August 5, 2026
August 5, 2026
1947 New York Yankees: Pinstripe Poise
Baseball was becoming more competitive toward the end of the 1940s, but one thing remained true: the 1947 New York Yankees were always a force to be reckoned with. No matter which teams got in their way, especially in the American League, the Yankees found a way to prevail.
The Yankees went 97-57 in 1947, claiming yet another American League pennant by 12 games over the Detroit Tigers and 14 games over their bitter rivals, the Boston Red Sox. The Yankees went 14-8-1 against the Tigers and 13-9 against the Red Sox in head-to-head play. The Yankees went 55-22 at home and 42-35 on the road. The 1947 New York Yankees got things done in a way that fans had come to expect, blowing past the competition time and again. The Yankees went 33-11 in blowout games (contests decided by 5 or more runs).
Center fielder Joe DiMaggio was his usual self, batting .315 with 20 home runs and 97 RBIs off 168 hits, 31 doubles and 10 triples. First baseman George McQuinn batted .304 with 13 home runs and 8 RBIs off 157 hits and 24 doubles. Right fielder Tommy Henrich, known as “The Clutch” or “Old Reliable,” batted .287 with 16 home runs and 98 RBIs off 158 hits, 35 doubles and 13 triples. Third baseman Billy Johnson batted .285 with 10 home runs and 95 RBIs off 141 hits, 19 doubles and 8 triples. Left fielder Johnny Lindell batted .275 with 11 home runs and 67 RBIs off 131 hits, 18 doubles and 7 triples in 127 games.
Shortstop Phil Rizzuto batted .273 with 60 RBIs, 150 hits, 26 doubles, 9 triples and 11 stolen bases. Second baseman George “Snuffy” Stirnweiss had 146 hits, 18 doubles, 8 triples and 5 stolen bases. Catcher Aaron Robinson had 68 hits, 11 doubles and 5 triples in 82 games. Catcher and outfielder Lawrence Peter Berra, better known to baseball fans as Yogi Berra, batted .280 with 11 home runs, 82 hits and 15 doubles in 83 games.
Starting pitcher Allie Reynolds went 19-8 with 129 strikeouts and a 3.20 ERA, recording 17 complete games, 4 shutouts and 2 saves. Francis “Spec” Shea carried one of the most memorable nicknames in baseball history, “The Naugatuck Nugget.” Shea went 14-5 with 89 strikeouts and a 3.07 ERA, recording 13 complete games, 3 shutouts and 1 save. Spurgeon “Spud” Chandler went 9-5 with a 2.46 ERA, recording 13 complete games and 2 shutouts.
Louis “Bobo” Newsom was a well-traveled journeyman who bounced from club to club, and for the Yankees he went 7-5 with a 2.80 ERA, recording 6 complete games and 2 shutouts. Vic Raschi went 7-2 with a 3.87 ERA, recording 6 complete games and 1 shutout. Bill Bevens posted a 3.82 ERA, 11 complete games and 1 shutout despite going 7-13.
Closer Joe Page was outstanding for the Yankees, going 14-8 with 17 saves, 116 strikeouts and a 2.48 ERA. Relief pitcher Karl Drews went 6-6 with 1 save. Randy Gumpert went 4-1 with 2 complete games in 6 games started. Don Johnson went 4-3 with a 3.64 ERA, recording 2 complete games in 8 games started. Charles “Butch” Wensloff went 3-1 with a 2.61 ERA, recording 1 complete game in 5 games started.
The Yankees stayed the course through every month of the regular season, maintaining their pinstripe poise. The Yankees went 7-5 in April, 13-12 in May, 21-9 in June, 24-6 in July, 18-13 in August and 14-12 in September. Joe DiMaggio and George McQuinn both started for the American League in the All-Star Game, while Yankee reserves included Spud Chandler, Tommy Henrich, Billy Johnson, Charlie Keller, Joe Page, Aaron Robinson and Spec Shea.
During the regular season, the Yankees enjoyed a superb 17-game winning streak that started with a 3-1 victory over the Washington Senators in the back half of a doubleheader on June 29, and it ended with a 7-2 victory over the Cleveland Indians in the back half of a doubleheader on July 17.
The 1947 World Series was historic for multiple reasons, as the Yankees took on their in-city rivals from the National League, the Brooklyn Dodgers. Most importantly, second baseman, first baseman and third baseman Jackie Robinson had made baseball history in 1947 by breaking the color barrier, and the Dodgers became the first World Series team to be racially integrated.
In Game 1 on September 30 at Yankee Stadium, the Yankees defeated the Dodgers 5-3. Spec Shea pitched 5 innings and gave up 2 hits, 2 walks and 1 run while recording 3 strikeouts. In the top of the 1st inning, Brooklyn struck first with an RBI single by right fielder Fred “Dixie” Walker. In the bottom of the 5th, Johnny Lindell had a 2-run double, shortstop and third baseman Bobby “Doc” Brown drew a bases-loaded walk to score Billy Johnson, and Tommy Henrich had a 2-run single. In the top of the 6th, pinch-hitting center fielder Carl Furillo had an RBI single. In the top of the 7th, a wild pitch scored shortstop Harold “Pee Wee” Reese, but Brooklyn fell a couple of runs short.
In Game 2 on October 1, the Yankees pounded the Dodgers 10-3. In the bottom of the 1st inning, Lindell grounded into a double play to score Snuffy Stirnweiss. In the top of the 3rd, Jackie Robinson had an RBI single, and in the bottom of the 3rd, Lindell had an RBI triple. In the top of the 4th, Walker hit a solo home run, and in the bottom of the 4th, Phil Rizzuto had an RBI double. In the bottom of the 5th, Henrich hit a solo home run, and McQuinn followed with an RBI single. In the bottom of the 6th, Lindell had a sacrifice fly to score Allie Reynolds. In the bottom of the 7th, Billy Johnson had an RBI single, Reynolds had a bunt RBI single, Stirnweiss had an RBI single, and a wild pitch would score Reynolds. In the top of the 9th, pinch-hitting third baseman and right fielder John “Spider” Jorgensen grounded into a forceout at second base to score left fielder Gene Hermanski, but it was much too late.
In Game 3 on October 2 at Ebbets Field, the Dodgers beat the Yankees 9-8. In the bottom of the 2nd inning, catcher Bruce Edwards had an RBI double, Pee Wee Reese had an RBI single, and Stanky and Furillo both had 2-run doubles. In the top of the 3rd, Lindell and DiMaggio both had RBI singles, and in the bottom of the 3rd, Jorgensen had an RBI single. In the top of the 4th, catcher Sherm Lollar had an RBI double, and Stirnweiss followed with an RBI single. In the bottom of the 4th, Walker and Hermanski both had RBI singles. In the top of the 5th, DiMaggio smacked a 2-run home run. Henrich had an RBI double in the top of the 6th, and in the top of the 7th, Yogi Berra made World Series history by hitting the first-ever pinch-hit home run off Brooklyn pitcher Ralph Branca.
In Game 4 on October 3, the Dodgers beat the Yankees again by the score of 3-2. In the top of the 1st inning, DiMaggio drew a bases-loaded walk to score Stirnweiss, and in the top of the 4th, Lindell had an RBI double. In the bottom of the 5th, Reese hit into a fielder’s choice to score Jorgensen. In the bottom of the 9th, third baseman and second baseman Harry Arthur “Cookie” Lavagetto had a 2-run double.
In Game 5 on October 4, the Yankees beat the Dodgers 2-1. Spec Shea pitched a complete game, giving up 4 hits, 5 walks and 1 run while recording 7 strikeouts. Shea started the scoring in the top of the 4th inning with an RBI single, and in the top of the 5th, DiMaggio hit a solo home run. Jackie Robinson had an RBI single in the bottom of the 6th, but that would be all from Brooklyn.
The Dodgers tied the Fall Classic at 3 games apiece with an 8-6 win in Game 6 on October 5 at Yankee Stadium. In the top of the 1st inning, Walker grounded into a double play to score Stanky, and a passed ball would score Reese. In the top of the 3rd, Jackie Robinson had an RBI ground-rule double, and Walker followed by getting a conventional RBI double. In the bottom of the 3rd, Stirnweiss reached on an error to score Lollar, and then Lindell, Billy Johnson and Brown all had RBI singles. In the bottom of the 4th, Berra had an RBI single. In the top of the 6th, Lavagetto had a sacrifice fly to score Edwards, shortstop, third baseman and catcher Bobby Bragan had an RBI double, and Reese topped things off with a 2-run single. In the bottom of the 9th, second baseman and shortstop Linus “Lonny” Frey grounded into a forceout at second base to score Johnson, but it wouldn’t be enough.
In Game 7 on October 6, the Yankees beat the Dodgers 5-2 to capture yet another World Series championship. In the top of the 2nd inning, Edwards had an RBI single, and Jorgensen followed with an RBI double. In the bottom of the 2nd, Rizzuto had an RBI single. In the bottom of the 4th, Brown had an RBI double, and Henrich followed with an RBI single. In the bottom of the 6th, pinch-hitting right fielder Allie Clark had an RBI single, and in the bottom of the 7th, Aaron Robinson had a sacrifice fly to score Billy Johnson.
Previously guiding the Washington Senators to a World Series Championship in 1924, manager Bucky Harris guided the Yankees to another title, showing the pinstripe poise that Yankees fans had grown accustomed to when taking in a game in the Bronx.
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