*The following is an excerpt from the post '1932 Yankees vs. 1976 Cincinnati Reds!'
Game 152 Batting Practice
Wrigley Field, Chicago
The 1932 Yanks vs. the 1976 Cincinnati Reds (September 2011). The Yanks have slumped, going 22-38 since starting the season 47-44. They are 69-82. With the season long decided, the Bambino has taken the Reds to visit 1932 Wrigley Field... where Joe Morgan asks the Babe one of baseball's eternal questions... did he or didn't he?
George Foster and Joe Morgan watch as the aging Bambino launches several BP tosses into the Wrigley Field bleachers… and a couple over them. Then Babe comes out to join them as Lou Gehrig takes his hacks.
“This is still the best part of the day for me,” Ruth wiped his brow and grinned broadly. “This is why I show up.”
“This is why we played as kids, Babe.” Joe replied.
“George…” Ruth was still breathing hard. “You went over 200 RBI’s. That’s amazing, pal.”
“You went over that scoreboard yesterday, George!!”
Foster grinned. “That’s amazing.”
Note: Ruth’s home run yesterday traveled approximately 512 feet, leaving the park to the right of the scoreboard.
“You know, I had a teammate named George Foster?”
“No kidding?” Foster queried.
“Yep… everyone called him Rube… just like the Negro Leaguer. And just like the Negro Leaguer, George was a great pitcher. He was our Ace on the ’15 Red Sox… the World Champion Red Sox.”
“You were pretty good yourself that year, Babe.” Said Joe Morgan.
“We had a staff!” The Babe mused. “I won 18 games. And I didn’t get to start in the World Series!”
“Damn!” Exclaimed George Foster. “Why not?”
“Partly because of that damn George Foster!” Foster. Morgan and Ruth all laughed. “Seriously, Rube won 20, won 2 more in the Series. And he went 4 for 8.”
“Did you ever hit against the Black Rube Foster, Babe?” Asked Joe.
“Nah… he was before my time. He was a manager by the time I was a rookie. I did hit against Cannonball Redding and Smoky Joe Williams. And of course, there was Satch.”
“You hit against Satch?” Foster asked excitedly.
“Nah…” Ruth grinned. Foster looked dejected. “I mostly missed.” They all grinned. “I homered off of him once. But he was tough. Remember, he was in his twenties. He had it going!”
“Who was the fastest?” Morgan asked.
“That’s a tough one. Redding was the toughest to hit because he pitched inside. Pushed you off the plate. Then again, I was older when I faced Satch. And Williams was in his forties when he faced me.”
"Tell me about '32, Babe." Said Joe Morgan.
“The bench jockeying was fierce Joe.” The Babe said quietly. “They called me ‘Nigger…’”
“Really…” Joe answered, a bit disquieted.
“Yeah. I got that a lot. Some guys were vicious. And I think it hurt them more tham it hurt me.”
“I can believe that.” Morgan nodded.
“Ben Chapman… he was a Hall Of Fame talent. He could do it all. Actually, Joe, he played like you. Steal bases, hit homers, .300-hitter, good fielder… he could do it all. But I think he let that crap ruin his career.”
“What about you, Babe?” Joe asked.
Babe smiled. “See that scoreboard out in center field?”
“Yep.”
“That ball I hit in ’32 went right past it… just to the right.” Babe winked. “And I owe that to those bastards on the Chicago bench.” For the first time both Morgan and Ruth grinned. Then Joe asked the question.
“What about it Babe? Did you call it?”
“It’s all right there in the papers.”
“C’mon Babe!”Joe insisted.
“I’ll tell you just what I did. I pointed to the pitcher, Root. I said ‘I’m gonna knock the next pitch right down your throat!’” Ruth winked again. “Guess I got under it a bit.” Joe and the Babe both laughed.
Game 152 Cincy wins 13-11 the Yanks fall to 69-83
Yanks 22-39 since going 47-44
Wrigley Field, Chicago
PLAYER …….POS… AB H 2B 3B HR TB
Babe Ruth…….RF… 5 4 0 0 4 16
Lou Gehrig…....1B … 5 5 0 0 2 11
HR: B.Chapman (1),
B.Ruth 4 (59), L.Gehrig 2 (38)
RBI: B.Chapman (1),
B.Ruth 7 (174), L.Gehrig 2 (168), F.Crosetti (1)
HR: K.Griffey Sr. (10)
RBI: P.Rose 2 (2), K.Griffey Sr. 3 (79), G.Foster (203), T.Perez (161), J.Bench (1), D.Concepcion 4 (4),
G.Nolan (1)
1st: Ruth grounds out to Perez at 1B, unassisted.
The Reds score 5 in the bottom of the first to take the lead, 5-0.
3rd: Ruth hits a 390 foot HR into the right-center field bleachers. Red Ruffing scores ahead of the Babe to make the score 6-3, Cincinnati.
6th: The Babe leads off, and rockets a drive down the right that clears the 353 foot fence and Sheffield Avenue behind it. Ruth’s 2nd HR makes it Reds 8, Yanks 4. Lou Gehrig follows immediately with a blast to right-center, which clangs against a bleacher seat 414 feet away. Reds now lead 8-5.
7th: “Try to get on ahead of me, Ben!” Ruth says to Chapman as both men loosen up in the on-deck circle. Chapman grins and walks to the plate to lead off. Gary Nolan fires a fast-ball, and Ben Chapman lines a home-run to left field. He circles the bases and shakes Ruth’s hand at the plate. “Sorry, Babe!” Chapman yells over the roaring, 39,000-plus crowd. Ruth grins back. Then, after Sparky Anderson relieves Gary Nolan with Pedro Borbon, the Babe swings at a two-strike waste pitch, two feet outside an inches off the ground. The Babe’s 3rd HR soars to the left of the huge CF scoreboard, leaves Wrigley Field, and bounces approximately 550 feet away. In the dugout, Ben Chapman shakes his head… Holy crap!” Ruth’s 3rd home run closes the gap to 9-7.
9th inning: Cincinnati has the game in hand, 13-7. With one out, Will McEnaney walks Ben Chapman. Sparky Anderson shakes his head and comes out to remove him in favor of Pat Darcy. Darcy takes the ball and immediately fires a brushback fast-ball at the Bambino. Bambino, who of course disdains batting helmets, hits the dirt. The fans boo heavily. Ruth gets up slowly. Through the crescendo of boos, the Babe’s face is creased by a grin. He quietly says to catcher Johnny Bench… “Your boy shoulda hit me.” Johnny grinned back. “Go easy on him Babe.” Ruth steps back into the batter’s box and digs in…six inches closer to the plate. And he stares right at Darcy. Darcy throws a change-up, which drops toward the Babe’s shoe-tops… low and inside. Ruth steps back and golfs the pitch. The Babe’s 4th home run soars majestically toward Sheffield Avenue, clearing the bleachers and disappearing from view. As Ruth trots past 2nd, Joe Morgan swats him on the rump with his glove. Ruth comes around third and hears a whistle from the pitching mound. The Babe glances up and Darcy tips his cap ever so slightly. Ruth returns the salute and dents home plate. Bench swats him on the shoulder with his catcher’s mitt as the Babe goes by.
While the Chicago throng is still cheering, Lou Gehrig hits Darcy’s first offering over the RF wall. Lou’s 2nd HR makes the score 13-11. And makes a suddenly nervous Sparky Anderson relieve Darcy with Rawly Eastwick.
“That was the best I’ve ever seen, Babe. And the best I ever hope to see.” Joe Morgan says quietly.
“Thanks, Joe.” Ruth grinned. “But you guys still won. And by the way, your hero, Willie… he hit four in a game in real life. In sixty or sixty-one, sometime around there.”
“Yeah, but I was able to witness this one. You and Gehrig both. What did you have…?”
“Twenty-seven total bases!” Sparky Anderson interjected, having just walked up behind the batting cage. “I could never hit. But I can count with anybody. Lou had 11. And this colossus had six-teen!”
“Hello, Sparky.” Said Ruth.
“Babe, do you know that Sparky’s real name is George?”
“Sunovabee!” Ruth grinned as the two Georges shook hands. Anderson repeated the number, shaking his head.
“Twenty-seven total bases! That’s three singles apiece for the whole starting line-up. Babe, it was an honor to be here and see it… and be a part of it.”
“Thanks, George!” Ruth and Anderson both grinned.
“The most amazing thing… at least two of those homers came on pitches nowhere near the plate. Darcy’s… that was a great pitch!”
“Yes it was.” Nodded the Babe. “If I could explain how I’d hit it…”
“You hit it because you’re Babe-friggin-Ruth!” Interjected Sparky Anderson. Ruth grinned.
“Sometimes that helps.” Joked Ruth.
Showing posts with label George Herman Ruth. Show all posts
Showing posts with label George Herman Ruth. Show all posts
Monday, September 26, 2011
Monday, September 19, 2011
1927 Yankees vs 1922 STL Browns!
1922 STL Browns
Yankees go 85-65 .566 (2nd)
PLAYER……BA/SA…....HR……RBI
Combs .337/.478 7 50
Koenig .297/.417 3 84
Ruth .326/.777 66 155
Gehrig .350/.676 32 147
Meusel .344/.494 5 125
Lazzeri .320/.510 20 142
Collins .278/.442 20 103
Dugan .258/.352 4 68
Paschal .314/.548 15 101(465AB)
Gazella .261/.374OBA 26(252AB)
PLAYER……BA/SA…....HR……RBI
Tobin .336/.450 6 87
Sisler .390/.520 6 97
Williams .339/.509 15 148
Jacobson .303/.401 5 141
McManus .285/.416 5 117
Severeid .328/.414 2 58
Collins .283/.389 7 45
Vangilder .413/.652 1 22
Since 4-16 start, Browns go 20-20, 9-21, 15-15, 17-13
The ’22 Browns gave the 1927 Yankees the most fits of everyone except the Cubs. Their approach could not have been more diametrically opposite. The Brownies bludgeoned pitching staffs into submission. As I pointed out when they ‘played’ (and beat) the 1932 Yankees, the Browns could also pitch – they paced the 1922 American League in staff ERA, and were 2nd in runs allowed – by two runs – to the 1922 AL champion New York Yankees. Of course the Browns’ batsmen led the American League in hitting, slugging, stolen bases, scoring and triples. Kind of begs the question – HOW DID THEY BLOW THAT ’22 PENNANT?
In Mac’s Legendary Baseball the 1922 Browns finished 20 games behind the 1927 Yankees. Remember, the American League finished 64 games behind in ’27. Before facing the 1927 Murderer’s Row, the 1922 St. Louisians whipped the 1932 World Champions, posting a 84-66 mark against a squad that went 107-47 and swept the Cubs. Then the Brownies beat the 1921 AL pennant-winning Yankees, going 79-71. The 1921 NY Yankees were much better than the 1922 edition. So again - HOW DID THE ’22 BROWNS BLOW THAT ’22 PENNANT?
Here in Mac’s LB the Brown’s suffered two slumps, a 4-16 stretch to start the season and a 9-21 midseason funk just as it looked as if the Brownies were getting back into it. The 1922 Browns had one Hall-of-Famer, a .300 hitting outfield, and baseball’s first ‘30-30’ man. But they also had Elam Vangilder, who turned out to be, well, the Babe Ruth of the Browns. Vangilder batted .344 in 1922 with 10 doubles, 2 triples, 2 home runs, and 11 RBIs in only 93 at-bats. In addition he went 19-13 with a 3.42 ERA over 245 innings. A product of Cape Girardeau, Mo (born there 1896, died there 1977), Elam went 99-102 lifetime and batted a respectable .244. He never attained the same heights in pitching or hitting after that great 1922 season, which leads to an interesting rhetorical question; should he have switched another position a la Babe Ruth and his own ex-pitching teammate George Sisler?
Here Vangilder does even better – a fat .413 average, an even fatter .652 slugging mark, 18 doubles and 22 RBI – in only 121 at-bats.
To illustrate the ferocity with which these two offensive behemoths locked horns, here are a few games from this mythical season matchup.
Game 31
NYY – 2 2 5 3 2 1 3 2 2 - 22 23 1
STL – 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 - 4 10 2
The Yanks have actually scored more runs. Even this season – 24. But this was domination… not a single zero anywhere on the scoreboard for the Yanks. The Yanks won every inning. The ‘computer’ designated the Babe as the Player of the Game, and indeed it’s hard to argue with 3 HRs, 4 hits, 5 RBIs, and thirteen (13) Total Bases. Hard to argue but not impossible; super-sub Ben Paschal hit safely 5 times, including 3 doubles, 2 runs scored and six (6) driven in. And that was from the leadoff spot! The other super-sub, Mike Gazella, who has been spelling both Mark Koenig and Jumping’ Joe Dugan, only collected one safety, but he walked twice, scored thrice, and drove in three more. Every starter including hurler George Pipgras hit safely, and every starter except Pipgras scored – but Pipgras did drive one in!
The Bambino’s blasts come in the 1st (2-run, CF, 477 ft), 6th (solo, left-center, 421 ft), and 9th (2-run, LF, 388 ft).
Game 70
STL - 0 0 0 0 8 2 0 0 0 0 1 - 11 17 2
NYY - 4 0 0 0 0 0 6 0 0 0 0 - 10 11 1
This game sums up how close these two teams are, despite the Yanks’ 18-game bulge in the season. These two heavyweights swapped haymakers as they have all season. Today the Browns were left standing with arms raised, while the Yanks were bloody, beaten but unbowed.
It looked like a good day for the home crowd, which was 44,323. In the bottom of the 1st Bob Meusel lines a bases-loaded, bases-clearing double into the huge left-centerfield death valley gap (470 ft) of 1927 Yankee Stadium. One out later, Yankee catcher Pat Collins, having another fine season (actually two fine seasons, one for each squad…) lines a 411 foot triple into the same gap, easily scoring Meusel. With a 4-0 edge and 18-game winner Urban Shocker on the hill, things look good for the Murderer’s Row bunch.
Until the 5th. TO that point, Shocker holds the mighty Browns to one hit, a lonely single to his ex-catcher Hank Severeid. Interestingly enough, Severeid opens the 5th frame with his (and the Browns’) 2nd single, a shot to centerfield. This time, it opens a floodgate, allowing a tide that would carry Shocker away. Consecutive singles follow and load the bases. Pitcher Dixie Davis would knock in the 1st STL tally with a fielder’s choice, but then it would get ugly. Tiny Jack Tobin singles in 3B-man Eddie Foster. Hall-of-Famer Sisler walks to reload the rifle for Kenny Williams, who fires… crushing a grand slam HR down the RF line into the short porch at Yankee Stadium. STL takes the lead, 6-4.
Out comes Shocker, and in comes Myles Thomas, the reliever with an accountant’s name. But the numbers get ugly for Myles too. Baby Doll (did they have great names in the 1920s or what?) Jacobson singles, Marty McManus triples, and then Hank Severeid, who started all of this, ends it by singling home the 8th run of the inning.
STL piles it on in the 6th, with Williams and Jacobson again driving in runs to increase the score to 10-4 STL.
After the glum home fans stand for the 7th inning stretch, they are cheered by their home team. As they root-root-rooted the Yankees on, the boys show why 44,000 paid their way in and stuck around thus far. The Yanks score a half-dozen times to tie it 10-10. Super sub Paschal, imitating the man he replaced (Earle Combs), leads off with a triple (Earle led the AL with 23 in ’27). Mark Koenig likes the idea, and triples himself… no I don’t mean that Koenig replicated himself twice! Anyway, Koenig scores a moment later on Gehrig’s single and the NY comeback is in full swing. Lazzeri, super sub #2 Gazella, reliever Wilcy Moore, and super sub #1 Ben Paschal all drive in runs. Gazella and Paschal both take bases-loaded walks, while Moore is hit by a pitch, all of which is driving STL manager Lee Fohl out of his baseball mind. This streak of wildness by STL hurlers Hub Pruitt and Bill Bayne furnish the Yankees with runs 8,9, and 10 to knot the game.
And knotted it stays until the STL 11th. By the 11th it’s ex-Yankee ace Bob Shawkey on the mound. 1927 is Bob’s final year, and unfortunately, today he shows why… he walks the winning run on board in 3rd baseman Eddie Foster. Huggins then relieves him with current ace Waite Hoyt. Hoyt tries nobly to stem the tide. But this is a great hitting club he’s up against. Hoyt gets Wally Gerber to bounce into a fielder’s choice, with Koenig tossing to Lazzeri to erase Foster. Foster upends Tony Lazzeri, preventing a throw to 1st for a double play. Of course that would prove crucial. Up comes Elam Vangilder.
STL emergency reliever Elam Vangilder, a starter who himself entered the game in the 8th, has pitched 3 innings of one-hit shutout ball. He is also, during this fictional season is batting near .400, slugging well over .600, and pitching whenever and however Lee Fohl can ask.
Now here in the 11th Elam lines a single to RF, sending Eddie Foster to 2nd. Foster then scores the game winner when 142 pound Jack Tobin grounds a single to LF. Rifle-armed Bob Meusel makes a strong, on-the-money throw to home but Wally Gerber slides around Pat Collins’ tag with the ball game.
Game 94
NY….1 0 0…1 0 1…0 0 0 – 3 8 4
STL.. 0 9 4..3 0 3..0 3 x – 22 21 1
Marty McManus doubles three times, triples once, and knocks in seven.
STL puts their stamp on the game in the 2nd, scoring nine times. George Pipgras self-destructs, loading the bases by walking Baby Doll Jacobson, Pat Collins and Wally Gerber. Jacobson and Collins pull off a double steal before the Gerber walk, which rattles Pipgras. Then opposing pitcher Elam Vangilder, a .370 hitter all year, rattles Pipgras big time, lining a long one between Combs and Paschal… a 3-run, bases clearing triple, giving STL a 3-1 lead. Tobin, Sisler, Williams, and Jacobson (batting for the 2nd time in the inning) all follow with singles. Miller Huggins relieves the battered Pipgras with a hastily warmed up Myles Thomas. The barrage continues. Marty McManus, who had stuck out looking earlier in the inning, doesn’t miss this time, lining a double past Ruth down the RF line. Williams and Jacobson score runs 7 and 8. Third sacker Frank Ellerbe rounds out the scoring by singling home McManus, and the Browns are on their way to a romp.
Interesting side notes of this matchup. I gave two Yankee subs much more playing time than they got in 1927… Ben Paschal and Mike Gazella. Ben Paschal was the Yanks 4th outfielder, and by all accounts, really good. A .309 lifetime hitter in 364 games, he played what amounts to one full season from 1925-28. He hit .321 (214-666) with 43 doubles, 11 triples, 22 homers and 22 steals. His on-base average was .380 and he slugged .518. Ben did this playing in mammoth Yankee Stadium, which was even bigger in 1927 than it would be later on.
In this particular mythic season I spotted all three Yankee outfielders with Ben Paschal. He started enough to accumulate 465 at-bats. And besides the numbers listed above Big Ben lined 46 doubles and 9 triples. Note: whenever I don’t start Paschal, he’s always Miller Huggins’ (the computerized version) 1st and best pinch-hitter.
The other sub, infielder Mike Gazella, started seeing playing time as both Mark Koenig and Jumping Joe Dugan each got off to slow starts. Koenig was stuck at .222 after 40 team games, and Dugan .203. Mike Gazella was not a thumper. But apparently he knew how to play winning baseball…the 5’7” Gazella posted a .407 on-base mark in ’27, a skill that placed atop this line-up has immense value. And in this mythic season it did. Mike managed to post a .374 OBP here in 299 plate appearances. And if you look at the stats above, you see that Koenig and Dugan were able to revive their seasons in the 2nd half, giving this team some nice infield options!
Another interesting side note: there were two men who participated on both sides of this battle – catcher Pat Collins and pitcher Urban Shocker. Shocker didn’t do particularly great for either side here. He went 11-11 for the Yanks and 6-19 for the Brownies. Shock did much better in real life and also in other seasons of Mac’s Legendary Baseball. Pat Collins did so-so here with the Browns, where he is often manager Lee Fohl’s 1st option off the bench. He did much better with the Yanks. Of course, the Browns have/had two good hitting catchers, and it’s hard to justify sitting Hank Severeid for very long. Still, Fohl never pinch-hits with Severeid, but always finds a way to get Collins’ bat in there, even for just one swing.
Once again, the Final Stats.
1922 STL Browns vs 1927 Yanks
Yankees go 85-65 .566 (2nd)
PLAYER……BA/SA…....HR……RBI
Combs .337/.478 7 50
Koenig .297/.417 3 84
Ruth .326/.777 66 155
Gehrig .350/.676 32 147
Meusel .344/.494 5 125
Lazzeri .320/.510 20 142
Collins .278/.442 20 103
Dugan .258/.352 4 68
Paschal .314/.548 15 101(465AB)
Gazella .261/.374OBA 26(252AB)
PLAYER……BA/SA…....HR……RBI
Tobin .336/.450 6 87
Sisler .390/.520 6 97
Williams .339/.509 15 148
Jacobson .303/.401 5 141
McManus .285/.416 5 117
Severeid .328/.414 2 58
Collins .283/.389 7 45
Vangilder .413/.652 1 22
Since 4-16 start, Browns go 20-20, 9-21, 15-15, 17-13
Yankees go 85-65 .566 (2nd)
PLAYER……BA/SA…....HR……RBI
Combs .337/.478 7 50
Koenig .297/.417 3 84
Ruth .326/.777 66 155
Gehrig .350/.676 32 147
Meusel .344/.494 5 125
Lazzeri .320/.510 20 142
Collins .278/.442 20 103
Dugan .258/.352 4 68
Paschal .314/.548 15 101(465AB)
Gazella .261/.374OBA 26(252AB)
PLAYER……BA/SA…....HR……RBI
Tobin .336/.450 6 87
Sisler .390/.520 6 97
Williams .339/.509 15 148
Jacobson .303/.401 5 141
McManus .285/.416 5 117
Severeid .328/.414 2 58
Collins .283/.389 7 45
Vangilder .413/.652 1 22
Since 4-16 start, Browns go 20-20, 9-21, 15-15, 17-13
The ’22 Browns gave the 1927 Yankees the most fits of everyone except the Cubs. Their approach could not have been more diametrically opposite. The Brownies bludgeoned pitching staffs into submission. As I pointed out when they ‘played’ (and beat) the 1932 Yankees, the Browns could also pitch – they paced the 1922 American League in staff ERA, and were 2nd in runs allowed – by two runs – to the 1922 AL champion New York Yankees. Of course the Browns’ batsmen led the American League in hitting, slugging, stolen bases, scoring and triples. Kind of begs the question – HOW DID THEY BLOW THAT ’22 PENNANT?
In Mac’s Legendary Baseball the 1922 Browns finished 20 games behind the 1927 Yankees. Remember, the American League finished 64 games behind in ’27. Before facing the 1927 Murderer’s Row, the 1922 St. Louisians whipped the 1932 World Champions, posting a 84-66 mark against a squad that went 107-47 and swept the Cubs. Then the Brownies beat the 1921 AL pennant-winning Yankees, going 79-71. The 1921 NY Yankees were much better than the 1922 edition. So again - HOW DID THE ’22 BROWNS BLOW THAT ’22 PENNANT?
Here in Mac’s LB the Brown’s suffered two slumps, a 4-16 stretch to start the season and a 9-21 midseason funk just as it looked as if the Brownies were getting back into it. The 1922 Browns had one Hall-of-Famer, a .300 hitting outfield, and baseball’s first ‘30-30’ man. But they also had Elam Vangilder, who turned out to be, well, the Babe Ruth of the Browns. Vangilder batted .344 in 1922 with 10 doubles, 2 triples, 2 home runs, and 11 RBIs in only 93 at-bats. In addition he went 19-13 with a 3.42 ERA over 245 innings. A product of Cape Girardeau, Mo (born there 1896, died there 1977), Elam went 99-102 lifetime and batted a respectable .244. He never attained the same heights in pitching or hitting after that great 1922 season, which leads to an interesting rhetorical question; should he have switched another position a la Babe Ruth and his own ex-pitching teammate George Sisler?
Here Vangilder does even better – a fat .413 average, an even fatter .652 slugging mark, 18 doubles and 22 RBI – in only 121 at-bats.
To illustrate the ferocity with which these two offensive behemoths locked horns, here are a few games from this mythical season matchup.
Game 31
NYY – 2 2 5 3 2 1 3 2 2 - 22 23 1
STL – 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 - 4 10 2
The Yanks have actually scored more runs. Even this season – 24. But this was domination… not a single zero anywhere on the scoreboard for the Yanks. The Yanks won every inning. The ‘computer’ designated the Babe as the Player of the Game, and indeed it’s hard to argue with 3 HRs, 4 hits, 5 RBIs, and thirteen (13) Total Bases. Hard to argue but not impossible; super-sub Ben Paschal hit safely 5 times, including 3 doubles, 2 runs scored and six (6) driven in. And that was from the leadoff spot! The other super-sub, Mike Gazella, who has been spelling both Mark Koenig and Jumping’ Joe Dugan, only collected one safety, but he walked twice, scored thrice, and drove in three more. Every starter including hurler George Pipgras hit safely, and every starter except Pipgras scored – but Pipgras did drive one in!
The Bambino’s blasts come in the 1st (2-run, CF, 477 ft), 6th (solo, left-center, 421 ft), and 9th (2-run, LF, 388 ft).
Game 70
STL - 0 0 0 0 8 2 0 0 0 0 1 - 11 17 2
NYY - 4 0 0 0 0 0 6 0 0 0 0 - 10 11 1
This game sums up how close these two teams are, despite the Yanks’ 18-game bulge in the season. These two heavyweights swapped haymakers as they have all season. Today the Browns were left standing with arms raised, while the Yanks were bloody, beaten but unbowed.
It looked like a good day for the home crowd, which was 44,323. In the bottom of the 1st Bob Meusel lines a bases-loaded, bases-clearing double into the huge left-centerfield death valley gap (470 ft) of 1927 Yankee Stadium. One out later, Yankee catcher Pat Collins, having another fine season (actually two fine seasons, one for each squad…) lines a 411 foot triple into the same gap, easily scoring Meusel. With a 4-0 edge and 18-game winner Urban Shocker on the hill, things look good for the Murderer’s Row bunch.
Until the 5th. TO that point, Shocker holds the mighty Browns to one hit, a lonely single to his ex-catcher Hank Severeid. Interestingly enough, Severeid opens the 5th frame with his (and the Browns’) 2nd single, a shot to centerfield. This time, it opens a floodgate, allowing a tide that would carry Shocker away. Consecutive singles follow and load the bases. Pitcher Dixie Davis would knock in the 1st STL tally with a fielder’s choice, but then it would get ugly. Tiny Jack Tobin singles in 3B-man Eddie Foster. Hall-of-Famer Sisler walks to reload the rifle for Kenny Williams, who fires… crushing a grand slam HR down the RF line into the short porch at Yankee Stadium. STL takes the lead, 6-4.
Out comes Shocker, and in comes Myles Thomas, the reliever with an accountant’s name. But the numbers get ugly for Myles too. Baby Doll (did they have great names in the 1920s or what?) Jacobson singles, Marty McManus triples, and then Hank Severeid, who started all of this, ends it by singling home the 8th run of the inning.
STL piles it on in the 6th, with Williams and Jacobson again driving in runs to increase the score to 10-4 STL.
After the glum home fans stand for the 7th inning stretch, they are cheered by their home team. As they root-root-rooted the Yankees on, the boys show why 44,000 paid their way in and stuck around thus far. The Yanks score a half-dozen times to tie it 10-10. Super sub Paschal, imitating the man he replaced (Earle Combs), leads off with a triple (Earle led the AL with 23 in ’27). Mark Koenig likes the idea, and triples himself… no I don’t mean that Koenig replicated himself twice! Anyway, Koenig scores a moment later on Gehrig’s single and the NY comeback is in full swing. Lazzeri, super sub #2 Gazella, reliever Wilcy Moore, and super sub #1 Ben Paschal all drive in runs. Gazella and Paschal both take bases-loaded walks, while Moore is hit by a pitch, all of which is driving STL manager Lee Fohl out of his baseball mind. This streak of wildness by STL hurlers Hub Pruitt and Bill Bayne furnish the Yankees with runs 8,9, and 10 to knot the game.
And knotted it stays until the STL 11th. By the 11th it’s ex-Yankee ace Bob Shawkey on the mound. 1927 is Bob’s final year, and unfortunately, today he shows why… he walks the winning run on board in 3rd baseman Eddie Foster. Huggins then relieves him with current ace Waite Hoyt. Hoyt tries nobly to stem the tide. But this is a great hitting club he’s up against. Hoyt gets Wally Gerber to bounce into a fielder’s choice, with Koenig tossing to Lazzeri to erase Foster. Foster upends Tony Lazzeri, preventing a throw to 1st for a double play. Of course that would prove crucial. Up comes Elam Vangilder.
STL emergency reliever Elam Vangilder, a starter who himself entered the game in the 8th, has pitched 3 innings of one-hit shutout ball. He is also, during this fictional season is batting near .400, slugging well over .600, and pitching whenever and however Lee Fohl can ask.
Now here in the 11th Elam lines a single to RF, sending Eddie Foster to 2nd. Foster then scores the game winner when 142 pound Jack Tobin grounds a single to LF. Rifle-armed Bob Meusel makes a strong, on-the-money throw to home but Wally Gerber slides around Pat Collins’ tag with the ball game.
Game 94
NY….1 0 0…1 0 1…0 0 0 – 3 8 4
STL.. 0 9 4..3 0 3..0 3 x – 22 21 1
Marty McManus doubles three times, triples once, and knocks in seven.
STL puts their stamp on the game in the 2nd, scoring nine times. George Pipgras self-destructs, loading the bases by walking Baby Doll Jacobson, Pat Collins and Wally Gerber. Jacobson and Collins pull off a double steal before the Gerber walk, which rattles Pipgras. Then opposing pitcher Elam Vangilder, a .370 hitter all year, rattles Pipgras big time, lining a long one between Combs and Paschal… a 3-run, bases clearing triple, giving STL a 3-1 lead. Tobin, Sisler, Williams, and Jacobson (batting for the 2nd time in the inning) all follow with singles. Miller Huggins relieves the battered Pipgras with a hastily warmed up Myles Thomas. The barrage continues. Marty McManus, who had stuck out looking earlier in the inning, doesn’t miss this time, lining a double past Ruth down the RF line. Williams and Jacobson score runs 7 and 8. Third sacker Frank Ellerbe rounds out the scoring by singling home McManus, and the Browns are on their way to a romp.
Interesting side notes of this matchup. I gave two Yankee subs much more playing time than they got in 1927… Ben Paschal and Mike Gazella. Ben Paschal was the Yanks 4th outfielder, and by all accounts, really good. A .309 lifetime hitter in 364 games, he played what amounts to one full season from 1925-28. He hit .321 (214-666) with 43 doubles, 11 triples, 22 homers and 22 steals. His on-base average was .380 and he slugged .518. Ben did this playing in mammoth Yankee Stadium, which was even bigger in 1927 than it would be later on.
In this particular mythic season I spotted all three Yankee outfielders with Ben Paschal. He started enough to accumulate 465 at-bats. And besides the numbers listed above Big Ben lined 46 doubles and 9 triples. Note: whenever I don’t start Paschal, he’s always Miller Huggins’ (the computerized version) 1st and best pinch-hitter.
The other sub, infielder Mike Gazella, started seeing playing time as both Mark Koenig and Jumping Joe Dugan each got off to slow starts. Koenig was stuck at .222 after 40 team games, and Dugan .203. Mike Gazella was not a thumper. But apparently he knew how to play winning baseball…the 5’7” Gazella posted a .407 on-base mark in ’27, a skill that placed atop this line-up has immense value. And in this mythic season it did. Mike managed to post a .374 OBP here in 299 plate appearances. And if you look at the stats above, you see that Koenig and Dugan were able to revive their seasons in the 2nd half, giving this team some nice infield options!
Another interesting side note: there were two men who participated on both sides of this battle – catcher Pat Collins and pitcher Urban Shocker. Shocker didn’t do particularly great for either side here. He went 11-11 for the Yanks and 6-19 for the Brownies. Shock did much better in real life and also in other seasons of Mac’s Legendary Baseball. Pat Collins did so-so here with the Browns, where he is often manager Lee Fohl’s 1st option off the bench. He did much better with the Yanks. Of course, the Browns have/had two good hitting catchers, and it’s hard to justify sitting Hank Severeid for very long. Still, Fohl never pinch-hits with Severeid, but always finds a way to get Collins’ bat in there, even for just one swing.
Once again, the Final Stats.
1922 STL Browns vs 1927 Yanks
Yankees go 85-65 .566 (2nd)
PLAYER……BA/SA…....HR……RBI
Combs .337/.478 7 50
Koenig .297/.417 3 84
Ruth .326/.777 66 155
Gehrig .350/.676 32 147
Meusel .344/.494 5 125
Lazzeri .320/.510 20 142
Collins .278/.442 20 103
Dugan .258/.352 4 68
Paschal .314/.548 15 101(465AB)
Gazella .261/.374OBA 26(252AB)
PLAYER……BA/SA…....HR……RBI
Tobin .336/.450 6 87
Sisler .390/.520 6 97
Williams .339/.509 15 148
Jacobson .303/.401 5 141
McManus .285/.416 5 117
Severeid .328/.414 2 58
Collins .283/.389 7 45
Vangilder .413/.652 1 22
Since 4-16 start, Browns go 20-20, 9-21, 15-15, 17-13
Monday, April 5, 2010
All Things Must Indeed Pass
Ebbets Field. The Polo Grounds. Yankee Stadium. 2116 Morris Avenue. These things share at least one commonality. All were standing, alive and well when I came into this world. And all are now gone, moved onto the next, where I shall hope to see them again.
Ebbet's Field and the Polo Grounds were destroyed by the same wrecking ball, which was made up to look like a Giant baseball. Both parks were turned into apartment complexes. 2116 Morris Avenue is the opposite... an apartment complex that was turned into a park... though not necessarily for baseball. Actually, the apartments at 2116 Morris Avenue were not complex at all. But then again, everything was simpler back then, wasn't it? Three baseball teams and one World Series in New York. Always. Forever. Every year. Year after year. Easy, wasn't it?
But then... a whirlwind of spinning, changing, complex times...whoosh! WHOOSH! The Giants and Dodgers... whoosh! Off to foreign pastures quicker than you could say 'Willie-and-Duke'. And then 2116 Morris Avenue went, a victim of old age and new expectations.
And finally the House That Ruth Built. Someone suggested in 1923 that the place... the palace where the Yanks were soon to play... be called Ruth Field. Of course, that suggestion was laughed out of the room. And 87 years later, the Stadium bearing the nickname that will never die, itself is being laid to rest.
It had to happen of course. It's somewhat sad, of course.
Happily, the Yankees christened the NEW palace the same way they christened the old one, with a World Championship banner. Everybody complained at the beginning of the year that home runs were flying out to right field at a ridiculous rate. People couldn't explain it. The new stadium was a carbon copy of the old one.
I thought personally that it was the Bambino, blowing the baseballs hard towards the right-field stands, letting everyone know that Ruthville was still here... that the Babe approved of the Yanks new digs. But the baseballs were flying out for both sides! Surely the Bambino wouldn't be helping the enemy, would he?
I visited another blog the other day, called the River Avenue Blues. They were discussing (or perhaps disgusting) Yankee ticket prices. Apparently the price of a $4.00 boxed seat (in 1967), now goes for a cool $250.00. If that is the case, this is good news, because that means they've reduced it from $400 in 2008. At either rate, I did some shopping around. For that same $250 you can get four equivalent tickets to a Phillies game just 90 miles or so south. Of course, the tickets in Philly are probably going, going, gone, but so what? If Mr. Hardhat can take his wife and 2.2 kids (.2 kids get in for free) to a game for affordable prices... go man, go! Meanwhile, I will repeat what I said on that blog that day. I used to see Mantle for a dollar (General Admission... also a thing of bygone days). And at today's rates, Mantle will be back at Yankee Stadium before I will.
I still follow the Yanks though... root hard... die-hard... watching them on my laptop for nominal prices. I just read that Joe Gerardi is now wearing number 28, since the Yanks won Championship number 27 last year. Good on you, Joe! Show that spirit and spunk! If you get to number 37, they should take Stengel's jersey down and let you use his! Of course, if you get to number 37, Joe... you'll be out in Monument Park yourself... and in the HOF as well.
Go Joe!
Ebbet's Field and the Polo Grounds were destroyed by the same wrecking ball, which was made up to look like a Giant baseball. Both parks were turned into apartment complexes. 2116 Morris Avenue is the opposite... an apartment complex that was turned into a park... though not necessarily for baseball. Actually, the apartments at 2116 Morris Avenue were not complex at all. But then again, everything was simpler back then, wasn't it? Three baseball teams and one World Series in New York. Always. Forever. Every year. Year after year. Easy, wasn't it?
But then... a whirlwind of spinning, changing, complex times...whoosh! WHOOSH! The Giants and Dodgers... whoosh! Off to foreign pastures quicker than you could say 'Willie-and-Duke'. And then 2116 Morris Avenue went, a victim of old age and new expectations.
And finally the House That Ruth Built. Someone suggested in 1923 that the place... the palace where the Yanks were soon to play... be called Ruth Field. Of course, that suggestion was laughed out of the room. And 87 years later, the Stadium bearing the nickname that will never die, itself is being laid to rest.
It had to happen of course. It's somewhat sad, of course.
Happily, the Yankees christened the NEW palace the same way they christened the old one, with a World Championship banner. Everybody complained at the beginning of the year that home runs were flying out to right field at a ridiculous rate. People couldn't explain it. The new stadium was a carbon copy of the old one.
I thought personally that it was the Bambino, blowing the baseballs hard towards the right-field stands, letting everyone know that Ruthville was still here... that the Babe approved of the Yanks new digs. But the baseballs were flying out for both sides! Surely the Bambino wouldn't be helping the enemy, would he?
I visited another blog the other day, called the River Avenue Blues. They were discussing (or perhaps disgusting) Yankee ticket prices. Apparently the price of a $4.00 boxed seat (in 1967), now goes for a cool $250.00. If that is the case, this is good news, because that means they've reduced it from $400 in 2008. At either rate, I did some shopping around. For that same $250 you can get four equivalent tickets to a Phillies game just 90 miles or so south. Of course, the tickets in Philly are probably going, going, gone, but so what? If Mr. Hardhat can take his wife and 2.2 kids (.2 kids get in for free) to a game for affordable prices... go man, go! Meanwhile, I will repeat what I said on that blog that day. I used to see Mantle for a dollar (General Admission... also a thing of bygone days). And at today's rates, Mantle will be back at Yankee Stadium before I will.
I still follow the Yanks though... root hard... die-hard... watching them on my laptop for nominal prices. I just read that Joe Gerardi is now wearing number 28, since the Yanks won Championship number 27 last year. Good on you, Joe! Show that spirit and spunk! If you get to number 37, they should take Stengel's jersey down and let you use his! Of course, if you get to number 37, Joe... you'll be out in Monument Park yourself... and in the HOF as well.
Go Joe!
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