Yanks' Offense v. Giants' Pitching
The 1936 World Series Pitted Great Hitting Against Stellar Hurling
The Yankees' hitters, led by Gehrig, DiMaggio, Dickey and Lazzeri, were matched against Carl Hubbell and a great Giants' pitching staff.
The Yankees were favored to beat the Giants in the 1936 World Series by 11-20, primarily because of their offense. In those days, analyzing a team’s hitting skills was simple. “You take the weekly averages, duly note the hitting percentages of each, jot down the homers and other extra base drives along with the runs batted in total, subtract the low from the high, and there you have the answer. But when the teams come from rival circuits, and the figures therefore become merely relative, …it easily becomes the most perplexing (problem) the game has to offer.”
Great Hitting or Weak Pitching?
The American League champion Yankees set a major league home run record by blasting 182 home runs, but was it because of great hitting or weak pitching? Opinions were evenly divided, with about half of the baseball experts contending that the National League pitching was superior to that of the junior circuit's and the other half claiming that there was no difference in the quality of pitching between the leagues. Sounds a little familiar, doesn’t it?
Five Players With At Least 100 RBIs
The Yankees' hitting statistics were not only vastly superior to those of the Giants – they were much better than those of their closest league rivals. Five Yankees – Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, Tony Lazzeri, Bill Dickey and George Selkirk – drove in over 100 runs. Only six National Leaguers managed that feat, and only one, Mel Ott, was a Giant. Seven Yankees hit 10 or more home runs, led by Lou Gehrig’s 49 and Joe DiMaggio’s 29. The distribution of power would put a great strain on the Giants’ pitchers. To make things even worse, pitching ace Red Ruffing hit .291 with 5 home runs, 5 doubles, and a .449 slugging average.
One of the Great Offenses
Lou Gehrig was considered the game’s best hitter, and Joe DiMaggio, “the phenomenal freshman, has also established himself as an extremely dangerous and hard clouter, capable of stroking a long ball to right field as well as banging one to left.” WithGeorge Selkirk, Tony Lazzeri, Jake Powell, Red Rolfe, Frankie Crosetti, and Bill Dickey, none of whom batted lower than .287, the 1936 Yankees were one of the great offense teams ever.
Hubbell Respected Bill Dickey
Carl Hubbell, who was considered the best pitcher in the game, even better than Dizzy Dean, praised and feared Bill Dickey more than any other hitter in the game. Lefty Hubbell, who relied on a screwball, said that the left handed hitting Yankees’ catcher was more dangerous than any of the five hitters he had struck out in the 1934 all-star game. “Getting those fellows was really much easier than it looked. All were swinging from their heels. But then Dickey came along. He did not swing from behind his ear. He just met the pitch and with his powerful wrists, sent a perfect hit winging to left field. He hit as good a ball as ever I pitched to any batter.”
It Takes a Lot of Singles and Doubles to Equal a Three Run Home Run
The Giants hit only 97 home runs, 33 or about 1/3 of them by Mel Ott, but after Ott, there was a big drop off. Hank Leiber drove in 67 runs while catcher Gus Mancuso and outfield Jo-Jo Moore each contributed 63. The Giants were a team of line drive singles and doubles hitters, and it was pointed out that it takes a lot of those to match a three run home run.
The Yankees in Six
The Yankees hit .300. The Giants hit .281. The Yankees scored 1,065 runs. The Giants scored 742 runs. The Yankees slugged .483. The Giants slugged .395. The Yankees had a 4.17 ERA. The Giants had a 3.46 ERA. The Yankees beat the Giants in six games, scoring 43 runs to the Giants 23. The Yankees team ERA was 3.50. The Giants was 6.79.
References:
Drebinger, John. “Yankees' Great Attack Will Put Heavy Strain on Giant Pitchers; American League Champions Bring Far Superior Offense Into the Series, With High-Grade Hitters Throughout Line-Up – Ott Is Terrymen's Only Consistent Class A Run-Driver.” New York Times. 28 September 1936, p. 23.
