Roger Maris broke out of his slump to lead the 1961 New York Yankees over the 1962 San Francisco Giants in Game 1 of the World Series, hitting two homers to lead the offense. But it was his arm that really made the difference. Maris hit a solo home run in the 1st inning off Billy O’Dell. An RBI double by Tom Haller off Whitey Ford tied the game back up in the top of the 2nd. Moose Skowron was hit by a pitch and scored on Bob Cerv’s double to put the Yankees back on top. In the 5th, it was Maris again with another solo shot to extend the Yankees’ lead to 3-1. Willie Mays hit a solo homer of his own in the 6th to make it a one-run game. The pivotal moment came in the 8th when Tony Kubek’s throwing error put Mays on 2nd with no outs. Willie McCovey grounded to 1st to move Mays to 3rd. Orlando Cepeda followed with a flyball to Maris in rightfield. Mays tagged on the play, but Maris rocketed a perfect throw to home, and Mays was called out on a close play. Ford closed out the 3-2 win with a perfect 9th inning to give the Yankees a 1-0 series lead. Ford allowed 8 hits and struck out 8 in the victory. Maris finished 3 for 4.
