The1947 World Series matched theNew York Yankees against theBrooklyn Dodgers. The Yankees won the Series in seven games for their 11th World Series championship in team history. Yankees managerBucky Harris won the Series for the first time since managing theWashington Senators to their only title in1924, a gap of 23 years, the longest betweenWorld Series appearances in history.^[1][2]

In 1947,Jackie Robinson, a Brooklyn Dodger, desegregated major league baseball. For the first time in World Series history, a racially integrated team played.

This was the first World Series televised. However, TV broadcasting was still in its infancy, and thus the series was only seen in four markets viacoaxial inter-connected stations:New York City;Philadelphia;Schenectady/Albany, New York;Washington, D.C. Outside of New York, coverage was pooled.^[3][4][5][6] The stations in those markets affiliated withNBC televised games 1 and 5; theDuMont stations had games 2, 6, and 7, and those affiliated withCBS broadcast games 3 and 4.^[7][8]

ALNew York Yankees (4) vs. NLBrooklyn Dodgers (3)

There was an announced crowd of 73,365 in Yankee Stadium for Game 1. Brooklyn struck first in the first inning onDixie Walker's RBI single offSpec Shea to scorePete Reiser from second base, but starterRalph Branca was knocked out in a five-run fifth. A single, walk and hit-by-pitch loaded the bases beforeJohnny Lindell's two-run double put the Yankees up 2–1. After a walk re-loaded the bases, another walk forced in a run, then after a groundout,Tommy Henrich's RBI single to left offHank Behrman capped the inning's scoring. The Dodgers chipped away at the Yankees lead, getting a run in the sixth onCarl Furillo's RBI single offJoe Page and another in the seventh on Page's wild pitch withPee Wee Reese at second, but Page held the Dodgers scoreless afterward as the Yankees took a 1–0 series lead.^[16]

The Yankees struck first in Game 2 onJohnny Lindell's double-play ground ball after two leadoff singles in the first offVic Lombardi, scoring Snuffy Stirnweiss, but the Dodgers tied the game in the third onJackie Robinson's RBI single. The Yankees regained the lead in the bottom half of the inning on Lindell's RBI triple with a runner at third, but the Dodgers again tied the game in the fourth onDixie Walker's home run. In the bottom half of the fourth, after a leadoff triple,Phil Rizzuto's RBI double put the Yankees back in front 3–2. In the next inning,Tommy Henrich's lead-off home run extended their lead to 4–2. After a ground-rule double knocked Lombardi out of the game,George McQuinn's RBI single offHal Gregg made it 5–2 Yankees. The Yankees added another run in the sixth on Lindell's sacrifice fly before breaking it open in the seventh. After a leadoff single and wild pitch byHank Behrman,Billy Johnson's RBI single made it 7–2 Yankees. After a pop out and intentional walk, Reynolds's RBI single made it 8–2 Yankees.Rex Barney relieved Behrman and allowed an RBI single toSnuffy Stirnweiss and threw a wild pitch that turned the Yanks' advantage to 10–2. The Dodgers scored one more run in the ninth onSpider Jorgensen's groundout offAllie Reynolds, who scattered nine hits in a complete-game win.^[17]

The series shifted to Ebbets Field. In the second inning the Dodgers rang up six runs. After a one-out walk,Bruce Edwards's double andPee Wee Reese's single scored a run each. One out later, after a single and passed ball,Eddie Stanky's two-run double was the end for Yankee starterBobo Newsom, but the runs kept coming with aCarl Furillo two-run double after a single offVic Raschi. The rest of the day, the Yankees pecked away. Back-to-back RBI singles byJohnny Lindell andJoe DiMaggio offJoe Hatten made it 6–2 Dodgers in the third. After the Dodgers scored a run in the bottom half of the third onSpider Jorgensen's RBI single after a hit-by-pitch and wild pitch byKarl Drews,Sherm Lollar hit an RBI double in the fourth after a walk andSnuffy Stirnweiss added an RBI single. After two walks in the bottom half of the fourth offSpud Chandler, the Dodgers got those runs back on back-to-back RBI singles byDixie Walker andGene Hermanski, butJoe DiMaggio hit a two-run home run in the fifth after a walk.Tommy Henrich's RBI double in the next inning andYogi Berra's home run in the seventh offRalph Branca made it 9–8 Dodgers. RelieverHugh Casey set downBilly Johnson,Phil Rizzuto and Berra in order in the ninth.

The Yankees entered Game 4 aiming to take a three games to one lead in the best-of-seven series, and came one out away from doing this. They scored a run in the first on a bases-loaded walk offHarry Taylor and another in the fourth onJohnny Lindell's double after a leadoff triple offHal Gregg.Bill Bevens, the Yankee starter, pitched8+2⁄3 innings without allowing a base hit, but allowed a run in the fifth onPee Wee Reese's fielder's choice after two walks and a sacrifice bunt. No pitcher had ever thrown ano-hitter in a major league World Series game.

Going into the bottom of the ninth inning, Bevens and the Yankees led 2–1. Bevens gotBruce Edwards to fly out, and then walkedCarl Furillo.Spider Jorgensen fouled out for the 2nd out.Al Gionfriddo pinch-ran for Furillo.Pete Reiser pinch-hit for pitcherHugh Casey; during the at-bat, Gionfriddo stole second base. The Yankees then intentionally walked Reiser.Eddie Miksis pinch-ran for Reiser, and the Dodgers sentCookie Lavagetto to pinch-hit forEddie Stanky. Lavagetto lined a 1–0fastball to right field; the ball ricocheted off the wall with a peculiar bounce and hit Yankee right fielderTommy Henrich in the shoulder, as Gionfriddo and Miksis raced around to score. The play ended the no-hitter and won the game for the Dodgers.

The hit was the last of Lavagetto's career. Additionally, neither Lavagetto nor Bevens nor Gionfriddo would play in the majors again following this Series.

The Dodgers, with this hit, avoided a three-games-to-one deficit, avoided becoming the victim of a no-hitter, and tied the Series at two games each. The rapid and dramatic reversal of fortunes may have provided a momentum swing. The Dodgers were the first of two teams in MLB history to win a playoff game while being held to one hit (the Oakland A's would later do so in the1974 ALCS)

As was the case in their onlyprevious World Series encounter six years earlier, the Yankees and Dodgers again played a dramatic Game 4 which was decided on a lead change with two outs in the ninth inning. In both instances the Yankees entered the game with a 2–1 series lead andHugh Casey ended up being the pitcher of record for the Dodgers (losing in 1941,^[18] winning in 1947^[19]).

Game 4 was the first of three times that the Dodgers won a World Series game after trailing through eight innings. This would also happen in 1988 during Game 1, and in 2025 during Game 7.

Nine walks in fewer than five innings proved the undoing ofRex Barney in this start for Brooklyn. A pair of walks and RBI single by opposing pitcherSpec Shea in the fourth put the Yankees up 1–0.Joe DiMaggio homered to left in the fifth. That was all the runs the visiting Yanks would get at Ebbets Field, but this was all Shea needed. A hit byJackie Robinson in the sixth scoredAl Gionfriddo to pull the Dodgers within 2–1. Then in the ninth, after aBruce Edwards leadoff single and sacrifice bunt byCarl Furillo, the tying run died on base. Shea gotSpider Jorgensen on a fly to right, and with Brooklyn's fans on their feet, pinch-hitterCookie Lavagetto struck out.

The Dodgers won Game 6 to force a seventh and deciding game. Three straight singles loaded the bases in the first with no outs, thenDixie Walker's double play andAllie Reynolds's passed ball scored a run each. In the third, three straight doubles byPee Wee Reese,Jackie Robinson and Walker made it 4–0 Dodgers. In the bottom of the inning, after a double and wild pitch byVic Lombardi, an error onSnuffy Stirnweiss's ground ball allowed a run to score. After a single,Johnny Lindell's RBI single cut the Dodgers' lead to 4–2. After another single knocked Lombardi out of the game, RBI singles byBilly Johnson andBobby Brown offRalph Branca tied the game.Yogi Berra's RBI single next inning put the Yankees up 5–4. In the sixth, after a leadoff single and double offJoe Page,Cookie Lavagetto's sacrifice fly tied the game, thenBobby Bragan's RBI single put the Dodgers up 6–5. A single knocked Page out of the game, then Reese's two-run single offBobo Newsom made it 8–5 Dodgers.

A catch made byAl Gionfriddo, replayed countless times, may be the most remembered play of this game, and one of the most remembered plays of the Series.

In the last of the sixth, the Dodgers sentAl Gionfriddo to left field as a defensive replacement forEddie Miksis.Joe Hatten came in to pitch. With two on and two outs,Joe DiMaggio came to bat for the Yankees, representing the potential tying run. DiMaggio drove the ball deep, and Gionfriddo quickly pedalled back to snare it just in front of the bullpen-alley fence, near the 415-foot (126 m) marker posted to the center field side of the bullpen alley (the sign on the left field side of the alley was posted as 402). Radio announcerRed Barber provided the play-by-play, which has often accompanied re-played film footage:

Swung on, belted... it's a long one... back goes Gionfriddo, back, back, back, back, back, back... heeee makes a one-handed catch against the bullpen! Oh, Doctor!

^{[citation needed]}

Many announcers since that time have used variations of the call, especiallyChris Berman ofESPN. These announcers have tended to describe theball itself as going "back-back-back". In Barber's call, it was theoutfielder who was going "back-back-back". In Puerto Rico, sportscasterHector Vazquez Muniz uses a Spanish variation of this call, in his case "Y se va, se va, se va!"

Films of the play showed DiMaggio, heading for second, kick the dirt in disgust after he realized Gionfriddo had caught the ball. This was a surprise to many who witnessed it, since DiMaggio was known to never show his emotions while playing. Red Barber declared it, "probably the only time ever that DiMaggio was publicly and visibly upset."^{[citation needed]}

Three of the 1947 Series' prominent figures, Gionfriddo, Lavagetto and Bevens, finished their playing careers in this Series. Gionfriddo did not play in Game 7, and his catch of DiMaggio's drive was his only put-out in this game. So Gionfriddo's famous catch was his final put-out in his major league career.^[20]

The Yankees loaded the bases in the bottom of the ninth offJoe Hatten andHugh Casey, but scored only once on a groundout.

The scoring began in the second inning, when the Dodgers strung together four consecutive hits: three off of Yankee starterSpec Shea, and a fourth off of relieverBill Bevens, to put the Dodgers ahead, 2–0, in the top half of the inning.Gene Hermanski tripled,Bruce Edwards drove Hermanski in with a single, andCarl Furillo followed with another single, prompting a pitching change.Spider Jorgensen greeted reliever Bevens with a double, scoring Edwards for the second run.

In the bottom half of the second inning, the Yankees cut the lead to 2–1. After Dodger starterHal Gregg issued two walks,Phil Rizzuto delivered an RBI single, scoringGeorge McQuinn.

In the bottom of the fourth, the Yankees took the lead with a two-out rally. With two runners on,Bobby Brown, pinch-hitting for Bevens, doubled off of Gregg, scoringBilly Johnson to tie the game.Hank Behrman replaced Gregg. After a walk loaded the bases,Tommy Henrich stroked an RBI single, scoring Rizzuto and putting the Yankees up 3–2.

With this lead, Yankee pitcherJoe Page entered the game to begin the top of the fifth inning, and would close the game out. Over the next five innings, Page retired 13 consecutive Dodger batters. During this time, the Yankees added two runs. Rizzuto lead off the bottom of the sixth with a bunt single, and stole second base;Allie Clark drove him home with a single off ofJoe Hatten, making the score 4–2. In the bottom of the seventh,Aaron Robinson hit a sacrifice fly off ofHugh Casey, to scoreBilly Johnson, who had just tripled.

In all, Page pitched five innings of one-hit, shutout relief. With one out in the top of the ninth, he allowed his first and only baserunner of the outing, whenEddie Miksis singled. Page quickly recovered, inducing Edwards to ground into a double play that ended the game. This was the most recent World Series to end on a double play until2025, which was also decided in seven games.

1947 World Series(4–3):New York Yankees (A.L.) overBrooklyn Dodgers (N.L.)

For the first time, a World Series produced total receipts over $2 million: Gate receipts were $1,781,348.92, radio rights $175,000.00 and television rights $65,000.

Yogi Berra pinch-hit forSherm Lollar in the seventh inning of Game 3 and hit the first pinch-hit home run in World Series history.Ralph Branca served the pitch.

This was the first World Series to be televised, although the games were only seen in a small number of Eastern markets with stations connected via coaxial cable: New York City, New York; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Schenectady, New York; Washington, DC; and environs surrounding these cities. The October 18, 1947 edition ofBillboard reported that a total of over 3.9 million people viewed the seven games, primarily on TV sets located in bars (Billboard estimated 5,400 tavern TV sets in NYC alone, with 4,870 in use).^[22] The October 13, 1947, edition ofTime magazine reported that PresidentTruman, who had just made the firstOval Office TV appearance on October 5, 1947, and received the first TV for theWhite House, watched parts of the Series but "skipped the last innings".

At the direction ofCommissionerHappy Chandler, the Series, for the first time, used six umpires to make calls.^[23] Series from 1918 through 1946 used four umpires in the infield, with two alternates available if needed. However, no alternate had ever been needed, and Chandler believed that enlisting these umpires to make calls along the outfield lines would put these men and their skills to better use.^[24] However, it was not until 1964 that the additional two umpires rotated into the infield during the course of the Series.

This was the first, and to date only, World Series in which the Yankees wonGame 7 in their home stadium.

• Cohen, Richard M.; Neft, David S. (1990).The World Series: Complete Play-By-Play of Every Game, 1903–1989. New York: St. Martin's Press. pp. 213–218.ISBN 0-312-03960-3.
• Reichler, Joseph (1982).The Baseball Encyclopedia (5th ed.). Macmillan Publishing. p. 2155.ISBN 0-02-579010-2.

• 1947 World Series atWorldSeries.com viaMLB.com
• 1947 World Series atBaseball Almanac
• 1947 World Series atBaseball-Reference.com
• The 1947 Post-Season Games (box scores and play-by-play) atRetrosheet
• History of the World Series - 1947 atThe Sporting News. Archived fromthe original in May 2006.
• Baseball's 25 Greatest Moments: Cookie Lavagetto beats Bill BevensArchived March 17, 2005, at theWayback Machine
• Audio: Bill Bevens describes his lost no-hit bid
• Audio: Al Gionfriddo's Catch of DiMaggio's Blast
• Bill Bevens No-Hit Bid in '47 World Series
• Audio: Cookie Lavagetto breaks up Bill Bevens' No-Hit Bid in 1947 World Series
• Gionfriddo Recalls His Famous Catch in Baseball Digest, February 1973

• World Series
• 1947 Major League Baseball season
• New York Yankees postseason
• Brooklyn Dodgers postseason
• 1947 in sports in New York City
• September 1947 sports events in the United States
• October 1947 sports events in the United States
• Baseball competitions in New York City
• 1940s in the Bronx
• 1940s in Brooklyn
• Flatbush, Brooklyn

• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Use mdy dates from November 2013
• All articles with unsourced statements
• Articles with unsourced statements from January 2019
• Webarchive template wayback links