Monty Pearson won exactly one game for the New York Yankees from 1936 to 1939. His Yankees won all four Fall Classics. Pearson, like Lefty Gomez, would never lose a World Series game. No wonder New York won so much.
Pearson watched as Red Ruffing and Gomez pitched the first two games of 1936. Ruffing lost his, Gomez squared the deal. Their crosstown rivals, the Giants, were not to be taken lightly. A 2-1 win in the third contest put the American League winners up 2-1 in games as well. The Yankees were halfway to their first Fall Classic win without Babe Ruth.
But with guys like Lou Gehrig and rookie Joe DiMaggio, the Yankees' tradition would continue. And Pearson got the nod for game four at home. It would be either 3-1 or 2-2. This was a crucial one!
Oh, did I mention he'd be up against Carl Hubbell, the master of the screwball? Well, it was going to be a tough one, too!
Pearson was 19-7 that year, but his ERA was high (3.71). But the Yankees, playing at home, strafed Hubbel for three runs in the bottom of the third, having also tallied once the previous inning. The big blow was Gehrig's 2-run home run. It was sweet revenge for The Iron Horse. Hubbell had fanned him in the 1934 All Star Game.
The Giants, however, got on the board in the top of the fourth. And they scored again in the top of the eighth. The good news was, in addition to the 4-2 lead, Hubbell was out of the game. Another run off Frank Gabler in the bottom of the eighth was the final touch of home by either team. The Yankees won, 5-2 and went on to win the 1936 Fall Classic in six games.
In 1937, the two teams squared off again. It was Gomez who beat Hubbell in the opener. Ruffing won game two. And when Pearson won the third game with a five-hitter, it was obvious that the Yankees were going to repeat. Although the Giants won the fourth contest to avoid the sweep, it was the Yankees with the crown again with a 4-2 win in game five behind Gomez.
In 1938 it was the poor Chicago Cubs that got a taste of a sweep, as the Yankees showed no mercy. Again, Pearson had to wait. Gomez and Ruffing did the trick again in games one and two (Despite an heroic effort by Dizzy Dean in the second game). Pearson moved them one step closer toward immortality with another win of 5-2 in game five. Monte finished the day with another five-hitter. And he was better than that. Only one of the runs was actually earned. And of the 27 outs Pearson got, 9 of them were via the strikeout. Oh, and he also drove in a run. And New York? They won game four to complete the sweep.
Pearson's finest work was still to come, however. Next year, same result. A sweep over the Cincinnati Reds. The Reds were good enough to win it all in 1940. But here, they seemed a little more mortal.
Still, Ruffing barely won the first game at home. The Bronx Bombers took it walk-off style in the bottom of the ninth, but only 2-1. Monte was given the ball next, having more than earned the start after three previous World Series gems. He'd also gone 12-5 despite a 4.49 ERA in the regular season.
Pearson didn't look like a pitcher with a high ERA in that second game. Actually, he looked more like Sandy Koufax, Whitey Ford, Bob Gibson, Allie Reynolds or Lefty Gomez. But Lefty wasn't about to pitch until the third game in Cincinnati. Here, it was all Monte Pearson. And I mean, all Monte! The Full Monte!
Monte's full talents were on display. Having gotten the first nine Reds out, he hit a sacrifice bunt to move Babe Dahlgren over to second. The mighty Yankees ended up scoring three times in the bottom of the third. That was more than enough. Pearson walked leadoff hitter Billy Werber in the top of the fourth. He was quickly erased when New York turned two. The next eleven batters were retired. But five outs away from a no-hitter, it was Ernie Lombardi singling in the eighth with one down. The next five batters were retired. One out away from a one-hitter! Werber singled. Lonny Frey forced Werber at second. Pearson finished with eight punchouts. The fine two-hitter won the game for New York, 4-0. The Yankees were also heading to Cincinnati up 2-0. They complete the sweep two games later.
Pearson, though, had pitched his last game in the Fall Classic, however. The Yankees did not return to the World Series in 1940, and when they made it back the next season, Pearson was on the Reds. But not for long. He struggled and the minor league Hollywood Stars ended up purchasing is contract. After just one game there, Pearson left the baseball establishment.
Monte Pearson is another example of a player who really wasn't a star. His final career stats are mediocre, 100-61, 4.00 ERA. He never got much in the way of Hall Of Fame consideration. However, his 4-0 record in the Fall Classic is nearly as good as Lefty Gomez, who has the highest W% of any pitcher in the World Series (6-0, 1.000). Lefty went to the Hall, Pearson sits outside of it. But together, along with Red Ruffing, they were pure poison to the opposition in the World Series from 1936-1939.
References
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.
Neft, David S., and Richard M. Cohen. The World Series: Complete Play-by-play of Every Game, 1903-1989. 4th ed. New York: St. Martin's, 1990. Print.
Sports Reference LLC. Baseball-Reference.com - Major League Statistics and Information. http://www.baseball-reference.com/. Web. 27 Mar. 2016
Pearson watched as Red Ruffing and Gomez pitched the first two games of 1936. Ruffing lost his, Gomez squared the deal. Their crosstown rivals, the Giants, were not to be taken lightly. A 2-1 win in the third contest put the American League winners up 2-1 in games as well. The Yankees were halfway to their first Fall Classic win without Babe Ruth.
But with guys like Lou Gehrig and rookie Joe DiMaggio, the Yankees' tradition would continue. And Pearson got the nod for game four at home. It would be either 3-1 or 2-2. This was a crucial one!
Oh, did I mention he'd be up against Carl Hubbell, the master of the screwball? Well, it was going to be a tough one, too!
Pearson was 19-7 that year, but his ERA was high (3.71). But the Yankees, playing at home, strafed Hubbel for three runs in the bottom of the third, having also tallied once the previous inning. The big blow was Gehrig's 2-run home run. It was sweet revenge for The Iron Horse. Hubbell had fanned him in the 1934 All Star Game.
The Giants, however, got on the board in the top of the fourth. And they scored again in the top of the eighth. The good news was, in addition to the 4-2 lead, Hubbell was out of the game. Another run off Frank Gabler in the bottom of the eighth was the final touch of home by either team. The Yankees won, 5-2 and went on to win the 1936 Fall Classic in six games.
In 1937, the two teams squared off again. It was Gomez who beat Hubbell in the opener. Ruffing won game two. And when Pearson won the third game with a five-hitter, it was obvious that the Yankees were going to repeat. Although the Giants won the fourth contest to avoid the sweep, it was the Yankees with the crown again with a 4-2 win in game five behind Gomez.
In 1938 it was the poor Chicago Cubs that got a taste of a sweep, as the Yankees showed no mercy. Again, Pearson had to wait. Gomez and Ruffing did the trick again in games one and two (Despite an heroic effort by Dizzy Dean in the second game). Pearson moved them one step closer toward immortality with another win of 5-2 in game five. Monte finished the day with another five-hitter. And he was better than that. Only one of the runs was actually earned. And of the 27 outs Pearson got, 9 of them were via the strikeout. Oh, and he also drove in a run. And New York? They won game four to complete the sweep.
Pearson's finest work was still to come, however. Next year, same result. A sweep over the Cincinnati Reds. The Reds were good enough to win it all in 1940. But here, they seemed a little more mortal.
Still, Ruffing barely won the first game at home. The Bronx Bombers took it walk-off style in the bottom of the ninth, but only 2-1. Monte was given the ball next, having more than earned the start after three previous World Series gems. He'd also gone 12-5 despite a 4.49 ERA in the regular season.
Pearson didn't look like a pitcher with a high ERA in that second game. Actually, he looked more like Sandy Koufax, Whitey Ford, Bob Gibson, Allie Reynolds or Lefty Gomez. But Lefty wasn't about to pitch until the third game in Cincinnati. Here, it was all Monte Pearson. And I mean, all Monte! The Full Monte!
Monte's full talents were on display. Having gotten the first nine Reds out, he hit a sacrifice bunt to move Babe Dahlgren over to second. The mighty Yankees ended up scoring three times in the bottom of the third. That was more than enough. Pearson walked leadoff hitter Billy Werber in the top of the fourth. He was quickly erased when New York turned two. The next eleven batters were retired. But five outs away from a no-hitter, it was Ernie Lombardi singling in the eighth with one down. The next five batters were retired. One out away from a one-hitter! Werber singled. Lonny Frey forced Werber at second. Pearson finished with eight punchouts. The fine two-hitter won the game for New York, 4-0. The Yankees were also heading to Cincinnati up 2-0. They complete the sweep two games later.
Pearson, though, had pitched his last game in the Fall Classic, however. The Yankees did not return to the World Series in 1940, and when they made it back the next season, Pearson was on the Reds. But not for long. He struggled and the minor league Hollywood Stars ended up purchasing is contract. After just one game there, Pearson left the baseball establishment.
Monte Pearson is another example of a player who really wasn't a star. His final career stats are mediocre, 100-61, 4.00 ERA. He never got much in the way of Hall Of Fame consideration. However, his 4-0 record in the Fall Classic is nearly as good as Lefty Gomez, who has the highest W% of any pitcher in the World Series (6-0, 1.000). Lefty went to the Hall, Pearson sits outside of it. But together, along with Red Ruffing, they were pure poison to the opposition in the World Series from 1936-1939.
References
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.
Neft, David S., and Richard M. Cohen. The World Series: Complete Play-by-play of Every Game, 1903-1989. 4th ed. New York: St. Martin's, 1990. Print.
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