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The 1959 National League tie-breaker series was a best-of-three playoff series at the conclusion of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1959 regular season to decide the winner of the National League (NL) pennant. The games were played on September 28 and 29, 1959, between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Milwaukee Braves. The first game was played at Milwaukee County Stadium and the second took place at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The playoff series was necessary after both teams finished the season with identical win–loss records of 86–68. The Dodgers won a coin flip late in the season that gave them home field advantage for the series, although the series did not reach a third game. Following a rain-delayed start, the Dodgers won Game 1 by a close 3–2 score, with a home run by John Roseboro providing the margin of victory. The Dodgers then won the series and the pennant with another close victory in Game 2; they came back from a three-run deficit to tie the game in the ninth and then ultimately defeated the Braves, 6–5, in extra innings. This victory advanced the Dodgers to the 1959 World Series, in which they defeated the Chicago White Sox, four games to two. In baseball statistics, the tie-breaker series counted as the 155th and 156th regular-season games for both teams, with all events in the series added to regular-season statistics. ==Background== The Dodgers had a poor 1958 season, posting a 71–83 win-loss record, finishing in seventh place (out of eight teams) in the NL, and never holding the league lead. By contrast the Braves won the NL that year with a 92–62 record and advanced to the 1958 World Series where the New York Yankees defeated them in seven games. Despite their success the Braves made several changes leading into the 1959 season. First, they selected Jim Pisoni in the Rule 5 Draft from the Yankees in December 1958, although he returned to the Yankees by May 1959. The Braves then traded with the Philadelphia Phillies for Ted Kazanski, Stan Lopata, and Johnny O'Brien just prior to the season. Finally, the Braves traded for Mickey Vernon from the Cleveland Indians and selected Bobby Ávila, Ray Boone, and Enos Slaughter off of waivers during the 1959 season. The Dodgers traded for Rip Repulski and Wally Moon during the offseason and then acquired Chuck Churn, Solly Drake, and Chuck Essegian during the year. The NL race was tight throughout the 1959 season between the Braves, Dodgers, and San Francisco Giants. Neither the Giants nor the Braves ever fell five or more games back of the league leader, and the Dodgers never faced a deficit of six or more. The Dodgers had the best record in games played amongst the three, posting a combined 26–18 record against the other two before the tie-breaker.〔 However, the Dodgers spent just 21 days with at least a share of the lead while the Braves and Giants each led the league for 86 days.〔〔〔 The Giants led the National League by two games on September 17, 1959 over the Dodgers and Braves who were tied.〔 However, the Giants were swept by the Dodgers over their next three games, including a doubleheader which the ''Los Angeles Times'' described as a "breeze" for Los Angeles. Giants' starting pitcher Sam Jones threw a no-hitter on September 26, 1959 which was cut short by rain in the eighth inning for his 21st win of the season. The Giants had considered pitching Jack Sanford in that game due to Jones' recent heavy pitching workload. Because the game was shortened to less than nine innings it is no longer considered an official no-hitter.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=MLB Miscellany: Rules, regulations and statistics )〕 The rain also forced the second game of the Giants' scheduled doubleheader that day to be moved, leaving them with two games to play on the final day of the season.〔 The Giants needed to win both games and have the Braves and Dodgers both lose to tie for the lead, but the Giants lost both.〔〔 Jones' no-hitter was the Giants' only win for the season after September 17 as the team went 1–7 over that span, going from a two game lead to a three game deficit by season's end.〔 The Braves and Dodgers went 6–4 over that period to maintain their tie.〔〔 This included a five-hit complete game by Warren Spahn to win the Braves' final game of the season 3–2. This was Spahn's 21st win of the season and 267th of his career, breaking Eppa Rixey's record for most wins by a left-handed pitcher.〔 Both the Dodgers and Braves finished the regularly scheduled 154-game season tied with records of 86–68, forcing a tie-breaker to decide the pennant winner. The two team's managers flipped a coin to decide home field advantage and Dodgers' manager Walt Alston won. The Dodgers opted to play the second and third (if necessary) games at home, choosing to play Game 1 in Milwaukee. The tie-breaker was scheduled for the 28th, 29th, and the 30th if necessary, which required moving the start of the World Series from the 30th to October 1.〔 The Giants falling out of the pennant race avoided a potentially disruptive situation involving their home field. Candlestick Park was under construction during the 1959 season and the Giants would not begin play there until 1960. However, Giants vice president Chub Feeney had said earlier in the season that if the Giants won the pennant they would play their World Series home games in Candlestick. Several potential problems were suggested with this move including a lack of seating, lack of toilet facilities, and insufficient access roads to the stadium.〔 The Dodgers were 12–10 against the Braves overall for the season, though the Braves actually outscored them by a single run (96 to 95) in those games. The Braves were a 5–8 betting favorite in Las Vegas on September 25 to win the pennant while the Dodgers had 6–5 odds. The World Series odds were evenly split, with 11–10 odds available at that time for either the Chicago White Sox (the American League champion) or the eventual NL pennant winner.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「1959 National League tie-breaker series」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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