Bridging Two Dynasties: The 1947 New York Yankees(Memorable Teams in Baseball History)

Of all the New York Yankees championship teams, the 1947 club seemed the least likely. Bridging the gap between the dynasties of Joe McCarthy and Casey Stengel, the team, managed by Bucky Harris, was coming off three non-pennant-winning seasons and given little chance to unseat the defending American League champion Boston Red Sox. And yet, led by Joe DiMaggio, this un-Yankees-like squad of rookies, retreads, and a few solid veterans easily won the pennant over the Detroit Tigers and the heavily favored Red Sox, along the way compiling an American League–record nineteen-game winning streak. They then went on to defeat the Brooklyn Dodgers in a dramatic seven-game World Series that was the first to be televised and the first to feature an African American player. Bridging Two Dynasties commemorates this historic club—the players, on the field and off, and the events surrounding their remarkable season. Along with player biographies, including those of future Hall of Famers DiMaggio, Bucky Harris, Yogi Berra, and Phil Rizzuto, the book features a seasonal timeline and covers pertinent topics such as the winning streak, the Yankees' involvement in Leo Durocher's suspension, and the thrilling World Series.

Table of Contents:
Acknowledgments Introduction Marty Appel 1. The Yankees' Ownership Mark Armour and Dan Levitt 2. How the 1947 Team Was Built Lyle Spatz 3. The Hiring of Bucky Harris Art Spanjer 4. Yankees Spring Training in 1947 Walter LeConte and Bill Nowlin 5. Yankees Involvement in the Suspension of Leo Durocher Jeffrey Marlett 6. Bucky Harris John Contois 7. Charlie Dressen Mark Stewart 8. Red Corriden C. Paul Rogers III 9. Timeline, April 14April 29 Lyle Spatz 10. Yankee Stadium Chris Kemmer 11. Spud Chandler Mark Stewart 12. Don Johnson Nicholas Diunte 13. George McQuinn C. Paul Rogers III 14. Allie Reynolds Royse Parr 15. Timeline, April 30May 22 Lyle Spatz 16. Ray Mack Joseph Wancho 17. Bobby Brown Mike Huber 18. Rugger Ardizoia Bill Nowlin 19. Ken Silvestri Joseph M. Schuster 20. Mel Queen Marc Z Aaron 21. Timeline, May 23June 12 Lyle Spatz 22. Al Lyons Mike Richard 23. Tommy Henrich Rob Edelman 24. Frank Colman Tom Hawthorn 25. Tommy Byrne Jimmy Keenan 26. Aaron Robinson Mark Stewart 27. Timeline, June 13June 30 Lyle Spatz 28. Billy Johnson Cort Vitty 29. Randy Gumpert Steve Ferenchick 30. Charlie Keller Chip Greene 31. Ted Sepkowski Jack V. Morris 32. Frank Shea Don Harrison 33. Johnny Lucadello Richard Riis 34. Timeline, July 1July 21 Lyle Spatz 35. Vic Raschi Lawrence Baldassaro 36. Reynolds and Raschi, Building Blocks of a Dynasty Sol Gittleman 37. New York Yankees in the 1947 All-Star Game Lyle Spatz 38. Bobo Newsom Ralph Berger 39. Bobo in New York Mike Ross 40. The Yankees' Nineteen-Game Winning Streak Brendan Bingham 41. Timeline, July 22August 7 Lyle Spatz 42. Johnny Lindell Rob Neyer 43. Karl Drews Peter Mancuso 44. Yogi Berra Dave Williams 45. Johnny Schulte James Lincoln Ray 46. Allie Clark Rick Malwitz 47. Joe DiMaggio Lawrence Baldassaro 48. Timeline, August 8August 28 Lyle Spatz 49. Ralph Houk John Vorperian 50. Dan Topping Dan Levitt and Mark Armour 51. Del Webb Dan Levitt and Mark Armour 52. George Stirnweiss Rob Edelman 53. Jack Phillips Charles F. Faber 54. Phil Rizzuto Lawrence Baldassaro 55. Timeline, August 29September 19 Lyle Spatz 56. Sherman Lollar John McMurray 57. Butch Wensloff Christine L. Putnam 58. Dick Starr James Lincoln Ray 59. Lonny Frey James Forr 60. Timeline, September 20September 28 Lyle Spatz 61. Bill Wight Bill Nowlin 62. Frank Crosetti Tara Krieger 63. Joe Page Mark Stewart 64. Mel Allen Warren Corbett 65. Russ Hodges Curt Smith 66. The 1947 World Series Tom Hawthorn 67. Bill Bevens Peter M. Gordon 68. Bill Bevens's Almost World Series No-Hitter Joe Dittmar 69. Larry MacPhail Ralph Berger 70. George Weiss Dan Levitt 71. American League Most Valuable Player Award Lyle Spatz 72. American League Rookie of the Year Award Lyle Spatz 73. American League Cy Young Award Lyle Spatz 74. Yankees Attendance in 1947 Gary Gillette Epilogue Lyle Spatz Notes and References Contributors

About the Author :
Lyle Spatz's many books include 1921: The Yankees, the Giants, and the Battle for Baseball Supremacy in New York (with coauthor Steve Steinberg), winner of the 2011 Seymour Medal, and The Team That Forever Changed Baseball and America: The 1947 Brooklyn Dodgers, both published by the University of Nebraska Press.

Review :
"1947 was something else. Being twenty-one and in my first season, it felt marvelous to be on the Yankees, playing in Yankee Stadium with all those guys. Then winning the World Series against the Dodgers—that was awfully exciting."—Yogi Berra "For all people interested in baseball and the Yankees, this book should be an enjoyable one. Virtually all these players were products of 'The Greatest Generation.' The vast majority of us were in the service of our country in World War II. . . . It was a team without rancor or discord. Ownership consisting of Larry MacPhail, Dan Topping, and Del Webb were supportive and balanced effectively the needs of being accessible but not intrusive. . . . It was a terrific Yankee year."—Robert W. "Bobby" Brown, MD, former Yankees player and president of the American League 1984–94 "[Bridging Two Dynasties is] an intense and evocative study. . . . The pieces are written in the lively voices of writers deeply instilled with Yankees lore. Fans of the historical Yankees are likely to love this. For every Yankees collection."—Library Journal "This is a well-researched, informative book that puts a pivotal year of Yankees history into proper perspective. New York had flashier stars, better pitchers and hitters and gaudier statistics in other years, but the 1947 squad deserves some respect, too."—Bob D'Angelo, Tampa Tribune "An exceptional piece of work."—C70 at the Bat