As a baseball fan, losing the World Series leaves you
feeling deep disappointment. It is a
deeper hurt than your favorite football team losing the Super Bowl. That is just one game. But with the World Series, you have the emotionally
draining ebb and flow of each game. Texas Ranger fans are still reeling from
losing this year’s Series, especially after coming so close to winning it all
in Game 6. What has been the most
disappointing World Series lost for you? 9D79XSUG6D3F
The pain from losing the 1962 World Series resurfaced for me
last month when I met former New York Yankee pitcher Ralph Terry at a Kansas
City Baseball Historical Society meeting.
The Yankees played the San Francisco Giants that year. New York was the defending champion and was
favored, but my heart was with Willie Mays and the Giants.
Ralph Terry had been the Yankee’s goat of the 1960 World
Series. He surrendered the last of ninth
inning, 7th Game winning Home Run to Bill Mazeroski of the
Pittsburgh Pirates. Terry also struggled
in the 1961 World Series the Yankees won against the Cincinnati Reds. He
was the losing pitcher in Game Two, the Reds only win. The Yankees staked him a 6 – 0 lead in their Series clinching Game Five, but Terry
could not get through the 3rd inning and did not record the win. Terry won 23 games during the 1962 regular
season, but he had memories of those past World Series performances he had to
erase. However; it started badly for
him, he lost Game Two of the Series 2-0.
His World Series losing streak ended when he won Game 5; 5 – 3, giving the Yankees a 3 – 2
Series lead. A Northern California rain
storm cancelled Game 6 a Series record 3 times.
When play resumed, the Giants won and set the stage for a chance of
Ralph Terry’s total vindication in Game Seven.
In that game, Terry led the Giants 1 – 0 going into the
bottom of the ninth inning. With two
outs, Matty Alou singled and Mays doubled.
The next batter was Willie McCovey who had tripled in the seventh
inning and homered off Terry in Game Two. McCovey
hit a line drive to Second Baseman Bobby Richardson to end the Series. Giant fans still speculate about the outcome
being different if McCovey’s drive was a few feet to the right or left.
It has been 49 years since the 1962 World Series, but seeing
Ralph Terry last month brought back my painful memories of it. It was a Series that ended in frustration for
me, but final vindication for him.
What has been your most disappointing World Series
lost?
