The 1946 Boston Red Sox ran away with the American League crown by twelve games over the Detroit Tigers with a 104–50 record, and were heavy favorites in the World Series against the St. Louis Cardinals. They led the series three games to two as it headed back to Sportsman's Park in St. Louis for Game 6. The Cardinals won that game[1] on sensational defense and a brilliant pitching performance by Harry Brecheen to bring the series to a deciding seventh game.
Game 7 was played in Sportsman's Park on October 15, 1946. After Red Sox center fielder Dom DiMaggio drove in two runs in the top of the eighth, the score was tied 3–3.[2][3] DiMaggio pulled a hamstring during the play and was forced to leave the game;[4] his place was taken by pinch runnerLeon Culberson, who remained in the game as DiMaggio's replacement in center field in the bottom of the inning.
Cardinal right fielder Enos Slaughter led off with a single off of pitcher Bob Klinger. After a failed bunt attempt by Whitey Kurowski and a flyout to left field by Del Rice, Slaughter found himself still on first base with two outs. Left fielder Harry Walker stepped to the plate and, after the count reached two balls and one strike, Cardinals manager Eddie Dyer called for a hit-and-run.
With the hit-and-run on, Slaughter was running on the pitch, and with two outs, there was no reason to hold up when Walker lined the pitch into left-center field. Culberson - not nearly the defensive wizard that was the man he replaced in the field, either with glove or arm - fielded the ball, then threw a relay to shortstop Johnny Pesky. Slaughter rounded third base, where legend says he ran through third base coach Mike González's stop sign and headed for home, while a stunned Pesky "held the ball", hesitating when he should have fired home immediately, ultimately costing the Red Sox the seventh and deciding game of the World Series.
Much of this description, however, lacks evidence. While some claimed that Pesky, assuming that Slaughter would not be running home, checked Walker at first base instead of immediately firing home, and others contended that Pesky was so shocked to see Slaughter on his way to score that he had a mental lapse which accounted for the delay, none of these claims have withstood later investigative journalism. The entire notion that Pesky unnecessarily held the ball has been called into serious question; the replay does not seem to show such hesitation, and other contemporaneous accounts suggest that Pesky promptly executed his relay throw to home plate. In addition, several reports have it that the third base coach was in fact frantically waving Slaughter around third, no stop sign in evidence. Either way, Slaughter scored just as Red Sox catcher Roy Partee caught Pesky's relay up the line from home plate.[5][6][7][8][9]
Official scoring
Walker's hit was scored as a double,[2][3] although some contend that it could have been scored a single, with Slaughter advancing to second on the throw home.[10][11]
Aftermath
The run put the Cardinals ahead 4–3 and proved to be the winning run of the decisive seventh game. In Boston, "Pesky held the ball" became a catchphrase, although a soft throw from Culberson (playing in place of the strong-armed DiMaggio) was certainly more to blame. Slaughter himself later admitted that if DiMaggio had still been in the game, he never would have thought to try to score on the play.[12][13][14] In St. Louis, a statue depicting Slaughter sliding across home plate at the end of the play stands outside the current ballpark.[15][16] This play was named #10 on the Sporting News list of Baseball's 25 Greatest Moments in 1999.[17]
