OCTOBER 8, 1943: WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES EDITION
MINUTEMEN TAKE 2-0 SERIES LEAD
PETE DAY LEADS THE WAY FOR BOSTON
Boston Minutemen outfielder Pete Day made two of the best pitchers in the Continental Association look like high schoolers as he led his club to wins in each of the opening two games of the World Championship Series. The 32 year old went 5-for-7 with a homerun, 5 rbi's and 3 runs scored to almost single-handedly beat the Cincinnati Cannons in back to back games at Minutemen Stadium. The Cannons were left licking their wounds as the limped back to Cincinnati for tomorrow's game three, hoping for a better result that the 4-1 defeat in the series opener and a 6-1 loss in yesterday's second game.
It was as much Day's performance as it was the inability of the Cannons offense to deliver the key hit that proved their undoing. The opening game sent Cincinnati ace Deuce Barrell to the hill against veteran Walt Wells of Boston. Both pitched well in going the distance with Deuce allowing 7 hits while Wells scattered six.
Boston drew first blood with back to back singles from Bob Donoghue and Day to open the second inning - a problem compounded for Barrell when normally sure-handed Cincinnati centerfielder Fred Galloway bobbled the ball on Donoghue's lead-off hit letting him take an extra base which meant he could score the game's opening run on Day's base knock. That also allowed Day to scamper to second on the play at the plate and, after a fly out moved him to third, he could score the second run on a Bill Van Ness groundout. Neither run was considered unearned but it was clear the Galloway miscue opened the door and gave Boston that early 2-0 lead.
The Cannons had their opportunity in the 4th inning when Galloway and Adam Mullins hit back-to-back singles off of Boston starter Wells to open the inning, but the cagey veteran got out of the situation unscathed thanks to three straight fly outs. The missed opportunity was made even more painful the bottom half of the 4th when Donoghue and Day went to work again. The Minutemen extended their lead to 3-0 when Donoghue laced a one-out triple and he trotted him on a single off the bat of Day.
The lone mistake made by Wells was allowing a solo homerun to Cannons third baseman Billy Dalton in the 7th inning but that was the extent of the Cincinnati offensive output for the day. Pete Day got that run back in the bottom of the 7th with a lead-off single -his third hit of the game- and he would score when Boston's Harry Barrell delivered a 2-out base hit off his nephew to restore the 3-run lead for the Minutemen.
Ed Wood, the likely Allan Award winner in the Federal Association this season, pitched a solid second game despite having some struggles early. Cincinnati led 1-0 after two but once more the Cannons bats missed an opportunity. Adam Mullins and Chuck Adams hit back to back singles with two out in the top of the first but Wood fanned Billy Dalton on 3 pitches to end the threat. An error from Boston second sacker Lew McClendon allowed the Cannons to score their lone run in the second inning as Jim Hensley stroked a 1-out double to plate Sam Brown, who reached when his grounder was mishandled by McClendon. Hensley was stranded on second when Wood fanned Cannons pitcher Butch Smith and then induced a fly out from Bob Griffith to end the inning. That would be the last of the Cannons offense on the afternoon.
Butch Smith was not at his best for Cincinnati but did manage to escape both the first inning -when the Minutemen had runners on first and second with one out- and the second -with the bases loaded and just one out- without surrendering any runs. Smith had a 1-2-3 third inning but got back into trouble in the fourth and this time he could not wiggle free. Donoghue led off with a single, was sacrificed to second and moved to third when Bill Van Ness grounded out. Ed Wood aided his own cause by legging out an infield hit to score Donoghue and then Pete Day -the game one hero- stole the show once more with a 2-run homer to put the Minutemen ahead by a 3-1 score. A Jack Cleaves error prolonged the Cannons troubles and Boston would add a fourth run on a Bill Moore base hit.
Wood would settle down and allow just 1 more Cincinnati hit - a Bob Griffith double in the 7th inning- and the Minutemen headed to the 9th frame up 6-1 thanks to scoring a pair of Cincinnati reliever Jim Anderson in the bottom of the 7th with Pete Day once more driving in one of the runs.
Trailing by five the Cannons tried to mount a last minute attack on Dick Higgins, who had taken over for Wood in an effort to retire the final three Cannons. Jack Cleaves walked, and after retiring Jim Hensley and pinch-hitter Johnny Porter, Griffith smacked his second double of the game. Needing far more than just the run represented by Cleaves, the Cannons held the veteran at third base in hopes Fred Galloway could keep the rally going. He did not, lifting a fly ball that Boston's Chick Donnelly clutched in centerfield to end the contest in a 6-1 Boston win and a solid 2-0 series lead as the two clubs embark for Cincinnati and Saturday's third game.
It is becoming increasingly clear that, at least in this battle for World (Championship Series) domination, that muskets are a much more powerful weapon than cannons. The Cincinnati Cannons quickly find themselves down 2-0 to the Boston Minutemen in the WCS as their offense has decided to extend the vacation it took for much of September. Boston outscored the Cannons 10-2 in the pair of games at Minutemen Stadium.
To be fair the Cannons pop-gun offense can not shoulder all the blame. Neither Deuce Barrell nor Butch Smith, dominant all season, had what one would consider their A-games going in Boston but it is hard to be a winning pitcher when your offense can only provide you with a single run every nine innings. Add in some shoddy defensive work from all-star centerfielder Fred Galloway -who you would not expect it from- and from veteran second baseman Jack Cleaves - who has hardly set the world on fire with his bat or his glove since coming over from Pittsburgh at the deadline- and winning becomes a longshot proposition.
This is not an eulogy. The Cannons have the benefit of Tice Memorial and the Queen City fans for the next three games -assuming they can win at least one of the first two- and it is quite conceivable we could be returning to the east coast up 3-2 in the series. But for that to happen the bats, which have been colder than a Nor'easter blowing into New England off the Atlantic, need to thaw, and need to do so pronto.
2-0 deficits have been overcome many times in the WCS. 3-0, well let's just say not so much. Chris Clarke, another one of those mid-season pick-ups the Cannons paid so dearly to acquire, gets the call on the mound tomorrow and Deuce will most certainly get another crack at Pete Day, his Uncle Harry and the rest of the Boston nine on Sunday. But they will need more than 1-run each if this comeback is going to happen.
The Cannons offense was never dominant, but steps were taken to shore it up with the summer additions of Billy Dalton, Sam Brown and Cleaves. One thought that would kick start the Cannons bats but the offense never really got going, and it died over a 2-week stretch in mid-September when they were shutout 4 times and scored just 13 runs in 8 games against the Wolves. Fortunately they got untracked against Montreal and Brooklyn over the final week or we might not even be discussing the WCS. But that slumber of the lumber is back and the wake-up call better come soon. Before it is too late.
- Dynamos brass is busy doing an organizational evaluation this week in Detroit. Freddie Farhat of the Detroit World had this from a source of his: "We have a laundry list forming of what we want and starting today we have players already exiting the organization. The '44 season doesn't look good in Detroit, but its time to try and find some quality with our draft picks that can get up to the big leagues by '46 or '47. But as we look at things we might trade one of the later first round picks for a good OF bat or P. Detroit has the 1st, 3rd and 7th picks in the first round. Then also has Washington's pick which is either 9th or 11th (tied with Phily). So with 4 picks in the top 9-11 and 6 in the first 19, Detroit really needs to do its homework and nail this draft.
The organization is debating about what to do with Sal Pestilli. Since we have enough draft picks for this year in the early rounds he will likely wait until after the 1944 draft before he is potentially dealt."
- Including his days in Brooklyn, the Cannons General Manager is now just 8-15 all-time in WCS games.
A couple of early in the week college football games were played on Thursday with both resulting in upsets. The biggest one was seeing defending National Champion Noble Jones College lose for the first time in well over a year as the Colonels were upended by Cowpens State. It will be a quick turn around for the Deep South Conference powerhouse, as Noble Jones is back in action Sunday when they face one of the military teams in Daniel Field.
The other game saw Mountainview State, a smaller college team from Colorado Springs, knock off Mile High State 20-6. It is the first loss this season for the Falcons, who now sit at 3-1 on the year.
COLLEGE RESULTS
Mountainview State 20 Mile High State 6
Cowpens State 14 Noble Jones College 3
The Week That Was
Current events from the period of 10/05/1943 to 10/07/1943
- Allied forces are closing in on Rome as they continue to push Nazi troops north.
- Heinrich Himmler, Nazi Gestapo chief, is reportedly in Denmark supervising the deportation of Danish Jews to Germany and Poland.
- British bombers leave Frankfurt in ruins, while Allied planes also fly from newly won bases in Italy to attack targets in occupied Greece.
- An American naval offensive designed to search our and destroy Japanese seapower was forecast today as the result of a grand strategy conference held at Pearl Harbor by Admiral Ernest King, commander-in-chief of the US Navy and his Pacific commanders.