# 1955 Chicago White Sox season

The 1955 Chicago White Sox season was the team's 55th season in the major leagues, and its 56th season overall. The White Sox started the season with a plus 40 run-differential in their first 8 games. Good for 2nd best in the modern era. They finished with a record of 91–63, good enough for third place in the American League, 5 games behind the first place New York Yankees.

## Offseason

* December 6, 1954: Leo Cristante, Ferris Fain, and Jack Phillips were traded by the White Sox to the Detroit Tigers for Walt Dropo, Ted Gray and Bob Nieman.
* December 6, 1954: Don Ferrarese, Don Johnson, Matt Batts, and Fred Marsh were traded by the White Sox to the Baltimore Orioles for Bob Chakales, Jim Brideweser and Clint Courtney.
* February 10, 1955: Lloyd Merriman was purchased by the White Sox from the Cincinnati Redlegs.
* Prior to 1955 season (exact date unknown)
** Vito Valentinetti was acquired from the White Sox by the Charleston Senators.
** Jim McAnany was signed as an amateur free agent by the White Sox.

## Regular season
### Season standings

vteAmerican League :
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
| New York Yankees | 96 | 58 | .623 | — | 52‍–‍25 | 44‍–‍33 |
| Cleveland Indians | 93 | 61 | .604 | 3 | 49‍–‍28 | 44‍–‍33 |
| Chicago White Sox | 91 | 63 | .591 | 5 | 49‍–‍28 | 42‍–‍35 |
| Boston Red Sox | 84 | 70 | .545 | 12 | 47‍–‍31 | 37‍–‍39 |
| Detroit Tigers | 79 | 75 | .513 | 17 | 46‍–‍31 | 33‍–‍44 |
| Kansas City Athletics | 63 | 91 | .409 | 33 | 33‍–‍43 | 30‍–‍48 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 57 | 97 | .370 | 39 | 30‍–‍47 | 27‍–‍50 |
| Washington Senators | 53 | 101 | .344 | 43 | 28‍–‍49 | 25‍–‍52 |

### Record vs. opponents

1955 American League recordvte Sources: :
| Team | BAL | BOS | CWS | CLE | DET | KCA | NYY | WSH |
| Baltimore | — | 8–14 | 10–12–1 | 3–19 | 9–13 | 10–12–1 | 3–19 | 14–8 |
| Boston | 14–8 | — | 9–13 | 11–11 | 13–9 | 14–8 | 8–14 | 15–7 |
| Chicago | 12–10–1 | 13–9 | — | 10–12 | 14–8 | 14–8 | 11–11 | 17–5 |
| Cleveland | 19–3 | 11–11 | 12–10 | — | 12–10 | 17–5 | 13–9 | 9–13 |
| Detroit | 13–9 | 9–13 | 8–14 | 10–12 | — | 12–10 | 10–12 | 17–5 |
| Kansas City | 12–10–1 | 8–14 | 8–14 | 5–17 | 10–12 | — | 7–15 | 13–9 |
| New York | 19–3 | 14–8 | 11–11 | 9–13 | 12–10 | 15–7 | — | 16–6 |
| Washington | 8–14 | 7–15 | 5–17 | 13–9 | 5–17 | 9–13 | 6–16 | — |

### Opening Day lineup

* Chico Carrasquel, SS
* Nellie Fox, 2B
* Minnie Miñoso, LF
* George Kell, 3B
* Jim Rivera, CF
* Walt Dropo, 1B
* Willard Marshall, RF
* Sherm Lollar, C
* Virgil Trucks, P

### Notable transactions

* April 16, 1955: Lloyd Merriman was purchased by the Chicago Cubs from the Chicago White Sox.
* June 7, 1955: Bob Chakales, Clint Courtney and Johnny Groth were traded by the White Sox to the Washington Senators for Jim Busby.

### Roster
## Player stats
### Batting

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; 2B = Doubles; 3B = Triples; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; BB = Base on balls; SO = Strikeouts; AVG = Batting average; SB = Stolen bases
| Player | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | AVG | SB |
| Bobby Adams, 3B | 28 | 21 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 4 | .095 | 0 |
| Earl Battey, C | 5 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | .286 | 0 |
| Jim Brideweser, SS | 34 | 58 | 6 | 12 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 7 | .207 | 0 |
| Jim Busby, CF | 99 | 337 | 38 | 82 | 13 | 4 | 1 | 27 | 25 | 37 | .243 | 7 |
| Chico Carrasquel, SS | 145 | 523 | 83 | 134 | 11 | 2 | 11 | 52 | 61 | 59 | .256 | 1 |
| Phil Cavarretta, 1B | 6 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 | 0 |
| Gil Coan, RF | 17 | 17 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | .176 | 0 |
| Clint Courtney, C | 19 | 37 | 7 | 14 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 7 | 0 | .378 | 0 |
| Walt Dropo, 1B | 141 | 453 | 55 | 127 | 15 | 2 | 19 | 79 | 42 | 71 | .280 | 0 |
| Sammy Esposito, 3B | 3 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .000 | 0 |
| Nellie Fox, 2B | 154 | 636 | 100 | 198 | 28 | 7 | 6 | 59 | 38 | 15 | .311 | 7 |
| Johnny Groth, CF | 32 | 77 | 13 | 26 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 11 | 6 | 13 | .338 | 1 |
| Ron Jackson, 1B | 40 | 74 | 10 | 15 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 8 | 22 | .203 | 1 |
| Stan Jok, 3B | 6 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | .250 | 0 |
| George Kell, 3B,1B | 128 | 429 | 44 | 134 | 24 | 1 | 8 | 81 | 51 | 36 | .312 | 2 |
| Bob Kennedy, 3B,RF | 83 | 214 | 28 | 65 | 10 | 2 | 9 | 43 | 16 | 16 | .304 | 0 |
| Sherm Lollar, C | 138 | 426 | 67 | 111 | 13 | 1 | 16 | 61 | 68 | 34 | .261 | 2 |
| Willard Marshall, RF,LF | 22 | 41 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 13 | 1 | .171 | 0 |
| Ed McGhee, CF,LF | 26 | 13 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | .077 | 2 |
| Lloyd Merriman, PH | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 |
| Minnie Miñoso, LF,RF | 139 | 517 | 79 | 149 | 26 | 7 | 10 | 70 | 76 | 43 | .288 | 19 |
| Les Moss, C | 32 | 59 | 5 | 15 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 6 | 10 | .254 | 0 |
| Bob Nieman, RF,LF | 99 | 272 | 36 | 77 | 11 | 2 | 11 | 53 | 36 | 37 | .283 | 1 |
| Ron Northey, RF | 14 | 14 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 3 | .357 | 0 |
| Buddy Peterson, SS | 6 | 21 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 2 | .286 | 0 |
| Bob Powell, PR | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 |
| Jim Rivera, RF,CF | 147 | 454 | 71 | 120 | 24 | 4 | 10 | 52 | 62 | 59 | .264 | 25 |
| Vern Stephens, 3B | 22 | 56 | 10 | 14 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 11 | .250 | 0 |
| Ed White, RF | 3 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | .500 | 0 |
| Player | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | AVG | SB |
| Harry Byrd, P | 25 | 30 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | .067 | 0 |
| Bob Chakales, P | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | 0 |
| Sandy Consuegra, P | 44 | 29 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 8 | .103 | 0 |
| Dick Donovan, P | 40 | 76 | 10 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 9 | 26 | .224 | 0 |
| Fritz Dorish, P | 13 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .333 | 0 |
| Mike Fornieles, P | 28 | 29 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | .103 | 0 |
| Jack Harshman, P | 32 | 60 | 6 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 9 | 17 | .183 | 0 |
| Dixie Howell, P | 35 | 21 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8 | .381 | 0 |
| Connie Johnson, P | 19 | 33 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 7 | .152 | 0 |
| Bob Keegan, P | 18 | 18 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | .333 | 0 |
| Morrie Martin, P | 37 | 10 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .300 | 0 |
| Al Papai, P | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 | 0 |
| Billy Pierce, P | 34 | 70 | 5 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 3 | 10 | .171 | 1 |
| Virgil Trucks, P | 32 | 64 | 2 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 12 | .125 | 0 |
| Team Totals | 155 | 5220 | 725 | 1401 | 204 | 36 | 116 | 677 | 568 | 595 | .268 | 69 |

### Pitching

Note: W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; SV = Saves; IP = Innings pitched; H = Hits allowed; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; HR = Home runs allowed; BB = Walks allowed; K = Strikeouts
| Player | W | L | ERA | G | GS | SV | IP | H | R | ER | HR | BB | K |
| Harry Byrd | 4 | 6 | 4.65 | 25 | 12 | 1 | 91.0 | 85 | 49 | 47 | 10 | 34 | 44 |
| Bob Chakales | 0 | 0 | 1.46 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 12.1 | 11 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 7 | 6 |
| Sandy Consuegra | 6 | 5 | 2.64 | 44 | 7 | 7 | 126.1 | 120 | 42 | 37 | 4 | 25 | 35 |
| Dick Donovan | 15 | 9 | 3.32 | 29 | 24 | 0 | 187.0 | 186 | 77 | 69 | 17 | 53 | 88 |
| Fritz Dorish | 2 | 0 | 1.59 | 13 | 0 | 1 | 17.0 | 16 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 6 |
| Mike Fornieles | 6 | 3 | 3.86 | 26 | 9 | 2 | 86.1 | 84 | 37 | 37 | 12 | 32 | 23 |
| Ted Gray | 0 | 0 | 18.00 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3.0 | 9 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| Jack Harshman | 11 | 7 | 3.36 | 32 | 23 | 0 | 179.1 | 144 | 74 | 67 | 16 | 100 | 116 |
| Dixie Howell | 8 | 3 | 2.93 | 35 | 0 | 9 | 73.2 | 70 | 27 | 24 | 1 | 30 | 25 |
| Connie Johnson | 7 | 4 | 3.45 | 17 | 16 | 0 | 99.0 | 95 | 40 | 38 | 5 | 52 | 72 |
| Bob Keegan | 2 | 5 | 5.83 | 18 | 11 | 0 | 58.2 | 83 | 39 | 38 | 4 | 29 | 29 |
| Morrie Martin | 2 | 3 | 3.63 | 37 | 0 | 2 | 52.0 | 50 | 27 | 21 | 4 | 22 | 22 |
| Al Papai | 0 | 0 | 3.86 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 11.2 | 10 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 10 | 5 |
| Billy Pierce | 15 | 10 | 1.97 | 33 | 26 | 1 | 205.2 | 162 | 50 | 45 | 16 | 69 | 157 |
| Virgil Trucks | 13 | 8 | 3.96 | 32 | 26 | 0 | 175.0 | 176 | 78 | 77 | 19 | 66 | 91 |
| Team Totals | 91 | 63 | 3.37 | 155 | 155 | 23 | 1378.0 | 1301 | 557 | 516 | 111 | 541 | 720 |

## Farm system

| Level | Team | League | Manager |
| AA | Memphis Chicks | Southern Association | Jack Cassini and Ted Lyons |
| A | Colorado Springs Sky Sox | Western League | Jack Conway |
| B | Waterloo White Hawks | Illinois–Indiana–Iowa League | Dutch Dorman and Willard Marshall |
| C | Superior Blues | Northern League | Walt Novick |
| D | Madisonville Miners | KITTY League | Bill Close |
| D | Dubuque Packers | Mississippi–Ohio Valley League | Ira Hutchinson |