When we last left my APBA simulation of the 1953 World Series, the Yankees had won the first two games at home 10-1 and 6-2. But the Dodgers were coming home to Ebbets Field, where they had gone 60-17 during the regular season on the way to a franchise-best 105 wins. In the actual 1953 series, New York took the first two games at Yankee Stadium, but the Dodgers rebounded at home. Would they be able to do the same on my kitchen table?
FORD DRIVES YANKS TO 3-0 SERIES EDGE
BROOKLYN (Oct. 2, 1953) – The New York Yankees once again shut down the Brooklyn Dodgers’ bats this afternoon, taking a 5-1 decision in the third game of the 1953 World Series at Ebbets Field behind the pitching mastery of lefthander Whitey Ford. The win brings the Yankees to the doorstep of an unprecedented fifth consecutive World Series title, and second in a row over their cross-borough rivals.
Joe Collins and Hank Bauer each had three hits for the victors, and Gene Woodling drove in a pair of runs with a single and a sacrifice fly. Meanwhile, Ford allowed just three hits over eight innings for the win, with Billy Cox‘s two-out, ninth-inning home run off Johnny Sain the only tally for Brooklyn.
Through three games, the Brooklyn bats have combined to go 15 for 95 (a .158 average) and have generated just 4 runs. The ineffectiveness of Jackie Robinson (1-10), Carl Furillo (0-10), Duke Snider (2-10) and Junior Gilliam (2-11) has perplexed Dodger manager Charlie Dressen, whose season (and, perhaps, job) hangs in the balance going into game four tomorrow in Brooklyn.
Bauer singled over shortstop Pee Wee Reese‘s head to drive home Gil McDougald with the game’s first run before many in the crowd of 35,270 had found their seats. Dodger starter Russ Meyer got out of the inning with the bases loaded (three of the 11 runners New York left on base), but would be in trouble in each of his three innings of work.
Woodling’s third-inning single plated Yogi Berra with the game’s second run, and the Yankees added two more on a Mickey Mantle single and a Woodling sacrifice fly off reliever Ben Wade in the fifth.
Pinch-hitter Johnny Mize‘s bases-loaded walk in the ninth gave the AL champions a 5-0 lead.
The Dodgers stirred in their last at-bat, with Furillo drawing a leadoff walk. But pinch-runner Don Thompson was caught stealing on a busted hit-and-run play with Robinson at bat, and Cox’s solo home run with two out was too little, too late.
Righthander Billy Loes (14-8 during the regular season) will try to keep the Dodgers’ season alive tomorrow as he faces Yankee righty Vic Raschi (13-6). 1953 WORLD SERIES GAME THREE
At Ebbets Field
1953 New York Yankees 5, 1953 Brooklyn Dodgers 1
Friday, October 2, 1953
1953 New York Yankees (3-0) 1953 Brooklyn Dodgers (0-3)
Player AB R H BI BB SO P A E LOB Ave Player AB R H BI BB SO P A E LOB Ave
------ -- - - -- -- -- - - - --- --- ------ -- - - -- -- -- - - - --- ---
McDougald 3b 4 1 1 0 2 0 0 5 0 2 .182 Gilliam 2b 3 0 0 0 1 0 4 3 1 0 .182
Collins 1b 5 1 3 0 0 0 7 0 0 1 .357 Reese ss 3 0 1 0 1 1 5 8 0 3 .300
Bauer rf 4 1 3 1 0 0 3 0 0 2 .500 Snider cf 4 0 1 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 .167
Berra c 3 1 0 0 2 0 3 1 0 2 .444 Hodges 1b 4 0 1 0 0 0 10 0 0 1 .250
Mantle cf 4 0 1 1 1 1 10 0 0 0 .417 Campanella c 3 0 0 0 1 0 6 2 0 2 .182
Woodling lf 5 1 2 2 0 0 2 0 0 0 .167 Furillo rf 3 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 .000
Martin 2b 4 0 1 0 1 0 1 2 0 4 .167 Thompson pr 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
Rizzuto ss 3 0 1 0 2 1 1 1 0 3 .273 Robinson lf 3 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 2 .100
Ford p 3 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 .000 Cox 3b 4 1 1 1 0 0 0 3 0 0 .200
Mize ph 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 .000 Meyer p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .000
Sain p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 Williams ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
Wade p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
Morgan ph 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 .000
Hughes p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
Antonello ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 .000
Black p 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
Shuba ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
-- - - -- -- -- -- -- -- --- -- - - -- -- -- -- -- -- ---
Totals 35 5 12 5 10 2 27 9 0 14 Totals 30 1 4 1 6 2 27 17 1 8
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
1953 New York Yankees 1 0 1 0 2 0 0 0 1 5 12 0
1953 Brooklyn Dodgers 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 4 1
E- Gilliam(1)
LOB- 1953 New York Yankees 14, 1953 Brooklyn Dodgers 8
2B- Bauer(2), Martin(1), Rizzuto(1)
HR- Cox(1)
RBI- Bauer(4), Mantle(3), Mize(1), Woodling 2(2), Cox(1)
CS- Thompson(1)
GIDP- Ford(1), Martin(1), McDougald 2(2), Woodling(1)
RLSP- Bauer, Berra, Martin 2, McDougald, Rizzuto 2, Campanella 2, Hodges, Reese 2, Robinson
DP- 1953 Brooklyn Dodgers 5
1953 New York Yankees IP H R ER BB SO ERA
Ford(W 1-0) 8.0 3 0 0 5 2 0.00
Sain 1.0 1 1 1 1 0 9.00
1953 Brooklyn Dodgers IP H R ER BB SO ERA
Meyer(L 0-1) 3.0 5 2 2 2 1 6.00
Wade 2.0 2 2 2 1 1 9.00
Hughes 2.0 1 0 0 5 0 0.00
Black 2.0 4 1 1 2 0 3.00
Batters faced- Ford 32, Sain 4, Meyer 16, Wade 9, Hughes 10, Black 11
HBP- Bauer(by Wade)
Umpires- Hurley, Gore, Grieve, Stewart, Soar, Dascoli
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