
This post-playing career success overshadows Brown's success as a player. Though he was not a regular player during his career which spanded from 1946-1954, he was heavily depended on during the Yankees World Series run. Playing as a 3B in the World Series in 1949-1951, he got a large chunk of playing time. As a 22 year old, in 1947, he was 3-3 as a pinch hitter in the World Series victory over the Brooklyn Dodgers. Two of his hits were 2Bs, he drove in three runs and managed to score two more. His other AB resulted in a walk. He kept up his success during the 1949 Series as he went 6-12 with a 2B, 2 3Bs, 5 RBI and 4 more RS. In the 1950 and 1951 World Series, he was a combined 9-24 with 2 2Bs, 1 3B, 1 RBI and 3 more RS. That put his World Series career numbers at 18-41, 9 RS, 5 2B, 3 3B, 9 RBI and .439 AVG. That is the highest average in the history of the World Series for a batter with 40 or more ABs. He also managed a 1.207 OPS, as he added 5 BB to his 8 extra base hits.
Nowadays, it doesn't make much sense to separate numbers in the different postseason series. When evaluating players like Carlos Beltran and Albert Pujols; those who have had great postseason numbers, their performance in the DS and CS factor in heavily. Beltran has yet to play in a World Series game, but is considered a very good postseason player. But guys like Mickey Mantle and Yogi Berra were known as WS stars. Reggie Jackson had his moment in the 1977 World Series and managed to win five in his career. Even Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera don't stand out for what they did in just the World Series. Brown had all his success in just the World Series, as divisional play did not start until 1969 and a second round of league playoffs did not start until 1995.
Obviously, like many others, Brown's chances of playing in the World Series were increased severely by the fact that he played for the Yankees. From 1936-1953, the Yankees won 12 World Series Championships and lost one (1942 to the St Louis Cardinals). Thats 13 World Series appearances in 18 years! But that does not take away from what Brown did in the his 4 fall classics. Because of the expanded playoff format though, another player with such success may not be noted. It is just as important for teams to get through the first two rounds (plus the wild card round if necessary) to even get to the World Series. Perhaps a player who just shines in the World Series may be doing his team a disservice if he struggles in the DS or CS.