New York owned the baseball world. If there was any doubt to the claim, the final standings of 1921 and 1922 could easily back it up. During both previous seasons, the Giants and Yankees had won their league flags, and 1923 seemed to pose no problem for either of the clubs. But when problems from without are not present, the strife seems to manifest from within. Such was the case when an overabundance of success or jealousy of others' good fortunes caused the Giants to inform Yankee owner Colonel Jacob Ruppert that his American Leaguers were no longer welcome tenants in the Polo Grounds.

This decision sent the Colonel out to build Yankee Stadium - a 62,000-seat palace within a mile of the National League park. With the most attractive stadium in the country, an exciting club, and a super drawing card in slugger Babe Ruth, the Yankees enjoyed a banner year at the gate and won a third consecutive American League pennant on the field. Although the Bambino swatted 41 homers into the friendly seats of the stadium, drove home 131 runs, and batted a robust .393, the Yankee long suits were pitching and defense. A trade with Boston brought lefty Herb Pennock into the starting rotation with Joe Bush, Sam Jones, Bob Shawkey, and Waite Hoyt to form the class hill staff of the loop. A solid infield cut off many opponent's runs, and the attack led by Ruth, Bob Meusel, and Wally Pipp provided enough Yankee runs for a final 16-game pennant margin.

Detroit and Cleveland, both possessors of .300 team batting averages, were the distant runner-ups to the New Yorkers. The Tigers fielded a Hall of Fame outfield in batting leader Harry Heilmann, manager Ty Cobb, and rookie Heinie Manush, while Tris Speaker both managed the Indians and provided the sock with his.380 batting average and 130 runs batted in. Both clubs, though, lacked the pitching to finish closer to the top. The fall of 1922's contending St. Louis Browns into the second division was insured by the eye ailment which sidelined star first-sacker George Sisler for the entire campaign.

With their hometown rivals unfurling a championship and new stadium, the Giants felt obligated to match the upstarts. To begin the promotional campaign, the Polo Grounds were embellished and enlarged to a capacity of 54,000 seats. To further woo spectators into their den, to Giants won their third straight championship in a close race with the Cincinnati Reds. While no slugger on the order of Ruth graced the Jints' lineup, Frankie Frisch starred in his own manner with a .348 batting mark and blazing speed afield and on the bases. While Ross Youngs belted only three homers, he hit .336 and covered right field more gracefully than the Babe. George Kelly provided solid batting, and Giant Irish Meusel enjoyed a better year than brother Yankee Bob. Dave Bancroft, as usual, played an air-tight shortstop, but his late-season bout with pneumonia gave rookie Travis Jackson an extended trial in his slot. The pitching staff flashed no aces, but enough numbers to get by, as Jack Scott and reliever Rosie Ryan led the staff with 16 victories apiece.

Cincinnati boasted of the loop's top pitching with 20-game winners Dolf Luque, Eppa Rixey, and Pete Donohue, but lacked enough hitters like Edd Roush to overtake New York. Second-division clubs held the league batting stars, as Rogers Hornsby of the Cardinals won his fourth straight batting title, and Cy Williams the home run title to give his last-place Philadelphia Phillies' teammates something to cheer about.

For the third straight October, the World Series was played in New York, but this time in two parks. Casey Stengel won the opener in Yankee Stadium for the Giants with a ninth-inning inside-the-park home run and gave Art Nehf a 1-0 victory in game three with another circuit blast. But the Nationals won no other games, as the Yankees' attack found the Giants' pitchers easy marks. A six-game Series victory, spiced with three Ruth homers, marked the Yankees emergence from the underdog role in New York-a part which they had reluctantly held since their birth in 1903.

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