It all started in the opening tilt at the original Busch Stadium, at one time called Sportsman's Park. The St. Louis Cardinals hosted the first game of the '64 Fall Classic there. But it was not as if the visiting New York Yankees didn't have some ancient advantage, too, you see.
They had Whitey Ford, who first pitched in the 1950 World Series, beating Philadelphia in the fourth contest. Here, Whitey, despite some discomfort in his elbow, was sailing along through five innings. The Cardinals had gotten nothing off him in the third, fourth and fifth (An inning in which St. Louis went down 1-2-3).
But to the Cardinals' catcher, it seemed that Ford wasn't exactly at his best. To anyone watching the game, the old pro still had it. Catchers see more than you and I do, as David Halbertam would say in October 1964,
"As the game developed, though, it was clear to McCarver that Ford did not have much that day, that was he probably pitching in considerable pain."
But the sixth inning would change that thought. It all started when Ken Boyer singled. Elston Howard, McCarver's counterpart on the Yankees, then allowed a passed ball. Bill White fanned, and now Ford had four strikeouts in just five and a third innings.
But that's when Ford's luck ran out, as Peter Golenbock put it in Dynasty. "...an inning later [sixth], Ford stopped retiring batters." Well, he got White out, but Bill was the last batter Whitey retired. It was then that Mike Shannon hit a towering blast to right, maybe 500 feet, sailing above the scoreboard. The game was tied. Tim McCarver found the gap in right, and Ford had thrown his last pitch in the World Series.
Al Downing came in, and got Charlie James to pop out to Bobby Richardson, the Yankees' second basemen. Pinch hitter Carl Warwick kept the inning alive, though, by just pushing one past shortstop Phil Linz (Playing for injured regular Tony Kubek), to cash in McCarver. Curt Flood then hit one to left, that Tom Tresh appeared to lose in the sky. Warwick scored a big run. From 4-2 down to 6-4 up!
Well, the Yankees got one run back, so that sixth run was big. Rollie Sheldon took over from Downing in the eighth, and the Cardinals were back at it. Shannon reached on an error and then made it to second on a passed ball. McCarver's patience at the dish was rewarded as he drew a bases on balls.
Barney Schultz, the St. Louis reliever, lined into a double play, McCarver being the one erased. This seemed like a big play. But then pinch hitter Bob Skinner batted, and was put on first. Manager Yogi Berra removed Sheldon, despite the face that he hadn't so much as given up a hit in two-thirds of an inning.
Pete Mikkelsen came in, but he seemed to struggle. He gave up a single, a triple and a walk, before finally getting that last out. But St. Louis had the game in their pocked.
It seemed like New York righted the ship after that. First, Mel Stottlemyre beat Bob Gibson 8-3 in the second game. The first game at Yankee Stadium was close all the way, but Mickey Mantle's dramatic walk-off blast gave the home team a 2-1 win.
So, game four was big. St. Louis didn't exactly get off to a promising start. They didn't so much as get the ball out of the infield in the top of the first, but the home team did. The Yankees scored three runs on five hits. Cardinals starter Ray Sadecki, who'd won game one, lasted one-third of an inning.
Roger Craig took over, and held New York scoreless for four and two-thirds innings. St. Louis got four runs on a grand slam by Ken Boyer in the top of the sixth, a big clutch hit. Tim McCarver would be in position for the knock-out blow on Yankees' pitcher Al Downing. There was one out when Boyer connected. Bill White batted next, but popped out. With McCarver in the one-deck circle, Mike Shannon flied out to Roger Maris in centre.
So Tim would have to wait until the top of the eighth to hit. Leading off, he patiently waited out four straight balls from Downing. When Dal Maxvill got ahead 2-0, Berra brought in Pete Mikkelsen. Mikkelsen got Maxvill to ground out, as now the Cardinals had another man in scoring position. Mikkelsen pitched great. Pitcher Ron Taylor batted for himself, and struck out. Curt Flood grounded out.
McCarver picked up a single later in the contest, but new pitcher Ralph Terry finished the game. St. Louis won, 4-3.
The next game was another biggie. The Cardinals took an early 2-0 lead, and were looking for more against reliever Hal Reniff in the eighth. Hal got Ken Boyer to ground out to start the inning. That was the only batter he retired.
Dick Groat singled. Tim McCarver followed suit. Again, the call went out to Pete Mikkelsen. And again Pete did the job. Mike Shannon fanned. Dal Maxvill grounded out.
Down went St. Louis 1-2-3 in the ninth, and that was huge as Tom Tresh's dramatic two-run home run tied it. McCarver would be the man to trump that. In the tenth, he nailed Mikkelsen's 3-2 pitch into the gap in right for a game-winning three-run home run.
Well, the Yankees brought out their big sticks in the sixth game, back at Busch. It was, "One of those days" for the Cardinals. Curt Simmons pitched well for St. Louis, but gave up back-to-back home runs to Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle in the sixth inning on consecutive pitches. Jim Bouton pitched awesome for the Yankees. Joe Pepitone's grand slam in the top of the eighth made it 8-1 for the visitors.
The Cardinals managed to get one run back in their half of that frame. And in the ninth, Tim McCarver tried to get more. Leading off, he popped out. The next two men singled, though, and that prompted a pitching change, even though McCarver played no part in it. Despite scoring another run, St. Louis ended up 8-3 losers.
Tim did everything to help out his team in game seven, though. He got an RBI in the fourth, and later swiped home as part of a daring, double-steal. St. Louis touched home three times that frame. On McCarver's grounder, which ended up scoring a run, New York attempted a tough double play. Mel Stottelmyre jammed his shoulder as he tried to beat McCarver to the bag. This resulted in him leaving game seven early.
Well, the New York bullpen didn't help. Al Downing saw his first pitch to Lou Brock go a mile for a home run. The Cards were heading towards a big fifth inning. A single and a double and Downing hit the showers. Rollie Sheldon came in, and Tim McCarver would get a chance to help the home side cause. Dick Groat grounded out, but it plated a man. McCarver flied out to Mickey Mantle in right, but Ken Boyer tagged up from third and beat the throw. St. Louis seemed to have this game.
Well, New York had other ideas. They batted right after the Cards had put another "3" on the board. The Bronx Bombers then made a "3" of their own in the top of the sixth. Mickey Mantle crushed a 1-0 pitch from Bob Gibson over Lou Brock's head in left. Lou would see two more go over him as the game continued.
Sheldon had a nice 1-2-3 sixth inning, so New York had the momentum on their side now. Ken Boyer hit a solo home run off Steve Hamilton in the seventh, and it was big, giving St. Louis some breathing room, 7-3.
And Tim McCarver started a rally that would end Hamilton's day in the eighth. He led off with single. Mike Shannon reached on an error. Dal Maxvill bunted both men over. There was a grand chance for the Cardinals to go back up by six runs.
Bob Gibson was still in the game for St. Louis, but pitching with two days' rest. He'd shaken off Mantle's blast earlier, but probably wanted more runs to work with. Well, he was in position here to help out his own cause. Pete Mikkelsen hopped in from the bullpen. It was his fourth appearance in the 1964 World Series.
Gibson grounded to Clete Boyer, Ken's younger brother (Both played third base). McCarver made a mistake. He headed to the dish, only to be caught in a run down. Phil Linz, the Yankees' shortstop, ended up applying the tag. When Curt Flood lined out to Boyer at third, a promising inning came to a screeching halt.
At the time, it didn't seem to matter. St. Louis had a four-run lead. McCarver actually helped his pitcher by making an amazing play behind the dish, trying to redeem himself. Tom Tresh foul-tipped a ball with two strikes, with McCarver losing his glove as he went for the projectile, but the ball found his bare hands! But then Clete Boyer him a home run with one out (During the at-bat, it was announced that both Roger Craig and Ray Sadecki were warming up), and Linz added one with two away. Bobby Richardson popped out, and St. Louis had the game and series.
For Tim McCarver, it was a great Fall Classic. He'd topped all hitters with a .478 batting average. A .552 on-base percentage also was the head of the pack. Yet, it was not so much that Tim hit so well, but rather the timing of his actions. That three-run bomb in the fifth contest was huge. But what about all those pitchers he'd sent packing? Well, that kinda of put a dent into some of their egos, so be sure. McCarver went from catching to the booth, giving tremendous insights to the game for years to come. As a Toronto Blue Jay fan in the early 90s, it was always a treat to hear him in the World Series. McCarver, who passed away earlier this year, will be missed.
References
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