Remembering Those Who Played Life’s Last Inning in 2021 – Part 2

 In the last National League season of the 1950’s, the 1959 pennant winner had to be determined by a best of two out of three playoff between the Milwaukee Braves and the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Braves had won the pennant the previous two years and were the 1957 World Series champions. The Dodgers, in the franchise’s second season in Los Angeles, had won four National League pennants in the 1950s while in Brooklyn and were the 1955 World Series champions.

In my previous blog post I discussed the players on the 1959 Braves who played life’s last inning in 2021:  right fielder Henry Aaron, catcher Del Crandell, and pitcher Juan Pizzaro. Here are the three players with the Dodgers that season who died in 2021.

Don Demeter – November 29, 2021

Born June 25, 1935, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Demeter had his Major League Baseball debut on September 18, 1956, with the Brooklyn Dodgers at Ebbets Field. Following a season and a half in the minors, he played forty-eight games in 1958 after the franchise had moved to Los Angeles. In 1959, Demeter became the team’s starting center fielder hitting .256 with eighteen home runs (third highest on the team) and 70 RBI. Deciding to go with a group of younger outfield prospects (Tommy Davis, Ron Fairly, Frank Howard, and Willie Davis), the Dodgers traded Demeter to the Philadelphia Phillies in 1961. He hit seventy-one home runs in three seasons for the Phillies (1961 – 1963). However, Demeter joined the Detroit Tigers in 1964 as part of the trade that brought Hall of Fame (1996) pitcher Jim Bunning to the Phillies. After three seasons in the American League, Demeter retired and became a church pastor.

Solomon “Solly” Drake – August 18, 2021

Born October 23, 1930, in Little Rock, Arkansas, Drake came to the Dodgers at the beginning of the 1958 season. A severely dislocated ankle in the spring of 1955 hampered the speedy switch-hitting centerfielder’s time with the Chicago Cubs. In his 1956 rookie season, Drake played sixty-five games and hit .256. After hitting .300 for the Dodgers’ top minor league team in 1958, he began the 1959 season with the parent team in Los Angeles. But in June the Philadelphia Phillies purchased Drake’s contract and he played in sixty-seven games the rest of the season, his last in Major League baseball. Drake retired from professional baseball in 1962 and like his 1959 teammate with the Dodgers, Don Demeter, he later became a church pastor.

Stan Williams – February 20, 2021

Born September 14, 1936, in Enfield, New Hampshire, Stan Williams continued his 1958 rookie season role as a spot starting pitcher for the Dodgers in 1959. The 23 years old 6’5”, 230 pounds righthanded hurler finished 5 – 5 in 15 starts. Beginning in 1960, Williams had three consecutive seasons with double digit wins as the Dodgers had one of best starting pitching rotations in the National League which included Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale. Traded to the New York Yankees after the 1962 season, Williams never had the same success spending the remaining years of his career in the American League before retiring in 1971.

Played at County Stadium in Milwaukee on September 28, the Los Angeles Dodgers won the first game of the 1959 National League 3-2. Don Demeter had one hit in four At Bats for the Dodgers.  Henry Aaron received two walks and Del Crandell had two hits for the Braves in a losing cause. 

The two teams played the next day at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, the home field for the Dodgers until the final construction of Dodger Stadium in 1962. After trailing 5 – 2, the Dodgers scored three runs in the ninth inning to tie and then one in the twelfth to win 6 -5. Stan Williams gave up no hits or runs to the Braves the final three innings to be the winning pitcher.

It would be the Dodgers fifth National League pennant of the 1950s and the last as players for former Brooklyn Dodgers Gil Hodges, Duke Snider, Don Zimmer, Clem Labine, Carl Erskine, Roger Craig, Sandy Amoros, and Carl Furillo who drove in the second playoff game’s winning run. It would be the first of twelve pennants the franchise would win after moving to Los Angeles.

By 1959, the love affair between Milwaukee baseball fans and the Braves had begun to crumble. The team had led the National League in attendance since 1953, its first year in Milwaukee. But in 1959 fan attendance dropped below two million for the second straight year. The decline continued in 1960 although the Braves finished in second place behind the Pittsburgh Pirates. From 1961 – 1965, the team never finished higher than fourth place and averaged 750,000 a year in game attendance. After the 1965 season, the franchise moved to Atlanta with Henry Aaron and Ed Matthews the only holdovers from the Braves team that lost to the Dodgers in the 1959 National League playoff.

Remembering Those Who Played Life’s Last Inning in 2021 - Part One

After a lockout of the players that lasted all off season and bitter labor negotiations that cut short Spring Training, the Major League Baseball owners and the Players’ Association approved a new collective bargain agreement this past March.  As a result, Major League baseball 2022 is now in full swing. 

With his first inning single on April 23, Detroit Tigers’ first baseman/designated hitter Miguel Cabrera became the 33^rd player in Major League Baseball history to reach the career 3,000 hit milestone.  With the Houston Astros 4 – 0 win against the Seattle Mariners on May 3, Astros’ manager Dusty Baker became the 12^th MLB manager with 2,000 victories.  Baker has won more games than any other African American Major League manager.  However, before the season gets any further along, take a moment to pay tribute with me to a group of former Negro League and Major League baseball players who died in 2021.

There were 21 former Major League ballplayers who played their life’s last inning in 2021.  Of the group, six were linked to an event that occurred at the end of the 1959 National League season. 

The last National League season of the 1950’s ended in a tie between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Milwaukee Braves.  Both finished with records of 86 – 68.  For most of that decade, beginning in 1953, the Braves and the Brooklyn Dodgers were at the top of the league standings.  Before the franchise moved to Los Angeles in 1958, the Dodgers won four National League pennants in the 1950s (1952, 1953, 1955. 1956) and were 1955 World Series champions.  The Braves finished second to the Dodgers in 1953, 1955, and 1956 before finally winning the National League pennant in 1957 and 1958.  They were World Series champions in 1957.

To determine the 1959 National League pennant winner, a best 2 out of 3 games playoff had to be held between the two teams.  Milwaukee had established veterans such as right fielder Henry Aaron and catcher Del Crandell, to go along with 23 years old pitcher Juan Pizzaro that season.  All three died in 2021.  Three players with the Dodgers that season died in 2021:  outfielders Don Demeter and Solly Drake, pitcher Stan Williams.

 

Henry Aaron

Born February 5, 1934 in Mobile, Alabama, Aaron came to the then Boston Braves in 1952 after a short stint with the Indianapolis Clowns of the Negro American League.  The 21-time All Star outfielder and 1982 National Baseball Hall of Fame inductee made his Major League debut April 13, 1954.  In 1959, Aaron won his 2^nd National League Batting Title (his first in 1956) hitting .355 with 39 home runs and 123 RBI.  He also led the National League with 223 hits, his highest number during a career that spanned 25 years.  The 1957 National League Most Valuable Player Award recipient finished third in the award voting for 1959  behind teammate Eddie Mathews and the winner, Ernie Banks of the Chicago Cubs. Aaron died January 22, 2021, in Atlanta, Georgia; fourteen days before his 87^th birthday.

 

Del Crandell

Born March 5, 1930 in Ontario, California, Crandell took over behind home plate for the Braves after returning from military service in 1953 and became the batterymate for Hall of Fame pitcher Warren Spahn the remainder of the decade. The eight-time All-Star won the second of his Gold Glove awards in 1959.  He averaged 18 home runs a year from 1953 – 1959, having a career year of 72 RBI going into the playoffs against the Dodgers.  After retiring as a player, Crandell spent six years as a Major League manager; Milwaukee Brewers 1972 – 1975, Seattle Mariners 1982 – 1984.  The 91 years old Crandall died May 5, 2021 in Mission Viejo, California.

 

Juan Pizzaro

Born February 7, 1937 in Santurce, Puerto Rico, Pizzaro had filled the dual role as a spot starter and relief pitcher for the Braves since 1957.  However, showing flashes of a talented future, the twenty-three years old lefthander finished with a 6 – 2 record and a 3.77 ERA  in 1959.  His 126 strikeouts (in 133.3 innings pitched) second only to the Braves’ ace starting pitcher Warren Spahn (143 strikeouts in 292 innings).  The Braves lost patience in Pizzaro’s development after he finished 6 – 7 in 1960 and traded him to the Cincinnati Reds.  After another trade, Pizzaro began the 1961 season with the Chicago White Sox and became one of the best lefthanded pitchers in the American League from 1961 – 1964 (61 – 38, 2.95 ERA, 686 SO).  Pizzaro died February 18, 2021 in Carolina, Puerto Rico 11days after his 84^th birthday.

In my next blog post I will give recognition to the three members of the 1959 Los Angeles Dodgers who died in 2021 (Don Demeter, Solly Drake, and Stan Williams), along with brief mention of a few other former ballplayers who also perished last year.

Also, who won the 1959 National League Playoff and what impact did the results have on the upcoming new decade?  I will answer that and more my next post. 

Stayed Tuned!

2021 Baseball HOF Golden Days Committee Results – Part 2

The names on the Baseball Hall of Fame Golden Age Committee’s ballot considered for the Class of 2022 induction on July 24 brings back memories of the 1964 Major League season. That year, both the American and the National League pennant races went down to the last games of the season before a winner emerged. All ten of the candidates on the Golden Days Committee’s ballot were active in the Major Leagues that season; five in the National League and five in the American League. I discussed the five candidates that played in the National League during that season, Dick Allen, Ken Boyer, Billy Pierce, Maury Wills, and Danny Murtaugh, in my previous post.  I will discuss the five candidates in the American League in this one.

Most baseball magazines predicted the New York Yankees to continue their domination of the American League in 1964. Beginning in 1949, the franchise had won 13 American League pennants and nine World Series championships. The 1964 pennant race, however, turned out to be a tight one. The Yankees did not clinch the pennant until the next to last game of the season, October 3, finishing one game ahead of the Chicago White Sox and two ahead of the Baltimore Orioles.

Four-time All Star right fielder Roger Maris hit .281 with 26 home runs and 84 RBI for the Yankees. The two-time American League Most Valuable Player, 1960 and 1961, along with Yankee great Mickey Mantle (35 HRs and 111 RBI in 1964) were a dangerous site for opposing pitchers. In 1961, Maris hit 61 home runs in 161 games, barely missing Babe Ruth’s record of 60 in 151 games. However, he never came close to that 1961 home run level again hitting 33 in 1962 and 23 in 1963.

Roger Maris

In 1964, 38 years-old Saturnino Orestes “Minnie” Minoso’s had come to the close of his career. Two years after helping the New York Cubans win the Negro League World Series in 1947, Minoso began a seven-time All Star, 17 years career in Major League baseball. He became the first dark-skinned Latino Major League star player. The 1964 season would be Minoso’s third stint with the Chicago White Sox (1951 – 1957 and 1960 – 1961). In 30 games he had seven hits, including his last Major League home run. Minoso played briefly in games with the White Sox in 1976 and 1980 to be one of the few who played Major League baseball in five decades.

Minnie Minoso

After finishing second in 1962 and third in 1963, the Minnesota Twins slipped to sixth place in 1964. However, Twins’ left-handed pitcher Jim Kaat had a solid season. After he struggled in 1963 (10 – 10, 4.12 ERA), Kaat rebounded going 17 – 11 with a 3.22 ERA. Kaat would pitch another 19 years with 283 career wins, 190 in his 15 years (1959 – 1973) with Minnesota. A 3-time 20+ games winner, Kaat won 25 games with the Twins in 1966.

Jim Kaat

The biggest surprise for the Twins that disappointing 1964 season came in their rookie right fielder, Tony Oliva. Named the American League 1964 Rookie of the Year, Oliva hit .323 with 217 hits, 32 home runs and 94 RBI.  The native Cuban won the American League Batting Title and then won it again in 1965 (.321, 16 HRs, 98 RBI) helping the Twins capture the American League pennant. Hobbled by knee injuries the last five of his 15 years Major League career, the 8-time All-Star finished with 220 home runs, 947 RBI, and a .304 batting average. 

Tony Oliva

Gil Hodges became the manager of the Washington Senators in the early part of the 1963 season. Earlier in his career (1943 - 1963), Hodges played first base for the Brooklyn Dodgers who from 1949 - 1956 won five National League pennants and one World Series championship (1955). The eight-time All-Star also helped the Dodgers win the pennant and World Series in 1959 after the franchise relocated to Los Angeles.  In 1964 the Senators finished in ninth place. Hodges became manager of the New York Mets in 1968 and led the team to a World Series champions in 1969.

Jackie Robinson & Gil Hodges

Minoso, Kaat, Oliva, and Hodges each got the necessary twelve votes (75% of the 16 Golden Age Committee members) for election into the Baseball Hall of Fame. A pioneer in the 1950s racial integration of Major League baseball, Minoso's (195 HRs, 1,093 RBI, .299 BA), recognition by the Hall of Fame had been overdue. Seventy-five percent of the committee members did not overlook Jim Kaat’s lengthy career of excellence and the brilliant, but injury affected career of Tony Oliva. Gil Hodges (370 career HRs and 1,274 career RBI) will finally join his Brooklyn Dodger teammates Pee Wee Reese, Jackie Robinson, Roy Campanella, and Duke Snider in the Hall of Fame.

Roger Maris’ chances of getting into the Baseball Hall of Fame appear to be decreasing. He hit 270 career home runs and his single season record of 61 in 1961 stood until broken by Mark McGwire (70) and Sammy Sosa (66) in 1998. He played with three World Series championship teams, the 1961 and 1962 New York Yankees and the 1967 St. Louis Cardinals. However, Maris did not receive the twelve votes needed for Hall of Fame induction this year. He will not be eligible for reconsideration by the Golden Days Committee until 2027.

All pictures via Google Images

For daily baseball historical Twitter notices go to Kevin L. Mitchell @ LastTraintocoop

2021 Baseball HOF Golden Days Committee Vote Results

Last month on December 5, five former baseball players received the necessary votes to be a part of the National Baseball Hall of Fame’s Class of 2022. The Hall’s Early Baseball Era Committee, which considers candidates whose primary contributions to baseball came prior to 1950, elected former Negro League players/managers Bud Fowler and John “Buck” O’Neil. The Golden Days Era Committee, which considers candidates whose primary contributions to baseball came between 1950 – 1969, elected former Major League players Gil Hodges, Jim Kaat, Tony Oliva, and Saturnino Orestes “Minnie” Minoso. The induction ceremony will be July 24 at the Hall of Fame Museum in Cooperstown, New York. 

The other candidates on the Golden Days Era Committee ballot not elected to the Class of 2022 were Dick Allen (who missed by one vote), Ken Boyer, Danny Murtaugh, Maury Wills, Billy Pierce, and Roger Maris. 

The names on the Golden Days Era Committee’s ballot brings back memories of the 1964 Major League season. That year, the American and the National League pennant races went down to the last games of the season before a winner emerged. All ten of the candidates on the Golden Days Committee’s ballot were still active in the Major Leagues that season; five in the National League and five in the American League. Two were in their rookie seasons and two were at the end of their careers. One began the growing pains that would lead to being a successful manager, while one had a pause put on his role as a Major League manager. One played on a team in the last year of its dynasty, while another played on a team that would sandwich the season between two World Series championships. One reached the high mark of his career, while for another it would be year six of 25 years in the Major Leagues. 

In the National League on September 20th of 1964, the Philadelphia Phillies were in first place leading the Cincinnati Reds and St. Louis Cardinals by six and one-half games. One of the reasons for the Phillies’ success, newcomer third baseman Richie Allen. It would be a few more years before Allen would prefer to be called by the name which his mother and family addressed him; “Dick”. Allen’s .318 Batting Average with 29 HRs and 91 RBI that summer earned him the honor of being 1964 National League Rookie of the Year. Highlights of his 15 years in the Major League include hitting 356 HRs, being a seven-time All Star, and being named 1972 American League Most Valuable Player while with the Chicago White Sox. 

Dick "Richie" Allen

Despite Allen’s heroics in 1964, the Phillies lost ten straight games beginning September 21 and finished in second place on game behind the St. Louis Cardinals. 

The Cardinals clinched the National League pennant by beating the New York Mets 11 – 5 the last game of the season. Third baseman Ken Boyer, at the height of his 15 years Major League career in 1964, led the team. Boyer, a seven-time All Star who would finish with 282 HRs and 1,141 RBI, hit .295 that season with 24 HRs and 119 RBI. Named the 1964 National League Most Valuable Player, Boyer also hit a home run to help the National League win the All-Star Game that season. He is considered one of the best third basemen in the Major Leagues during the late 1950s and early 1960s. 

Ken Boyer

The San Francisco Giants were only two games out of first place on October 2, however, the team lost its last two games and finished fourth. It would be the last of the 18 years career for Giants’ relief pitcher Billy Pierce (3 – 0, 34 game appearances, forty-nine innings pitched). The six-time All Star lefthanded ace of the Chicago White Sox pitching staff in the 1950s, Pierce won 218 games including 35 shutouts and two 20 game winning seasons. He pitched the first four innings of the White Sox's 5 – 3 win over the Kansas City A’s on August 20, 1961; the first Major League game I attended. 

Billy Pierce

The 1963 World Series champions, the Los Angeles Dodgers, slipped to sixth place in 1964. Dodgers’ shortstop Maury Wills hit .275 and won the fifth of his six straight National League stolen base titles with 53. The Dodgers would rebound to be World Series champions in 1965. 

Maury Wills

The Pittsburgh Pirates in 1964 tied with the Dodgers for sixth place. After the season Pirates’ manager Danny Murtaugh retired. He had been the team’s manager since 1957 and led the Pirates to be World Series champions in 1960. Murtaugh came out of retirement for another stint as Pirates’ manager in 1970 and led the team to another World Series championship in 1971. 

Danny Murtaugh (left)

Each candidate needed twelve votes from members of the Golden Days Committee (75%) for election to the Hall of Fame. Dick Allen received eleven while the other four each received less than four. I am surprised that Ken Boyer and Maury Wills did not receive more votes. But that is my generational bias speaking. To me, a 13 years old baseball super fan in 1964, the pennant races that season were the most exciting I had experience. 

I will talk about the five other players on the Golden Days Era Committee ballot my next post.