RetroSimba

While pitching to a Cardinals batter, Sandy Koufax was replaced by Ed Roebuck, who got the Dodgers out of a jam and went on to earn a win in an eight-inning relief effort.

Roebuck’s performance was one of several successes he experienced against the Cardinals in his 11 major-league seasons. Roebuck had a 9-1 career record versus St. Louis.

The right-handed relief pitcher won nine consecutive decisions against the Cardinals before he lost to them.

Rescue work

Roebuck signed with the Dodgers as an amateur free agent in 1949 and made his major-league debut with them in 1955. Roebuck’s first win versus the Cardinals came in his first career appearance against them on May 5, 1955. Boxscore

A sinkerball specialist, Roebuck earned five wins and 12 saves for the 1955 Dodgers, who won Brooklyn’s only World Series championship that year.

In 1956, both Koufax, 20, and Roebuck, 25, were in their second major-league season with the Dodgers.

On Aug. 5, 1956, Koufax brought a 2-3 record and 4.56 ERA into his start against the Cardinals in the second game of a doubleheader at Ebbets Field. After Koufax held the Cardinals scoreless in the top of the first, Duke Snider hit a three-run home run in the bottom half of the inning.

In the second, the first three Cardinals batters reached base against Koufax on singles by Rip Repulski and Wally Moon and a walk to Walker Cooper. After Koufax threw two pitches outside the strike zone to the next batter, Bobby Del Greco, manager Walter Alston yanked the erratic left-hander and brought in Roebuck.

Cardinals manager Fred Hutchinson countered by replacing Del Greco, a right-handed batter, with Charlie Peete, who batted left-handed. With the bases loaded and none out, Roebuck got Peete to ground into a double play, with Repulski scoring from third, and struck out pitcher Larry Jackson, ending the threat.

Roebuck held the Cardinals scoreless for the next four innings, surrendered a two-run home run to Rocky Nelson in the seventh, and shut out the Cardinals the rest of the way in a 5-3 Dodgers victory. Boxscore

Pennant pressure

Roebuck had his best seasons with the Dodgers in 1957 (8-2, eight saves), 1960 (8-3, eight saves) and 1962 (10-2, nine saves). On July 30, 1963, Roebuck was traded by the Dodgers to the Senators for infielder Marv Breeding. Nine months later, on April 21, 1964, the Senators sold Roebuck’s contract to the Phillies.

Joining a bullpen featuring closer Jack Baldschun, Roebuck contributed to the Phillies’ rise to the top of the National League standings in 1964. The first-place Phillies were 6.5 games ahead of their nearest pursuers, the Cardinals and Reds, with 12 to play, but went into a tailspin, enabling St. Louis to clinch the pennant on the season’s final day.

Roebuck pitched well even while the Phillies faltered. He had a 1.04 ERA in 10 September appearances and earned a win versus the Reds in his lone October game. Roebuck finished 5-3 with 12 saves and a 2.21 ERA in 60 appearances for the 1964 Phillies and was 1-0 with a save and 2.03 ERA in nine games versus St. Louis.

Roebuck was 9-1 with 10 saves in 61 career games pitched against the Cardinals. He made more appearances versus St. Louis than he did against any other team.

Beat the streak

On May 19, 1965, with the Phillies ahead, 6-5, the Cardinals scored twice in the bottom of the ninth, beating Roebuck for the only time. A headline in the Philadelphia Inquirer declared, “Cards Manage To Beat Roebuck After 10 Years.”

With one out, Curt Flood singled and advanced to third on Lou Brock’s single off the glove of second baseman Tony Taylor. After Brock swiped second, Mike Shannon, batting .107, laid off Roebuck’s low pitches and drew a walk, loading the bases.

“That’s why we haven’t been able to beat Roebuck _ we’ve been swinging at his bad pitches,” Cardinals manager Red Schoendienst said to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Cardinals pitching coach Joe Becker, who coached Roebuck with the Dodgers, said, “Roebuck would throw sinker, sinker, sinker and when he got ahead of the batter he’d put his pitches lower, lower and lower. He just wouldn’t give a guy a good ball to hit.”

Ken Boyer barely missed hitting a grand slam with a sacrifice fly to the center field wall, tying the score at 6-6, and Dick Groat’s groundball single to left drove in Brock from second with the winning run. Boxscore

“I look for the fastball all the time,” Groat told the Philadelphia Daily News. “That’s the only way I know how to hit.”

In a big-league career with the Dodgers (1955-58 and 1960-63), Senators (1963-64) and Phillies (1964-66), Roebuck was 52-31 with 62 saves.