The Babe Beats The Yanks! TWICE!

Boston's Fenway Park. 1915.
93rd Game of a 154 game season.
Ninth inning.

Rookie left-hander George Ruth casually slings his warm-up tosses plateward. Behind him his infielders toss a ball around. And in the on-deck area, Yankees third baseman Red Rolfe limbers up with two bats as he prepares to lead off the top of the ninth. And in the stands, 23,556 Fenway faithful stand and cheer. Boston has a comfortable 6-0. Wins have been hard to come by for the Red Sox lately. The 1915 World Champs had gone toe-to toe with their 1936 New York counterparts for the first half of the season. The two teams split the first 68 contests. New York's powerful line-up seemed unable to overpower the superb pitching staff. Boston seemed to be able to come up with timely hits over and over, play great defense, and of course, send a strong hurler to the mound day in and day out. Five men with at least 15 wins in the actual 1915 campaign, with lefty Dutch Leonard, 15-7, sporting the lowest winning percentage.

But suddenly, as the second half of this mythical season arrives, the 1936 Yankees seem to find an extra gear. They win an astounding 17 out of 22. Gehrig, Dickey and rookie Joe DiMaggio are not knocking out home runs left-and-right (Gehrig leads with seven after 90 games). But New York seems to adapt to the 'small ball' or 'dead ball' game very well. Their pitching solidifies. And the Red Sox find themselves fighting to get back in contention.

Which brings the two teams, and us, to game 93. New York has extended their hot streak to 19 of 24. Boston has sent rookie Ruth to the mound to try and halt the Yankee train. And here, now, for eight terrific innings, the Babe from Baltimore has done it. He has completely shut down the line-up that terrorized the American League to the tune of 1000-plus runs. And Ruth had even helped out at the plate, lining a Lefty Gomez fastball 444 feet to right center for a solo homer in the fifth. Now, three outs are all that separates he and his mates from cheer and beer for a well earned victory.

Ruth finishes his warmup tosses. Forrest Cady fires the ball down to second. Red Rolfe settles into the left-hand batters box. Ruth snags the ball from third baseman Larry Gardner and walks up to toe the rubber. Umpire Bill Klem gives the 'play ball' signal. And 23,000 Red Sox rooters remain standing and cheering.

Ruth nods at the signal from catcher Cady, winds and fires. Rolfe swings at the first pitch fastball and lifts a high fly ball. It floats down the right-field line before barely clearing the wall just fair of the pole... home run.

The fans gasp and groan loudly. Then, they begin to cheer. As Rolfe circles the bases the cheer gets louder and louder. On the mound, Ruth shrugs and calls for another ball from umpire Klem. Then he notices Boston Manager Bill Carrigan coming to the mound.

"You taking me out, Skip? I ain't tired."
"Babe! Don't you know what's going on?"
"Yeah! We're about to win. And it's about damn time!"
"Babe! They're cheering you!"
Just then umpire Klem comes to the mound with a fresh baseball.
"Nice job, Babe!" The umpire Klem grins.
"Thanks! I won't call you 'Catfish' just for that."
"Babe!" Interjects Carrigan. "You really don't know what's going on, do you? Tip your damn cap!" The Bambino looks quizzically at Carrigan. he indeed doffs his cap to the Boston fans who are on their feet, still cheering. "Babe, that home run you just surrendered to Rolfe was the Yanks' first hit of the game. You pitched a no-hitter for eight innings!" The Babe grinned.
"You're not upset?" queried umpire Klem.
"Nah! These fans ain't had much to cheer about for a long, long time." The Babe waved his cap again. Then he retired the side to secure the victory.

After the game Ruth comes out of the Red Sox clubhouse. He's surprised to see the losing pitcher, Lefty Gomez.
"Kid; that was the best I've seen in a long time. That was a clinic you gave out there today." The youngster stammered a bit.
"T-Thanks, Mr. Gomez."
"Lefty! You call me 'Mr. Gomez', it makes me sound like your grandpa!" Ruth grinned.
"That was a long time coming. I'm sick and tired of losing."
"Listen Babe... this Yankee team... do you know how damn good they are?"
"I'm gettin' the idea."
"They score a thousand runs a year. Without my help. They keep me on the mound to keep me away from the batters' box. Sometimes after I retire the side, they sneak off the field and hope I stay out there!" The Babe laughed.
"They keep you on the mound because you're a great pitcher. Something I'm trying to be."
"Something you already are."
"Thanks, Lefty. Maybe someday they'll call me 'Lefty' too."
"I think they've got another nickname in mind for you." Lefty then stuck out his hand. "Just keep pitching them, son. Let's do it again in four days." And the two left-handers shook hands.


Then… one year later.
1916 Boston Red Sox VS
1937 New York Yankees
Yankee Stadium, Bronx NY.
Boston's Babe shuts down the Yankees! Again!

Babe Ruth, now a second year southpaw, again locks horns with Lefty Gomez and the Yankees. More than 53,000 are in attendance. Ruth’s record is 7-7, with an ERA of 3.72. Lefty Gomez has a sterling 12-3 record with a 1.64 ERA… and a line-up behind him that scored more than 1000 runs in 1937.

Yankee Stadium-
Bottom of the 9th:
With the Red Sox leading 1-0, Babe Ruth takes the mound to begin the bottom of the ninth, three outs from victory, and three outs from immortality. He has allowed three base runners in 8 innings:
-A walk to Lou Gehrig in the 5th.
-A walk to Tommy Henrich in the 8th.
-A walk to Tony Lazzeri in the 8th.
And that’s it.

Now in the ninth, Ruth stands on the hill. 53,345 paid attendees stand in the Yankee Stadium stands, cheering. It is hard to tell what they are rooting for. After all, the Yans are down by only one tally.

But when Frank Crosetti leads off with a walk, a good many faithful groan. It is the obvious that at least some want to see some history.

With the Boston infield at double play depth,
R.Rolfe squares and lays down a sacrifice bunt to the right side of the mound. Ruth fields it and throws it to Jack Barry covering first. Crosetti reaches second with one out.
There are more cheers, but it is still not clear why. After all, Rolfe’s successful sacrifice puts Crosetti in scoring position, with two powerful run producers due to get their hacks.

But George Selkirk swings at the first pitch and hits a routine three-hopper to Barry, who throws him out for the second out. The fans explode. Crosetti advances to third with the tying run, but it is apparent that many here are cheering the fact that the Bambino needs one more out to achieve the unthinkable. And the mighty Lou Gehrig stands in his way.

With Frank Crosetti edging off third in foul territory, Ruth pitches from the stretch. After looking over his shoulder at Crosetti, he nods to his catcher and fires a tailing fastball. Gehrig watches it go by. “Stee-riiiike ONE!”

Ruth takes the return throw from catcher Pinch Thomas. He then peers in for the next sign. He nods, checks the runner. He then fires another fastball. This one is a tad higher and a little tighter to Gehrig.

Gehrig swings mightily. The ball flies high in the air, straight up. “I-GOT-IT! I-GOT-IT! I-GOT-IT!” First baseman Dick Hoblitzel comes charging to the right side of the mound, frantically waving his arms as he looks skyward. Then finally he reaches up, and snares the falling ball.

PANDEMONIUM!

Gehrig has popped up for the 27th and final out. Hoblitzel squeezes the ball, and then squeezes his pitcher, hugging him tightly as the rest of the Boston infield quickly joins the fray, jumping, hollering and whooping it up.

And the fans in the Yankee Stadium stands are also jumping, cheering wildly for the arch-rival team’s left-hander. Last year, as a rookie, Ruth had carried a no-no into the 9th in Boston against the 1936 Bombers. As it is today, Ruth’s mound opponent was Lefty Gomez. Gomez was a worthy adversary, then, and he is today, yielding but one run and 7 hits himself. Now, today he yields the stage, his stage, to a fellow left-handed ace.
Amidst the throng of jumping, yelling teammates on the Stadium infield, Ruth manages to glance into the Yankee dugout, where most of the players still are. He spots Gomez, who nods quietly and slightly, touching the bill of his cap. On the mound, the Babe also touches his bill and nods.
When the Bambino finally begins to depart the mound and Yankee Stadium infield, the New York partisan denizens cheer loudly once more. And the Babe responds, tipping his cap in all directions and waving to the roaring throng.

TEAMS......................... 123 456 789 - R H E
1916 Boston Red Sox.... 001 000 000 - 1 7 0
1937 N Y Yankees.........000 000 000 - 0 0 0

A year earlier in this imaginary drama, the rookie Ruth had squared off against Lefty Gomez and the 1936 Yankees, and had come within three outs of no-hitting them in the 93rd game of the season. Now he's a second year left-hander who would win 23 in the actual 1916 season. He would fire 9 shutouts, an AL record for lefties which still stands. He would win the longest game in World Series history 2-1, going the 14 inning distance. And here, he would use the no-hitter as a springboard, turning a 7-7 record into a 22-9 mark with a 3.11 ERA… against the finest aggregate of hitters ever to take the field.

Yanks Clinch Season Against Red Sox!

Late surge makes 1936 Champs victorious once again.

The 1936 Yankees won the AL pennant by 19 1/2 games. THe 1915 Red Sox managed to split the first 68 games of the schedule, and were able to climb to within four as late as the 140th game. So the 1915 World Champions should take some pride and some solace in what they have accomplished.

"We let them get away from us in mid-season," Manager Bill 'Rough' Carrigan. "They adapted well to the 'dead-ball' 1915 style baseball we played back then. They adapted way better than I thought they would. I thought all those long fly-ball outs they were hitting might frustrated them. They were able to change their game plan on the fly... against the finest pitching staff - ours - I've ever seen. I give them a lot of credit. And of course, I am proud of our boys as well."

Indeed, Bill Carrigan's assessment is spot on. Only one Yankee cracked double figures in home runs... Lou Gehrig with 13. Only two drove in 100... Gehrig (114) and DiMaggio (105) against the 1915 Sox, while five had done so against the American League in 1936. And Carrigan was justifiably proud of 'his boys'. Duffy Lewis managed to hang onto his overall RBI title, edging the great Gehrig with 115 RBI. Tris Speaker led all the Boston regulars with a .326 average against an underrated Yankee pitching staff. We say 'regulars' because Speaker's .326 average trails the .333 compiled by the rookie wonderkind from Baltimore, George Herman Ruth, Jr.

"Beaten out by a rookie pitcher!" Tris grins. It is pointed out that Ruth wouldn't be eligible for any batting titles because of his limited plate appearances. "Yeah, but he also led us in home runs (Ruth had five, with 19 RBI)! Heck, he'd be third on the Yankees! And those boys can hit some long ones!"

"You talking about that big sonofagun again?"
"Hello Lefty!" Speaker and Lefty Gomez shake hands. "It hurts like hell, Lefty. But congratulations. And yeah, we were talking about that kid Ruth... although Carrigan is right. He ain't a kid no more. He grew up a lot in 1915. And he showed it plenty here."
"Sure did, Tex! He may act kinda goofy once in a while... but he's got fire. He wants to win, and he's got the goods to do something about it."

Finally the young southpaw everyone is talking about happens by.
"Babe!" yells Lefty Gomez. "Get over here!" George Ruth turns and approaches. "Helluva year, Babe!" The two lefties shake hands.
"My sentiments exactly..." agrees Tris Speaker. "You're a heckuva pitcher and a heckuva hitter, young fellow! You're gonna leave a mark in this game."
"Yeah... black-and-blue marks!" pipes Lefty Gomez. "All over American League pitchers. Can you play the outfield?" Ruth shrugs.
"I guess I could play anywhere. Except center when Tris is around."
"You can play the outfield with me any time, Babe. I'd rather watch your drives from the dugout than chase them!" The Babe, still disappointed with the way the season ends, manages a grin.
"Thanks, Tris. One thing I like about pitching with the Sox is looking around and seeing you backing me up in the outfield. Always feel like I got a shot at winning when I see you in center... and Lewis and Hooper on either side."
"I'm getting that way with DiMaggio," nods Lefty Gomez.
"He's a heck of a rookie." Speaker agrees. "Doesn't play like one. Not scared one bit."
"Hard to pitch to." adds young George Ruth. "But fun to pitch to. I like pitching to the tough ones... the ones that swing like they wan to kill you."
"You handled us really good, Babe!" says Lefty. You got nothing to hang your head about."
"Thanks, Lefty. I wouldn't mind doing it again."
Me too, son. Like I said all year long, you're a good pitcher. And you're only gonna get better. But I gotta warn you. If you play us again, some of our guys will get better too."
"Like Joe?"
"Like Joe." nods Lefty.
154 Games. 1936 New York Yankees - 82-72. 1915 Boston Red Sox - 72-82.

New York:
George Selkirk - 8 HR 82 RBI .250 BA, .327 SA
Lou Gehrig - 13 HR 114 RBI .296 BA, .428 SA
Joe DiMaggio - 7 HR 105 RBI .312 BA, .426 SA
Bill Dickey - 8 HR 94 RBI .339 BA, .441 SA

Boston:
Tris Speaker - 24 2B 83 RBI .327 BA, .399 SA
Babe Ruth - 5 HR 19 RBI .333 BA, .639 SA
Babe Ruth - 15-12, 2.81 ERA, 221 innings.
Duffy Lewis 114 RBI.

Red Sox Hammer Yanks! 18-2!

Duffy Lewis again leads charge.
Boston left fielder knocks in five.

Fenway Park. 1915. Game 135. Attendance 26,575.
The Red Sox signal they will not go quietly. They win their fourth in the last five games, improving their record to 64-71. Duffy Lewis doubles and drives in five runs. Catcher Forrest Cady also doubles and plates four. First-sacker Dick Hoblitzell collects 3 RBI. And Smoky Joe Wood, former 34 game winner (1912), clamps down on the powerful Yankee line-up as Boston prevails 18-2.

The Red Sox send 15 men to the plate in the first inning. Duffy Lewis goes 2 for 2 and drives in three. Lewis drives in two more in a six-run 6th, collecting four hits and five RBI. In the ninth, Lewis is plunked by a pitch, recalling similar events earlier in the year. That time the Sox had let it pass. This time a few of the Boston players, notably Carl Mays and rookie southpaw Babe Ruth, take exception.

"Some sonofabitch is going to pay." barks the Babe on the Boston bench. '"Don't let it cost us a game..." intones manager Bill 'Rough' Carrigan, biting his words. "That's all I gotta say about it."

In game 131 Lewis had become the first man on either squad to knock in 100 on the season as Boston roughed up Ruffing, 9-2. Then game 133 saw Babe Ruth win his third straight decision, going eight strong innings (one run on three hits) to beat Lefty Gomez and the Yanks. Of course the rookie southpaw helped at the bat with two hits, a double, and 2 RBI.

1915 Boston Red Sox vs 1936 NY Yankees!

1915 Boston Red Sox
101-50 (.669)
World Champions
669 Runs Scored
449 Runs Allowed
Team ERA 2.39
Five pitchers 15 victories each.
Team total 14 Home runs.
The team Home Run leader (4) is a rookie southpaw from Baltimore named George Ruth. His Slugging Percentage of .576 is the highest on the squad. His on-base percentage is second only to an all-time great centerfielder, Tris Speaker. The young slugger's home runs come in only 92 at-bats, as he goes 18-8 on the mound during one of the greatest rookie campaigns of all time.

1936 New York Yankees
102-51 (.667)
World Champions
1065 runs scored (lead AL)
731 runs allowed (fewest in AL)
Team Batting Average- .300
182 Home Runs
Five men with 100 RBI
Six men with more than Boston's team total of 14 Home Runs.
The Yankees showcase a rookie of their own from San Francisco, a Pacific Coast League graduate named Joseph Paul DiMaggio.

The two teams will play a full 154 game schedule. Half will take place in 1936 New York. Half will take place in 1915 Boston. All games will be played under the auspices of MLB (Mac's Legendary Baseball). Rules may or may mot be explained as time and interest dictate.

PLAY BALL!