Game 1 in S. Louis, October 7th 1917
Joe Williams (24-13, 2.07) v Walter Johnson (27-16, 2.28)
Williams may not have had the utterly dominant season he did a couple of years ago when he haunted us in the playoffs, but he was still very good and will take a ton of beating here, especially in front of his adoring home fans. It has been a while since Train saw post-season action but he knows what it is all about nonetheless and we need him to step up here to get us off on the right foot.
Not a lot to report early as these two aces bring their A Game and there’s no score and only a handful of baserunners thru 6.
We finally break the deadlock in the 7th on a Baker single and he then scores all the way from first on a Groh double. An RBI single by Carey makes it 3-0 and Lundy then goes yard to add 2 more.
Train has only given up one hit to this point but their bats come alive in the home 7th as 3 straight hits get them on the board and a poor misplay by Cobb puts 2 more in SP with still none out. A double scores them both and it’s game on again.
They have lifted Williams and Perritt is on in relief. I stick with Walter, who settles down again and goes all nine to get us the key away win.
Pirates 5, Browns 3
BOX SCORE
Game 2 in St. Louis, October 8th 1917
Carl Weilman (25-10, 2.26) v Andrew Foster (19-14, 2.73)
Pirates lead series 1-0
Rube has struggled a bit this year and I’m not 100% sure the arm injury that took him out of action for a bit is totally right. But he is one of the most dogged competitors in the game and will be giving this his all. He’ll need to against Weilman, one of the more underrated pitchers going around. We’re not quite the same side against southpaws, so we must make sure we capitalise on whatever chances we get here.
We start positively as Charleston leads off the game with a triple and scores on a hit by Groh but then the pitchers once again gain the ascendancy with no further scoring until the top 7th when Lundy once again comes through with a 2-run longball to make it 3-0.
They come for us in the bottom 8th as the heart of the order comes alive with three straight singles to score a run but Foster recovers well to keep it at that.
Baker leads off the 9th with a solo shot to reinstate our 3-run advantage and Schultz pads it further with a 2-run triple, then scores himself on a wild pitch to put it at 7-1. A two-base error puts Foster at second and Ingerton knocks him in with a single.
We make a bit of a mess of the home half, allowing 2 to score before closing out another solid win that sends us back to Steeltown in a good position, albeit with plenty of work left to do.
Pirates 8, Browns 3
BOX SCORE
Game 3 in Pittsburgh, October 10h 1917
Wilbur Cooper (23-14, 2.55) v Juan Padron (4-3, 2.21)
Pirates lead series 2-0
Lefty against lefty here and Wilbur needs to improve upon his poor post-season showings of previous years.
He starts nervously, conceding 2 runs on 3 hits in the 1st but settles down and we get one of them back in the 4th when Groh triples and comes in on a Cobb single.
Then errors by Charleston and Groh seem to throw Cooper off his axis as they whack him all over the place and it’s 6-1 when I get the hook out. Some players just aren’t built for the big games, and I am afraid Wilbur seems among their number. Mamaux comes on in relief.
Their bats have certainly come alive and they hammer him as well, adding another in the 6th to make it 7-1, before Lundy continues his good form with a 2-run single in the home half.
But this is a flat performance from the group and they put us away with 3 more in the 9th and take it easily, 10-3.
Browns 10, Pirates 3
BOX SCORE
Game 4 in Pittsburgh, October 11h 1917
Walter Johnson (1-0, 3.00) v Joe Williams (0-1, 6.43)
Pirates lead series 2-1
As is almost always the case in a 7-game series, Game 4 is set to be a pivotal one.
Both teams waste 1st-inning chances but we take the lead in the next on a two-out single by Train after an error by their CF extends the inning. Their bats, however, pick up where they left off in G3 and get to Johnson big time in the 3rd, scoring 3 on 4 hits. Collins and Sisler, in particular, are having a field day, while our offence is quiet again.
Cobb is one exception to that, and he makes it a one-run game with an RBI trip in the 5th. Smith then singles him in to tie it at 3.
But Johnson can’t hold it as they go back ahead in the 6th. They have racked up 12 hits to this point. We then waste loaded bases and remain behind entering the 7th.
Train keeps us close but we just can’t get anything going and, down to our last out, look beaten. Then Gibson doubles and moves to third on a wild pitch to give us some hope, but Cobb grounds out meekly to 1B and the series is tied.
Browns 4, Pirates 3
BOX SCORE
Game 5 in Pittsburgh, October 12th 1917
Andrew Foster (1-0, 1.04) v Carl Weilman (0-1, 7.56)
Series tied 2-2
To go back to St. Louis needing two from two may well be a bridge too far, which makes this game even more important than it perhaps would be otherwise. It’s all on Rube now.
We load the bases on an error and two hits with none out in the 2nd, and another error gets us the first run of the game. A Schultz single adds another and Foster knocks in two more with a hit. A long fly by Charleston advances the runner to third and he scores on a Groh groundout.
They threaten in both the 3rd and 4th but Foster holds them at bay. We know, however, how their lineup can score on you in bunches, and I urge the lads to keep at it, not let up. They oblige with a run in the home 4th, although the Browns’ defence has more to do with it as they make 3 errors. Cobb twists the knife further with a two-out RBI single, ending Weilman’s day, and a 2-run double by Baker off Urban Shocker makes it 9-0.
Foster’s flirtations with trouble finally cost him 2 runs in the next but we get one ourselves in the bottom 6th on an Easterly single.
Rube’s travails mean 7 is all we get from him and Cobb gives the pen some more elbow room with a 2-run double in the home half.
They get 2 off Pernoll in the 9th before we close out a big win.
Pirates 12, Browns 4
BOX SCORE
Game 6 in St. Louis, October 14th 1917
Juan Padron (4-3, 2.21) v Wilbur Cooper (0-1, 4.15)
Pirates lead series 3-2
I’m not sure I’ve spent as much time deliberating over a choice of starting pitcher as I have for this game. In the end, I stick with Cooper because of their strong LHB bias and because I just don’t see Williams up to such a huge assignment at this point. Wilbur just needs to slow himself down and spot his pitches better and he’ll at least be more competitive than he has on a number of prior occasions. Their guy is pretty inexperienced, having logged less than 100 career innings in the bigs, so we need to get on him hard and early and stay that way all the way through.
Cooper starts strongly, retiring the first six he faces, but the 3rd inning is a shocker as Schultz makes two dreadful gaffes and they take their full measure with 3 runs.
If their lad is feeling any nerves, he certainly isn’t showing it, keeping us very quiet at plate with just two hits thru 5, and our defence lets us down yet again in the 5th as a Baker error gives them their 3rd unearned run to go ahead 4-0.
We finally get a run in the 7th on a Schultz double and I lift Cooper for a PH. He did all he could in this one, but those behind him let him and us down. That switch comes to nothing as Fisher flies out to end the threat.
Williams comes on in relief and gives us 2 scoreless. We load the bases with two out in the 9th, bringing the go-ahead run to the plate in the form of Smith, but he grounds out and we are off to yet another Game 7.
Browns 4, Pirates 1
BOX SCORE
Game 7 in St. Louis, October 15th 1917
Joe Williams (1-1, 3.50) v Walter Johnson (1-1, 3.94)
Series tied 3-3
For the unaligned this is about as good as it gets, with two top-notch teams led by two legendary pitchers going at it with everything on the line. No doubt whatsoever that the team who wins today deserves all the glory coming their way. This has been quite the Series, a true showcase for our great game.
Nice sentiment and all, and I hope we get a game worthy of the occasion, but more than anything I want to win.
Rain is in the forecast.
We take the lead in the 3rd on a two-out Easterly single after the inning stays alive on a Spratt error. Then Cobb, having a monster series, bangs in 2 more with a long double. Smith misses adding another couple by about 5 feet.
Lundy is another making a name for himself this October, and he adds a fourth for us in the next with a two-out double. A Groh error in the home half puts us under pressure but Train escapes unscathed.
We keep the score humming along with a run on a Cobb double and then Baker, having another quiet World Series, comes through with a two-out RBI single to make it 6-0. That is it for Williams.
The bats are on their game tonight and Carey extends our lead in the 7th with a 2-run double. They get their first run in the home half.
As much as I want to leave Walter in to finish things off, we get a man at third with one out in the 9th and I call for Schultz to pinch hit for him. He gets the run in on another Spratt error and then scurries home from first on a Charleston two-bagger to make it 10-1.
Pernoll lets two get aboard but closes it out without conceding for our 4th World Championship.
Due reward for the lads. It may not have been as cut-and-dried as we’d hope but that matters not now.
Pirates 10, Red Sox 1
BOX SCORE
PITTSBURGH WINS SERIES 4-3
SERIES MVP: Ty Cobb (Pittsburgh)
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