Photography: Greatest photographs not taken

[sphere and ash]

While many great moments on the field have been captured by photographers—Alexander striking out Lazzeri, Ruth’s 60th home run, Jackie Robinson’s debut, Larsen’s perfect game—many were never taken. What, in your opinion, is the most significant, newsworthy moment not captured?

I’ll go first: Ray Chapman’s beaning.

It’s almost inexplicable to me that no one took a photograph of Chapman surrounded by his teammates or being carried off the field by Speaker and Wood.

I will also add the following conjecture (which may be refuted by your posts): subsequent to Chapman’s beaning, there has never been a significant, newsworthy moment on a Major League field that has not been captured by a photographer.

[sphere and ash]

I’ll make a second, related conjecture: that you can’t name a single, significant, newsworthy moment on a Major League field that was captured prior to Chapman’s beaning (actually I’m aware of one that purports to be, but it lacks any context to verify that it is what its caption claims, and I have doubts).

If you know of an example, please post it.

[btcarfagno]

Obviously you are referring to the Merkle play and the one photo of him leading off first (maybe). That would certainly be one to have commemorated.

How about:

First American League pitch
Matty first pitch
Cobb first at bat
WaJo first major league pitch
Ruth first major league pitch
Ruth first major league at bat
Ruth first major league Homer
First pitch of World Series 1903
Addie Joss collapsing on field
New York Yankees first pitch/at bat

All of these obviously predate the Chapman beaning and would be incredible images to have for posterity.

[earlywynnfan]

Is there a photograph of the Homer in the Gloamin'?

I'd like to see Steve Dalkowski throwing the ball through the wooden fence.

[sphere and ash]

Tom—I was actually referring to a different photograph, but the Conlon image of a player leading off first against the Cubs in 1908 is another example. I actually own the photograph, so I have a real incentive to push for the Merkle identification, but I believe very strongly that it’s Herzog and not Merkle.

I hadn’t thought of some of your examples, but like them all.

Ken—here’s the Homer in the Gloamin’.

[bobfreedman]

I wish there was a photo of Pee Wee putting his arm around Jackie walking off of the field

[earlywynnfan]

Originally Posted by sphere and ash

Tom—I was actually referring to a different photograph, but the Conlon image of a player leading off first against the Cubs in 1908 is another example. I actually own the photograph, so I have a real incentive to push for the Merkle identification, but I believe very strongly that it’s Herzog and not Merkle.

I hadn’t thought of some of your examples, but like them all.

Ken—here’s the Homer in the Gloamin’.

Thanks, I was more thinking of the hit itself, but I know that's a lot to ask

[lumberjack]

The pre 1920 photos concentrated on the ceremonial: a flag raising, meetings at home plate with umpires or team captains, the size of the crowd for an important game...that sort of thing.
We have a couple of astounding group shots of the all star teams. For example, the group put together for the Addie Joss tribute game and for the series of exhibitions against Connie Mack's Athletics prior to a World Series.
Don't forget the action shot of Ty Cobb sliding into third against Home Run Baker that supposedly exonerated Cobb of intentionally spiking Baker (although if you look closely at Baker, he appears to be at least two feet to the outfield side of third as Cobb approaches the base). This makes you think Cobb ran the bases like an ape.
If you lived in New York City in 1910, there would have been 228 major league games played between April and October. That's 2052 innings. At some point, a lot of editors might have said, "Haven't we done enough of that this year."
Beanings....I have a Paul Thompson credited shot of Geo. Moriarity being carried off the field when he was with Detroit (the circumstances of his injury are not explained), but beanings, let's face it, happened a lot. A minor leaguer, John Dodge, had been killed a few years earlier, but it doesn't appear to have been big news.
Charles Conlon, who seems like a very formal soul, might not have taken a photo of a prostrate Ray Chapman....Weegee, had he been doing baseball, probably wouldn't have had any problem with capturing the moment. Attitudes changed....
There is a shot of an unconscious Babe Ruth from the twenties, Mickey Cochrane in 1937 in New York, and plenty of shots of an injured Pete Reiser. There are more.
Finally, the Detroit Tigers sympathy walkout. I had no idea even one photo existed of the players leaving the field until I looked at this thread.
Al Travers, the unfortunate who pitched that day for Detroit, said in an interview years later that his photo had been in the paper the following day. This was significant to him in that his mother was convinced union goons would converge on their house. There doesn't appear to be a photo of the one-day Tigers, which is a pity.
lumberjack

[sphere and ash]

Originally Posted by lumberjack

The pre 1920 photos concentrated on the ceremonial: a flag raising, meetings at home plate with umpires or team captains, the size of the crowd for an important game...that sort of thing.

The question is why these photographic conventions became common: they’re easy and don’t require the photographer to stay for the entire game, allowing them to make the evening edition.

Originally Posted by lumberjack

If you lived in New York City in 1910, there would have been 228 major league games played between April and October. That's 2052 innings. At some point, a lot of editors might have said, "Haven't we done enough of that this year."

That’s true, but why not think of capturing important plays during the World Series for readers? The idea was not pursued until 1920. When the Daily News pursued the idea, they referred to it on their cover as “Something New in Baseball.”

Originally Posted by lumberjack

Beanings....I have a Paul Thompson credited shot of Geo. Moriarity being carried off the field when he was with Detroit (the circumstances of his injury are not explained), but beanings, let's face it, happened a lot. A minor leaguer, John Dodge, had been killed a few years earlier, but it doesn't appear to have been big news.
Charles Conlon, who seems like a very formal soul, might not have taken a photo of a prostrate Ray Chapman....Weegee, had he been doing baseball, probably wouldn't have had any problem with capturing the moment. Attitudes changed....
There is a shot of an unconscious Babe Ruth from the twenties, Mickey Cochrane in 1937 in New York, and plenty of shots of an injured Pete Reiser. There are more.

Beanings may have been common (I don’t know the statistics), but it was immediately apparent to everyone present that Chapman’s beaning was different: the home plate umpire yelled into the stands for a doctor. Some people have suggested to me that it’s possible that the Daily News and other newspapers didn’t want to publish an image of someone dying (and you suggest that Conlon might not have wanted the image). That’s a credible thesis, but I think it’s undercut by the potential for other images that day: for example, one of the umpire calling for a doctor in the house. And it’s also undercut by the Daily News’ decision in 1927 to seek and then to publish an image of Ruth Snyder at the moment of her execution with the headline “Dead!”

Somewhere I have the last image of Chapman ever taken—when I find it I’ll post it here. It was taken in Cleveland; Chapman died in New York. I’ll end where I started this thread: I think images of the Chapman beaning are the greatest baseball photographs not taken. You just can’t exceed the pathos of an umpire yelling into the stands for a doctor, already knowing that it’s almost futile. And you can’t exceed the pathos and composition of Chapman being carried, echoing the Descent from the Cross, to the clubhouse in center field.

[packs]

Waddell striking out the side while he has his fielders lined up on the foul line.

For such a historic event happening so late in time, this is the only photograph I know of that shows Joe D's 56tth consecutive hit (my photo):

[lumberjack]

I'm not sure of the number of batters who were hit by pitched balls in those days, but as there were no protective helmets, anybody who was hit was in a life threatening situation. Remember, Walter Johnson, unintentionally wild, was always afraid he would kill a hitter.
The first game I ever attended was in Detroit in 1956. A Tigers pitcher sent Vic Power flying. Power left the field for a moment and returned wearing a plastic helmet, which wasn't mandatory until 1957. The crowd thought the entire episode was greatly amusing. I remember that well.
Oh, pitchers hit by batted balls. Bubba Church was hit in the face/head in 1950, I believe. I doubt if he was the first. This was shortly before my time; I don't know how the press covered the event, but I do remember Herb Score. The photo of Score, flat on the ground with blood running down his face, was
impossible to avoid. That happened with Tony C., too, didn't it.
The old local television adage, "If it bleeds, it leads."
lumberjack

[steve B]

Well, an unexpected result. Looking for info on something I got today I came across this.

https://cdnc.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/cdnc?a=...-txIN--------1


hopefully the link works. While it's not baseball it is an important sports event. It's a photo and short article about a fatality during an Army football game in 1909. The photo taken just before the player was killed during a play. That prompted the rest of the season for Army to be cancelled.