Solly Hemus begins as the new manager. On a game in April (16) he uses all 25 players as the Cardinals lose 7-6 to the Dodgers. A young pitcher by the name of Bob Gibson allows three hits in just one-third of an inning and struggled. In the game the previous day, he gave up two home runs in his major league debut.
Musial Breaks Doubles Record
Musial continues to rake as he smacks his 652nd double in his career on June 21st to break Honus Wagner NL record.
Gibson Gets First Win
It isn’t until July 30th that Bob Gibson gets his first major league win as he pitches a 1-0 shutout against the Cincinnati Reds.
On September 10th, 17-yr old catcher from Memphis, Tim McCarver makes his major league debut
Cunningham an All-Star
Joe Cunningham bats .345 and finishes second in the batting race as the Cardinals finish in seventh place with a 71-83 record.
Looking at Stats
Their 4.34 ERA was ranked worst in the National League.
There were some bright spots to the season. Larry Jackson and Lindy McDaniel, who found success and saved 15 games after an early-season move to the bullpen, each won a team-high 14 games. Also, third baseman Ken Boyer won a Gold Glove this year.