Game 3 of the 1941 World Series featured a World Series “first” — something that wouldn’t happen again for 50 years, and only once more since then. What was it? It has to do with the performance of one player in each game.
Congratulations to Kerry W. and to Ryan, who teamed up to provide the full answer; see comments #10 and #16 below.
Sorry, I’m off topic here….but I noticed the Yankees starting first baseman in that game – Johnny Sturm – had a very unusual career. He only played one year in the majors yet accumulated 568 PAs in that single season. (wikipedia indicates that he was in the army from 42-45 and broke his wrist in ’46 when he was trying to come back). Anyway, I’m not sure how to search this in the PI but I assume that’s the most PAs for someone who only played one year in the majors.
This was already discussed when this blog was on BR but I forgot what the results were. Somebody, perhaps Raphy, found the results via PI. If I remember I’ll tell you how he did it. It was something like running PI for a players first year only, then their last year only, posting the results on an Excel spreadsheet and doing a match to see which names appeared on the first list but not the second.
He’s got George “Sparky” Anderson beat – 527 PA’s in 1959 for a piss-poor Phillies squad. They were worse the next year and he didn’t make the team. He did manage to find his calling, though
I found a guy named Irv Waldron who had 651 PA in 1901 while playing for Milwaukee and Washington. If I have done my work correctly he is the record-holder.
To find this with PI – Find the leader in career PAs with Year of Debut = Final Year.
http://bbref.com/pi/shareit/ks0yd
Waldron mentioned in #7 has the record.
Thanks guys! Looking through Raphy’s list, the only player in the past 30 years to make the top 100 was Jamie Allen in 1983. He had 313 PAs with Seattle, placing him 53rd (actually a bit higher cause there are a few 2011 debuts above him).
And, there are only 11 since 1960 in the top 173 (I’m omitting all the 2010 and 2011 guys on the list on the ground that most or all will likely get another look).
Three of those 11 were from the 1969 expansion year – possibly suggesting there was a shortage of suitable talent to fill four new teams adequately.
Another guy was Shooty Babitt (definitely All-Name team) who made the list in strike-shortened 1981, was the As most frequent starter at 2B, and placed 5th in RoY (albeit with an 83 OPS+).
A pitcher retired the side in an inning on 3 pitches.
Not to my knowledge, Richard. I don’t know how far back the pitch data goes for WS play, but there’s none on B-R for 1941.
According to Charlton’s Chronology Tiny Bonham did it in the 1941 Series.
OK, cool. I guess I need to get acquainted with this Charlton’s Chronology!
A pitcher pitched at least 7 scoreless innings and did not win the game?
This happened in 1941 Game 3 and also 1991 Game 7. I didn’t check to see if it happened other years, though.
Getting warm. That has happened 7 times in WS play. What could distinguish this 1941 game and the other two I referenced?
Here is an extra thing that makes Game 3 of the 1941 series unique.
Starting pitcher, pitch 7 or more scoreless innings, don’t get the win, have 1 strikeout or less.
Only Fitzsimmons has done that. Seven others got the win with 7 scorless innings and 1 strikeout or less (actually it was 1 strikeout in every case).
8 players did that:
http://bbref.com/pi/shareit/JXY0L
Although you can wittle the list down to players who:
Pitched at least 7 shutout innings, posted a game score of less than 70 and did not get a win in a world series game.
I didn’t see the once more thing.
My count of 7 was based on starting pitchers, which I should have said explicitly. The trivia question is, in fact, a starting-pitcher event.
The thing that distinguishes the 1941 event and the 2 others I referenced has nothing to do with Game Score or anything else in their pitching line.
They had a shutout going, and were removed the game, but not for a pinch-hitter?
DING-DING-DING!!! Ryan completed the answer begun by Kerry. In game 3 of the 1941 World Series, Freddie Fitzsimmons was removed after 7 scoreless innings, but not for a pinch-hitter, and wound up with a no-decision.
This was matched in 1991 game 7 by John Smoltz (lifted after 7.1 IP) and in 2001 game 5 by Miguel Batista (7.2 IP).
The other 4 WS starters who went 7+ scoreless IP without a decision were all lifted for a pinch-hitter: George Earnshaw, 1930 gm.5; Danny Cox, 1985 gm.6 (a.k.a. the Denkinger Game); Brandon Backe, 2005 gm.4; and Jaime Garcia, 2011 gm.2.
Fitzsimmons was removed from the 1941 game because with two out in the top of the the 7th he was hit in the knee by a line drive off the bat of Yankee P Marius Russo. The ball deflected into the glove of Pee Wee Reese on the fly.
@19, Richard — Let me guess your source: Charlton’s Chronology? 🙂
@21:
John: I have known about that line drive for a long time. For a few years Russo (another forgotten Yankee) and I worked for the same company, Grumman Aircraft on Long Island.
@18
Oh my! I learned something I guess I was too young at the time to remember! I was unaware pitchers were still hitting in the AL parks during the World Series in 1985. I knew that game was in KC, and was wondering how Cox could have been lifted for a PH….
Evil @23 – For the 1976-86 WS, the DH was allowed in all games in even-numbered years, and banned in odd years. In ’87 they went to the “home team” rules.
Thanks JA, as usual! I was aware it worked that way when the DH was first integrated into WS play in the mid 70’s (I once asked for the first NL DH in a WS game in a baseball trivia quiz I ran elsewhere a few years ago), but I wasn’t aware that on/off rule lasted for an entire decade. ’87 was the first year I kinda paid attention to the postseason, and ’88 was when I became fully immersed in baseball, so that explains how it got past me…
Here’s something else unique about the 1941 series that has nothing to do with pitchers.
This is the only WS where all 6 starting outfielders had at least 4 WAR, including positive dWAR, during that season (using B-R WAR calculations).
How about Dixie Walker? a 105 OPS+ in his twenties; 130 in his thirties. This is the Dewey Evans Syndrome, and, prior to the steroid era, not real common
Good point, Paul.
OTOH, we could also say that Walker’s OPS+ was:
– 138 during the 4 years of WWII;
– 105 before the war; and
– 120 after the war.
I’d still agree that he bucked the trend in aging patterns, but perhaps not quite so much as suggested by the 20s/30s split.
Actually, 1941 was the ONLY year that there were two teams that had all their outfielders do this (4 WAR + positive dWAR). Just happened those two teams both won pennants.
If you relax the requirement to 3 WAR and positive dWAR, the only other World Series with all outfielders making that grade was Cardinals and Red Sox in 1967.
Hey just wanted too give you a quick heads up aand llet you know a
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