1944 World Series

1944 World Series
Team (Wins) Manager(s) Season St. Louis Cardinals(4) Billy Southworth 105–49,.682, GA:14+1⁄2 St. Louis Browns(2) Luke Sewell 89–65,.578, GA: 1
Dates	October 4–9
Venue	Sportsman's Park
Umpires	Ziggy Sears(NL),Bill McGowan(AL),Tom Dunn(NL),George Pipgras(AL)
Hall of Famers	Umpire: Bill McGowan Cardinals: Billy Southworth(manager) Enos Slaughter Stan Musial Browns:none
Broadcast
Radio	Mutual
Radio announcers	Don DunphyandBill Slater
World Series

The1944 World Serieswas an all-St. LouisWorld Series,matching theSt. Louis CardinalsandSt. Louis BrownsatSportsman's Park.It marked the third time in World Series history in which both teams had the same home field (the others being the1921and1922Series, both played at thePolo GroundsinNew York City). It would be 76 years before another World Series had all of its games played in a single ballpark: the2020Series usedGlobe Life FieldinArlington, Texasas aneutral sitedue to health concerns regarding theCOVID-19 pandemic.

1944 saw perhaps thenadirof 20th-century baseball, as the long-moribund St. Louis Browns won their onlyAmerican Leaguepennant. Some of the players were4-Fs,rejected by the military for physical defects (such as one armedPete Gray) or limitations that precluded duty.Others divided their time between factory work in defense industries and baseball, some being able to play ball only on weekends. Some players avoided the draft by chance, despite being physically able to serve.Stan Musialof the Cardinals was one. Musial, enlisting in early 1945, missed one season. He rejoined the Cardinals in 1946.

As both teams calledSportsman's Parkhome, the traditional 2–3–2 home field assignment was used (instead of the wartime 3–4). TheJunior World Seriesof that same year, partly hosted in Baltimore's converted football stadium, easily outdrew the "real" Series and attracted attention to Baltimore as a potential major league city. Ten years later, the Browns transferred there and became theOrioles.The Orioles would go on to win the1966 World Series,and become the last of the AL's eight charter franchises to do so. Another all-Missouri World Series was played41 years later,with theKansas City Royalsdefeating the Cardinals in seven games.

The Series was also known as the "Trolley Series," "Streetcar Series," or the "St. Louis Showdown." Coincidentally, this World Series was played the same yearMetro-Goldwyn-Mayerreleased the musical filmMeet Me in St. Louis.It remains one of two World Series played that featured two teams from the same city other than New York; the other was the1906 World Seriesbetween the two Chicago teams. The1989 World Seriesfeatured two teams from the San Francisco metropolitan area, but not the same city. It was also the first World Series in which both teams played west of theMississippi River.

This is the only World Series to date in which neither team was credited with astolen base.

This would also be the final World Series whereKenesaw Mountain Landiswas the commissioner of baseball. Landis died a little over a month later on November 25.

Background

Many of the game's best players were called away forWorld War II,and the result was a seriously depleted pool of talent.The top team in theAmerican Leaguewas the St. Louis Browns, who collectively batted.252 en route to their only pennant in 52 seasons. They only had one.300 hitter in outfielderMike Kreevich(who barely made it at.301), one man with 20 home runs, shortstopVern Stephens(who hit exactly 20), and one player over the 85 runs batted in mark, Stephens, who knocked in 109 to lead the league. On the mound, the Browns boastedNels PotterandJack Kramer,who combined for 36 victories. The team squeaked into first place by winning 11 out of their final 12 games, including the last 4 in a row over the defending championNew York Yankees.The last victory, combined with Detroit's loss to Washington, enabled St. Louis to finish one game ahead of the Tigers in the American League. Their 89–65 record would be the worst for an AL champion until the Minnesota Twins won the pennant in 1987 with a record of 85–77.

On the other side of Sportsman's Park, the other Major League team from St. Louis was doing business as usual. In making off with their third straight National League pennant (leading by14+1⁄2games over Pittsburgh), managerBilly Southworth's Cardinals had won 105 games and ran their three-year victory total to 316. The Cardinals were the first National League franchise with three consecutive 100 win seasons. The 1944 club featured league MVPMarty Marionand future Hall of FamerStan Musial.

Summary

NLSt. Louis Cardinals(4) vs. ALSt. Louis Browns(2)

Game	Date	Score	Location	Time	Attendance
1	October 4	St. Louis Browns– 2, St. Louis Cardinals – 1	Sportsman's Park	2:05	33,242
2	October 5	St. Louis Browns – 2,St. Louis Cardinals– 3(11)	Sportsman's Park	2:32	35,076
3	October 6	St. Louis Cardinals – 2,St. Louis Browns– 6	Sportsman's Park	2:19	34,737
4	October 7	St. Louis Cardinals– 5, St. Louis Browns – 1	Sportsman's Park	2:22	35,455
5	October 8	St. Louis Cardinals– 2, St. Louis Browns – 0	Sportsman's Park	2:04	36,568
6	October 9	St. Louis Browns – 1,St. Louis Cardinals– 3	Sportsman's Park	2:06	31,630

Matchups

Game 1

George McQuinn

Wednesday, October 4, 1944 2:00pm (CT) atSportsman's ParkinSt. Louis,Missouri

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
St. Louis (AL)	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	2	2	0
St. Louis (NL)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	7	0
WP:Denny Galehouse(1–0)LP:Mort Cooper(0–1) Home runs: SLB:George McQuinn(1) SLC: None

George McQuinn hit the Browns' only home run of the series to put his team ahead in the fourth inning, while Denny Galehouse outpitched World Series veteran Mort Cooper, who allowed only two hits, to hold on for the win.

Game 2

Blix Donnelly

Thursday, October 5, 1944 2:00pm (CT) atSportsman's Park in St. Louis, Missouri

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	R	H	E
St. Louis (AL)	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	2	7	4
St. Louis (NL)	0	0	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	3	7	0
WP:Blix Donnelly(1–0)LP:Bob Muncrief(0–1)

Blix Donnelly came in as a relief pitcher in the eighth inning, and tallied no runs, two hits and seven strikeouts for the win.Ken O'Dea's pinch-hit single in the 11th scored the winning run.

Game 3

Jack Kramer

Friday, October 6, 1944 2:00pm (CT) atSportsman's Park in St. Louis, Missouri

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
St. Louis (NL)	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	2	7	0
St. Louis (AL)	0	0	4	0	0	0	2	0	X	6	8	2
WP:Jack Kramer(1–0)LP:Ted Wilks(0–1)

Jack Kramer struck out ten batters on the way to a 6–2 Browns triumph, the last World Series game the team would win until the1966 World Series,as theBaltimore Orioles.

Game 4

Stan Musial

Saturday, October 7, 1944 2:00pm (CT) atSportsman's Park in St. Louis, Missouri

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
St. Louis (NL)	2	0	2	0	0	1	0	0	0	5	12	0
St. Louis (AL)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	9	1
WP:Harry Brecheen(1–0)LP:Sig Jakucki(0–1) Home runs: SLC:Stan Musial(1) SLB: None

Browns starter Sig Jakucki had been away from baseball for five years, but returned to win 13 games in 1944. He lasted only three innings giving up four runs. Stan Musial hit a two-run homer in the first, and the Browns never recovered. Harry Brecheen went the distance for the win despite giving up nine hits and four walks.

Game 5

Ray Sanders

Sunday, October 8, 1944 2:00pm (CT) atSportsman's Park in St. Louis, Missouri

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
St. Louis (NL)	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0	2	6	1
St. Louis (AL)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	7	1
WP:Mort Cooper(1–1)LP:Denny Galehouse(1–1) Home runs: SLC:Ray Sanders(1),Danny Litwhiler(1) SLB: None

Mort Cooper recovered from his opening game loss to beat Galehouse with a seven-hit, 2–0 shutout. In the Cardinals' 1942–1944 stranglehold on the National League championship, Cooper had won 65 games and thrown 23 shutouts.

Game 6

Ted Wilks

Monday, October 9, 1944 2:00pm (CT) atSportsman's Park in St. Louis, Missouri

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
St. Louis (AL)	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	3	2
St. Louis (NL)	0	0	0	3	0	0	0	0	X	3	10	0
WP:Max Lanier(1–0)LP:Nels Potter(0–1)Sv:Ted Wilks(1)

For Game 6, it was Max Lanier and Ted Wilks (who both had 17 wins and shared a 2.65 ERA) that wrote the final chapter to the Browns' "Cinderella season" with a 3–1 victory that wrapped up the Cardinals' second Series title in three years. Ted Wilks was brilliant in relief, retiring all 11 Browns he faced, clinching the Cardinals' fifth World Series title.

Composite line score

1944 World Series(4–2):St. Louis Cardinals(N.L.)overSt. Louis Browns(A.L.)

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	R	H	E
St. Louis Cardinals	3	0	3	4	0	2	1	1	1	0	1	16	49	1
St. Louis Browns	0	1	4	2	0	0	4	1	0	0	0	12	36	10
Total attendance:206,708Average attendance:34,451 Winning player's share:$4,626Losing player's share:$2,744

See also

• 1944 Negro World Series

References

• Cohen, Richard M.; Neft, David S. (1990).The World Series: Complete Play-By-Play of Every Game, 1903–1989.New York: St. Martin's Press. pp. 196–200.ISBN0-312-03960-3.
• Reichler, Joseph (1982).The Baseball Encyclopedia(5th ed.). Macmillan Publishing. p. 2152.ISBN0-02-579010-2.
• Silver, Nate(2007).Goldman, Steven(ed.)."1944 American League: The Home Front".It Ain't over 'til It's over: The Baseball Prospectus Pennant Race Book.New York: Basic Books:326–362.ISBN978-0-465-00284-9.

External links

• 1944 World SeriesatWorldSeries.comviaMLB.com
• 1944 World SeriesatBaseball Almanac
• 1944 World SeriesatBaseball-Reference.com
• The 1944 Post-Season Games(box scores and play-by-play) atRetrosheet
• History of the World Series - 1944atThe Sporting News.Archived fromthe originalin May 2006.