1956 Los Angeles Angels season

The 1956 Los Angeles Angels season was the 54th season in the history of the Los Angeles Angels baseball team. The 1954 team won the Pacific Coast League (PCL) pennant with a 107–61 record. Bob Scheffing was the team's manager. The team played its home games at Wrigley Field in Los Angeles.[1]

1956 Los Angeles Angels
Minor league affiliations
Location
Results
Record107–61
League place1st
Other information
Manager(s)Bob Scheffing
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In 1993, sports writer John Schulian wrote a feature story in Sports Illustrated about the 1956 Angeles, opining that no minor league club ever played the game better. Gene Mauch, who played second base for the team and later managed in the majors, was interviewed by Schulian and recalled: "I might be prejudiced, but I think it was the best minor league team ever put together. I saw some teams in the big leagues that couldn't play as well. Hell, I managed two of them." [2]

First baseman Steve Bilko received the Pacific Coast League Most Valuable Player Award and was also named Minor League Baseball's player of the year. He also won the PCL Triple Crown with a .360 batting average, 55 home runs, and 164 RBIs.[3]

In addition to Bilko, five other Angels hit 20 or more home runs. Gene Mauch hit .348 with 20 home runs. In his book on the 1956 Angels, Gaylon H. White wrote: "Mauch's greates value was as a leader. He was a master at devising trick plays, stealing opponents' signs and, if necessary, getting in the face of a teammate."[4]

While Dave Hillman won 20 games for the Angels, pitching was the team's weakness. In his history of the Angels, Richard Beverage wrote: "The pitching staff was subpar and, as a result, th4 1956 Angels were probably a level below the greatest teams of PCL history."[5]

Angels players took eight of 14 spots the PCL All-Star team selected by sports writers in November 1956. The honorees were Steve Bilko at first base, Mauch at second base, Casey Wise at shortstop, Jim Bolger and Bob Speake in the outfield, El Tappe at catcher, Dave Hillman as a pitcher, and Piper Davis as the utility infielder.[6]

Statistics

Batting

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
SSCasey Wise168705202.287760
1BSteve Bilko162597215.36055164
RF, CFJim Bolger165592193.32628147
LF, CFBob Speake158580174.30025111
2BGene Mauch146566197.3482084
3BGeorge Freese137474138.29122113
CFGale "Windy" Wade101383112.2922067
CEl Tappe10030381.267336
CJoe Hannah9323965.272133
LFBob Coats10323775.316029
1B, 3BPiper Davis6415248.316624
RF, LFEddie Haas4114941.275419

[3]

Pitching

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; PCT = Win percentage; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts

Player G IP W L PCT ERA SO
Dave Hillman33210.1217.7503.38130
Gene Fodge44192.0197.7314.31122
Dick Drott35196.21310.5654.39184
Bob Anderson70105.1124.7502.6561
Marino "Chick" Pieretti38156.079.4394.9068
Bob Thorpe29155.277.5004.8677

[3]

References
  1. Jim Gordon. "Wrigley Field (Los Angeles)". Society for American Baseball Research. Retrieved February 16, 2020.
  2. John Schulian (June 21, 1993). "Of Stars and Angels: Once Upon a Time, Tinseltown Was a Heavenly Place To Watch Minor League Baseball".
  3. "1956 Los Angeles Angels Stats". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
  4. Gaylon H. White (2014). The Bilko Athletic Club: The Story of the 1956 Los Angeles Angels. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 16. ISBN 0810892901.
  5. Richard Beverage (2011). The Los Angeles Angels of the Pacific Coast League: A History, 1903-1957. McFarland. p. 182.
  6. "Eight Angels Make PCL All-Star Club". Los Angeles Times. November 28, 1956. p. IV-6 – via Newspapers.com.

Further reading
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