The major leagues began the 1960s with 16 clubs — the number they had steadfastly maintained for 60 seasons — but the count would balloon to 24 before the decade’s end.
The Expansion Era had arrived.
The first round of expansion took place in 1961 and 1962. The American League allowed the Washington Senators to relocate to Minnesota in the former year, replacing them with a new version of the Senators and putting a second new club in Los Angeles, the Angels.
The National League welcomed the Houston Colt .45s (eventually renamed the Astros) and the New York Mets the following season.
The byzantine maneuvers that led to creation of these new clubs are the focus of the final chapters of my new book, A Brand New Ballgame: Branch Rickey, Bill Veeck, Walter O’Malley, and the Transformation of Baseball, 1945-1962, which has been published by McFarland & Co.
You’re probably aware that I have been writing here about baseball’s on-field action during that same 18-year span, focusing on three successive seasons each Tuesday. You’ll see the sixth and final installment below, running from 1960 to 1962.
Oh, and what about the other clubs I mentioned in the first paragraph? The second round of expansion in 1969 had its own peculiarities, though (sadly) it’s beyond the scope of my current book.
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Headlines: 1960
Williams climbs to third in homer standings
Ted Williams cleared the left-field fence in Cleveland’s Municipal Stadium on June 17, becoming the fourth player to hit 500 home runs. “My goal now,” the left fielder for the Boston Red Sox announced, “is 512 homers,” which would move him past Mel Ott into third place. He reached that mark on August 10, also in Cleveland, and retired on September 28. Williams’s very last at-bat yielded his 521st homer. “I quit at the right time,” he said. “There’s nothing more that I can do.”
Managers swap jobs in bizarre trade
The Indians and Tigers made a strange trade on August 3, exchanging their managers. Joe Gordon went to Detroit, Jimmie Dykes to Cleveland. It was no surprise that Cleveland general manager Frank Lane, the ultimate trade addict, instigated the transaction. “I felt the change might loosen us,” he said. Both managers posted losing records with their new clubs.
Pirates beat the odds to win World Series
The Pirates won their first National League pennant in 33 years, but they seemed overmatched in the World Series. The New York Yankees easily outhit (91-60), outhomered (10-4), and outscored (55-27) them. Yet Pittsburgh eked out four tight victories to take the title, locking it down with Bill Mazeroski’s ninth-inning homer in Game Seven. The glory of that moment was captured in a classic photograph, with Mazeroski rounding third base, his right arm high in triumph.
Yankees clean house at season’s end
The Yankees had qualified for 11 World Series since 1947 — winning eight — yet Del Webb believed changes were needed. The team’s co-owner forced Manager Casey Stengel and General Manager George Weiss to retire after the World Series. “I’ll never make the mistake of being 70 again,” Stengel said bitterly. The typically emotionless Weiss, who was 66, cried at his farewell press conference.
Headlines: 1961
New clubs fade after promising starts
John Kennedy threw out the first pitch at Washington’s opener on April 10. The field announcer sought a link with the young president’s administration, known as the New Frontier. “Ladies and gentlemen,” he boomed, “here come your New Frontier Senators!” Washington’s expansion club lost that day, but the American League’s other newcomers, the Los Angeles Angels and Minnesota Twins, opened with wins. All three teams, however, would suffer at least 90 losses in 1961.
Phillies suffer losing streak of epic proportions
The Phillies lost on July 29, again the next day, and again and again after that. They would not win until August 20, when a 7-4 victory in Milwaukee snapped a 23-game losing streak. Two hundred fans welcomed the club at the Philadelphia airport that night, showering the players with confetti. “If we ever win 23 out of 24,” said Phillies manager Gene Mauch, “they’ll have to build a bigger airport.”
Maris sets home-run record*
Americans watched eagerly as Yankees right fielder Roger Maris pursued Babe Ruth’s single-year record of 60 home runs. But Ford Frick dampened the excitement. The American League lengthened its season to 162 games in 1961, and the commissioner, who had once been Ruth’s ghostwriter, ruled that any new mark must be set within 154. If not, it would carry an asterisk in the record book. Maris did reach 61 homers, but not until the year’s very last game.
Yanks cruise to world title over Reds
The Yankees entered the World Series as heavy favorites over the Reds, the surprise champions of the National League. New York had posted 16 more wins than Cincinnati in the regular season, and it swept to a five-game postseason triumph. “We were crushed,” said Reds pitcher Jim Brosnan. “We didn’t belong on the same field with the 1961 Yankees.”
Headlines: 1962
Senators open D.C. Stadium in fine style
Washington christened its new ballpark on April 9. “Nearly everything about the District of Columbia Stadium is a thing of beauty,” marveled the New York Times. The expansion Senators, who had been imprisoned in decaying Griffith Stadium the previous year, adapted quickly to their new surroundings. They spanked the Detroit Tigers, 4-1, before a crowd of 44,383, including President Kennedy.
Mets stumble to 120 losses in inaugural season
The Mets were routed 11-4 by the St. Louis Cardinals in their opener on April 11. Losing became a habit for New York’s new club, which suffered 120 defeats and finished 60½ games out of first place. Bill Veeck had always insisted that his St. Louis Browns were the worst team in big-league history, but he ceded that distinction to the Mets. “They achieved total incompetence in a single year,” he admitted.
Giants swipe NL title from faltering Dodgers
Shortstop Maury Wills did his best to propel the Dodgers to the National League pennant. He set a major-league record by stealing 104 bases, sparking Los Angeles to a four-game lead over San Francisco by mid-September. But the Dodgers lost 10 of their final 13 games, ending the season in a first-place tie with the Giants. San Francisco prevailed in a three-game playoff.
Yankees eke out victory in World Series
The Giants generated more runs (21-20), hits (51-44), and homers (5-3) in the World Series, yet the Yankees took the title with a nailbiting 1-0 triumph in Game Seven. San Francisco advanced runners to second and third with two outs in the ninth. Willie McCovey smashed a line drive toward right field, but second baseman Bobby Richardson speared the ball to save the day — and the championship — for New York.