Monday, July 27, 2015

World Series: Did You Know?

Before Babe Ruth, there was another player with that nickname that allowed exactly six hits in three complete-game victories over Detroit in 1909. Babe Adams was up against Ty Cobb and Sam Crawford, but he would not let the Pittsburgh Pirates down in the '09 Fall Classic.

Adams got Pittsburgh off on the right foot as he won game one, 4-1. The downside was, the Pirates got only five hits themselves. Crawford and Cobb were held to just 1-7 in the game, although Ty walked and scored in the top of the first inning. Adams held to just four hits beyond the first.

In game five, with the series tied at two games apiece, it was Adams with another win. This time, he really got some support. The Tigers scored four runs themselves, but Pittsburgh got double that! Cobb got a hit and scored a run. Crawford had a huge game for the Bengals. He collected half hit teams' total hits with three, scored twice and knocked in pair (Including his pal Cobb in the top of the sixth). Adams did not get off to a good start. Detroit's first batter, Davy Jones, got things going with a home run to centre. But Adams settled down and had a 1-2-3 second, third and fourth. Even so, the game was actually tied going into the bottom of the seventh. The Pirates scored four times that inning. Crawford got one of them back in the next inning with a home run of his own. One of the runs that Adams surrendered was unearned.

Detroit, however, captured game six to send it to a winner-take-all game seven. Adams was the man on the hill again. And did he ever deliver. The whole Pirates team did!

Adams beat Bill Donovan and Detroit, 8-0. But even so, the Pirates collected just seven hits. The best stat line for Adams was Cobb and Crawford: 0-8 in the game!

Pittsburgh scored twice in the top of the second, another two in the top fourth. The game was really put away when they scored three more times in the top of the sixth. Another run for the Pirates in the top of the eighth was unnecessary. But you could say that about all the runs scored after the first.

Adams gave up three doubles in the game, and escaped a jam in the second and the fourth. The Pirates had won it all on the road. Detroit would not return to the World Series until 1935, meaning Cobb and Crawford would never again play in the World Series. The Pirates themselves would not be back until 1925, but by then they'd have three World Series appearances.


References


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

Neft, David S., Richard M. Cohen. 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.

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

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