Damon Runyon
Washington Herald/October 8, 1916
Battle Hard in Ninth, But Red Sox Win, 6 to 5
Braves Field, Boston, Mass., Oct. 7.—From the shadow of a five-run lead, the Brooklyn Dodgers swung a desperate ninth-inning charge against the Boston Red Sox in the first battle of the world series here this afternoon, only to finally stop just outside the breastworks of victory.
“Tessie,” the worn old war song of the Boston baseball rooters, is once more floating raggedly around the streets and hotel lobbies of the town tonight, for the final score was 6 to 5 in favor of the Red Sox.
The Dodgers went into the ninth inning with the score 6 to 1 against them. They were apparently beaten, broken, and in disorderly retreat.
People were walking out of the stands, making derisive comments on the showing of the Brooklyn club. It was a joke outfit, they said, and the Red Sox would take the championship of the baseball world in four games.
Shore Put to Rout
Then it was that the Dodgers turned and began fighting. Stolidly, phlegmatically, they fought, moving up run by run on the dashing champions of the American League, until they routed Shore, the great right-hander of the Sox, and needed but the slightest break in baseball fortune to put them in front.
There were 35,000 people in the stands when the game began, less than was expected. Probably a third of that number left, disgusted, after the seventh inning, when they saw the Dodger defense crumble.
Errors, errors, errors; errors by Cutshaw, by Olson, and by Stengel; errors of the hand and occasionally of the head—those were the reasons why everyone thought the cause of Brooklyn was wholly hopeless.
Rube Marquard, the former Giant, had pitched well against the Sox. He had pitched carefully, and with good judgment, but his support was too rickety.
The old fault of the Dodgers that was characteristic of them through the National League drive was marked in them today. The men seemed to be fearful they were going to lose, instead of confident that they would win, which was the attitude of the Red Sox.
Dodgers Lack “Punch”
In the vernacular of the world of sport, the Dodgers lacked the punch.
Shore was none too effective against them at any time. He went completely tpo pieces in the ninth, when the Dodgers were making their stolid rush. Even then Robinson’s men had no wallop. One hit by Chief Meyers, the Indian, once one of the greatest sluggers of his era, or by Fred Merkle, acting as a pinch hitter, or, finally, by Jack Daubert, captain of the Dodgers, would have put the Brooklyn club on the road to victory.
Merkle got a base on balls from Shore at a time when the bases were filled, forcing in a run for the Dodgers, and that finished the lank Carolina lad. He was succeeded by Carl Mays ad much of the credit for stopping the Dodgers must go to Mays.
He is a pitcher with the most singular delivery in the world.
It is called underhanded, but it is more than underhanded. Before he lets the ball go, Mays stoops so far over that his head is within a foot of the ground.
Weird Pitching Confuses
He pitches from that crouching position, the ball shooting up to the batter at weird angles. Erstaine Mayer, of the Phillies, pitches underhanded and the Dodgers were not wholly unfamiliar with that style, but Mays’ exaggerated underhandedness disconcerted Hap Myers and Daubert, the men who hit against him, to some extent.
Hap Myers pulled one of the very smartest plays of the game in the ninth inning when he beat an infield roller by a headlong slide into first. Had not Myers made that strange slide, the rally of the Dodgers would have stopped before it did.
It was not a good game—not for a world’s championship game, anyway. There were some slashing plays on both sides, but the baseball experts speak of it tonight as a sloppy exhibition.
Harry Hooper, the Californian, stood out, as is ever his custom in the championship contests, and Duffy Lewis, and Janvrin, and Clarence Walker, the man who took Tris Speaker’s place, did notable work.
Tessie Breaks the Air
It was nearly 2 o’clock when the band entered the right field stand. they broke into the strains of “Tessie.” A loud, long drawn “Ha Ha” arose from the crowd. It was the first time this afternoon that the old, old battle tune of the Boston baseball rooters had been raised.
Back in 1903, when it looked as if the Boston Red Sox were surely defeated by the Pittsburgh club, a devoted bunch of fans followed the home town team, start to finish, with a band that played nothing by “Tessie,” then a popular song of the day. It was forlorn hope the Sox put through that season, and always since then the Boston rooters have trailed them with the old tune. Boston has never yet lost a world series.
Shortly before 2 o’clock there was a conference of umpires at the plate. Rube Marquard was warming up in front of the Dodger bench. Carrigan had two pitchers working. One was Ernest Shore, the long right-hander, and the other was “Babe” Ruth, the sensational young left hander.
When Carrigan finished and picked Shore there was a murmur of surprise. It was thought he would surely start a left-hander.
There had been never any particle of doubt about Robinson’s intentions. He had Marquard, a seasoned man, and it would have been foolish to try with anyone else.
Hi Myers was the first man to face Shore.
Myers was plainly a bit nervous and he swung loosely at the first ball thrown by Shore, hitting it into the air back of the plate. It was an easy foul for Cady. Jake Daubert, once slugging champion of the National League, was even more nervous.
He fanned on three pitched balls, making it four in all that had left Shore’s hand to retire two men. Casey Stengel, the walloping outfielder, took a strike and then tapped a roller to Janvrin for an easy out at first
The top of the Dodger batting order, supposed to be about the strongest part, had looked so futile that the stands were buzzing when the clubs changed sides.
Harry Hooper, the Californian, one of the most dangerous hitters in the world in a big series, was the first to bat for the Sox. Marquard quickly slipped two strikes over on him. Then he wasted a couple, and finally Hooper fanned.
Harold Janvrin, once called the schoolboy phenomenon, but now a seasoned big league player, also struck out. Marquard’s fast ball seemed to be leaping and squirming like an eel. Clarence Walker, nicknamed “Tillie,” stepped to the plate on his first appearance in a world series and he seemed cool and collected.
He let the first two pitched balls go by and then smashed a triple to the left cnter, but Dick Hoblitzel, the former Cincinnati Red, rolled an easy grounder to Cutshaw and retired the side.
Azch Wheat got an infield hit in Brooklyn’s half of the second.
The next moment Cutshaw hit into a fast double play that passed from Janvrin to Scott and back to Hoblitzel. Lowrey walked and Ivy Olson, the fighting shortstop of the Dodgers, struck out.
Marquard worked with great caution on Duffy Lewis only to give him a base on balls.
Larry Gardner surprised the Dodger infield by bunting the ball, rolling in front of the plate. Meyers got it, but Gardner was easily safe at first and Lewis safe at second. The bunt went for a hit.
Scott, the thin shortfielder of the Sox, also bunted and Meyers leaped forward and got the ball, this time throwing Scott out at first. The other two runners advanced, however.
This brought up Forrest Cady, and Marquard, Myers and Robinson all remembered Forrest from 1912.
Meyers stepped to one side of the catcher’s box and Marquard purposely pitched four wide balls, passing Cady and filling the bases. It was good judgment, for Shore struck out.
The Rube then had Harry Hooper to deal with, and he pitched two wide of the plate before he put a ball in Hooper’s reach. The Californian reached out and clouted a high fly to center.
Meyers and Marquard were quickly retired by Shore, the former on a grounder, and the latter on strikes. Hi Myers singled, but Jake Daubert fanned.
In the next inning, Marquard fanned both Jannvier and Walker, and then Marquard got Hoblitzel down to a count of three and two. Hobby then tripled to right field.
Duffy Lewis did not wait for Marquard to work on him. He smashed the first ball that left Rube’s hand for a double across third base, the ball rolling to the bleachers wall. It was a two-bagger, and Hoblitzel scored the first run of the series.
However, Lewis took too much of a lead off second and Marquard turned quickly and made a throw to Olson. Lewis was out.
The run seemed to be the prod that Brooklyn needed. The Dodgers came to life very suddenly. Casey Stengel smashed a single across third, and Wheat tripled to the right field bleachers wall. Both hit the first pitched ball. Stengel scored on Wheat’s clout, and the Brooklyn fans had their chance to yell.
Harry Hooper now made a marvelous play. Cutshaw lifted a high fly to right that caught in the wind and seemed about to fall safe. Wheat set himself at third for a flying start.
Just as the ball was about to hit the ground Hooper flung himself forward and made a catch. He fell in a sitting posture. Wheat left third, bound for home. Hooper jumped up and shot the ball in on a line to Cady. It was a perfect throw. Wheat made a long slide, but the decision was not even close. Mowrey grounded out.
Larry Gardner fanned in the second end of the fourth. Scott retired on a fly to left. Cady walked, but Shore fouled out.
After Olson had grounded out in the Dodger’s half of the fifth, Chief Meyers drove a long fly to left center. Walker had to back up for the ball. He got his hands on it, but it spurted from his fingers. The heavy-footed Meyers tore past second and on down to third.
The Chief was held at third while Marquard was being retired on an infield roller and Hi Myers raised an easy fly.
With two strikes and two balls on him, Hooper hit a two-bagger to center to open the Sox end of the fifth. Myers lost the ball in the sun.
Janvrin bunted and was thrown out by Mowrey. Hooper took third on the play. Walker then singled between third and short, and Hooper scored.
Hoblitzel grounded to Daubert, who got the ball and stepped oon first for the put-out, while Walker went to second. Lewis hit a roller to Mowrey, who tagged Walker as “Tillie” was running to third.
Daubert finally hit the ball when he came up in the sixth. He knocked a roller to Scott for an easy out. Stengel fanned and Janvrin made a nice pickup of Wheat’s roller, throwing the runner out at first.
Ivy Olson let Larry Gardner’s roller through him in the Sox side of the sixth, getting discredit for an error. Gardner was forced at second on Scott’s grounder to Olson, Scott being safe at first. With Cady up, one of Marquard’s fast balls got away from Meyers and Scott moved up to second. The play is officially described as a passed ball.
Cady got a base on balls and Shore lifted an easy fly to Daubert, bringing up the sensational Hooper again. On this occasion Hooper raised a high fly back of third, Olson making the catch.
The Dodgers’ half of the seventh was without incident.
Janvrin started the Sox end of the inning with a slashing double down the third base foul line. Walker hit to Olson, who had an easy play on Janvrin at third, but he fumbled the ball. Janvrin was safe at third and Walker safe at first.
Holblitzel hit a liner right into Cutshaw’s hands, and he had a double-play right in front of him, either at first or at the plate. Cutshaw dropped the ball, Janvrin scored and Walker took second. Lewis bunted and was thrown out at first by Daubert, who came in and got the ball while Cutshaw covered the bag behind him. Lewis bunted and was thrown out at first by Daubert, who came in and got the ball while Cutshaw covered the bag behind him.
The other runners advanced. Gardner hit to Cutshaw, and with no possible chance of getting the runner at the plate, while he could easily have retired Gardner at first, Cutshaw threw to Meyers. Walker scored. No one was put out. Hoblitzel reached third.
With the count 3 to 2 on him, Scott hit a fly to Stengel, and Hoblitzel scored after the catch. Casey threw to the place, but Hoblitzel was in long ahead of the ball.
Cutshaw threw out Cady, closing the inning.
After Meyers had been retired in the Dodgers’ half of the eighth, on an infield roller, Jimmy Johnston, the fast young outfielder from the Pacific coast, batted in place of Marquard and singled to right.
Hi Myers hit a slashing grounder to Scott, who snapped the ball up, flipped it to Janvrin, and Janvrin shot it to Hoblitzel for the fastest double play ever seen in a world series, or anywhere else for that matter. That closed the inning and Pfeffer mounted the mount for the Dodgers.
Shore hit a fly to Wheat and Hooper walked. Janvrin singled to right, and Stengel made a bad throw to third, which permitted Hooper to score Janvrin took second. Walker walked. Hoblitzel knocked a fly to Wheat. Lewis forced him at second on a grounder to Olson.
Daubert got a base on balls in the ninth. Stengel followed with a single to right. The crowd was already walking out. Wheat hit to Shore, who tossed to Gardner at third for a forced play on Daubert.
Cutshaw was hit by a pitched ball, filling the bases. Even this failed to rouse the crowd from its lethargy. Mowrey rolled to Janvrin, who booted, Wheat and Stengel scoring and leaving two men on the bases. Cutshaw being at second, Olson smashed a hot roller at Gardner, who fell as he reached the ball. It went for a hit, and again filled the bases, with Chief Meyers up.
The crowd was buzzing now, as it realized the possibilities of the situation. A long drive would have tied the score, a homer would have put the Dodgers in front Meyers took a couple of fierce swings, fouling one, and then fouled another to Hoblitzel.
Fred Merkle batted for Pfeffer. The count on him got down to 3 and 2, when he walked in, forcing in Cutshaw. Merkle took one vicious cut at the ball, knocking a foul over third. The bases were still loaded.
Carrigan came out in his scarlet sweater and motioned Shore away. Carl Mays, the right-hander, went to the mount. Chester Thomas went behind the bat in place of Cady.
The first ball Mays put over on Hi Myers was called a strike. The next ball Myers hit a bounder past Mays to Janvrin. Myers slid feet foremost into first base and O’Day motioned him safe. Mowrey scored. But for his slide, Myers would not have made it.
This put it up to Daubert. The first ball pitched by Mays was called a strike. The next two were balls, and then Daubert hit sharply to Scott and was thrown out at first. Jake tried a feet-first slide, but was late.
The game was over.
(Source: Chronicling America: http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83045433/1916-10-08/ed-1/seq-11/)
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