Carl Erskine Was The Last Surviving Member of The 1955 World Series Champion Brooklyn Dodgers

Former MLB pitcher Carl Erskine who spent his entire 12-year big league career with the Dodgers (10 years in Brooklyn and two years in Los Angeles) passed away on Tuesday morning following a brief illness. He was 97. 

Born and raised in Anderson, Indiana, Erskine signed with the Dodgers in 1946 after serving in the U.S. Navy during WWII. Erskine would make his big-league debut with the Dodgers in 1948 and would pitch in five World Series - 1949, 1952, 1953, 1955 and 1956. All five of those World Series were against the New York Yankees. The Dodgers would come up short in each of those World Series except for 1955. Erskine was the last surviving member of the first Dodgers team to ever win a World Series. 

His best overall season came in 1953 when he won a career high 20 games although he would earn his only NL All-Star Team selection the following year. In Game 3 of the 1953 World Series, Erskine set a World Series record striking out 14 batters fanning Mickey Mantle all four times he came to the plate. This record would be surpassed a decade later by his Dodgers teammate Sandy Koufax in Game 1 of the 1963 World Series also against the Yankees and again in 1968 by St. Louis Cardinals legend Bob Gibson who struck out 17 Detroit Tigers in Game 1 of that Fall Classic. 

Erskine also tossed two career no-hitters. The first came on June 19, 1952 against the Chicago Cubs in front of only 7,732 fans at Ebbets Field striking out a single batter while walking one batter. His second career no-hitter came nearly four years later on May 12, 1956 against the archrival New York Giants. This no-hitter also took place at Ebbets Field, but this time around 17,395 fans were on hand to see the game. In 335 big league games (including 216 starts), Erskine went 122-78 with an even 4.00 ERA striking out 981 batters in 1637 innings pitched. 

After returning to Indiana, Erskine would become the father of son named Jimmy who was diagnosed with Down's Syndrome. Instead of institutionalizing his son, the Erskines strove to raise their son as a full member of society. Jimmy would later compete in the Special Olympics and his father spent more than half a century as a champion of the Special Olympics. 

Last year, Erskine was bestowed with the Buck O'Neil Award during the 2023 Baseball Hall of Fame ceremonies to commemorate his advocacy for persons with disabilities. Sadly, Jimmy would pass away last November at the age of 63. Nevertheless, it was remarkable considering that back in the 1960's a person diagnosed with Down's Syndrome had a life expectancy of 10 years. Erskine standing shoulder to shoulder with his son would be his most lasting legacy. R.I.P.