Editor’s note: Tournament games are played with Strat-o-Matic cards and dice.
The dreams of Brooklyn fans finally came true in 1955 as the Dodgers won the World Series.
Is that a guarantee that that Dodgers can win a one and done tournament of all 16 teams in a strat-o-matic tournament? Probably not.
A wonderful part of single elimination tournaments is that any player can have a great day and the difference for his team.
There were several teams that had quality number one starters, so there could be several upsets along the way in this event as well as surprise champion.
Hopefully along the way, this tournament will allow readers to enjoy names from the past.
For this tournament, a three-man pitching rotation in order to have a team’s ace available for the title contest. Although the designated hitter was not around in 1955, it will be used in this tournament, so more players can be involved.
The Most Valuable Players from 1955 were Roy Campanella of the Dodgers and Yogi Berra of the New York Yankees.
Some of the other top players in the MVP voting from both leagues were Duke Snider (Dodgers), Ernie Banks (Chicago Cubs), Willie Mays (New York Giants), Robin Roberts (Philadelphia Phillies), Al Kaline (Detroit Tigers). Al Smith (Cleveland Indians), Ted Williams (Boston Red Sox) and Mickey Mantle (Yankees).
Here are the seeds for tournament based on the final standings. The opening round will have teams playing a game against the opposite league.
National League
- Brooklyn Dodgers (98-55)
- Milwaukee Braves (85-69)
- New York Giants (80-74)
- Philadelphia Phillies (77-77)
- Cincinnati Reds (75-79)
- Chicago Cubs (72-81)
- St. Louis Cardinals (68-86)
- Pittsburgh Pirates (60-94)
American League
- New York Yankees (96-58)
- Cleveland Indians (93-61)
- Chicago White Sox (91-63)
- Boston Red Sox (84-70)
- Detroit Tigers (79-75)
- Kansas City Athletics (63-91)
- Baltimore Orioles (57-97)
- Washington Senators (53-101)
First Round Schedule
Upper Bracket
(8) Washington Senators at (1) Brooklyn Dodgers
(5) Cincinnati Reds at (4) Boston Red Sox
(6) Kansas City Athletics at (3) New York Giants
(7) St. Louis Cardinals at (2) Cleveland Indians
Lower Bracket
(7) Baltimore Orioles at (2) Milwaukee Braves
(6) Chicago Cubs at (3) Chicago White Sox
(5) Detroit Tigers at (4) Philadelphia Phillies
(8) Pittsburgh Pirates at (1) New York Yankees