On June 24, 1955 Already down six, en route to an 8 – 2 drubbing by Milwaukee, the Dodgers debut Brooklyn-born bonus baby, Sandy Koufax. Working a scoreless but labor-intensive 5th and 6th, Koufax puts Braves on every base—via hit, walk and error (his own)—before recording his first major league out by blowing a 3-2 fastball past Bobby Thomson. Writing more than a decade later, Koufax will recall this undeniably thrilling moment as “probably the worst thing that could have happened to me, getting my first out by striking out a big hitter; because that became my pattern for five years, trying to get out of trouble by throwing harder and harder and harder.” (Conversely, the 4-pitch walk which immediately preceded Thomson—issued to one Henry Louis Aaron—will, in almost the same breath, be viewed by Sandy as “probably the smartest thing I did all year. There have been many times since when I wished I had been wild enough to walk Henry Aaron. I’m usually backing up third as I am wishing it.”)
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