Friday, January 30, 2015

Stupendous Stu, Part 1

I'm about a month late, but with his recent passing, now is a good time to remember Stu Miller. No, not for being blown off the mound in the 1961 All-Star Game in San Francisco. Not, also for giving up Mickey Mantle's 500th home run in 1967. Miller was a lot more than that. He was so, soo good when given the ball out of the pen. He'd protect the lead! His 1965 season, here. First set of stats! Second to follow tomorrow!

But for all you Mantle fans...First...The 500th home run!




Pitcher Year GP GF GF% IP W
Konstanty 1950 74 62 0.838 152.0 16
Wilhelm 1952 71 32 0.451 159.1 15
Face 1959 57 47 0.825 93.1 18
McDaniel 1960 63 47 0.746 104.1 12
Arroyo 1961 65 54 0.831 119.0 15
Radatz 1963 66 58 0.879 131.1 15
Perranoski 1963 69 47 0.681 129.0 16
Miller 1965 67 55 0.821 112.1 14
Regan 1966 65 48 0.738 116.2 14
Hiller 1973 65 60 0.923 125.1 10
Tekulve 1979 94 67 0.713 134.1 10
Hernandez 1984 80 68 0.85 140.1 9
Eichhorn 1986 69 38 0.551 157.0 14
Wetteland 1993 70 58 0.829 85.1 9

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

World Series: Did You Know?

Babe Ruth made just a pinch-hitting appearance in the 1915 Fall Classic. He did not pitch to one batter. The Boston Red Sox won it all, anyways!

Ruth was actually still a rookie, despite five appearances in 1914. He hit .315 in 1915. His first home run, ironically enough, was hit on May 6th vs. the New York Yankees. For the record, it was Jack Warhop who gave it up. But Babe actually lost the game. I don't think that factored into the decision not to use him in October. Ruth hit his second off Warhop later that season and ended up with four home runs.

But how about on the mound? All The Babe did was go 18-8 with a 2.44 ERA. The win total was only good enough for ninth in the American League. But his winning percentage (.692) was fourth and his 6.9 hits allowed per nine inning was second. So he had arrived on the mound and at the plate.

Yet come October, it was Ernie Shore in action in game one against the Philadelphia Phillies. You have to remember, it was Ruth and Shore who "combined" on a no-hitter (And 27 straight outs from Shore, right?) two years later. Shore knew a thing or two about pitching.

On this day, though, it was Grover Cleveland Alexander going for Philly. He was bound to make Shore and the Red Sox look silly, right?

Just that. The Phillies were left to swim towards shore and find it rocky. They also found Shore's offering a little tough to get around on. However, the Great Grover was a little too strong. He won the game 3-1. Shore, though, gave up just five hits. It was Alexander who gave up eight.

Ruth got in their in the top of the ninth. The Red Sox had one out, and one out. The Babe batted for Shore, and probably would have pitched the bottom of the ninth. But Alexander got him to ground out. When Harry Hooper popped out to first, this thing was in the books. However, this proved to be Philly's only win of the 1915 Fall Classic.

Yep, The Babe had teammates. Pitchers!

Rube Foster spun a three-hitter to square things in game two. He evened it up with a 2-1 win. In game three, it was another pitching duel. Actually, it was another 2-1 Red Sox win. Alexander lost this one to Dutch Leonard. Dutch had lead the junior circut in ERA the previous year with an 0.96 mark. Old Pete could not overcome Dutch's three-hitter!

Shore came back to win game four, again 2-1. George Chalmers pitched well for Philadelphia, but it was not enough. The Red Sox, with three straight 2-1 wins, needed only one more victory.

They got it, but it was close again, 5-4. Rube Foster won his second game in this one. So Foster was 2-0, Leonard 1-0, and Shore 1-1. The Babe had some pretty stiff competition on the Red Sox staff that year. And despite his good numbers, there just wasn't room for him to pitch. And when their was, a legend in Pete got into his way.

World Series don't always start off the way you want them too. You can be Mickey Mantle, and only get into two games the first time because you tripped on a drain cover. You can be Rube Waddell and miss the entire Fall Classic because of a nervous break down. And The Babe had to pay his dues!


References


Enders, Eric. 100 Years Of The World Series. New York: Sterling Publishing Co., Inc. 2005. Print.

Golenbock, Peter. "Enter The Babe; Exit Tris." Red Sox Nation: An Unexpurgated History of the Boston Red Sox. Chicago, IL: Triumph Books, 2005. Print. pp. 45-46.

Montville, Leigh. "Chapter Four.: The Big Bam: The Life Andd Times Of Babe Ruth. Broadway, 2007. Print. pp. 52.

Retrosheet. Retrosheet. Web. 27 Jan. 2015.  <www.retrosheet.org>.

Sports Reference LLC.  Baseball-Reference.com - Major League Statistics and Information. http://www.baseball-reference.com/. Web. 27 Jan. 2015.

Monday, January 26, 2015

World Series: Did You Know?

Roger Maris tied a Fall Classic record in game four of the 1964 Fall Classic. He made three putouts in the same innings. Kind of hard for anyone to break that, eh?

Maris took over at centre field for Mickey Mantle on September 10th of that season. It was Maris' thirtieth birthday. The New York Yankees' legend has to shift to right to protect the knees. Tom Tresh had given it a shot (In all, appearing in 69 games in centre that season), but could not handle it. Maris was fast, and had a great arm. The move paid dividens late in the seasons and in the World Series.

The St. Louis Cardinals' tested Maris and Mantle all World Series long. Ken Boyer's hit a sac fly to Mantle for the first run of game one. In game two, Tim McCarver looked like he'd have extra bases as he hit one between Mantle and Maris. Roger made a great catch. But in game three, Mantle made an error in right that allowed Tim McCarver to take an extra base on a single. Curt Simmons, the pitcher, drove in McCarver. Maris hauled down a long drive by Bob Skinner in the top of the ninth. Mantle almost missed a liner towards him. But The Mick made up for that by hitting a walk-off home run in the bottom of the frame. The Yankees were up, two games to one. Game four was a crucial one!

The Yankees were at home again for game four. They quickly jumped ahead 3-0 in the bottom of the first inning. Maris himself scored the third run. Mantle had an RBI. It was supposed to be Whitey Ford's game to pitch. But Al Downing started instead. The Yankees might have been a little worried. But the flamethrower looked great. First inning, the Cardinals failed to get it out of the infield. In the second inning, it was more of the same, but Al made sure that there were less fielding plays for the infield, as well. Ken Boyer took a called strike three. Bill White grounded out to Phil Linz. Mike Shannon fanned. Maris, in centre, Mantle in right, Tresh in left. None of them had touched the ball yet through two.

The Yankees themselves went down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the second inning, though. Roger Craig had taken over on the hill and was doing a stellar job in relief of Ray Sadecki. Sadecki, like Downing, was left-handed. But he had not adjusted to the situation very well. Roger, Mickey and the rest of the Yankees had hit him well in game one.

However, the Cardinals, down 3-0, started to hit the ball a little better in the top of the third. Tim McCarver, batting for the first time, hit a fly to Maris in centre. Roger caught that for the first out, and the seventh straight batter Downing had retired to start the game. Dal Maxvill became the first St. Louis baserunner when he coaxed a walk from Downing. The other Roger, Craig, came to the dish. Could he do more then just pitch? Well, he got it to centre, but a man with the same first name made the catch for the second out of the inning. When Lou Brock also flied out to our man in centre, the inning was over. Maris had three putouts in the same inning, as record for a centre fielder and any outfielder, for that matter.

New York looked like they'd win this game, as Downing got St. Louis 1-2-3 in the next two innings. But Ken Boyer's grand slam in the top of the sixth inning erased that 3-0 deficit. Maris got two more putouts that inning and ended the afternoon with six. The Cardinals went on to win the game, 4-3.

St. Louis ended up on top of the 1964 Fall Classic, four to three. Roger and his mates had given it their all. But outside of him, few Yankees had a good series defenively. Mantle made several mistakes in the outfield. Phil Linz, subbing for Tony Kubek, made four mistakes himself. Bobby Richardson committed two costly errors, plus made a bad throw in game seven on a double steal. Those kind of mistakes will kill you, not matter who you have on the team.

But the Cardinals must have liked what they saw in Roger. The Cards, you see, also saw him make three pretty good catches in this World Series. With the rest of the Yankees so shakey, they had their chances in games two, three and six. But Roger's glove had put an end to that! And they must have liked his bat, despite hitting only .200, for they acquired him in the offseason of 1967. Roger got to play in two more Fall Classics. Notice was served that the man with a record 61 home runs had the legs and glove, too!


References



Allen, Maury. Roger Maris: A Man For All Seasons. D.I. Fine, 1986.

Golenbock, Peter. Dynasty: The New York Yankees, 1949-1964. Lincolnwood, IL: Contemporary, 2000. Print.

Halberstam, David. October 1964. New York: Villard, 1994. Print.

Major League Baseball. World Series Of 1964. Major League Baseball Productions, 1964. DVD.

Mantle, Mickey, and Mickey Herskowitz. All My Octobers: My Memories of Twelve World Series When the Yankees Ruled Baseball. New York: HarperCollins, 1994. Print.

Neft, David S., Richard M. Cohen, and Michael L. Neft. The Sports Encyclopedia: Baseball, 1992. 12th ed. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1992. Print.

Neft, David S., and Richard M. Cohen. The World Series: Complete Play-by-play of Every Game, 1903-1989. 4th ed. New York: St. Martin's, 1990. Print.

Nemec, David et all. 20th Century Baseball Chronicle: A Year-by-year History of Major League Baseball. Collector's Edition. Lincolnwood, Ill: Publications International, 1993. Print.

Pepe, Phil. 1961: The Inside Story Of The Maris-Mantle Home Run Chase. Triumph Books, 2011. Print.

Retrosheet. Web. 26 Jan. 2015.  <www.retrosheet.org>.


Sports Reference LLC.  Baseball-Reference.com - Major League Statistics and Information. http://www.baseball-reference.com/. Web. 26 Jan. 2015.


Shalin, Mike, and Neil Shalin. Out By A Step: The 100 Best Players Not In The Baseball Hall of Fame. Lanham: Diamond Communications, 2002. Print.

Silverman, Al, et al. Yankee Colors: The Glory Years Of The Mantle Era. Abrams, 2009.

Smith, Ron. The Sporting News Presents 61*: The Story Of Roger Maris, Mickey Mantle And One Magical Summer. St. Louis: Sporting News, 2001. Print.

Sunday, January 25, 2015

Ernie Banks: A Timely Home Run To Ruin A Dandy By Young Sandy!

Ernie Banks, who just passed away on Friday, was Mr. Cub. He hit more home runs between 1956 and 1960 than anyone in the bigs. His big year for RBIs was 1959. The year before that, he'd hit a career-high 45 round-trippers. But despite never playing in a World Series, he generally always had a flair for the dramatic. In 1959, he had one against a legend, who was not quite one yet!

Banks' Chicago Cubs were rarely in contention, sadly. In 1959, they finished fifth at 74-80. It was the Los Angeles Dodgers that won it all that year. And they crossed paths with the Chicago Cubs in early September in a pitcher's duel!

The Dodgers had a young and still-not-potential-fulfilling lefty, Sandy Koufax. Sandy had been on the Dodgers in Brooklyn in 1955 but never really pitched much. The staff was deep with pitchers like Johnny Podres, Don Newcombe and Don Drysdale. A move to Los Angeles in 1958 saw Sandy join the rotation. Although only 11-11 that season, it was a step forward. La-La land was helping this youngster!

1959 had started out rough for Sandy, at least at the start. It was Banks' Chicago Cubs that touched him up for three runs in three innings in his first start, April 12th. Things didn't get much better for Sandy. By May 2nd, he had pitched only five games and had an ERA of 12.27.

But things suddenly did get better. Koufax pitched well the rest of May and all of June. That ERA? Down to 3.58. Win-loss record? 5-1! Sandy had found it! Case and point, June 22nd vs. Philadelphia. All Sandy did was fan sixteen batters and surrender one run over a complete game win!

On July the 5th, he found himself on the mound in a relief appearance against Chicago. Koufax got into the action in the bottom of the seventh. Ernie Banks greeted him with a single. Although the Cubs eventually got another hit, Ernie watched in amazement as Koufax struck out the side. By the time he left the hill after 3 2/3 innings, Sandy had given up just one earned run and fanned six. Although he didn't get a decision or even a save, Sandy helped preserve a 5-3 win. Better still, his ERA was only 3.33 after this outing.

But a sore arm shelved Koufax not long after. He missed the rest of July, and it took him a bit to find his groove. But once he found it, watch out. The Los Angeles Dodgers really had something special in Koufax, and soon everybody knew that, too!

Sandy fanned thirteen batters and gave up just two earned runs in an 8-2 win over Philly on August 24. That upped his record to 7-4. And when Sandy fanned eighteen batters in his next start on August 31st, it was enough for a 5-2 win over the Giants. Koufax's record was a pretty-good 8-4. His ERA (At 4.06 on August 19th) continued to drop, and was now 3.76. The National League ERA that year would be 3.95, so Sandy was below that.

His next start was a week later on September 6th of that season was at home against Ernie Banks' Chicago Cubs. But what about Ernie? What was he doing well Sandy was putting his enormous talent together? Quite a lot, let me tell you!

Having driven in five runs on May 13th vs. Cincinnati, having hit two home runs on April 14th and again on July 29th, he was having quite the year. Through 133 games, Ernie had 38 home runs and 124 RBIs, plus a .296 batting average and 82 runs scored. That was one great year for anyone, and it wasn't over yet!

So Sandy took the hill in Banks' 134 game of the season. He was looking for another win, low-run, high K, game. And he got it. The only thing separating him from his ninth win was Ernie Banks, as it turns out!

Sandy seemed to have it. It was the first game of a double-header, and the Dodgers looked to Koufax to set the tone in the opener.

It wasn't easy in the top of the first. The Cubs put two men on, but Sandy fanned Ernie for the second out. When he threw wild on the very first pitch to the next batter, Alvin Dark tried to score from third. Alvin was out at home, and Sandy got 'em 1-2-3 the next three innings!

In the top of the fifth, the Cubs got two runners on via a double and an intentional walk, but Sandy K'd the side. That brought his strikeout total to six, already.

The sixth inning was also a struggle for Koufax. He got the first two batters out, including his seventh K, but then the trouble started. A walk brought Banks to the dish. And Sandy screwed up by committing a balk on the first pitch to Ernie. Koufax was forced to walk him intentionally. But Sandy got out of there with no further damage as he got Art Schult out on a fly ball.

The seventh inning saw Sandy dig deep again to get himself out of a jam. It was again, partly his fault. After getting the first batter out, he walked Bobby Thompson. Yes, that's the Bobby Thompson that hit the home run to win the pennant for the Giants in 1951. Back when they were in New York and the Dodgers were in Brooklyn. Flash forward to 2014 and the Giants won the pennant again with a home run. Some things don't change. But Koufax needed to change some of his bad habits at this point. Namely, throwing too hard. It left him prone to a lot of strikeouts but plenty of wildness.

A single moved Thompson to second as there was still only one out. Koufax again got out of the jam. But it seemed like only a matter of time before the Cubs got the knockout blow. And the win, for good measure.

Art Ceccarelli, who had a very short career and would win all of nine games in his career, was pitching well for Banks' Cubs. He, too, faced a jam in the seventh. But he matched his young counterpart. Amazingly enough, it was still a scoreless tie at this point, despite all those chances by Chicago.

Sandy Koufax, though, got his fourth 1-2-3 inning of the game in the top of the eighth. It was much needed. Ernie Banks himself was the last out of the inning. All he could do was ground out to the shortstop, who was a rookie and playing in just his 62nd career game. This game was going to the bottom of the eighth,

The Dodgers failed to score, although Wally Moon reached on a two-out walk. A flyball by Gil Hodges (A relic from the Brooklyn years) ended the inning. This game was officially going to be decided in the last at-bats of one of the two teams.

The top of the ninth saw Sandy get his eighth strikeout. But then a single by Earl Averill started a rally. Bobby Thompson reached on an error by third basemen Jim Gilliam, still another old Brooklyn Dodger player. But Sandy had no intention of letting the Los Angeles Dodgers lose this one. He fanned Cal Neeman on the minimum required pitches. Then, Sandy disposed of his mound adversary as well. 9 IP, 0 R, 4 H, 10 Ks! The Dodgers, needed a single tally now to wrap it up. Sandy would have his ninth win of the season. His ERA had now dropped to 3.51, which was more than respectable.

Los Angeles nearly won it in the bottom of the ninth. Don Demeter, who'd come into the game as a pinch runner in the bottom of the seventh, fanned himself. But Chuck Essegian walked and Don Zimmer came in to pinch run. Joe Pignatano then walked. A single wins this thing!

But Ceccarelli matched Koufax in K heroics by fanning Rip Repulski, who was batting for Wills. And it was on a 3-2 pitch. When Koufax himself went down on strikes, this thing was headed to extras. And that's where Ernie Banks helped the Chicago Cubs win it!

Sandy Koufax made a big mistake to start the top of the tenth. He walked Tony Taylor on four straight pitches. Then. he went 2-0 on Alvin Dark. Dark hit a sac bunt to move Taylor into scoring position with only one out. Koufax then went 2-0 again. It was on Lee Walls. Lee fouled off the next pitch, but Sandy then missed again. Another foul. 3-2. Alas, Sandy threw ball four and Ernie Banks was back at the dish.

Sandy missed with the first pitch. It was the fourth straight time that had happened. But Banks fouled off the next pitch, then completely missed the next one. It 1-2 and Koufax was back in control. Ernie had to avoid the double play.

But Banks didn't miss the next pitch. He slammed his 39th home run to give Chicago a 3-0 advantage. The next batter reached on an error, meaning the Cubbies had a chance for more. However, Walt Moryn grounded into an inning-ending double play.

It didn't end up mattering. The Dodgers managed just one hit in the bottom of the frame as Art Ceccarelli finished up a fine, 10-inning, 6-hit shutout. So Sandy would have to settle for an 8-5 record.

Koufax did not win another game that season. And he lost his lone Fall Classic start of that season. Banks finished with 45 home runs that season, just one back of Eddie Mathews league-leading 46. But Ernie led the senior circuit with 143 RBIs, 18 more than runner-up Frank Robinson. But his .304 final batting average was tenth, well back of Hank Aaron's league-leading .355!

On this September day, Banks proved to be clutch again. Koufax was starting to learn about that. He was also just beginning to learn about how to control his wildness. He'd walked seven batters this game. Against most other teams, a low-hit, high-walk total wouldn't have been so bad. But on a team with a batter of Ernie Banks caliber (And there were not many) up at the dish, walks are soon punished by long balls. It was needed and delivered against The Left Arm Of God by Mr. Cub himself!


References


Enders, Eric. 100 Years Of The World Series. New York: Sterling Publishing Co., Inc. 2005. Print.

Grabowski, John F. Sandy Koufax. Chelsea House, 1992. Print.

Neft, David S., Richard M. Cohen, and Michael L. Neft. The Sports Encyclopedia: Baseball, 1992. 12th ed. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1992. Print.

Nemec, David et all. 20th Century Baseball Chronicle: A Year-by-year History of Major League Baseball. Collector's Edition. Lincolnwood, Ill: Publications International, 1993. Print.

Retrosheet. Web. 25 Jan. 2015. <www.retrosheet.org>.

Sports Reference LLC. Baseball-Reference.com - Major League Statistics and Information. http://www.baseball-reference.com/. Web. 25 Jan. 2015.

Wednesday, January 21, 2015

World Series: Did You Know?

The 1956 Brooklyn Dodgers had some tall pitchers on their Fall Classic roster. There were two Don's, a Roger and Sandy!

The two Don's were Don Newcombe and Don Drysdale. They both made it to the hill. The Sandy, Koufax, did not. Sandy had been there in 1955 as a bonus baby. Drysdale himself was a rookie in 1956.

Newcombe, Newk as he was called, had a rough time. The menacing pitcher was 6'4 and looking to put his Dodgers up two games to none at the Fall Classic. Sal Maglie had won the opener, and now, it was game two. It was Newk's turn. The problem was, Brooklyn, opposed by the New York Yankees in this game at Ebbet's Field, got scored on in the top of the first. Then the floodgates opened in the top of the second.

Billy Martin got it all started with a single. Jerry Coleman drew a walk. Don Larsen (Hey, another Don!) the opposing pitcher, singled. That made it 2-0. Another single, a walk and a grand slam by Yogi Berra made it 6-0, New York and Newcombe was done. Brooklyn was not, however. They scored six times in the bottom of the frame, then outscored Brooklyn 7-2 the rest of the way to win 13-8. Well, both Don's didn't have it. But Brooklyn would take that tradeoff. The problem was, Larsen returned to the hill in game five and pitcher the only perfect game in World Series history.

New York went home and took game three, 5-3. Their ace, Whitey Ford, was in in fine form. Game four was all New York. It was 4-1 in the bottom of the seventh when Don Drysdale took the hill. Don was 20 years old, and 5-5 with a 2.64 ERA in 25 games. He was almost as imposing as Newk at this point. And he was actually taller. 6'5!

He quickly got Gil McDougald out on a grounder. But then, Andy Carey singled. Don fanned pitcher Tommy Sturdivant. However, any hope of getting out of the inning unscathed ended when Hank Bauer hit a home run. Shaken, Don walked Joe Collins before finally getting out of there. But it was now 6-1, New York.

Drysdale finished the game. He pitched the bottom of the eighth and got Yogi Berra to ground out. Enos Slaughter also grounded out. When Billy Martin became the third Yankee to do that in the inning, Don had 'em 1-2-3. New York would next hear from him in 1963. But they won this game, 6-2. The 1956 Fall Classic was knotted at two games apiece. The next game, the last at Yankee Stadium in '56, was on for the ages.

Don Larsen went out and pitched a perfect game, and New York won 2-0. Back at Ebbets Field for game six, the Dodgers showed they were not done. They took a ten-inning thriller, 1-0 behind the pitching of Clem Labine.

So it was down to a winner-take-all game seven. And Don Newcombe was back. It wasn't one of his finer efforts.

Hank Bauer got things rolling for New York with a single as the game's first batter. Don tamed Billy Martin on a K, but Hank took advantage of Newk's preoccupied state of mind with the batter. He stole second. Mickey Mantle went down on a strikeout as well. But Yogi Berra hit one out of the park. It was 2-0.

The Dodgers put the tying run on first with just one out in the bottom of the frame, but then Jackie Robinson hit into a inning-ending double play. Newk had a fairly easy second inning, save for a walk. But the Dodgers went down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the inning. It was going to be a long day for Brooklyn hitters.

But for Newk, the afternoon ended soon enough. Bauer led off the top of the third and Don got him. But Billy Martin singled. His buddy, Mantle, fanned again. However, Yogi Berra got New York two more with another two-run blast. It was 4-0. The Dodgers again were retired 1-2-3 in the bottom of the frame.

Elston Howard's leadoff home run in the top of the fourth ended Newcombe's day. It ended the game for all intents and purposes. New York went on to win, 9-0. Drysdale did not come in to pitch.

The 1956 World Series had a bit of the old (Newcombe) and a bit of the new (Drysdale). Plus Koufax, who was 6'2. He may not of pitched, but clearly, Brooklyn had some idea they had two special newcomers that year. Newk's drinking got the better of him, and he was never quite as good as he'd been again.

The Dodgers left Brooklyn in 1958, for Los Angeles. And when they made it back to the Fall Classic, it was Drysdale and Koufax with a start each. Newk was gone. Johnny Podres, who'd missed the 1956 World Series, but was the hero in 1955, also was there. Thus, the Dodgers used the old in the new again, and this time it worked. But in their primes, beating Newk, Don and Don was certainly as tall an order as the height of each!


References


Enders, Eric. 100 Years Of The World Series. New York: Sterling Publishing Co., Inc. 2005. Print.

Fonseca, Lew, director. World Series Of 1956. Performance by Lew Fonseca, Major League Baseball Productions, 1956. DVD.

Ford, Whitey, and Phil Pepe. Slick. New York: W. Morrow, 1987. Print.

Golenbock, Peter. Dynasty: The New York Yankees, 1949-1964. Lincolnwood, IL: Contemporary, 2000. Print.

Mantle, Mickey, and Mickey Herskowitz. All My Octobers: My Memories of Twelve World Series When the Yankees Ruled Baseball. New York: HarperCollins, 1994. Print.

Neft, David S., Richard M. Cohen, and Michael L. Neft. The Sports Encyclopedia: Baseball, 1992. 12th ed. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1992. Print.

Neft, David S., and Richard M. Cohen. The World Series: Complete Play-by-play of Every Game, 1903-1989. 4th ed. New York: St. Martin's, 1990. Print.

Nemec, David et all. 20th Century Baseball Chronicle: A Year-by-year History of Major League Baseball. Collector's Edition. Lincolnwood, Ill: Publications International, 1993. Print.

Paper, Lewis J. Perfect: Don Larsen's Miraculous World Series Game And The Men Who Made It Happen. New York, NY: New American Library, 2009. Print.

Retrosheet. Web. 21 Jan. 2015. <www.retrosheet.org>.

Seaver, Tom, and Martin Appel. Great Moments in Baseball. New York, NY: Carol Pub. Group, 1992. Print.

Sports Reference LLC. Baseball-Reference.com - Major League Statistics and Information. http://www.baseball-reference.com/. Web. 21 Jan. 2015.

Tuesday, January 20, 2015

World Series: Did You Know?

The Giants may have lost the 1913 Fall Classic. But a record was set by their timeless legend. He won his last World Series game. And it was a classic! Plus, it set a record that stands to this day. Matty mopped the floor!

It was game two, and Christy's New York Giants were visiting the Philadelphia Athletics. Ironically, it was the same team he'd shutout three times in 1905. Matty was in his '05 form in this one. But it sure wasn't easy.

The A's put two men on in the bottom of the first before Mathewson K'd Home Run Baker. Stuff McInnis flied out to left to end the threat for good!

Eddie Plank was the opposing pitcher. And he had it on this day, too! 1-2-3 went the Giants in the top of the first. Same deal in the top of the second. In the third, New York got a pair of singles. One of them was by Mathewson. But nothing touched home.

Matty seemed to settle down after this. A hit and walk, the Athletics got in the bottom of the fourth. But from there, Christy was on fire. He fanned two of the three batters in a 1-2-3 bottom of the sixth. After a faily easy seventh, he set down the first two batters in the bottom of the eighth. Here's where things got a little difficult. Eddie Collins singled to centre. Home Run Baker came to the dish. Baker didn't go yard, but did single. Matty got McInnis out to end that.

It was the bottom of the ninth that Mathewson cemented his spot as baseball's best clutch pitcher of his time. Or maybe any time. The first two A's singled, and an error on the play moved runners to second and third. And then, Matty got into god mode! This game was tied, but the winning run was on third. No matter. Here comes Matty!

Ground ball by Jack Lapp to first. Runner out at home, trying to score. Ground ball by Plank to first. Runner out at home trying to score. Ground ball by Eddie Murphy (Not the actor), Matty gets it and throws him out at first. We got to extras!

Matty helped win it. His single scored pinch runner Eddie Grant. Matty then touched home himself as the Giants scored twice more. Matty was doing it all!

Matty then got 'em 1-2-3 in the bottom of the frame. The great pitcher had his fourth shutout all-time in the Fall Classic. No one has ever equaled that mark!

The Giants went on to lose this World Series, four games to one. Matty himself would lose the finale. And he never returned to the Fall Classic. But Matty had unquestionably left a World Series standard for pitchers like Koufax, Gibson, and maybe someday Kershaw to match. Can Clayton be the guy to top that?


References


Enders, Eric. 100 Years Of The World Series. New York: Sterling Publishing Co., Inc. 2005. Print.

Neft, David S., Richard M. Cohen, and Michael L. Neft. The Sports Encyclopedia: Baseball, 1992. 12th ed. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1992. Print.

Nemec, David et all. 20th Century Baseball Chronicle: A Year-by-year History of Major League Baseball. Collector's Edition. Lincolnwood, Ill: Publications International, 1993. Print.

Retrosheet. Web. 20 Jan. 2015.  <www.retrosheet.org>.

Sports Reference LLC.  Baseball-Reference.com - Major League Statistics and Information. http://www.baseball-reference.com/. Web. 20 Jan. 2015.

Snyder, John S. World Series!: Great Moments and Dubious Achievements. San Francisco: Chronicle, 1995. Print.