The heavily favored Los Angeles Dodgers needed a big hit in the 10th inning to survive a 4-2 battle with the Chicago Cubs in the semifinals of the Strat-O-Matic 1959 Tournament presented by Press Room Pass.
Gil Hodges blasted a two-run walk-off homer in the 10th inning to send the Dodgers to the championship game in Los Angeles against Baltimore Orioles.
With one out in the 10th, Duke Snider doubled off Cubs starter Anderson and Hodges followed with his homer to end the contest.
Roger Craig went the distance for the Dodgers to get the win as he allowed just three hits with five strikeouts. Anderson gave up nine hits and fanned six.
Dale Long had Chicago’s first in the in the second, but he was left stranded.
Snider gave the Dodgers a 2-0 lead with a homer that also scored Jim Gilliam in the third.
After a RBI single by Ernie Banks in the sixth, the Cubs tied the game one inning later as Sammy Taylor hit a solo homer.
Snider and Carl Furillo led the Dodgers with three hits each.
1959 TOURNAMENT RESULTS AND SCHEDULE
Championship Game
(A6) Baltimore Orioles at (N1) Los Angeles Dodgers
(Top Bracket Opening Round)
(A1) Chicago White Sox 7, (N8) Philadelphia Phillies 1
(N5) Cincinnati Reds 5, (A4) Detroit Tigers 3
(A6) Baltimore Orioles 2, (N3) San Francisco Giants 1
(N2) Milwaukee Braves 4, (A7) Kansas City A’s 1
(Top Bracket Second Round)
(A1) Chicago White Sox 10, (N5) Cincinnati Reds 4
(A6) Baltimore Orioles 3, (N2) Milwaukee Braves 0
(Top Bracket Final)
(A6) Baltimore Orioles 4, (A1) Chicago White Sox 2
(Bottom Bracket Opening Round)
(N1) Los Angeles Dodgers 4, (A8) Washington Senators 3
(A5) Boston Red Sox 16, (N4) Pittsburgh Pirates 3
(N6) Chicago Cubs 4, (A3) New York Yankees 0
(A2) Cleveland Indians 3, (N7) St. Louis Cardinals 0
(Bottom Bracket Second Round)
(N1) Los Angeles Dodgers 11, (A5) Boston Red Sox 3
(N6) Chicago Cubs 9, (A2) Cleveland Indians 2
(Bottom Bracket Final)
(N1) Los Angeles Dodgers 4, (N6) Chicago Cubs 2 (10 innings)
IN REAL LIFE:
At 35-years old, Gil Hodges was near the end of his career in 1959 as he led the Dodgers with 25 home runs. He added 80 RBI and a .276 batting average.
As the Dodgers won the World Series that season, Hodges batted .391. His homer in the eighth inning of game four was the winning run for the Dodgers in the fourth game of the series.
After a game with Brooklyn in 1943, Hodges missed the next two seasons due to military service and another in the minors before returning to the for good Dodgers in 1947.
Hodges was picked by the New York Mets in the expansion draft prior to the 1962 season and he finished his career the following season.
An all-star from 1949 to 1955 and again in 1957, Hodges also won Gold Gloves from 1957 to 1959.
Perhaps his best season was in 1954 when he posted career-highs of 42 homers, 130 RBI and a .304 batting average. He also hit 40 homers in 1951 and knocked in more than 100 runs seven times.
The best game of his career game in 1950 on Aug. 31. Hodges had five hits with four homers and nine RBI as the Dodgers won 19-3 over the Braves in Boston.
When the Dodgers won the World Series in 1955, Hodges had 27 homers and 102 RBI.
In 1963, Hodges joined the Washington Senators as their manager. It was a post he held until the end of 1967.
The following season, he was in charge of the New York Mets. A year later, the Mets won the World Series after going 100-62 during the regular season. Hodges passed away during spring training before the 1972 season.