1963 Los Angeles Dodgers: Pitching Greatness

1963 Los Angeles Dodgers: Pitching Greatness

1963 Los Angeles Dodgers: Pitching Greatness

The 1963 Los Angeles Dodgers will be known as the one of the best pitching teams in the history of Major League Baseball mainly because of a dynamic duo of starters who took the league by storm the moment they got onto the pitcher’s mound. The Dodgers went 99-63 in 1963, winning the National League pennant by 6 games over the St. Louis Cardinals. The Dodgers went 12-6 against the Cardinals in head-to-head play.

Sandy Koufax is considered to be one of the most dominant starting pitchers in the history of baseball. Koufax went 25-5 in 1963, having 306 strikeouts and a 1.88 ERA while recording 20 complete games and 11 shutouts. Koufax’s partner in crime was Don Drysdale, who went 19-17 with 251 strikeouts and a 2.63 ERA, recording 17 complete games and 3 shutouts. Johnny Podres was a solid 3rd starter in the rotation, going 14-12 with 134 strikeouts and a 3.54 ERA and recording 10 complete games and 5 shutouts. Bob Miller went 10-8 with 125 strikeouts and a 2.89 ERA, recording 2 complete games. Pete Richert went 5-3 with 1 complete game.

The bullpen was held together by closer Ron Perranoski who went 16-3 with 21 saves and a 1.67 ERA. Relief pitcher Larry Sherry had 3 saves and a 3.73 ERA. Dick Calmus went 3-1 with a 2.66 ERA. Ken Rowe went 1-1 with 1 save and a 2.93 ERA.

While the pitching received a ton of attention, the offense for Los Angeles was nothing to sneeze at as they had capable batters. Left fielder Tommy Davis batted .326 with 15 home runs and 88 RBI’s off 181 hits, 19 doubles and 15 stolen bases. Shortstop Maury Wills batted .302 with 159 hits, 19 doubles and 40 stolen bases. Second baseman Jim Gilliam batted .282 with 6 home runs, 148 hits, 27 doubles and 19 stolen bases. Right fielder Frank Howard batted .273 with 28 home runs, 114 hits and 16 doubles. First baseman Ron Fairly batted .271 with 12 home runs and 77 RBI’s off 133 hits and 21 doubles. Center fielder Willie Davis had 9 home runs and 60 RBI’s off 126 hits, 19 doubles, 8 triples and 25 stolen bases. Catcher John Roseboro had 9 home runs, 111 hits, 13 doubles and 7 triples. Reserve outfielder Wally Moon had 8 home runs, 90 hits, 13 doubles and 5 stolen bases in 122 games.

The Los Angeles Dodgers would face the American League Champion New York Yankees in the 1963 World Series, and though many viewed this as a possible back and forth series, it ended in a quick 4-game sweep. In Game 1 on October 2 at Yankee Stadium I, the Dodgers beat the Yankees 5-2. Koufax pitched a complete game and gave up 6 hits, 3 walks and 2 runs, but recorded a phenomenal 15 strikeouts. In the top of the 2nd inning first baseman Bill Skowrun had an RBI single for the Dodgers, and John Roseboro followed by walloping a 3-run home run. Skowrun had another RBI single in the top of the 3rd, and though left fielder Tom Tresh put the Yankees on the board in the bottom of the 8th with a 2-run home run, Koufax’s pitching was the difference.

In Game 2 on October 3 the Dodgers beat the Yankees 4-1. Johnny Podres pitched 8 innings and gave up 6 hits, 1 walk and 1 run, but recorded 4 strikeouts. In the top of the 1st inning Willie Davis had a 2-run double. In the top of the 4th Skowrun hit a solo home run, and Tommy Davis had an RBI triple in the top of the 8th. Catcher Elston Howard’s RBI single in the bottom of the 9th was too late for New York.

The Dodgers made a triumphant return to Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles by winning Game 3 on October 5 with a 1-0 shutout. Don Drysdale pitched a complete game and gave up 3 hits and 1 walk, but recorded 9 strikeouts. All the Dodgers needed was an RBI single by Tommy Davis in the bottom of the 1st inning to secure the victory.

The Dodgers completed their impressive sweep of the Yankees by winning 2-1 in Game 4 on October 6. Sandy Koufax pitched another complete game, giving up 6 hits and 1 run, but recording 8 strikeouts. For the Yankees Whitey Ford gave it his best shot, pitching 7 innings and giving up 2 hits, 1 walk and 2 runs, but he did record 4 strikeouts. In the bottom of the 5th inning Frank Howard hit a solo home run. In the top of the 7th center fielder Mickey Mantle hit a solo home run to tie the game, but a mere sacrifice fly hit by Willie Davis in the bottom of the 7th gave Los Angeles its 2nd World Series championship.

The Dodgers accumulated a multitude of honors and awards in 1963. Tommy Davis was selected to the National League All-Star Team as a starter while Sandy Koufax, Don Drysdale and Maury Wills were selected as reserves. Walter Alston was selected as The Sporting News Manager of the Year. Sandy Koufax had an amazing year as he was selected as The Sporting News Pitcher of the Year and Major League Pitcher of the Year, and the Associated Press Athlete of the Year, and won the National League Cy Young Award, the National League Most Valuable Player and the World Series Most Valuable Player.