This was the first year New Yorkers had only one local team to root for; both the Giants and the Dodgers were now playing their
home games more than 3,000 miles (4,800 km) away (in
San Francisco and
Los Angeles
respectively). Both returnees to the Series had no problems repeating
as league champions during the regular season. Milwaukee coasted to an
eight-game lead over the
Pittsburgh Pirates in the
National League and the Yanks bested the
Chicago White Sox by ten games in the American. With no pennant race in either league, managers
Casey Stengel of the Yankees and
Fred Haney of the Braves could rest their aces in preparation for an exciting repeat of the 1957 World Series.