Time for another edition of Trivia(l) Tidbit Tuesday. I hope you are enjoying this weekly presentation of baseball occurrences that for some reason caught The Roundtable’s eye. (I’m particularly fond of unexpected performances or statistical coincidences.) These won’t necessarily be momentous occurrences, just events, statistics or coincidences that grabbed my attention. At times (for longer posts), I will redirect you to the full Baseball Roundtable blog.
With the post-season in full swing, I was drawn to a Words Series “coincidence” from Game Seven of the 1964 Fall Classic. The opponents were two storied franchises – the Yankees and Cardinals. Scrolling through the starting lineups, I found a pair of brothers (one on each team): Clete Boyer (batting eighth for the Yankees) and Ken Boyer (at cleanup for the Cardinals). Now, for what drew The Roundtable’s attention.
A First and Still Only – One of the Roundtable Unicorns
Clete Boyer (Yankees) and Ken Boyer (Cardinals) both homered in Game Seven of the 1964 World Series. They are the first, and still only, brothers to go deep in the same World Series game.
The above distinction is a pretty good starter, but there is more:
- Clete and Ken both started at third base for their respective teams;
- They each homered in their final at bat of the game (Ken in the bottom of the seventh inning, Clete in the top of the ninth);
- Both were solo home runs;
- For both, it was their second career World Series home run; and, finally,
- For both, the home run would mark their final career World Series plate appearance – it was a last chance coincidence.
A little more on the Boyers; Ken was the older of the pair (33-years-old to Clete’s 27.). (Note: A third, older, brother, Cloyd Boyer also made it to the major-leagues, logging five MLB seasons (1949-52, 1955 … Cardinals, Athletics) as a pitcher.
Ken was a the most talented of the Boyers. He was All Star in seven seasons and five-time Gold Glover in his 15-season MLB career (1955-69 … Cardinals, Mets, White Sox, Dodgers). He was the 1964 NL Most Valuable Player, when he hit .295, with 24 home runs and a league-topping 119 RBI. He hit 20 or more home runs in eight seasons (a high of 32 in 1960). His final stat line was a .287-282-1,141 (2,034 games). His played his only World Series in 1964 (.222-2-6 in seven games).
Clete played in 16 MLB seasons (1955-57, 1959-71 … Athletics, Yankees, Braves). His final stat line was .242-162-654 (1,725 games) He won a Gold Glove with the Braves in 1969. Clete played in five World Series (1960-64, all for the Yankees. In WS play, he went .233-2-11 in 27 games.
Cloyd, by the way, went 20-23, 4.73 in is five MLB campaigns.
Now, of course, with The Roundtable “one thing always seems to lead to another.” So, here are the other sets of brothers to both homer in a World Series games (just not in the same game or even same Series.).
Bob and Emil “Irish” Meusel
Bob Meusel, primarily an outfielder, played in six World Series (1921-23, 1926-28) all for the Yankees. He hit .225-1-17 in 34 WS games, his lone home run coming in Game Three of the 1928 World Series. Bob played in 11 MLB seasons (1920-30 … 1920-29 for the Yankees, 1930 for the Reds). He hit .309-156-1,071 in 1,407 games. In 1925, he hit .290 with a league-leading 33 home runs and a league-topping 134 RBI. He dove 100+ runs in five seasons.
Irish Meusel, also primarily an outfielder, played in four World Series (1921-24 … all for the Giants). He hit home runs in the 1921, 1922 and 1923 Fall Classics and finished with a career World Series stat line of .276-3-17 in 23 games. Like his brother, he played in 11 MLB seasons (1914 Nationals, 1918-26 Giants, 1927 Robins). He hit .310-106-819 in 1,289 MLB games – hitting over .300 in eight seasons and driving in 100+ runs in four (leading the league with 125 RBI in 1923).
Yuli Gurriel and Lourdes Gurriel, Jr.
Yuli Gurriel, primarily a first baseman, played in four World Series (2017, 2019, 2021-22 … all for the Astros). He homered in the 2017 World Series (twice) and the 2019 Fall Classic. His World Series stat line reads: .276-3-12 in 26 games. Still active in 2024, Yuli has played in nine MLB seasons (2016-2024 … Astros). His career stat line is .280-98-468 in 927 games. He won the 2021 AL batting title with a.319 average. His best season was 2019, when he it .298 with a career-high 31 homers and a career-best 104 RBI.
Lourdes Gurriel, Jr., primarily an outfielder, has played in just one World series to date – for the Diamondbacks in 2023. He hit .333-1-5 in five games. Still active in 2024, Lourdes has played in seven MLB seasons (2018-24 … Blue Jays, Diamondbacks). His career line is .279-110-411 in 746 games. He was an All Star in 2023, when he it .261-24-82 for Arizona. He has hit 20 or more home runs in three seasons.
COMING SOON: World Series Targets Revisited.
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