GAME 1 – Sportsman
Park – BKN 4, STL 1
Joe Hatten vs Max Lanier
Lou Klein’s 2 out RBI single plated Harry “the Hat” Walker to
make it 1-0 Redbirds. His brother Dixie Walker’s ground out tied the game as
pitcher Joe Hatten jogged home from 3rd in the top of the 5th.
Hatten reached base after Max Lanier struck him out to open the 5th,
but catcher Walker Cooper dropped the ball and didn’t pick it up until it rolled
all the way to the backstop. In the top of the 6th Brooklyn would get
a lead off hit by Arky Vaughn and a clean single by catcher Bruce Edwards to put
runners on 1st and 2nd. Cookie Lovagetto flew out to left
and the second out was made when Hatten bunted the runners up 90 feet. After
Carl Furillo walked on 5 pitches, “the Bratt”
Eddie Stanky lined a double into left center to score Vaughn and
Edwards. Furillo was given the green light to head home, but was pegged by a
great throw by left fielder Danny Litwhiler for out number 3. Furillo would lead
off the 9th against reliever Mury Dickson with a double down the left
field line. Stanky would bunt Skoonj over to third where he scored on a ground
out by Pee Wee Reese. Litwhiler would lead off the bottom of the 9th
with a walk. Stan Musial and White Kurowski would follow with singles to load
the bases. Hatten would get Walker Cooper to line out to first for out number 1.
Hugh Casey would come in from the pen to get Ray Sanders to line out to third
and Walker to ground out to short to end it.
Brooklyn leads series 1-0
GAME 2 – Sportsman
Park – STL 1, BKN 0
Harry Taylor vs Mort Cooper
Mort Cooper did just what a stopper does by going the distance
and tossing a neat 5 hitter while striking out 8. Harry Taylor was doing his
darndest to keep Brooklyn even as he and Cooper were battling toe to toe in a
scoreless tie until the bottom of the 7th when Ray Sanders singled
home Harry Walker with 2 out. That would be the only run scored for either team
in the contest. Eddie Stanky led off the top of the 8th with a single
for Brooklyn, but got stranded. In the 9th Bruce Edwards singled with
2 outs, but Spider Jorgensen forced him at second to end the game.
Series tied 1-1
GAME 3 – Ebbets Field – BKN
1, STL 0
Harry Gumpert vs Ralph Branca
Same score, same scenario, different results. Gumbert and Branca locked up in a
scoreless tie until Dixie Walker singled home Pete Reiser with 2 out. St. Louis
threatened in the 9th when Walker Cooper doubled off the left field
wall with 1 out. Ralph Branca, who looked to be tiring was able to dig down deep
for some high cheddar to fan Ray Sanders and pinch hitter Ken O’Dea to close his
4 hit shutout out in style.
Brooklyn leads 2-1
GAME 4 – Ebbets Field – STL
9, BKN 8
Max Lanier vs Joe Hatten
After consecutive 1-0 shutouts it was only a matter of time before the offense
exploded for both teams. As you all know Ebbets field will never be known as a
pitching friendly park and today’s 5 homers proved exactly why that statement is
true. With the game knotted at 4-4 the Cards erupted for 3 runs in the top of
the 6th thanks to a sac fly by Danny Litwhiler and a two run homer by
Walker Cooper. Brooklyn go 2 of
those runs back in the 7th when Eddie Miksis, making a rare start,
singled with 2 out to score Reese and Edwards. An RBI triple by Lou Klein and a
single by Harry Walker put the Redbirds back up by 3 in the top of the 8th.
Brooklyn stayed right in the thick of it by answering back with 2 runs of their
own. Carl Furillo led off the bottom of the 8th with a homer and Pee
Wee Reese doubled home Jackie Robinson with 2 out to make it 9-8. Harry Brecheen,
who had a rocky 8th inning in relief of Lanier looked to be cruising
in the 9th, until pinch hitter Cookie Lavagetto singled with 2 outs.
Sknoonj battled Brecheen to a full count then fouled off 3 pitches before
popping out to Marty Marion at short to end the game.
Series tied 2-2
GAME 5 - Ebbets Field – STL
2, BKN 1
Mort Cooper vs Vic Lombardi
Both starters pitched their hearts out, but to no avail, as the game headed to
extra innings tied a 1-1. Cooper was given the impossible task of keeping
Brooklyn off the scoreboard for 9 innings after Lou Klein led the game off with
a homer to make it 1-0 Cards. Cooper looked like he was going to perform the
impossible until pinch hitter Arky Vaugh tripled with 1 out in the bottom of the
9th. “Pistol” Pete Reiser popped out to short for the second out of
the inning. It all rested squarely on the shoulders of Rookie of the Year
Jackie Robinson, who lined a
single to right to send the game to extra innings. What a clutch 2 out hit by
the man who has spent the whole 1947 season fighting against racist remarks and
poor behavior by fans in visiting cities. Robinson attempted to steal second,
but could not get a good jump and was eventually forced at second by a weak
grounder by his keystone partner Reese. Neither team scored in the 10th.
With one out in the 11th Stan “the Man”
Musial launched a tape measure shot into the middle of Bedford
Avenue to put the Redbirds up 2-1 off of reliever Harry Taylor. Bruce Edwards
would lead off the bottom of the 11th with a clean single off of
Cardinal
reliever Howie Krist. Stanky would bunt him into scoring position for pinch
hitter Gene Hermanski who grounded weakly to short. With Edwards on third with 2
out Reiser needed a hit to keep the game going. He would hit a 1 hop bullet back
to the box that Krist would easily snare and toss to Sanders at first for the
final out.
St. Louis leads series 3-2
GAME 6 – Sportsman Park –
BKN 9, STL 1
Ralph Branca vs Howie Pollet
Down 3 games to two the Dodgers had the unenviable task of having to win two
straight contests on the road. On the mound for them was their ace Ralph Branca.
Most baseball fans only remember Branca for that ill fated day in the Polo
Grounds in 1951 when he gave up quite possibly the most famous homer of all time
in baseball history. Most neglect to realize that he was a fantastic starter who
won 20 games in 1947 at the ripe old age of 21. Branca proved beyond a shadow of
a doubt that he was a clutch pitcher by going the distance and allowing just a
meaningless 8th inning run by the Cardinals. By the end of the 3rd
inning it looked like a lock that we’d see game 7 as the Dodgers went up 6-0 off
of Pollet, who had nothing in his arsenal on the day. Brooklyn scored 5 huge
runs in the 3rd to pretty much end all hopes by the Cards real early.
Pistol Pete Reiser’s three run
shot capped off a huge inning for the Brooks, who made it 7-0 with 2 in the 7th
thanks to back to back errors by Wally Kurowski. St. Louis did manage 10 hits,
including 4 by Lou Klein, but they could never piece them together. Jackie
Robinson had 3 hits in 5 AB’s, which helped make it an easy day for Branca on
the hill.
Series tied 3-3
GAME 7 – Sportsman Park – BKN 8, STL 5
Joe Hatten vs Harry Gumbert
Tension filled the air in the Gateway city thanks
to the finality that is felt on every pitch during a decisive game 7. Brooklyn
broke the ice with 2 runs in the top of the 3rd when Pee Wee Reese
launched a sac fly to right to score Stanky with the bases loaded. Furillo
followed with an RBI single before Jorgensen grounded out to end the inning. The
2-0 lead that Joe Hatten was given didn’t last long. After Litwhiler led off the
bottom of the third by taking one off the noggin,
Marty Marion doubled for the first of
his 3 consecutive hits on the day. Hurler Gumbert lifted a sac fly to Furillo in
left and Lou Klein singled home Marion to tie the game at 2-2. Hatten was on
the ropes at this point and was lucky to get Walker to pop out to short as St.
Louis’ centerfielder was caught swinging from his heels hoping to go deep. No
way Hatten was pitching to Musial who got a no brainer intentional pass in order
to face Walker Cooper who grounded out to short to end the inning. Brooklyn
would pick up where they left off in the 3rd when Bruce Edwards led
off the 4th with a single and moved to second on Hatten’s sac
attempt. Pete Reiser lined a double into the right center gap to make it 3-2,
then scored on another White Kurowski error at the hot corner. After
Carl Furillo and Jorgensen led off the
5th with consecutive singles, Skoonj would score from third on a room
service 6-4-3 DP off of Edwards’ bat to make it 5-2. Ray Sanders’ sac fly in the
bottom of the 6th scored Musial to bring the Redbirds back to within
2. Brooklyn would blow it open in the 7th with 3 runs. After Reese
walked and Furillo doubled Jorgensen was given an intentional pass. Edwards hit
into his second consecutive run scoring DP, which for the moment was keeping the
Cards and starter turned reliever Mort Cooper still in the game. Hatten stepped
to the plate with 2 out and delivered an RBI single to give himself a 4 run
lead. After a balk by Cooper, Reiser lined a single to right to balloon the lead
to 5. Hatten looked fully intent on giving back the big lead he just received.
After 3 consecutive singles (Litwhiler, Marion & Pinch hitter Demaree) St.
Louis was poised to make a run. Klein’s medium length fly ball to Furillo in
left scored Litwhiler to make it 8-4. Harry Walkers untimely DP ended the inning
a for all intents and purposes ended St. Louis’ chances of threatening Brooklyn.
Kurowski’s lead off homer in the bottom of the 9th off of reliever
Clyde King made it a 3 run
game. King got his sea legs and fanned the next two batters (Litwhiler / O’Dea).
Pinch hitter Debs Garms would hit a hard chopper to Reese at short to end the
game and the series. The Dodgers will await the winner of the '53 Brooklyn vs
'96 Braves series to see who the meet in the finals.
Brooklyn wins series 4 games to 3
Oct 18, 1953 Playoff Game 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
1947 Brooklyn 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 1 4 7 0
1943 St. Louis 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 4 0
47 Brooklyn AB R H BI W K Ave 43 St. Louis AB R H BI W K Ave
Furillo CF 3 1 1 0 2 0 .417 Klein 2B 4 0 1 1 0 0 .128
Stanky 2B 2 0 1 2 2 0 .152 Litwhiler LF 3 0 0 0 1 1 .147
Reese SS 5 0 1 1 0 2 .306 Musial RF 4 0 1 0 0 0 .375
Walker, D RF 4 0 0 1 1 2 .297 Kurowski 3B 4 0 1 0 0 0 .372
Robinson,J 1B 4 0 1 0 0 0 .278 Cooper,W C 3 0 0 0 1 0 .317
Vaughan LF 3 1 1 0 1 0 .333 Sanders, R 1B 4 0 0 0 0 0 .188
Edwards, B C 3 0 1 0 1 2 .171 Walker,H CF 3 1 0 0 1 0 .178
Lavagetto 3B 4 0 1 0 0 1 .200 Marion,M SS 3 0 1 0 0 0 .306
Hatten P 4 2 0 0 0 1 .000 Lanier P 1 0 0 0 0 0 .000
King P 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 O'Dea PH 1 0 0 0 0 0 .000
Casey P 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 Dickson P 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.000
32 4 7 4 7 8 .256 30 1 4 1 3 1 .253
47 Brooklyn IP H R ER W K Ct S B ERA BF EPC Act Stf
Hatten W(2-0) 7.2 2 1 1 2 1 101 70 31 0.85 27 110 113 +
King H(1) 0.2 2 0 0 1 0 26 15 11 8.10 5 75 75
Casey S(2) 0.2 0 0 0 0 0 7 5 2 5.40 2 40 39 ++
9.0 4 1 1 3 1 134 90 44 3.33 34
43 St. Louis IP H R ER W K Ct S B ERA BF EPC Act Stf
Lanier L(2-1) 8.0 6 3 2 7 7 125 73 52 1.75 36 120 123
Dickson 1.0 1 1 1 0 1 16 12 4 16.20 4 80 75
9.0 7 4 3 7 8 141 85 56 2.69 40
StL: O'Dea hit for Lanier in the 8th
2B-Furillo(2) Stanky(1)
CS-Robinson,J
SH-Stanky Lanier
LOB-47 Brooklyn 9 43 St. Louis 6
GWRBI-Stanky
Game MVP:Joe Hatten
Sportsman's Park III, Time 3:04, 73ø, 5mph Left to Right
Oct 18, 1953 Playoff Game
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
1947 Brooklyn 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 1 4 7 0
1943 St. Louis 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 4 0
1947 47 Brooklyn Ab1 Ab2 Ab3 Ab4 Ab5
1 Furillo CF 1>P6 G53,12 W,12 W,12 9>D
2 Stanky 2B G63 W W,23,12 D,3H,2H,13/7 B23,23
3 Reese SS S K K 7>G63 G63,3H
4 Walker, D RF G13 4>W G43,23,12,3H K K23
5 Robinson,J 1B 2>G63 G43,12 F7 S
6 Vaughan LF G43 G31,23 6>S CS2(26) 8>W
7 Edwards, B C K W S,12 K
8 Lavagetto 3B 3>S K F7 P6
9 Hatten P B54/fo,B1 5>K/PB,B1 B54/fo,23,B1 G64/fo
King P
Casey P
1943 43 St. Louis Ab1 Ab2 Ab3 Ab4
1 Klein 2B 1>F9 S,2H,B2 6>G43 F8
2 Litwhiler LF K G63 G53 9>W
3 Musial RF L4 4>G13 F9 S,12
4 Kurowski 3B 2>G53 G63 7>F9 S,23,12
5 Cooper,W C G53 W G63 L3
6 Sanders, R 1B G63 G63 L6 L5
7 Walker,H CF 3>W 5>G43 8>P4 G64/fo
8 Marion,M SS F7 G13 S
9 Lanier P B54,12 Fs7
O'Dea PH P6
Dickson P
47 Brooklyn IN OUT
Hatten AB1-1 AB3-9
King AB4-1 AB4-5
Casey AB4-6 End
43 St. Louis IN OUT
Lanier AB1-1 AB4-9
Dickson AB5-1 End
Lou Klein’s 2 out RBI single plated Harry “the Hat” Walker to
make it 1-0 Redbirds. His brother Dixie Walker’s ground out tied the game as
pitcher Joe Hatten jogged home from 3rd in the top of the 5th.
Hatten reached base after Max Lanier struck him out to open the 5th,
but catcher Walker Cooper dropped the ball and didn’t pick it up until it rolled
all the way to the backstop. In the top of the 6th Brooklyn would get
a lead off hit by Arky Vaughn and a clean single by catcher Bruce Edwards to put
runners on 1st and 2nd. Cookie Lovagetto flew out to left
and the second out was made when Hatten bunted the runners up 90 feet. After
Carl Furillo walked on 5 pitches, “the Bratt”
Eddie Stanky lined a double into left center to score Vaughn and
Edwards. Furillo was given the green light to head home, but was pegged by a
great throw by left fielder Danny Litwhiler for out number 3. Furillo would lead
off the 9th against reliever Mury Dickson with a double down the left
field line. Stanky would bunt Skoonj over to third where he scored on a ground
out by Pee Wee Reese. Litwhiler would lead off the bottom of the 9th
with a walk. Stan Musial and White Kurowski would follow with singles to load
the bases. Hatten would get Walker Cooper to line out to first for out number 1.
Hugh Casey would come in from the pen to get Ray Sanders to line out to third
and Walker to ground out to short to end it. 
