Byrne appeared in four World Series (1949, 1955, 1956, and 1957). Byrne pitched the 8th and 9th innings of Game 7 of the 1957 World Series against the Milwaukee Braves and Casey Stengel allowed Byrne to bat with two outs in the ninth inning and the Yankees down 5-0. Byrne singled, but Bill Skowron followed with a forceout to third to end the game. That at bat was Byrne's last appearance in a big league game.
Byrne also threw an ungodly amount of pitches in his starts in part because he'd go deep into counts and walk so many men, but still keep things manageable, particularly for that dynastic Yankee offense, so Stengel would leave him in games. Steven Goldman did a great Old Timer's Day interview with him a few years back for his YES column about all that, but I can't seem to turn it up (perhaps some more diligent Googler can). But we're talking 200-pitch outings and the like, things that don't even seem humanly possible.
The best way to explain it in relatively contemporary terms would be if Al Leiter had a rubber arm, Dallas Green as his manager, an offense that could spot him 5 runs without breaking a sweat, and the word "pitch count" had yet to enter the game's lexicon. Scary.
The best way to explain it in relatively contemporary terms would be if Al Leiter had a rubber arm, Dallas Green as his manager, an offense that could spot him 5 runs without breaking a sweat, and the word "pitch count" had yet to enter the game's lexicon. Scary.
Boston won 7-5 in 13 innings.
http://retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1956/B09290NYA1956.htm
Check out the walk totals for both teams and the time of game. And think how long that game would have lasted in 2007.
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