Dodgers World Series My Flashbacks over 66 Years
Sunday was an off-day in the Dodgers pursuit of a World Series championship. Among other things I took a few moments to see what I could remember from each of the Dodgers 12 appearances in the World Series during my time as a Dodger fanatic. For some I don’t recall much, but for all I have a moment or two that I do. I became a Dodger fan on April
Sunday was an off-day in the Dodgers pursuit of a World Series championship. Among other things I took a few moments to see what I could remember from each of the Dodgers 12 appearances in the World Series during my time as a Dodger fanatic. For some I don’t recall much, but for all I have a moment or two that I do.
I became a Dodger fan on April 19, 1952. I know that for sure as it was not only the first time I picked up a Dodger broadcast out of Brooklyn with Vin’s voice calling the first play I ever heard on my little RCA Victor radio, but all three Dodger outfielders hit a home run against the Giants. It was the only time that Andy Pafko, Duke Snider and Carl Furillo all homered in the same game and I not only heard it but remembered it so could later confirm the date on Baseball Reference. Duke’s was the first I heard, and I imprinted like a chicken on him.
Since then the Dodgers have gone 6-8 in World Series appearances and were 0-5 prior to 1952 so we have some catching up to do. Below are some remembrances of each. Although I recall the name, the play, etc. I do have to look back for some additional data.
1952 – Rookie pitcher, Joe Black, was the Dodgers #1 starter in the series. I expected it to be Carl Erskine or Preacher Roe, but it was the 28-year-old Black. He won one game and lost two to the Yankees, one of those losses by a 1-0 score. He had a 2.53 ERA over 21.1 innings pitched. Some Dodger faithful will not have to look this one up. Dodger first baseman Gil Hodges went 0-21 in a devastating series for him. Another memory – George “Shotgun” Shuba was the first player to hit a pinch-hit home run as a National League player in the World Series. Duke hit four home runs.
1953 – Carl Erskine started three games and lost two. The memory is his 14 strikeouts in one appearance, at that time a World Series record. At bat I recall Jim Gilliam, another Rookie of the Year, surprisingly hitting very well. A check of the World Series stats reveals he was tied at eight hits with Carl Furillo, Duke Snider, Jackie Robinson and Roy Campanella. It was also the first season I grew an appreciation for right-hander Clem Labine, a true reliever able to do it all.
1955 – Need I say more. We won!!! Left-hander, 22-year-old Johnny Podres won two complete games. Clem Labine appeared in four games with a win and a save. Jackie Robinson stole home. We listened to the games at my home with Dodger and Yankee fans alike and Mom providing food for us. My favorite player Duke Snider hit four home runs. I recall Duke and Campy laying down consecutive bunts in game seven leading to a Gil Hodges sac fly. Duke’s caught the Yankees so by surprise they threw it away.
1956 – My memories are still obscured by the Don Larsen perfect game. Well not totally. Everyone remembers that game but not so many that reliever Clem Labine pitched a 1-0 complete game in 10 innings the next day downing Yankee fireballer Bob Turley. I do recall that Newk’s postseason woes continued and the Dodgers got trounced in game seven and former Giant Sal Maglie pitched well for the Dodgers.
1959 – I recall being blown out in the first game of the series with the White Sox but coming back to win in six games. The next Clem Labine had moved in as right-hander Larry Sherry stole the show with four appearances in which he had two wins and two saves. Another youngster, infielder Charlie Neal, led the way at the plate. Second baseman Nellie Fox and left-hander Billy Pierce were two of my non-Dodgers favorites. I was OK with them doing well but not too well. Duke had his last homer in postseason play.
1963 – If any revenge ever felt good, this one did as we swept the Yankees. Sandy Koufax, Don Drysdale, and Johnny Podres held the Yankees to four runs in four games. Outfielder Tommy Davis was coming into his own and former Yankee first baseman Moose Skowron had significant hits.
1965 – Facing Harmon Killebrew, Bob Allison and Tony Oliva Sandy Koufax again dominated winning two complete game shutouts and losing a game giving up one run over six innings. Don Drysdale picked up a complete game win as did much under-appreciated Claude Osteen who turned out to be one of the better Dodger trades over the years. Sweet Lou Johnson had two home runs, one to give Sandy Koufax a 1-0 lead in the seventh game. I recall first baseman Ron Fairly hitting really well as did Maury Wills. The reason I remember Fairly so well is that I had watched him play in Edmonton, Alberta in the summer of 1957 in the Western Canada Baseball League. I actually had the opportunity to chat with him in 1957. The next season he was with the Dodgers.
1966 – A painful memory indeed. The Dodgers were swept in four games scoring a total of two runs and losing two 1-0 games. My memory this time is of an Oriole, right-hander Moe Drabowsky who won a game limiting the Dodgers to one hit in 6.2 innings. I had watched him played in the Halifax and District League back in the early fifties with the Truro Bearcats before I moved to Edmonton.
1974 – Also painful as the Oakland Athletics overmatched the Dodgers never allowing more than two runs in any of the five games. Don Sutton won the only game for the Dodgers. The pitching staff did quite well but lost three games by a 3-2 score. Garvey, Lopes, Cey, Russell, Buckner could not generate enough offense.
1977 – Tommy’s first year as the Dodgers manager. The Dodgers lost 4-2 to the hated Yankees. My most painful memory is Reggie Jackson hitting five home runs, three in the final game.
1978- Another try at the Yankees. The Dodgers won the first two games in the series. I can recall talking with Kevin Vickers, a Yankee fan, in front of the post office in Lunenburg. He was a bit down and I was upbeat. Next time I saw him the table had turned over. I can also recall that Davey Lopes hit with unexpected power and that rookie right-hander Bob Welch struck out Reggie Jackson to record a save. The next time they met Jackson hit a home run to hand Welch the loss.
1981 – Ah, the Rick Monday home run against the Montreal Expos to get us there and sweet revenge against the Yankees. The Dodgers turned the tables, losing the first two games and then taking four straight, three of them by one run. I can recall the Yankees taking Tommy John out of a game in which he was pitching very well and bringing in George Frazier. I gave a big sigh of relief. Frazier, who lost three games, gave up two or three runs right away. The fab four hit well as did Pedro Guerrero.
1988 – Who can forget Kirk and Orel. I also remember Mike Scioscia who hit that decisive home run off Doc Gooden in the ninth in the fourth game against the Mets in the NLCS knotting the series at 2-2. In the WS I remember contributions by right-hander Tim Leary, Mickey Hatcher and that all important walk before Gibson to the much-maligned Mike Davis.
2017 – it is still too much etched on my mind to be a flashback.
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Discussion (148)
Disagree, not disagreeable
Starting lineup should be interesting tonight. The Dodgers had an idea something was up Game 5 and put Belli and Funky Muncy in the starting lineup. You have to believe the Brewers want Miley to go at least 4 or 5 innings so we can expect to see Taylor, JT, Freese, and Manny at the top. We know Barnes will be batting 8th and catching. After that who know? I’d like to see Belli or Muncy in the lineup somewhere just to give that greasey Miley a different look. Dozier or Kike at 2B? Puig or Kemp in RF? The lineup I predicted for Game 2 did nothing until Miley was out of the game so they need to change it up a bit. I’d go:
Taylor -LF
JT-3b
Freese-1b
Machado-SS
Bellinger-CF
Dozier-2B
Puig-RF
Barnes-C
Or
Taylor
JT
Freese
Macho
Muncy -2B
Puig/Kemp
Belli
Barnes
Might be tough to play Muncy at 2B on such a crappy playing surface.
Good journey down memory lane DC. 1959 is the first WS I remember. I thought Chuck Essegian’s two pinch hit home runs were really cool. Larry Sherry pitching multiple innings in the final game was equally as masterful. 1963 was fun watching Ford and Koufax duel it out. Frank Howard’s big home run in the final game sticks out as well. 1965 was special in that I was designated as the student who could listen to a transistor during school hours and give after inning reports on the game. Probably the only significant thing I was allowed to do by the teachers in my school career, as I was usually in trouble the rest of the time. As to the series, all I can say is Sandy Koufax. Back then I thought what he did was outer worldly. Looking back on it now, it is even more so. Hard to fathom any pitcher today, doing what he did in a three day span. One of the greatest clutch pitching performances of all time in my book. The 88 series is also special, not just because we won, but that was the first Dodger series I enjoyed watching with my sons, who were 8 & 6 at the time. They were already hooked on baseball, but watching that series, put them over the moon in love with the game. Now, they are enjoying watching the series with their sons.
My first real memories of actually watching, caring, and remembering would be the 1974 team. I had just turned six. I was already a Dodgers fan and my first favorite Dodger, Willie Davis, was no longer a Dodger. I still have a Willie Davis poster.
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The Dodgers took out the Pirates in the 1974 NLCS. My two biggest memories of the 74 series was the great collision at the plate where Yeager held onto the ball and Bill Buckner once again being a goat trying to stretch a double into a triple and getting gunned out. Not necessarily the better team but the more experienced team won.
Wish folks would quit saying “going back”. Can’t help it. My superstition/mythology kicking in. Think we have the right pitcher on the mound. Think Ryu will have a very good game.
The NLCS, while far from over, has been a complete team effort. To illustrate this point, here are the ten individual performances that have stood out in the first five games of the series [in no order and highly subjective]:
Taylor–.333/.400./.444 8 Total Bases
Machado–.316/.409/.526 10 Total Bases
Puig–.308/.357/.462 6 Total Bases
Turner–.238/.304/.381 8 Total Bases
Bellinger–.235/.270/.294 5 Total Bases
*
Baez–4 G 1 W 4.1 IP 2 H 0 ER 1/7 BB/K
Floro–4 G 3.2 IP 2 H 0 ER 2/4 BB/K
Jansen–3 G 2 S 3.1 IP 1 H 0 ER 2/4 BB/K
Maeda & Ferguson have thrown 1.2 & 1 scoreless innings respectively
*
If you’re placing a bet on who tonight’s hero might be, I suggest going off the board with Ryu, who could put his stamp on this series with a dominant performance. He has a full rested bullpen (can you believe Maeda hasn’t even thrown 2 innings in this series?) and a closer itching to be the man. Of course, if anyone wants to imitate Keekay and his 3 HR performance in last season’s 12-1 clincher/laugher over the Cubs, that’s just fine too.
My first WS game was in the 1959 series. But my favorite WS was the 1963 series against NYY. Not only did the Dodgers sweep the hated Yankees, but they did it with 3 complete game starts by Koufax (2) and Drysdale (1) and a near complete game by Johnny Podres 8.1 IP). Ron Perranoski was the only other pitcher to make an appearance for the Dodgers in that series. Quite a difference from where the game is today.
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I was at Game 3 of the 1963 World Series and watched Big D beat Jim Bouton in a great pitcher’s duel. Drysdale pitched a complete game 3 hit shutout in a1-0 game. I was wearing a #19 jersey at the game and sure enough Junior Gilliam draws a one out walk in the 1st inning, goes to 2nd on a wild pitch and scores on a Tommy D. single for the only run of the game. I believe Ron Fairly caught a long fly to end the game.
yeah, now that you mention it, that ’85 series might be when i really start remembering everything about following the dodgers. willie mcgee’s weird face, tommy herr’s 100 rbi with single digit HRs, vince coleman’s superhuman speed, tom neidenfuer’s whiplash. is that the same series when they put up the graphic about ozzie smith not homering in X games then he did?
The ’74 World Series was my first baseball memory. Just turning 7, I started my first year of Little League the next spring. ’77 and ’78 were right at the prime of my childhood. Oh how I wished that Tommy John was still a Dodger. Bob Welch was a young phenom. ’81 was sweet revenge and ’88 was the miracle year with magic game in and game out all year long and 59 in a row at the end of the season. Team comeback, team determination. ’17 was the year I’ll always remember as being over-managed to bitter disappointment. Pulling Rich Hill too early and over using the bullpen. This year I’ll remember Walker’s heat and a lot of lefty junk. Hot bats from Puig, Belly and Taylor. Clutch hitting from Machado and Turner. Machado leaving ala Steve Sax for the Yankees. Here’s to number 7 and back to back championships next year behind the dominant pitching duo of Urias and Bueller who will be compared to Koufax and Drysdale for years to come.
Here is the link providing current Winter League statistics for all of the Dodger farm hands playing winter league.
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Open on mlb.mlb.comhttp://mlb.mlb.com/milb/stats/org.jsp?id=laI remember the 74 WS against the A’s. I think not was Von Joshua who made the last out. 77 and 78 were heartbreaks as I wanted to see Tommy win his first WS but 81 was the year he got it as Ken Landreaux caught the last out.
88 who can forget that and last year was a freaking nightmare. 2018? Has to be our year. Let’s go Dodgers- clap, clap, clap!
Stolen from a commenter at TBLA:
Past Dodger opponents in World Series–Red Sox, Indians, Yankess [11 times], White Sox, Twins, O’s, A’s [twice], Astros
Even though I was 9 years old in 1981 I have no memory of that World Series. Of course, 1988 is forever seared in my consciousness and will forever be. 2017 I survived partly because I took my family to Disneyland during it and never saw one solitary pitch of Game 5. This is a new year and a new chapter in our story. Let’s win tonight and see where the chips fall from there. At some point we will do it. Why not now?
Wow. Great stuff. Thank you.
’59 was the first Dodger series I remember. I was hooked from then on.