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The 1963 Yankees' Series LossLosing the 1960 Series Was Worse Than the 1963 DefeatIn 1963, the Yankees lost four consecutive games to Los Angeles. It hurt less than losing the seventh game in 1960.
There is nothing better than winning the World Series and there is nothing worse than losing it, but despite the fact that nothing hurts more than losing the final game of the season, some World Series defeats are worse than others. In 1963, the Yankees lost four consecutive games to Los Angeles. The Yankees never had a chance, although they were in every game. When it was over, the players were embarrassed and depressed, but almost to a man, they felt that the 1960 loss was much worse. Mickey Cried All the Way HomeMickey Mantle expressed it eloquently. “I don’t care if the Dodgers beat us 10 straight games. I still feel we have a better team. We couldn’t hit and their pitching was terrific. But this one didn’t hurt like 1960.” Bill Skowron, who had been traded to the Dodgers during the off season and was part of the winning team, confirmed Mickey’s statement. “I sat next to Mickey that year, and he cried and cried all the way home.” Los Angeles Had the Best Pitching the Yankees Had Seen in a World SeriesThe Yankees were angry with themselves but were calm. Manager Ralph Houk, who suffered his first World Series defeat after winning his first two, credited Los Angeles pitching for its championship. “Their pitching was the best we’ve ever seen in a Series. I thought we played good ball but we couldn’t hit and that’s that.” Houk had been with Yankees, as a player, coach, and manager since 1947. Four Runs in Four Games Won't WinElston Howard rated Koufax, Drysdale, and Podres ahead of the Braves’ Spahn, Burdette and Buhl, but it was Yogi who put things into perspective. “We only got four runs in four games. It’s a little like the 1950 World Series. We beat the Phillies four straight with scores like 2-1 and 1-0. Mantle agreed, although he wasn’t yet a Yankee in 1950, and showing his competitive drive, told reporters, with a wistful grin, “Like they used to say in Brooklyn, ‘we’ll get ‘em next year.’” There Are Degrees of PainWinners hate to lose but recognize that, as Mantle said in the losing team’s locker room, “There’s only two ways you can come out of a World Series. Feeling great or the way we are.” But there are degrees of pain. In 1963, Koufax dominated in Game 1 at Yankee Stadium, striking out 15 Yankees to set a new World Series record. Podres shut out the Yankees for the first eight innings of Game 2 on the way to a 4-1 win, and when the teams went to Los Angeles, Drysdale out-dueled Bouton for a 2-1 win. Koufax beat Ford in Game 4, 2-1, to end the Series. A Double Play That Never HappenedIn 1960, the Yankees dominated the Pirates in three games, winning by scores if 16-3, 10-0, and 12-0, but they lost three close ones. In Game 7, the Pirates were trailing 7-4 in the eighth inning when Gino Cimoli led off with a single. Bobby Shantz got Bill Virdon to hit a sharp ground ball to shortstop. It looked like a certain double play, but the ball hit a pebble, hopped weirdly, and struck Tony Kubek in the throat. The Pirates took a 10-8 lead to the ninth inning, but the Yankees tied it, sending the game to the bottom of the ninth, when Mazeroski ended it on Ralph Terry’s second high slider of the game. References:Koppett, Leonard. “1960 Loss Worse, the Players Say; Team Felt More Humiliated After Defeat by Pirates in 7 Games 3 Years Ago.” New York Times. 7 October 1963, p. 39.
The copyright of the article The 1963 Yankees' Series Loss in Baseball is owned by Harold Friend. Permission to republish The 1963 Yankees' Series Loss in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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