The first World Series was played in 1903. At the time there were eight teams in each league, which meant that 64 possible pairings existed. That arithmetic didn’t change for the next 58 years. Exactly half of the potential matchups — 32 — occurred at least once during those years. A few happened more than once. One happened seven times. The New York Yankees and the Brooklyn Dodgers — franchises separated by nothing more than a long subway ride — faced off in seven World Series. When expansion began in 1961 the number of possibilities began to grow — and grow. Today there are 225 possible combinations. Nevertheless, the Yankees played the Dodgers four more times. Make that five, if you count the one that begins Friday. Much more than subway tracks separate the teams now. The Dodgers have been in Los Angeles since 1958 and the teams are three time zones apart. Even so, they seem to have a way of finding one another in October and when they do, they usually put on a good show. Hall of Famers like Mickey Mantle, Jackie Robinson, Sandy Koufax and Reggie Jackson have stood out. Fringe players like Don Larsen and Al Gionfriddo have been immortalized. There have been numerous heroes and even some goats. Let’s look back. 1941 The Yankees won two of the first three games, but the Dodgers appeared to be on the verge of pulling even as they led Game Four, 4-3, with two out and none on in the ninth inning. Relief pitcher Hugh Casey pumped a third strike past Tommy Heinrich, and it was time to celebrate. Well, no it wasn’t. The third strike eluded catcher Mickey Owen and rolled to the backstop. Heinrich reached first base and the Yankees went on to score four runs and win the game. They won again the next day to nail down the Series. Owen accepted the blame for the miscue, but he might have been taking one for the team. Spitballs were illegal in 1941, but many pitchers used them and Casey was suspected of being one of them. It has been theorized that Casey threw one at that moment and crossed up his catcher. If that were the case, Owen would not dare admit it. 1947 The Yankees lost only 57 games that year, but somehow Bill Blevens dropped 13 of them all by himself. Nevertheless, he was New York’s fourth starter and assigned to pitch World Series Game Four in Ebbetts Field. He walked eight batters, but with two out in the ninth he still hadn’t given up a hit. Only pinch hitter Cookie Lavagetto stood between him and the first no-hitter in World Series history. But the situation was tense. The Yankees’ lead was 2-1, but the Dodgers had two runners on base. Lavagetto laced the second pitch into right field and the no-hit bid and the ball game itself evaporated in an instant. The winning run was scored by pinch runner Gionfriddo, who two days later would became much more famous. In Game Six the Dodgers took a 6-5 lead into the bottom of the sixth and Gionfriddo was sent into center field as a defensive replacement. The Yankees promptly put two runners on base and, with two out, Joe DiMaggio sent a screaming drive straight towards the part of Yankee Stadium known as “Death Valley” because of the depth of the fence. Gionfriddo raced back and was barely a step in front of the “415” sign when he made a remarkable back-handed stab on the dead run. In the radio booth Red Barber gasped, “Oh Doctor!” The Dodgers held on to win that game, but the Yankees wrapped up the World Series the following day. 1952 First baseman Gil Hodges drove in 102 runs in 153 games for Brooklyn that season, but suffered through a horrible 0-for-21 World Series — likely the most frustrating Series ever for a top-notch ballplayer. Hodges moaned about it until the day he died. 1953 There were no leaded bats or leaded weights in the on-deck circle in 1953. Typically, a batter would twirl three bats to flex his muscles before coming to the plate. Billy Martin did in the bottom of the ninth inning of Game Six. The Yankees had a 3-2 lead in games, but this contest was tied. The potential winning run (Hank Bauer) stood on second base. Martin hesitated before discarding the unwanted bats. As he held onto all three, he asked the bat boy to “pick out one with a base hit in it.” The youth pointed to the one in the middle. He was right. Martin ended the Series with a base hit up the middle that scored Bauer. It was his 13th hit of the Series. 1955 Brooklyn’s Robinson stole home in the eighth inning of Game One, but the Dodgers still came up a run short. They lost again the next day before winning four of the next five to become the first team to rally from an 0-2 deficit and win a World Series. 1956 Larsen had a 14-year career but was never much more than a journeyman pitcher, except for the afternoon of Oct. 8, 1956. He not only pitched the first no hitter in World Series history but made it a perfect game. It was the first perfecto in any major league game in 34 years. 1963 The first game was expected to be a dream matchup of left-handed pitchers featuring 24-game winner Whitey Ford of the Yankees and 25-game winner Koufax. Some dream. Koufax made it no contest, striking out 15. In Game Four to out-pitch Ford again as the Dodgers became the first team to win four straight against the Yankees. 1977 The Yankees won a six-game series and Jackson acquired the monicker of “Mr. October” when he homered three times in the final game. According to a modern television network he homered on three straight pitches, but that network sometimes gets its facts wrong. He connected on three consecutive strikes but it wasn’t three straight pitches. Previously, only Babe Ruth had hit three homers in a single Series game. “Babe Ruth was a great hitter,” Jackson said afterwards. “I was lucky.” That was a rare moment of humility for Jackson. 1978 Dodgers rookie pitcher Bob Welch struck out Jackson in the ninth inning to preserve a Dodger victory in Game Two, but Jackson managed to homer off Welch as part of New York’s 7-2 triumph in the Game Six win that nailed down the Series. 1981 Ron Cey, Pedro Guerrero and Steve Yeager had to share the MVP award after the Dodgers topped the Yankees for only the third time in 11 tries. 2024 Now, 43 years later, Chapter 12 between baseball’s bluebloods is ready to begin. These teams had the best regular-season records in their respective leagues and managed to survive the elimination tournament. The game’s three best players will be participating. It has a chance to be a classic. I, for one, am rubbing my hands together in anticipation. A FEW STATISTICS: The Yankees’ Giancarlo Stanton has 11 RBIs in nine postseason games. He played 21 games in September and drove in only 12 runs … The Dodgers’ nine-hole hitters are collectively batting .300 with three homers and seven RBIs in the postseason … Yankees pitchers have allowed 12 home runs. Seven have come in the seventh inning or later … Tanner Bibee of the Guardians made four postseason starts. He hit three batters — all in the first inning … The Dodgers have hit .311 with runners in scoring position. The Yankees’ figure is .181 … Aaron Judge of the Yankees has driven in six postseason runs. Four have come in the seventh inning or later … Struggling Yankees include Austin Wells (.091) and Jazz Chisholm (.147). Wells has even grounded into four double plays … Luke Weaver of the Yankees has saved four games in five opportunities. That’s the most for any postseason relief pitcher … The Mets’ Peter Alonso goes onto the free agent market after a 10-for-35 postseason that includes four homers and 10 RBIs … In Game Five against the Dodgers, the Mets sent 44 batters to the plate. None of them struck out. Former Hall of Fame voter Jay Dunn has written baseball for The Trentonian for 56 years. Contact him at [email protected]