RIP: Ralph Branca dies at 90

Ralph Branca, beloved Brooklyn Dodgers pitcher who gave up ‘Shot Heard ‘Round the World’ home run, dead at 90

The New York Daily News
November 23, 2016

Ralph Branca, who gave up one of the most famous home runs in baseball history, died Wednesday morning. Ex-Mets manager Bobby Valentine, who is married to Branca's daughter Mary, shared the news on Twitter.

"One of the greatest guys to ever throw a pitch or sing a song is (no) longer with us," Valentine tweeted. "Ralph Branca Passed this morning. "In his 91st year on Earth he left us with the same dignity and grace that defined his everyday on earth. He will be truly missed!!!"

Branca, the Mount Vernon product, was 90.

On October 3, 1951, Branca gave up Bobby Thomson's "Shot Heard 'Round the World," a 3-run homer as the Giants beat Branca's Dodgers at the Polo Grounds in the ninth inning of a National League playoff game. Thomson's heroics put the Giants into the World Series.

"I take it as it comes," Branca told Lupica in 1986 about his infamous pitch. "If I feel like getting into it, I do. If I don't, I don't. You find out a lot about people by who brings it up and who doesn't."

Branca, a three-time All-Star, spent the first 11 seasons of his big-league career with the Dodgers. He also pitched for the Tigers and Yankees. Signed as an amateur free agent in 1943 out of New York University, Branca had a career record of 88-68 with a 3.79 ERA.

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