1948 Brooklyn Dodgers season
Leo Durocher returned as manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers to start the 1948 season but was fired in mid-season. He was replaced first by team coach Ray Blades and then by Burt Shotton, who had managed the team to the 1947 pennant. The Dodgers finished third in the National League after this tumultuous season.
| 1948 Brooklyn Dodgers | |
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| Other information | |
| Owner(s) | James & Dearie Mulvey, Walter O'Malley, Branch Rickey, John L. Smith |
| General manager(s) | Branch Rickey |
| Manager(s) | Leo Durocher, Ray Blades, Burt Shotton |
| Local radio | WMGM Red Barber, Connie Desmond, Ernie Harwell |
| < Previous season Next season > | |
The 1948 Dodgers were very much a work in progress, beginning to coalesce into the classic "Boys of Summer" teams of the 1950s. Gil Hodges was in the opening day lineup, but as a catcher. He would only be shifted to first base after the emergence of Roy Campanella. Jackie Robinson started the season at second base—Eddie Stanky had been traded just before the start of the season to make room for Robinson at his natural position; he had played first base during his 1947 rookie season. Pee Wee Reese was the only "Boys of summer" regular to already be ensconced at his position, shortstop. Billy Cox had been acquired from the Pittsburgh Pirates during the offseason, but as one of nine players who would see time at third for the team that year, he only played 70 games at the position. Carl Furillo was already a regular, but in center field. Duke Snider was brought up to the team in mid-season, and it was not until 1949 that Furillo moved to right field and Snider became the regular center fielder.
Preacher Roe and Ralph Branca were in the starting rotation, but Carl Erskine only appeared in a handful of games, and Don Newcombe would not join the staff until the following year.
Offseason
- November 14, 1947: Stan Rojek[1] and Ed Stevens[2] were purchased from the Dodgers by the Pittsburgh Pirates.
- December 3, 1947: Monty Basgall was traded by the Dodgers to the Pittsburgh Pirates for Jimmy Bloodworth and Vic Barnhart.[3]
- December 8, 1947: Dixie Walker, Hal Gregg and Vic Lombardi were traded by the Dodgers to the Pittsburgh Pirates for Preacher Roe, Billy Cox and Gene Mauch.[4]
- March 6, 1948: Eddie Stanky was traded by the Dodgers to the Boston Braves for Bama Rowell, Ray Sanders and cash.[5]
Regular season
Future Hall of Famer Roy Campanella made his major league debut on April 20.[6] In July, Campanella replaced Bruce Edwards as the club's starting catcher. This marked the first time that a major league team had two black players in its everyday lineup.[7]
On September 9, Rex Barney pitched a no-hitter against the New York Giants. He walked two batters and struck out four in a 2–0 victory.
Season standings
| National League | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boston Braves | 91 | 62 | 0.595 | — | 45–31 | 46–31 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 85 | 69 | 0.552 | 6½ | 44–33 | 41–36 |
| Brooklyn Dodgers | 84 | 70 | 0.545 | 7½ | 36–41 | 48–29 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | 83 | 71 | 0.539 | 8½ | 47–31 | 36–40 |
| New York Giants | 78 | 76 | 0.506 | 13½ | 37–40 | 41–36 |
| Philadelphia Phillies | 66 | 88 | 0.429 | 25½ | 32–44 | 34–44 |
| Cincinnati Reds | 64 | 89 | 0.418 | 27 | 32–45 | 32–44 |
| Chicago Cubs | 64 | 90 | 0.416 | 27½ | 35–42 | 29–48 |
Record vs. opponents
1948 National League Records Sources: | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | BOS | BR | CHC | CIN | NYG | PHI | PIT | STL | |||||
| Boston | — | 14–8 | 16–6–1 | 13–8 | 11–11 | 14–8 | 12–10 | 11–11 | |||||
| Brooklyn | 8–14 | — | 11–11 | 18–4 | 11–11–1 | 15–7 | 9–13 | 12–10 | |||||
| Chicago | 6–16–1 | 11–11 | — | 10–12 | 11–11 | 7–15 | 8–14 | 11–11 | |||||
| Cincinnati | 8–13 | 4–18 | 12–10 | — | 10–12 | 11–11 | 9–13 | 10–12 | |||||
| New York | 11–11 | 11–11–1 | 11–11 | 12–10 | — | 14–8 | 12–10 | 7–15 | |||||
| Philadelphia | 8–14 | 7–15 | 15–7 | 11–11 | 8–14 | — | 12–10–1 | 5–17 | |||||
| Pittsburgh | 10–12 | 13–9 | 14–8 | 13–9 | 10–12 | 10–12–1 | — | 13–9–1 | |||||
| St. Louis | 11–11 | 10–12 | 11–11 | 12–10 | 15–7 | 17–5 | 9–13–1 | — | |||||
Opening Day lineup
Notable transactions
- April 18, 1948: Ray Sanders was purchased from the Dodgers by the Boston Braves.[8]
- September 29, 1948: Jimmy Bloodworth was purchased from the Dodgers by the Cincinnati Reds.[3]
Roster
| 1948 Brooklyn Dodgers | |||||||||
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| Roster | |||||||||
Pitchers
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Catchers
Infielders
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Outfielders
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Manager
Coaches
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Player stats
Starters by position
Note: Pos=Position; G=Games played; AB=At bats; H=Hits; Avg.=Batting average; HR=Home runs; RBI=Runs batted in
| Pos | Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | Roy Campanella | 83 | 279 | 72 | .258 | 9 | 45 |
| 1B | Gil Hodges | 134 | 481 | 120 | .249 | 11 | 70 |
| 2B | Jackie Robinson | 147 | 574 | 170 | .296 | 12 | 85 |
| 3B | Billy Cox | 88 | 237 | 59 | .249 | 3 | 15 |
| SS | Pee Wee Reese | 151 | 566 | 155 | .274 | 9 | 75 |
| OF | Gene Hermanski | 133 | 400 | 116 | .290 | 15 | 60 |
| OF | Carl Furillo | 108 | 364 | 108 | .297 | 4 | 44 |
| OF | Marv Rackley | 88 | 281 | 92 | .327 | 0 | 15 |
Other batters
Note: G=Games played; AB=At bats; H=Hits; Avg.=Batting average; HR=Home runs; RBI=Runs batted in
| Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bruce Edwards | 96 | 286 | 79 | .276 | 8 | 54 |
| Eddie Miksis | 86 | 221 | 47 | .213 | 2 | 16 |
| Dick Whitman | 60 | 165 | 48 | .291 | 0 | 20 |
| George Shuba | 63 | 161 | 43 | .267 | 4 | 32 |
| Duke Snider | 53 | 160 | 39 | .244 | 5 | 21 |
| Preston Ward | 42 | 146 | 38 | .260 | 1 | 21 |
| Tommy Brown | 54 | 145 | 35 | .241 | 2 | 20 |
| Pete Reiser | 64 | 127 | 30 | .236 | 1 | 19 |
| Arky Vaughan | 65 | 123 | 30 | .244 | 3 | 22 |
| Spider Jorgensen | 31 | 90 | 27 | .300 | 1 | 13 |
| Don Lund | 27 | 69 | 13 | .188 | 1 | 5 |
| Gene Mauch | 12 | 13 | 2 | .154 | 0 | 0 |
| Bobby Bragan | 9 | 12 | 2 | .167 | 0 | 0 |
| Bob Ramazzotti | 4 | 3 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 |
Starting pitchers
Note: G=Games pitched; IP=Innings pitched; W=Wins; L=Losses; ERA=Earned run average; SO=Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rex Barney | 44 | 246.2 | 15 | 13 | 3.10 | 138 |
| Ralph Branca | 36 | 215.2 | 14 | 9 | 3.51 | 122 |
| Harry Taylor | 17 | 80.2 | 2 | 7 | 5.36 | 32 |
Other pitchers
Note: G=Games pitched; IP=Innings pitched; W=Wins; L=Losses; ERA=Earned run average; SO=Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joe Hatten | 42 | 208.2 | 13 | 10 | 3.58 | 73 |
| Preacher Roe | 34 | 177.2 | 12 | 8 | 2.63 | 86 |
| Erv Palica | 41 | 125.1 | 6 | 6 | 4.45 | 74 |
| Carl Erskine | 17 | 64 | 6 | 3 | 3.23 | 29 |
| Lefty Sloat | 4 | 7.1 | 0 | 1 | 6.14 | 1 |
| Jack Banta | 2 | 3.1 | 0 | 1 | 8.10 | 1 |
Relief pitchers
Note: G=Games pitched; W=Wins; L=Losses; SV=Saves; ERA=Earned run average; SO=Strikeouts
| Player | G | W | L | SV | ERA | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hank Behrman | 34 | 5 | 4 | 7 | 4.05 | 42 |
| Paul Minner | 28 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 2.44 | 23 |
| Willie Ramsdell | 27 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5.19 | 34 |
| Hugh Casey | 22 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 8.00 | 7 |
| Clyde King | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8.03 | 5 |
| Johnny Van Cuyk | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3.60 | 1 |
| John Hall | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6.23 | 2 |
| Elmer Sexauer | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13.50 | 0 |
| Phil Haugstad | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 |
Awards and honors
- 1948 Major League Baseball All-Star Game
- Ralph Branca starter
- Pee Wee Reese starter
League top five finishers
- #2 in NL in strikeouts (138)
- #4 in NL in shutouts (4)
- #5 in NL in strikeouts (122)
- #2 in NL in stolen bases (25)
- #4 in NL in runs scored (108)
- #4 in NL in stolen bases (22)
- #4 in NL in doubles (38)
- #4 in NL in ERA (2.63)
Farm system
LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Montreal, St. Paul, Ft. Worth, Greenville, Nashua, Newport News, Santa Barbara, Pulaski, Sheboygan, Zanesville
Notes
- Stan Rojek page at Baseball Reference
- Ed Stevens page at Baseball Reference
- Jimmy Bloodworth page at Baseball Reference
- Dixie Walker page at Baseball Reference
- Eddie Stanky page at Baseball Reference
- Opening Day: The Story of Jackie Robinson's First Season, p. 267, Jonathan Eig, Simon & Schuster, 2007, New York, ISBN 978-0-7432-9461-4
- Opening Day: The Story of Jackie Robinson's First Season, p. 267
- Ray Sanders page at Baseball Reference
