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Baseball - The Year Was 1950 by
" Harold Friend"

The year was 1950, the date was September 19, and the Philadelphia Phillies led the Brooklyn Dodgers by 9 games with 15 left to play. When the season dwindled to a precious single game, so too had Philadelphia’s lead. The last game of the season would be played in Brooklyn and if the Brooks won, they would tie the Phillies for the pennant.

Philadelphia’s problems began on September 10. The first setback to their pennant hopes had little to do with what happened on the baseball field but much to do with combating the forces of evil. Former bonus baby left hander Curt Simmons’ National Guard Unit was activated to help keep the peace in Korea and Simmons, who had won only 12 while losing 23 since he joined the Phillies in 1947 but who matured and won 17 and lost 8 with a 3.40 ERA in 1950, was gone.

Five days later, rookie pitching sensation Bubba Church was hit in the face by a Ted Kluszewski line drive. Church won 8, lost 6, and had a 2.73 ERA, allowing only 113 hits in 142 innings. As if that weren’t enough, the Phillies other rookie right hander, Bob Miller, who had injured his back in August, came back too soon and developed a sore arm.

Catcher Andy Seminick, a major offensive force, was hurt in a collision at home plate during a doubleheader at the Polo Grounds on September 27. It was the tenth inning of the first game when the Giants’ Monte Irvin barreled into the venerable Phillies‘ backstop. Irvin had led the inning off with a walk, Bobby Thomson, who would make history in a little over a year, then sacrificed Irvin to second. In those days, even the batter who was going to hit the most memorable home run in baseball history could bunt.

Alvin “Blackie” Dark singled to right field. Del Ennis fielded the hit and fired home but Irvin beat the throw and crashed into Seminick, who was knocked out cold for a few minutes. Dark’s hit and Irvin’s base running gave the Giants an 8-7 win. Jim Hearn shut out the Phillies in the second game to cut their first place lead over Brooklyn to 4 games.

The injuries and the schedule were killing the Phillies. On Monday, September 25, they split a doubleheader with the Braves. The team known as the “Whiz Kids” beat the Braves in a single game on Tuesday and then went to New York where they lost consecutive doubleheaders. The Phillies were off on Friday while the Dodgers swept a doubleheader from the Braves. On Saturday, the Dodgers beat the Phillies to set up the final game showdown.

Robin Roberts started for the Phillies and Don Newcombe for Brooklyn. Roberts was making his third start in five days. That is not a mistake. Roberts was making his fifth start in five days. In 1949, Roberts pitched 226 2/3 innings, winning 15 and losing 15. In the next six seasons he pitched over 300 innings each season, averaging 43 starts. So much for pitch counts.

Brooklyn’s Don Newcombe also pitched a few innings. On September 6 he started BOTH games of a doubleheader against the Phillies. All he did was pitch a shutout in Game 1 and then went seven innings in Game 2 in a game the Brooklyns eventually won.

The score in the final regular season contest was 1-1 after nine innings. Both starters were, of course, still in the game. Brooklyn almost won it in the ninth inning but questionable strategy and Roberts’ clutch pitching prevent that from happening.

Cal Abrams led off the Dodgers’ ninth by taking a 3-2 fastball for ball four. PeeWee Reese fouled off two bunt attempts and then singled to left center with Abrams stopping at second. The Dodgers were in business with Snider coming to the plate. Most fans and the Phillies thought Snider would bunt the runners over but he took a full swing and lined a single to center where Ashburn was playing more shallow than usual because the sacrifice was in order. Ashburn charged the hit, third base coach Milt Stock, with no out, waved Abrams home, Ashburn fired the ball home to catcher Stan Lopata who tagged Abrams out and game remained tied.

Most accounts emphasize that Ashburn nailed Abrams trying to score the winning run in the ninth inning on a Duke Snider single and that Dick Sisler hit a three run home run in the tenth inning to win the game, but what is overlooked is that Reese went to third and Snider took second on the throw home, giving Brooklyn runners on second and third with only one out. Jackie Robinson was walked intentionally to load the bases, not only to set up the double play but also because no one in his right mind wanted to face Jackie Robinson with the pennant at stake. This brought up the always dangerous Carl Furillo. who swung at the first pitch and lifted a harmless pop fly on the right side of the diamond that Eddie Waitkus caught for the second out, leaving it up to Gil Hodges. The future Senators and Mets manager hit the fly ball, but it was one batter too late. Del Ennis caught Hodges’ drive in deep right center near the scoreboard, forcing extra innings.

Roberts led off the tenth with a single. Now, can anyone imagine a manager today allowing a pitcher who went nine tough innings to lead off the tenth? Anyway, Waitkus failed to bunt Roberts over on the first pitch, swung at Newcombe’s next delivery and hit a short pop up to center that fell in for a single, moving Roberts to second. Ashburn bunted back to Newcombe who threw Roberts out at third, leaving runners on first and second with one out. Dick Sisler was the batter. He hit a 1-2 Newcombe pitch to left field for an opposite field three run home run to win the pennant.

The 1950 National League pennant race was one of the greatest in history. It was significant because the only way to win the World Series was to first win the pennant. Only the team with the league’s best record played in the World Series. The only time there was a playoff series was when there was more than one team with the best record. A team that finished second, unlike today (see the Marlins of 1997 and 2003, the Mets of 2000, the Angels and Giants of 2002, and the Red Sox of 2004) went home for the winter.

It's unfair to allow the team with the second best record to play in the World Series? It decreases the significance of the regular season? It cheapens winning the championship? So what. We all know what counts. Having two playoff rounds generates a tremendous amount of money. It is good for the owners. Any questions?

References:

McGowen, Roscoe. (1950). Brooks overcome leaders by 2-0, 3-0. Newcombe hurls 3-hitter and then goes 7 innings of 2nd game, won by Bankhead. The New York Times, September 7, 1950. p.43.

McGowen, Roscoe. (1950). Phils beat Dodgers for flag; Win flag. Robinson purposely passed. Biggest and shortest marooned at second. The New York Times, October 2, 1950. p.1

Neft, David S., Cohen, Richard M. & Neft, Michael L. (2000). The sports encyclopedia: Baseball 2000. New York: St. Martin’s Press.

Sheehan, Joseph M. (1950). Giants turn back whiz kids, 8-7, 5-0. The New York Times, September 28, 1958. p.52.

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