1927 New York Yankees season
The 1927 New York Yankees season was the 25th season of the New York Yankees of the American League. The team finished with a record of 110–44, winning their fifth pennant and finishing 19 games ahead of the Philadelphia Athletics and were tied for first or better for the whole season.[1] New York was managed by Miller Huggins. The Yankees played at Yankee Stadium. In the 1927 World Series, they won, sweeping the Pittsburgh Pirates. This Yankees team was known for their feared lineup, which was nicknamed "Murderers' Row", and is widely considered to be the greatest baseball team in MLB history.[2][3][4]
1927 New York Yankees | |
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American League Champions World Series Champions | |
Major League affiliations | |
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Location | |
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Other information | |
Owner(s) | Jacob Ruppert |
General manager(s) | Ed Barrow |
Manager(s) | Miller Huggins |
Local television | none |
Local radio | none |
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Regular season
The Yankees' 110 victories broke the previous American League mark of 105 (set by the 1912 Boston Red Sox) and would stand as the American League single-season record until it was broken by the Cleveland Indians in 1954.
This was the first year the Yankees acknowledged their team nickname on their uniforms, albeit their road uniforms. Their home uniforms remained free of any kind of logo except for the "NY" on their caps.
The roster included seven future Hall of Famers: Pitchers Herb Pennock and Waite Hoyt, Infielders Lou Gehrig and Tony Lazzeri, outfielders Babe Ruth and Earle Combs, and Manager Miller Huggins.
Babe Ruth
With the race long since decided, the nation's attention turned to Babe Ruth's pursuit of his own home run mark of 59, set in 1921. Early in the season, Ruth expressed doubts about his chances: "I don't suppose I'll ever break that 1921 record. To do that, you've got to start early, and the pitchers have got to pitch to you. I don't start early, and the pitchers haven't really pitched to me in four seasons. I get more bad balls to hit than any other five men...and fewer good ones." Ruth was also being challenged for his slugger's crown by teammate Lou Gehrig, who nudged ahead of Ruth's total in midseason, prompting the New York World-Telegram to anoint Gehrig the favorite. But Ruth caught Gehrig (who would finish with 47), and then had a remarkable last leg of the season, hitting 17 home runs in September. His 60th came on September 30, in the Yankees' next-to-last game. Ruth was exultant, shouting after the game, "Sixty, count 'em, sixty! Let's see some other son of a bitch match that!"[5] In later years, he would give Gehrig some credit: "Pitchers began pitching to me because if they passed me they still had Lou to contend with." In addition to his career-high 60 home runs, Ruth batted .356, drove in 164 runs and slugged .772.
Babe Ruth's 60 home runs
HR | Date | Pitcher |
---|---|---|
1 | April 15, 1927 | Howard Ehmke |
2 | April 23, 1927 | Rube Walberg |
3 | April 24, 1927 | Sloppy Thurston |
4 | April 29, 1927 | Slim Harriss |
5 | May 1, 1927 | Jack Quinn |
6 | May 1, 1927 | Rube Walberg |
7 | May 10, 1927 | Milt Gaston |
8 | May 11, 1927 | Ernie Nevers |
9 | May 17, 1927 | Rip Collins |
10 | May 22, 1927 | Benn Karr |
11 | May 23, 1927 | Sloppy Thurston |
12 | May 28, 1927 | Sloppy Thurston |
13 | May 29, 1927 | Danny MacFayden |
14 | May 30, 1927 | Rube Walberg |
15 | May 31, 1927 | Jack Quinn |
16 | May 31, 1927 | Howard Ehmke |
17 | June 5, 1927 | Earl Whitehill |
18 | June 7, 1927 | Tommy Thomas |
19 | June 11, 1927 | Garland Buckeye |
20 | June 11, 1927 | Garland Buckeye |
21 | June 12, 1927 | George Uhle |
22 | June 16, 1927 | Tom Zachary |
23 | June 22, 1927 | Hal Wiltse |
24 | June 22, 1927 | Hal Wiltse |
25 | June 30, 1927 | Slim Harriss |
26 | July 3, 1927 | Hod Lisenbee |
27 | July 8, 1927 | Don Hankins |
28 | July 9, 1927 | Ken Holloway |
29 | July 9, 1927 | Ken Holloway |
30 | July 12, 1927 | Joe Shaute |
31 | July 24, 1927 | Tommy Thomas |
32 | July 26, 1927 | Milt Gaston |
33 | July 27, 1927 | Milt Gaston |
34 | July 28, 1927 | Lefty Stewart |
35 | August 5, 1927 | George Smith |
36 | August 10, 1927 | Tom Zachary |
37 | August 16, 1927 | Tommy Thomas |
38 | August 17, 1927 | Sarge Connally |
39 | August 20, 1927 | Jake Miller |
40 | August 22, 1927 | Joe Shaute |
41 | August 27, 1927 | Ernie Nevers |
42 | August 28, 1927 | Ernie Wingard |
43 | August 31, 1927 | Tony Welzer |
44 | September 2, 1927 | Rube Walberg |
45 | September 6, 1927 | Tony Welzer |
46 | September 6, 1927 | Tony Welzer |
47 | September 6, 1927 | Jack Russell |
48 | September 7, 1927 | Danny MacFayden |
49 | September 7, 1927 | Slim Harriss |
50 | September 11, 1927 | Milt Gaston |
51 | September 13, 1927 | Willis Hudlin |
52 | September 13, 1927 | Joe Shaute |
53 | September 16, 1927 | Ted Blankenship |
54 | September 18, 1927 | Ted Lyons |
55 | September 21, 1927 | Sam Gibson |
56 | September 22, 1927 | Ken Holloway |
57 | September 27, 1927 | Lefty Grove |
58 | September 29, 1927 | Hod Lisenbee |
59 | September 29, 1927 | Paul Hopkins |
60 | September 30, 1927 | Tom Zachary |
Season standings
American League | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
New York Yankees | 110 | 44 | 0.714 | — | 57–19 | 53–25 |
Philadelphia Athletics | 91 | 63 | 0.591 | 19 | 50–27 | 41–36 |
Washington Senators | 85 | 69 | 0.552 | 25 | 51–28 | 34–41 |
Detroit Tigers | 82 | 71 | 0.536 | 27½ | 44–32 | 38–39 |
Chicago White Sox | 70 | 83 | 0.458 | 39½ | 38–37 | 32–46 |
Cleveland Indians | 66 | 87 | 0.431 | 43½ | 35–42 | 31–45 |
St. Louis Browns | 59 | 94 | 0.386 | 50½ | 38–38 | 21–56 |
Boston Red Sox | 51 | 103 | 0.331 | 59 | 29–49 | 22–54 |
Record vs. opponents
1927 American League Records Sources: | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Team | BOS | CWS | CLE | DET | NYY | PHI | STL | WSH | |||||
Boston | — | 11–11 | 15–7 | 5–17 | 4–18 | 6–16 | 6–16 | 4–18 | |||||
Chicago | 11–11 | — | 8–14 | 13–8 | 5–17 | 8–14 | 15–7 | 10–12 | |||||
Cleveland | 7–15 | 14–8 | — | 7–15 | 10–12 | 10–12 | 10–11 | 8–14 | |||||
Detroit | 17–5 | 8–13 | 15–7 | — | 8–14 | 9–13 | 14–8–1 | 11–11–2 | |||||
New York | 18–4 | 17–5 | 12–10 | 14–8 | — | 14–8–1 | 21–1 | 14–8 | |||||
Philadelphia | 16–6 | 14–8 | 12–10 | 13–9 | 8–14–1 | — | 16–6 | 12–10 | |||||
St. Louis | 16–6 | 7–15 | 11–10 | 8–14–1 | 1–21 | 6–16 | — | 10–12–1 | |||||
Washington | 18–4 | 12–10 | 14–8 | 11–11–2 | 8–14 | 10–12 | 12–10–1 | — |
Roster
1927 New York Yankees | |||||||||
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Roster | |||||||||
Pitchers | Catchers
Infielders |
Outfielders | Manager
Coaches |
Player stats
Batting
Starters by position
Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
Pos | Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
C | Pat Collins | 92 | 251 | 69 | .275 | 7 | 36 |
1B | Lou Gehrig | 155 | 584 | 218 | .373 | 47 | 175 |
2B | Tony Lazzeri | 153 | 570 | 176 | .309 | 18 | 102 |
3B | Joe Dugan | 112 | 387 | 104 | .269 | 2 | 43 |
SS | Mark Koenig | 123 | 526 | 150 | .285 | 3 | 62 |
OF | Earle Combs | 152 | 648 | 231 | .356 | 6 | 64 |
OF | Babe Ruth | 151 | 540 | 192 | .356 | 60 | 164 |
OF | Bob Meusel | 135 | 516 | 174 | .337 | 8 | 103 |
Other batters
Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Johnny Grabowski | 70 | 195 | 54 | .277 | 0 | 25 |
Ray Morehart | 73 | 195 | 50 | .256 | 1 | 20 |
Cedric Durst | 65 | 129 | 32 | .248 | 0 | 25 |
Mike Gazella | 54 | 115 | 32 | .278 | 0 | 9 |
Benny Bengough | 31 | 85 | 21 | .247 | 0 | 10 |
Ben Paschal | 50 | 82 | 26 | .317 | 2 | 16 |
Julie Wera | 38 | 42 | 10 | .238 | 1 | 8 |
Pitching
Starting pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Waite Hoyt | 36 | 256.1 | 22 | 7 | 2.63 | 86 |
Urban Shocker | 31 | 200 | 18 | 6 | 2.84 | 35 |
Herb Pennock | 34 | 209.2 | 19 | 8 | 3.00 | 51 |
Dutch Ruether | 27 | 184 | 13 | 6 | 3.38 | 45 |
George Pipgras | 29 | 166.1 | 10 | 3 | 4.11 | 81 |
Other pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Wilcy Moore | 50 | 213 | 19 | 7 | 2.28 | 75 |
Myles Thomas | 21 | 88.2 | 7 | 4 | 4.87 | 25 |
Relief pitchers
Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
Player | G | W | L | SV | ERA | SO |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Bob Shawkey | 19 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 2.89 | 23 |
Joe Giard | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8.00 | 10 |
Walter Beall | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9.00 | 0 |
1927 World Series
Game | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | Score | Record
(NYY-PIT) |
Attendance | |
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1 | October 5 | New York Yankees | 5 | Pittsburgh Pirates | 4 | 1–0 | 41,467 | |
2 | October 6 | New York Yankees | 6 | Pittsburgh Pirates | 2 | 2–0 | 41,634 | |
3 | October 7 | Pittsburgh Pirates | 1 | New York Yankees | 8 | 3–0 | 60,695 | |
4 | October 8 | Pittsburgh Pirates | 3 | New York Yankees | 4 | 4–0 | 57,909 | |
New York Yankees win 4–0 |
Awards and honors
- Lou Gehrig, AL MVP Award
Since a voter could select only one player per team, two good candidates from the same team could find their votes split and both of their chances of winning hurt. In addition, the clause prohibiting repeat winners led to unusual results like Babe Ruth's 1927 (one of the greatest offensive seasons of all time) not being eligible for the award. As The New York Times wrote in 1925, "[T]he purpose, of course, is to pass the honor around, but the effect is to pass an empty honor around."[6]
League leaders
- Babe Ruth, Major League Baseball home run champion (60)
- Earle Combs, American League leader, triples (23)[7]
- Lou Gehrig, American League RBI champion (175)
Franchise records
- Earle Combs, Yankees single season record, triples in a season (23)
In popular culture
In 2016, ESPN announced 1927: The Diary of Myles Thomas, part a new genre of storytelling known as "real-time historical fiction."[8] The core of the project is a historical novel in the form of a diary of Myles Thomas, written by Douglas Alden, complemented by a wealth of fact-based content from the season, all published along the same timeline as the events unfolded almost 90 years ago. Through Myles Thomas's diary entries, additional essays and real-time social-media components (including Twitter[9]) "re-living" that famous Yankees season, the goal is to explore the rarefied nexus of baseball, jazz and Prohibition — defining elements of the remarkable world that existed in 1927. The diary runs the length of the full 1927 season, from April 13 through October 10, 1927.[10]
Notes
- https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/NYY/1927-schedule-scores.shtml
- "Tom Verducci's Top 10 Teams of All Time". SportsIllustrated.com https://www.si.com/mlb/photos/2010/03/30tom-verduccis-top-10-teams-of-all-time/1
- "The Best Major League Baseball Team Ever from 1902–2005". BaseballAlmanac.com. http://www.baseball-almanac.com/articles/best_major_league_teams_ever.shtml
- Bryson, Bill (2013), One Summer: America 1927, Doubleday, ISBN 978-0767919401, OCLC 841198242
- Creamer, Robert W. (1974). Babe: The Legend Comes to Life. Holtzman Press. p. 400. ISBN 978-0671760700. Retrieved March 25, 2019.
- "Review-The Week In Sports-Outlook". (September 28, 1925). The New York Times, Sports, p. 17.
- Great Baseball Feats, Facts and Figures, 2008 Edition, p.98, David Nemec and Scott Flatow, A Signet Book, Penguin Group, New York, ISBN 978-0-451-22363-0
- 1927: The Diary of Myles Thomas
- 1927: The Diary of Myles Thomas on Twitter
- About the Diary of Myles Thomas