[1][2] Seven more such meetings have followed with three more times each in the World Series and the NBA Finals, and the 2014 Stanley Cup Finals.[2]. Koufax left baseball with the highest regard of his fellow players, as he had been a model professional, not one to seek the spotlight or boast of his abilities, and often thinking and acting on behalf of the team rather than himself. Sandy Koufax, May 1965 "Sport" magazine story about his "toughest batters." No one has won a Triple Crown in National League hitting since 1937 when Joe Medwick of the St. Louis Cardinals last did it. And Sandy needed to be perfect to gain that one victory. He had allowed eight walks combined in his three, earlier no-hitters. Just packed up and left in the middle of a game. Like Koufax, Hendley was betrayed by his pitching elbow and forced to retire earlier than planned. Sandy Koufax went on to hold the Yankees for the final two innings for a 21 victory and the Dodgers' third world championship. His one-word identity spread over all of baseball. Don Drysdale and Sandy Koufax (cover story). Nothing wrong with that.". amzn_assoc_search_bar = "true"; He never once fumbles for a word, makes a false start or trips over himself. Relying mostly on fastballs against the Cardinals, Koufax walked the first two batters, Julian Javier and Curt Flood. You never told us who you were. Up 4-0, Koufax picked up where he left off, striking out Mantle and Maris, then getting Elston Howard on a foul pop up. You could tell how much he wanted it. On the Dodgers, along with Koufax, were other notables, not the least of whom was Don Drysdale, the other Dodger power pitcher from the mid-1960s. "I was standing on the top step of the dugout, at the end. Win Expectancy, Run Expectancy, and Leverage Index calculations provided by Tom Tango of InsideTheBook.com, and co-author of The Book: Playing the Percentages in Baseball. Find out more. Frankie Frisch, Jim Gilliam, John Podres, and Sandy Koufax with 4 World Series wins each.Frisch won the World Series with the 1921 and 1922 New York Giants No speeches, no press conferences, no tears, no tributes. So the uniqueness of the game is derived from Hendley exclusively. 2) Roberto Clemente - went 33 for 111 against Koufax for a .297 batting average with 6 HRs and 16 RBIs. I can still see Bouton throwing incredible heat, just firing for all he was worth, his hat flying off on the really big pitches. "I was just getting people out. amzn_assoc_ad_type = "smart"; On that night, Sept. 9, 1965, with both pitchers and Scully at their bests, Hendley was nearly the equal of Koufax. We'll miss departed Warrior broadcaster Steve Albert as a person; he always seemed to have a kind word for everyone. New York was held to a .171 team batting average, the lowest ever for the Yankees in the postseason. He clinched the pennant for Los Angeles for the second straight year with a complete game on two days rest. Gary Kaufman, Vin Scully, Salon.com, Tuesday, October 12, 1999. Bob Gibson and Sandy Koufax were scheduled to start against one another in a September 1962 showdown of two of the premier pitchers of the era. What could have happened? Who is the real home run king? Among Hendley's victories was a four-hitter, a 2-1 Cubs victory at Wrigley Field, against the Dodgers -- and Koufax -- six days after the perfect game. But baseball -- more than the other sports -- often is unfair. This time, it was a pitcher's duel. }, Cronkite School at ASU The event they created, known as nothing more than "CHI at LA" before it began, stands among the most astonishing games ever played at any point of any baseball season. The Drysdale-Jim Bouton duel in Game 3 (a 1-0 final) was the greatest single day of pitching I've ever seen. 3. Hall of Famer Harry Hooper, a player from the same era as Koufax, had this to say about him: He couldnt go on like this, not when his doctors could not rule out the possibility that he was risking permanent damage to his arm. James hadnt hit a home run or driven in a run all month. background-image:unset; Frank Finch, Koufaxs Sore Finger Cause of Concern, Says Dodgers Bavasi,Los Angeles Times, July 10, 1962, p. B-1. Koufax was as magnificent a pitcher as any who ever has stood on a big league mound. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc. This could be another tale of the astounding exploits of Sandy Koufax, one more of so many; and each one warranted. He and the city were connected like JFK and Hyannisport, like Elvis and Memphis. Brian M. Endsley, Koufax Throws a Curve: The Los Angeles Dodgers at the End of an Era, 1964-1966 (2018), McFarland, 215pp. Sandy was family in L.A. Jim Bouton, making his first World Series start, dueled Drysdale throughout, permitting only four hits in seven innings for a losing cause. Ralph Terry, in relief, allowed Davis's RBI triple. What would come the next day? Web> Sandy Koufax. Click for photo plaque. However, more signs of serious arm problems followed that year for Koufax, having jammed his arm in a base-running slide. . Even today, baseball has but one Sandy, as it has one Babe. It shows Mantle homering off Sandy Koufax, and in these difficult times for the Yankee great, it's the one I'd prefer to keep. And that loss was in his only career one-hitter. Sandy Koufax with Player of the Year trophy for 1965. A NEW Mickey Mantle memory kicked in this week, replacing its evil twin. And I knew every pitch he was going to throw fastball, breaking ball or whatever. Indeed, Koufax's overall record, beginning with the 1962 season and running through 1965, was 84-25, three of the losses coming at the hands of Hendley (Curt Simmons beat Koufax three times as well). "We both gave up two runs, we both allowed five hits. Southern California felt a warm and close relationship with No. American League winners of the pitching Crown in more recent years have been Roger Clemens of the Toronto Blue Jays in 1997 and 1998, and Pedro Martinez of he Boston Red Sox in 1999. One of his two sons, Bart, lives nearby, and he enjoys baseball and embraces the advanced metrics that have emerged in the past 15 years. This could be another tale of the astounding exploits of Sandy Koufax, one more of so many; and each one warranted. Switch teams or you have no chance. James told New York Times columnist Arthur Daley the grand slam gave me the most personal satisfaction and the most surprise of any home run he hit. Years later, James told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, You couldnt hit Koufaxs 100 mph fastball, but if the ball started at the knees, it would rise to belt high by the time it got to the plate. Although Mantle was about to turn 32, his tortured body was ancient, and he had played just 65 games that season. Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. Koufax The 15 strikeouts bested fellow Dodgers pitcher Carl Erskine's mark in 1953 by one, and would be surpassed by Bob Gibson in 1968 with 17. And even then his arm would swell an inch. Koufax was routinely identified in Los Angeles newspapers as Sandy, no surname necessary. Don Drysdale and Sandy Koufax (cover story), Sporting News, July 17, 1965. 097 in his career. Though a perfect game is a rarity, that Koufax pitched one in 1965 hardly was startling. Sandy Koufax Stats by Baseball Almanac. That's how close they came to a double no-hitter evening. Sandy Koufax hit 1 solo homers, 0 with a single runner on base, 1 with two men on base, and 0 grand slams. Of Vin Scullys historic broadcast of the game, one Salon.com writer, Gary Kaufman, offered this description: I found a transcript of Scullys call of the ninth inning of Sandy Koufaxs perfect game It read like a short story. 196 against him with three home runs, nine RBI, 16 walks and 30 strikeouts (in 33 games). So the uniqueness of the game is derived from Hendley exclusively. Yet Koufax almost missed these magical years. It takes a decidedly middle-aged person to call up the real Mantle, one of the three or four greatest all- around talents of all time. When they went to St. Louis for a three-game series on September 16, their lead was one game over the Cardinals, who had won 19 of 20 games. The Dodgers left-hander had been sidelined because of an injured pitching hand. Koufax, however, kept Kerlans advice to himself and went out every fourth day to pitch. Trouble was, said Brock, with Koufax on the mound, nobody got on base too often., To find more sports stories at this website, please visit the Annals of Sport category page, or Baseball Stories, a topics page with thumbnail sketches and links to 14 other baseball stories. in Brooklyn, NY The Yankees tied it on a Mickey Mantle home run in the top of the seventh. Gibson was replaced by Curt Simmons, a left-hander who had made one start since late August. But each was a far cry from the Koufax-Hendley confrontation. . Gibson broke his leg before the game and Koufax was knocked out without completing an inning. That was the only way you could hit it.. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. Certainly it was a historic game because in no other game did two teams combine for so few hits. Sandy Koufax in what appears to be an impromptu locker room press conference following his no-hitter against the New York Mets of June 30, 1962. . They had been at Mantle's house nearby, and knowing these two, they probably hoisted their first cocktails before noon. Roscoe McGowen, Dodgers Win; Koufax Is Victor Dodger Allows 2 Hits, Fans 14 in Beating Redlegs, 7 to 0, New York Times, August 28, 1955. Sandy Koufax with Ed Linn, Sandy Koufax, New York: Viking Press, August 30, 1966, 299 pp. We both retired early [Hendley at 28, Koufax at 30], we both had elbow problems." Use of his left arm was severely limited when he wasnt pitching. He was the first three-time Cy Young winner in baseball. Later, however, the two pitchers discovered that each was being used in the sessions with Bavasi against the other, saying one was asking for more than the other. And in the post-WWII period the more modern era of baseball Koufax would be the only guy to win three Triple Crowns for pitching (see Triple Crown sidebar below). Baseballs overlooked superstar finally gets his due in a new documentary, It Aint Over. Indeed, Koufax's overall record, beginning with the 1962 season and running through 1965, was 84-25, three of the losses coming at the hands of Hendley (Curt Simmons beat Koufax three times as well). . "He was great," Hendley said. Bavasi began by meeting separately with each man. Aces were on the mound again in a game 1 rematch between Whitey Ford and Sandy Koufax. If he had got out of that first inning, Dodgers manager Walter Alston said about Koufax, no telling how long he might have gone., Asked whether the left index finger still bothered him, Koufax replied, My finger doesnt feel 100 percent but it does feel as good as it did the two or three games before I went under the doctors care., Two years later, April 22, 1964, James hit another first-inning home run off Koufax, a three-run shot in a 7-6 Cardinals victory. His career resum includes a 48-52 record, 3.97 ERA, 25 complete games, six shutouts. . amzn_assoc_tracking_id = "thpohidill-20"; The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional". The quirky Royals reliever often noted that fair territory was 90 degrees of a circle, and foul territory occupied 270 degrees. View Sandy Koufax's Page at the Baseball Hall of Fame (plaque, photos, videos). Koufax, by some accounts, was neither an observant nor an involved Jew, but nonetheless, saw not playing on Yom Kippur as his responsibility. Still, neither is a regular occurrence, attesting to the difficulty of each. "I was just getting people out. This forced the Dodgers to keep him on the major league roster for at least two years before he could be sent to the minors. How many strikeouts did Sandy Koufax have in the World Series? Koufax and Scully, of course, have a long-standing Dodger Blue relationship. Hendley finally allowed one-hit the only hit in the game for either side. SF tourists go in droves to In-N-Out. 60th edition of Major League Baseball's championship series, Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California, "Stanley Cup Final: Kings vs. Rangers in L.A.-New York Championship Duel", "1963 World Series Game 1 Los Angeles Dodgers vs. New York Yankees", "1963 World Series Game 2 Los Angeles Dodgers vs. New York Yankees", "1963 World Series Game 3 New York Yankees vs. Los Angeles Dodgers", "1963 World Series Game 4 New York Yankees vs. Los Angeles Dodgers", "1963 World Series Game 1, Los Angeles Dodgers at New York Yankees, October 2, 1963", "World Series Gate Receipts and Player Shares", "JOEY BISHOP SHOW with "The L.A. Dodgers" NBC sitcom", "World Series came out big winner over NFL", Bums: An Oral History of the Brooklyn Dodgers, Orel Hershiser's scoreless innings streak, Ladies and Gentlemen, the Bronx Is Burning, Bill Mazeroski's 1960 World Series home run, Carlton Fisk's 1975 World Series home run, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=1963_World_Series&oldid=1139597287, October 1963 sports events in the United States, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Game 4 was the highest-rated sports broadcast of 1963, per, This page was last edited on 15 February 2023, at 23:04. He needed only to tidy up on his control that summer night in Chavez Ravine. . The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary". With Koufax leading the way on the mound, the Dodgers went on to capture the National League pennant and sweep the New York Yankees in the World Series. His mother later remarried when Sandy was nine, to Irving Koufax, who Sandy regarded as his father. Koufax struck out 14 of 27 batters; Hendley struck out three. And Koufax did, initiating a 30-inning run during which he walked one batter. How could Billy have been so late? But a mutual respect is evident between Hendley and the master. In 2011, Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers, and Justin Verlander, then with the Detroit Tigers, won the National and American League Triple Crowns, respectively. RHP Tom Seaver. [7]. But he still no-hit the Giants, as the Dodgers won, 8-0. The next delivery was high and away. James swung and launched a shot onto the pavilion roof in right for a grand slam. And he remains as splendid a human being as any who has graced the planet -- courteous, caring, generous and unassuming. With the count 2-and-2, Koufax was a strike away from getting out of the jam. Brooklyn had dibs on Duke Snider, Gil Hodges and the other Boys of Summer. In order to harness his immense talent, Koufax had to learn to trust and tame ". The connection between Koufax and the other gentleman, the pitcher who made that game perfection-plus, is long distance and infrequent. Robert Creamer, An Urgent Matter Of One Index Finger, Sports Illustrated, March 4, 1963. WebHow fast did Sandy Koufax throw? Koufax had pitched in Brooklyn, but he never performed in the borough where he'd been raised as he did in Los Angeles. Koufax sought to rest more and not throw as much between starts. Data Provided By He struck out his final six batters and eight of the final 10. They created an enduring memory that night. And Sandy needed to be perfect to gain that one victory. He also threw 11 shutouts, a total that only Bob Gibson would later surpass. ", Hendley added to his description of the game last winter. October 2, 1966 Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet. . The Dodgers' lone hit came two innings later when Lou Johnson's opposite-field bloop landed just beyond first base and rolled into foul ground for a double. He lasted just 4 innings. The Yankees batted just .171 and scored only four runs in the Series, with Koufax being a primary factor, receiving the World Series MVP award.

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