There was ample precedent for postseason play in the unofficial contests arranged by the winners of the NL and the American Association from 1882 to 1891. The first World Series, in 1903, was a best-of-nine affair arranged by the winners of the NL and the AL and won by the AL's Boston Pilgrims in a 5-3 upset over the Pittsburgh Pirates. The feud between AL president Ban Johnson and the 1904 NL-champion Giants' manager John McGraw precluded a World Series that year, but the popularity of the 1903 Series led the National Commission to establish an official World Series starting in 1905, with the length of the contest set at seven games. The Giants won 4-1 that year, with all the games being shutouts; Christy Mathewson permitted only 14 hits and one base on balls in his three shutouts. The 1906 Series matched the White Sox and the Cubs in the first World Series between teams from the same city. The White Sox, known as the Hitless Wonders for having the lowest team batting average in the AL that year, upset the mighty Cubs team that had set a still-standing major league record by winning 116 games (while losing only 36).

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RELATED LINKS » 1969: First Championship Celebration from The New York Mets Encyclopedia by Peter C. Bjarkman » 1986: Bill Buckner from The New York Mets Encyclopedia by Peter C. Bjarkman Photos » Photo: Fair Play in the Fall Classic from The American League » Photo: Setting the Ground Rules from The American League » Photo: The First Fall Classic, 1903 from The American League » Photo: Willie Mays' catch of Vic Wertz's drive (1954) » Photo: Gil McDougald hits a grand-slam home run in the 1951 World Series » Photo: Scenes of the 1913 World Series at the Polo Grounds Book Excerpts » The Perfect Yankee by Don Larsen with Mark Shaw Submissions » #41: That World Series Homer by Fred Antonelli » King Of The Sweeps by Steve Lombardi » Subway Series by Harvey Frommer » The First World Series by Harvey Frommer Ask The Experts » Are pitching and defense more important than offense? » Are pitching and defense more important than offense? » Which team has won the second most championships? » What were the rosters for Game Four of the 1971 World Series? » Who has the most official World Series at-bats without collecting a hit? » What year did a devastating earthquake interrupt the World Series? » Who won the 1947 World Series? » Who was the winning pitcher for the Mets in Game Seven of the 1986 Series? » When was the first World Series game televised? » Who was the last player to steal home in the World Series? » Where did the term "World Series" come from? » Is #21 cursing the Red Sox? » Are pitching and defense more important than offense? » Which league has won the most World Series? Around the Web » Royals pound White Sox from dailyherald.com » THE 1986 METS REUNION from newsday.com » Elden Auker from historicbaseball.com Jump directly to Library content from any website!

The unlikely star emerging in the World Series to lead his team to victory became a recurring scenario. The first example came in 1909, when the Pirates' Babe Adams, a rookie pitcher who was 12-3 during the year and not considered the team's ace, was given the starting assignment in the Series opener. He went on to win three games as Pittsburgh won 4-3 despite only two batters (Honus Wagner and Tommy Leach) batting above .250. In the 1911 WS the Athletics' Frank Baker, already established as a fine player, won his nickname Home Run by hitting a game-winning homer off the Giants' Rube Marquard in Game Two and a game-tying home run off Christy Mathewson the next day.

Another Series motif is the "goat," the player whose lapse costs his team the World Championship. Fred Snodgrass wore the horns for the Giants in 1912 after dropping a routine fly ball in the tenth inning of the final game. In 1914 the Braves upset the Athletics in four games, contributing to Philadelphia owner Connie Mack's decision to break up his dynasty. Babe Ruth began his record scoreless innings streak pitching the Red Sox to victory in Game Two of the 1916 WS; after surrendering a first-inning home run, he blanked Brooklyn for 13 innings to win 2-1. He extended the streak to 29-2/3 innings in 1918. That year the Red Sox won their fifth World Championship; over the next 70 years, they failed to win another despite four chances.

The 1917 Series was memorable for Giants third baseman Heinie Zimmerman's futile chase to home plate of Eddie Collins as the White Sox took the lead in the Series clincher; neither catcher Lew McCarty nor pitcher Rube Benton covered home. The White Sox became known as the Black Sox two years later when eight conspirators on the 1919 team threw the Series after gamblers induced them to "lay down." When the fix became public knowledge the next year, it led to the appointment of Commissioner Landis, who became a fixture at World Series games thereafter and ruled on several controversies on the spot. The 1919 Series had returned to the best-of-nine format to take advantage of the renewed popularity of baseball following World War I, which had cut into the 1918 schedule. The 1920 Series, played under close scrutiny due to the previous year's events, featured several Fall Classic firsts in Game Five. The Indians' Elmer Smith hit the first WS grand slam in the first inning, Cleveland's Jim Bagby became the first pitcher to hit a WS home run in the fourth inning, and the only unassisted triple play in Series history was turned by Indians second baseman Bill Wambsganss in the fifth.

The first New York Subway Series took place in 1921, with the Giants defeating the Yankees and holding Babe Ruth to one home run in the last best-of-nine Series. Brothers Bob and Irish Meusel played on the opposing teams. The Giants repeated with a sweep of the Yankees in 1922, notable for Ruth hitting only .118 and for Game Two being called "on account of darkness," while tied 3-3 in the 10th inning, despite the sun still shining. Instantly it was rumored that it had been done to force an additional game (and additional profits). An irate Judge Landis ordered the gate receipts to be donated to charity. Babe Ruth became the first to hit three home runs in a Series in 1923 as the Yankees finally overcame the Giants. Casey Stengel hit two game-winning homers for the Giants, the first coming in Game One with two out in the ninth inning. An inside-the-park shot, it was immortalized by reporter Damon Runyon. The Giants lost again in 1924 as Walter Johnson (in relief) and the Senators won Game Seven in twelve innings as Earl McNeely's grounder to third base hit a pebble and hopped over Fred Lindstrom's head. The Senators and Johnson were the losers in 1925 when Game Seven was played in extremely dark and muddy conditions under a continuous rain. The Pirates were the first team to win a seven-game Series after going down 3-1 in games.

The Yankees returned to the Fall Classic in 1926, but were defeated by the Cardinals in their first appearance. Ruth was thrown out stealing by Bob O'Farrell for the last out of the Series in the game made famous by Grover Cleveland Alexander's relief appearance. He came in in the seventh inning, after having won his second complete game of the Series the day before, and struck out Tony Lazzeri with two out and the bases loaded. The first consecutive sweeps in WS history came in 1927-28 as the Yankees devastated the Pirates and the Cardinals. In 1928 Lou Gehrig became the first man to hit four home runs in one Series, and in Game Four Ruth set a record with three homers. With Gehrig and Cedric Durst also homering, the Yankees set a record for HR by a team in a single Series game.

The Athletics represented the AL the next three years. Howard Ehmke was the surprise starter in the opener in 1929 and set a Series record with 13 strikeouts, and in Game Four the A's scored 10 runs in the seventh inning to overcome the Cubs' 8-0 lead. Philadelphia was finally bested in 1931 as the Cardinals' Pepper Martin hit .500 and stole five bases. The Yankees swept again in 1932, setting a record with 12 consecutive WS wins. Ruth's "called shot" off the Cubs' Charlie Root in Game Three was the highlight in a contest featuring six home runs, two each by Ruth and Gehrig and two by the Cubs, for a new WS game mark. Ruth's 15 career WS HR stood as the record until Mickey Mantle broke it three decades later.

Landis ruled on another controversy in 1934 when he removed the Cardinals' Joe Medwick from Game Seven rather than forfeit the game after Detroit fans showered the left fielder with debris following his hard slide into third baseman Marv Owen. The Cardinals won 11-0. The tremendous offensive output of the era was best typified by the Yankees' 18-4 victory in Game Two of the 1936 WS, won 4-2 over the Giants in a renewal of their subway rivalry. The two teams met again in 1937, with the Yankees again victorious. Yankee sweeps in 1938 (the Cubs) and 1939 (the Reds) gave manager Joe McCarthy a record four consecutive World Championships. The final game of the '39 Series became famous for "Schnozz's snooze" when Reds catcher Ernie Lombardi lay stunned, unable to tag Joe DiMaggio, after a collision with Charlie Keller. The Reds came back in 1940 to defeat the Tigers.

The first Yankees-Dodgers Series came in 1941 and was won by New York 4-1. Brooklyn won Game Two and was leading Game Three 1-0 when Yankee pitcher Marius Russo's line drive off the knee of Dodger pitcher Fred Fitzsimmons forced him out of the game in the seventh inning; the Yankees scored two runs off reliever Hugh Casey. In Game Four Casey was again on the mound with the Dodgers leading 4-3 in the ninth with two out. He struck out Tommy Henrich, but the ball got past catcher Mickey Owen, starting a four-run Yankee rally. The Cardinals' defeat of the Yankees in 1942 was New York's first WS defeat since 1926. St. Louis fell to the Yankees in 1943.

The exigencies of wartime baseball led to the Browns' first pennant in 1944. The quality of play in the World Series, won by the Cardinals, was still fair, featuring a Game Five pitchers' duel between Mort Cooper (12 strikeouts) and the Browns' Denny Galehouse (10 strikeouts). But the 1945 Series was considered a travesty; reporters predicted that neither team could win. In fact, the Tigers prevailed in seven games in what proved to be the Cubs' last World Series appearance. The return to peacetime ball in 1946 began the Red Sox' string of seven-game Series defeats when Enos Slaughter scored from first base in the eighth inning on Harry Walker's double as Boston shortstop Johnny Pesky hesitated with the relay. Leon Culberson had bobbled the ball in centerfield, where he was subbing for the injured Dom DiMaggio. Red Sox star Ted Williams hit .200 for the Series, and the Cardinals' Stan Musial hit .222. There was more drama in 1947 as Brooklyn and New York met again. Game Four saw the Dodgers tie the Series when Cookie Lavaghetto broke up Bill Bevens's no-hitter with two out in the ninth inning. The Series was once again knotted in Game Six when reserve outfielder Al Gionfriddo's running catch of Joe DiMaggio's 415' blast against the left-field fence with two runners on in the sixth inning preserved the victory for the Dodgers and provoked a rare display of emotion by DiMaggio, who kicked the ground when the catch was made. The Yankees prevailed in Game Seven when Joe Page pitched five innings of one-hit relief. Lost in the excitement was Yogi Berra's pinch-homer in Game Three, the first in Series history. The Indians defeated the Braves in 1948, with Larry Doby's HR in Game Four being the first by a black player. Game One included one of the most controversial umpire's calls in Series history. Bill Stewart's safe call on Bob Feller's attempted pickoff at second base of Phil Masi allowed Masi to score the only run of the game two batters later as Johnny Sain pitched a shutout.

Casey Stengel was named manager of the Yankees in 1949 and started a record streak of five World Championships by defeating the Dodgers 4-1. Phillies ace reliever Jim Konstanty was the surprise starter in the 1950 opener but lost 1-0, and the Yankees went onto a sweep. The Yankees' skein was threatened in 1952 when the Dodgers took a 3-2 lead in the Series (Joe Black becoming the first black pitcher to win a WS game), but New York won the last two games, at Ebbets Field. Billy Martin saved the last win with a catch at his knees of a routine pop-up that neither the first baseman or the pitcher, who were closer, got under; the bases were loaded. Gil Hodges finished the Series 0-for-21, the most famous WS slump in history. In 1953 Carl Erskine struck out a Series-record 14 batters in Game Three, but the Yankees were unstoppable in winning their fifth World Series in five years. But the Indians won the AL pennant in 1954 and were then swept by the Giants on the strength of Dusty Rhodes' pinch-hit heroics.

The Dodgers finally beat the Yankees in 1955 for the NL's first back-to-back Series triumphs since 1933-34. Johnny Podres was the pitching hero for his Game Seven shutout, saved by Sandy Amoros's long run to catch Berra's fly in the left-field corner. The Yankees returned to form in 1956, with Don Larsen pitching a perfect game in Game Five, but they were no longer invincible. They lost to the Braves in 1957 as Lew Burdette won three complete games (two were shutouts), although they turned the tables on the Braves in 1958. The 1959 contest saw the Dodgers beat the White Sox in six games, with Chuck Essegian hitting two pinch-homers. In Stengal's last year at the Yankee helm, the Bronx Bombers outscored the Pirates 55-27 but lost on Bill Mazeroski's dramatic home run in the bottom of the ninth in Game Seven. Under Ralph Houk the Yankees handily defeated the Reds in 1961 and squeaked past the Giants in seven games in 1962. The latter Series featured Chuck Hiller's grand slam in Game Four, the NL's first, and was ended by Willie McCovey's lineout to Yankees second baseman Bobby Richardson with two on and two out in the ninth inning of Game Seven. The Dodgers stunned the Yankees with a four-game sweep in 1963, holding New York to four runs overall. Sandy Koufax struck out a record 15 batters in the opener. The Yankees appeared in their last World Series for the next 12 years in 1964 and lost to the Cardinals, led by Bob Gibson. The Dodgers' pitching gave them another WS victory in 1965, over the Twins, but they received a dose of their own medicine in 1966 when the Orioles swept them, with shutouts in the last three games. Bob Gibson won three games in 1967 to lead the Cardinals over the Red Sox in seven games and appeared set to be the hero in 1968 as well. He struck out a still-standing record 17 Tigers in the opener and won Game Four, but Mickey Lolich won his third game, on two days' rest, to defeat Gibson in Game Seven.

The Miracle Mets of 1969 stunned the favored Orioles in five games. Outfield defense saved two games for New York, with Tommie Agee making two spectacular catches in Game Three (and hitting a leadoff homer) and unlikely hero Ron Swoboda making a foolhardy - but successful - diving, sliding catch in the ninth inning of Game Four to hold the Orioles to a tie. The Orioles used 10 home runs and the spectacular defense of third baseman Brooks Robinson to triumph over the Reds in 1970. Roberto Clemente starred in 1971, which featured the first Series night game in Game Four. Clemente hit .414 and extended his Series hitting streak to 14 games as the Pirates defeated Baltimore in seven games. The surprise hero in 1972 was the A's Gene Tenace, who became the first player to homer in his first two WS at-bats. He had two more HR in the Series and also figured in two game-winning rallies as Oakland beat the Reds in seven games. The A's made it three straight World Championships in 1973 and 1974. The 1973 contest, against the Mets, included the longest WS game by time (4:13) in Game Two, won by New York 10-7.

The Red Sox lost in seven games again in 1975, but to listen to their fans, you'd think they had won. Luis Tiant pitched a five-hitter and ran wild on the basepaths in Game One, and came back with a 163-pitch victory in game Four. And in the famous sixth game, a seesaw contest that saw Bernie Carbo hit a record-tying second pinch-homer for the Series, Carlton Fisk's 12th-inning HR, just barely fair, won the thrilling game for the Red Sox to tie the Series. But the Reds won Game Seven in the ninth inning on a Joe Morgan two-out single. The Reds went on to sweep the Yankees in 1976, a Series that featured the two catchers, Johnny Bench and Thurman Munson, hitting .533 and .529 respectively. The Yankees returned in 1977 and won in six games over the Dodgers when Reggie Jackson earned his "Mr. October" nickname by homering in three consecutive at-bats (each time on the first pitch he saw) in the clincher. New York repeated over the Dodgers in 1978, the last time anybody repeated as World Champions. Graig Nettles was the fielding star with a Brooks Robinson-like display of prowess at third base in Game Three; his four gems enabled Ron Guidry to hold the Dodgers to one run despite allowing eight hits and seven walks. Bucky Dent hit .417 and was the unlikely Series MVP. The Pirates overcame a 3-1 deficit to beat the Orioles in 1979 despite playing the last two games away.

The Phillies won their first World Championship, ending the sport's longest-such drought, by overcoming the Royals in 1980. Kansas City leadoff hitter Willie Wilson was the goat, batting only .154. In 1981 high-priced free agent Dave Winfield went 1-for-22 and was publically humiliated by Yankee owner George Steinbrenner as the Dodgers won in six games. Mike Schmidt suffered a similar slump in 1983 when Baltimore pitched around him, going 1-for-20 as the Orioles won 4-1. Sparky Anderson became the first manager to win World Championships in both leagues in 1984 as the Tigers blasted the Padres in five games. In 1985 umpire Don Denkinger's safe call, clearly wrong, on Jorge Orta's single in Game Six started Kansas City's comeback. When they defeated St. Louis 11-0 in the finale, they became the first team to come back from a 3-1 deficit after losing the first two games at home. The Series hero was Bret Saberhagen, who surrendered only one run in his two complete games and became a father during one of them.

The Mets triumphed in 1986 as the Red Sox lost yet another seven-game Series. Bill Buckner was the goat in Game Six after the Mets' spectacular comeback in the tenth inning was climaxed by a Mookie Wilson grounder going through Buckner's legs. Wilson most likely would have been safe even if Buckner had fielded the ball, but the winning run wouldn't have scored from second base. To get to that point, the Mets had strung together three two-out singles and a Bob Stanley wild pitch. The Twins, with the worst record of any World Champion during the regular season (85-77), won all four home games during the Series, the first time that had happened. Dan Gladden hit a grand slam in Game One. In 1988 Orel Hershiser shut down the powerhouse A's in his two starts and was the hitting star of Game Two, going 3-for-3. Kirk Gibson, barely able to run, pinch-hit a stunning home run off Oakland relief ace Dennis Eckersley with two out and one on in the ninth inning to win. The A's managed only a lone win in Game Three, but came back in 1989 to sweep the Giants in the first Bay Area Series despite a ten day interruption after an earthquake measuring 7.1 on the Richter scale struck shortly before the start of Game Three at Candlestick. (SFS)

FROM THE BASEBALL CHRONOLOGY » September 22, 1903: Pittsburgh's 16-game winner Ed Doheny, still suffering from bouts of paranoia, leaves the team and is escorted home to Massachusetts by his brother. During the World Series, Doheny will be committed to the Danvers Insane Asylum after knocking his male nurse unconscious. At the age of 26, his major league career is over. » September 30, 1903: The seasonal contracts for Boston players expire and owner Killilea offers a two week extension to cover the World Series. This offer is later increased to head off a players' strike. » October 1, 1903: The first modern World Series game, also called "Championship of the United States," is played at Boston's Huntington Street park before 16,242. Deacon Phillippe pitches Pittsburgh to a 7–3 win over Cy Young. Pittsburgh RF Jimmy Sebring hits the first home run and adds three other hits. 3B Tommy Leach has four hits, including two triples for the Pirates and winds up with four three-baggers, a Series record. » October 2, 1903: The Boston Pilgrims Bill Dinneen blanks Pittsburgh 3–0 on three hits and 11 strikeouts to even the Series. His four starts will give him three victories, making this the only World Series to produce two 3-game winners. Boston LF Patsy Dougherty hits two home runs; in 14 World Series games they are the only home runs he will hit. With Boston electing to bat first, Patsy's first homer is a leadoff blast against Sam Leever. » October 6, 1903: A travel day and rainout enable Phillippe to pitch and win again 5–4, before 7,600 at Pittsburgh. Boston rallies for three runs in the 9th but it is not enough. Ginger Beaumont and Honus Wagner have three hits, but Honus will manage just .222 for the World Series. » October 9, 1903: The World Series is postponed because of cold weather. » October 13, 1903: An overworked Deacon Phillippe pitches his 5th complete game of the Series, losing to Bill Dinneen 3–0. Only 7,455, the smallest crowd of the Series, see Boston win the championship. Deacon's five decisions and 44 IP are still World Series records, as are his starting two straight World Series games, twice Hobe Ferriss' 4th inning single drives in the first of two runs in the inning. » August 8, 1904: In Cleveland, with the Blues ahead of New York, 7–1 in the 4th, Dave Fultz and manager Griffith argue a strike call with umpire Silk O'Loughlin. When the refuse to go the bench, Silk orders a policeman to escort them off the field. Tomorrow, Silk will throw out pitcher Jack Powell and have the police escort Jimmy Williams off the field. Griffith and Williams will receive suspensions from the American League, and (according to The Year They Called Off the World Series) Highlander owner Frank Farrell vows O'Loughlin will not be allowed to enter Hilltop Park. He will, however. » January 14, 1905: Giants owner John T. Brush, who refused to play the American League pennant winners in 1904, proposes rules governing future World Series. » October 3, 1905: The National Commission establishes the rules for a World Series and names Hank O'Day and John Sheridan (both NL umps) to umpire it. » October 9, 1905: At Philadelphia, in the first game of a World Series under a 7-game format, two former college rivals square off: Bucknell's Christy Mathewson outpitches 26-game-winner Eddie Plank (Gettysburg College) to win 3-0 in the first game of the all-shutout World Series. Matty allows four hits and walks none. » June 2, 1906: Only three games separate the Cubs from the 4th-place Phillies, and Cubs owner Charles Murphy again goes to Cincinnati for help. This time he comes back with Orval Overall, a six foot two inch, 225-pound righthander who is 4-5 for the Reds. The price: pitcher Bob Wicker, winner of 50 games the past three seasons, and $2,000. Orval will go 12-3 overall for the Cubs and will help pitch them into four World Series in five years, while Wicker will wind up his career this year. » October 9, 1906: Snow flies at the West Side Grounds as the first one-city World Series opens with the Cubs heavy favorites over the AL's "Hitless Wonders." Neither ballpark can accommodate the crowds, so the Chicago Tribune recreates the games on mechanical boards displayed at theaters. White Sox starter Nick Altrock and Cubs starter Three Finger Brown give up four hits each, but Cubs errors produce two unearned runs for a 2-1 White Sox victory. » October 8, 1907: The Tigers have game one of the World Series against the Cubs in their grasp—or in C Charlie Schmidt's glove—but it gets away from them. Leading 3–2 in the 9th, Bill Donovan faces pinch hitter Del Howard with 2 on and 2 outs. He fans Howard, but the ball gets away from Schmidt, and the tying run scores. Darkness ends the game after 12 innings. » October 12, 1907: It's Three Finger Brown's turn to shut down the Tigers 2–0. Each side has seven hits, but the Cubs steal four bases for a total of 18 for the 5-game World Series. » October 10, 1908: In the World Series Opener, Ed Reulbach, coasting with a 5–1 lead, tires in the 7th. Brown is unable to stop the Tigers from taking a 6–5 lead in the last of the 8th. But the Cubs jump on reliever Ed Summers, a 24-game winner, for six straight hits and five runs in the 9th, and Brown gets the win 10–6. For umpire Bill Klem, it is the first of 15 World Series he will officiate. Detroit's Ira Thomas, batting for Charley O'Leary, hits the first World Series pinch hit when he singles in the 9th. There had been 12 previous pinch-hit attempts in World Series play, including the batter before Thomas. » October 14, 1908: Before the smallest crowd in World Series history—6,210—the host Tigers are tamed on three hits by Overall, who fans 10 in a 2–0 win. The Cubs win the series in five games. » October 18, 1908: Four days after the finish of the World Series, the two teams meet again in Chicago for an exhibition game (as noted by historian Al Kermisch). The game outdraws the last series game in Detroit, as 6,864 watch the Tigers win, 7–2. In a pregame field day, Ty Cobb wins all three sprint events: he bunts and runs to 1B in 3.2 seconds, beating Evers, Mordecai Brown, and Del Howard. He circles the bases in 13.8 seconds and, clad in uniform, wins the 100-yard dash in 10.4 seconds, beating Jones and Solly Hofman in the latter. Hofman wins the long throw with a toss of 338 feet, besting Sam Crawford. » January 11, 1909: The National Commission approves owner Charles Murphy's payment of a $10,000 bonus to his Cubs for their 1908 World Series triumph. » September 9, 1909: Bill Dinneen, winner of three games in the first World Series, is released by the St. Louis Browns and becomes an AL umpire, a position he will hold through 1937. » October 8, 1909: The Pirates, winners of 110 games, face Detroit in the World Series, which pits the two leagues' top offensive stars, Honus Wagner and Ty Cobb. It is the first of three times that batting champs will face each other in the World Series (Al Simmons and Chick Hafey in 1931: Bobby Avila and Willie Mays in 1954 are the others) Pittsburgh manager Fred Clarke starts 27-year-old rookie righthander Babe Adams against Tigers P George Mullin. There are only 11 hits in the game, but one is a home run by Clarke, and the Pirates win 4-1 before a crowd of 29,264. » October 9, 1909: The Tigers win the 2nd World Series game behind Bill Donovan 7-2. Ty Cobb's steal of home highlights a 3-run 3rd. Detroit has been defenseless against stolen bases in the past three World Series, giving up 16 in five games to the Cubs in 1907, 15 in five games to the Cubs in 1908, and 18 in seven games to the Pirates this year, for a total of 49 in 17 games, and the highest SB totals in all of World Series history. » October 14, 1909: George Mullin outlasts three Pirates pitchers for a 5-4 win that sends the Series to a 7th game in Detroit. This is the first World Series to go the limit. » October 16, 1909: Rookie Babe Adams comes through with a 6-hit, 8-0 win. It is his 3rd complete-game World Series victory and gives the Pirates their first World Championship. The two teams combine for a World Series record 34 errors, with Detroit contributing 19, also a record. » March 1, 1910: The National Commission prohibits giving mementos to players on winning World Series teams. This will later be reversed, making way for the traditional winners' watches, rings, and stickpins. » October 1, 1910: In a 9–6 Chicago win in Cincinnati, the Cubs' Johnny Evers breaks his ankle sliding home and will not play in the World Series. » October 17, 1910: With sore-armed Eddie Plank unavailable, Connie Mack will squeeze five complete games out of two pitchers in the World Series. Chief Bender's 4–1 three-hitter wins game one for the Athletics at Philadelphia. Frank Baker's three hits drive in all the runs needed to beat the Cubs' Orval Overall. » October 20, 1910: The A's dispose of Ed Reulbach in two innings, then pin the loss on reliever Harry McIntire, who lasts a third of a inning. Coombs coasts on one day's rest, 12–5, and helps himself with three hits. Cubs manager Frank Chance becomes the first player ejected from a World Series game when umpire Tom Connolly chases him for protesting a Danny Murphy home run drive against a sign over the RF bleachers. Chance opines too loudly that it should be a ground-rule double. » October 23, 1910: Three Finger Brown comes back to face Jack Coombs, who takes a 2–1 lead into the 7th. The A's get to Brown for five runs and a 7–2 win. The crowd of 27,374 is the Series' largest. The A's .316 BA is a World Series record. For this World Series, cork-center balls were secretly used for the first time, and will be used in the ML starting next year. Previously, rubber center balls were used. » January 3, 1911: At Laughery club house, near Rising Sun, Indiana, the National Baseball Commission adopts a rule that bars World Series winners from playing post-season exhibition games. This obscure rule will lead to a direct confrontation between Babe Ruth and Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis in 1921. » October 5, 1911: The National Commission sells motion picture rights to the World Series for $3,500. When the players demand a share of it, the Commission cancels the deal. » October 9, 1911: With the World Series not scheduled to start until the 14th, the Athletics tune up in a series against an AL all-star team. The A's clinched on September 26th in an 11–5 win over Detroit. » October 14, 1911: The Athletics go into the World Series minus their star rookie 1B Stuffy McInnis. The veteran Harry Davis replaces him and drives in the first run as Chief Bender tries again to outpitch Christy Mathewson. The Giants are dressed in the same black uniforms they wore in their 1905 conquest of the Mackmen, and this Series starts as their last meeting ended: Mathewson wins it 2–1. The largest crowd ever to watch a ball game—38,281—is at the Polo Grounds. Gate receipts are $77,379. » October 16, 1911: The World Series resumes today, Monday, and the pitchers continue to dominate. Rube Marquard and Eddie Plank are in command of a 1–1 game when Philadelphia's Eddie Collins doubles in the last of the 6th and Frank Baker hits one over the RF fence for a 3–1 victory. » October 26, 1911: Chief Bender cruises to his second victory, a 4-hit 13–2 breeze. The A's cap the win with a 7-run 7th, battering three tired Giant hurlers, Red Ames, Hooks Wiltse, and Rube Marquard. Overall, the Giants manage just 13 runs and a .175 BA off Chief Bender, Jack Coombs, and Eddie Plank. Because of the NL's extended playing season, this is the latest ending ever for a World Series, until the "Earthquake Series" of 1989. » December 12, 1911: A rift between the leagues develops over widespread charges of ticket speculation during the World Series, and accusations that officials of the Giants and A's were involved. The American League passes a resolution refusing to participate in another World Series until it has control of ticket sales in its own parks. The National Commission investigates the charge that speculators were given large blocks of tickets, but takes no action and releases no findings. The following spring, the Commission finds that much scalping occurred, but there is no evidence either team was involved, and peace is declared. » December 14, 1911: Pirates owner Barney Dreyfuss proposes that each team in the World Series be required to turn over one-fourth of its share of the gate to the league, to be divided among the other teams. Until now, 10 percent of the gross has gone to the National Commission, 60 percent to the players, and the rest to the two pennant-winning clubs. The National League will pass the resolution and send it to the American League. It marks the beginning of changes that ultimately give players of the first four clubs a percentage of the World Series money. » September 21, 1912: Boston 3B Larry Gardner breaks his finger and will be out the rest of the season. He is expected to play in the World Series. » September 23, 1912: In Boston, 100,000 fans are on hand to greet the Red Sox after their western road trip. All business stops as the players ride from South station to the Common where Mayor Fitzgerald welcomes them. The players are given the keys to the city. Extra seating is added to Fenway Park, increasing the seating capacity to 32,000 for the World Series. » October 8, 1912: The World Series opens. Giants manager John McGraw goes with rookie Jeff Tesreau, his most effective late-season pitcher, against the Red Sox. Smoky Joe Wood fans 11 and wins 4–3 before 35,730 at New York. » October 15, 1912: In game seven on a cold day in Boston, the Giants catch up with Joe Wood's smoke, teeing off for six runs on seven hits before the 32,694 fans have settled down. Jeff Tesreau wobbles to an 11–4 win and the Series is tied at three all. The only Boston bright spot is Tris Speaker's unassisted double play in the 8th, the only one by an outfielder in World Series play. » October 16, 1912: In the Series finale, Christy Mathewson squares off against Hugh Bedient in quest of his first win of the Series. He takes a 1–0 lead into the 7th, but with one out, Boston manager Jake Stahl hits a pop-up to short LF. The ball drops among Art Fletcher, Josh Devore, and Fred Snodgrass. Heinie Wagner walks, and with two outs, pinch hitter Olaf Henriksen doubles home the tying run. Smoky Joe Wood relieves Bedient, and the two aces match zeroes until Red Murray doubles and Fred Merkle singles in the 10th to give New York a 2–1 lead. In the last of the 10th, pinch hitter Clyde Engle lifts a can of corn to CF Snodgrass, who drops the ball. Snodgrass then makes a great catch of a long drive by Harry Hooper. Steve Yerkes walks, bringing up Tris Speaker, who pops a high foul along the 1B line. C Chief Meyers chases it, but it drops a few feet from 1B Merkle, who could have taken it easily. Reprieved, Speaker then singles in the tying run and sends Yerkes to 3B. After Duffy Lewis is walked intentionally, 3B Larry Gardner hits a long sac fly to a retreating Devore that scores Yerkes with the winning run. This World Series was the most butterfingered in history, with thirty-one errors recorded, seventeen for The Giants. The Red Sox earn $4,024.68 each; the Giants' share is $2,566.47 each. » May 22, 1913: Ruling that a ballplayer on the field is a "public person," a New York judge throws out cases brought by New York and Boston players against a motion picture company that took movies of the 1912 World Series. » August 6, 1913: The Pirates pound Giants ace Christy Mathewson for 10 hits and nine runs in five innings, including seven in the 5th. C Larry McLean is traded from the last-place Cardinals to the Giants for Doc Crandall. One of the biggest players of this era at six feet five inches and 230 pounds, the veteran catcher will bat .500 in the World Series. The popular Crandall will make two pinch hitting appearances before the Giants reacquire him in a week. » October 7, 1913: Rube Marquard gets the call for the Giants against Philadelphia's Chief Bender in game one of the World Series. Bender yields 11 hits, but Frank Baker's home run and three RBI pace a 6–4 win over the New Yorkers. » October 10, 1913: The bottom of the Athletics batting order—Jack Barry, Wally Schang, and Chief Bender—drives in all the runs, as Bender wins his 4th straight World Series game, 6–5. » October 11, 1913: John McGraw loses his 3rd straight World Series. In game 5, Christy Mathewson is good, but Eddie Plank is better; his 2-hitter wins the 3–1 finale. Frank Baker at .450 and Eddie Collins at .421 lead a strong A's offense. » December 12, 1913: The Pirates clean house in an 8-player swap with the Cardinals. Going to St. Louis is Dots Miller, a 1909 World Series hero, 14-game winner Hank Robinson, 3B Cozy Dolan, infielder Art Butler, and OF Chief Wilson, king of the triple. The Pirates receive pitcher Bob Harmon, 3B Mike Mowry, and 1B Ed Konetchy, whom the Bucs had been after for years. » October 9, 1914: The Boston Braves go into the World Series as underdogs, despite their strong finish. Only one regular, LF Joe Connolly, hit .300. Their strengths are pitchers Dick Rudolph, George "Lefty" Tyler, and "Seattle Bill" James, 2B Johnny Evers, who wins Chalmers' final MVP automobile, and SS Rabbit Maranville, their cleanup hitter. The Philadelphia A's Eddie Collins, with a .344 BA, wins the Chalmers AL award with 63 of 64 possible points. The A's have seven pitchers with 10 or more wins, led by Chief Bender's 17–3. Bender's World Series magic is quickly dispelled as the Braves knock him out in the 6th. Rudolph coasts to a 5-hit 7–1 victory. Hank Gowdy has a single, double, and triple. He will hit a World Series record .545, and Evers, .438. Only Babe Ruth will top Gowdy with .625 in 1928. Bender makes his last World Series appearance, finishing with a record 59 strikeouts. » October 13, 1914: The first World Series sweep in history belongs to the Braves—the only World Series the franchise will ever win. Bob Shawkey and Herb Pennock allow just six hits, but one is a 2-run single by Johnny Evers, as Dick Rudolph wins 3–1. » April 14, 1915: In Boston, Pete Alexander stops the world champion Braves, 3–0, as the Phillies beat Dick Rudolph. Bill James, the Braves' other star from the World Series, is in California recovering from an illness incurred in Hawaii during the all-star world trip. James' career is virtually over. » July 2, 1915: For the first time since the 1911 World Series, Jack Coombs pitches against Christy Mathewson. Now with the Dodgers, Coombs wins the duel, shutting out the Giants, 3–0. Two singles and Zack Wheat triple in the 8th is the difference. » September 22, 1915: Having loaned the Braves the use of their larger park in 1914, the Boston Red Sox request the use of the new, larger NL park for this year's World Series. » September 30, 1915: The Red Sox clinch the AL pennant as St. Louis beats Detroit, giving Boston a two 1/2-game margin. The World Series is now set for another Boston-Philadelphia matchup, but with the leagues reversed. » October 8, 1915: The Red Sox start Ernie Shore in game one and the Phils manage just three hits and one run through seven innings against him. Grover Cleveland Alexander gives up just one run as well. The Phils manage to push across two runs in the bottom of the 8th on two infield singles and two walks. Babe Ruth makes his only appearance in this World Series, pinch hitting for Shore and grounding out. Grover Alexander holds on for a 3–1 victory for the Phils. » October 9, 1915: Playing game two in tiny Baker Bowl in Philadelphia, Boston's 19-game winner Rube Foster allows the Phils three hits and drives in the winning run to break a 1–1 tie in the 9th against Erskine Mayer. The Sox win, 2–1. President Wilson and his fiancé watch the game, the first President to attend a World Series. » October 7, 1916: Despite a 4-run Brooklyn rally in the 9th, the Red Sox defeat Rube Marquard 6–5 to win Game One of the World Series at Braves Field. Ernie Shore gets the win, Carl Mays a save. The Sox turn four double plays, including a spectacular 9-2 where Harry Hooper makes the catch from a sitting position and quickly gets up to throw out Zack Wheat at the plate. » October 9, 1916: After a Sunday off, Babe Ruth outpitches Sherry Smith to win Game Two of the World Series 2–1 in 14 innings. Both starters go the distance with Smith allowing seven hits, Ruth giving up 6. According to the Boston Traveler, each starter throws 148 pitches. Ruth allows one run in the first, a homer by CF Hy Myers that skips by Harry Hooper. It is only homer off Ruth this year. Only two Robins reach base after the 8th, one on a walk and another on an error. This is the start of 29 2/3 scoreless World Series innings pitched by Ruth. » October 10, 1916: In Game Three, Larry Gardener's 7th inning home run over the RF fence at Brooklyn brings the Sox within a run 4–3, but Jeff Pfeffer, in relief of Jack Coombs, shuts them down. Carl Mays takes the loss. Charlie Ebbets becomes the first owner to raise the price of World Series grandstand seats to $5—up from $3. » July 11, 1917: In Detroit, Boston's Babe Ruth tops the Tigers 1–0, allowing just Donie Bush's scratch single in the 8th. Ruth deflects the ball but the throw by the shortstop is too late. Ruth has a single and triple, but a pinch triple by Chick Shorten in the 9th drives home the only run. Ruth strikes out Bobby Veach, Sam Crawford and Ty Cobb in the 9th; for the last he shakes off catcher and player/manager Carrigan. In early 1942, in a speech in Los Angeles, Ruth will call this game his greatest thrill. [The Babe also relates to writer John Carmichael that his greatest game was the called shot in the World Series of 1932.] » October 6, 1917: Before the World Series starts, Charles Comiskey offers one percent of his team's World Series share to Clark Griffith's Bat and Ball Fund for American soldiers in France. In Chicago, Happy Felsch's home run is the difference as Ed Cicotte beats the Giants' Slim Sallee 2–1 in the Series opener. » October 10, 1917: The White Sox are stifled by Rube Benton, who becomes the first lefty to pitch a World Series shutout. Dave Robertson, the NL's leading home run hitter with 12, triples and scores the first of two 4th-inning runs for a 2–0 New York win. Robertson will lead all batters in the Series with a .500 average. » October 16, 1917: The day after the World Series ends, the Giants and White Sox play an exhibition game for 600 soldiers at Garden City, NY. The Sox win, 6–4. » September 4, 1918: Rain delays the start of Wednesday's World Series opener. » September 5, 1918: In order to cut down on the use of trains, the first three games of the World Series are played in Chicago, the next three in Boston. The Cubs switch their home games to Comiskey Park with its larger seating capacity. Babe Ruth, having completed 13 scoreless innings in his first World Series two years ago, adds nine more in edging Hippo Vaughn 1–0 in the opener. Also, when 2B Dave Shean bats for Boston, he becomes the oldest player (40 years, three months, 18 days) to play in the World Series, a mark other graybeards will top. » September 9, 1918: In game 4, Ruth bats in two runs on a triple in the 4th and pitches seven scoreless innings before the Cubs tie it in the 8th, ending Ruth's World Series record of 29 2/3 scoreless innings. Shufflin' Phil Douglas relieves Lefty Tyler for Chicago in the last of the 8th and throws away the game, first by a wild pitch, then with an error. Ruth is the winning pitcher, but Mays relieves with two on and no out in the 9th. » September 10, 1918: Players on both sides threaten to strike unless they are guaranteed $2,500 to the winners and $1,000 each for the losers. They back off, however, when told they will appear greedy while their countrymen are fighting a war. There are no fines, but no World Series rings or mementos are given out this year. On the field, Hippo Vaughn comes back with two days of rest and blanks the Red Sox 3–0 on five hits in game 5. » September 11, 1918: The Red Sox win the World Series in game six on Carl Mays's 2nd victory, a 2–1 three–hitter. With two on and two out in the 3rd, utility OF George Whiteman lines a hard drive to RF. Max Flack drops it, allowing the only runs off Lefty Tyler. Righty Claude Hendrix, 20–7 during the year, finally makes an appearance, tossing a final inning for the Cubs. Cubs pitchers compile a 1.04 ERA, while Boston's .186 BA is the lowest ever for a World Series winner, but they compensate by making just one error, a record not beaten this century in a 6-game World Series. The Red Sox will realize $1,102 each, the Cubs $671, the smallest winner's share ever earned. The inning by inning results of the game were relayed to Fort Devans, 58 miles away, via homing nine pigeons. » September 2, 1919: The National Commission recommends a best-of-9 World Series. The lengthier WS is seen as a sign of greed and is abandoned after three years. » August 16, 1920: Cleveland SS Ray Chapman, 29, is beaned by a Carl Mays pitch. A righthanded batter who crowds the plate, Chapman freezes and fails to get out of the way of the submarine delivery. He is carried from the field and dies the next day from a fractured skull. Mays, a surly, unpopular pitcher, is the target of fans' and players' outrage. Chapman, a Cleveland favorite since breaking in in 1912, had been married the previous year. In October his wife will receive a full World Series share, $3,986.34. The incident has no effect on Mays's pitching. One week later he will blank Detroit 10-0, and go on to win 26 and lose 11. Joe Sewell will be called up to take Chapman's place, and for 14 years he will be the hardest man in baseball to strike out. » September 5, 1920: Before the start of the World Series, Brooklyn owner Charles Ebbets gives his approval for the addition of rookie Joe Sewell to the Indians' roster. Sewell joined the team after September 1st and was not eligible for the series. The tradition of low-scoring World Series games continues when the Indians manage to collect only five hits off Brooklyn's Rube Marquard (10-7) and two relievers. Stan Coveleski's (24-14) 5-hitter gives the Indians a 3–1 opening win. » September 6, 1920: When Wheeler Johnston pinch-hits for Cleveland in the 9th inning of game 2, his brother Jimmy is playing 3B for Brooklyn. They become the first brothers to take opposite sides in a World Series. Spitballer Burleigh Grimes (23-11) strands 10 Indians while the Robins chip away at Jim Bagby (31-12) for three single tallies and a 3–0 Series evener. » September 9, 1920: Several hours before the start of game 4, Brooklyn's Rube Marquard, a Cleveland native, is arrested when he tries to sell a World Series ticket to an undercover cop for $350. He will be found guilty and fined a dollar and court costs ($3.80). For their first World Series game on the lakefront, 25,734 Indians fans watch their home team score two in the first and two in the 3rd off Leon Cadore (15-14) and Al Mamaux. Cleveland wins game 4, 5–1. » September 10, 1920: In the bottom of the first of an event-laden game, Grimes gives up hits to Charlie Jamieson, Bill Wambsganss, and Speaker. OF Elmer Smith then hits the first grand slam in World Series history, jumping on a Grimes spitter in the opening inning. In the 3rd, P Jim Bagby comes up with two on and crashes another Grimes delivery for a 3-run home run, the first ever by a pitcher in World Series play. Bagby is roughed for 13 hits, but he gets out of jams with the aid of three DPs and an unassisted triple play. In the 5th with Pete Kilduff on 2B and Otto Miller on 1B, relief pitcher Clarence Mitchell hits a line drive at SS Wambsganss, who steps on 2B and tags the off-and-running Miller before he can retreat. Cleveland dominates, 8–1. » September 22, 1920: A Chicago grand jury convenes to investigate charges that eight White Sox players conspired to fix the 1919 World Series. » September 23, 1920: The Chicago grand jury indictment adds the names of former featherweight boxing champ Abe Attell, Hal Chase, and Bill Burns as go-betweens in the World Series scandal. Confessions, later repudiated, are signed by Ed Cicotte, Joe Jackson, Lefty Williams, and Happy Felsch. » September 28, 1920: The Illinois grand jury indicts the eight Chicago players in the 1919 World Series scandal, and Charles Comiskey immediately suspends the seven players (Chick Gandil had retired before the season). Yankees owners Jacob Ruppert and Cap Huston send a telegram to Chicago owner Charles Comiskey offering to place their entire team at his disposal, following the suspension of eight players in the scandal. Comiskey says he cannot accept the proposal. » December 15, 1920: Brooklyn sends Rube Marquard to the Reds for Dutch Ruether. Marquard was in the Ebbets doghouse after being arrested in a Cleveland hotel lobby for scalping World Series tickets. » October 5, 1921: In the first one-city World Series since 1906, the Polo Grounds will be the site for all nine games. Carl Mays (27-9) is at his best, needing 86 pitches to set the Giants down with five hits—4 of them by Frank Frisch. Ruth drives in the first run of the Series in the opening inning of this 3–0 Yankee win. Mike McNally, subbing for Frank Baker at 3B, steals home in the 5th while Phil Douglas (15-10) is winding up. The game is broadcast on KDKA radio, with Grantland Rice announcing. It is the only game of the season's World Series to be aired. » October 6, 1921: In the opener, Johnny Rawlings and Frank Frisch collected the only Giants hits. In game two it's the same story. Waite Hoyt (19-13) surrenders two singles in another 3–0 Yankee win. Art Nehf (20-10) deserves better, allowing just three hits; but three errors and two mental lapses by the Giants, plus a steal of home by Bob Meusel, put the Giants down 2–0. The five hits are the fewest ever in a World Series game. » October 7, 1921: The Giants bats wake up against Bob Shawkey (18-12) and three other pitchers. A 20-hit barrage and 8-run 8th sink the Yanks 13–5. Jesse Barnes (15-9) gets the win. Ross Youngs set a World Series record with a pair of long hits—2B and 3B—and five total bases in the 8th. » October 9, 1921: After a rainout, a Sunday crowd of 36,371 watches Carl Mays and Phil Douglas square off for game 4. Mays works five hitless innings, while a run-scoring triple by Wally Schang gives the Yanks a 1–0 lead. Mays then apparently tires and the Giants club seven hits in the last two innings for four runs. abe Ruth's first World Series homer comes in the 9th, but the Giants win 4–2. » October 11, 1921: Miller Huggins gambles in Game six with lefty Harry Harper (4-3), and the Yankees drive Fred Toney (18-11) to cover with three in the first. But the Giants come back with three in the 2nd, and continue the attack against Bob Shawkey while Jess Barnes slams the door, striking out 10, including seven in a row sandwiched around four walks. Emil "Irish" Meusel and Frank Snyder homer for the Giants in an 8–5 win. It is Barnes' 2nd World Series win in relief. » October 16, 1921: In defiance of a Kenesaw Mountain Landis ban on World Series participants playing post-season exhibitions, Bae Ruth, Bob Meusel, and P Bill Piercy launch a barnstorming tour in Buffalo. Five days later, they cut it short in Scranton. In the meantime Ruth openly challenges Landis to act. The judge does, fining the players their World Series shares—$3,362.26—and suspending them until May 20th of the next season. » December 20, 1921: At the ML meetings, the American League votes to return to the best-of-7 World Series; the National League votes to keep the 5-of-9. Judge Landis casts the deciding vote, and the 4-of-7 format is reinstated. » July 23, 1922: The Yankees start planning for the Series when they pick up 3B Joe Dugan and one-time Cleveland World Series hero Elmer Smith from Boston, giving up OF Elmer Miller, SS Chick Fewster, SS John Mitchell, and, later, P Lefty O'Doul. The contending Browns and other western clubs howl in protest and this deal will lead to a rule barring nonwaiver trades after June 15th. » December 14, 1922: In a joint meeting, the ban on nonwaiver trades after June 15th is approved. The National League favors a 50-player limit until June 15th, the American League votes for 40. Judge Landis breaks the deadlock in favor of 40. Compensation of World Series umpires is changed from a percentage of the players' pool to a flat $2,000. » October 4, 1923: In his last appearance for the Yankees, Carl Mays has no magic left as the A's finally sink the submariner, 7–6, knocking him out of the box with four runs in the 5th He had won 24 straight games against the A's. Mays strikes out none, and gives up 10 hits and three walks. He will not appear in any of the World Series games. Ruth, filling in for Pipp at 1B, clubs his 39th home run in the 1st. Eddie Rommel, in relief, is the winner. » October 10, 1923: It's an all–New York World Series for the 3rd time. In the first World Series game at Yankee Stadium, the home team takes a quick 3–0 lead, but Heinie Groh triples in two runs in a 4-run 3rd that drives Waite Hoyt (17-9) to cover. A 4–4 tie is broken in the top of the 9th by the Giants when Casey Stengel's blast rolls to the OF wall. The sore-legged veteran hobbles around the bases to score the winning run against reliever Joe Bush (19-15) before 55,307 spectators. This is also the first World Series to be broadcast on a nationwide radio network. Graham McNamee, aided by baseball writers taking turns, is at the mike. Grantland Rice had broadcast an earlier World Series, but not nationally. » October 16, 1923: Soon after Babe Ruth receives his World Series winner's share of $6,160.46, insurance agent Harry Heilmann, who beat Ruth for the batting title by 10 points, sells him a $50,000 life insurance policy. Beneficiaries are Mrs. Ruth and adopted daughter Dorothy. » October 1, 1924: Another bribery scandal clouds the World Series atmosphere. Judge Landis bans Giants OF Jimmy O'Connell and coach Cozy Dolan from the World Series after they admit an attempt to bribe Phils SS Heinie Sand on the 27th to "go easy" in their season-ending series against the Giants. O'Connell implicates Frank Frisch, George Kelly, and Ross Youngs, who deny everything and are cleared by Landis. O'Connell is out of baseball at 23. American League President Ban Johnson, an enemy of the Giants John McGraw, proclaims that the World Series should be canceled because of the betting scandal, a pronouncement that the owners will ignore. Johnson, however, decides not to attend any World Series games. » October 4, 1924: For the 4th straight year, the Giants are in the Series. At 3B is Fred Lindstrom, at 18 years, 10 months, the youngest ever to play in a World Series. President Calvin Coolidge is among 35,760 who jam the DC stands in Game One as an Army band greets the two teams by playing Sidewalks of New York and Dixie. George Kelly drops a home run into the temporary bleachers in the 2nd, and Terry does the same in the 4th for a 2–0 New York lead. Art Nehf (14-4) gives up one in the 6th. In the last of the 9th, the Senators score to send the game into extra innings. The Giants net two runs in the 12th. In the last of the 12th, Washington scores one, but the rally falls a run short, and Walter Johnson (23-7) loses his World Series debut. Johnson strikes out 12 in the loss. Nehf becomes the 5th pitcher to get three hits in a World Series game, a feat that will not be repeated until Orel Hershiser does it in 1988. » October 8, 1924: Walter Johnson tries for a World Series win again, but he's far from invincible. Fred Lindstrom is 4-for-5 with two RBI, and Johnson's pitching opponent Jack Bentley (16-5) clouts a 2-run homer for a 6–2 New York win. » October 10, 1924: President and Mrs. Coolidge and 31,665 others thrill to the 2nd 3-hour battle of the Series. Bucky Harris starts 23-year-old righthander Curly Ogden (9-8) against Virgil Barnes (16-10), then pulls him after he fans Fred Lindstrom and walks Frisch. In comes lefty George Mogridge (16-11), a move intended to keep lefty Bill Terry on the Giants bench. Bucky Harris lifts one into the temporary seats in LF for a 1–0 lead. In the 6th a single ties it at 1–1, and Harris brings in Firpo Marberry for his 4th appearance. A base hit and two costly errors give the Giants a 3–1 lead. In the 8th, pinch-hitter Nemo Liebold doubles and C Muddy Ruel singles. A walk loads the bases and up comes Harris, who hits a hard bounder to 3B that strikes a pebble and skips over Lindstrom's head and down the LF line as the tying runs score. Walter Johnson, pitching on one days rest, then comes in to hold New York. With one out in the last of the 12th, Giants reliever Jack Bentley gets Muddy Ruel to pop up near home plate, but veteran C Hank Gowdy steps on his discarded mask, which he cannot shake from his shoe, and the ball falls to the ground. Ruel then gets his 2nd hit, a double. Walter Johnson reaches 1B on SS Travis Jackson's error. Earl McNeely hits a grounder at Lindstrom, and improbably, the ball again takes a bounce over his head. Ruel tears home with Washington's first World Series championship. » October 20, 1924: Kansas City Monarchs manager Jose Mendez takes the mound to spin a 3-hit, 5–0 shutout over the Hilldales to win the final game of the first Negro League World Series. Nip Winters had pitched the first three Hilldale wins. » December 10, 1924: The two leagues agree on a permanent rotation for World Series play proposed by Charles Ebbets: first two games at one league's park, next three at the other leagues park, last two if needed back at the first league's park, with openers to alternate between leagues. Next year's World Series will commence at the National League city. » February 10, 1925: At the American League meeting, a plan is adopted to alternate the site of future World Series openers by league rather than deciding it by a coin toss, with games 1, 2, 6, and seven in one park and 3, 4, five in the other, unless a ban on Sunday baseball interferes in one city. The clubs finishing 4th in the AL will henceforth share in the World Series pool. World Series umps get a raise to $2,500, while umps in city series will earn $700. The plan was proposed in 1924, but formally adopted at this meeting. » March 20, 1925: In a reprise of the 1924 World Series, the New York Giants edge the Senators, 2–1, at West Palm Beach's new Municipal Athletic Field. » October 7, 1925: Walter Johnson (20-7) opens the World Series in Pittsburgh. A 5th-inning home run by Pie Traynor is the only damaging blow, as Johnson fans 10 of the heavy-hitting Bucs for a 4–1 win over Lee Meadows (19-10). Sam Rice, Joe Harris, and Ossie Bluege, with two hits each, drive in the Senators' runs. » October 11, 1925: Before a home crowd of 36,000, Walter Johnson wins his 3rd straight World Series contest over two years. He blanks the Bucs on six hits, only two out of the infield, and fans just 2. A 3-run home run by Goose Goslin in the 4th followed by Joe Harris's round-tripper–the first back-to-back home runs in World Series history—give the Senators a 4–0 win and 3–1 Series advantage. Veteran Babe Adams gives up two hits but pitches a scoreless 9th for the Bucs: Babe's last World Series appearance was winning game seven in the 1909 World Series. » October 15, 1925: A steady downpour yesterday and today has left the field a muddy mess as the 7th game is played in the rainiest conditions ever. It's a short day for Vic Aldridge: three walks and two hits, and he's out of there with one out in the first. Walter Johnson takes a 4–0 lead to the mound. The Bucs clobber him for 15 hits, good for 24 total bases. Max Carey's 4-for-5 gives him a Series-high .458. The Senators make the most of seven hits, scoring seven runs, including Roger Peckinpaugh's home run, the 12th of the Series, a World Series record. Johnson would have fared better but for two more errors by SS Peckinpaugh, the MVP's 7th and 8th, still the World Series record for any position. The Senators made only one other error. Ray Kremer picks up his 2nd win with a 4-inning relief effort, as the Senators lose 9–7. The Series breaks all financial records, grossing almost $1.2 million. Winning shares are $5,332.72; losers' $3,734.60. » December 10, 1925: The American League goes on record as opposing the use of resin by pitchers, but the joint rules committee finally votes it in. The committee also agrees that future World Series games are set to start at 1:30 P.M.; 2nd-place money withheld from the eight Black Sox in 1920 is distributed to the other 1920 White Sox; and players signed by August 31st are declared eligible for World Series play. Finally, no times at-bat will be charged in a fly ball advances a runner to 2B or 3B, as well as home. » October 2, 1926: Game one of the World Series before 61,658 at New York belongs to southpaws Herb Pennock (25-11) and Bill Sherdel (16-12). Two hits give the Cards a quick first-inning run. Sherdel issues three walks for a New York run without a hit. In the 6th, Babe Ruth slaps a single to left, moves to 2B on a sacrifice, and scores on a Lou Gehrig single for a 2–1 win. It is the first of Gehrig's record eight game-winning RBI in World Series play. » October 3, 1926: In Baltimore, the Bacharach Giants' Red Grier tosses a 10–0 no-hitter against the Chicago American Giants in the 3rd game of the Negro League World Series. Grier wins just more one game before an unexplained ailment ends his career. » October 10, 1926: On a drizzling New York afternoon, only 38,093 show up at the Stadium for the deciding World Series contest. Grover Alexander, possibly sleeping off a hangover in the bullpen, barely notices when Jess Haines take a 3–2 lead over Waite Hoyt into the 7th. Haines weakens in the last of the 7th; three walks put Earle Combs, Bob Meusel, and Lou Gehrig on base with two out and Tony Lazzeri at the plate. Hornsby then waves in Alexander. On a 1-1 count Lazzeri hits a line drive into the left-field seats, a few feet to the foul side of the pole, then swings and misses for strike 3. Alexander sets the Yanks down in order until Babe Ruth draws his 11th walk with two out in the 9th, and is thrown out, inexplicably trying to steal 2B. The Cards and St. Louis have their first World Championship. Each winner collects $5,584.51, the losers, $3,417.75. » October 9, 1928: After a rainout, Waite Hoyt and Bill Sherdel are back on the mound for game 4. After 6 innings, the Cards hold a 2-1 lead. With one out in the 7th, Ruth hits a HR, his 2nd of the game, and Gehrig follows suit. When Meusel singles, in comes Alexander to face Tony Lazzeri. Lazzeri doubles and later scores the 4th run of the inning. In the 8th, Cedric Durst, subbing for Earle Combs, hits one out of the park, and Ruth follows with his 3rd HR of the game. Final score is 7-3 and the Yanks sweep their 2nd straight WS. Ruth's World Series BA of .625 is still unmatched; with Gehrig's .545 and a record 9 RBI, they also set individual and team offensive records for hits, HRs, total bases, and at bats in a game. » August 21, 1929: Cubs 1B Charlie Grimm is sidelined for the rest of the regular season with a hand injury, but he'll be okay for the World Series. » October 8, 1929: Howard Ehmke (7-2), who has been scouting the Cubs for a week, is the Athletics' surprise starter in Game One of the World Series at Chicago. A crowd of 50,740 Cubs fans watches Ehmke strike out a World Series-record 13 that will stand until Brooklyn's Carl Erskine fans 14 Yankees in 1953. He holds the Cubs scoreless until the 9th for a 3–1 win. Charlie Root (19-6) yields just three hits, but one is a home run by Jimmie Foxx in the 7th. » October 9, 1929: In game two of the World Series, a 3-run home run by Foxx and a 2-run blast by Al Simmons are enough for a 9–3 A's win over Pat Malone (22-10). George Earnshaw (24-8) is kayoed in a 3-run Cubs 3rd; Lefty Grove comes in and shuts down the Cubs. » October 12, 1929: At 45, John Quinn (11-9) gets a start against Root. After giving up a home run to Charlie Grimm with a man on in the 3rd, Quinn serves up four straight singles to open the 6th, and in comes Rube Walberg (18-11). The inning ends with the score 7–0. Trailing 8–0 in the 7th, the Athletics, in the greatest rally in World Series history, shake Chicago by scoring 10 runs for a 10–8 victory. The most damaging play is Hack Wilson's misjudgment of a fly from Mule Haas's bat, which goes for a 3-run, inside-the-park home run. » January 8, 1930: Art Nehf, who pitched in five World Series, announces his retirement. He won 184 games in his career, last pitching for the Cubs in the 1929 Series. » October 1, 1930: The World Series opens with a Wednesday game at Philadelphia's Shibe Park. The defending World Champion Athletics are held to 5 hits by Burleigh Grimes. Lefty Grove limits the Cards to a pair of runs, as the A's capitalize on their power. Their 5 hits include HRs by Mickey Cochrane and Al Simmons, 2 triples and a double, providing Philadelphia with single runs in 5 different innings and a 5-2 victory. » September 16, 1931: World Series tickets can now be printed as the St. Louis Cardinals repeat as NL champions. They beat the Phillies 6–3 behind Bill Hallahan's 18th win of the year, and prepare for a rematch of the 1930 World Series. Earlier in the day, The Reds clinched it for the Birds by sweeping the Giants, 7–3 and 4–3. » September 20, 1931: Before a game with Brooklyn, Sparky Adams, Cards 3B, injures his ankle. He can see only limited action in the World Series, leaving a chance for