Merton Hanks also will be honored that night, receiving the Matt Hazeltine award as the 49ers' defensive player of the year. This forced the Dodgers to keep him on the major league roster for at least two years before he could be sent to the minors. Hendley, left-handed and born in Macon, Ga., pitched in the big leagues for seven seasons, three with the Milwaukee Braves, 1 1/2 with the Giants and two-plus with the Cubs before ending his career with the Mets in 1967. The Dodgers upped the lead to 5-0 when Skowron singled home Willie Davis with two outs in the third inning against Ford, who went just five innings. Sandy Koufax was born Sanford Braun in December 1935 in Brooklyn, New York, the child of Evelyn and Jack Braun, who divorced when Sandy was three. Even today, baseball has but one Sandy, as it has one Babe. Use of his left arm was severely limited when he wasnt pitching. Perfect Game. James Lincoln Ray, Important Facts About Sandy Koufax: Dodgers Ace May Have Been Baseballs Best Lefthanded Pitcher, Suite 101.com., June 12, 2008. WebSandy Koufax Edition - Baseball Roundtable Braves right-handed pitcher (and 1957 World Series hero, Lew Burdette hit as many home runs and drove in as many runs off Sandy Subscribe to Stathead Baseball: Get your first month FREEYour All-Access Ticket to the Baseball Reference Database. He also used Empirin with codeine for pain, which he took every night and sometimes during the fifth inning to make it through a game. Last Update:31 December 2020 On August 21, the Dodgers beat the Cardinals 21 in 16 innings to take a 7+12 game lead. The results clearly suggested that. [8], 1963 World Series (40): Los Angeles Dodgers (N.L.) 1956 Topps baseball trading card for Sandy Koufax, pitcher, Brooklyn Dodgers. Sandy Koufax, Sports Illustrated cover, March 4, 1963. Howard added a home run in the seventh. Total Zone Rating and initial framework for Wins above Replacement calculations provided by Sean Smith. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. "I was average.". Somehow, at Candlestick, we expected more. On that day he carried a perfect game into the eighth inning against the San Francisco Giants, a team then powered by a bevy of capable hitters including future Hall of Famers Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, and Orlando Cepeda. James told New York Times columnist Arthur Daley the grand slam gave me the most personal satisfaction and the most surprise of any home run he hit. He retired 27 consecutive batters without allowing any to reach base. BY PETER MOORE 2023-05-01T07:00:00.0000000Z But the Dodgers swept the three games from the Cardinals to move four games ahead with nine to play; a 41 win over the Mets clinched the pennant in the season's 158th game. Turning away sharply from a pitch, his spikes caught in the ground and he toppled over in pain, The Sporting News reported. Koufax would hold that record until 1981 when Nolan Ryan threw his fifth no-hitter. Despite injuries that limited Mickey Mantle to just 65 games, the Yankees went 10457 to win their fourth straight American League pennantthis one by 10+12 games. Over the years, Hendley's appreciation of Koufax has grown. Certainly it was a historic game because in no other game did two teams combine for so few hits. Koufax and Scully, of course, have a long-standing Dodger Blue relationship. 1 hero and its most attractive bachelor.In one photo he was shown in a swimming pool with a girlfriend; in another, signing autographs at a department store. Koufax was as magnificent a pitcher as any who ever has stood on a big league mound. amzn_assoc_tracking_id = "thpohidill-20"; Frankie Frisch, Jim Gilliam, John Podres, and Sandy Koufax with 4 World Series wins each.Frisch won the World Series with the 1921 and 1922 New York Giants He needed only to tidy up on his control that summer night in Chavez Ravine. Jane Leavy, Sandy Koufax: A Leftys Legacy, New York: Harper-Collins, 2002. Juan Marichal and Warren Spahn became Hall of Famers, and they already had developed uncommon prestige within the game by July 2, 1963, when their Giants and Braves opposed each other in San Francisco. Don Drysdale pitched a masterful three-hitter at Dodger Stadium in his complete-game win. What would come the next day? It became the gold standard the instant Koufax struck out Harvey Kuenn for the the 27th out. And in the post-WWII period the more modern era of baseball Koufax would be the only guy to win three Triple Crowns for pitching (see Triple Crown sidebar below). Frank Finch, Koufax, Drysdale Spurn Record Offer by Dodgers, Los Angeles Times, February 25, 1966, p. B-1. (LogOut/ Podres delivered a six-hitter through 8+13 innings; ace reliever Ron Perranoski, also a left-hander, got the last two outs and the save, and the Dodgers headed home with 20 Series lead. Johnson, Washington Senators, won 3 Triple Crowns: 1913, 1918 & 1924. Sandy Koufax in what appears to be an impromptu locker room press conference following his no-hitter against the New York Mets of June 30, 1962. "I was just getting people out. Their only six confrontations occurred in the first four seasons of a five-season sequence, 1962-66, when Koufax was at the peak of his career. Do you have a sports website? Though a perfect game is a rarity, that Koufax pitched one in 1965 hardly was startling. And Sandy needed to be perfect to gain that one victory. Paul Richards, who managed ball clubs in both leagues, said of Koufax, This man has a sense of responsibility beyond gain and glory. Once in1966 whena television network offered him $25,000 to allow their cameras to follow him around, Koufax agreedto do it for $35,000, and then only if the money was divided so that every Dodger player, coach, and trainer received $1,000. Video: 2015 ASG: MLB's 'Greatest Living Players' announced. Many thanks to him. His column ended thusly: "Today he turns 75. The Dodgers had spotted Koufax a 4-0 lead in the first with the help of a triple by Willie Davis, singles by Tommy Davis and Frank Howard surrounding a walk, John Roseboros two-run double and a single by Larry Burright. Thank you. Video: Doddgers Retired Number: No. All images are property the copyright holder and are displayed here for informational purposes only. amzn_assoc_title = "Related Reading"; For our purposes today, though, the dazzling Koufax is merely half the story. The Yankees tied it on a Mickey Mantle home run in the top of the seventh. "He actually sent me a card," Hendley said. RHP Tom Seaver. He also played some local baseball in a youth league, and later as a 17-year old pitcher, in a Coney Island league. over New York Yankees (A.L.). Though, Leavy reported, the hand injury had bothered Koufax since April (by July, the tissue was close to gangrene, she wrote), he entered the September start against St. Louis with a 14-5 record and 2.15 ERA. . ", Hendley added to his description of the game last winter. You could tell how much he wanted it. Frank Finch, Sandy Koufax Hurls No-Hit, 5-0 Win, Los Angeles Times, July 1, 1962, p E-1. For Martin, it nearly became more important than the ballgame. amzn_assoc_search_bar = "true"; A young Sandy Koufax in his Brooklyn Dodgers uniform. "I was standing on the top step of the dugout, at the end. Los Angeles Times opening-day welcome to the new L.A. Dodgers, April 18, 1958. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". Much of the play-by-play, game results, and transaction information both shown and used to create certain data sets was obtained free of charge from and is copyrighted by RetroSheet. Koufax was as magnificent a pitcher as any who ever has stood on a big league mound. And the Angels still were barely beyond the toddler stage in 1965. After the World Series, in November, Sandy Koufax announced his retirement from baseball due to his arthritic condition. Yet Koufax almost missed these magical years. Koufax walked the next batter, Gene Oliver, and was relieved by Ed Roebuck. Marichal had thrown 227. Koufax-Drysdale Spokesman Says Next Move Up to Dodgers, Los Angeles Times, March 3, 1966, p. B-6. Ive since heard a tape of that half inning: Theres not a single misstep. "To be beaten by class, beaten by the guy who is one of the best, if not the best ever. But a mutual respect is evident between Hendley and the master. Bruce Jenkins has written for the San Francisco Chronicle since 1973 and has been a sports columnist since 1989. 32 -- like Joe D. in New York and Johnny U. in Baltimore. 1966 book Koufax by Sandy Koufax with Ed Linn. "This game is the most recognizable thing I've ever done in baseball," Hendley said after the game. Many historical player head shots courtesy of David Davis. "He was great," Hendley said. Sandy Koufaxs Perfect Game, Wikipedia.org. Second baseman Dick Tracewski's single preceded a three-run home run by catcher John Roseboro to give the Dodgers a 40 lead. A young Sandy Koufax in his Brooklyn Dodgers uniform.Brooklyn Born. Larry Schwartz, Koufaxs Dominance Was Short But Sweet, ESPN.com. One to tie, two to win. Roscoe McGowen, Dodgers Top Pirates, 4-0; Koufax Blanks Pittsburgh; Brooks Need 7 for Pennant, New York Times, September 4, 1955. Hall of Famer Harry Hooper, a player from the same era as Koufax, had this to say about him: Those were the years when a number of great players roamed the fields of big league parks. Former professional baseball player Sandy Koufax began his career in 1955 when he was signed by his hometown Brooklyn Dodgers. His work ("Oh, brother!") I threw the ball pretty hard, Gibson said in the video, and if I threw the ball inside to him, I couldnt get it by him. Koufax added: For me, he was the toughest out. So the uniqueness of the game is derived from Hendley exclusively. The dominance of the Dodgers pitchers was so complete that at no point in any of the four games did the Yankees have the lead. Daily Mirror/LATimes blog says this 1966 photo by Art Rodgers shows Sandy Koufax wincing in pain, but wining his 4th consecutive game, and seven for eight, May 23, 1966. Who is the youngest person in the Baseball Hall of Fame? WebBoth Ford and Koufax pitched scoreless first innings. Frank Finch, Its a No-Hitter for Sandy And 9 Whiffs, Too!, Los Angeles Times, April 10, 1966, p. G-1. Moreover, Hendley's ERA in his six starts opposite Koufax was 2.98. In 2011, Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers, and Justin Verlander, then with the Detroit Tigers, won the National and American League Triple Crowns, respectively. His dad forgives him for that. Video: 2015 ASG: MLB's 'Greatest Living Players' announced. "We both gave up two runs, we both allowed five hits. Dont Let Em Fool You; Koufax Wanted to Pitch, Los Angeles Times, March 31, 1966, p. B-1. Don Drysdale and Sandy Koufax (cover story), Sporting News, July 17, 1965. View Sandy Koufax's Page at the Baseball Hall of Fame (plaque, photos, videos). By the spring of 1954 he was also pitching for the college baseball team, and doing quite well. And seven of the 22, including Koufax's, have been decided by 1-0 scores. Los Angeles Dodgers, Baseball Season Forecast, Sports Illustrated, April 13, 1964. Koufax sought to rest more and not throw as much between starts. Why did Sandy Koufax change his name? On September 29, 1966, near the end of the regular season, Koufax threw a four-hitter to beat the St. Louis Cardinals 2-1, achieving a third 300-strikeout season, the first major league pitcher to do so since Amos Rusie did it in 1890-92. "Early in the game, I didn't have great stuff," Koufax said afterward. Is that coincidence, or are we being punished (after the strike) for doing the wrong thing?". amzn_assoc_ad_type = "smart"; It was his second no-hitter. Koufax won two of the four games. And to add class and a coating of brilliance to their tandem achievement, the game was narrated by a man who has risen to the level of national icon because of his genius in the booth, Vin Scully. The Koufax perfect game against the Cubs was also noted for the play-by-play call by broadcaster Vin Scully, the venerable voice of the Dodgers for more than 50 years. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. Edward Gruver, Koufax, Taylor Trade Publishing, 2000. Video: Doddgers Retired Number: No. Lefty Grove is the only other pitcher to have done the latter, in 1935-1939. He struck out double digits Gibson was 15-13 with a 2.85 ERA. Koufax, meanwhile, was perfect no runs, no hits, no walks. In 1959, the Dodgers won the National League pennant race and beat the Chicago White Sox in the World Series. ", "Hitting would be a lot more rewarding," Quiz reasoned, "if you could hit the ball in any direction. He needed only to tidy up on his control that summer night in Chavez Ravine. Koufax left baseball with the highest regard of his fellow players, as he had been a model professional, not one to seek the spotlight or boast of his abilities, and often thinking and acting on behalf of the team rather than himself. Frank Finch; Koufax Wins, Shelved by Injury,Los Angeles Times, Jul 13, 1962, p. C-1. And he hit the first pinch-hit home run in World Series history. But this pinnacle performance of pitching wouldn't be a prominent part of our past if this oft-times pedestrian pitcher had permitted one more hit in his extraordinary eight innings. Particularly in the last few innings, you knew that he knew he had the perfect game. Haddix carried a perfect game into the 13th against a most formidable Braves lineup. Former professional baseball player Sandy Koufax began his career in 1955 when he was signed by his hometown Brooklyn Dodgers. Triple Crowns in pitching have been reached more recently in 2006 by Johan Santana of the Minnesota Twins in the American League, and in 2007 by Jake Peavy of the San Diego Padres of the National League. In the decades that have passed, the legend of that game has grown. in Brooklyn, NY background-color:#ba3434; Mickey Mantle, who was called out on strikes taking a Koufax curveball, walked away muttering expletives, unhappy with his Koufax experience. Vin Scully, 29,000 People And A Million Butter-flies, Vin Scullys radio call of the ninth inning of Sandy Koufaxs 1965 perfect game, Salon.com., Tuesday, October 12, 1999. Hendley never had told his players of his baseball past. 4 Who was Sandy Koufax for the Brooklyn Dodgers? When the award was given to Koufax at a luncheon in New York City, he was presented with a new carwhile the luncheon was taking place, a New York City police officer put a parking violation ticket on the car's windshield. Hank Aaron, it seemed, was among the few hitters that had Koufaxs number. On bad days hed have to bend his neck to get his face closer to his left hand so that he could shave. More remarkable was that Koufax was the losing pitcher in each of the other instances. Runnels the Slugger. Article Citation: He walked two. The Drysdale-Jim Bouton duel in Game 3 (a 1-0 final) was the greatest single day of pitching I've ever seen. The Yankees tied it on a Mickey Mantle home run in the top of the seventh. The A's took the dive last year, and in a way, you can't blame teams for seeking free advertising on the center-field camera. He also struck out 14 batters, the most ever recorded in a perfect game. He called it "unfair territory. Hendley never had told his players of his baseball past. The big league game has given us 22 other perfectos, 15 since Koufax produced his. Koufax pitched four no-hitters, won three Cy Young Awards -- each unanimously -- struck out all comers and routinely shrunk the biggest and baddest hitters to Eddie Gaedel proportions and turned their wooden bats into paper-mache replicas. Get well, Mick. Years later, James told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, You couldnt hit Koufaxs 100 mph fastball, but if the ball started at the knees, it would rise to belt high by the time it got to the plate. No-Hitters, .avia-section.av-k6v62xgq-c0812a68936ee67ed4883eaa9d35be9b{ At Lafayette High, he became team captain and ranked second in division scoring. It had tension, rising and falling drama, great turns of phrase. It was this bad: Koufax couldnt straighten his left arm-it was curved like a parenthesis. Boxscore. The Book: Playing the Percentages in Baseball. Video: Doddgers Retired Number: No. Steph Curry killed off the Kings with a smile, On an island of resorts, this Hawaii hotel is the budget option, 11 gadgets to boost your WFH productivity. the official stats partner of the NBA, NHL and MLB. In early 1960, Koufax asked the Dodgers to trade him because he wasnt getting enough playing time. Aces were on the mound again in a game 1 rematch between Whitey Ford and Sandy Koufax. In a single game Mantle hit two homers that were longer than most major league players hit in a career! And that's as far as it went. Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet. We both retired early [Hendley at 28, Koufax at 30], we both had elbow problems." Writing for CBSSports.com, Doyel blew Hendley's cover in a column on April 30, 2015, the coach's 75th birthday. Frank Finch, Spencers Hit Ruins Koufax Sparkler, 1-0 , Los Angeles Times, June 2, 1963, p. J-1. By the way, Hendley allowed just one walk. Still, neither is a regular occurrence, attesting to the difficulty of each. The momentum he created for himself brought out the best in Scully and a powerful sense of resignation for Hendley. 555 N. Central Ave. #416 amzn_assoc_title = "Related Reading"; The next delivery was high and away. Later, another Dodger scout, Al Campanis heard about Koufax from a local sporting goods store owner, and after seeing the kid pitch locally invited him to Ebbets Field to tryout with the Dodgers. Heres a little bit of his story and his contributions to the baseball record books. But the Yankees came to Dodger Stadium for the third and fourth games of the 1963 World Series, what would be the climax of an L.A. sweep. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. . In a 12-year big-league career, Koufax yielded 204 home runs, including six grand slams. "I was standing on the top step of the dugout, at the end. background-image:unset; Web> Sandy Koufax. Koufax homered off 2 different pitchers during his career, In order to harness his immense talent, Koufax had to learn to trust and tame ", Hendley's loss seemed quite unfair. Their 2020 title was won as the "home team" albeit as part of the neutral site World Series in Arlington, Texas. Sandy Koufax, May 1965 "Sport" magazine story about his "toughest batters." Even for a pitcher, Koufax was a weak hitter, batting just . The Yankees batted just .171 and scored only four runs in the Series, with Koufax being a primary factor, receiving the World Series MVP award. He was also named the National Leagues Most Valuable Player. The Dodgers' lone hit came two innings later when Lou Johnson's opposite-field bloop landed just beyond first base and rolled into foul ground for a double. L.A. Dodgers Sandy Koufax and John Roseboro celebrate on the field in L.A. after beating the Yankees to clinch the World Series, October 6,1963. Rookie Status: Over the course of a 20-year career, Tom Seaver won three Cy Young Awards and finished in the top five in Cy Young balloting five other times. Indeed, Koufax's overall record, beginning with the 1962 season and running through 1965, was 84-25, three of the losses coming at the hands of Hendley (Curt Simmons beat Koufax three times as well). amzn_assoc_region = "US"; WebKoufax only had two pitches: a 97 mph fastball that physicists denied but all facing batters said was gospel truth: the ball would suddenly hop up before crossing the plate. Lasorda w "We both gave up two runs, we both allowed five hits. And on the worst days he had to shave with his right hand. Yogi Berra, the famous Yankee catcher known for his quips and his play. Phone: 602.496.1460 The Dodgers left-hander had been sidelined because of an injured pitching hand. What made the game such a seductive piece of history was, of course, Koufax's involvement. Frank Finch, Koufax Shuts Out Milwaukee, 7-0, Los Angeles Times, May 29, 1963, p. C-1. Portion of a Topps baseball card from the 1960s featuring ERA leaders of the day. He couldnt go on like this, not when his doctors could not rule out the possibility that he was risking permanent damage to his arm. Mantle wasnt alone; Koufax struck out 15 Yankees as the Dodgers won, 5-2. Gary Kaufman, Vin Scully, Salon.com, Tuesday, October 12, 1999. The 15 strikeouts bested fellow Dodgers pitcher Carl Erskine's mark in 1953 by one, and would be surpassed by Bob Gibson in 1968 with 17.
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