Mickey Mantle's 50th Home Run Clinches the Pennant

On September 18, 1956, Mickey Mantle hit his 50th home run of the season in the 11th inning at Comiskey Park, giving the Yankees a 3-2 victory over the Chicago White Sox and clinching the American League pennant. It was the eighth pennant for New York in 10 seasons, and Mantle delivered the blow that settled it.

Mantle became the eighth player in major league history to reach 50 home runs in a season. He finished the year with 52, along with a .353 batting average and 130 RBIs, winning the Triple Crown. He also led the league in runs scored (132), slugging percentage (.705), and total bases (376). Voters gave him the American League Most Valuable Player award.

The 1956 season was the peak of Mantle's career by the numbers, though injuries had already begun the erosion that would define his later years. He had torn his right knee during the 1951 World Series as a rookie, and the damage never fully healed. By 1956, at 24 years old, he was playing through pain that would have sidelined most players.

Only 10,312 fans were at Comiskey Park to see the pennant-clinching blast. The Yankees went on to face the Brooklyn Dodgers in the World Series, where Don Larsen threw his perfect game in Game 5. Mantle contributed a home run in that game too, providing the insurance run that sealed the only perfecto in postseason history.