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Posted By: David Atkatz

Even Chesbro didn't argue very strongly that it was a passed ball. In a January 22, 1905 Boston Post article, he told a reporter

"It's an old, old story. I have thought it over and over. I don't believe I will ever forget it. You were there when I made that wild pitch, and in all New York I don't believe there was a more sorrowful individual...
"How did I make that wild pitch? How does any pitcher make one? I used a spit ball, but the spit ball had nothing to do with it. I simply put too much force into the throw... It hit the grand stand, and it's a long story of what happened. We lost the pennant, but this year we will win it."

It wasn't until many years later it became a passed ball in Chesbro's mind.