The 1947 World Series matched the
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one ...
against the
Brooklyn Dodgers. The Yankees won the Series in seven games for their 11th World Series championship in team history. Yankees manager
Bucky Harris won the Series for the first time since managing the
Washington Senators to their only title in , a gap of 23 years, the longest between
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the Worl ...
appearances in history.
In 1947,
Jackie Robinson
Jack Roosevelt Robinson (January 31, 1919 – October 24, 1972) was an American professional baseball player who became the first African American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. Robinson broke the baseball color line ...
, a Brooklyn Dodger, desegregated major league baseball. For the first time in World Series history, a racially integrated team played.
Summary
Matchups
Game 1
There was an announced crowd of 73,365 in Yankee Stadium for Game 1. Brooklyn struck first in the first inning on
Dixie Walker's RBI single off
Spec Shea to score
Pete Reiser from second base, but starter
Ralph Branca was knocked out in a five-run fifth. A single, walk and hit-by-pitch loaded the bases before
Johnny Lindell
John Harlan Lindell (August 30, 1916 – August 27, 1985) was an American professional baseball player who was an outfielder and pitcher in Major League Baseball from 1941 to 1950 and from 1953 to 1954 for the New York Yankees, St. Louis Cardin ...
's two-run double put the Yankees up 2–1. After a walk re-loaded the bases, another walk forced in a run, then after a groundout,
Tommy Henrich's RBI single to left off
Hank Behrman capped the inning's scoring. The Dodgers chipped away at the Yankees lead, getting a run in the sixth on
Carl Furillo's RBI single off
Joe Page and another in the seventh on Page's wild pitch with
Pee Wee Reese
Harold Peter Henry "Pee Wee" Reese (July 23, 1918 – August 14, 1999) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a shortstop for the Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers from 1940 to 1958. A ten-time All-Sta ...
at second, but Page held the Dodgers scoreless afterward as the Yankees took a 1–0 series lead.
Game 2
The Yankees struck first in Game 2 on
Johnny Lindell
John Harlan Lindell (August 30, 1916 – August 27, 1985) was an American professional baseball player who was an outfielder and pitcher in Major League Baseball from 1941 to 1950 and from 1953 to 1954 for the New York Yankees, St. Louis Cardin ...
's double-play ground ball after two leadoff singles in the first off
Vic Lombardi
Victor Alvin Lombardi (September 20, 1922 – December 3, 1997) was a pitcher in Major League Baseball. He pitched from 1945 to 1950 with the Brooklyn Dodgers and Pittsburgh Pirates. He was the starting pitcher in two games of the 1947 World Se ...
, scoring Snuffy Stirnweiss, but the Dodgers tied the game in the third on
Jackie Robinson
Jack Roosevelt Robinson (January 31, 1919 – October 24, 1972) was an American professional baseball player who became the first African American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. Robinson broke the baseball color line ...
's RBI single. The Yankees regained the lead in the bottom half of the inning on Lindell's RBI triple with a runner at third, but the Dodgers again tied the game in the fourth on
Dixie Walker's home run. In the bottom half of the fourth, after a leadoff triple,
Phil Rizzuto's RBI double put the Yankees back in front 3–2. In the next inning,
Tommy Henrich's lead-off home run extended their lead to 4–2. After a ground-rule double knocked Lombardi out of the game,
George McQuinn's RBI single off
Hal Gregg
Harold Dana Gregg (July 11, 1921 – May 13, 1991) was a starting pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Brooklyn Dodgers (1943–47), Pittsburgh Pirates (1948–50) and New York Giants (1952). Gregg batted and threw right-handed. ...
made it 5–2 Yankees. The Yankees added another run in the sixth on Lindell's sacrifice fly before breaking it open in the seventh. After a leadoff single and wild pitch by
Hank Behrman,
Billy Johnson's RBI single made it 7–2 Yankees. After a pop out and intentional walk, Reynolds's RBI single made it 8–2 Yankees.
Rex Barney relieved Behrman and allowed an RBI single to
Snuffy Stirnweiss and threw a wild pitch that turned the Yanks' advantage to 10–2. The Dodgers scored one more run in the ninth on
Spider Jorgensen's groundout off
Allie Reynolds, who scattered nine hits in a complete-game win.
Game 3
The series shifted to Ebbets Field. In the second inning the Dodgers rang up six runs. After a one-out walk,
Bruce Edwards's double and
Pee Wee Reese
Harold Peter Henry "Pee Wee" Reese (July 23, 1918 – August 14, 1999) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a shortstop for the Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers from 1940 to 1958. A ten-time All-Sta ...
's single scored a run each. One out later, after a single and passed ball,
Eddie Stanky
Edward Raymond Stanky (born Stankiewicz (September 3, 1915 – June 6, 1999) was an American professional baseball second baseman, shortstop, and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago Cubs, Brooklyn Dodgers, Boston B ...
's two-run double was the end for Yankee starter
Bobo Newsom
Louis Norman "Bobo" Newsom (August 11, 1907 – December 7, 1962) was an American starting pitcher in Major League Baseball. Also known as "Buck", Newsom played for nine of the 16 then-existing big-league teams from 1929 through 1953 over all o ...
, but the runs kept coming with a
Carl Furillo two-run double after a single off
Vic Raschi. The rest of the day, the Yankees pecked away. Back-to-back RBI singles by
Johnny Lindell
John Harlan Lindell (August 30, 1916 – August 27, 1985) was an American professional baseball player who was an outfielder and pitcher in Major League Baseball from 1941 to 1950 and from 1953 to 1954 for the New York Yankees, St. Louis Cardin ...
and
Joe DiMaggio
Joseph Paul DiMaggio (November 25, 1914 – March 8, 1999), nicknamed "Joltin' Joe", "The Yankee Clipper" and "Joe D.", was an American baseball center fielder who played his entire 13-year career in Major League Baseball for the New York Yank ...
off
Joe Hatten made it 6–2 Dodgers in the third. After the Dodgers scored a run in the bottom half of the third on
Spider Jorgensen's RBI single after a hit-by-pitch and wild pitch by
Karl Drews
Karl August Drews (February 22, 1920 – August 15, 1963) was an American professional baseball right-handed pitcher, whose baseball career spanned 21 seasons (1939–59). He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1946 to 1949 and 1951 to 195 ...
,
Sherm Lollar hit an RBI double in the fourth after a walk and
Snuffy Stirnweiss added an RBI single. After two walks in the bottom half of the fourth off
Spud Chandler
Spurgeon Ferdinand "Spud" Chandler (September 12, 1907 – January 9, 1990) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed starting pitcher and played his entire career for the New York Yankees ...
, the Dodgers got those runs back on back-to-back RBI singles by
Dixie Walker and
Gene Hermanski
Eugene Victor Hermanski (May 11, 1920 – August 9, 2010) was a Major League Baseball outfielder. A native of Pittsfield, Massachusetts, he attended Seton Hall University.
Signed by the Philadelphia Athletics as an amateur free agent in 1939, Her ...
, but
Joe DiMaggio
Joseph Paul DiMaggio (November 25, 1914 – March 8, 1999), nicknamed "Joltin' Joe", "The Yankee Clipper" and "Joe D.", was an American baseball center fielder who played his entire 13-year career in Major League Baseball for the New York Yank ...
hit a two-run home run in the fifth after a walk.
Tommy Henrich's RBI double in the next inning and
Yogi Berra
Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra (May 12, 1925 – September 22, 2015) was an American professional baseball catcher who later took on the roles of manager and coach. He played 19 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) (1946–1963, 1965), all but t ...
's home run in the seventh off
Ralph Branca made it 9–8 Dodgers. Reliever
Hugh Casey set down
Billy Johnson,
Phil Rizzuto and Berra in order in the ninth.
Game 4
The Yankees entered Game 4 aiming to take a three games to one lead in the best-of-seven series, and came one out away from doing this. They scored a run in the first on a bases-loaded walk off
Harry Taylor and another in the fourth on
Johnny Lindell
John Harlan Lindell (August 30, 1916 – August 27, 1985) was an American professional baseball player who was an outfielder and pitcher in Major League Baseball from 1941 to 1950 and from 1953 to 1954 for the New York Yankees, St. Louis Cardin ...
's double after a leadoff triple off
Hal Gregg
Harold Dana Gregg (July 11, 1921 – May 13, 1991) was a starting pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Brooklyn Dodgers (1943–47), Pittsburgh Pirates (1948–50) and New York Giants (1952). Gregg batted and threw right-handed. ...
.
Bill Bevens, the Yankee starter, pitched innings without allowing a base hit, but allowed a run in the fifth on
Pee Wee Reese
Harold Peter Henry "Pee Wee" Reese (July 23, 1918 – August 14, 1999) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a shortstop for the Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers from 1940 to 1958. A ten-time All-Sta ...
's fielder's choice after two walks and a sacrifice bunt. No pitcher had ever thrown a
no-hitter
In baseball, a no-hitter is a game in which a team was not able to record a hit. Major League Baseball (MLB) officially defines a no-hitter as a completed game in which a team that batted in at least nine innings recorded no hits. A pitcher wh ...
in a major league World Series game (although the so-called "
Negro World Series" had produced complete-game no-hit pitching performances prior to 1947).
Going into the bottom of the ninth inning, Bevens and the Yankees led 2–1. Bevens got
Bruce Edwards to fly out, and then walked
Carl Furillo.
Spider Jorgensen fouled out for the 2nd out.
Al Gionfriddo
Albert Francis Gionfriddo (March 8, 1922 – March 14, 2003) was an American professional baseball player who played in Major League Baseball as an outfielder.
Career
Gionfriddo made his major league debut on September 23, at the age of 22 with ...
pinch-ran for Furillo.
Pete Reiser pinch-hit for pitcher
Hugh Casey; during the at-bat, Gionfriddo stole second base. The Yankees then intentionally walked Reiser.
Eddie Miksis pinch-ran for Reiser, and the Dodgers sent
Cookie Lavagetto to pinch-hit for
Eddie Stanky
Edward Raymond Stanky (born Stankiewicz (September 3, 1915 – June 6, 1999) was an American professional baseball second baseman, shortstop, and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago Cubs, Brooklyn Dodgers, Boston B ...
. Lavagetto lined a 1–0
fastball to right field; the ball ricocheted off the wall with a peculiar bounce and hit Yankee right fielder
Tommy Henrich in the shoulder, as Gionfriddo and Miksis raced around to score. The play ended the no-hitter and won the game for the Dodgers.
The hit was the last of Lavagetto's career. Additionally, neither Lavagetto nor Bevens nor Gionfriddo would play in the majors again following this Series.
The Dodgers, with this hit, avoided a three-games-to-one deficit, avoided becoming the victim of a no-hitter, and tied the Series at two games each. The rapid and dramatic reversal of fortunes may have provided a momentum swing.
As was the case in their only
previous World Series encounter six years earlier, the Yankees and Dodgers again played a dramatic Game 4 which was decided on a lead change with two outs in the ninth inning. In both instances the Yankees entered the game with a 2–1 series lead and
Hugh Casey ended up being the pitcher of record for the Dodgers (losing in 1941, winning in 1947).
Game 5
Nine walks in fewer than five innings proved the undoing of
Rex Barney in this start for Brooklyn. A pair of walks and RBI single by opposing pitcher
Spec Shea in the fourth put the Yankees up 1–0.
Joe DiMaggio
Joseph Paul DiMaggio (November 25, 1914 – March 8, 1999), nicknamed "Joltin' Joe", "The Yankee Clipper" and "Joe D.", was an American baseball center fielder who played his entire 13-year career in Major League Baseball for the New York Yank ...
homered to left in the fifth. That was all the runs the visiting Yanks would get at Ebbets Field, but this was all Shea needed. A hit by
Jackie Robinson
Jack Roosevelt Robinson (January 31, 1919 – October 24, 1972) was an American professional baseball player who became the first African American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. Robinson broke the baseball color line ...
in the sixth scored
Al Gionfriddo
Albert Francis Gionfriddo (March 8, 1922 – March 14, 2003) was an American professional baseball player who played in Major League Baseball as an outfielder.
Career
Gionfriddo made his major league debut on September 23, at the age of 22 with ...
to pull the Dodgers within 2–1. Then in the ninth, after a
Bruce Edwards leadoff single and sacrifice bunt by
Carl Furillo, the tying run died on base. Shea got
Spider Jorgensen on a fly to right, and with Brooklyn's fans on their feet, pinch-hitter
Cookie Lavagetto struck out.
Game 6
The Dodgers won Game 6 to force a seventh and deciding game. Three straight singles loaded the bases in the first with no outs, then
Dixie Walker's double play and
Allie Reynolds's passed ball scored a run each. In the third, three straight doubles by
Pee Wee Reese
Harold Peter Henry "Pee Wee" Reese (July 23, 1918 – August 14, 1999) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a shortstop for the Brooklyn / Los Angeles Dodgers from 1940 to 1958. A ten-time All-Sta ...
,
Jackie Robinson
Jack Roosevelt Robinson (January 31, 1919 – October 24, 1972) was an American professional baseball player who became the first African American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. Robinson broke the baseball color line ...
and Walker made it 4–0 Dodgers. In the bottom of the inning, after a double and wild pitch by
Vic Lombardi
Victor Alvin Lombardi (September 20, 1922 – December 3, 1997) was a pitcher in Major League Baseball. He pitched from 1945 to 1950 with the Brooklyn Dodgers and Pittsburgh Pirates. He was the starting pitcher in two games of the 1947 World Se ...
, an error on
Snuffy Stirnweiss's ground ball allowed a run to score. After a single,
Johnny Lindell
John Harlan Lindell (August 30, 1916 – August 27, 1985) was an American professional baseball player who was an outfielder and pitcher in Major League Baseball from 1941 to 1950 and from 1953 to 1954 for the New York Yankees, St. Louis Cardin ...
's RBI single cut the Dodgers' lead to 4–2. After another single knocked Lombardie out of the game, RBI singles by
Billy Johnson and
Bobby Brown off
Ralph Branca tied the game.
Yogi Berra
Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra (May 12, 1925 – September 22, 2015) was an American professional baseball catcher who later took on the roles of manager and coach. He played 19 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) (1946–1963, 1965), all but t ...
's RBI single next inning put the Yankees up 5–4. In the sixth, after a leadoff single and double off
Joe Page,
Cookie Lavagetto's sacrifice fly tied the game, then
Bobby Bragan's RBI single put the Dodgers up 6–5. After a single knocked Page out of the game, Reese's two-run single off
Bobo Newsom
Louis Norman "Bobo" Newsom (August 11, 1907 – December 7, 1962) was an American starting pitcher in Major League Baseball. Also known as "Buck", Newsom played for nine of the 16 then-existing big-league teams from 1929 through 1953 over all o ...
made it 8–5 Dodgers.
A catch made by
Al Gionfriddo
Albert Francis Gionfriddo (March 8, 1922 – March 14, 2003) was an American professional baseball player who played in Major League Baseball as an outfielder.
Career
Gionfriddo made his major league debut on September 23, at the age of 22 with ...
, replayed countless times, may be the most remembered play of this game, and one of the most remembered plays of the Series.
In the last of the sixth, the Dodgers sent
Al Gionfriddo
Albert Francis Gionfriddo (March 8, 1922 – March 14, 2003) was an American professional baseball player who played in Major League Baseball as an outfielder.
Career
Gionfriddo made his major league debut on September 23, at the age of 22 with ...
to left field as a defensive replacement for
Eddie Miksis.
Joe Hatten came in to pitch. With two on and two outs,
Joe DiMaggio
Joseph Paul DiMaggio (November 25, 1914 – March 8, 1999), nicknamed "Joltin' Joe", "The Yankee Clipper" and "Joe D.", was an American baseball center fielder who played his entire 13-year career in Major League Baseball for the New York Yank ...
came to bat for the Yankees, representing the potential tying run. DiMaggio drove the ball deep, and Gionfriddo quickly pedalled back to snare it just in front of the bullpen-alley fence, near the marker posted to the center field side of the bullpen alley (the sign on the left field side of the alley was posted as 402). Radio announcer
Red Barber
Walter Lanier "Red" Barber (February 17, 1908 – October 22, 1992) was an American sports announcer and author. Nicknamed "The Ol' Redhead", he was primarily identified with broadcasts of Major League Baseball, calling play-by-play across four ...
provided the play-by-play, which has often accompanied re-played film footage:
Many announcers since that time have used variations of the call, especially
Chris Berman of
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
. These announcers have tended to describe the ''ball itself'' as going "back-back-back". In Barber's call, it was the ''outfielder'' who was going "back-back-back".
Films of the play showed DiMaggio, heading for second, kick the dirt in disgust after he realized Gionfriddo had caught the ball. This was a surprise to many who witnessed it, since DiMaggio was known to never show his emotions while playing. Red Barber declared it, "probably the only time ever that DiMaggio was publicly and visibly upset."
Three of the 1947 Series' prominent figures, Gionfriddo, Lavagetto and Bevens, finished their playing careers in this Series. Gionfriddo did not play in Game 7, and his catch of DiMaggio's drive was his only put-out in this game. So Gionfriddo's famous catch was his final put-out in his major league career.
The Yankees loaded the bases in the bottom of the ninth off
Joe Hatten and
Hugh Casey, but scored only once on a groundout.
Game 7
The scoring began in the second inning, when the Dodgers strung together four consecutive hits: three off of Yankee starter
Spec Shea, and a fourth off of reliever
Bill Bevens, to put the Dodgers ahead, 2–0, in the top half of the inning.
Gene Hermanski
Eugene Victor Hermanski (May 11, 1920 – August 9, 2010) was a Major League Baseball outfielder. A native of Pittsfield, Massachusetts, he attended Seton Hall University.
Signed by the Philadelphia Athletics as an amateur free agent in 1939, Her ...
tripled,
Bruce Edwards drove Hermanski in with a single, and
Carl Furillo followed with another single, prompting a pitching change.
Spider Jorgensen greeted reliever Bevens with a double, scoring Edwards for the second run.
In the bottom half of the second inning, the Yankees cut the lead to 2–1. After Dodger starter
Hal Gregg
Harold Dana Gregg (July 11, 1921 – May 13, 1991) was a starting pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Brooklyn Dodgers (1943–47), Pittsburgh Pirates (1948–50) and New York Giants (1952). Gregg batted and threw right-handed. ...
issued two walks,
Phil Rizzuto delivered an RBI single, scoring
George McQuinn.
In the bottom of the fourth, the Yankees took the lead with a two-out rally. With two runners on, pinch-hitter
Bobby Brown doubled off of Gregg, scoring
Billy Johnson to tie the game.
Hank Behrman replaced Gregg. After a walk loaded the bases,
Tommy Henrich stroked an RBI single, scoring Rizzuto and putting the Yankees up 3–2.
With this lead, Yankee pitcher
Joe Page entered the game to begin the top of the fifth inning, and would close the game out. Over the next five innings, Page retired 13 consecutive Dodger batters. During this time, the Yankees added two runs. Rizzuto lead off the bottom of the sixth with a bunt single, and stole second base;
Allie Clark drove him home with a single off of
Joe Hatten, making the score 4–2. In the bottom of the seventh,
Aaron Robinson hit a sacrifice fly off of
Hugh Casey, to score
Billy Johnson, who had just tripled.
In all, Page pitched five innings of one-hit, shutout relief. With one out in the top of the ninth, he allowed his first and only baserunner of the outing, when
Eddie Miksis singled. Page quickly recovered, inducing Edwards to ground into a double play that ended the game.
Composite line score
1947 World Series (4–3):
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one ...
(A.L.) over
Brooklyn Dodgers (N.L.)
Records and important events
For the first time, a World Series produced total receipts over $2 million: Gate receipts were $1,781,348.92, radio rights $175,000.00 and television rights $65,000.
Yogi Berra
Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra (May 12, 1925 – September 22, 2015) was an American professional baseball catcher who later took on the roles of manager and coach. He played 19 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) (1946–1963, 1965), all but t ...
pinch-hit for
Sherm Lollar in the seventh inning of Game 3 and hit the first pinch-hit home run in World Series history.
Ralph Branca served the pitch.
This was the first World Series to be televised, although the games were only seen in a small number of Eastern markets with stations connected via coaxial cable: New York City, New York; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Schenectady, New York; Washington, DC; and environs surrounding these cities. The October 18, 1947 edition of ''
Billboard'' reported that a total of over 3.9 million people viewed the seven games, primarily on TV sets located in bars (''Billboard'' estimated 5,400 tavern TV sets in NYC alone, with 4,870 in use). The October 13, 1947, edition of
''Time'' magazine reported that President
Truman, who had just made the first
Oval Office TV appearance on October 5, 1947, and received the first TV for the
White House
The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in ...
, watched parts of the Series but "skipped the last innings".
At the direction of
Commissioner
A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a commission or an individual who has been given a commission (official charge or authority to do something).
In practice, the title of commissioner has evolved to in ...
Happy Chandler, the Series, for the first time, used six umpires to make calls.
Series from 1918 through 1946 used four umpires in the infield, with two alternates available if needed. However, no alternate had ever been needed, and Chandler believed that enlisting these umpires to make calls along the outfield lines would put these men and their skills to better use. However, not until 1964 would the additional two umpires rotate into the infield during the course of the Series.
This was the first, and to date only, World Series in which the Yankees won
Game 7
A game seven is the final game of a best of seven series. This game can occur in the postseasons for Major League Baseball (MLB) ( League Championship Series and World Series), the National Basketball Association (NBA) (all rounds of the NBA ...
in their home stadium.
Notes
References
External links
Baseball's 25 Greatest Moments: Cookie Lavagetto beats Bill BevensAudio: Bill Bevens describes his lost no-hit bidAudio: Al Gionfriddo's Catch of DiMaggio's BlastAudio: Cookie Lavagetto breaks up Bill Bevens' No-Hit Bid in 1947 World Series''Gionfriddo Recalls His Famous Catch'' in Baseball Digest, February 1973
{{Authority control
World Series
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the Worl ...
New York Yankees postseason
Brooklyn Dodgers postseason
Jackie Robinson
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the Worl ...
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the Worl ...
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, contested since 1903 between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winner of the Worl ...
Sports competitions in New York City
1940s in the Bronx
1940s in Brooklyn
Flatbush, Brooklyn
Yankee Stadium (1923)