RetroSimba

Though known more for his skills with a glove than with a bat, Jim Davenport of the Giants delivered two standout hitting performances against a pair of Cardinals aces, future Hall of Famers Bob Gibson and Steve Carlton.

In a 1961 game versus Gibson, Davenport had three doubles and two walks in five plate appearances. In a 1968 game against Carlton, Davenport produced four singles in four at-bats.

Davenport also broke Cardinals third baseman Ken Boyer’s streak of winning National League Gold Glove awards. Boyer got the award in four consecutive seasons (1958-61) before Davenport won it in 1962. Boyer earned his fifth and final Gold Glove the next year.

Reliable player

Though not of the caliber of teammates Willie Mays, Willie McCovey and Orlando Cepeda, or of third base counterparts such as Boyer and Ron Santo of the Cubs, Davenport was a dependable fielder (he three times led NL third basemen in fielding percentage) and clutch hitter (career .285 batting average with runners in scoring position).

He had some of his biggest successes against the Cardinals.

A career .258 hitter for the Giants from 1958-70, Davenport batted .273 versus St. Louis, with 32 doubles.

Here is a look at three of Davenport’s best games against the Cardinals:

On base 5 times

Davenport, batting second, ahead of McCovey, Mays and Cepeda, was 3-for-3 (all doubles), two walks and three runs scored versus Gibson on Aug. 26, 1961, at St. Louis.

Gibson, hitting better than he pitched, had four RBI with a two-run double and two sacrifice flies in an 8-5 Cardinals victory. Gibson got the win even though he yielded 10 hits and six walks in 8.1. innings.

Davenport doubled in the first and third innings and walked in the fourth and seventh.

In the ninth, with the Cardinals ahead, 8-3, Davenport doubled with one out and McCovey followed with a 410-foot home run to right-center, getting the Giants within three at 8-5.

After Gibson walked Mays, Ed Bauta relieved and retired Cepeda and Hobie Landrith, earning a save and preserving the Cardinals’ sixth victory in a row. Boxscore

Davenport had a career .245 batting mark (12-for-49) against Gibson, with five doubles and seven walks.

Hard-hitting shortstop

Batting sixth and playing shortstop, Davenport was 4-for-4 with three doubles, a single, a sacrifice bunt, a RBI and a run scored for the Giants in their 10-5 victory in 10 innings at St. Louis on May 5, 1965.

Davenport had two doubles and a single off starter Tracy Stallard.

In the 10th, with the score tied at 5-5, Davenport doubled against Ray Washburn, sparking a five-run inning for the Giants. Davenport scored the go-ahead run when second baseman Phil Gagliano bobbled Ed Bailey’s grounder and threw wildly to home plate. Boxscore

Jim Ray Hart had replaced Davenport as the everyday third baseman for the 1965 Giants. Davenport started at shortstop that season in 32 games, second to Dick Schofield.

“Davenport isn’t just adequate at short _ he’s good there,” Giants manager Herman Franks told The Sporting News.

Tough on left-handers

Batting second, Davenport was 4-for-4 against Carlton in the Giants’ 3-0 victory at St. Louis on July 18, 1968.

Davenport singled off Carlton in the first, third, fifth and seventh innings. He grounded out facing Ron Willis in the ninth. Boxscore

A lifetime .299 hitter versus left-handers, Davenport batted .364 (8-for-22) in his career against Carlton. All the hits were singles.

The loss snapped a six-game winning streak for the front-running Cardinals, but they still were 13 ahead of the fourth-place Giants.

Before the game, Franks told United Press International, “I’ll resign if the Giants don’t finish first.”

The Giants finished second, nine behind the champion Cardinals.

Clyde King, a former instructor and manager in the Cardinals’ system, replaced Franks as manager of the 1969 Giants.

Previously: The story of Bob Gibson, Gaylord Perry and a slam

Previously: Clyde King mentored young Cardinals of 1960s