September 17, 1963: Sandy Koufax sets shutout record for southpaws in St. Louis

Sandy Koufax made a habit of holding teams scoreless in 1963. He did it for a record-breaking 11th time on September 17 against the St. Louis Cardinals. No left-handed pitcher had ever thrown that many shutouts in one season. Koufax eclipsed the mark set by New York Giants Hall of Famer Carl Hubbell in 1933.

The Los Angeles Dodgers’ ace carried a no-hitter into the seventh inning. A baseball great, in the final weeks of his Hall of Fame career, broke up the bid. The Dodgers scored the only run they needed on Jim Gilliam’s RBI double in the first inning and won, 4-0, in front of 30,450 fans at Busch Stadium.

“It wasn’t my best game, but it was my biggest,” Koufax said.1 Dodgers manager Walter Alston said, “Sandy has great stuff every time he goes out there. This was his usual game.”2

Koufax raised his won-lost record to 24-5 and lowered his ERA to 1.87. He tossed a four-hitter and did not allow a walk, although he struck out only four batters. The Dodgers (93-59) improved their lead to three games over the surging, second-place Cardinals (91-63).

Reporters asked Alston about the Dodgers’ pennant outlook. “It looks better than yesterday,” the skipper said. “And I hope I can say the same tomorrow night.”3

The Dodgers hoped to avoid a repeat of 1962, when they blew a big lead in September and lost a tiebreaker series–as well as the National League pennant–to the San Francisco Giants. Koufax missed several weeks of that campaign after injuring the index finger of his pitching hand and was ineffective when he returned for the stretch run (8 2/3 innings in four games, 10 earned runs). He finished with a 14-7 record and a 2.54 ERA.

Koufax got off to a strong start in 1963 and kept going. He hurled his second no-hitter on May 11, against the Giants. His ERA dropped to 1.06 after he blanked the Mets, 1-0, on May 19. It was already his third shutout of the season.

The 27-year-old recorded one more shutout in May and two in June. He began July with three straight scoreless outings, giving him nine in 1963, and tied Hubbell’s mark on August 3 at Colt Stadium in Houston, completing a three-hitter in a 2-0 win vs. the Colt .45s. A reporter asked former Dodgers hurler Roger Craig to rate the league’s top three pitchers. Craig, now a Met, responded, “Sandy Koufax, Sandy Koufax, and Sandy Koufax. It used to be that one pitcher had the best fastball and one had the best curve. He has both of them.”4

Curt Simmons started for St. Louis against Koufax. The 34-year-old left-hander was in his 16th season and had been a three-time All-Star with the Philadelphia Phillies. He missed the entire 1959 campaign with shoulder problems and was released by Philadelphia on May 17, 1960. The Cardinals signed him for $30,000.

Simmons led the NL in ERA+ in 1961 (141) and was enjoying another strong season in 1963. He entered this game with a 15-7 record and a 2.50 ERA. Red-hot St. Louis had won 19 of its previous 21 games but lost the opener of this three-game series, 3-1.

LA took an early 1-0 lead against Simmons. Maury Wills singled to lead off the game and stole second base with Gilliam at bat. Wills’ theft was the 232nd of his career, tying him with Pee Wee Reese for the Dodgers’ modern-day record.5 Next, Simmons unfurled a wild pitch and Wills sprinted to third. Gilliam hit a double to left field that brought home the run.

Tommy Davis walked but was forced at second base on Frank Howard’s groundball. Moose Skowron struck out and Ken McMullen grounded out.

Koufax retired the side in order in the bottom of the first and struck out Stan Musial. The Dodgers went down one-two-three in their half of the second inning, as did the Cardinals. Koufax added his second strikeout. Hard-hitting third baseman Ken Boyer went down swinging.

Simmons recorded another quick inning in the third, while Koufax ran into some trouble after striking out Charlie James to start the bottom half of that frame and plunking Tim McCarver. Simmons slapped a pitch up the middle that Koufax fielded but threw wildly to Skowron at first base. With runners now at second and third, Julian Javier hit a ball that Wills fielded at shortstop and threw home to catcher John Roseboro, who tagged out McCarver. Dick Groat’s groundout ended the inning.

“That was our big chance,” Cardinals manager Johnny Keane said. “If McCarver had scored it would have been a new ball game. But he didn’t.” Wills said, “I gambled and won.”6

The game settled into a pitchers’ duel over the next three innings. Simmons gave up just one hit, while Koufax did not allow a baserunner. Simmons was Koufax’s fourth and final strikeout victim, closing out the fifth.

LA threatened in the seventh inning. McMullen singled with one out and moved to third on a double by Willie Davis. Simmons, though, got Roseboro to pop out and Koufax to strike out looking.

The Cardinals got their first hit in the bottom of the seventh when Musial singled to center field. Koufax said, “I couldn’t afford to set up Musial with a curve. I had to keep the ball in the park. So, I stayed with the fastball, away.” Musial, a three-time Most Valuable Player who had announced one month earlier that 1963 would be his final season, told reporters, “I was just trying for a base hit, not slugging with him as I did the first time up. The ball faded and sailed to right field.”7

One batter later, Boyer launched a ball into deep right field. Howard caught the drive in front of the wall. Boyer said later, “When I hit the ball, I thought it had a chance to go out, and that it would at least hit the fence.”8 Bill White also flied out, and Curt Flood hit a groundball that forced out Gary Kolb, running for Musial.

The Dodgers took a 3-0 lead in the eighth inning. Tommy Davis hit a two-out single and Howard ripped a Simmons pitch over the right-field fence. “I thought it was going to hit the protective screen out there, but it kept going up,” Howard said. “I hit a high curveball.”9 It was Howard’s first hit of 1963 in 20 at-bats at Busch Stadium.10 (Afterward, Howard singled out Simmons as a tough lefty opposing pitcher: “Simmons has such good control,” Howard said. “He can hit the eyes on a fly.”11)

Koufax gave up two more hits in the bottom of the eighth. McCarver singled with one out, and after pinch-hitter Mike Shannon flied out, Javier singled to put runners on first and second. Groat lined out to end the threat.

Keane asked Barney Schultz to pitch the ninth. McMullen, the first batter he faced, struck out. Willie Davis, next up, singled and stole second base. The speedy outfielder scored on Roseboro’s double into right field. Koufax struck out, and Keane brought in Ken MacKenzie to face Wills, who grounded a single to left. Roseboro rounded third base and headed for home, where he was tagged out.

Corky Withrow, pinch-hitting for MacKenzie, grounded out to start the St. Lous ninth, and Boyer did the same. Koufax then got a five-minute breather. Ten teenage boys jumped onto the field, and ushers had to round them up before the game could continue.12

After the delay, Bill White singled past the right side of the Dodgers’ infield. That brought up Curt Flood, who lined to Tommy Davis in left for the final out.

The last pitcher to throw more shutouts in a season than Koufax was right-hander Grover Cleveland Alexander, who tossed 16 for the 1916 Philadelphia Phillies.13

About the records and accolades, Koufax said, “I appreciate [them]. But really all I want to do every time I pitch is just to win or if I don’t, to have some other Dodger pitcher win. This is a team thing. I don’t care if I win 10 or 30 games, as long as we get into the World Series.”14

Keane insisted that his team could still overtake the Dodgers. “We never considered this game or any other up to now a ‘must’ one,” he told reporters. Musial sounded less optimistic. He said, “We just have to win every game from now on.”15

The Cardinals, though, lost the finale against the Dodgers, 6-5, and five of their next seven games to finish 93-69. LA won the pennant with a mark of 99-63.

Koufax started twice more in 1963 after blanking St. Louis but did not throw another shutout. He ended the season with a record of 25-5 and topped the National League in several categories, including strikeouts (306) and ERA (1.88).

The Dodgers swept the Yankees in the fall classic. Koufax won both of his starts and gave up just three runs in 18 innings while striking out 23. Writers voted him the World Series Most Valuable Player. He also earned NL MVP and Cy Young Award honors.

SOURCES

In addition to the sources cited in the Notes, the author consulted Baseball-Reference.com and Retrosheet.org.

https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SLN/SLN196309170.shtml

https://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1963/B09170SLN1963.htm

Photo credit: Sandy Koufax, Trading Card Database.

NOTES

1 Neal Russo, “Koufax’s ‘Biggest’ Win Puts Dodgers in Command,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, September 18, 1963: 34.

2 Don Johnson, “Magic No. Seven; Richert on Call,” Pasadena Independent, September 18, 1963: 18.

3 George Lederer, “Sandy Sets Records During KO Punch,” Long Beach (California) Press-Telegram, September 18, 1963: 43.

4 Jerry Wynn, “Man to Man,” Long Beach Press-Telegram, August 4, 1963: 27.

5 “Groat Yields Batting Lead to Clemente,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, September 18, 1963: 34.

6 “Still Can Win, Claims Keane,” Long Beach Independent, September 18, 1963: 43.

7 “Groat Yields Batting Lead to Clemente.”

8 “Groat Yields Batting Lead to Clemente.”

9 Johnson, “Magic No. Seven; Richert on Call.”

10 “Things Look Pretty Good Now, Says Alston,” Los Angeles Times, September 18, 1963: 35.

11 Russo, “Koufax’s ‘Biggest’ Win Puts Dodgers in Command.”

12 Frank Finch, “Win Hikes L.A. Lead to Three,” Los Angeles Times, September 18, 1963: 35.

13 Ed Wilks, “Sandy Orbited When He Learned to Throw Missiles,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, September 18, 1963: 34.

14 Johnson, “Magic No. Seven; Richert on Call.”

15 “Still Can Win, Claims Keane.”