OOTP Developments Forums - View Single Post - British and Irish Baseball

as5680 · 12-05-2021, 04:01 PM

TOURNAMENT REVIEW: 1874 INTERNATIONAL SERIES

GAME ONE

England entered the International Series as strong favourites to win, but it was Scotland who made the better start as Old Westminsters’ pitcher Daniel Armstrong struggled early on. After Kirkcaldy pair Daniel Parnaby and Gordon Rankin both reached base, a one-out hit from Tollcross man Walter Challinor brought Parnaby in to score the first run for Scotland in the first inning. They added a second in the second inning, when again the first two batters reached base and this time it was Parnaby whose hit brought home Govan outfielder Roderick Dalziel.

Armstrong helped his own cause in the third when he produced a base hit, allowing Liverpool Samuel Moynihan to drive him home and put England on the scoreboard at 2-1, but once again they failed to get through the inning without allowing a run. Successive two-base hits from Challinor and Ralph Collins of Arthur’s Seat extended Scotland’s advantage to 3-1. From that point, the pitchers took over until the sixth, when Eric Speechley of The Grange opened up with a hit for Scotland and then with one out, Dundashill’s Andrew Barton found the hit to bring him home.

Scotland now led 4-1, but England were not finished. In the seventh, Herbert Milner of Kent County League champions Rochester came to bat with two men on and two out, and his hit scored Andrew Clarke of Stockport to close the gap to 4-2. In the ninth, England had two men on base and only one out, with Bradford’s Maurice Dodd looking for a hit to score one or both runs and keep the game alive. He could only hit the ball weakly on the ground however, allowing Scotland to record the two outs that they needed to finish the game and take a 1-0 advantage in the series.

GAME TWO

A week on from the first meeting, the second game took place in London with England needing a win to keep the series alive. The game however started in similar fashion to the first, with Scotland taking the lead in the first inning on a hit from Walter Challinor of Tollcross which brought Gordon Rankin in to score. This time however, pitcher Daniel Armstrong found his form much more quickly and Scotland were unable to add to the lead. They held on to the narrow advantage until the third inning, but this time it was Scottish pitcher Roderick Wemyss who began to struggle. With two men out and a runner at first base, he allowed successive hits to Greenwich’s Roland Lloyd and Stockport man Andrew Clarke, which brought William Lewis of Kingston round to tie the score at 1-1.

Scotland left a runner at third base in the fifth inning and then failed to take advantage of having runners at second and third with nobody out in the seventh, as they looked for the run which might win the game and the series. England had replaced pitcher Armstrong with Cecil Maddaford of Bolton during the seventh inning, and he had dragged them out of trouble, but he was in turn replaced by Stephen Young of The Regent’s Park for the eighth and England were soon in trouble again. Young allowed three successive hits with one out to give Scotland three baserunners and another clear chance to score, but somehow managed to get out of the inning without allowing a run.

Scotland had missed their chance, because in England’s half of the eighth everything changed. Walsall’s Lionel Lynch came to bat with runners at first and second and two out, and his hit combined with a throwing error from Scotland centre fielder Daniel Parnaby allowed England to take a 2-1 lead. The next batter was Herbert Milner of Rochester, and he too found a hit which brought in two more runs. England led 4-1 and Scotland had no reply, as Young successfully negotiated the ninth inning to see the series tied at one win each. With Scotland having called the coin toss for home advantage in the first game, another coin toss for the third game saw England allowed to call and they won the toss, meaning that the third game would also take place in London.

GAME THREE

The decisive third game started with both pitchers in strong form, as when Kingston’s William Lewis came to bat for England with two men out and a runner on first base in the third inning, there had only been one hit for each team in the game up to that point. However, Scotland pitcher Roderick Wemyss then saw his form crumble. Beginning with Lewis, the next seven England batters all recorded hits to bring home no fewer than six runs, a figure which might have been higher had Walsall’s Lionel Lynch not been tagged out trying to run from first to third on the seventh successive hit.

Scotland were stunned and although they still had time to fight back, they had to do so quickly with a 6-0 deficit to overturn. In the fifth inning, they had runners at second and third with two out but Dundashill’s Andrew Barton could not find the hit that would have restored a considerable degree of hope. In the sixth inning, Walter Challinor of Tollcross came to bat with runners at first and third and two out, but again Scotland could not get the runners home and England retained their six-run cushion.

By the time Scotland finally did score, Barton coming home on a hit from Kirkcaldy’s James Harris in the eighth, it seemed to be much too late. England took a 6-1 lead to the ninth but with pitcher Armstrong tiring, Wilfred Wellington of the Commercial Dock Workers came into the game to pitch what England expected to be the final inning. Having got the first two batters out, Wellington then allowed three successive hits to keep the game alive and Scotland knew that one big hit could bring them right back into contention. However, Barton was not able to produce that hit as Wellington finally recorded the third out, completing England’s victory in both the game and the series. Following the completion of the third game, Rochester’s Herbert Milner was named as the Best Player of the series for his role in England’s win, while Daniel Armstrong was Best Pitcher.

With all the competitions now completed, attention turns to the leagues’ annual meetings and award announcements, expected next week. Planning will then turn to the 1875 season, with yet another new league seeming sure to start in the Bristol area, the first in the south-west of England. A team of railway workers from Swindon have agreed to make the numbers up to six in order for the league to be viable.

12-05-2021, 04:01 PM	#159
as5680 All Star Starter Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Didcot, England Posts: 1,426	TOURNAMENT REVIEW: 1874 INTERNATIONAL SERIES GAME ONE England entered the International Series as strong favourites to win, but it was Scotland who made the better start as Old Westminsters’ pitcher Daniel Armstrong struggled early on. After Kirkcaldy pair Daniel Parnaby and Gordon Rankin both reached base, a one-out hit from Tollcross man Walter Challinor brought Parnaby in to score the first run for Scotland in the first inning. They added a second in the second inning, when again the first two batters reached base and this time it was Parnaby whose hit brought home Govan outfielder Roderick Dalziel. Armstrong helped his own cause in the third when he produced a base hit, allowing Liverpool Samuel Moynihan to drive him home and put England on the scoreboard at 2-1, but once again they failed to get through the inning without allowing a run. Successive two-base hits from Challinor and Ralph Collins of Arthur’s Seat extended Scotland’s advantage to 3-1. From that point, the pitchers took over until the sixth, when Eric Speechley of The Grange opened up with a hit for Scotland and then with one out, Dundashill’s Andrew Barton found the hit to bring him home. Scotland now led 4-1, but England were not finished. In the seventh, Herbert Milner of Kent County League champions Rochester came to bat with two men on and two out, and his hit scored Andrew Clarke of Stockport to close the gap to 4-2. In the ninth, England had two men on base and only one out, with Bradford’s Maurice Dodd looking for a hit to score one or both runs and keep the game alive. He could only hit the ball weakly on the ground however, allowing Scotland to record the two outs that they needed to finish the game and take a 1-0 advantage in the series. GAME TWO A week on from the first meeting, the second game took place in London with England needing a win to keep the series alive. The game however started in similar fashion to the first, with Scotland taking the lead in the first inning on a hit from Walter Challinor of Tollcross which brought Gordon Rankin in to score. This time however, pitcher Daniel Armstrong found his form much more quickly and Scotland were unable to add to the lead. They held on to the narrow advantage until the third inning, but this time it was Scottish pitcher Roderick Wemyss who began to struggle. With two men out and a runner at first base, he allowed successive hits to Greenwich’s Roland Lloyd and Stockport man Andrew Clarke, which brought William Lewis of Kingston round to tie the score at 1-1. Scotland left a runner at third base in the fifth inning and then failed to take advantage of having runners at second and third with nobody out in the seventh, as they looked for the run which might win the game and the series. England had replaced pitcher Armstrong with Cecil Maddaford of Bolton during the seventh inning, and he had dragged them out of trouble, but he was in turn replaced by Stephen Young of The Regent’s Park for the eighth and England were soon in trouble again. Young allowed three successive hits with one out to give Scotland three baserunners and another clear chance to score, but somehow managed to get out of the inning without allowing a run. Scotland had missed their chance, because in England’s half of the eighth everything changed. Walsall’s Lionel Lynch came to bat with runners at first and second and two out, and his hit combined with a throwing error from Scotland centre fielder Daniel Parnaby allowed England to take a 2-1 lead. The next batter was Herbert Milner of Rochester, and he too found a hit which brought in two more runs. England led 4-1 and Scotland had no reply, as Young successfully negotiated the ninth inning to see the series tied at one win each. With Scotland having called the coin toss for home advantage in the first game, another coin toss for the third game saw England allowed to call and they won the toss, meaning that the third game would also take place in London. GAME THREE The decisive third game started with both pitchers in strong form, as when Kingston’s William Lewis came to bat for England with two men out and a runner on first base in the third inning, there had only been one hit for each team in the game up to that point. However, Scotland pitcher Roderick Wemyss then saw his form crumble. Beginning with Lewis, the next seven England batters all recorded hits to bring home no fewer than six runs, a figure which might have been higher had Walsall’s Lionel Lynch not been tagged out trying to run from first to third on the seventh successive hit. Scotland were stunned and although they still had time to fight back, they had to do so quickly with a 6-0 deficit to overturn. In the fifth inning, they had runners at second and third with two out but Dundashill’s Andrew Barton could not find the hit that would have restored a considerable degree of hope. In the sixth inning, Walter Challinor of Tollcross came to bat with runners at first and third and two out, but again Scotland could not get the runners home and England retained their six-run cushion. By the time Scotland finally did score, Barton coming home on a hit from Kirkcaldy’s James Harris in the eighth, it seemed to be much too late. England took a 6-1 lead to the ninth but with pitcher Armstrong tiring, Wilfred Wellington of the Commercial Dock Workers came into the game to pitch what England expected to be the final inning. Having got the first two batters out, Wellington then allowed three successive hits to keep the game alive and Scotland knew that one big hit could bring them right back into contention. However, Barton was not able to produce that hit as Wellington finally recorded the third out, completing England’s victory in both the game and the series. Following the completion of the third game, Rochester’s Herbert Milner was named as the Best Player of the series for his role in England’s win, while Daniel Armstrong was Best Pitcher. With all the competitions now completed, attention turns to the leagues’ annual meetings and award announcements, expected next week. Planning will then turn to the 1875 season, with yet another new league seeming sure to start in the Bristol area, the first in the south-west of England. A team of railway workers from Swindon have agreed to make the numbers up to six in order for the league to be viable.