October 9, 1961: The Yankees' M&M Boys

Roger Maris (left) and Mickey Mantle

October 9, 1961: Led by a pair of 5-run innings at Crosley Field in Cincinnati, the New York Yankees win the World Series, beating the Cincinnati Reds in Game 5, 13-5. Johnny Blanchard, a reserve player who will collect 10 hits in 29 at-bats in 5 Fall Classics, hits 2 home runs and bats .400, en route to the Bronx Bombers' 19th World Championship.

Mickey Mantle barely played in this Series, but Roger Maris hit an unofficial 62nd home run of the season, while Edward "Whitey" Ford broke the record for most consecutive scoreless innings pitched in the World Series, running his total to 30. The previous record? It was 29 2/3rds, set by a Boston Red Sox lefthander named… Babe Ruth.

Whitey would raise the record to 33 in 1962. Mariano Rivera would slightly break this record, pitching 33 1/3rd consecutive scoreless innings in postseason play, but not all of it in World Series play.

The 1961 Yankees were a bit streaky. They lost their season opener, then won 5 straight games. They followed this by losing 3 straight. At this point, April 26, Ralph Houk, a rookie manager, having been handed the job after the firing of Casey Stengel, then made a switch, putting Maris 3rd in the batting order and Mantle 4th. This gave Maris the protection he needed to be a better hitter, and launched the Yankees on an 8-1 run.

Then came another mediocre stretch, 3-9. But they straightened it out: From June 4 to 15, the Yankees went 13-2; from June 20 to 26, 6-1; from June 30 to July 27, 20-6; from August 2 to 11, 11-1; and from August 16 to 27, 9-3.

The Yankees would go on to hit 240 home runs, a major league record that stood until 1996, and a team record that stood until 2009. Mantle and Maris both seemed like they could break Babe Ruth's single-season record of 60, set in 1927. Mantle got sick near the end of the season, and finished with a career-high 54. Maris hit his 59th of the season on September 20 in Baltimore, which turned out to be the Pennant-clincher; his 60th on September 26 at home; and his 61st on the last day of the regular season, October 1, off Tracy Stallard of the Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium, for the only run in a 1-0 Yankee win.

Bill "Moose" Skowron led the team's righthanded hitters with 28 home runs. The 1960 season was the 1st in which usual catcher Lawrence "Yogi" Berra and left fielder Elston Howard had switched positions. In 1961, the Yankees got 22 homers from Berra, 21 from Howard, and another 21 from Blanchard, who was also a catcher, and played the outfield, including filling in at right field after Maris moved over to center at the end, in place of the ailing Mantle. So the Yankees got 64 home runs from their catchers.

The defense was exceptional, with an infield of Skowron at 1st base, Bobby Richardson at 2nd, Tony Kubek at shortstop, and Clete Boyer at 3rd base. Before Brooks Robinson of the Baltimore Orioles in 1970 and Graig Nettles of the Yankees in 1978, Boyer would be the 1st man to put on a spectacular fielding display at 3rd base in a World Series.

Berra had been a great catcher, and Howard was now one as well. Berra was all right in left field, Mantle was really good in center (if not quite the equal of his predecessor Joe DiMaggio or his National League contemporary Willie Mays), and Maris might have been the best defensive right fielder the Yankees ever had.

The pitching was strong. Under Stengel, Ford, as the team's ace, would be moved up or back in the rotation, to bypass lesser teams and face tougher ones. Houk let him pitch every 4th day, no matter what, and Whitey responded not just with his 1st 20-win season, but with a 25-4 season that earned him the Cy Young Award -- from its establishment in 1956 until 1966, given to the top pitcher in both Leagues.

Ralph Terry went 16-3, and would go 23-12 the next year, unfairly losing the Cy Young to Don Drysdale of the Los Angeles Dodgers. Bill Stafford went 14-9, Rollie Sheldon 11-5, and Luis Arroyo 15-5 with 29 saves, then a major league record. Bob Turley, the 1958 Cy Young winner, battled injury much of the year, and was only 3-5.

Still, this would not be a typical Yankee season, where they ran away with the Pennant, and the American League once again became "The New York Yankees and the Seven Dwarfs" -- especially since expansion meant the birth of the Los Angeles Angels and the "new" Washington Senators, who replaced the old team, which had moved to become the Minnesota Twins.

Because the Detroit Tigers hung tough, with future Hall-of-Famers Al Kaline and Jim Bunning, and All-Stars Rocky Colavito, Norm Cash, Bill Freehan, Bill Bruton, Dick McAuliffe, Don Mossi, and a pitcher whose wins over the Yankees the last few years had gotten him nicknamed "The Yankee Killer," Frank Lary.

On Friday, September 1, with the Yankees leading them by a game and a half, the Tigers came into The Bronx for a showdown. The game was won by 3 straight singles with 2 outs in the bottom of the 9th, by Howard, Berra and Skowron: 1-0 Yankees. The Yankees won the Saturday game, 7-2, thanks to 2 Maris homers, 1 off Lary.

The Sunday game was a back-and-forth affair that the Yankees led 4-1 after 5 innings, then trailed 5-4 going to the bottom of the 9th. But Mantle led off the inning with a home run, and, following a Berra single, an Arroyo sacrifice bunt, an intentional walk of Skowron, and a flyout by Boyer, Howard won it with a home run, 8-5.

The Yankees now led by 4 1/2 games, and it was the start of a 13-game winning streak that would put them 11 1/2 ahead. A last-gasp 4-game series at Tiger Stadium wasn't enough, as the Tigers could only manage a split. When it was over, the Yankees had 109 wins, the Tigers 101. No AL team since has won as many games and failed to make the Playoffs.

Mantle only played 1 game in the World Series, but it wasn't necessary. The Reds won Game 2, but the Yankees won the rest. The Yankees did need to come from behind in Game 3, when Maris homered in the 9th inning.

There was a funny moment at Crosley Field, before Game 3. Cincinnati is on the Ohio River, which separates Ohio and Kentucky. In 1970, Crosley's replacement, Riverfront Stadium, would be built on the river. Previously, a building with advertising on it faced left field at Crosley, with ads for Hudepohl beer and a laundry service, and it was known as "the Laundry Roof."

But in 1961, it was torn down, to make way for the Mill Creek Expressway, part of Interstate 75. In 1967, Cincinnati native Jimmy Wynn, playing for the Houston Astros, would hit a home run onto that freeway, over the Crosley scoreboard. But in 1961, there was just a sand-paved path where the road would be built. The construction had been halted for the Series, and Yogi said, "It must be Kentucky's turn to use the cement mixer."

Mantle called the 1961 Yankees, "the best team I ever saw." The 1927, 1936 and 1998 Yankees have also been listed among the greatest teams ever. The 1961 Yankees were the first such team in the television era, aided by the Maris & Mantle "M&M Boys" home run record chase, and thus have stuck in fans' minds ever since.

For the Reds, this was their only Pennant between 1940 and 1970. From this team, their team Hall of Fame has inducted outfielders Frank Robinson, Wally Post, Gus Bell, Vada Pinson and Jerry Lynch; 1st baseman Gordy Coleman, shortstop Leo Cárdenas; pitchers Jim Maloney, Joey Jay, Jim O'Toole and Bob Purkey; and manager Fred Hutchinson.

The last active member of the 1961 Yankees was Al Downing, who was also the Yankees' 1st black pitcher. In 1963, he became the 1st black pitcher to lead the American League in strikeouts. He remained with the Yankees until 1969. In 1974, pitching for the Los Angeles Dodgers, he gave up Hank Aaron's 715th home run, breaking the other major record of Babe Ruth. Downing pitched his last game on July 13, 1977, for the Dodgers.

UPDATE: Among the Yankees' many traditions is Monument Park at Yankee Stadium. From the 1960-64 team that won 5 straight American League Pennants, including 2 World Series, they have honored center fielder Mickey Mantle with a Monument; and given Plaques to left fielder Lawrence "Yogi" Berra, right fielder Roger Maris, pitchers Edward "Whitey" Ford and Mel Stottlemyre (who arrived in 1964), catcher Elston Howard (who had switched positions with Yogi in 1960), public address announcer Bob Sheppard, and broadcasters Mel Allen and Phil Rizzuto.

The Yankees have retired the numbers 7 for Mantle, 8 for Berra, 9 for Maris, 16 for Ford and 32 for Howard. Casey Stengel managed the 1960 Pennant, and is in the Hall of Fame, with a Plaque, and his Number 37 retired. Ralph Houk managed the 1961, '62 and '63 Pennants, but is not honored with a Plaque or the retirement of his Number 35. Berra managed the '64 Pennant. Team owners Dan Topping and Del Webb are not honored with Plaques, and also not in the Hall of Fame.

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October 9, 1961 was a Monday. The NHL season started 2 days later; the NBA season, 10 days. Football was in midweek: Monday Night Football would not arrive for another 9 years. But there were 2 games played that night in the Canadian Football League. The Ottawa Rough Riders beat the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, 14-10 at Civic Stadium (later Ivor Wynne Stadium) in Hamilton, Ontario. And the Saskatchewan Roughriders (yes, 2 teams with nearly-identical names) beat the BC Lions, 17-7 at Taylor Field in Regina, Saskatchewan.

September 30, 1973: The Last Game at the Pre-Renovation Yankee Stadium

September 30, 1973: The last game is played at Yankee Stadium before its renovation. The Yankees lose 8-5 to the Detroit Tigers.

The renovation was necessary, not because the Mets were talking about how much better Shea Stadium was, but because there were actual structural issues. The institution of Bat Day led to kids sitting in the upper deck, banging their bats on the floor, weakening the stadium structure.

So Mayor John Lindsay negotiated a deal in which the Department of Parks of the City of New York, which already owned Shea, bought both Yankee Stadium and the land on which it sat -- previously owned by separate entities -- and would renovate it, to reopen in time for the 1976 season. The Yankees would play the 1974 and '75 seasons at Shea.

This also forced the football Giants out of Yankee Stadium after 2 games, a 34-14 win over the Houston Oilers on September 16, and a 23-23 tie with the Philadelphia Eagles on September 23. The rest of their home schedule for 1973, and all of it for 1974, would be played 70 miles to the northeast, at the Yale Bowl in New Haven, Connecticut.

Lindsay, angry that the Giants had already negotiated a deal to build a stadium in the Meadowlands of New Jersey, in time for the 1976 season, denied them the use of Shea, so they had to look elsewhere. So they made the deal to play '73 and '74 at the Yale Bowl. Lindsay's successor, Abe Beame, had no such grudge, and allowed the Giants to play the 1975 season at Shea -- meaning that it was hosting both of New York's MLB teams and both of its NFL teams at the same time.

(In other words: In 1975, the New York Tri-State Area had 8 teams playing in 3 buildings: Shea Stadium had the Yankees, the Mets, the Giants and the Jets; Madison Square Garden had the Knicks and the Rangers; and the Nassau Coliseum had the Nets and the Islanders. In 2022, with the Devils making it 9 teams, they are playing in 7 separate buildings.)

In order to avoid the kind of damage that fans had done to other ballparks in their recent closures, the Monuments were removed from center field, and the Plaques from the wall, before the game.

Duane "Duke" Sims, catching in the last game at the pre-renovation Stadium instead of Thurman Munson, hits the last home run, off Fred Holdsworth in the 7th inning. But Lindy McDaniel, in relief of Fritz Peterson, implodes in the 8th inning, allowing 6 runs, making a winning pitcher of John Hiller.

Sims' 1974 Topps card. Topps tended to take

players' card pictures in New York,

going back to the Polo Grounds.

The last play is 1st baseman Mike Hegan hitting a fly ball to, appropriately, center field, once patrolled by Joe DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle. This one is caught by the Tigers' Mickey Stanley.

Attendance: 32,238, in a Stadium whose capacity was then listed as 65,010.

For all the greats who had played in Yankee Stadium, the only future Hall-of-Famer who played in this game was the Tigers' Al Kaline. He went 1-for-2, then, 39 years old, was replaced in the field.

After the game, Yankee manager Ralph Houk resigned, tired of the meddling of the team's 1st-year owner, George Steinbrenner. He had managed the Yankees in the 1961, '62 and '63 seasons, winning the Pennant each time. Then he became the general manager for 1964, and after 1 more Pennant, everybody seemed to get old and/or hurt at once, and there was hardly anybody to replace them with, because the farm system had dried up.

In 1966, he resigned as GM, and his last act as such was to appoint himself back as field manager. The 1st time around, he had been "a players' manager." Now, he was seen as too much of "a company man," and the younger players didn't like him. He got the Yankees to a 2nd-place finish in 1970, but 15 games behind the Baltimore Orioles. They were in the American League Eastern Division race late in both 1972 and '73, but they faded both times.

The '73 finale was his 1,757th and last game as Yankee manager, giving him a record of 944-806. He managed the Tigers from 1974 to 1978, and the Boston Red Sox from 1981 to 1984, but never came close to another postseason berth. Overall, he was 1,619-1,531 for his career.

George found finding a replacement for Houk difficult, as he tried to hire Dick Williams, who, after the subsequent World Series despite winning it, had quit as manager of the Oakland Athletics. A's owner Charlie Finley contended that Williams couldn't manage anywhere else as long as his contract with him was running. So George hired former Pittsburgh Pirate manager Bill Virdon. Houk was signed to manage the Tigers.

The day after the last game, the renovation began. Claire Ruth, the Babe's widow, was given home plate. Eleanor Gehrig, Lou's widow, was given the 1st base that was used in the last game.

The 1923-73 version of Yankee Stadium saw the home team win 27 American League Pennants and 20 World Series in 51 seasons. (The 1st 2 Yankee Pennants, 1921 and '22, came at the Polo Grounds.) It also hosted 3 NFL Championship Games in the pre-Super Bowl era: 1956, when the Giants beat the Chicago Bears; 1958, when the Giants lost to the Baltimore Colts in an overtime classic that has been called "The Greatest Game Ever Played"; and 1962, when the Giants lost to the Green Bay Packers.

It also hosted the Army-Navy Game in 1930 and '31; and 22 Army-Notre Dame games, including 1928, when Knute Rockne told his team to "Win one for the Gipper," and they did; and 1946, when both teams came in undefeated, and left that way, a "Game of the Century" that didn't live up to the hype, ending 0-0. And it hosted a long run of boxing champions, from Jack Dempsey to Floyd Patterson, including Joe Louis' 1938 knockout of Max Schmeling.

Remaining with the team until 1980, shortstop Fred Stanley was the last Yankee who had played a home game at the pre-renovation Stadium, although center fielder Bobby Murcer would be traded away and reacquired, playing his last game on June 11, 1983, nearly 10 years later.

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September 30, 1973 was a Sunday. Other Major League Baseball games played on this day:

* The New York Mets split a doubleheader with the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. The Cubs won the opener 1-0, with Rick Reuschel and Bob Locker combining for an 8-hit shutout. In the nightcap, Jerry Koosman was backed by 3 hits from Rusty Staub, 2 each by Wayne Garrett and Felix Millan, and a home run by Cleon Jones, as the Mets won 9-2.

The regular season should have been over, but the National League Eastern Division race was a wild one that no one seemed to want to win. The Mets ended the day 1 game ahead of the St. Louis Cardinals, a game and a half ahead of the Pittsburgh Pirates, 3 ahead of the Montreal Expos, and 4 ahead of the Cubs -- who finished closer to the Mets this time than they had in their in famous 1969 "September Swoon."

But because of rainouts, the race still wasn't decided. The Cards had completed their schedule, but the Mets had 2 games left to play, the Pirates 1. It was still possible for any of the 3 to win the Division.

* Because the Cardinals had beaten the Philadelphia Phillies, 3-1 at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis.

* And the Pirates had beaten the Expos, 10-2 at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh. The next day, the Pirates would play a rainout makeup against the San Diego Padres at home, while the Mets would stay at Wrigley and play another doubleheader with the Cubs.

The Mets won the opener, 6-4, and clinched the Division. Until the 1986 Pennant, this would remain their only clincher on the road. (The 1969 and 1986 Division titles, the 1969 and 1973 Pennants, and the 1969 World Series win would all occur at Shea.) They beat the Cubs, and barely beat the rain, which canceled the nightcap, which was now unnecessary. It was made more so when the Pirates lost 4-3 to the Padres.

* Elsewhere on September 30, the Houston Astros beat the Atlanta Braves, 5-3 at Atlanta Stadium. (It was renamed Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium in 1975.) This was the 3,739th and last regular-season game managed by Leo Durocher, who was soon fired. He first managed with the 1939 Brooklyn Dodgers, while he was still an active player.

Hank Aaron got 3 hits, but none of them was a home run, so he finished the season with 713 career home runs. It would be a long off-season before he got the chance to break the career record then held by Babe Ruth. He hit Number 714 on April 4, 1974 in Cincinnati, and then Number 715 on April 8 at home to Los Angeles.

* The Boston Red Sox beat the Milwaukee Brewers, 3-2 at Fenway Park in Boston.

* The San Francisco Giants beat the Cincinnati Reds, 4-3 at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati.

* The California Angels beat the Minnesota Twins, 3-0 at Anaheim Stadium (now Angel Stadium). Frank Tanana pitched a 2-hit shutout, outdueling Bert Blyleven.

* The Texas Rangers beat the Kansas City Royals, 3-0 at Arlington Stadium in the Dallas suburb of Arlington, Texas. Pete Broberg allowed 7 hits, but kept the shutout.

* And the Chicago White Sox beat the Oakland Athletics, 1-0 at the Oakland Coliseum. The ChiSox won it in the top of the 10th, on a bases-loaded walk drawn by shortstop Russell "Bucky" Dent, who would later write his name in Yankee history. Speaking of which: Reggie Jackson did not play for the A's, but Catfish Hunter started, and did not get the decision. The A's would go on to beat the Mets in the World Series.

And there were NFL games played on the day:

* The New York Giants lost to the Cleveland Browns, 13-10 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium.

* The New York Jets lost to the Buffalo Bills, 9-7. It was the Bills' 1st game at their new stadium, south of the city, in suburban Orchard Park, New York. Originally known as Rich Stadium, for the Rich family of meat-product producers, O.J. Simpson and his teammates beat the Jets, 9-7.

The stadium was renamed Ralph Wilson Stadium for the team's founding owner in 1998, and, in 2015, was renamed New Era Field, as naming rights were bought by the New Era sports cap company. But New Era asked to be let out of the agreement in 2020. It was renamed Highmark Stadium. In 2026, it was torn down, and replaced by a new facility, also named Highmark Stadium.

* The Washington Redskins beat the Philadelphia Eagles, 28-7 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia.

* The Baltimore Colts beat the New Orleans Saints, 13-10 at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore.

* The Miami Dolphins beat the New England Patriots, 44-23 at the Orange Bowl in Miami.

* The Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Houston Oilers, 36-7 at the Astrodome in Houston.

* The Dallas Cowboys beat the football version of the St. Louis Cardinals, 45-10 at Texas Stadium in the Dallas suburb of Irving, Texas.

* The Minnesota Vikings beat the Green Bay Packers, 11-3 at Metropolitan Stadium in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington, Minnesota.

* The Kansas City Chiefs beat the Oakland Raiders, 16-3 at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City.

* The Chicago Bears beat the Denver Broncos, 33-14 at Mile High Stadium in Denver.

* The Cincinnati Bengals beat the San Diego Chargers, 20-13 at San Diego Stadium.

* The Los Angeles Rams beat the San Francisco 49ers, 40-20 at Candlestick Park in San Francisco.

* The next day, on Monday Night Football, the Detroit Lions beat the Atlanta Falcons, 31-6 at Tiger Stadium in Detroit.