1961 Deluxe Past Season with transaction and lineups available now!
1961: Baseball and the New Frontier
by Steve Ehresman
In 1961, America shook off the 1950s and embraced the future with great vigor. On January 20, John Fitzgerald Kennedy was inaugurated as President of the United States. In the freezing cold, Kennedy, hatless and youthful, addressed the nation and the world, proclaiming that “the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans.” In the coming months, Kennedy steered our nation into the future, promising to put a man on the moon before the end of the decade. In May 1961, Alan Shepard became the first American in space-- NASA’s baby steps that would ultimately lead to Neil Armstrong’s “one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind” on July 20, 1969.
Even in the traditional world of Major League Baseball, change was in the air. In 1961, the American League expanded from eight to ten teams, adding a franchise in California and creating a new team in Washington, D. C., while relocating the original Senators to Minnesota. As a result, the Junior Circuit adopted a 162-game schedule, replacing the traditional 154-game schedule.
As fans know, no sport is more connected to its history than Major League Baseball. Each generation of players is measured against its predecessors, some of whom had become legends, whose records were regarded as inviolate.
No legend was bigger than Babe Ruth.
No record was more sacrosanct than the Babe’s 60 homers in 1927.
Until 1961 . . .
Not only was the Babe’s record challenged, but it was challenged in the Babe’s own house, Yankee Stadium, by two New York Yankee sluggers. Mickey Mantle (54 HR, 128 RBI, 126 BB, .317) and MVP Roger Maris (61 HR, 142 RBI) not only tore the cover off the ball, they tore the cover off history, chasing the Babe all summer, until Maris caught him on the final day of the regular season, sending a Tracy Stallard fastball over the right field wall of Yankee Stadium and putting home run 61 into the record books. Despite Ford Frick’s protestations that Maris needed to break the Babe’s record in 154 games, rather than in 162 games, 61 home runs remains in the books as an example of athletic grace under pressure.
Through the summer, Mantle and Maris’s home run duel established the 1961 Yankees as one of the greatest teams of all-time. Led not only by the M&M Boys, but also by hard-hitting catcher Elston Howard (21 HR, .348), slugging first sacker Moose Skowron (28 HRI), and left fielder Yogi Berra (22 HR), the Pinstripes compiled an impressive 109-53 record, while scoring 827 runs and slamming 240 homers. Oh yeah . . . the Yanks also featured the Cy Young Award winner, Whitey Ford (39 GS, 11 CG, 283 IP, 25-4, 209 K, 3.21). Supporting Ford were Ralph Terry (31 G, 27 GS, 9 CG, 188 IP, 16-3, 3.16) and closer Luis Arroyo (65 G, 119 IP, 15-5, 29 SV, 2.19).
Amid all the hubbub in Gotham, did anyone notice that the second-place Detroit Tigers were really good? Although they fell short to the juggernaut Yanks, the Bengals finished with a 101-61 record and clobbered 180 home runs. Any other year, those numbers might have been overwhelming. With sluggers Rocky Colavito (45 HR, 140 RBI, 113 BB), Norm Cash (41 HR, 132 RBI, 124 BB, .361), and Al Kaline (19, 82 RBI, .324) leading the attack, the Tigers plated 841 runs, outscoring the indomitable Bronx Bombers. On the mound, Frank Lary (36 GS, 22 CG, 275.1 IP, 23-9, 3.24) was a good match for the Yankees’ Whitey Ford. Jim Bunning (38 G, 37 GS, 12 CG, 268 IP, 17-11, 3.19) and Don Mossi (35 G, 34 GS, 12 CG, 240 IP, 15-7, 2.96) rounded out an excellent pitching staff. Without a doubt, the 1961 Detroit Tigers were one of the greatest second-place teams in baseball history.
The entire American League bristled with impressive offensive performances, as Jim Gentile of Baltimore (46 HR, 141 RBI, .302), Harmon Killebrew (46 HR, 122 RBI) and Bob Allison (29 HR, 105 RBI) of Minnesota, Al Smith (28 HRI) and Roy Sievers (27 HRI) of Chicago, Leon Wagner (28 HR) and Ken Hunt (25 HR) of Los Angeles, and Willie Kirkland (27 HRI) and Woodie Held (23 HR) of Cleveland were among the heavy hitters who supplied enough fire-power for the American League launch 1,534 balls into outer space in the summer of 1961.
On the mound, Dick Donovan of the expansion Washington Senators led the American League in earned run average (2.40), and Camilo Pascual of the Minnesota Twins, once the original Washington Senators, paced the Junior Circuit in strikeouts (221 K).
The National League, despite playing a 154-game schedule, posted numbers as impressive as any in the Junior Circuit. The pennant-winning Cincinnati Reds, years before the Big Red Machine, featured the hitting prowess of MVP Frank Robinson (37 HR, 124 RBI ,.323), Vada Pinson (16 HR, 87 RBI, .343), and Gordy Coleman (26 HR, 87 RBI) and the strong pitching of Joey Jay (34 GS, 14 CG, 247.1 IP, 21-10, 3.53), Jim O’Toole (39 G, 35 GS, 11 CG, 252.2, 21-10), and Bob Purkey (36 G, 34 GS, 13 CG, 246 IP, 18-12, 3.73) to compile a 93-61 record.
The Los Angeles Dodgers relied on a superb four-man rotation to claim second place. Sandy Koufax, emerging as a bona fide star, paced the Dodgers staff (42 G, 35 GS, 15 CG, 255.2 IP, 18-13, 269 K, 3.52). He was ably supported by Don Drysdale (40 G, 37 GS, 10 CG, 244 IP, 13-10, 3.69), Johnny Podres (32 G, 29 GS, 6 CG, 182.2 IP, 18-5, 3.74), and Stan Williams (41 G, 35 GS, 6 CG, 235.1 IP, 15-12, 3.90). A star from the 1959 World Champions, Wally Moon led the Bums’ offense with 17 homers, 89 RBI, and a .328 batting average.
Roberto Clemente of the defending World Series Champion Pittsburg Pirates batted .351, while socking 23 homers and driving in 89 runs. He was ably supported by slugging first baseman Dick “Doctor Strangeglove” Stuart (35 HR, 117 RBI, .301). Perennial stars Orlando Cepeda (46 HR, 142 RBI, .311) and Willie Mays (40 HR, 123 RBI, .308) of the San Francisco Giants, and Hank Aaron (34 HR, 120 RBI, .327), Eddie Mathews (32 HR, 91 RBI, .306) and Joe Adcock (35 HR, 108 RBI) of the Milwaukee Braves did their part to help the Senior Circuit crush 1196 home runs.
Few pitchers in the Senior circuit rivaled the excellence of earned run average leader Warren Spahn in 1961 (38 G, 34 GS, 21 CG, 262.2 IP, 21-13, 3.01), as he celebrated his fortieth birthday on April 23 of the 1961 season.
Establishing their bona fides in the major leagues, two fly-chasers, Carl Yastrzemski (31 2B, 11 HR, 80 RBI) of the Boston Red Sox and National League Rookie of the Year Billy Williams (25 HR, 86 RBI) of the Chicago Cubs held out the promise of future greatness for their fans.
The 1961 season launched the beginning of a decade many consider a Golden Age. Although tradition was respected, even celebrated, innovation was embraced. The National League would catch up to the American League, expanding in 1962 to add the New York Metropolitans and the Houston Colt 45’s. Before the end of the decade, both franchises would make history—one with a World Series championship, the other with the opening of a multi-purpose domed stadium. In the final season of the 1960s, baseball would expand again, adding four new teams and instituting divisional play. The 1961 season marked the beginning of a decade in which baseball reached for the moon, enduring through turbulence and tragedy and creating the game we know today.
As the years pass and the summer of 1961 recedes into memory and—finally-- into the pages of history, take a moment to celebrate those long-ago heroes and to remember an America that looked toward a New Frontier with youthful confidence and innocence that was all too quickly lost.
The 1961 Deluxe Past Season database contains everything you need to play games using teams and players from the 1961 season -- a full set of ratings and statistics for every player who appeared in the big leagues that year, plus team rosters, manager profiles, ballpark ratings and league schedules. Statistics include official batting, pitching and fielding totals with left/right splits for all batters and pitchers.
Also included is a complete set of real-life player transactions -- trades, disabled list moves, promotions, demotions, suspensions, and more -- plus the actual starting lineups for every regular season game played.
If you are a registered owner of the 1961 Classic Past Season, you are eligible for upgrade pricing for this item. Send an email to dmb_info@imaginesports.com to request your discount promotion code.
Note: This season database is a companion product for the Diamond Mind Baseball version 11 game. To use this database, you must also have Diamond Mind Baseball version 11. The game software provides you with all of the tools you need to play simulated games, make roster moves, produce dozens of statistical reports, generate league schedules, and more.
1951 Deluxe Past Season with transaction and lineups available now!
1951: The Bums and the Jints Collide, but the Bombers Rule
by Steve Ehresman
Baseball in the 1950s is celebrated as The ERA: a time when three major league teams took the field in New York; when Willie, Mickey, and Duke were just embarking on their journeys to Cooperstown; when a western road trip meant games in Chicago and St. Louis; and when radio announcers brought baseball to life in America’s living rooms. Broadcasters like Vin Scully, Ernie Harwell, Mel Allen, Red Barber, Jack Buck, Harry Cary, Bob Prince, Jack Quinlan, and Russ Hodges, thanks to their distinctive voices and styles, created a generation of fans who cherished the time they spent listening to the play-by-play incantations of their favorite radio uncles during those long-ago summers.
Never was this magic more evident than on October 3, 1951, when Russ Hodges was at the mike to make the most famous home run call of them all: There’s a long drive . . . it’s gonna be . . . I believe. The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant!
Hodges’ home run call summarized a season, galvanized a rivalry, and defined a decade.
Not bad for an autumn afternoon.
The Miracle of Coogan’s Bluff is a well-known baseball drama--part fact and part legend--replete with triumph, tragedy, and even a hint of scandal. Did the Giants steal signs? Did a stolen sign alert Bobby Thomson that Ralph Branca was about to deliver a second straight fast ball, this one high and inside?
Did it matter?
As both of the principal actors are deceased, we are left with a fact (The Giants won the 1951 pennant.) and a legend (The Shot Heard ‘Round the World). As a character in the western The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance advises, “When the legend becomes fact, print the legend.”
Bobby Thomson (27 2B, 32 HR, 101 RBI, .293) was not the only legend playing for the New York Giants in 1951. Five-time Negro League All-Star Monte Irvin was the big bat in New York’s line-up, as he scored 94 runs, collected 174 hits, swatted 24 home runs, drove in a league-leading 121 runs, swiped 12 bases, and led the Giants with a .312 batting average. Twenty-year-old Willie Mays, a star for the Birmingham Black Barons and the Minneapolis Millers, established himself as a major league regular, compiling 22 doubles, 20 home runs, and 68 RBI in 464 ABs, while playing a stellar centerfield. On the mound, the Giants relied, not on stolen signs, but on a trio of superb pitchers. Sal Maglie “The Barber” Maglie (42 G, 37 GS, 22 CG, 298 IP, 23-6, 2.93), Larry Jansen (39 G, 34 GS, 18 CG, 279 IP, 23-11, 3.03), and Jim Hearn (34 G, 34 GS, 11 CG, 211 IP, 17-9, 3.63) provided stability throughout the season, allowing the Giants to overcome a horrendous 1-11 start and to overtake the Dodgers, despite their trailing Brooklyn by 13 ½ games on August 12.
The star-crossed Dodgers led the National League in runs (855), hits (1511), doubles 249, home runs (184), runs batted in (794), batting average (.275), slugging average (.434), and even stolen bases (89). Their play-off loss is the stuff of Greek tragedy: larger-than-life heroes struggling against inexorable Fate (or Leo Durocher’s elaborate system for stealing signs). In any case, Dem Bums crashed and burned again, one year after they lost the pennant to Philadelphia’s Whiz Kids in the tenth inning on the final day of the season.
Nevertheless, the team identified as The Boys of Summer, thanks to Roger Kahn’s co-opting a line from Dylan Thomas (“I see the boys of summer in their ruin”), was largely intact in 1951. Young stars Duke Snider (29 HR, 101 RBI) and Gil Hodges (40 HR, 103 RBI) led the high -powered Dodger offense, as they would for most of the coming decade. Veterans Pee Wee Reese (94 R, 20 SB) and Jackie Robinson (106 R, 33 2B, 19 HR, 25 SB, .338) anchored the keystone with aplomb. Most of all, National League Most Valuable Player Roy Campanella (99 R, 33 2B, 33 HR, 108 RBI, .325) enjoyed one of the greatest seasons a backstop has ever put in the books. Led by two twenty-game winners, Preacher Roe (34 G, 33 GS, 19 CG, 258 IP, 22-3, 3.03) and Don Newcombe (40 G, 36 GS, 18 CG, 272 IP, a league-leading 164 K, 20-9, 3.28), the Dodgers looked like a team destined for greatness. Unfortunately, the Borough of Brooklyn would have to wait a few more seasons for that greatness to be realized.
The American League, almost eclipsed by the post-season play-off drama taking place in Ebbets Field and the Polo Grounds, had much to offer baseball fans in 1951. As usual, the New York Yankees, defending World Series Champions, put a great team on the field. Anchored by The Big Three of Ed Lopat (31 G, 31 GS, 20 CG, 235 IP, 21-9, 2.91), Vic Raschi (35 G, 34 GS, 15 CG, 258 IP, a league-leading 164 K, 21-10, 3.28), and Allie Reynolds (40 G, 26 GS, 16 CG, 221 IP, 17-8, 2 no-hitters, 3.05), The Bronx Bombers withstood a stiff challenge from the Cleveland Indians to capture their fourth pennant in five years. Standing tall at 5’ 7”, Yogi Berra, in his third season as a regular behind the plate, captured the American League Most Valuable Player (92 R, 27 HR, 88 RBI, .294), while handling the Yankees’ veteran pitchers. Breaking into the Yankee line-up was nineteen-year-old Mickey Mantle (11 2B, 5 3B, 13 HR, 65 RBI in 341 AB), heir-apparent to Joe DiMaggio (22 2B, 12 HR, 71 RBI). With Mays, Mantle, and Snider finally ensconced as regulars in 1954, The ERA had its signature trio of Hall of Fame centerfielders: “Willie, Mickey, and the Duke.”
If New York was the epicenter of baseball in 1951, it did not have a monopoly on excellence. From New England to the Midwest, major league stars put up numbers that deserve recognition in any era.
In baseball’s outpost on the Mississippi River, Stan Musial of the St. Louis Cardinals won the batting title, while tearing up the National League (a league-leading 124 R, 205 H, 30 2B, 12 3B, 32 HR, 108 RBI, .355). In Beantown, Warren Spahn (39 G, 36 GS, a league-leading 26 CG, 311 IP, a league-leading 164 K, 22-14, 2.98), Chet Nichols (33 G, 19 GS, 12 CG, a league-leading 2.88), and former Cleveland Buckeye Sam Jethro (29 2B, 10 3B, 18 HR, 35 SB) starred for the Boston Braves. Robin Roberts (44 G, 39 GS, 22 CG, 315 IP, 21-15, 3.03) and Richie Ashburn (a league-leading 221 H, 29 SB, .344) set the pace in Philadelphia, The City of Brotherly Love. Where the Ohio, the Monongahela, and the Allegheny rivers meet, Ralph Kiner crushed a major league-leading 42 home runs, while scoring 124 runs, swatting 31 doubles, driving in 109 runs, drawing a league-leading 137 walks, and batting .309.
On the shores of Lake Erie, where the Cuyahoga River flows, the Cleveland Indians pursued the New York Yankees (98-56) all summer, falling short of the American League pennant by 5 games (93-61). Featuring one of the best starting staffs in the 1950s, The Tribe put a star on the hill almost every night: Bob Feller (33 C, 32 GS, 16 CG, 250 IP, 22-8, 3.49), Mike Garcia (47 G, 30 GS, 15 CG, 254 IP, 20-13, 3.15), Early Wynn (37 G, 34 GS, 21 CG, 274 IP, 20-13, 3.02), and Bob Lemon (42 G, 34 GS, 17 CG, 263 IP, 17-14, 3.52). In addition to Cleveland’s tough pitchers, former Homestead Gray Luke Easter (27 HR, 103 RBI), former Newark Eagle and American League trailblazer Larry Doby (27 2B, 20 HR, .295), and slugging third baseman Al Rosen (30 2B, 24 HR, 102 RBI) provided sock for the Indians in their heavy-weight fight with the Yankees. In Boston, World War II veteran and soon-to-be Korean War fighter pilot, Ted Williams (109 R, 28 2B, 30 HR, 126 RBI, a league-leading 144 BB, .318) continued to make his case as “the greatest hitter who ever lived.” On Chicago’s South Side, former New York Cuban Minnie Minoso electrified the Windy City with 32 doubles, 14 triples, 31 stolen bases, and a .326 batting average. Sharing Shibe Park with the National League Phillies, the Athletics featured slugger Gus Zernial, who blasted 33 home runs to lead the American League and drove in 129 runs to lead all of baseball. The Athletics also celebrated batting champion Ferris Fain (.344), although he was limited to 425 Abs because of a broken bone in his foot. Pitching in obscurity, Ned Garver put together a fine year on the mound (33 G, 30 GS, a league-leading 24 complete games, 20-12, 3.73) for the St. Louis Browns, a team that finished with the worst record in baseball (52-102, 46 games behind the Yankees).
The 1951 Fall Classic proved to be somewhat anti-climactic, as the Yankees captured their third consecutive championship, even though the scrappy Giants extended the Series to six games. For the Yanks, Phil Rizzuto (.320) and Gil McDougald (7 RBI) stood out at the plate, and Ed Lopat was stellar on the mound (18 IP, 10 H, 3 BB, 4 K, 2-0, 0.50). For the Giants, Monte Irvin (.458) and Al Dark (.417) starred in a losing cause. Shut out of the World Series again, the residents of Brooklyn consoled themselves with a familiar refrain: Wait till next year.
In 1951, a new home cost $9,000. A new car was priced at $1,500. Gas was 19 cents a gallon. The average household made $3,700 a year. Unemployment dropped to 3.3%. In theaters, The Day the Earth Stood Still, directed by Robert Wise, debuted in September. I Love Lucy premiered on America’s fastest growing home entertainment medium, television.
In 1951, war loomed on the Korean peninsula. The United States began testing nuclear bombs in Nevada. The first commercial computer, UNIVAC, was dedicated for use at the United States Census Bureau. The American experiment moved forward: a half-step into the glow of Tomorrowland and a half-step into the chill of The Cold War.
Baseball was entering one of its most celebrated decades. New stars gathered backstage, awaiting their turn in the spot light. Old stars took their bows, savoring their final moments on stage. The 1951 season confirmed that baseball is a uniquely American drama that can change lives with one swing of the bat. Just as it did for two proud men on an October afternoon long ago in the Polo Grounds.
In “The Echoing Green” of our collective memory, we can still hear Russ Hodges, struck with incredulity by the probable impossibilities inherent in Our National Pastime:
“I don’t believe it. I don’t believe it. I DO NOT believe it.”
The next time a play on the diamond makes your jaw drop, the next time a play on the diamond takes your breath away, the next time a play on the diamond leaves you shaking your head, remember October 3, 1951, and BELIEVE IT.
The 1951 Deluxe Past Season database contains everything you need to play games using teams and players from the 1951 season -- a full set of ratings and statistics for every player who appeared in the big leagues that year, plus team rosters, manager profiles, ballpark ratings and league schedules. Statistics include official batting, pitching and fielding totals with left/right splits for all batters and pitchers.
Also included is a complete set of real-life player transactions -- trades, disabled list moves, promotions, demotions, suspensions, and more -- plus the actual starting lineups for every regular season game played.
If you are a registered owner of the 1951 Classic Past Season, you are eligible for upgrade pricing for this item. Send an email to dmb_info@imaginesports.com to request your discount promotion code.
Note: This season database is a companion product for the Diamond Mind Baseball version 11 game. To use this database, you must also have Diamond Mind Baseball version 11. The game software provides you with all of the tools you need to play simulated games, make roster moves, produce dozens of statistical reports, generate league schedules, and more.
- Tags: 1951 deluxe dps new release
