 7 innings of relief work by Don Bessent. Neither starter made it out of the 2nd inning with Larsen giving up 4, and a grand slam by Berra helping the Yanks score 5. Brooklyn answered in the bottom of the inning with 6 of their own driving Larsen, Kucks, and Byrne, who gave up the 6th run on a HR to Snider. Brooklyn kept piling on1 off of Sturdivant and 4 more off of Morgan. Turley pitched a 3rd of an inning and McDermott, who went 3, gave up 2 more for a total of 13. The Yanks managed to get 2 off of Bessent, 1 in the 4th and 1 in the 9th. The Final was 13-8.
Brooks up 2-0 as the series switches to Yankee Stadium. That loss was the first of what would be only twice the team that hit a grand slam would lose a series game. The Dodgers won the other one when Kirk Gibson walked off the A’s after Canseco had hit a slam in the 1st inning.
Game 3 was another tight contest with the Dodgers scoring in the 2nd and 6th and the Yanks in the 2nd for a 2-1 lead going into the bottom of the 6th. Slaughter hit a 3 run homer off of Craig in the 6th and the Yanks rolled to a 5-3 win behind a complete game by Ford. NY jumped ahead in game 4 behind Sturdivant, and Erskine took the loss in a 6-2 game. Mantle and Bauer homered for the Yankees.
The stage was set for history in game 5. Don Larsen against Maglie. Larsen was a journeyman who the Dodgers had hammered several times in the past. But on this day, well Don was perfect. Working out of a no-windup style, his curveball kept the Dodgers off-balance. Only one batter worked a 3 ball count and that was Reese in the first inning. He struck out 7 including Dale Mitchell for the last out. The closest the Dodgers came to a hit was a booming shot to death valley in left-center than Mantle chased down, depriving Hodges of a sure double. McDougald had to make a difficult play of a ball that caromed off of Andy Carey’s glove, but the Dodgers never really threatened. It is and was the only perfect game in a World Series and the only postseason no-hitter until Roy Halladay pitched in the 2010 playoffs.
Game 6 was a pitchers duel. Labine against Turley. The game was scoreless until the bottom of the 10th and Jackie Robinson hit a walk off single. Turley had walked Gilliam, then a sac bunt by Pee Wee, then a walk to Snider before Jackie’s hit. Now it was on to game 7.
It was Kucks against Newcombe. And it was never really a contest. The Yanks scored 2 in the first, 2 in the 3rd, 1 in the 4th and 4 in 7th and cruised to a 9-0 win. Berra hit 2 HR’s, Skowron and Howard also homered. The Dodgers garnered only 3 hits in what would be the last World Series game ever played in Brooklyn. Jackie Robinson struck out to end the series in what would be his final at bat.
1957
The rumble was becoming a roar. The Dodgers fan base was relocating because of affordable automobiles and post-war prosperity. Ebbets Field lacked parking and it was in pretty shabby condition. Most of the fans relocated to Long Island. O’Malley tried to raise funds for a new ballpark elsewhere in Brooklyn. To do that he needed the political backing of Robert Moses. He envisioned a domed stadium near the Long Island RR station in Brooklyn’s west end. Moses did not like O’Malley and derided his pro-Brooklyn and pro-Irish sentiments in the press. O’Malley then wanted to build a stadium at Flatbush and Atlantic Avenues, but Moses wanted the Dodgers to move to Queens and play in Flushing Meadows Park, where Shea Stadium would eventually rise. O’Malley enlisted NY Governor Averell Harriman for bipartisan political support, but Moses blocked the sale of the land necessary to build the stadium. So at the winter meetings, O’Malley bought the Cubs Los Angeles franchise and their ballpark, Wrigley Field. LA mayor, Norris Poulson traveled to Vero to try and lure the team to LA. O’Malley met one more time with Moses to try and secure a deal, but it was useless. So O’Malley decided to move the team to Los Angeles. He needed to get another team to make the move with him and talked Giants owner Horace Stoneham into moving west to San Francisco so the two teams could continue their NY rivalry. Although he is to this day reviled by the fans of Brooklyn who felt abandoned, most of the blame has to lie with Robert Moses. His simple dislike of O’Malley’s heritage and love of the borough of Brooklyn changed the face of the game forever.
On the 13th of December, 1956, the Jackie Robinson era in Brooklyn officially ended when he was traded to the Giants for Dick Littlefield and 30,000 dollars. Jackie refused to report and the deal was nullified.
They signed Larry Burright, Doug Camilli, Ed Rakow, Carl Warwick, as amateur free agents. They traded Chico Fernandez to the Phillies and got Tim Harkness, Ron Negray, and Elmer Valo and 75,000 dollars. They also received 2 minor leaguers in the deal. The Phillies must have thought Fernandez was a Hall of Famer. That Lasorda guy was purchased from the Yanks in May. Maglie went to the Yankees on a waiver claim in September.
There had to be a lot of sadness on both the player’s and the fan’s part as their last season in Brooklyn progressed. After the first few games of the season, they were never in the hunt. Their last day in first was on the 8th of June. They would finish 3rd behind the Braves and Cardinals.
They played 7 games at Roosevelt Field in New Jersey, and their last game in Brooklyn was a 2-0 win over the Pirates. The attendance that night, 6,662. They were an aging club. 5 of their 9 starters were 30 or older. With the youngest being 26 year old Charlie Neal. Snider hit 40 for the 5th year in a row, but his BA dipped to .274, and he had 92 RBI’s. Campy, in what would be his final year only was in 103 games. His BA was better than 56, but his power and production dipped to 13, 62. Hodges played in 150 games, the most of any regular and hit .299, 27, 98. Gilliam started most of the games at 2nd while Neal took over at SS for Reese who moved to 3rd and was only in 103 games. Pee Wee dipped all the way to .224. Furillo hobbled some managed a .306, 12, 66 year. Amoros was the main 4th outfielder. Zimmer was a backup infielder and got into 84 games. It should be noted that because of some nasty concussions due to being hit in the head before they had batting helmets probably contributed to the fact that Don Zimmer never really reached the kind of potential he had.
After one such incident, he had a metal plate in his skull. Valo was in 81 games, and Walker was the main backup to Campy. But Johnny Roseboro, 24 made his debut. In 58 he would take over as the #1 backstop after Campy was paralyzed in an auto accident in New Jersey during the winter. Joe Pignatano saw his first action along with Jim Gentile. Drysdale won 17, Newcombe really sank with an 11-12 mark, Podres was 12-9, Maglie, 6-6, and McDevitt, 7-4. Labine won 5 out of the pen, Craig won 6. Labine saved 17. Koufax went 5-4 in 13 starts and 34 games. He struck out over 100 for the first time notching 122. He walked 51. Roebuck was 8-2 with 8 saves. Erskine, his arm hurting went 5-3. His days were numbered.
And so, Dodger baseball came to an end in the borough of Brooklyn. The last years had yielded heartbreak, joy, and much sadness. The team was not only leaving the City, they were moving all the way across the continent. Baseball was coming to the West Coast. And nothing would ever be the same again.
I became a Dodger fan in 1951 & these teams were what I grew up rooting for. Since then there have been good years and bad years, but they have always been my team!
It’s a good thing this isn’t an Arizona Diamondback site or we would never get these incredible historical write ups from Bear! Another great trip down memory lane! Thx Bear. Any chance a Dodger pitcher starts three times through game six in a series? Different times
I do not think in this day and age that we will ever see a pitcher do that. You have to remember, Erskine did not last long in his first start. But I remember Lolich stepping up in 68 when the Tigers beat the Cardinals and winning 3 games, when Cy Young winner, Denny McLain could not do the job. Koufax won 2 of his 3 starts in the 65 series with the Twins when he pitched on 2 days rest.
Looking at minor league stats and taking in consideration of who are competing for bench spots and their minor league stats and versatility, I’m fairly confident that the bench will be Barnes, Taylor, McKinstry, Rios, Neuse.
The last 2 years of Beaty’s minor league career he struggled against LHP and has done so in the major league. Rios did not.
The last 2 years of Peters’s minor league career there was not a lot of contact but a lot of power. As for Neuse less power (only as compared with Peters) but a lot more contact.
Just my opinion, I may be wrong.
I like all those guys and I’m sure we will see all of them contribute this year.
I think everything is pretty set as far as the roster goes, and Dustin Nosler summed it up pretty neatly. The one question mark is Beaty vs. Neuse, and I think you bring up the one reason why he will very likely not be on the roster and the right hand hitting Neuse will.
We shall see.
I just heard from the Dodgers game announcers that Doc said that Beaty is going to be on the roster.
So much for my prediction.
Yeah, that one could have gone either way. Beaty can also play LF and I don’t know that Neuse has much experience as an outfielder. The Dodgers know Beaty and are more confident in him, and with know DH, he will be a decent pinch hitter. I think Neuse’s time will come, though.
Thank you very much Bear. This is by far my favorite article that you’ve written on Dodgers
history. I guess I became a fan in 1953. I was able to watch them on TV back then. This was a great walk down memory lane. Of course, Hodges knocking in both runs in the ’55 WS winning game was my greatest thrill. Although I will never again feel the way I did back then (lost in the ’50s), I sure am having a great time watching them these last few years.
Go Dodgers!!!
You are more than welcome Hodges. I love those teams and those players, so the whole thing was a labor of love. After the nightmare he suffered in the 52 series, it was more than fitting that Gil drove in both runs. He was about as steady as they come, and in my opinion, the best first baseman of his era, and totally belongs in the hall. That he is not there with Pee Wee, Jackie, Campy, and Duke is a travesty. Those teams were the best. The game is so much different today that comparing them is impossible. But I cannot imagine many of today’s pitchers would have felt comfortable facing a lineup where the # 8 guy usually, Furillo, had a NL batting title under his belt.
Greatstuff again Bear. You da man.
Thank you Phil, I really appreciate it.
My final take here:
I want Neuse on the team. Send Beaty down or trade him. Barnes, Taylor, McKinstry, Rios, Neuse is a solid bench.
That Nelson curve is a weapon. Any other mlb team and he’s in the rotation. Right now his stuff is better than Kersh and Price and his command is better than May and Urias. And he’s our 8th starter? Now who knows if he can go 6-7 innings and stay healthy in our rotation? But I like what I see so far!
Happy birthday Kershaw!
Doing these historical stories is a lot of fun, and I do enjoy writing for this blog. Mark has been very supportive and I really appreciate it. Jeff helped me get started and has even given me some story lines. I have 2 more parts of the first year players series I started to finish, and I hope to have those done by next week. I have been extremely busy helping a friend of mine get back and forth to her doctors appointments. So I have not been able to write as much as I would like. Actually, when I posted this story I made several mistakes that I had to go back and correct. I am heading to California next month to visit family. I will be out there about 5 1/2 weeks. My sis and I are going to take a train trip up to Oregon to see my daughter and her family. I also hope to see some of my musical friends. On the way back I am stopping in Arizona to see a couple of friends and my great granddaughter who I have never seen. She will be 2 in August. I will have my laptop with me and will keep in touch that way. This is probably the last time I will make the trip out there driving. If I do go again, I will most likely fly.
Enjoy your trip!
Thanks I will. I really need to get away for a while.
Could they call the Dodgers bums in today’s society? Somehow I don’t think they could be referenced as Dem Homeless either. How about Dem Brooklyn Baseball Team guys
Good job Bear, as usual.
Remember no screaming or cheering out loud as you watch the games on TV, it’s been banned by the MLB.
I think this is going to be another very strange year for baseball and society.