The Triple Steal
How the 1949 Yankees won without DiMaggio
The Triple Steal
I’ve been trying to consume as much 1949 media as possible as I’ve worked my way slowly through my 1949 replay.
I came across this article a few days ago:
This is only the first part of the article, of course. I was curious to see if I could find which game the Yankees pulled off that triple steal in.
And I found it.
The real interesting thing is the nonchalant way the media seems to have treated it. This is all the New York Daily News had to say about the play:
And here’s what The New York Times had to say in its abbreviated coverage:
Not even the usually reliable Washington Evening Star had much description of that play:
This is one of the frustrating things about doing this research. That triple steal really must have been a sight to behold. Though the newspapers don’t mention it, it came with two men out in the bottom of the 6th, and came right after Dick Kryhoski had forced Henrich at the plate with a little tapper back to the pitcher. It came with the pitcher, Vic Raschi, up to bat.
I don’t know about you guys, but there’s really no way in the world I would call for a triple steal with the 1949 Yankees. In fact, I can’t see myself calling for a triple steal with any 1949 team. There simply weren’t many stolen bases that season.
To put this in context, Bobby Brown, the man who stole home on the play, wound up with 4 stolen bases and 3 times caught stealing for the entire 1949 season. He wasn’t exactly Rickey Henderson.
Anyway, that St. Louis Globe Democrat article goes on to explain that Casey Stengel’s success without DiMaggio likely came because of aggressive plays like this one:
Note also the interesting comments on pulling pitcher George Munger for a pinch hitter in the 7th. These days the press would criticize you if you didn’t pull him.