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Ralph Branca Autographs, Memorabilia & Collectibles

RALPH BRANCA
Born: January 06, 1926 in Mount Vernon, New York
Died: November 23, 2016 in Rye, New York
Biography | show moreshow less
Ralph Theodore Joseph Branca was born on January 6, 1926, in Mount Vernon, New York and he was an American professional baseball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1944 to 1956.

Branca attended A. B. Davis High School in Mount Vernon, New York, and later studied at New York University, where he played baseball and basketball. He reached the major leagues with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1944 at age 18. A right-handed pitcher, he became one of the Dodgers’ leading starters during the late 1940s. His strongest season came in 1947, when he won 21 games and helped Brooklyn win the National League pennant. He was selected to three consecutive All-Star teams from 1947 to 1949.

Branca played for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Detroit Tigers, and New York Yankees before returning briefly to Brooklyn in 1956. His career record was 88 wins and 68 losses, with a 3.79 earned run average and 829 strikeouts.

He is closely associated with the final game of the 1951 National League tie-breaker series between the Dodgers and the New York Giants. On October 3, 1951, Branca entered in relief and gave up Bobby Thomson’s game-ending home run, later known as the “Shot Heard ’Round the World,” which sent the Giants to the World Series.

Branca was also a teammate and supporter of Jackie Robinson during Robinson’s first major league season in 1947. Later in life, Branca became friends with Thomson, made public appearances connected with baseball history, and wrote the memoir A Moment in Time.
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