Oct. 30, 1963 - Sandy Koufax, the southpaw ace of the world champion Dodgers, has come through with another strike — he was named today as the National League’s Most Valuable Player. Already winner of the Cy Young Award, emblematic of pitching supremacy in the majors, the 27-year-old Brooklyn-born Koufax amassed 14 first-place votes and 237 total votes to win by a landslide margin over runner-up Dick Groat of the Cardinals, who tallied four first-place votes and 190 points. Koufax thus became the second pitcher to win both awards in the same year. Don Newcombe, a right-hander, did it with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1956, the first year of the Cy Young Award. Koufax’s two stunning victories over the Yankees in the World Series did not influence the voting, since all ballots were cast before the Series began. It was with modesty and gratitude that Sandy received news of the latest feather in his cap. “Oh, thank you,” Koufax said. “I didn’t think I was going to win it because I didn’t think a pitcher would get the vote. I felt Dick Groat would be up there, but I’m amazed that Junior Gilliam didn’t finish higher than sixth. Junior never gets what he deserves. He deserved to be higher.” Sandy succeeds teammate Maury Wills as the league MVP. Here are the top ten finalists for National League MVP Award:
1. Sandy Koufax — Los Angeles
2. Dick Groat — St. Louis
3. Henry Aaron — Milwaukee
4. Ron Perranoski — Los Angeles
5. Willie Mays — San Francisco
6. Jim Gilliam — Los Angeles
7. Bill White — St. Louis
8. Tommy Davis — Los Angeles
9. Ron Santo — Chicago
10. Vada Pinson — Cincinnati
