The First Game 7
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by user Harold Friend
Do you want to find yourself in a situation in which you feel excruciating tension despite the fact you try to avoid it the way a fat kid on a diet tries to avoid cookies? Do you want to ride a roller coaster of emotion that forces you to forget everything except what is happening at the moment? Do you want to enter the torture chamber in order to experience a psychological high like no other and a low so low you think you will never smile again? Welcome to Game 7 of the World Series.
The first World Series was contested in 1903 between the National League New York Giants and the upstart American League's Boston Americans. The team from Boston, with its tradition of losing not yet established won, but it wasn't until 1909, when the Detroit Tigers faced the Pittsburgh Pirates that the World Series had a Game 7.
The Tigers were led by Ty Cobb, who was unquestionably the greatest player in baseball history until Babe Ruth started hitting home runs. The Pirates' leader was Honus Wagner, second only to Cobb in baseball greatness. Wagner was considered the greatest player in National League history until some statisticians decided that his ability and achievements were less than they were and today, the still greatest shortstop in baseball history has been eclipsed by other shortstops in the minds of some, a conclusion which is patently incorrect.
The headline in the New York Times of October 7, 1909, was "Pirates and Tigers in World's Battle." How appropriate. A record breaking crowd of 18,000 was expected with "thousands more of enthusiasts expected to engage in the wild scramble for the other spaces in the immense amphitheatre. It is expected that 35,000 will see the first game."
The Pirates were installed as 2-1 favorites but little betting occurred due to a lack of money on the Tigers. A popular wager was that Wagner would out hit Cobb. During the regular season, Wagner had led his league in batting (.339), on base average (.420), slugging (.489), RBIs (100), total bases (242), doubles (39), and extra base hits (54). Not bad but Cobb also did pretty well.
Ty Cobb led his league in batting (.377), on base average (.431), slugging (.517), RBIs (107), home runs (9), stolen bases (76), runs scored (116), hits (216), and total bases (296). Yes, he won the Triple Crown.
The World Series opened on October 8 at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh, which was also the Game 2 site. Games 3 and 4 were played in Detroit, the teams traveled to Pittsburgh for Game 5, and returned to Detroit's Bennett Park for Games 6 and 7. At the end of play on October 15, each team had won three games.
A little known fact is that Cobb did not travel from Pittsburgh to Detroit with his teammates because Tigers' manager Hughie Jennings received information that when the train carrying the team to Detroit passed through Cleveland, Cobb would be arrested. It seems that Tyrus had assaulted a hotel night watchman and an Ohio Grand Jury had indicted him on felonious assault. Cobb traveled to Detroit by way of Buffalo and arrived much later than his teammates.
The weather for the game was typical autumn Detroit. It was predicted that there would be high winds and temperatures near the freezing point. The more things seem to change, the more they don't.
The Pirates started rookie Babe Adams, winner of Games 1 and 5, on two days rest, while the Tigers' starter was Wild Bill Donovan, the Game 2 winner. While some pitchers nicknamed "Wild" were wild on their own time and not on the mound, Donovan did not belong the former group. He really had trouble with his control and it was a problem that often was costly.
During the season, the Pirates' twenty seven year old Babe Adams had been 12-3 with a 1.11 ERA. Wild Bill Donovan had won 8, lost 7, and had a 2.31 ERA. The Tigers' ace, 29 game winner George Mullin, had started Games 1, 4, and 6, making manager Hughie Jennings hesitant to start him on one day's rest.
A crowd of 17,562 fans attended World Series Game 7 in frigid Detroit. The Tigers' fan should have stayed home.
Donovan started the game by hitting Pirates' lead off hitter Bobby Byrne. Tommy Leach sacrificed Byrne to second (yes, they used to bunt in the first inning), bringing up Pirates' manager Fred Clarke (yes again. Playing managers were not rare once upon a time). Byrne attempted to steal third and was caught, but Clarke drew a base on balls and promptly stole second. The Pirates stole 18 bases in the Series. No one had yet heard of Earl Weaver and the three run home run.
Honus Wagner, batting cleanup, also walked, giving the Pirates runners on first and second with two outs. Donovan had hit one batter, walked two, and the two outs of the inning were on a sacrifice bunt and a caught stealing. Wild Bill was in trouble but he would get out of the first inning when Dots Miller grounded to short, forcing Wagner at second.
In the bottom of the first, Babe Adams retired lead off hitter Davy Jones on a foul pop fly to third, but he hit Donie Bush, bringing up Cobb. Adams got Cobb on a fly ball to right for the second out. Bush attempted to steal second and was thrown out to end the inning.
In the Pirates' second, Tiger troubles began. Donovan walked Bill Abstein. His wildness would be costly. Abstein, who had stolen 16 bases during the season, stole second and Chief Wilson, who would hit an unbelievable 36 triples in 1912, reached when he bunted and the play to get Abstein advancing to third was unsuccessful. The Pirates had runners on first and third with no outs, but George Gibson hit an infield pop up for the first out, bringing up pitcher Babe Adams. What did Wild Bill Donovan do? He walked the opposing pitcher to load the bases. Not a good thing to do.
Now the batter was Ham Hyatt, who had replaced Byrne in the lead off spot after Byrne left the game thanks to being plunked by Wild Bill. Hyatt lifted a high fly to center which was deep enough to allow Abstein to score the game's first run. No one realized that was one more than the Tigers would score that day.
Wild Bill wasn't finished. He walked Tommy Leach to again load the bases and promptly followed that by walking Fred Clarke to force in a run. Wagner ended the inning by hitting a fly to right. The Pirates scored two runs but Wild Bill still was pitching a no-hitter. Don't you just love statistics?
The Tigers still trailed by the two runs going to the bottom of the third when manager Hughie Jennings sent George Mullin up to pinch hit for Wild Bill Donovan. During the season, Mullin hit .214 and he finished his career with a .262 average, which is excellent for a pitcher. In this game, nothing would help.
Mullin hit an easy fly ball to right field for the first out. The Tigers failed to score and Mullin remained in the game to try to hold the Pirates to their two run lead but after pitching three games in such a short time period, Mullin didn't have much left.
The Tiger's right handed ace pitched six innings on one day's rest, allowing six runs, four of them earned, while Babe Adams held the Tigers six hits and one walk in pitching a complete game shut out. By the fourth inning, the Pirates led 4-0 and by the middle of the sixth, the lead had swelled to seven runs. The Pirates easily won, 8-0. The only tension in the first World Series Game 7 came before the game started, which goes to show that crucial situations and stress may quickly part.
Just as the Pirates outplayed the Tigers, Wagner outplayed Cobb. The Georgia Peach hit only .231 with 2 stolen bases in the Series while Wagner batted .333 with 6 steals. It is ironic that the greatest competitor in baseball history played on Tiger teams that lost three consecutive World Series from 1907-1909, including the last one the Chicago Cubs won in 1908. Ty Cobb never played for a World Champion, a fact that rightfully has not diminished the fact that if he wasn't the best player in baseball history, he was at least the second best.
References
- http://www.baseball-reference.com/postseason/
- http://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/NL_1909.shtml
- http://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/AL_1909.shtml
- http://www.baseball-reference.com/postseason/1909_WS.shtml
- http://www.sportingnews.com/archives/worldseries/1909.html
- http://www.retrosheet.org/
- "Pirates and Tigers in World's Battle." The New York Times, 8 October 1909, p.7.
- "Two More Players Fined; Ty Cobb Dodged Cleveland to Prevent Probable Arrest for Assault." The New York Times, 14 October 1909, p. 7.
- "Could Rain at Detroit; Last World's Series Game Today May be Played in Freezing Weather." The New York Times, 16 October 1909, p. 11.
