All but forgotten. For most of the Browns' existence in the Gateway to the West they were doormats. In 1933 they managed to draw 88,113 fans... all year long. Of course they managed to finish last. The following season, perhaps aided by the hire of Rogers Hornsby to manage, they drew 115,305 to Sportsman's Park. Hornsby, who by this time was a 38-year old part timer, must have looked around and thought, "We drew more than this when we beat the Yanks in the '26 Series!"
Sadly, that hadn't always been the case. Sadly it is largely forgotten that the 1926 World Championship won by the St. Louis Cardinals represented a changing of the guard in the Gateway city. The Browns had been the class of Sportsman's Park... in fact it had been their park... the Cards were mere tenants.
The 1922 Browns may well have been the best edition in their 50-year history. Certainly they must have been one of the most exciting teams in St. Louis baseball history. They led the AL in Runs, Batting Average, Triples, Stolen Bases, and slugging.
Who were these battling batsmen? Well, one was Hall of Famer George Sisler, who only hit a spectacular .420, swiped 51 bases and pounded out 246 hits. Backing his play was right-fielder Ken Williams, major league baseball's first '30-30' man... 39 HR, 37 Stolen Bases, 155 RBI, and a neat .332 Average. Center-fielder Baby Doll Jacobson hit .317 with 102 ribbies. And completing the STL outfield was St. Louis native and lifetime resident Jack Tobin. Though only 5-foot-8 and 142 pounds, Jack bunted, slapped and punched the ball around at a .331 clip. The Browns had two .300-hitting catchers: Hank Severeid (.321) and future Yankee Pat Collins (.307). Second sacker Marty McManus hit .312.
Now...You might say they played in a hitters' park and you'd be correct. But then you'd have to tip your cap to the Brown's pitching staff, who led the AL in team ERA, and finished 2nd in fewest runs allowed, behind only the AL champion NY Yankees, who edged them by a mere two runs... and a mere one game in the final standings. Heading up the pitching staff was none other than right-handed ace Urban Shocker, another future Yankee who won 24 games for the '22 Browns. And right behind Shocker was another right-hander, Elam Vangilder. Elam, from nearby Cape Girardeau, Mo., went 19-13 with a good 3.42 ERA for 245 innings. Perhaps even more impressively, Elam smacked the ball around himself, to the tune of a .344 clip, an on-base mark of .396 and a .559 slugging mark... 10 doubles, 2 triples and two homers in only 93 at-bats!
1922 Browns take on 1932 Yankees!
The successful World Championship drive of the 1932 Yankees is primarily remembered today for one singular event. Did the Babe point? Did he call his shot? Did he the line a Charlie Root pitch far into the center field bleachers at Wrigley Field? Well, we know he did the last of the three. We know he made some gestures of some kind. And we know (or we should), that Lou Gehrig followed the Bambino with a four-bagger of his own as the Yankees took control of the '32 Series, winning the third of what would be a four game sweep - and 12 game World Series winning streak dating back to the 1927 and 1928 Series sweeps of the Pirates and Cardinals.
The 1932 Yanks are a team in transition. The Babe's historic home run would be his last shot at October glory. The end for George Herman is clearly in view. And the game he changed with his powerful swing was in transition too. The 1932 Yankees scored more runs than the 1927 bunch - over a thousand. But the rest of baseball was catching onto and catching up to the ways of the power-hitting Yankees. Jimmie Foxx had slammed 58 homers just that season for the Philadelphia Athletics, who themselves had won three American League pennants (1929-31), supplanting the Murderer's row. The Cubs themselves had featured Hack Wilson during that same three year stretch. Hack had hacked National League pitchers for 56 homers and 191 RBIs in 1930, and was helped by slugging artists such as catcher Gabby Hartnett and veteran Rogers Hornsby, who had set a new NL single season home run record (42) in 1922.
So while the Yanks were still a magnificent offensive machine, they no longer could bomb opponents into submission. They had company in the long-ball department now. Joe McCarthy had taken over as skipper. He was in the middle of turning the Yanks into a team of efficient technicians who could beat teams with speed, defense, pitching, and heads-up play. The raucous squad of the twenties would give way to the strong, silent types that Gehrig, Bill Dickey, Joe DiMaggio, Charlie Keller and Tommy Henrich would embody. One of those strong, silent types, the Iron Horse, enjoyed one of the greatest days in baseball history on June 3rd of '32... lining four homers in his first four at-bats against the defending AL Champion Philadelphia A's at Shibe Park. Typically, Lou's great day was overshadowed by the resignation of New York Giants manager John McGraw after a 30-year run.
Here in Mac's Legendary Baseball, the 1922 St. Louis Browns have challenged the 1932 Yankees. Two powerful top-to-bottom line-ups are going to square off for a full 154 game tilt. Pitchers take cover!
Yanks Romp in St. Louis Home Opener!
The Bronx Bombers descend on the gateway city. And the Babe, who hit 3 home runs in two separate World Series games at Sportsman's Park, nearly does it again here. He jacks two bombs over the right field pavilion. His second four-bagger is a grand slam during a 6-run 8th inning, putting an exclamation point on a 14-3 Yankee romp. The Yanks had scored seven before the Browns' second at-bat, shelling their once and future teammate Urban Shocker. Lefty Gomez coasted with the huge cushion, scattering nine hits and going the distance. Ruth led the way with six ribbies. Frank Crosetti chipped in with five hits and three RBIs of his own.
But the Browns are not going anywhere. In a sign of things to come they bounce right back in game two. Elam Vangilder bests Yankees righty Red Ruffing as STL wins 6-3. Vangilder not only goes the route and holds the Yanks to three, he knocks home three himself. Two more runs are provided by an unlikely source when tiny Jack Tobin, the Browns 142-pound leadoff man and left-fielder, homers. Game three finds power from yet another unusual source. Yankee third baseman Joe Sewell, a robust 155-pounder himself, pounds two homers himself. Tony Lazzeri clears the bases with a 3-run triple in a 7-run 4th as the Yanks win 10-3. The Yanks win the fourth game 4-3 as Ruth and Sewell both homer. But game five is the best of the opening 5-game series. The Browns win a ten inning battle 10-9. Both squads go through several pitchers, but it's St. Louis starter Elam Vangilder, coming to the hill in the 10th for emergency relief, who picks up his 2nd win of the young season. Ken Williams, baseball's first 30-30 man, shows his skills, stealing a base, homering, and driving in five of the ten St. Louis runs. Though the Yanks head to Yankee Stadium with a 3-2 record, the Browns have served notice to all that the teams are in a dogfight.
Browns take four of five in the Bronx!
Yanks lone win in NY features homers from Ruth and Sewell again. The mighty Babe and the mighty mite Joe Sewell each hit their 4th long ball of the season in their 9th game, a 14-7 win. For Ruth this is not news. But for the diminutive Sewell, a fine hitter but not known as a slugger, the sudden power surge proves amusing to everybody - including Wheeler Joe. A Hall-of-Famer with a .312 lifetime average, Sewell was famous for not striking out... make that nearly never striking out. Sewell struck out only three times in 1932. That's not a misprint. Three times all year! Honesty compels me to say that I just double-checked that stat at Baseball-Reference.com, because though I knew it to be true, it's still unbelievable! While I had Sewell's page opened I happened to notice that Joe enjoyed his career high in home runs in 1932, slamming 11 of his 49 lifetime long one's that year! Think about that! Eleven homers and only three strikeouts! Joe retired after the following season with a .391 on-base percentage and only 114 strikeouts in 1903 games, and was a World Series winner with the 1920 Cleveland Indians as well as the 1932 Yankees.
But that game 9 win was New York's only triumph during opening week in the Bronx. St. Louis swept three, then took the getaway game (The teams play alternating 5-games series at each park). Urban Shocker gets some revenge in game 6, beating Lefty Gomez 11-4. Jack Tobin and STL second-sacker Marty McManus get three hits apiece. Elam Vangilder wins his 3rd in game 7, and collects his 4th RBI as well as the Browns win 9-5. The Browns win their 2nd 10-inning tilt in game 8. Elam Vangilder again comes on late and is the winner (his 4th!) as the Browns score three in the top of the 10th to win it 9-6. Baby Doll Jacobson, the Browns' center fielder does the heavy lifting with five driven in as he hits his first homer. Game ten brings an 11-0 white-washing by the Browns. Urban Shocker, who actually won 24 in 1922 (and would win 18 with the famous '27 Yanks), goes the route, scatters six singles, and goes 2-1 on the young season. Incidentally, his battery-mate for game ten is Pat Collins, who also would play for that 1927 Yankee team. Here, Collins helps Shocker by plating three of the 11 runs, banging out three hits and his first home run. In fact, Collins is a bit bemused as he circles the bases on his long ball, as the New York fans oddly cheer him.
After ten games the Yanks have four wins and the Brownies six. Tony Lazzeri leads the Yanks with 12 RBIs. Ruth has 10 in ten games. Joe Sewell leads the Yanks with a .381 batting average and is second with 11. As mentioned, Ruth and Sewell are in an unlikely tie for the team lead in home runs (4). But Kenny Williams leads everybody with 5 round trippers and 16 RBIs. He's slugging the ball at a torrid .800 clip. Pat Collins has 2 homers and 7 RBIs in only five starts. Browns' manager Lee Fohl has an enviable problem... finding playing time for two .300 hitting catchers.
Ten Run 3rd Powers Bombers past Browns
Gehrig drives in four to lead Yanks to 14-2 win.
After eighteen games the two teams are tied at 9 wins apiece. Upon returning to St. Louis the Yanks took three of five. Game 12 gave the fans of the Gateway City a lot to cheer about though, with the Browns thrashing the New Yorkers 17-7. The Yanks scored four in the first. STL answers with eight as tiny Jack Tobin goes two-for two with a 2-run homer, all in the first. Ken Williams also homers in the 2nd, doubles in the 7th and drives in five for the game. Williams continues his hot hitting in game 15, homering twice and knocking in six. Elam Vangilder wins his fifth against no losses as the Browns prevail 13-11, going back to NY with an 8-7 record. The Yanks take 2 of 3 to even the season.
STL - 0 0 1 o o o 1 0 0 - 2 8 1
NY - 1 2 10 0 0 1 0 0 x- 14 14 2
Red Ruffing not only went eight strong innings (one earned run on seven hits), he went three-for-three at the plate and knocked in two. The Iron Horse went deep in the ten-run 2nd, bringing Ruth home with him. Gehrig singled in two more later in the inning. Ruth and Bill Dickey each scored twice in the inning and each drove in two. The Yanks took game 20 (9-6) as well to end the home stand with an 11-9 record.
After 20 games Joe Sewell still leads all hitters at .373, with George Sisler right behind at .371. Sewell's 23 RBIs tie him with Bill Dickey for 2nd on the club. Dickey is also hitting .364. The Babe's nine homers and 26 RBIs lead the Yanks. But Ken Williams is right behind him with 8 long balls and he leads everybody with 29 ribbies in just 20 games.
Yanks 17-13 after 30 games
Babe homers five times in last ten.
Ben Chapman comes alive. After 20 games the Yankee left-fielder had been hitting a robust .220 with only four RBIs. McCarthy had been putting in Myril Hoag, who responded with a .386 mark and 7 RBIs in spot duty. But Big Ben wakes up. In the five games at Sportsman's Park (games 21-25) he goes 12 for 20 with 20 total bases and 9 RBIs. Then in game 29 in the Bronx, hitting in the eight-hole, Ben goes five-for-five with two doubles, a home run, a stolen base and three driven in as the Yanks coast, 12-5. Johnny Allen improves his record to 6-1 as the Yanks improve theirs to 17-12.
Game 24 Sportsman's Park St. Louis
NY - 2 4 4 2 3 0 1 0 2 - 18 26 1
STL - 1 4 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 - 7 12 1
Each team continues to flex their muscles. Game 24 in St. Louis sees the Yanks score in each of the first five innings to pull away early, winning 18-7. Ruth homers in the 1st and 2nd innings for five of the Yanks first six runs. Ken Williams hits a 3-run double in the bottom of the 2nd to pull the Browns within one, 6-5. But the Yanks bat around in the third and batter St. Louis pitching in the 4th and 5th to take a commanding lead even the Browns cannot overcome.
Game 26 Yankee Stadium, New York
STL - 0 5 0 0 1 7 3 0 0 - 16 23 0
NY - 1 4 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 7 11 3
The Browns return the favor, pulling within two games of the Yanks before a crowd of 47,345 in the Bronx. Second baseman Marty McManus homers in the 3rd and drives in six for the game. The Browns pound NY pitching for 23 safeties. Hall of Famer George Sisler collects four while McManus, Baby Doll Jacobson and Ken Williams get three apiece.
The Yanks shrug it off and win three straight before bowing in the series finale. During the most recent ten game stretch (games 21-30). Ben Chapman has seen his average rise from .220 to .333, and his RBI total rise from 4 to 18. Chappie went five-for-five with two doubles and a home run in game 29, a 12-5 win for Johnny Allen (6-1, 4.63 ERA). Ken Williams still paces everybody with 44 RBIs. The Babe is right behind with 42, and pulls ahead in the HR department with 15. Dickey and Sewell continue being highly productive with 33 and 32 RBIs respectively.
The two squads split the next ten, leaving the 1932 Yanks 22-18 after 40 games.
PLAYER BA SA HR RBI
Combs .322 .461 4 31
Chapman .348 .561 3 28
Ruth .282 .685 18 49
Gehrig .365 .577 6 31
Lazzeri .349 .556 3 36
Dickey .366 .552 6 45
Crosetti .264 .374 1 27
Sewell .345 .503 6 43
Hoag .368 .447 0 14
Tobin .372 .543 4 27
McManus .361 .518 5 30
Sisler .376 .525 1 29
Williams .312 .611 12 52
Jacobson .313 .469 3 40
Severeid .245 .336 1 18
Collins .268 .549 6 14
The St. Louis fans are not discouraged by the four game deficit. All of the seats in Sportsman's park were sold out for the entire five game set. A total of 121,435 tickets for the five game set, including thousands of standing room only, were sold before the two teams took the field for game 41.
And the fans were rewarded. The Browns swept five straight, in dominating fashion. They outscored the Yankees 65-22! Johnny Allen drops to 7-3 in the 41st. Ken Williams and Baby Doll Jacobson collect three safeties apiece to lead St. Louis to a 7-3 win. The next day Jacobson's four hits trump Ruth's 19th home run. Williams goes one-for-six but his one is big, a three run blast as the Browns prevail 13-6 in Game 42.
Game 43: The Browns smash the Yankees 17-3. Elam Vangilder wins his 7th. He also doubles twice, scores twice and drives home three, all in the 2nd and 3rd innings as he helps his teammates build an 11-0 lead. Tobin, Sisler and Williams each drive in four.
Browns and Yanks: 22 and 22!
Game 44 Sportsman's Park, St. Louis
NY - 0 0 0 0 4 0 3 0 0 - 7 19 0
STL - 3 0 0 1 0 12 0 0 0 - 16 4 2
With the game tied 4-4 in the 6th, two singles and a walk load the bases with Browns. Manager Lee Fohl sends up Pat Collins to pinch-hit. Collins bounces one to third. Joe Sewell snares it and fires home for the force-out. But then 5'8" lead-off man Jack Tobin comes to the plate. He works the count full, fouling off several George Pipgras fastballs, before Pipgras finally misses high with ball four, forcing in the go-ahead run. As often happens with a bases loaded walk, the floodgates open. The Browns bat around. Jack Tobin comes to bat a second time, again with the bases full of teammates. Two are out. The score is now 12-4. This time reliever Hank Johnson challenges the diminutive St. Louis native. This time Tobin thrills 22,000 fellow St. Louis natives by lining an outside fastball over the left-center field fence 388 feet away for a grand slam. The final score: 16-7.
After the 16-7 drubbing in Game 44, the Browns finish the carnage with a 12-3 win in Game 45. Pat Collins, who has been a heavy hitter in a limited role, comes off the bench and pinch-hits a grand slam home run.
Browns Take Three More At Yankee Stadium
Run Win Streak To Eight
The 1922 Brownies have gone from four under to four over. Urban Shocker ups his record to 7-4 with eight strong innings in game 46. Ken Williams' 15th homer, a 2-run shot, leads the way to a 6-4 win. St. Louis wins 10-8 the next day with catcher Hank Severeid driving in three. In game 48 it's Baby Doll Jacobson with three RBIs, and three hits... a single, double and triple as the Browns win their eighth straight, 8-5. In the eight game skein the Browns outscore the Yanks by a total of 89-39.
The Yanks finally break through in game 49, winning 3-1. Johnny Allen wins his eighth against only four losses. But St. Louis comes right back on getaway day, winning 9-4 as Urban Shocker, now 8-4, again bests Lefty Gomez. Ken Williams hits his 16th homer and plates four runs.
The Babe Homers Three Times (Game 52) Display reminiscent of 1926 and 1928 World Series.
"We got beat by the best," says Ken Williams, the actual American League HR and RBI champ in 1922. "Not just the best today, or the best on either squad. The best any of us will ever hope to see."
Game 53. Sportsman's Park in St. Louis. The Yanks wake up this day 23-28. Ken Williams has 16 HRs and 73 RBIs in 52 games. His HR total is second only to the Bambino thus far. His RBIs lead everybody. He's hitting .322 and slugging .628. The Babe, 37-years old, is outslugging the St. Louis outfielder with a robust .638 mark. But the aging Yankee right-fielder is batting just .274, the lowest mark in the New York line-up.
First inning: The Babe swings a tad late and smacks a Dix Davis fastball 378 feet to left field for 2-run homer, giving the Yanks a 2-0 lead before the St. Louis fans have settled in their seats.
Second inning: The Bambino times a Davis fastball perfectly this time, lining it 456 feet to dead center. His grand slam puts the Yanks on top 7-3 and drives Davis from the game.
Fourth inning: Leading off against lefty Dave Danforth, Ruth drives a curve to deepest left-center. The St. Louis fans jump to their feet and roar as the ball heads for the fence. But Baby Doll Jacobson also heads there and runs the drive down at the wall, 390 feet away.
Sixth inning: After a Joe Sewell line drive double to left, Babe drives a shot to deep center. Jacobson again gets a great jump and glides straight back. But this time he runs out of room. He has to pull up and watch Babe's 3rd homer land 441 feet from home plate. The score is 10-4 in favor of New York. The Babe has driven home 8 of the ten Yankee tallies.
Eighth inning: Ruth grounds out to second, the only time he would not hit the ball hard all day. The Browns fans, believing this to be the Babe's final at bat, accord the Babe a long, loud standing ovation. He grins and tips his cap several times.
Ninth inning: The Browns have battled back as they have done all year. The Yanks lead is cut to 10-7 coming into the top of the 9th. The Yanks respond by sending ten men to bat to salt the game away. Ruth scorches a line drive single to right, driving home Earle Combs. It's the Babe's 9th RBI and the Yanks' 14th and final run. They win 14-7. The Babe's big day gives him 22 HRs and 63 RBI in 52 games. He totals 13 bases for the game.
The Browns get right off that mat the next day, Game 53, pounding Yankee starter Johnny Allen and several relievers for a 16-8 win. Future Yankee catcher Pat Collins gets a rare start and homers twice. He thrills St. Louisians with a 3-run inside the park job in the 4th. Then he homers over the left-centerfield wall with one on in the 5th.
The Bambino homers twice in Game 54, a wild 14-10 win. Ruth pounds out four hits and totals 10 bases, the second time in three days he hits double figures. The Babe's 2nd bomb increases the Yankee lead to 11-3, seemingly securing the game. Ken Williams ignites a St. Louis comeback in the 7th with a 2-run homer. The Browns get to within three runs before falling short, reminding everybody that no lead is safe.
Urban Shocker wins his 10th in Game 55, a 11-6 Browns win. Ken Williams hits his 18th HR. Pat Collins continues to steal more playing time and make the most of it, doubling twice and raising his average to .304.
Babe Ruth hits his 25th home run in game 56 as NY prevails 12-7 to climb back within 4 games of STL at 26-30. Over the last 5 games, the 37-year-old veteran has caught fire, going 13 for 25 with 6 HR and 17 RBIs and 31 Total Bases. Over the same stretch, STL second-string catcher Pat Collins is 10 for 22 with 22 total bases (1.000 Slugging Percentage) and 10 RBIs.
Game 58: Yankee Stadium. The Yanks trail 4-2 in the 9th. Bill Baynes opens things by walking Ben Chapman. STL Mgr Lee Fohl does a slow burn and gets Dave Danforth to start loosening up. Bayne immediately fires a wild pitch, and Chapman takes 2nd. Chapman’s run of course, is meaningless by itself. Frank Crosetti then grounds to 1B. Pinch hitter Myril Hoag, batting .343, then takes strike three for the 2nd out. Then, in a move second-guessers delight in, Fohl relieves Bayne with Danforth, setting up a lefty-lefty confrontation with leadoff man Earle Combs. Combs is hitting .320 but is hitless in 4 tries. An opposite field hitter, Combs slices one down the LF line that bounces over the low fence for a ground-rule double, scoring Chapman. Then, another lefty, Joe Sewell, having a monster year with a .330 average and 54 RBI, picks up number 55… a big one, singling in Combs with the tying run. The Bambino then bounces to second to send it to overtime… where the Iron Horse takes care of things, hitting a fly down the RF line that lands in the bleachers. It’s only a 311 foot HR, but it’s a game winner, and the NY crowd goes nuts.
The Browns take the next two, however, leaving the Bronx with a 33-27 record. The Yanks have dropped 6 of 10, but the Babe sure did his part, slamming seven homers, driving home 21, and raising his fom .274 to .302. At the 60 game mark Ruth has a huge lead in home runs (26), with Ken Williams, the only other hitter in double figures, a distant second (19). The Browns' CF leads everybody with 86 RBI, with the Babe second (75). George Sisler is the hitting leader, though his .383 mark is far off his historic 1922 mark of .420.
Game 62. Elam Vangilder of Cape Girardeau, Mo. has himself a day!
NYY - 2 4 0 5 0 0 0 0 0 - 11 18 2
STL - 1 0 1 5 1 1 7 0 x - 16 18 0
Elam Vangilder comes on in the 4th after starter Ray Kolp and reliever Dave Danforth both get shelled, giving up a total of 9 runs on 12 hits. He immediately surrenders two doubles and a single. The second double is to Lefty Gomez, one of the worst hitters of all time. It brings in Frank Crosetti, gives NY an 11-2 cushion, and leaves St. Louis for dead.
Except no one tells Elam. All he does is shut out the Yanks the rest of the way, yielding only 3 hits. He collects four hits himself, including three doubles. He scores three times, drives in another, and leads an amazing comeback as the Browns wind up thrashing Yankee pitching and winning 16-11.
Game 63. For the 2nd straight afternoon the Yanks jump out to a big lead, only to give it all back. In the 5th, Myril Hoag lines an Urban Shocker change-up over the LCF fence at Sportsman’s Park. It’s Hoag’s 1st HR of the year, a 3-run blast that gives the Yanks a 6-2 lead, chases Browns’ ace Urban Shocker, and gives one of the Yanks two aces, Red Ruffing a cushion to work with.
But by now everyone knows no cushion is comfortable if the Browns still have at-bats coming. Ken Williams erases the bulge with a 3-run blast in the 6th, a 431 ft bomb over the CF wall that closes the gap to 7-6. It stays that way until two out in the bottom of the 9th, when Pat Collins comes off the bench as he has all year, and once again torments his once and future teammates. He lines a double over Ruth’s head, scoring Eddie Foster and sending the game into overtime. wherewith George Sisler on 1st, Ken Williams lines one over Hoag in LF. Sisler tears all the way around the bases and beats Hoag’s throw home… beating the Yankees in the process.
The Browns win three straight at Yankee Stadium to go ten games over .500 for the first time (39-29). The Babe hits homers 27 and 28 in game 68. He drives in four. Gehrig plates three and Lazzeri two more. But it isn't enough as STL wins 14-11 behind a four hit day from 2B Marty McManus, who doubles twice and drives in three. The Yanks take the next two, with game 70 a wild 18-12 affair. Tony "Poosh-em-up" Lazzeri pushes home seven runs on two doubles and a triple, while the Bambino drives home five. Ruth's 86 RBI pace NY, but Ken Williams' three ribbies in a losing cause make him the 1st on either squad to top the 100 mark (101). Ken also hits his 25th homer in game 70, and trails the Babe by only three.
After 70 games, the Browns boast a 39-31 record against the 1932 World Champs.
PLAYER BA/SA HR RBI
Combs .319/.420 4 44
Chapman .282/.445 3 39 11SB
Ruth .307/.674 28 86
Gehrig .360/.560 9 57
Lazzeri .316/.515 6 66
Dickey .344/.507 10 66
Crosetti .276/.394 3 44
Sewell .327/.478 8 62
Hoag .345/.465 2 26
Tobin .360/.553 10 52
McManus .337/.497 9 58
Sisler .396/.539 1 57 17SB
Williams .339/.682 25 101 14SB
Jacobson .340/.467 4 74
Severeid .279/.355 1 29
Collins .317/.613 10 39
Games 71-80 see the 1922 St. Louis Browns extend their lead over the 1932 World Champs to ten games (45-35). In addition to the all .300-hitting outfield and Hall of Fame 1st sacker George Sisler, STL skipper has a pleasant dilemma... two hard hitting catchers in Hank Severeid and back-up Pat Collins. Both are now hitting .300. For Collins it's a loud .313 with 12 HRs and 44 RBI in only 163 at-bats. Collins is slugging .626, behind only Ken Williams (.669) and the Babe (.663). In an ironic twist, manager Fohl has started letting Collins start behind the dish when Urban Shocker (13-6) starts. Both future Yankees (1927 champs) succeed in tormenting their future teams. In a strange time-warp development, both are cheered warmly in Yankee Stadium, where it is 1932.
Game 83 sees the Bambino again shrug off his 37 years. He hits a pair of homers to put himself at 33, and his four RBI give him 102, the first Yankee (and 2nd after Ken Williams) to surpass the century mark. On the scoreboard though, it's the Browns on top, 8-7. Among the contributors is Pat Collins, coming off the bench to line a 2-run pinch-hit home run.
Game 84 is the Red Ruffing show at Sportsmans Park in St. Louis. Red has had a rough year. He's 7-11 with an ERA in the sixes. But today he lets all his frustation out. He goes the distance, fanning eight, and allowing only two earned runs. Ruffing also collects four hits, including two doubles, and drives home SEVEN in a 15-4 shellacking of the Brownies.
An even bigger shock occurs three games later (game 87) when Lefty Gomez, one of the worst hitters in baseball history, knocks home three himself, with two singles and a double to polish up his 12-1 complete game victory at Yankee Stadium.
But in game 90, it is once again the Babe: five hits, three leaving the yard, and seven driven home in a 14-3 Yankees romp. Ruth's second homer trifecta of the season puts his season total at 40.
Games 91-95 all take place in St. Louis. Sportsmans Park again is sold out long before the first pitch. And Browns fans are once again rewarded with a five game sweep. The Browns manhandle the Yanks by a combined 63-29 score. Manager Lee Fohl, riding a hot hand, starts Pat Collins all five games, and is heavily rewarded. Collins drives in a total of 23 runs in 6 games (including game 90 in NY). In game 94, Collins hits three homers and drives home eight in a 14-10 slugfest win. The next afternoon he doubles home two more and catches for fellow future Yankee Urban Shocker, who improves to 15-7 in an 8-5 STL win.
At this point the '22 Browns are 55-40. Even the Bambino begins to wonder if his squad can catch them. Then, when the teams move to the Bronx, drama in game 97. STL scores four runs in the first two frames. Tiny Jack Tobin lines his 11th homer down the right field line in the 2nd. It only flies 303 feet, but it's far enough to score two men ahead of him. Starter Dixie Davis makes the four run bulge stand up in a big way... no hitting the powerful Yankee line-up for seven innings. Then in the eighth, Davis puts skipper Lee Fohl in a untenable position. After retiring the first two hitters, Davis walks three consecutive men to bring the tying run to the plate... in Babe Ruth. Reluctantly, Fohl brings in Hub Pruett, who’s claim to fame in an otherwise mediocre career is his success against the Bambino. Pruett strikes out Ruth to retire side, and holds the Yankees hitless in the 9th to preserve the win, and the combined no-hitter.
After 100 Games STL holds a 56-44 lead in the win column.
PLAYER..... BA/SA HR RBI
Combs....... .308/.386 4 58
Sewell....... .317/.468 13 76
Ruth......... .337/.699 41 123
Gehrig...... .361/.550 12 76
Lazzeri..... .309/.484 7 86
Dickey...... .354/.528 16 97
Chapman. .296/.463 4 58 14SB
Crosetti.... .258/.366 4 55
Hoag........ .337/.455 3 37
Tobin........ .357/.534 11 80
McManus.. .317/.469 11 74
Sisler........ .385/.529 2 77 23SB
Williams.. .324/.651 33 132 21SB
Jacobson.. .336/.481 6 98
Severeid... .306/.420 2 37
Collins..... .315/.680 20 72 219AB
Unsung heroes: for the Yankees, Bill Dickey is quietly amassing a great season. His 97 RBI are second on the club to the Babe, as are his 16 HR. His .354 average is 2nd only to Gehrig's .361. Myril Hoag has also done a superb job spelling all three outfielders. He originally subbed for Chapman when Ben was scuffling early in the year. Then he spelled the aging Ruth in right-field as he often did in '32. And Marse Joe McCarthy decided to occasionally spell Combs in center as well, especially in STL's Sportsmans Park, which was much more favorable to Hoag's right-handed bat.
And of course, for STL, second-string catcher Pat Collins continues to rake the ball with astounding authority. Like many of the Browns, Collins is a local... born in Sweet Springs, Mo. A quick look at Collins' record at BaseballReference.com shows nothing that would warrant attention: a .254 lifetime average, 33 HR, 168 RBI over ten seasons and 543 games. But a closer look, at least at his offensive numbers suggest a smart, dangerous hitter. His lifetime on-base percentage was .378, and he topped the .400 mark four times. In his actual 1922 campaign his OPS was a gaudy .949. He belted 8 homers and drove in 23 in only 127 at-bats. Project that over a full season and we're into Johnny Bench-Mike Piazza-Gary Carter territory folks! Collins had several similar years, though none as shiny as 1922. Collins, of course, was a part of three pennant winning Murderers' Row teams, including two World Champions (1927-28). And the Yanks got his best... 3 years, 264 games, a .413 OBP and a .825 OPS. In 677 AB he belted 20 HR and collected 85 RBI... as a right-handed batter in the original Yankee Stadium (495 ft to dead center, 470 to left-center). I have no idea how good Collins was defensively. But he did catch 92 games for the '27 Yankee staff, which yielded the fewest runs in the AL.
How good was Pat Collins? Probably better than people think, maybe not as good as I think. But I've played literally thousands of simulated games with him in the line-up. And he's always a run-producer, either as a 1922 Brown or a 1926-28 Yankee. Indeed, whenever the 1922 Browns play, he excels as a starter AND a pinch-hitter. Note: I use SimMatchup Baseball by WhatIfSports. I set the starting line-ups as close as possible to the way they were. Same with the pitching rotations. But from there the computer takes over, and makes all substitutions, both hitting and pitching. So I can't send up Pat Collins to pinch-hit. But a computerized Lee Fohl/Miller Huggins can. And they do. Time and time again. And Collins comes through. Time and time again.
The Browns and Yankees play vitually even for the next 40 games. Unfortunately for New York, that's not good enough. It leaves them on the verge of losing the season... with 77 wins the Browns have clinches a tie. This despite another three home run game (game 119) by the Babe, his third. As a microcosm of the season, it comes in a 8-7 loss, with the Babe having driven home all seven Yankee runs. Two games later, Lou Gehrig equals the Bambino's production. He hits only one homer and a double, but each come with the bases full for 7 RBI in a 12-8 Yankee win in STL.
But Ken Williams keeps up his jackhammer production, driving home 29 in 24 games to help clinch the season for the Browns, which they do in Sportsmans Park (game 141), a 6-3 win.
140 Games Browns record 77-63
PLAYER..... BA/SA HR RBI
Combs..... .300/.398 7 79
Sewell..... .306/.427 14 88
Ruth....... .329/.665 53 166
Gehrig.... .338/.545 23 118
Lazzeri... .318/.499 12 114
Dickey.... .347/.520 20 127
Chapman .297/.472 6 87 19SB
Crosetti... .255/.371 6 82
Hoag....... .342/.459 3 46 231AB
Tobin...... .358/.524 14 102
McManus .314/.454 12 94
Sisler...... .387/.520 4 110 42SB
Williams .308/.600 41 173 28SB
Jacobson .321/.461 9 126
Severeid. .311/.434 3 50
Collins... .327/.643 24 92 300AB
Game 149. Yankee Stadium. The Browns lay a 10-0 whitewashing on the Yanks. Future Yankee Urban Shocker is masterful, scattering seven hits, going the distance, and raising his record to 21-13. Since it is 1932 in NY, he is amused as the Bronx crowd accords him warm ovations thoughout the afternoon. His batterymate Pat Collins is similarly amused. The partisan Yankee rooters cheer Collins as he doubles, homers and drives home four. This gives Collins 26 HR, 21 doubles and 100 RBI on the season... incredibly in only 335 at-bats. In the same game, Ken Williams steals his 30th sack. With his 45 HRs he this duplicates his 1922 feat, when he became baseball's first '30-30' man.
The Browns are 84-65 at this point. There are only five games left in this long decided season. Manager Lee Fohl magaimously asks Joe McCarthy if the Yanks would care to end the season after game 150, sparing a 'meaningless' trip back to St. Louis for a mere two games.
"Not a chance!" booms a rich baritone voice from across the Yankee clubhouse. Of course it's the Babe. McCarthy just grins. "You guys beat us fair and square. We gave you all we had. No one here is hanging his head. All the guys want to finish what we started."
The Babe punctuates his remarks in the second game in STL (game 152). With one out in the 1st the Bambino lines a 396 ft home run to left-centerfield. He circles the bases, a slight limp in his trot. The Sportsman’s Park crowd accord the aging slugger a long loud ovation. Gehrig, who would collect 4 hits himself, shakes the Babe’s hand as he crosses the plate.
“The season’s about over Babe? You’re hurting out there. Why don’t you give it a rest?” Huffing and puffing as he walks down the dugout, Ruth grins.
“I’ve had plenty of rest, kid! Two more games and I’ll get plenty more.”
The home run is Ruth's 56th, and the RBI his 175th. He's had a superb year. But like so many of his homers, it comes in a losing cause as Hub Pruitt, the southpaw screwball specialist who historically gave Ruth fits, picked up his tenth win against only two losses.
Not to imply that the Babe was a one man show. The 1932 Yanks were an offensive juggernaut, scoring over 1000 runs. And they are here. But the 1922 Browns were also a hitting machine, both then and now.
154 Games 69-85 (3-1)
Final Stats HR RBI
Combs...... .302/.398 7 79
Sewell....... .293/.409 15 95
Ruth......... .321/.645 56 176
Gehrig...... .342/.539 23 124
Lazzeri..... .317/.494 12 122
Dickey....... .335/.506 21 136
Chapman.. .311/.498 8 102 20SB
Crosetti..... .250/.373 7 90
Hoag.......... .342/.456 3 49 (263AB)
Tobin........ .360/.526 16 114
McManus.. .308/.443 12 99
Sisler........ .394/.527 6 119 45SB
Williams.. .313/.612 46 189 30SB
Jacobson.. .325/.468 10 137
Severeid... .314/.432 3 58
Collins..... .310/.618 26 100 (335AB)
The Yanks and Browns come back to NY to close out the long decided season. Before the 154th and final game they are surprised to see a throng of 71,000 at the Stadium. They are even more surprised at the long ovation they get when they take the field in the 1st inning. But as they look out at the flagpole out in CF, and see their 1932 World Championship banner fluttering just beneath Old Glory, the players get it. Some of them are seen wiping their eyes as the ovation goes past the five-minute mark. All are seen tipping and waving their caps to all corners of the huge ballyard in the Bronx.
