On This Date in Sports September 29, 1954: The Catch
https://youtu.be/wWd9VU8n1U8In collaboration with the Sportsecyclopedia.com
The New York Giants beat the Cleveland Indians 5-2 in ten innings on a pinch-hit walk-off home run by Dusty Rhodes at the Polo Grounds. This game would bet be remembered for “The Catch.” In the eighth inning, Willie Mays ran down a 450-foot drive by Vic Wertz to keep the game tied. Rhodes game-winner, by contrast, went 258 feet, as the Giants go on to sweep the series.
Baseball could be a cruel game at times, as home field edges and ballpark eccentricities have been known to decide critical games in the World Series over the years. No ballpark had greater eccentricities than the Polo Grounds, the longtime home of the New York Giants. The stadium sometimes called the Bathtub, dimensions that were out of sorts with the rest of the league. The stadium was initially opened in 1890 when home runs were rare. It was modernized in 1911, with concrete and steel replacing the wood frame that was destroyed in a fire. It was at this stage the stadium got its unusual dimensions as baseball was in the “Deadball Era.” Anyone hitting a ball down the line would find inviting numbers as it was just 279 feet to the left and 258 feet to the right-field foul pole. In the gaps the stadium took deep dramatic turns as to get one out would take a 450-foot drive. However, it was in Centerfield, that the Polo Grounds got its signature as it was nearly 483-feet to the area where the clubhouses were for both teams. These dimensions would come together to decide the 1954 World Series.
It had been a season for the ages for the Cleveland Indians, as they set a new American League record by winning 111 games. Managed by Al Lopez, the Tribe ended the Yankees five-year championship reign by capturing the American League Pennant. That season had seen the Yankees finish at 103-51 a better record than any of the previous five seasons in which the Yankees won the World Series, showing once again how cruel baseball could be. The 111-43 record is still the second-best win percentage in the modern era.
The New York Giants, meanwhile, got a big boost as the 1954 season began as Willie Mays returned from two-year military service. In perhaps his finest season, Mays batted .345 with 41 home runs and 110 RBI. Mays would be named National League Most Valuable Player, as the Giants led by Leo Durocher won the National League Pennant with a record of 97-57.
The World Series began on Wednesday afternoon at the Polo Grounds, as the Indians were prohibitive favorites thanks to their strong pitching staff. In Game 1, the Tribe had Bob Lemon on the mound after a 23-win season. The Giants meanwhile countered with Sal Maglie. Cleveland did not take long to get the lead, as Vic Wertz two-out triple, plated Al Smith and Bobby Avila in the first inning. The Giants would tie the game with two runs in the third, as Don Mueller and Hank Thompson each drove in runs.
In the eighth inning, the Indians looked to take the lead, as Larry Doby walked, and AL Rosen singled to chase Maglie from the game. Don Liddle came in to face Vic Wertz, who drove the ball to the deepest part of the Polo Grounds. The ball would have been a home run in every other stadium, and today would be on all highlights films as being a monster blast. However, this was the Polo Grounds, and Willie Mays was in centerfield for the Giants. Mays incredibly ran down the ball, making an over the shoulder catch, that has become one of most iconic pictures ever taken in a baseball game. Mays even made sure to quickly throw the ball back to the infield, as Doby tagged up and went to third. Liddle would leave the game, remarking to Marv Grissom I got my guy, now it’s your turn. Grissom would walk Dale Mitchell to load the bases. However, he settled in and got Dave Pope looking. Jim Heagan followed and ended the inning with a fly out to leftfield.
The Indians twice left runners on base, in the ninth and tenth against Grissom, as the game remained tied 2-2. In one curious move, Bob Lemon was allowed to bat with two outs and the lead runner on third base in the tenth inning. Lemon, beginning his tenth inning of work, got in trouble when he issued a one-out walk to Willie Mays. After Mays stole second, Lemon completed an intentional walk to Hank Thompson, looking to keep a double play in order. Leo Durocher sent Dusty Rhodes up to pinch-hit for Monte Irvin. The move paid off as Rhodes lined the ball down the right-field line, barely clearing the fence to win the game 5-2. It was the first pinch-hit walk-off home run in the history of the Fall Classic.
Hoping to rebound the Indians got a leadoff home run by Al Smith in Game 2 of Johnny Antonelli. Early Wynn, another 23-game winner retired the first 12 batters for Cleveland, but faltered in the fifth, as Willie Mays led off the fifth inning with a walk. After a single by Hank Thompson, Leo Durocher again called on Dusty Rhodes to pinch hit for Monte Irvin. Again, Rhodes came through with an RBI single. The Giants would later scratch across another run to take the lead. In the seventh, Dusty Rhodes continued to torment Cleveland with a home run off Wynn to make it 3-1, which would be the final score.
Mike Garcia got the start for Cleveland in Game 3, as the series moved to Municipal Stadium. The Giants would get a run, thanks to an RBI single by Willie Mays. In the third inning, a key situation came up, and once again Rhodes pinch-hitting for Irvin drove in two runs with a pinch single. The Giants would add another run in the third on an error by Garcia to take a 4-0 lead. New York, who had Ruben Gomez on the mound added runs in the fifth and sixth as Wes Westrum and Willie Mays each had RBI singles. In the bottom of the sixth, Vic Wertz hit another monster shot to center, this time for a home run. The Indians would get another run in the eighth, but could not draw closer, as Hoyt Wilhelm closed the game out to give the Giants a 6-2 win and a 3-0 series lead.
Bob Lemon returned the mound in Game 4, as the Giants looking to complete the sweep sent Don Liddle who retired his one batter in Game 1. The Giants scored two unearned runs in the second as it was clear that the Tribe was unraveling. Willie Mays made it 3-0 with an RBI double in the third. In the fifth, the Giants blew the open, scoring four times. Cleveland tried to get back in the game and got a three-run blast by Hank Majeski in the bottom of the inning. Rudy Regalado drove in a run in the seventh to draw the Tribe closer. However, 7-4 is a close as it would get, as Hoyt Wilhelm and Johnny Antonelli closed out the game and the series.