Ralph Terry entered the 1961 season trying to shake off the effects of Bill Mazeroski's World Series winning homerun he gave up the previous year. Tough on Ralph, who, at 6 '3 was one of the tallest pitchers in baseball at the time.
He ended the year as one of the best right handed pitchers in the AL!
But he had to earn it first.
The Yankees didn't seem to interested in Terry in April. He pitched a total of three time. Actually, he pitched in relief in the very first game of the year, April 11, and was ineffective. The same could be said about his first start 11 days later. His only other April appearance was a little better, a win over Cleveland, despite 9 hits in only 7 innings.
His first four May starts brought not a win (or a loss) and Terry had still not showed much.
But then came May 24th against Boston. And was it ever a dandy.
Terry fired a complete game 3 hitter. And then Yankees needed it, for they scored only 3 runs. Terry game up 2.
But he still wasn't there, as he was knocked out against the same Red Sox six days later. 5 hits in only two innings. Two months and his ERA is 5.16!
June would bring Terry back on track.
Now his first game in June was a no decision. That's the bad part, as is the 4 earned runs. But the good part is he allowed just 7 hits and no walks. Terry was just that, a control pitcher.
On June 7th, Terry pitched a fine 2 hitter against the Twins. This time he gave up 3 walks, but he went the distance to pick up his third win.
His next start was on the 11th as he gave up just 5 hits and 1 walk.
Then 4 days later, he went 11 innings to beat Cleveland 3-2. He gave up 7 hits, but fanned a season high 8 for his 5th win of the season.
But there was some bad new from this: Terry had a stained shoulder. All those fine curveballs were having an effect on him.
His first start back was on July 9th against the Red Sox. Terry looked a little rusty. And with one out and two man on in the top of the second, Jim Coates replaced Terry. The Yankees lost the game 9-6. It was a game that featured a rare 3 run homerun by Bobby Richardson in a losing effort. It was also Terry's first loss on the year.
After lasting just two innings in his next start, then tossing 4.2 innings in a rare relief appearance, Terry hit a season low in his next appearance.
Terry didn't retire one batter when he appeared in relief in the 6th inning of a July 22nd game against the BoSox again. The two batters he faced both hit safely.
So only a July 27th game was left to try and salvage July.
Actually, Terry would pick up his 6th win as he went 8.1 innings and gave up just 5 hits and 3 walks, dropping his ERA to 3.59. The Yankees downed the ChiSox, 4-3.
Then came the big month for Ralph Terry, 1961.
August.
His first two starts had the following in common:
Hits allowed: 9
Earned runs allowed: 5
Run support: 12 runs
Result (team): win 12-5
Result (Terry): win 7 and 8 on the season.
He was back in the pen on August 16th as he pitched against the ChiSox. In four innings, he allowed just two hits, no walks and no runs for his 9th win. Now his W% on the season was .900, although his ERA was 3.76.
Then came back to back shutouts over Clevenland and Kansas City. First he gave up 4 hits and no walks, and then 5 hits and one walk, pushing his record to 12-1!
Finally, he lost a game.
It was his last start of the month, against Minnesota.
It actually wasn't that bad. Despite 8 hits in 7 innings, Terry walked only 1. And he allowed just two earned runs. But Terry emerged as the loser, as the Yankees were themselves shutout, 3-0, as his mound opponent Camilo Pascual used that fine, roll off the table curveball to allow only 4 hits, two walks and strikeout 9! It was his 12 win, one more than Terry.
So how good was August?
Let's look:
Terry went 5-1, with 5 straight wins at one point. His ERA was 2.45, and batters hit just .234 against him. More impressive, batters managed just a .239 one base percentage against Terry! That is because in 44 innings he gave up just 37 hits and 2 walks, total! And for the season, his ERA was now a very respectable 3.24.
On September 2nd, against Detroit, and it was a very key game, Terry beat the Tigers 7-2 with a fine outing. 7 innings, 6 hits and 1 walk. Now Terry had 12 wins to tie Pascual, who would lose his start the next day.
5 days later, Terry went the distance, gave up 5 hits, no walks and just 3 earned runs as the Yankees beat the Indians, 7-3.
And, again 5 days later, Terry was the winner in a 4-3, rain shortened game against Chicago. This was a little messy. 5.2 IP, 7H, but again, no walks. Terry had upped his record to 14-2.
How good was his control at this point? Consider this: in his last 10 appearances (9 starts, 1 relief) or 74.2 IP, Ralph had walked 6 batters!
It had to end somewhere, though.
And it did with a thud! September 16.
The Tigers realized this was about their last chance to catch the Yankees and won for the second straight game over the Bronx Bombers, 10-4, despite homeruns from Maris (#57) and Howard (#20 and also saw his batting average drop to .360).
But Terry was very off that day.
Roger Maris hit a two run shot in the to third to tie the game 2-2. But in the bottom of the third, with Al Kaline on first, Norm Cash (who had 2 hits and 4 RBIs on the day, raising his average to .359, right behind Howard) hit a homerun to give Detroit the lead for good.
In the next inning with two on, Rocky Colavito scored Billy Bruton with a single to put Detroit up 5-2. That was the end for Terry and the Yankees, who lost the game 10-4. Terry surrendered 10 hits and 6 earned runs. Frank Lary had beaten the Yankees, again!
But that was just Terry's third loss, and his next start was his 15th win, September 20th.
But hardly anyone remembers this game for who the winning pitcher was.
Actually, it was Roger Maris who everyone was watching.
But no one seemed to care that Terry pitched a complete game, gave up just 4 hits, 1 walk and 1 earned runs and the Yankees triumphed 4-2 and clinched the pennant. Maris did hit a homerun (#59) and followed with one of his own.
Terry also tied a season high as he struck out eight, including pinch hitter Marv Throneberry in the bottom of the eight.
With the pennant in hand, Terry was back on the mound four days later. He lasted 6 innings and gave up 4 hits and 0 walks. Then Yankees lost this game to the Red Sox, 3-1. Terry didn't get a decision.
It was game #162 on the season for the Yankees (although not the last regular season game as the Yankees played a tie) and who better to pitch (and win it) than the man who had pitched in the opening game?
Again he lasted only 6 innings, but for the second straight start, Terry didn't give up a walk and surrendered one earned run. He also fanned 5 and gave up just 5 hits. The Yankees won 3-1. Terry had his 16th and last win on the season against just 3 losses.
Although he tossed just 188.1 innings, his 3.15 ERA was good enough for 6th lowest in the American League that year. His 16 wins (despite only 27 starts) was good enough for 5th. His .842 W% was second to Whitey Ford. And most impressive was being second in WHIP with only 1.08. Ralph had walked just 42 batters, or about 2 per nine innings (He was 4th in the league in that category).
The one thing Terry lacked was a World Series win at this point!
Still shaking off the dire effects of the Maz homerun of a year before, Terry took the hill in the second game of the 1961 World Series.
He didn't pitch too badly. In his 7 innings, he gave up just 6 hits 2 walks and struck out 7.
After 4 innings the game was tied at 2. But in the top of the 5th, the Reds Vada Pinson scored on a passed ball. It was all Cincy would need.
Johnny Edwards then scored Wally Post with a single in the 6th. Terry was removed for pinch hitter Hector Lopez in the bottom of the 7th despite a 1-2-3 top of the innings. The Yankees ultimately lost the game 6-2.
But with the Yankees up 3-1 in the Series, Terry took the mound in the 5th game in Crosley Field.
Better still, the Yankees gave him a 6-0 lead into the bottom of the third.
But then Terry ran into trouble.
Don Blasingame and Eddie Kasko opened the inning with singles. Terry then retired Pinson on a fly ball that moved Blasingame to third.
Frank Robinson then hit a three run homerun to finish off Terry, although the Yankees won the game 13-5.
Ralph Terry was a pitcher who held the Yankees in the race in the last two months of the season. When the other starters faltered he (and Whitey Ford) kept the Yankees on course for their 26th pennant.
References:
1961 World Series: New York Yankees vs. Cincinnati Reds. Major League Baseball Productions. DVD.
Golenbock, Peter. Dynasty: The New York Yankees, 1949-1964. Lincolnwood, IL: Contemporary, 2000, pp. 405-445. Print.
Sports Reference LLC. Baseball-Reference.com - Major League Statistics and Information. http://www.baseball-reference.com/. Web. 29 Sept. 2011.
http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=8dZdAAAAIBAJ&sjid=yV4NAAAAIBAJ&pg=4670,6414776&dq=ralph+terry&hl=en
He ended the year as one of the best right handed pitchers in the AL!
But he had to earn it first.
The Yankees didn't seem to interested in Terry in April. He pitched a total of three time. Actually, he pitched in relief in the very first game of the year, April 11, and was ineffective. The same could be said about his first start 11 days later. His only other April appearance was a little better, a win over Cleveland, despite 9 hits in only 7 innings.
His first four May starts brought not a win (or a loss) and Terry had still not showed much.
But then came May 24th against Boston. And was it ever a dandy.
Terry fired a complete game 3 hitter. And then Yankees needed it, for they scored only 3 runs. Terry game up 2.
But he still wasn't there, as he was knocked out against the same Red Sox six days later. 5 hits in only two innings. Two months and his ERA is 5.16!
June would bring Terry back on track.
Now his first game in June was a no decision. That's the bad part, as is the 4 earned runs. But the good part is he allowed just 7 hits and no walks. Terry was just that, a control pitcher.
On June 7th, Terry pitched a fine 2 hitter against the Twins. This time he gave up 3 walks, but he went the distance to pick up his third win.
His next start was on the 11th as he gave up just 5 hits and 1 walk.
Then 4 days later, he went 11 innings to beat Cleveland 3-2. He gave up 7 hits, but fanned a season high 8 for his 5th win of the season.
But there was some bad new from this: Terry had a stained shoulder. All those fine curveballs were having an effect on him.
His first start back was on July 9th against the Red Sox. Terry looked a little rusty. And with one out and two man on in the top of the second, Jim Coates replaced Terry. The Yankees lost the game 9-6. It was a game that featured a rare 3 run homerun by Bobby Richardson in a losing effort. It was also Terry's first loss on the year.
After lasting just two innings in his next start, then tossing 4.2 innings in a rare relief appearance, Terry hit a season low in his next appearance.
Terry didn't retire one batter when he appeared in relief in the 6th inning of a July 22nd game against the BoSox again. The two batters he faced both hit safely.
So only a July 27th game was left to try and salvage July.
Actually, Terry would pick up his 6th win as he went 8.1 innings and gave up just 5 hits and 3 walks, dropping his ERA to 3.59. The Yankees downed the ChiSox, 4-3.
Then came the big month for Ralph Terry, 1961.
August.
His first two starts had the following in common:
Hits allowed: 9
Earned runs allowed: 5
Run support: 12 runs
Result (team): win 12-5
Result (Terry): win 7 and 8 on the season.
He was back in the pen on August 16th as he pitched against the ChiSox. In four innings, he allowed just two hits, no walks and no runs for his 9th win. Now his W% on the season was .900, although his ERA was 3.76.
Then came back to back shutouts over Clevenland and Kansas City. First he gave up 4 hits and no walks, and then 5 hits and one walk, pushing his record to 12-1!
Finally, he lost a game.
It was his last start of the month, against Minnesota.
It actually wasn't that bad. Despite 8 hits in 7 innings, Terry walked only 1. And he allowed just two earned runs. But Terry emerged as the loser, as the Yankees were themselves shutout, 3-0, as his mound opponent Camilo Pascual used that fine, roll off the table curveball to allow only 4 hits, two walks and strikeout 9! It was his 12 win, one more than Terry.
So how good was August?
Let's look:
Terry went 5-1, with 5 straight wins at one point. His ERA was 2.45, and batters hit just .234 against him. More impressive, batters managed just a .239 one base percentage against Terry! That is because in 44 innings he gave up just 37 hits and 2 walks, total! And for the season, his ERA was now a very respectable 3.24.
On September 2nd, against Detroit, and it was a very key game, Terry beat the Tigers 7-2 with a fine outing. 7 innings, 6 hits and 1 walk. Now Terry had 12 wins to tie Pascual, who would lose his start the next day.
5 days later, Terry went the distance, gave up 5 hits, no walks and just 3 earned runs as the Yankees beat the Indians, 7-3.
And, again 5 days later, Terry was the winner in a 4-3, rain shortened game against Chicago. This was a little messy. 5.2 IP, 7H, but again, no walks. Terry had upped his record to 14-2.
How good was his control at this point? Consider this: in his last 10 appearances (9 starts, 1 relief) or 74.2 IP, Ralph had walked 6 batters!
It had to end somewhere, though.
And it did with a thud! September 16.
The Tigers realized this was about their last chance to catch the Yankees and won for the second straight game over the Bronx Bombers, 10-4, despite homeruns from Maris (#57) and Howard (#20 and also saw his batting average drop to .360).
But Terry was very off that day.
Roger Maris hit a two run shot in the to third to tie the game 2-2. But in the bottom of the third, with Al Kaline on first, Norm Cash (who had 2 hits and 4 RBIs on the day, raising his average to .359, right behind Howard) hit a homerun to give Detroit the lead for good.
In the next inning with two on, Rocky Colavito scored Billy Bruton with a single to put Detroit up 5-2. That was the end for Terry and the Yankees, who lost the game 10-4. Terry surrendered 10 hits and 6 earned runs. Frank Lary had beaten the Yankees, again!
But that was just Terry's third loss, and his next start was his 15th win, September 20th.
But hardly anyone remembers this game for who the winning pitcher was.
Actually, it was Roger Maris who everyone was watching.
But no one seemed to care that Terry pitched a complete game, gave up just 4 hits, 1 walk and 1 earned runs and the Yankees triumphed 4-2 and clinched the pennant. Maris did hit a homerun (#59) and followed with one of his own.
Terry also tied a season high as he struck out eight, including pinch hitter Marv Throneberry in the bottom of the eight.
With the pennant in hand, Terry was back on the mound four days later. He lasted 6 innings and gave up 4 hits and 0 walks. Then Yankees lost this game to the Red Sox, 3-1. Terry didn't get a decision.
It was game #162 on the season for the Yankees (although not the last regular season game as the Yankees played a tie) and who better to pitch (and win it) than the man who had pitched in the opening game?
Again he lasted only 6 innings, but for the second straight start, Terry didn't give up a walk and surrendered one earned run. He also fanned 5 and gave up just 5 hits. The Yankees won 3-1. Terry had his 16th and last win on the season against just 3 losses.
Although he tossed just 188.1 innings, his 3.15 ERA was good enough for 6th lowest in the American League that year. His 16 wins (despite only 27 starts) was good enough for 5th. His .842 W% was second to Whitey Ford. And most impressive was being second in WHIP with only 1.08. Ralph had walked just 42 batters, or about 2 per nine innings (He was 4th in the league in that category).
The one thing Terry lacked was a World Series win at this point!
Still shaking off the dire effects of the Maz homerun of a year before, Terry took the hill in the second game of the 1961 World Series.
He didn't pitch too badly. In his 7 innings, he gave up just 6 hits 2 walks and struck out 7.
After 4 innings the game was tied at 2. But in the top of the 5th, the Reds Vada Pinson scored on a passed ball. It was all Cincy would need.
Johnny Edwards then scored Wally Post with a single in the 6th. Terry was removed for pinch hitter Hector Lopez in the bottom of the 7th despite a 1-2-3 top of the innings. The Yankees ultimately lost the game 6-2.
But with the Yankees up 3-1 in the Series, Terry took the mound in the 5th game in Crosley Field.
Better still, the Yankees gave him a 6-0 lead into the bottom of the third.
But then Terry ran into trouble.
Don Blasingame and Eddie Kasko opened the inning with singles. Terry then retired Pinson on a fly ball that moved Blasingame to third.
Frank Robinson then hit a three run homerun to finish off Terry, although the Yankees won the game 13-5.
Ralph Terry was a pitcher who held the Yankees in the race in the last two months of the season. When the other starters faltered he (and Whitey Ford) kept the Yankees on course for their 26th pennant.
References:
1961 World Series: New York Yankees vs. Cincinnati Reds. Major League Baseball Productions. DVD.
Golenbock, Peter. Dynasty: The New York Yankees, 1949-1964. Lincolnwood, IL: Contemporary, 2000, pp. 405-445. Print.
Sports Reference LLC. Baseball-Reference.com - Major League Statistics and Information. http://www.baseball-reference.com/. Web. 29 Sept. 2011.
http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=8dZdAAAAIBAJ&sjid=yV4NAAAAIBAJ&pg=4670,6414776&dq=ralph+terry&hl=en
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