Carl Erskine, Brooklyn Dodgers great who pitched first MLB game in Los Angeles, dies at 97

Carl Erskine, Brooklyn Dodgers great who pitched first MLB game in Los Angeles, dies at 97

Carl Erskine, an All-Star right-hander who pitched in five World Series as a member of the Brooklyn Dodgers, threw multiple no-hitters, and started the first Major League Baseball game hosted in Los Angeles, has died, the team announced Tuesday. He was 97 years old.

“Carl was an All-Star, a World Series Champion, a true ally to Jackie Robinson and more in the pursuit of equality, and a pioneering advocate for those with special needs, inspired by his son, Jimmy,” the Dodgers said in a statement. “We send our sincere sympathies and best wishes to his family.”

Erskine pitched in parts of 12 big-league seasons, all with the Dodgers. He compiled a 4.00 ERA (101 ERA+) and a 1.52 strikeout-to-walk ratio. His contributions were worth an estimated 13.9 Wins Above Replacement, according to Baseball Reference.

Erskine made the 1954 All-Star Game and he even received downballot consideration for the Most Valuable Player Award in 1953, a season during which he won 20 games and posted a 121 ERA+ in 246 innings pitched.

Erskine threw a pair of no-hitters for Brooklyn. The first came in 1952 against the Chicago Cubs, the second in 1956 against the New York Giants. To this day, he’s one of 35 pitchers with multiple no-nos to their name.

A near-constant fixture in the World Series during his career, Erskine made at least one appearance in each of the 1949, 1952, 1953, 1955, and 1956 Fall Classics. The Dodgers won the 1955 Series, rewarding Erskine with his only championship ring.

Erskine would pitch in parts of two seasons with the Dodgers following their relocation from Brooklyn to California. He received the honors of starting on April 18, 1958 against the San Francisco Giants, in the first MLB game hosted in Los Angeles. Erskine earned the win that day in front of more than 78,000 fans.

After retiring from professional baseball, Erskine would become chairman of the Indiana Bankers Association, among other financial jobs. He served for more than a decade as the head coach at Anderson College, according to SABR.

Erskine was also known as a proponent for human rights. He claimed to have seen a lynching rope as a child as part of Roger Kahn’s book “The Boys of Summer.” His beliefs were also influenced by a childhood friendship with future Harlem Globetrotter “Jumping” Johnny Wilson. In his book “Tales from the Dodgers Dugout,” Erskine recounts how Jackie Robinson thanked him for stopping to talk to his wife Rachel and son Jack in front of the Ebett Field crowd.

Erskine wrote that he responded to Robinson’s gratitude by saying, “Hey, Jackie, you can congratulate me on a well pitched game, but not for that.”