Great Pennant Races of the 1960s

Dodger pitching led the Way

With the exception of the 1967 Red Sox’s “Impossible Dream Season”, most of the exciting pennant races in the sixties were in the National League

1962 National League

1951 Deja Vu. After setting the pace for most of the season, the Dodgers could only win 3 of their final 13 games while the Giants won seven in a row to tie the Dodgers on the final game of the season. The playoff was reminiscent of 1951, as the Dodgers led after eight innings 4-2 in the deciding game of the three-game series.  The Giants rallied for four runs in the top of the ninth that included the lead run scoring on a bases-loaded walk.

The Giants (103-62) were a very well-balanced team. On offense, Mays led the league in HRs 49 and drove in 143. Orlando Cepeda slugged 35 HRs. Mays, Harvey Kueen and Felipe Alou batted over .300.. The pitching staff was equally as good. Jack Sanford led the staff with 24 wins, including winning 16 in a row, Billy O’Dell had 19, Juan Marichal and 38-year-old pick-up Billy Pierce each won 10.

1963 National League

 The St. Louis Cardinals suddenly became a contender by winning 19 of 20 in early September to pull within one game of the first place Dodgers. This set the stage for a crucial three-game series on September 16 with the Dodgers in St. Louis. Lefty Johnny Podres, the Dodger World Series hero in 1955, shutdown the Cardinals on a three hit, 3-1, victory in game 1. In game 2, it was all Koufax who threw a 4-0 shutout. In the crucial final  game the Cards blew a 5-1 seventh-inning lead and lost 6-5 in 13 innings clearing the path for the Dodgers. to take control and win the pennant by 6 games.

The Dodgers (99-63) had MVP and Cy Young Award winner Sandy Koufax who was practically unhittable. He won 25 games, had an ERA of 1.88 and struck out 306 batters. Backing up Koufax was Don Drysdale, a 19 game-winner, and relief specialist Ron Perranoski who saved 21 games, won 16, and posted an excellent 1.67 ERA. The offense relied on another fine season from outfielders Tommy Davis, who won another batting title .328, and Frank Howard who hit 28 HRs.

1964 National League

Two acquisitions were the key to the reborn St Louis Cardinals.  OF Lou Brock came over from the Cubs, in exchange for pitcher Ernie Broglio, and in August they found reliever 37 year old Barney Shultz in the junkyard of released players  The Phillies looked like a shoo-in, 6 ½ games ahead with two weeks remaining in the season. No one was counting on them dropping 10 in a row creating a frantic finish. At season’s end, the Phillies, Reds, Giants, and Braves  looked up to find the Cards, who were in fifth place in mid-August, on top.

The Cardinal’s (93-69)roster was stacked. The Musial era had ended, but the newcomers put on quite a show. In addition to Brock’s Cardinal debut, .348 with 33 stolen bases, 3B MVP Ken Boyer batted over .300 with a league-leading 113 RBIs, 1B Bill White hit .305,  102 RBIs and OF Curt Flood batted .311 BA. The pitching staff was solid with Ray Sedecki winning 20, Bob Gibson 19 and Curt Simmons,16.  Barney Schultz, saved 9 games during the stretch run

 !964 New York Yankees

Mid August found the once powerful Yanks in third place behind Baltimore and Chicago. Suddenly, the team woke up. Helped by the return of Mantle from injury, the call up of pitcher Mel Stottlemyre from the minors, and the acquisition of Pedro Ramos, the Yanks posted a 22-6 record in September to clinch the pennant by one game over the White Sox on the next to last day of the season. For the Yankees (99-63)  Mantle hit .303, 35 HRs, 114 RBIs and catcher Elston Howard, .312, to spear head the offense. Pitcher Jim Bouton won 18 and Whitey Ford 16. Equally  important were the nine wins from Mel Stottlemyre during the stretch run. The White Sox mounted their challenge due to a strong three-headed pitching rotation and the power hitting of 3B Pete Ward. .

1965 National League

It did not take long for the Dodgers to wake up following a dreadful 1964 season.  Four teams were in contention as of the beginning of September but then the Dodgers and Giants took off. The Dodgers (97-65) won 13 in a row, and the Giants 14 in a row to challenge up to the final weekend. Koufax and Drysdale combined for 49 wins, SS Maury Wills led the league with 94 steals while batting .288 and the Rookie of the Year, 2B Jim Lefebvre hit 12 HRs, which was tied for the most on this powerless offense.

The irony of the season is that the Giants might have forced a playoff if not for a late August contest between the two teams. Giant pitcher Juan Marichal struck Dodger catcher John Roseboro on the head with his bat after a heated argument at the plate. Roseboro was unharmed; however, Marichal received a nine day suspension and was denied the right to travel to LA for the final series against their West Coast rivals. If 22 game winner Marichal had pitched, he very likely would have won one game and forced a playoff for the pennant.

1966 National League

The four-headed starting pitching of Koufax, Drysdale, Claude Osteen and rookie Don Sutton was too much. Again, the Giants hung around until the very end. Mays and Willie McCovey were swinging their powerful bats while pitchers Juan Marichal and Gaylord Perry kept batters confused. However they finished 1 1/2 games behind. The Dodgers (95-67) were almost totally dependent on their fine pitching staff – five pitchers with double digit victories. One of them was relief pitcher Phil “The Vulture” Regan 14-1 with 21 saves. There was little at the plate. 2B Jim Lebrevre had the most with 24 HRs. No batter hit over .300. They did have the speed of Maury Wills, 38 stolen bases, and outfielder Willie Davis with 21

1967 American League

 Going into the last weekend of the season the Twins had moved one game ahead of the Red Sox and Tigers. The White Sox had fallen two games back and were eliminated . The Tigers were at a disadvantage as they were ending the season playing back-to-back doubleheaders against the California Angels while the Red Sox hosted the Twins for two single games. With key HRs by Carl Yastrzemski and George Scott, the Bosox won game one against the Twin 6-4 while the Tigers split their doubleheader against the Angels. This left the Red Sox and Twins tied for first place with the Tigers a half-game back. The Tigers would have to sweep their final twin bill to force a playoff.

In Boston, both teams pitched their best, the AL Cy Young award winner Jim Lonborg (21-9) for the Red Sox against 20 game winner, Dean Chance of the Twins. Errors bit the Sox as the Twins scored two early runs, but in the fifth, Chance fell apart. Three singles, two wild pitches, and an error later, the Red Sox scored five runs and went on to win 5-3. However, the suspense was not over. The Tigers won their first game and could still tie for the pennant if they completed the doubleheader sweep. On the mound for the Tigers was the heralded Denny McLain, but Denny did not have it that day. The Angels blasted out to a 8-5 win allowing the Red Sox to complete their “Impossible Dream” season.

Next Week: The Best World Series of the 1960s