Thursday, April 10, 2014

World Series: Did You Know?

The Dodgers were shutout for the first thirteen innings of the 1959 World Series.

Early Wynn of the American League Champion Chicago White Sox was simply on his game in the opening act between Chicago and LA. The Dodgers just didn't seem to have a chance. Game two was also bad for a while. Sometimes, good pitching shutouts good hitting!

Charlie Neal hit a one-out single for Los Angeles in the top of the first. He stole second. A walk put two men on with two out. But the Dodgers could not score. The White Sox sure did: They touched home twice in the bottom of the frame!

And they needed only the first tally. Wynn had a 1-2-3 2nd and 3rd. Roger Craig, shaken up in the first for the Dodgers, also had a 1-2-3 2nd inning. But in the third, he was driven out on a 2-run home run by Ted Kluszewksi. It was 4-0, Chicago. Before the inning was over, the White Sox scored five more times. This game was all in the bag, now!

Wynn gave up a pair of singles in the top of the fourth. Neither of them scored. Chicago sure scored in the bottom of the frame, as Ted Kluszewksi again went yard. And again, it was for two runs. It was now 11-0, Chicago. Mercifully, the White Sox did not touch home again.

Wynn, though, had a 1-2-3 5th with two K's. In the 6th, it was Charlie Neal with another single, but that's all she wrote for Los Angeles in that inning. Maury Wills connected for a 2-out single in the top of the 7th. He did not steal second. Ron Fairly pinch hit for Sandy Koufax (who tossed 2 perfect innings in relief) and grounded out to Kluszewski at first. Wynn stepped on first for the putout.

Jim Gilliam led off the 8th inning for the Dodgers and got a single. It was the sixth hit off Wynn. Al Lopez, the White Sox manager, decided to remove Early. Gerry Staley came in to pitch and was about to make Lopez look like a genuis. Neal hit into a double play and Wally Moon hit a comebacker that Staley fielded and fired to first to retire the side.

Staley fanned Don Demeter to start the 9th. Then the Dodgers looked like they'd finally score. Norm Larker hit a single and Gil Hodges followed suit. Los Angeles was up to 8 hits, which isn't bad when you consider Chicago had 11. But the different was the White Sox had 11 runs by the end of the game. The Dodgers hits went for naught!

Johnny Roseboro hit into a force play at second, Larker now on third with two outs. The game ended as Carl Furillo batted for Maury Wills and flied out. The game went into the record books as an 11-0 win by Chicago.

Game 2 did not seem to start out any better for the Dodgers. Chicago was still scoring and Los Angeles was still looking for a single run, or something positive!

In the top of the first inning of game two, the Dodgers seemed to wake up with two outs. Warren Moon singled, and stole second. Duke Snider followed with a single of his own to move Moon to third. Alas, both runners were stranded.

With Luis Aparicio on third and Jim Landis on first in the bottom of the frame, Chicago was at it again. Actually, I should say, Ted Kluszewski was at it again. He grounded out, but that scored the speedy Aparicio to make it 1-0, Chicago. It would soon be 2-0 as Sherman Lollar followed with a single to score Landis from second. Al Smith reached on an error by Wills the shortstop, putting runners on first and second with two outs. Johnny Podres got Bubba Phillips to ground to third for the force out.

With two out in the top of the second, it was like the top of the first all over again. Two outs, and then, two singles. Wills singled and Podres helped out his own cause by connecting. The speedy Wills made it to third. Gilliam fouled out to Kluszewksi at first. Once again, ninety feet from immortality, and no dice!

The White Sox also got two men on in the bottom of the frame, but could not get anyone in. Bob Shaw, the Chicago starter, had a 1-2-3 top of the third. Podres settled down and retired the side in the bottom of the third on just a walk.

Shaw allowed a single by Roseboro with two outs in the top of the fourth, but that's all Los Angeles got. Shaw himself then got a single in the bottom of the inning, but that was all Chicago got.

In the top of the 5th, Podres flew out to start. Then, Jim Gilliam grounded out. The shutout streak had reached 13 2/3 innings. But Charlie Neal went yard on a solo blast to end that.

The Dodgers ended up winning game 2 of the 1959 World Series 4-3. They then took three of the next four games to win it all. But throughout the Fall Classic of that year, runs weren't easy to come by for the Los Angeles Dodgers. They were twice shutout. And for a while, I'm sure more than a few of the Dodgers' players and fans were chiming in with, "When are we going to score one crummy run?"

Patience can be rewarded. Even in baseball. Even in the World Series.




References


Enders, Eric. 100 Years Of The World Series. New York: Sterling Publishing Co., Inc. 2005. Print.

Neft, David S., Richard M. Cohen, and Michael L. Neft. The Sports Encyclopedia: Baseball, 1992. 12th ed. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1992. Print.

Nemec, David et all. 20th Century Baseball Chronicle: A Year-by-year History of Major League Baseball. Collector's Edition. Lincolnwood, Ill: Publications International, 1993. Print.

Sports Reference LLC.  Baseball-Reference.com - Major League Statistics and Information. http://www.baseball-reference.com/. Web. 10 Apr. 2014.

Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Web 10 Apr. 2014. <https://en.wikipedia.org>.

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