1951 Brooklyn Dodgers season

1951 Brooklyn Dodgers
Major league affiliations
Location
1951 Information
Owner(s) Walter O'Malley
General manager(s) Buzzie Bavasi
Manager(s) Chuck Dressen
Local television WOR-TV
Local radio WMGM
Red Barber, Vin Scully, Connie Desmond
Previous season     Next season

The 1951 Brooklyn Dodgers led the National League for much of the season, holding a 13 game lead as late as August. However, a late season swoon and a hot streak by the New York Giants led to a classic three-game playoff series. Bobby Thomson's dramatic ninth inning home run off Dodger reliever Ralph Branca in the final game won the pennant for the Giants and was immortalized as the Shot Heard 'Round the World.

Contents

Offseason

Regular season

Season standings

National League W L GB Pct.
New York Giants 98 59 -- .624
Brooklyn Dodgers 97 60 1 .618
St. Louis Cardinals 81 73 15.5 .526
Boston Braves 76 78 20.5 .494
Philadelphia Phillies 73 81 23.5 .474
Cincinnati Reds 68 86 28.5 .442
Pittsburgh Pirates 64 90 32.5 .416
Chicago Cubs 62 92 34.5 .403

Opening Day lineup

Opening Day lineup
Name Position
Don Thompson Left fielder
Carl Furillo Right fielder
Duke Snider Center fielder
Jackie Robinson Second baseman
Gil Hodges First baseman
Roy Campanella Catcher
Pee Wee Reese Shortstop
Rocky Bridges Third baseman
Carl Erskine Starting pitcher

Notable transactions

Roster

1951 Brooklyn Dodgers
Roster
Pitchers Catchers

Infielders

Outfielders

Other batters

Manager

Coaches

Player stats

Batting

Starters by position

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in

Pos Player G AB H Avg. HR RBI

Other batters

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in

Player G AB H Avg. HR RBI
Edwards, HankHank Edwards 35 31 7 .226 0 3
Brown, TommyTommy Brown 11 25 4 .160 0 1

Pitching

Starting pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player G IP W L ERA SO
Branca, RalphRalph Branca 42 204 13 12 3.26 118

Other pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player G IP W L ERA SO
Erskine, CarlCarl Erskine 46 189.2 16 12 4.46 95

Relief pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player G W L SV ERA SO
Bankhead, DanDan Bankhead 7 0 1 0 15.43 9

Shot Heard 'Round the World

One of the more famous episodes in major league baseball history, and possibly one of the greatest moments in sports history, the "Shot Heard 'Round the World" is the name given to Bobby Thomson's walk-off home run that clinched the National League pennant for the New York Giants over their rivals, the Brooklyn Dodgers. This game was the third of a three-game playoff series resulting from one of baseball's most memorable pennant races. The Giants had been thirteen and a half games behind the league-leading Dodgers in August, but under Durocher's guidance and with the aid of a sixteen-game winning streak, caught the Dodgers to tie for the lead on the last day of the season.

Awards and honors

All-Stars

Farm system

Level Team League Manager
AAA Montreal Royals International League Walter Alston
AAA St. Paul Saints American Association Clay Hopper
AA Ft. Worth Cats Texas League Bobby Bragan
AA Mobile Bears Southern Association Paul Chervinko
A Elmira Pioneers Eastern League George Fallon
A Pueblo Dodgers Western League Jim Bivin
B Asheville Tourists Tri-State League Ray Hathaway
B Lancaster Red Roses Interstate League Ed Head
B Miami Sun Sox Florida International League Pepper Martin
B Newport News Dodgers Piedmont League Clay Bryant
C Billings Mustangs Pioneer League Larry Shepard
C Bisbee-Douglas Copper Kings Southwest International League Syd Cohen
C Greenwood Dodgers Cotton States League Lou Rochelli
C Santa Barbara Dodgers California League Bill Hart
D Hazard Bombers Mountain States League Max Macon
D Hornell Dodgers Pennsylvania-Ontario-New York League Doc Alexson
D Ponca City Dodgers Kansas-Oklahoma-Missouri League George Scherger
D Sheboygan Indians Wisconsin State League Joe Hauser
D Valdosta Dodgers Georgia-Florida League Stan Wasiak

LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Montreal, Santa Barbara

Notes

References

External links