Neal was one of the heroes of the 1959 World Series, hitting two home runs for the Dodgers in Game Two at Comiskey Park and driving in the winning run with the second, a two-run shot. For the Series, he hit .370 and slugged .667.
The versatile Neal came up as a second baseman in 1956, was a shortstop and occasional third baseman in 1957, and finally won the second-base job in 1958. He led NL second basemen in double plays that year and the next, also leading in putouts and fielding average in 1959. The Dodgers moved in 1958 to Los Angeles, where they played at the oddly shaped Coliseum, and that stadium’s 251′ left-field line accounted for Neal’s jump from 12 HR in 1957 to 22 (in 473 at-bats) in 1958. His best season came in 1959, when he made the All-Star team for the first time, hit 19 HR, and reached career highs in triples (11, tied with teammate Wally Moon for the NL lead), doubles (30), runs (103), RBI (83), steals (17), batting average (.287), and slugging average (.464). His offense and playing time declined after that, and he was obtained by the expansion Mets for the 1962 season, serving as their best infielder (no matter where he played) until he was traded to the Reds in mid-1963, his last season.
