Bob Gibson took a 4-hit shutout into the 9th, as the 1968 St. Louis Cardinals topped the 1963 Los Angeles Dodgers 4-2 to take Game 1 of the Elimination Bracket series. Johnny Podres pitched well for the Dodgers, but a couple of timely hits in the 1st inning led to a 2-out 2-run double by Mike Shannon that gave the Cardinals an early lead that they would never lose. A passed ball led to another run in the 3rd, and Roger Maris added a solo home run in the 6th. Podres only allowed 6 hits over 8 innings. Gibson took his shutout into the 9th, when Julián Javier rushed and made a poor throw to 1st to lead off the inning. Frank Howard followed with a 2-run homer. Gibson allowed just 6 hits in the complete game. The 1st three of those hits came off the bat of Ron Fairly.
