The 1941 Brooklyn Dodgers, led by manager Leo Durocher, won their first pennant in 21 years, edging the St. Louis Cardinals by 2.5 games. They went on to lose to the New York Yankees in the World Series.
In The New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract, this team was referenced as one of "The Greatest Teams That Never Was", due to the quality of its starting lineup. Dolph Camilli was the slugging star with 34 home runs and 120 RBI. He was voted the National League's Most Valuable Player. Pete Reiser, a 22-year-old rookie, led the league in batting average, slugging percentage, and runs scored. Other regulars included Hall of Famers Billy Herman, Joe Medwick, Pee Wee Reese, and Dixie Walker. Not surprisingly, the Dodgers scored the most runs of any NL team (800).
The pitching staff featured a pair of 22-game winners, Kirby Higbe and Whitlow Wyatt, having their best pro seasons.
On July 1, the Dodgers played the Phillies in Brooklyn; the game was televised by WNBT in New York (now WNBC), making the contest the first program aired by a commercial TV station in the United States. Although the Dodgers would later win the pennant and the Phillies would finish in last place in the NL, Philadelphia won the game 6–4, in 10 innings.Baseball Reference
Offseason November 11, 1940: Vito Tamulis, Bill Crouch, Mickey Livingston and cash were traded by the Dodgers to the Philadelphia Phillies for Kirby Higbe.Vito Tamulis at Baseball-Reference November 19, 1940: Tot Pressnell was purchased from the Dodgers by the St. Louis Cardinals.Tot Pressnell at Baseball-Reference December 1940: Boze Berger was traded by the Dodgers to the New York Yankees for Jack Graham.Boze Berger at Baseball-Reference December 4, 1940: Glen Stewart was purchased by the Dodgers from the New York Giants.Glen Stewart at Baseball-Reference December 4, 1940: Gus Mancuso, minor leaguer John Pintar and cash were traded by the Dodgers to the St. Louis Cardinals for Mickey Owen.Gus Mancuso at Baseball-Reference December 9, 1940: Pep Young was traded by the Dodgers to the Cincinnati Reds for Lew Riggs.Pep Young at Baseball-Reference January 27, 1941: Pep Rambert was purchased by the Dodgers from the Pittsburgh Pirates.Pep Rambert at Baseball-Reference February 4, 1941: Lefty Mills was purchased by the Dodgers from the St. Louis Browns.Lefty Mills at Baseball-Reference Prior to 1941 season: Wally Westlake was acquired from the Dodgers by the Merced Bears.Wally Westlake at Baseball-Reference
Regular season
Season standings
Record vs. opponents
Notable transactions April 3, 1941: Roxie Lawson was purchased by the Dodgers from the St. Louis Browns.Roxie Lawson at Baseball-Reference April 15, 1941: Newt Kimball was purchased by the Dodgers from the St. Louis Cardinals.Newt Kimball at Baseball-Reference April 15, 1941: Lefty Mills was returned by the Dodgers to the St. Louis Browns. April 22, 1941: Mace Brown was purchased by the Dodgers from the Pittsburgh Pirates.Mace Brown at Baseball-Reference May 6, 1941: Lee Grissom was traded by the Dodgers to the Philadelphia Phillies for Vito Tamulis. May 6, 1941: Johnny Hudson, Charlie Gilbert and cash were traded by the Dodgers to the Chicago Cubs for Billy Herman.Johnny Hudson at Baseball-Reference August 14, 1941: Joe Becker, George Staller, and minor leaguers John S. Bell and Ray Roche were traded by the Dodgers to the Philadelphia Phillies for Dixie Howell.Joe Becker at Baseball-Reference August 26, 1941: Mace Brown and cash were traded by the Dodgers to the Chicago Cubs for Augie Galan.
Roster 1941 Brooklyn Dodgers Roster Pitchers Catchers
Infielders Outfielders Manager
Coaches
Player stats = Indicates team leader = Indicates league leader Batting
Starters by position Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases Pos Player GP AB R H Avg. HR RBI SB C 128 386 32 89 .231 1 44 1 1B 149 529 92 151 .285 34 120 3 2B 133 536 77 156 .291 3 41 1 3B 132 441 75 122 .277 1 78 7 SS 152 595 76 136 .229 2 46 10 OF 148 531 88 165 .311 9 71 4 OF 137 536 117 184 .343 14 76 4 OF 133 538 100 171 .318 18 88 2
Other batters Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases Player GP AB R H Avg. HR RBI SB 94 265 39 79 .298 4 48 2 77 197 27 60 .305 5 36 1 57 139 10 28 .201 1 11 0 43 62 13 8 .129 0 5 1 25 56 0 11 .196 0 4 0 16 51 8 16 .314 2 9 0 18 42 2 12 .286 0 6 0 11 35 5 6 .171 0 4 0 16 30 3 7 .233 2 4 0 17 27 3 7 .259 0 4 0 8 12 1 2 .167 0 1 0 3 2 0 0 .000 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 .000 0 0 0
Pitching
Starting pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; CG = Complete games; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; BB = Bases on balls; SO = Strikeouts Player G GS CG IP W L ERA BB SO 48 39 19 298.0 22 9 3.14 132 121 38 35 23 288.1 22 10 2.34 82 176 13 12 3 82.2 6 1 2.07 26 19 2 2 0 13.0 0 2 6.23 8 5
Other pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; CG = Complete games; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; BB = Bases on balls; SO = Strikeouts Player G GS CG IP W L ERA BB SO 45 18 4 162.0 14 11 3.89 57 61 28 16 10 154.1 13 7 2.97 27 50 30 20 5 136.0 8 8 4.24 41 58 11 4 2 57.1 3 0 2.51 12 21 15 5 1 52.0 3 1 3.63 29 17 10 2 0 24.2 1 1 4.38 12 21 6 1 0 15.2 0 0 3.45 4 8 4 1 0 11.1 0 0 2.38 8 5 Note: Hugh Casey was team leader in saves with 7.
Relief pitchers Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; BB = Bases on balls; SO = Strikeouts Player G IP W L SV ERA BB SO 24 42.2 3 2 3 3.16 26 22 16 32.0 1 2 1 3.66 14 8 12 22.0 0 0 1 3.68 10 8 9 22.0 3 0 1 3.27 7 9 1 5.0 1 0 0 0.00 1 3 2 2.0 0 0 0 4.50 2 0
1941 World Series
The 1941 World Series matched the New York Yankees against the Dodgers, with the Yankees winning in five games to capture their fifth title in six years, and their ninth overall.
The name "Subway Series" arose for a World Series played between two New York City teams. The series was punctuated by the Dodgers' Mickey Owen's dropped third strike of a sharply breaking curveball (a suspected spitball) pitched by Hugh Casey to Tommy Henrich in the 9th inning of Game 4. The play led to a Yankees rally and brought them one win away from another championship.
The Yankees were back after a one-year hiatus, having won thirteen (13) of their last fourteen (14) Series games and twenty-eight (28) of their last thirty-one (31) games in the World Series.
This was the first Subway Series between the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Yankees, who had already faced the crosstown New York Giants five times, and the Series was now 1–0 in favor of the Bronx Bombers. These two teams would meet a total of seven (7) times from 1941 to 1956 – the Dodgers' only victory coming in 1955.
Game 1 October 1, 1941, at Yankee Stadium in New York Team123456789RHEBrooklyn (N)000010100260New York (A)01010100x361W: Red Ruffing (1–0) L: Curt Davis (0–1)HR: NYY – Joe Gordon (1)
Game 2 October 2, 1941, at Yankee Stadium in New York Team123456789RHEBrooklyn (N)000021000362New York (A)011000000291W: Whit Wyatt (1–0) L: Spud Chandler (0–1)
Game 3 October 4, 1941, at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn, New York Team123456789RHENew York (A)000000020280Brooklyn (N)000000010140W: Marius Russo (1–0) L: Hugh Casey (0–1)
Game 4 October 5, 1941, at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn, New York Team123456789RHENew York (A)1002000047120Brooklyn (N)000220000491W: Johnny Murphy (1–0) L: Hugh Casey (0–2)HR: : BRO – Pete Reiser (1)
Game 5 October 6, 1941, at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn, New York Team123456789RHENew York (A)020010000360Brooklyn (N)001000000141W: Tiny Bonham (1–0) L: Whit Wyatt (1–1)HR: : NYY – Tommy Henrich (1)
Awards and honors
1941 Major League Baseball All-Star Game Whit Wyatt starter Mickey Owen starter Pete Reiser starter Dolph Camilli reserve Billy Herman reserve Cookie Lavagetto reserve Joe Medwick reserve National League Most Valuable Player Dolph Camilli TSN Major League All-Star Team Whit Wyatt Pete Reiser Dolph Camilli TSN NL Most Valuable Player Dolph Camilli
League top ten finishers Dolph Camilli NL leader in home runs (34) NL leader in RBI (120) #2 in NL in slugging percentage (.556) #2 in NL in bases on balls (104) #3 in NL in on-base percentage (.407)
Hugh Casey #2 tied in NL in saves with Bill Crouch (7)
Kirby Higbe NL leader in wins (22) #4 in NL in strikeouts (121)
Joe Medwick #3 in NL in batting average (.318) #3 in NL in runs scored (100)
Pete Reiser NL leader in batting average (.343) NL leader in slugging percentage (.558) NL leader in runs scored (117) NL leader in triples (17) #4 in NL in on-base percentage (.406)
Whit Wyatt MLB leader in shutouts (7) NL leader in wins (22) #2 in NL in strikeouts (176) #2 in NL in ERA (2.34) #2 in NL in complete games (23)
Farm system
LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Montreal, Durham, Santa Barbara, Elizebethton, Newport
Notes
References Baseball-Reference season page Baseball Almanac season page
External links 1941 Brooklyn Dodgers uniform Brooklyn Dodgers reference site Acme Dodgers page 1941 Brooklyn Dodgers Statistics at Retrosheet