Giant Great Bobby Thomson 'Shot Heard Round the World' Dies

sf1giantfan · 2010-08-17T12:22:36-07:00

I know all of us on here were too young, to experience this, but it was the last year we won the WS. It's sad day for the Giants as a whole, but maybe this will push the team to win it all this year. I said "maybe". "THE GIANTS WIN THE PENNANT", "THE GIANTS WIN THE PENNANT", "THE GIANTS WIN THE PENNANT" Baseball legend Bobby Thomson, whose "shot heard 'round the world" capped a miracle comeback to win the 1951 National League pennant for the New York Giants over the rival Brooklyn Dodgers, has died. He was 86. Thomson, an outfielder, died on Monday at his home in Savannah, Georgia after years of declining health, his family announced this afternoon, according to the Staten Island Advance. Nicknamed the "Staten Island Scot" because he was born in Glasgow but moved to Richmond County as a child, Thomson played for the Giants from 1946 to 1953. He also played for the team during the 1957 season. Thomson would also go on to play for the Milwaukee Braves, Chicago Cubs, Boston Red Sox and Baltimore Orioles. A .270 career hitter, he became a legend for smacking the game-winning homer off Brooklyn Dodgers pitcher Ralph Branca in the playoffs to win the 1951 NL pennant. Thomson and Branca later became good friends and would often make appearances together at baseball card shows. The home run -- dubbed the "Shot Heard 'Round the World" -- is considered one of the most famous in baseball history. The death comes a month after right-handed pitcher Clint Hartung, who scored as a pinch-runner on Thomson's homer, died at age 87. http://www.foxnews.com/sports/2010/0...nd-world-dies/

Aug 17, 2010 at 6:00 PM

BigRon
Moderator
Posts: 712

As a point of clarification. WE did not win the Series that year. We won the NL Pennant but fell to the Yankees in the Series. We won in 54 not 51. So at least we have won a world series in my lifetime. Also the dogers had to pitch to Thompson because Mays was on deck.

Aug 17, 2010 at 6:19 PM

sf1giantfan
Member
Posts: 319

Originally posted by BigRon:
As a point of clarification. WE did not win the Series that year. We won the NL Pennant but fell to the Yankees in the Series. We won in 54 not 51. So at least we have won a world series in my lifetime. Also the dogers had to pitch to Thompson because Mays was on deck.

Ugh, you are right. Not sure what I was thinking. Perhaps my thinking was clouded with the pain I was feeling for losing a great Giant. 54 it was, which means it was not as long ago as I stated. Wish we still had players like that today.

Aug 18, 2010 at 5:36 PM

Ceadderman
Member
Posts: 245

We lost two Giants within a month of each other. As the article says Hartung passed away a month before. I don't mention this to be a know it all. But leading to scratching my head and wondering which player was 87? Or were they both 87?

~Ceadder