The two base ball centers of the state of Ohio lie 250 miles apart, or the better part of a day's journey by carriage. This bothered the crazed "cranks" of the Red Stocking and Forest City clubs not at all, as they gleefully "hit the road" to watch the three (or four, or five) games of the 1879 Centennial Cup Final.
The first game was nearly a long day's journey into night. Jim Creighton and Cincinnati's Hugh Campbell matched pitches for eleven innings, each allowing only a single tally. But it began to get dark at the Palace of the Fans, and the umpires were ready to call it a day. "Just one more inning!" the fans implored, and they got their wish...boy did they ever!
With two out and two on in the top of the twelfth, who else by Jim Creighton came to bat, smashing a double to give Forest City a 3-1 lead. Then came the bottom of the frame, and all Creighton needed to do was the one thing he did even better than batting -- pitching, of course!
But in the last of twelfth, everything came apart for Cleveland. First, Charley Jones dropped an easy fly ball to left field -- ironically, Creighton's position on the field when he isn't pitching -- followed by back-to-back-to-back singles cutting the lead to 3-2. A towering fly to center by Campbell evened the score at three. Light-hitting (.219) John McKelvey came to bat and managed to squirt a ground ball past third base, sending Cal McVey rounding third. A good throw would've got him at the plate, but alas Jones made his second miscue of the inning, firing the ball well above the catcher's head. The crowd went wild as the Reds has taken the first game. Afterwards, Jones was seen weeping in the locker room, and Big Jim approached, using language far too inappropriate for this account. Jones looked up, and Creighton broke into a big smile, throwing this thousand-dollar arm around his teammate's shoulders. "Don't worry, Cholly," he implored, "We'll get 'em tomorrow!"
Game 2 was the Red Stockings' chance to go two up in the series; an advantage they would need, as the remaining games would be held in Cleveland. Cincy jumped to a 3-0 lead after five, but back came Forest City, led by Paul Hines' two singles and two doubles. Cleveland scored four times in the sixth, piled on three more markers, then held off the Reds in the ninth for 7-5 victory. All even!
If the first two games of the Cup Final were all-out brawls, game 3 was an example of the "sweet science". Both teams scored in the first inning (with both pitchers, Creighton and Campbell delivering RBI singles), making it a 1-1 game. In the third, however, Forest City lead-off man Paul Hines decided to try a different strategy: hitting Campbell's first pitch deep to center, well over George Gore's head. Hines got on his horse and made it all the way around for a home run and 2-1 Cleveland lead. That was all Creighton needed as he hurled a three-hit gem, giving Forest City a 2-1 advantage in the series.
The day of Game 4 dawned bright and sunny, though there some groans when the fans realized that Jim Creighton would not be in the lineup at all, not even in his semi-usual position in the outfield. At first, it looked like Forest City wouldn't need him, as they rolled up five runs in the first three innings off the Reds' Asa Brainard.to take a 5-1 lead. Back came the Red Stockings off Cleveland hurler Tim Buckley, as RBI singles by George Gore and Sam Lake cut the advantage to 5-4. "We want Creighton!" chanted the fans, but the legend stayed firmly on the bench, in case he was needed to pitch a deciding fifth game. In the end, Jim could relax: Paul Hines scored and drove in a run in the late innings to seal a 7-4 win, and the Cleveland Forest City club's fourth Centennial Cup and seventh National Association title.
