Top 5 Players of the 1940 World Series

Originally published on Apr. 19, 2019

By Zane Miller

On Tuesday, October 8th, 1940, the Cincinnati Reds defeated the Detroit Tigers at Crosley Field in Cincinnati to win the 37th World Series four games to three. It was the second World Series championship for the Reds franchise and the third that was won in Ohio. These are the top five players that I felt most stood out during the series.

5. #5 Hank Greenberg (Tigers)- LF

Greenberg earned player of the game in game five, hitting four RBIs with a pair of runs and three hits as the Tigers went on to win 8-0 to take the lead in the series.

4. #22 Jimmy Ripple (Reds)- LF

Ripple took player of the game in game two, nabbing a pair of RBIs along with a run and a hit in the Reds’ 5-3 victory over the Tigers.

3. #24 Ival Goodman (Reds)- RF

Goodman was game four’s player of the game, getting two RBIs with two runs and two hits as the Reds went on to win 5-2.

2. #30 Paul Derringer (Reds)- P

Derringer earned player of the game honors in game seven, pitching all nine innings with no earned runs on seven hits and three walks, as the Reds won it 2-1 to win the series championship.

1. #31 Bucky Walters (Reds)- P

Walters got player of the game in game six, as he pitched a complete game shutout with just five hits and two walks as the Reds staved off elimination and tied the series up with a 4-0 victory.

Players of the Game Breakdown:

Link to stats database: https://www.baseball-reference.com/postseason/1940_WS.shtml