60 years later, Don Drysdale still tops Los Angeles Dodger Postseason Game Scores

Phil Gurnee ♦ October 4, 2023 ♦ Leave a comment

As we look to the 2023 LAD postseason, let's take a look at the top LAD postseason game scores again. I did this back in 2014 right after the Dodgers had lost to the Cardinals in the NLDS and the best pitcher in baseball at the time did not make the list.

Nine years later, Clayton Kershaw not only made the list, but he came within one game score point of knocking the leader Don Drysdale off the top of the LAD postseason game score leaderboard. In 2014 only nine games were on this leaderboard, but as we head into the 2023 postseason there are now twelve, with Clayton making the list twice and his teammate Walker Buehler joins him. 

Before we show you the leaderboard here is how a game score is calculated.
Start with 50 points.
Add one point for each out recorded, so three points for every complete inning pitched.
Add two points for each inning completed after the fourth.
Add one point for each strikeout.
Subtract two points for each hit allowed.
Subtract four points for each earned run allowed.
Subtract two points for each unearned run allowed.
Subtract one point for each walk.
In Clayton Kershaws first start of the 2014 postseason he entered the 7th inning with a game score of:

50 + 18 + 6 + 8 – 4 – 8= 70

Three more outs in modest fashion and who knows what Oct 2014 would have brought Dodger fans, but as Dodger fans learned the hard way, post season baseball is not six innings.

You can also bet, that no starting pitcher for the Dodgers in 2023 will crack this list, as we will be lucky to see any of them, even go six innings.
                                                                        
Player            GmScV  Rd. Gm       Date Opp     Result  IP H ER BB SO
Don Drysdale       89.0   WS  3 1963-10-05 NYY      W 1-0 9.0 3  0  1  9
Clayton Kershaw    88.0 NLWC  2 2020-10-01 MIL      W 3-0 8.0 3  0  1 13
Sandy Koufax       88.0   WS  7 1965-10-14 MIN      W 2-0 9.0 3  0  3 10
Sandy Koufax       88.0   WS  5 1965-10-11 MIN      W 7-0 9.0 4  0  1 10
Orel Hershiser     87.0   WS  2 1988-10-16 OAK      W 6-0 9.0 3  0  2  8
Don Sutton         84.0 NLCS  1 1974-10-05 PIT      W 3-0 9.0 4  0  1  6
Clayton Kershaw    81.0 NLDS  2 2018-10-05 ATL      W 3-0 8.0 2  0  0  3
Tommy John         81.0 NLCS  2 1978-10-05 PHI      W 4-0 9.0 4  0  2  4
Walker Buehler     80.0   WS  3 2018-10-26 BOS W 3-2 (18) 7.0 2  0  0  7
Jose Lima          80.0 NLDS  3 2004-10-09 STL      W 4-0 9.0 5  0  1  4
Orel Hershiser     80.0 NLCS  7 1988-10-12 NYM      W 6-0 9.0 5  0  2  5
Burt Hooton        80.0   WS  2 1977-10-12 NYY      W 6-1 9.0 5  1  1  8


Provided by Stathead.com: View Stathead Tool Used
Generated 10/4/2023.

Have to admit, this list surprised me just a tad.  I fully expected Sandy Koufax to top the list with either his legendary game seven victory over the Twins in 1965, or his very first World Series start against the Yankees in 1963 when he struck out 15.

Yet it is a different HOF who tops the list. Don Drysdale by the skin of his teeth takes the top honors with his 1 - 0 whitewashing of the Yankees in game three of the 1963 Yankees.

Game score tells you who statistically pitched the best game but it does not have any idea of context. When Don Drysdale whitewashed the Yankees in 1963 the Dodgers already had a  2 - 0 World Series lead, and the game was hardly a must win. What was significant, is that the game was the first World Series game ever played at Dodger Stadium, and what a way to break in a stadium that would eventually host a number of World Series games in the latter part of the 20th century.  Sandy Koufax and Johnny Podres had already dominated the 1962 World Champions, as they had only given up a combined three runs in the first two games. Don would take that a step further and win 1 - 0.  Sandy would finish up by beating Whitey Ford a second time 2 - 1 in game four.  The other point of interest in Don's game was that his opponent was Ball Four author Jim Bouton. Bouton only gave up one run, and that came in the first inning on a single by Tommy Davis, who drove in Jim Gilliam who had reached second on a walk and wild pitch. That would be the last mistake Jim Bouton would make but it would be all Don Drysdale would need.

If you want a more detailed look at the game, this is a great read

In the 1963 World Series the Dodgers made four starts, and only one relief pitcher saw any action.  Only four pitchers pitched in the 1963 World Series. Four.  Three of those games are on this list of all time postseason games. It would probably be understating the obvious to say the Dodger rotation of Koufax/Podres/Drysdale owned the Yankees. The Dodgers did to the Yankees what the Orioles rotation would do to the Dodgers in the 1966 World Series. If you want more info on the 1963 season, Eric Stephen has been doing a running series on the 1963 season, and today he wrote about this particular game.

Eventually I will get to my point, while Don Drysdale is on the top of this list, I don't think anyone would argue that Sandy Koufax in game seven of 1965 actually pitched the greatest game in LAD history. He not only shutout the vaunted offensive Twins in game seven. He not only shutout them out in Minneapolis . He did it on three days rest, after shutting out the Twins in game five. Sandy pitched three games in eight days, two of them shutouts, and saved his best for last, winning the World Championship game with the second highest game score ever recorded by a LA Dodger in the postseason.

There is a reason Sandy Koufax is a legend. He earned it from April - October.

While very few can say they saw Sandy and Don do their magic, the majority of us can point to 1988 and remember Orel shutting down the bash brother Oakland A's.  The A's were still a potent team, when Orel carved out their heart in game two. He would later finish the job in game five, earning World Series MVP honors.

HOF Don Sutton had a reputation as big game pitcher. He started that reputation with his shutout of the Pirates in the 1974 NLCS.  Don would also win the close out game four. Note of interest, future Dodger Jerry Reuss was Don's opponent in the first and fourth game. In game one Reuss did well only giving up one run while losing 3 -0. Game four was a different story as the Dodgers pounded a multitude of Pirate pitchers for a 12 - 1 victory.

The Jose Lima game has been covered many times.

Leaving Burt Hooton, who always seems to be forgotten when discussing significant Dodger starters. I'll be honest, I remember Burt being chased by the Phillie fans in game four of NLCS more than I remember this gem he pitched against the Yankees in 1977.  Probably because the Dodgers would eventually lose the 1977 World Series and Hooton would be a big reason why when he was hammered in the game six elimination game. If fans of Burt Hooton would like Burt remembered more fondly, Burt probably should have pitched better in that game six. The Dodgers were able to bail him out in the NLCS game when his nerves abandoned him, but they could not do it a second time.

Walker Buehler was the 2nd LAD to crack this list since 2014 with his brilliant game three in the 2018 World Series. It would be the only game the Dodgers won in 2018.

So many other LAD have had great postseason games, so here is the extended list using a game score of 75 as the criteria.

It is nice to see that Kershaw is on the list two more times after being on it only once when I first ran the numbers in 2014. Other newcomers to the list since 2014 are old fan favorite Hyun Jin Ryu, not so much a fan favorite Max Scherzer, and Walker Buehler. 
                                                                               
Rk                Player GmScV  Rd. Gm       Date Opp     Result  IP H ER BB SO
13          Sandy Koufax  79.0   WS  1 1963-10-02 NYY      W 5-2 9.0 6  2  3 15
14          Sandy Koufax  79.0   WS  4 1963-10-06 NYY      W 2-1 9.0 6  1  0  8
15          Don Drysdale  78.0   WS  4 1965-10-10 MIN      W 7-2 9.0 5  2  2 11
16       Clayton Kershaw  78.0   WS  1 2017-10-24 HOU      W 3-1 7.0 3  1  0 11
17          Zack Greinke  78.0 NLDS  2 2014-10-04 STL      W 3-2 7.0 2  0  2  7
18            Don Sutton  78.0 NLCS  4 1974-10-09 PIT     W 12-1 8.0 3  1  1  7
19       Clayton Kershaw  78.0 NLCS  2 2016-10-16 CHC      W 1-0 7.0 2  0  1  6
20           Jerry Reuss  78.0 NLDS  5 1981-10-11 HOU      W 4-0 9.0 5  0  3  4
21   Fernando Valenzuela  78.0 NLDS  4 1981-10-10 HOU      W 2-1 9.0 4  1  1  4
22           Jerry Reuss  78.0 NLDS  2 1981-10-07 HOU L 0-1 (11) 9.0 5  0  2  3
23          Hyun Jin Ryu  77.0 NLDS  1 2018-10-04 ATL      W 6-0 7.0 4  0  0  8
24   Fernando Valenzuela  77.0 NLCS  5 1981-10-19 MON      W 2-1 8.2 3  1  3  6
25         Claude Osteen  77.0   WS  3 1965-10-09 MIN      W 4-0 9.0 5  0  2  2
26       Clayton Kershaw  76.0 NLDS  1 2013-10-03 ATL      W 6-1 7.0 3  1  3 12
27          Max Scherzer  76.0 NLDS  3 2021-10-11 SFG      L 0-1 7.0 3  1  1 10
28        Orel Hershiser  76.0   WS  5 1988-10-20 OAK      W 5-2 9.0 4  2  4  9
29           Jerry Reuss  76.0   WS  5 1981-10-25 NYY      W 2-1 9.0 5  1  3  6
30          Zack Greinke  75.0 NLCS  1 2013-10-11 STL L 2-3 (13) 8.0 4  2  1 10
31        Walker Buehler  75.0 NLDS  1 2019-10-03 WSN      W 6-0 6.0 1  0  3  8
32            Tommy John  75.0 NLCS  4 1977-10-08 PHI      W 4-1 9.0 7  1  2  8
33        Ramon Martinez  75.0 NLDS  1 1996-10-02 ATL L 1-2 (10) 8.0 3  1  3  6


Provided by Stathead.com: View Stathead Tool Used
Generated 10/4/2023.