1959 Milwaukee Braves season

March 2026 November 2013 Milwaukee Braves 1959 National League Milwaukee County Stadium Milwaukee, Wisconsin 86 70 y 2nd Lou Perini John McHale Fred Haney WEMPWTMJ(Earl Gillespie, Blaine Walsh) The 1959 Milwaukee Braves season was the seventh season for the franchise in Milwaukee and its 89th season overall. The season's home attendance was 1,749,112,https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=_WlQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ExAEAAAAIBAJ&pg=5106%2C4462007 Milwaukee Sentinel Turnstile story September 28, 1959 2, part 2 August 2022 InternetArchiveBot yes second in the majors and the eight-team National League, but the lowest to date in Milwaukee and the last over 1.5 million. The Braves ended the National League regular season in a first-place tie with the Los Angeles Dodgers at 86 68 y, a special best-of-three tie-breaking series was played to decide the NL championship for the World Series.https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=_GlQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ExAEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6057%2C3942143 Milwaukee Sentinel Thisted Red Braves tie for title September 28, 1959 1, part 1 August 2022 InternetArchiveBot yes https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=FjNWAAAAIBAJ&sjid=n-cDAAAAIBAJ&pg=7022%2C4544127 Spokesman-Review Spokane, Washington Associated Press Los Angeles, Milwaukee tie for National crown September 28, 1959 12 The Braves lost both games by one run,https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=_mlQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ExAEAAAAIBAJ&pg=5435%2C4893442 Milwaukee Sentinel Thisted Red 'Comeback' L.A. champ! September 30, 1959 1, part 1 August 2022 InternetArchiveBot yes https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=GDNWAAAAIBAJ&sjid=n-cDAAAAIBAJ&pg=7048%2C5256181 Spokesman-Review Spokane, Washington Associated Press Dodgers win National League flag in exciting, 6-5, 12-inning struggle September 30, 1959 and finished at 86–70, two games behind the Dodgers,https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=_mlQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ExAEAAAAIBAJ&pg=2460%2C4928966 Milwaukee Sentinel NL standings September 30, 1959 2, part 2 August 2022 InternetArchiveBot yes who won the World Series in six games over the Chicago White Sox. Offseason December 1, 1958: Claude Raymond was drafted from the Braves by the Chicago White Sox in the 1958 rule 5 draft.Claude Raymond page at Baseball Reference March 31, 1959: Gene Conley, Harry Hanebrink and Joe Koppe were traded by the Braves to the Philadelphia Phillies for Johnny O'Brien, Ted Kazanski, and Stan Lopata.Johnny O'Brien page at Baseball Reference Front-office turnover Three days after the conclusion of the World Series in 1958, which the Braves lost in seven games to the New York Yankees, the club announced a reorganization of its front office. Team president Joseph Cairnes stepped aside, and was succeeded by former Cincinnati Redlegs manager Birdie Tebbetts, 46. Named executive vice president, and ranked just below owner Louis Perini on the Braves' organizational chart, Tebbetts had never before served in a front-office capacity in baseball.The Associated Press, Oct. 12, 1958 The repercussions of Tebbetts' appointment to a senior management post were felt three months later when general manager John J. Quinn, 50, a member of the team's front office since 1936 (as well as the son of former owner J. A. Robert Quinn) and the Braves' GM since 1945, resigned on January 14, 1959, to take the reins of the Philadelphia Phillies.https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ArtTAAAAIBAJ&sjid=M4gDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6226%2C1166101 Victoria Advocate Texas Associated Press Braves' Quinn joins Phillies; Roy Haney goes to Yankees January 14, 1959 7 Quinn was replaced in Milwaukee by Tebbetts' former teammate with the Detroit Tigers, 37-year-old John McHale, GM of the Tigers since 1957.https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=2t5QAAAAIBAJ&sjid=rCUEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6770%2C2831102 Milwaukee Journal Wolf Bob Braves name John McHale of Tigers general manager January 26, 1959 9, part 2 August 2022 InternetArchiveBot yes McHale would serve as the Braves' general manager and, later, team president, through the club's final years in Milwaukee and its 1966 move to Atlanta, before his dismissal that year. Regular season Batting Right fielder Hank Aaron won the National League batting championship with a career-high .355 batting average. He also led the league in hits with 223, total bases with 400—both also career highs—and slugging percentage at .636. Aaron finished third in the voting for the National League Most Valuable Player award. Aaron also led the Braves with 154 games played, 629 at bats, and 123 runs batted in. Third baseman Eddie Mathews led the NL with 46 home runs and had a career-high 182 hits, and he led the National League. He also led the team with 118 runs scored, had 182 hits and drove in 114 runs. Mathews finished second to Ernie Banks of the Chicago Cubs in the voting for the league's Most Valuable Player, who hit 47 home runs and lead the league in runs batted in. The choice was controversial, as the Cubs finished in last place, but Aaron and Mathews split the voting among Braves players, allowing Banks to claim the award. Pitching Warren Spahn and Lew Burdette led the National League pitchers with 21 wins apiece, and they had identical 21–15 win–loss records in carrying the Braves on their backs for most of the season. Spahn, who was the starting pitcher in the All-Star Game, pitched 292 innings, and Burdette pitched 289.2 innings. Third starter Bob Buhl returned from a season full of injuries to pitch 198 innings and finish with a good 15–9 record. The star of the bullpen was relief pitcher Don McMahon, who pitched in 60 games (finishing 49), had a 5–3 record, a 2.57 earned run average, and saved 15 games. McMahon was also chosen for the All-Star Game. Season highlights On May 26, Harvey Haddix of the Pittsburgh Pirates pitched a perfect game through 12 innings of a game against the Braves. Haddix retired the first 36 consecutive batters, but lost the game 1–0 in the 13th inning.Retrosheet Boxscore: Milwaukee Braves 1, Pittsburgh Pirates 0 Félix Mantilla broke up the perfect game in the 13th inning.Baseball's Top 100: The Game's Greatest Records, p.29, Kerry Banks, 2010, Greystone Books, Vancouver, BC, 978-1-55365-507-7 Braves pitcher Lew Burdette also pitched a shutout for all thirteen innings, giving up 12 hits and no walks. Season standings Includes best-of-three tie-breaking series Record vs. opponents MIL Notable transactions April 11, 1959: Humberto Robinson was traded by the Braves to the Cleveland Indians for Mickey Vernon.Mickey Vernon page at Baseball Reference May 11, 1959: Claude Raymond was returned to the Braves by the Chicago White Sox. May 26, 1959: Phil Roof was signed as an amateur free agent by the Braves.Phil Roof page at Baseball Reference July 19, 1959: Len Gabrielson was signed as an amateur free agent by the Braves.Len Gabrielson page at Baseball Reference August 20, 1959: Ray Boone was selected off waivers by the Braves from the Kansas City Athletics.Ray Boone page at Baseball Reference August 26, 1959: Del Rice was released by the Braves as an active player and signed as a coach.Del Rice page at Baseball Reference September 11, 1959: Enos Slaughter was selected off waivers by the Braves from the New York Yankees.Enos Slaughter page at Baseball Reference October 24, 1959: Rico Carty was signed by the Braves as an amateur free agent.Rico Carty at Baseball Reference Roster 1959 Milwaukee Braves Roster Pitchers 10 Bob Buhl 33 Lew Burdette 32 Bob Giggie 31 Bob Hartman 47 Joey Jay 20 Don McMahon 34 Juan Pizarro 17 Bob Rush 21 Warren Spahn 30 Bob Trowbridge 16 Carl Willey Catchers  1 Del Crandall  6 Stan Lopata  7 Del Rice Infielders  9 Joe Adcock 11 Bobby Ávila 19 Ray Boone 13 Chuck Cottier 23 Johnny Logan 18 Félix Mantilla 41 Eddie Mathews 19 Joe Morgan 11 Johnny O'Brien 12 Mel Roach  4 Red Schoendienst 14 Frank Torre 15 Mickey Vernon 19 Casey Wise Outfielders 44 Hank Aaron 38 Bill Bruton 43 Wes Covington 29 John DeMerit 24 Lee Maye 48 Andy Pafko 24 Jim Pisoni 25 Enos Slaughter 25 Al Spangler Manager  2 Fred Haney Coaches  3 John Fitzpatrick  8 Billy Herman  7 Del Rice 35 George Susce  5 Whit Wyatt 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 Del Crandall 150 518 133 .257 21 72 1B Joe Adcock 115 404 118 .292 25 76 2B Bobby Ávila 51 172 41 .238 3 19 SS Johnny Logan Johnny Logan (baseball) 138 470 137 .291 13 50 3B Eddie Mathews 148 594 182 .306 46 114 LF Wes Covington 103 373 104 .279 7 45 CF Bill Bruton 133 478 138 .289 6 41 RF Hank Aaron 154 629 223 .355 39 123 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 Frank Torre 115 263 60 .228 1 33 Félix Mantilla Félix Mantilla (baseball) 103 251 54 .215 3 19 Andy Pafko 71 142 31 .218 1 15 Lee Maye 51 140 42 .300 4 16 Johnny O'Brien 44 116 23 .198 1 8 Mickey Vernon 74 91 20 .220 3 14 Casey Wise 22 76 13 .171 1 5 Stan Lopata 25 48 5 .104 0 4 Mel Roach 19 31 3 .097 0 0 Del Rice 13 29 6 .207 0 1 Chuck Cottier 10 24 3 .125 0 1 Jim Pisoni 9 24 4 .167 0 0 Joe Morgan Joe Morgan (manager) 13 23 5 .217 0 1 Enos Slaughter 11 18 3 .167 0 1 Ray Boone 13 15 3 .200 1 2 Al Spangler 6 12 5 .417 0 0 John DeMerit 11 5 1 .200 0 0 Red Schoendienst 5 3 0 .000 0 0 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 Warren Spahn 40 292.0 21 15 2.96 111 Lew Burdette 41 289.2 21 15 4.07 105 Bob Buhl 31 198.0 15 9 2.86 105 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 Joey Jay 34 136.1 6 11 4.09 88 Juan Pizarro Juan Pizarro (baseball) 29 133.2 6 2 3.77 126 Carl Willey 26 117.0 5 9 4.15 51 Bob Rush Bob Rush (baseball) 31 101.1 5 6 2.40 64 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 Don McMahon 60 5 3 15 2.57 55 Bob Trowbridge 16 1 0 1 5.93 22 Bob Giggie 13 1 0 1 4.05 15 Bob Hartman Bob Hartman (baseball) 3 0 0 0 27.00 1 Farm system Minor League Baseball AAA Louisville Colonels American Association Ben Geraghty AAA Sacramento Solons Pacific Coast League Bob Elliott AA Atlanta Crackers Southern Association Bud Bates and Bob Montag AA Austin Senators Texas League Ernie White A Jacksonville Braves Sally League Sibby Sisti B Cedar Rapids Braves Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League Alex Monchak B Yakima Bears Northwest League Hub Kittle C Eau Claire Braves Northern League Travis Jackson, Bobby Dudley and Gordon Maltzberger C Boise Braves Pioneer League Billy Smith D McCook Braves Nebraska State League Bill Steinecke D Wellsville Braves New York–Penn League Harry Minor D Midland Braves Sophomore League Jimmy Brown LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Austin, Yakima, McCook, Wellsville Notes 2 References Johnson Lloyd Wolff Miles The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball 2nd Durham, North Carolina Baseball America 1997 978-0-9637189-8-3 1959 Milwaukee Braves season at Baseball Reference Category:Milwaukee Braves seasons Milwaukee Braves season Milwau