Damn Yankees by Edward Drobinski - HTML preview

Damn Yankees

Page 43

1950 World Series

The Philadelphia Phillies climbed to the top of the National League thanks to a clutch performance down the home stretch by twenty-game winner, Robin Roberts. Roberts pitched three times in the last five days of the regular season and although he managed to nail down the National League pennant, the marathon had left him unavailable for a Game 1 start. Robin Roberts was exhausted from his extensive duty during the season’s final week, and most every other starter was hurt, with recurring injuries to rookie pitchers Bob Miller and Bubba Church, or unavailable.

Curt Simmons, drafted away by the military, was furloughed during the World Series and available to pitch, but he was denied by the commissioner’s office. The Phillies of necessity announced the most unconventional starting assignment for a World Series opener since the Philadelphia A’s placed Howard

Ehmke on the mound in 1929. Jim Konstanty hadn’t started a game in six years, yet Phillies manager Eddie Sawyer went with his gut and believed Konstanty was his best bet. The Philly skipper shocked everyone after nominating a thirty three year old right hander, who had not made a single start during the 1950 regular season. He did however appear in seventy-four games and the standout reliever was 16-7 with a 2.66 earned run average.