1964 St. Louis Cardinals season
| 1964 St. Louis Cardinals | |
|---|---|
|
1964 World Series Champions National League Champions |
|
| Major League affiliations | |
|
|
| Location | |
|
|
|
|
| Results | |
| Record | 93–69 (.574) |
| League place | 1st |
| Other information | |
| Owner(s) | August "Gussie" Busch |
| General manager(s) | Bing Devine, Bob Howsam |
| Manager(s) | Johnny Keane |
| Local television | KSD-TV |
| Local radio |
KMOX (Harry Caray, Jack Buck, Jerry Gross) |
| < Previous season Next season > | |
The 1964 St. Louis Cardinals season was the team's 83rd season in St. Louis, Missouri and its 73rd season in the National League. The Cardinals went 93–69 during the season and finished first in the National League, edging the co-runners-up Cincinnati Reds and Philadelphia Phillies by one game each on the last day of the regular-season to claim their first NL pennant since 1946. They went on to win the World Series in 7 games over the New York Yankees.
The Cardinals entered 1964 having gone 18 years without a pennant and not even contending for a pennant since the 1949 team finished one game behind the Brooklyn Dodgers. However, the 1963 team went 93–69. It was the best record for St. Louis since that 1949 team won 96 games. The Cardinals finished six games behind the now-Los Angeles Dodgers, but seemed primed for future success. Tim McCarver was emerging as a star catcher. Bob Gibson had his first big season in 1963, going 18–9. Veteran power hitters Bill White and Ken Boyer returned to help power the Redbirds, as did pitchers Ray Sadecki and Curt Simmons.
1964 saw the Cardinals without the best hitter in franchise history. Stan Musial, whose 3,630 career hits were second on the all-time list and remain fourth today, retired after the 1963 season, at the age of 42, after 22 years in St. Louis. His absence left a hole in the Cardinal lineup and in left field, and as the early weeks of the 1964 season passed, St. Louis hovered at the .500 mark. Cardinals GM Bing Devine, worried about both the team and his own job security, looked for a deal to make before the June 15 trading deadline. He consulted with manager Johnny Keane and they decided that the team needed more speed. Keane and Devine focused on Lou Brock, an outfielder with the Chicago Cubs that the Cardinals had scouted years before and who had struggled since coming to the big leagues.
...
Wikipedia