1948 World Series: Cleveland Rocks!

The Teams
American League: Cleveland Indians (97-58) - Second World Series (won in 1920)
National League: Boston Braves (91-62) - Second World Series (won in 1914)

What Happened
The refrain around Braves Field during the 1948 season was "Spahn and Sain, then pray for rain." In Warren Spahn and Johnny Sain, the Boston Braves had a pair of aces almost unmatched in baseball, but they had very little else. Luckily for them, Spahn and Sain were good enough for the Braves to win just their second National League pennant in the World Series.

Another team with a pair of aces was the Cleveland Indians, who were led by future Hall of Famers Bob Feller and Bob Lemon. The Indians had a very good offense, as well, with future Hall of Famers Larry Doby, Joe Gordon, and Lou Boudreau, and they were able to storm past the Yankees late in the season to tie the Red Sox for the American League title. Rookie knuckleballer Gene Bearden ruined Boston's dream of a crosstown World Series by shutting down the Red Sox in the playoff game, and the Indians stayed in Boston to take on the Braves for the title.

Game 1 was the first battle of aces, with Feller and Sain keeping the game scoreless into the 8th inning. In the bottom of that inning, Feller walked Boston's Bill Salkeld. After a sacrifice moved pinch-runner Phil Masi to second, Boudreau, the Cleveland shortstop and manager, called for a pickoff play. It worked to perfection, as Feller fired a strike to Boudreau's glove in a perfect spot for him to make the tag ... only the umpire called Masi safe. Stunned, Feller gave up a hit on the very next pitch - only his second hit allowed in the game - and the Braves had a surprising 1-0 victory.

The pitching continued to dominate as Cleveland won the next three games, beating Spahn in Game 2 and Sain in Game 4. They had a fully rested Feller and homefield advantage for Game 5, hoping to clinch their first championship since 1920. Instead, the Braves offense came alive; Bob Elliott hit two home runs off Feller, and the Braves scored six runs in the seventh to blow the game open. Spahn gave up only 1 hit in nearly 6 innings of relief and the Braves sent the series back to Boston.

That just delayed the inevitable. With Spahn and Sain unavailable, the Braves had to pray for rain for Game 6. When the clouds didn't cooperate, they sent Bill Voiselle out to the mound to face off against a well-rested Lemon. Cleveland took a 4-1 lead into the 8th inning, and though Boston got two runs off a tiring Lemon, Bearden came in to shut the door and save the game. Cleveland had its first title since 1920; they haven't won one since.

Defining Game
With Game 6 tied 1-1 after 5, the Indians finally started making progress against Voiselle. Gordon led off the sixth with a home run, then Cleveland added another run when catcher Jim Hegan beat the relay on a potential inning-ending double play. The biggest run came in the 8th, though, when the Indians got three straight singles off Spahn - pitching in relief - to add a 4th run. That run turned out huge when the Braves started to rally in the bottom of the inning. They loaded the bases on Lemon with one out when Boudreau called for Bearden in relief. Bearden traded an out for a run on a sacrifice fly, then watched Masi drill a two-out double to left. One run scored easily for Boston, but Elliott couldn't score from first on Masi's double. The next batter hit one back to Bearden, and the Indians escaped with a 4-3 lead. After getting through the ninth, the Indians were champions.

MVP
The choice comes down to Lemon - who won both games he started, with an ERA of 1.65 - or Bearden - who threw a complete game shutout in his only start, then saved the clincher for Lemon. I'm gonna go with Lemon here, simply because he pitched more innings in the series.

Scores
(Home team shaded; winners in Bold)

Cleveland	0	4	2	2	5	4
Boston	1	1	0	1	11	3

The List
I'm ranking all the World Series, from worst to best. Here are the ones I've done so far:

50. 1948 - Cleveland (A) def. Boston (N) 4-2
51. 1917 - Chicago (A) def. New York (N) 4-2
52. 1903 - Boston (A) def. Pittsburgh (N) 5-3
53. 1916 - Boston (A) def. Brooklyn (N) 4-1 
54. 1949 - New York (A) def. Brooklyn (N) 4-1
55. 1942 - St. Louis (N) def. New York (A) 4-1
56. 1974 - Oakland (A) def. Los Angeles (N) 4-1
57. 1955 - Brooklyn (N) def. New York (A) 4-3
58. 1979 - Pittsburgh (N) def. Baltimore (A) 4-3
59. 1987 - Minnesota (A) def. St. Louis (N) 4-3
Numbers 60-69
Numbers 70-79
Numbers 80-89
Numbers 90-99
Numbers 100-107

1914 World Series: The Miracle Braves

The Teams
National League: Boston Braves (94-59) - First World Series
American League: Philadelphia Athletics (99-53) - Fifth World Series (Won in 1910, 1911, 1913)

What Happened
On July 4, 1914, the Boston Braves were where many people expected them to be: in last place in the National League. After getting swept in a Fourth of July doubleheader and falling to 26-40, the Braves went on a run unlike any ever seen in baseball. Boston went 68-19 over the rest of the season, storming from last place to first. The Braves took the lead for the first time on September 8, then extended their advantage to 10 games by the end of the season. Not only was it their first National League pennant, but they were the first team other than the Cubs, Giants, or Pirates to represent the NL in the World Series.


The Braves needed all that momentum facing the Philadelphia Athletics in the World Series. The A's had won the World Series three of the previous four seasons, establishing themselves as the American League's first dynasty. The A's were good, but the Braves were better, or at least had been since July 4. Boston pounded future Hall-of-Famer Chief Bender for a 7-1 win in Game 1.

After the Game 1 blowout, the series got tight. Bill James held the Athletics to just two hits in Game 2, but the Braves needed all nine innings to get on the scoreboard off Eddie Plank, scoring the game's only run with two outs in the ninth. James walked two in the bottom of the ninth, and Philadelphia's Eddie Murphy (most definitely NOT the comedian) hit a grounder up the middle that seemed destined to tie the game, but shortstop Rabbit Maranville got to the ball, stepped on second for the force, then fired to first for the game-ending double play.

They won the first two games in Philadelphia, the Braves came home in great shape. They first won Game 3 in 12 innings, overcoming a two-run deficit in the 10th, to take a commanding series lead. In Game 4, former Cub Johnny Evers hit a go-ahead two-run single in the bottom of the fifth and the score held up, giving Boston the shocking series sweep.

Supposedly, A's manager Connie Mack was so disgusted at his team's performance in the 1914 World Series that he sold all his stars rather than risk giving them raises. While it's a convenient excuse - it was the first time, but certainly wouldn't be the last, that Mack tore apart a championship team - he may have had a point. While nothing has ever been proven definitively, rumors started circulating almost immediately that the A's threw the series. There was never any good overwhelming evidence aside from the A's composite .172 average in the series, but the main reason behind the Braves' turnaround was their great pitching. They did it to the National League the entire second half, so there's no reason they couldn't have done it to the A's, too. Still, though, the Braves' sweep was so unexpected that the whispers remained.

Defining Game
Game 3 was the pivotal game of the series, with the A's desperately needing it to stay alive in the series and the Braves looking to provide the killer blow. The teams were tied at 2 entering extra innings. In the top of the 10th, the Athletics loaded the bases for Home Run Baker, who continued to live up to his clutch reputation with a two-run single. The Braves responded in the bottom of the 10th. Catcher Hank Gowdy led off the inning with a home run to center - his second extra-base hit of the game. The Braves then tied the game on a sacrifice fly. The teams played on to the 12th. After Philadelphia left two runners on base in the top of the inning, Gowdy again led off the inning in style for Boston, hitting a ground-rule double to left (the series was played at Fenway Park, where the Green Monster normally makes it impossible to hit a ground rule double to left, but an overflow crowd forced fans onto the field in front of the wall, and any ball hit into the crowd was automatically a double). After an intentional walk, the Braves tried a sacrifice bunt. A's pitcher Bullet Joe Bush - who had pitched the entire game - fielded the bunt and tried to get the lead runner at third, but he threw the ball away, allowing the winning run to score.

MVP
Any of the Braves' three pitchers could have been MVP, but the vote here goes to Gowdy. He led all series regulars with a .545 average and five extra-base hits, most of them of the clutch variety.

Scores
(Home team shaded; winners in Bold)

Boston	7	1	5 (12)	3
Philadelphia	1	0	4	1

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The List
I'm ranking all the World Series, from worst to best. Here are the ones I've done so far:

83. 1914 - Boston (N) def. Philadelphia (A) 4-0
84. 1951 - New York (A) def. New York (N) 4-2
85. 1939 - New York (A) def. Cincinnati (N) 4-0
86. 1910 - Philadelphia (A) def. Chicago (N) 4-1
87. 1905 - New York (N) def. Philadelphia (A) 4-1
88. 1965 - Los Angeles (N) def. Minnesota (A) 4-3
89. 1961 - New York (A) def. Cincinnati (N) 4-1
Numbers 90-99
Numbers 100-107