The 1948 season ended with quite a bang. In the AL, Cleveland and Boston ended the regular season a tie and required a one-game playoff. Cleveland won the playoff game and advanced to the World Series for the first time since 1920. It wasn't just a two-team race though, as the Yankees, always in contention, finished the season two games behind the league leaders.
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| Lou Boudreau |
In the NL, Boston won easily over St. Louis by six games and advanced to the World Series for the first time since 1914. Brooklyn finished one game behind St. Louis and Pittsburgh was game behind them in a close race for second place. In the 1948 World Series Cleveland hit .199 as a team but still won the championship in six games over Boston.
The war has been over for several years now and life is starting to return to some semblance of normalcy across the country, and in baseball as well. Older stars are starting to fade and new ones are appearing, and some of the new stars that have recently arrived have a decidedly different skin color, and more are certain to come. Television is in its infancy, and it will drive the game to change and accommodate as well.
The close races in 1948 portend to more close races in 1949 as teams shuffle and shake and try to find their way as baseball prepares to move into the second half of the twentieth century.
Final 1948 Standings:
American League
Boston Red Sox
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| Joe McCarthy |
Boston finished tied for first in 1948 but they lost a heartbreaking one-game playoff to Cleveland. Led by veteran manager Joe McCarthy in his second year in Boston, The Red Sox fully expect to be back on contention in 1949 though. Ted Williams leads the team offensively but is ably supported by Vern Stephens, Dom DiMaggio, Johnny Pesky, and Bobby Doerr. Pitching is going to be the question for Boston. Boston is expecting another strong year from Jack Kramer and Mel Parnell and are hoping Mickey Harris, Dave Ferriss, and Tex Hughson can rebound from an injury paged 1948 to help out. All in all, the Red Sox are a very good team, feel they really should have won in 1948, and are focused on getting the job done in 1949.
Chicago White Sox
Manager Jack Onslow and the White Sox feature 42-year-old Luke Appling at shortstop, but that is pretty much it if you are looking for stars. Several youngsters will be given their opportunity with the big club this year though. Cass Michaels is penciled in at second base, Gus Zernial will be in right, and Herb Adams will get the starts in center field. Veteran Bill Wight and a young Billy Pierce lead the starting staff, but the rotation gets pretty bleak after that. The White Sox aren't going to be able to compete with the big three (Boston, Cleveland, and New York), but with a few breaks here and there they might be able to come out on top of the remainder of the league.
Cleveland Indians
The Indians are led by manager Lou Boudreau, who just happens to also be the 1948 AL MVP, and the team fully expects to be in the hunt for the 1949 AL pennant. Including Boudreau, the Indians have a veteran team including Joe Gordon, Ken Keltner, Jim Hegan, Dale Mitchell, and Larry Doby, who is in his second full season with Cleveland. Cleveland also possesses what is thought to be the best starting staff in the AL, featuring Bob Feller, Bob Lemon, newly acquired Early Wynn, and Gene Bearden, who finished second in the 1948 Rookie-of-the-Year balloting (Al Dark won - this was before they had separate voting for AL and NL ROY's). The Indians are confident and they should be, but they know that Boston and New York will be tough opponents.
Note: This Cleveland team featured seven future Hall-of-Famers, several of the names mentioned above plus Satchel Paige.
Detroit Tigers
Manager Red Rolfe and the Tigers likely have the best pitching in the AL outside of Cleveland, but they are going to need some help with the offense to move up in the standings. Vic Wertz, Hoot Evers, and George Kell lead the offense, but the Tigers could use some help In some of the other positions. Hal Newhouser, Virgil Trucks, Dizzy Trout, and Fred Hutchinson will pitch the Tigers into contention and with some breaks, they could come out on top.
New York Yankees
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| Casey Stengel |
The Yankees are, of course, the Yankees, so they fully expect to be in the 1949 pennant race. They have no reason to doubt it - they won the 1947 World Series, missed out in 1948 by only two games, and they still feature the best player in baseball in Joe DiMaggio. But that is where the questions start. DiMaggio will miss games at the beginning of the season due to heal problems, and questions are starting to arise about his age and ability. In a surprise move, the Yankees hired Casey Stengel as their manager before the season started, and this has brought up questions as well. Stengel has a reputation as a bit of a clown, and how will that mesh with "The Yankee Way?" The Yankees have a strong foundation, have a group of youngsters to mix in with the veterans, and perhaps Stengel can provide some magic to put them over the top.
Philadelphia Athletics
Connie Mack has been the Athletics manager since 1901 (he would retire after the 1950 season). He has experienced a lot of success during that time but has had his bleak times as well. Before 1949 the previous A's team that finished over .500 was in 1932, and it is felt that this A's team might be on the come. The offense is a group of solid if not aging veterans that will make Philadelphia a threat, and a much younger pitching staff featuring Lou Brissie, Alex Kellner, and Joe Coleman will complement their veteran players.
St. Louis Browns
Hope may spring eternal for every baseball team in the spring, but it is hard to be overly optimistic for manager Zack Taylor and the St. Louis Browns in 1949. The team has spent the last few years selling their best players to the Red Sox in return for exorbitant prices necessary to keep the franchise afloat, meaning the lineup consists mainly of castoffs from other teams. Dick Kokos, Roy Sievers, and Sherm Lollar are all youngsters being given an opportunity to play though and Ned Garver is there to anchor the starting staff. There are too many strong franchises ahead of St. Louis for them to make a serious charge for the 1949 AL pennant, but that doesn’t mean they can't cause some havoc along the way.
Washington Senators
Similar to the Browns, it is going to be a long summer in Washington for second-year manager Joe Kuhel and the Senators. Washington features 22-year-old Eddie Yost at third base and they picked up first baseman Eddie Robinson in a trade from Cleveland, but most of the roster consists of veteran castoffs. Sid Hudson and Ray Scarborough are respected throughout the league as tough pitchers that would likely have winning records if they pitched anywhere else.
National League
Boston Braves
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| Billy Southworth |
Boston won the 1948 Pennant on the strength of "Spahn and Sain and pray for rain," but manager Billy Southworth and the Braves feature a strong lineup and have serious intentions about repeating in the NL again in 1949. Eddie Stanky and 1949 Rookie-of-the-Year Al Dark anchor the up-the-middle defense in the infield, Bob Elliott is solid at third base, and Tommy Holmes is a dangerous hitter still, and the rest of the roster is made up of solid veterans that should help the team. Besides Warren Spahn and Johnny Sain the Braves also feature Bill Voiselle and Vern Bickford in the starting rotation. This is a solid team and their dreams of repeating are not unfounded.
Brooklyn Dodgers
Burt Shotton and the Dodgers won the pennant in 1947 but fell back to third place in 1948, seven games behind first-place Boston, and are looking to rebound in 1949. The Dodgers feature good hitting and a solid defense (Pee Wee Reese at short, Jackie Robinson at second, Duke Snider in center field, and Roy Campanella behind the plate), so it really boils down to their pitching. Youngsters Rex Barney and Ralph Branca and veterans Joe Hatten and Preacher Roe will all need to have good years in order for the Dodgers to claim the NL crown.
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| Burt Shotton |
Chicago Cubs
Following their recent 1945 World Series appearance Charlie Grimm and the Cubs had high hopes for 1948, but the wheels quickly fell off that bus and it is hard to see them right the ship in 1949. Andy Pafko and Peanuts Lowrey provide a veteran presence, and youngsters Roy Smalley and Hal Jeffcoat will be given an opportunity to provide assistance. Phil Cavarretta is now 32, came up to the Cubs when he was only 17 in 1934, meaning he has now spent almost half of his life as the Cubs first baseman. The Cubs are hoping Johnny Schmitz and Dutch Leonard can bounce back from a poor 1948 and are looking for Bob Rush to provide some youthful exuberance to an otherwise aging pen.
Cincinnati Reds
The only player in the primary Reds 1948 lineup that was thirty or older was Hank Sauer, who hit 35 homeruns for Bucky Walters and the Reds. Cincinnati is hopeful this youthful lineup will progress in 1949, with Ted Kluszewski likely being the best of the bunch. The Reds will need veterans Ken Raffensberger and Johnny Vander Meer to pitch well again, and if youngster Herm Wehmeier continues to progress and Ewell Blackwell bounces back the Reds could be dangerous in 1949.
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a solid if unspectacular team, and as manager Leo Durocher noticed when he took over in mid-1948, a slow team on the bases and in the field. Johnny Mize, Sid Gordon, and Bobby Thomson provide the pop in the offense, and Whitey Lockman provides a youthful presence to this veteran lineup. The pitching rotation is solid, with Larry Jansen, Clint Hartung, Dave Koslo, and Monty Kennedy all under 30. The Giants feel they are a better than .500 team, but sometimes your record is an accurate reflection of your ability.
Philadelphia Phillies
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| Eddie Sawyer |
The Phillies are a very young team and their 66 wins 1948 team reflected that. However, manager Eddie Sawyer and the Phillies think this is a good group of youngsters and are definitely looking to move up in the standings in 1949. Richie Ashburn and Del Ennis will anchor the outfield, they added first baseman Eddie Waitkus in the off-season to aid the young infielders, Willie "Puddin' Head" Jones will be given a shot to play third, and youngsters Robin Roberts and Curt Simmons will be given full-time opportunities on the pitching rotation. Many of these players played for Sawyer in the minors before coming up to the big club to rejoin their manager. No one is picking the Phillies to go all the way, but they could be a surprise team in 1949.
Pittsburgh Pirates
The 1948 Pirates and manager Billy Meyer finished in fourth place in 1948 and are looking to move up in the standings. The Pirates feature slugger Ralph Kiner and Wally Westlake in the outfield and brought in veteran Johnny Hopp to anchor first base. The Pirates also brought in veteran pitcher Murry Dickson, and intend to give promising youngsters Cliff Chambers and Bill Werle an opportunity to fill in the rotation. Pittsburgh has a mix of veterans and youngsters and of Boston could do it in 1948, why not them in 1949?
St. Louis Cardinals
St. Louis won the World Series in 1946, but then finished in second place in the NL in 1947 and 1948 and manager Eddie Dyer is fully intending to lead the Cardinals back to post-season play in 1949. The Cardinals feature a strong infield with Red Schoendienst and Marty Marion up the middle, Enos Slaughter and Stan Musial patrol the outfield, and Harry Brecheen and Howie Pollet lead the pitching staff, plus the Cardinals almost always find a newcomer to bring up and insert into their lineup when it is really needed too, so this is not an unreasonable expectation
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