On the last play of the regular season, Dick McAuliffe, representing the tying run, grounds into a 4-6-3 double play, dashing Detroit’s hopes to clinch a tie for the pennant. The twin killing marks only the second time this season the Tigers shortstop has made two outs in one at-bat, and he will not hit into another DP all of next season.
On April 29, 1967, Whitey Ford earns his final major league victory. His 236th victory comes against the Chicago White Sox, an 11-2 decision at Yankee Stadium. Ford will enter the Hall of Fame in 1974.
On October 2, 1966, At Connie Mack Stadium, Sandy Koufax of the Los Angeles Dodgers wins his 27th game of the season and the final game of his career. Koufax’ 6-3 win over the Philadelphia Phillies clinches the pennant for the Dodgers. Koufax, lost his shutout in the 9th after Dick Allen reached on an…
Sandy Koufax, in his final decision facing the Mets, lasts only two innings, losing to Bob Friend at Shea Stadium, 10-4. The Dodgers Hall of Fame southpaw has compiled a 17-2 record against the lowly expansion team since their inception in 1962.
Robin Roberts, getting the Cubs’ 4-2 win in relief, becomes the first and only pitcher to beat the Boston, Milwaukee, and Atlanta Braves. On Independence Day in 1948, the future Hall of Famer went the distance to notch his third career big league victory, beating the Boston Braves at Shibe Park in his rookie year with the Phillies.
On October 3, 1965 At Metropolitan Stadium, Angels’ first baseman Vic Power (Pellot) ends his 12-year major league career going 1-for-5 with an RBI single in a 5-2 loss to the Twins. The .284 career hitter will have the distinction of being the last active player to have worn a Philadelphia A’s uniform (1954).
Sept. 22, 1965. The Milwaukee Braves’ last game in County Stadium. A crowd of 12,577, heartsick that the Braves would move to Atlanta, saw them lose, 7-6, to the Dodgers in 11 innings. Eddie Mathews was nearing the end, too. He hung around until 1968, when he won a second World Series ring with the…
In the Polo Grounds’ final game, played in front of a paltry 1,752 patrons, Jim Hickman of the Mets hits the last home run in the 52-year history of the Coogan’s Bluff ballpark. The iconic stadium, which served as the home of the Giants (1911-1957), Yankees (1913-1922), and Mets (1962-63), first opened its doors on June 28, 1911.
In a 13-inning contest, Sandy Koufax goes the distance, beating the Cubs, 3-2, in the last regular season game played at the LA Memorial Coliseum, a venue originally built for the 1932 Olympics. The Dodgers are leaving the only home they have known since moving from Brooklyn four seasons ago to play in a brand new stadium in Chavez Ravine, located a few miles from downtown Los Angeles.
On September 28, 1960, Ted Williams of the Boston Red Sox smashes a home run in his final major league at-bat. Williams sends the ball 450 feet into the right field bleachers at Fenway Park. Williams’ 521st home run places him third on the all-time list. His at-bat that will be immortalized by John…