Washington DC Baseball

[ValKehl]

George, I wonder how Bucky Harris felt about not also being awarded a shiny new automobile. Not only did the first-year player-manager lead the Senators to their first-ever pennant, but he and Peckinpaugh comprised one of the best, if not the best, Keystone Combos in the American League.

Has anyone ever seen another one of these?

[icollectDCsports]

Originally Posted by ValKehl

George, I wonder how Bucky Harris felt about not also being awarded a shiny new automobile. Not only did the first-year player-manager lead the Senators to their first-ever pennant, but he and Peckinpaugh comprised one of the best, if not the best, Keystone Combos in the American League.

Has anyone ever seen another one of these?

That is so cool.

[ValKehl]

Originally Posted by icollectDCsports

That is so cool.

Thanks! Here's how Carry's Ice Cream was delivered back in the day:

[GeoPoto]

I think Bucky was thrilled just to be the boy wonder. Johnson and Peckinpaugh were established national stars. The Carry's Ice Cream piece is unbelievable. I've never seen anything like it. Thanks for the show.

A week before the World series, syndicated columnist and future American icon Will Rogers, who ranched about 40 miles from the Johnson family spread in Coffeyville, Kansas, wrote that if Walter Johnson had played for John McGraw's New York Giants all those years, he would have had to be incompetent to have lost even a single game. Johnson, Rogers declared, could be sure that he caried more good wishes than any man, let alone athlete, who'd ever entered any competition in the entire history of America. After a "diligent search" of 150 years, Rogers wrote, Washington had finally found an honest man.

Nonetheless, since Walter Johnson had waited this long for his first World Series, he now had a platform for exposure that the Series could not have provided previously. The world was changing at a pace like never before. The automobile was now affordable to most Americans -- the Ford Model T sold for $260 brand new. The first coast-to-coast airplane flight had taken place in 1923. By now, the radio receiver was commonplace in the average home. This World Series would be broadcast over the airwaves of WRC in Washington, which had opened as the city's first radio station that summer. The previous year the Series had been broadcast in its entirety for the first time by the team of Graham McNamee, who'd given up a professional singing career to become a radio announcer, and Grantland Rice. By the spring of 1925, all the Nats' road games would be broadcast on station WRC.

Two days before the Series began, Walter Johnson and Bucky Harris both spoke into a radio microphone for the first time. The gratitude they expressed to their fans across the country, and their promise of a World Championship victory, were broadcast across the nation over the NBC network. Western Union had strung 75,000 miles of cable to scoreboards in cities across the U.S., and wire services were available in approximately 200 other locations.

Nats fans wait in line for 1924 World Series tickets:

https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1678786064

[GeoPoto]

The day would be perfect if America's darling, Walter Johnson, could get his team off on the right foot with a victory over the Giants in the series opener. We get an idea of the type of opponent the Nats were up against when we consider that six of their members are today enshrined in the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Those players are Bill Terry, George Kelly, Frank Frisch, Travis Jackson, Ross Youngs, and Hack Wilson. (Note: I don't know why Deveaux omits Freddie Lindstrom from this list. He was inducted in 1976 by the Veteran's Committee, but I believe Deveaux's book was issued in 2001.) Both Terry and Wilson were rookies, and Terry had seen limited action during the season due to Kelly's incumbency at the first-base position.

Ross Youngs had just won the National League batting title with a .356 average, the eighth straight year he'd batted over .300. George Kelly was tops in RBIs in both major leagues in 1924 with 136. Long George, who was 6'4", had the agility of a cat around the first base bag, and he could play the outfield, and even second base in a pinch. Team captain Frank Frisch was a recognized superstar, one of the acknowledged all-time best at second base. He'd hit .328 for the season and had tied for the league lead in runs with another of the great second basemen, Rogers Hornsby of the St. Louis Cardinals, who had hit .424, a mark never matched during the entire century.

Among the other regulars were the 18-year-old lead-off hitter, third baseman Fred Lindstrom, who would hit .311 for his career, and Emil "Irish" Meusel, Yankee Bob Meusel's older brother, who would post a .310 career mark. Needless to say, the Giants, who took the pennant by a mere 1 1/2 games over the Dodgers, had far and away the best offense in the National League in 1924. They were participating in their fourth straight World Series -- they had won two of the three previous Series, all against the Yankees, but their most recent memory was of a six-game defeat in 1923. They were led by the wiliest and toughest of baseball men, the antagonistic John McGraw.

Washington catcher Muddy Ruel would say years later that the Giants had seemed like a confident bunch on the other side of the diamond during the 1924 World Series. Apart from their offensive fire power, they had the reputation of being better defensively than any club in the American League. With John McGraw glowering at them all the while, it would have been easy for the Nats to have felt intimidated. But, as Ruel put it, those Washington Senators were a tough bunch too, and they wouldn't go down without a hell of a fight.

New York had no Walter Johnson or Firpo Marberry, and in Goose Goslin the Nats had a man with incredible power, a man who put as much into his swings as Babe Ruth. The proof was that when he missed, the Goose would do a pirouette which was pretty much just like the Babe's. But it was hard to deny that the Giants had more good hitters, and had more depth in starting pitching, and with only three days' rest following the end of the regular season and a World Series game scheduled every single day, these factors could turn out to be keys in determining the outcome. There was also the nagging fact that the Giants were taking part in their fourth consecutive World Series. On the Washington side, only Roger Peckinpaugh and Nemo Leibold had ever played in the postseason. Nevertheless, oddsmakers were calling it pretty much a toss-up, and the Nats were favored to take the first game, what with Bucky Harris having promised to start Walter Johnson.

1924 New York Giants wait to board train to Washington for Game 1:

https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1678874183

[Hankphenom]

Originally Posted by ValKehl

George, I wonder how Bucky Harris felt about not also being awarded a shiny new automobile. Not only did the first-year player-manager lead the Senators to their first-ever pennant, but he and Peckinpaugh comprised one of the best, if not the best, Keystone Combos in the American League. Has anyone ever seen another one of these?

Not me. The great memorabilia dealer Bob McCann unearthed this a couple of decades ago, sold it to me at a National, if memory serves correctly, then some time later it found the perfect home in your collection. One of the few items I've had I would put in the category of "condition irrelevant."

[GeoPoto]

Umpire Billy Evans was of the opinion that at one time Walter Johnson could have won a World Series by himself, reasoning that a team from another league would not have had time, in one week, to adjust to Walter's legendary blazing fastball. However, when Evans came into the clubhouse prior to the start of the first game to get some baseballs autographed for friends, it was obvious to him that Walter Johnson, arguably the greatest pitcher in history, was very nervous. It had taken him 18 years to make it this far, the longest wait ever, incidentally, until Joe Niekro made it after 21 years, with the Minnesota Twins in 1987.

Walter Johnson admitted to Babe Ruth on the morning of the opener that he could hardly avoid the jitters, considering that everyone was expecting him to come through, everyone right up to and including the President of the United States. The first game, incidentally, would be only the second World Series game witnessed by the chief executive, President Wilson having been privy to the proceedings at a game in Philadelphia back in 1915.

Another sidebar to the 1924 World Series was the patching up of the strained relationship between two baseball legends, Ty Cobb and Babe Ruth. Cobb had recently been quoted as saying that he had gotten a real kick out of seeing the almighty Yankees fall to the Senators. The Babe had sarcastically commented to the press that Cobb, who would be doing some newspaper reporting of the Series, was probably also coming to Washington to collect some of the gate receipts as well, considering the impact he had had on deciding the pennant. Christy Walsh, ghostwriter for many a baseball star who purportedly analyzed ballgames but were in fact nowhere near the ballpark, somehow tricked Ruth and Cobb into the same cab. The two made up, acting like best buddies as they watched the proceedings from the press box throughout the week of the World Series.

While the Senators' first Series participation grabbed all the headlines, the Giants had been getting more than their share of ink. As their lead over Brooklyn dwindled in the late stages of the season, it had been alleged that Jimmy O'Connell, a spare outfielder with the Giants, had offered Philadelphia's shortstop, Heinie Sand, a sum of $500 if Sand would agree not to bear down too hard. When Sand reported the incident to his manager, Art Fletcher, the matter was brought to the attention of Commissioner Landis. The bribery plot was traced back to Giants coach Cozy Dolan, and both Dolan and O'Connell were eventually forever banned from organized baseball as a result. (The Washington Senators by Tom Deveaux.)

Clark Griffith inspects progress adding bleachers to Griffith Stadium in advance of hosting the 1924 World Series:

https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1678957429

[ValKehl]

"Nevertheless, oddsmakers were calling it pretty much a toss-up, and the Nats were favored to take the first game, what with Bucky Harris having promised to start Walter Johnson."

George, I assume to only reason the oddsmakers considered the 1024 WS a toss-up is that they assumed that Walter would win at least 2 games. Had the oddsmakers known that Johnson would lose his two starts, I assume the Giants would have been prohibitive favorites.

[GeoPoto]

I'm sure that's right, Val, Walter was viewed as a difference maker; Game 1 was probably the only game in which the Nats were favored, at least outside of Washington.

With the uproar from fans queuing for tickets plainly audible beyond Griffith Stadium's walls, the Nats practiced inside, in private, for two days prior to the start of the Series. Bucky Harris wanted it that way. He had his charges working on squeeze plays, bunting drills, and defensive positioning and execution. Temporary bleachers had been set up in left field to accommodate the anticipated overflow crowd, and they had an influence on the outcome of game one.

George Kelly's homer in those stands in the second inning was particularly galling, as it fell just beyond Goose Goslin's outstretched glove at the three-foot barrier. In the fourth inning, rookie Bill Terry reached the seats on the fly with a homer that would normally have been easily caught. Walter Johnson was on his game, though, and struck out the side in that inning. Travis Jackson became his fifth consecutive strikeout victim to open the fifth. Joe Judge, a lifetime .324 hitter during the season, got the Nats' first hit off of veteran southpaw Art Nehf of the Giants in the fourth, and in the sixth Earl McNeely broke the ice by doubling to left and coming around following consecutive ground-ball outs by Harris and Rice.

In the eighth, with the Giants still ahead 2-1, Ross Youngs doubled down the left field line with one out. He moved to third on a groundout, the second out, and Bill Terry was walked intentionally. Terry attempted to steal second, the idea being that if Ruel threw to second, he might make it and Youngs could come in on the second part of the double steal. But Ruel gunned the ball to third, and Youngs, who had strayed one step too far, was out. In the top of the ninth, with two out, pitcher Art Nehf singled to right with Hack Wilson on second. Sam Rice charged the ball, scooped it up cleanly and relayed it about five feet up the line so that Ruel was able to jam it right into Wilson's neck. The crowd of 35,000-plus was delirious.

https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1679045697

[GeoPoto]

The place was abuzz but the score still stood at 2-1 when the Senators came up in the bottom of the ninth. After Judge struck out, Ossie Bluege, the regular third baseman since June who'd batted .281 for the year, singled to left. Roger Peckinpaugh followed him with a resounding double into left field to score Bluege. The ovation lasted several minutes, and hundreds of hats and cushions had to be cleared away from the field. President Coolidge was smoking cigars, constantly jumping out of his seat, and giving every indication that he was having the time of his life. When play resumed, Art Nehf got the last batters in the order, Muddy Ruel and Walter Johnson. Johnson had at this point pitched five scoreless innings, and Harris wanted to keep him in.

In the last of the tenth, with one out, Harris and Rice connected for consecutive singles. After Goose Goslin popped to short, Joe Judge hit the ball a ton, but it was caught in deep right by Ross Youngs. Johnson, who'd given up a single to Frank Frisch in the tenth, set the Giants down 1-2-3 in the 11th frame. Nehf similarly disposed of the Nats in the bottom of the inning.

The Big Train started the 12th by yielding a free pass to catcher Hank Gowdy. Then pitcher Nehf sent a low liner into center. Earl McNeely hesitated and then decided to come charging in. He got hold of the ball all right, but his knee hit the ground abruptly and the ball was knocked loose. When he tried to recover, he saw that Gowdy had stopped halfway between first and second. In his haste, McNeely threw wildly and the ball nearly ended up in the Giants' dugout. Gowdy took third and Nehf second. John McGraw then summoned pitcher Jack Bentley to hit. With a 16-5 ledger during the season, achieved almost exclusively as a starter, Bentley had also hit a respectable .265 in 98 at-bats. In 1923, he had hit .427, a major-league record for pitchers. Although his acquired middle name was "Needles," Jack Bentley was a big man. At one time, he amassed a record of 41-5 in three seasons with the Baltimore Orioles, the team Babe Ruth had played for in the minors. In 1922, Bentley also had hit .349, earning widespread acclaim as the "next Babe Ruth." A Maryland native, he had broken into the majors with the Senators as an 18-year-old back in 1913, but had only a 6-9 record to show for four seasons. He then played in the minors for six years before resurfacing with the New York Giants in 1923.

With no one out, Walter Johnson decided to walk Bentley intentionally. Next, Frankie Frisch, one of the best second baseman ever, grounded to Harris, who relayed accurately to Ruel to force Gowdy out at the plate. The next batter was outfielder Ross Youngs, a hitter of note. Youngs singled sharply to score Nehf. George Kelly then drove a long fly to left, bringing in a second run. The nightmare inning finally ended when Johnson got rookie Lewis Wilson to fly to left. (This was "Hack" Wilson, who in 1930 would set a still-standing major-league record of 190 RBIs in a single season.)

The bottom of the 12th, if anything, would prove even more electrifying. Bucky Harris had decided Walter Johnson had had enough. If this game was any indication, the Series could go long and Harris wanted to make sure his main guy would be in good form later on. The first Washington batter, reserve first baseman Mule Shirley, pinch hitting for Johnson, wound up on second base after Giant shortstop Travis Jackson muffed his fly ball. After McNeely flied out, manager Harris singled home Shirley. Sam Rice then also singled, sending Harris all the way to third. Unfortunately, Rice, hoping to avoid a double play which might have ended the inning, and in keeping with the baseball axiom that you don't make the first or third out on the basepaths, decided to try to stretch his hit into a double. He didn't make it. Two men out -- with Harris on third.

Goose Goslin, the man who'd come through all year, did not do so on this occasion. He hit a slow roller and George Kelly, now playing second, came up with it bare-handed. Harris had crossed home plate when umpire Bill Klem called the Goose out, and the Nats were going to contend that Harris's run had beaten the relay to first. Goslin, Harris, Nick Altrock and Joe Judge screamed blue murder and followed Klem off the field. President Coolidge walked right by Judge and Klem, who were still arguing, and went totally unobserved by the pair.

The frustrated Goslin, who had left men in scoring position three times in this game, called Klem "Catfish," a nickname everyone knew Klem couldn't stand. In fact, Klem would never forgive Goslin, even years later when the Goose tried to apologize. The bottom line, though, was that Walter Johnson had thrown 165 pitches in his very first World Series game, but all for naught. As things turned out, however, this enthralling game would not be as crucial as another 12-inning 4-3 ballgame that was still six days in the future.

Ossie Bluege homers and scores the tying run it the ninth inning of Game 1:

https://www.net54baseball.com/attach...1&d=1679130493

[GeoPoto]

Bucky Harris chose 15-game winner Tom Zachary, who'd had one of his finest years and recorded a 2.75 ERA, to start the second game. For the Giants, it would be another lefty to follow Art Nehf. Jack Bentley, the pinch runner in the 12th inning the previous day, would get the call. John McGraw wanted to counter Washington's best batsmen, Goslin, Rice, and Judge, lefthanded hitters all, who'd hit .344, .334, and .324 respectively during the season.

The Nats struck quickly. After Zachary yielded two singles but got out of the top half unscathed, Rice singled to center with two-out in the bottom of the first frame and immediately stole second. He needn't have bothered because Goose Goslin then hammered a Bentley offering over the wall and into the bleachers in right. The third lefthanded hitter, Judge, followed with a single, beating out a slow roller to first. So much for McGraw's lefty strategy for the time being, but Judge was erased for the third out on a force-out following a Bluege grounder.

There was no more scoring until the fifth. The Senators threatened in the third, with both Harris and Judge having drawn walks and Harris having made it as far as third, but Judge had been caught trying to steal second. Tom Zachary was terrific, allowing only a single to Ross Youngs following his shaky first inning. With two away in the fifth, the Senators' boy manager came through with just his second home run of the season. He crushed a Bentley offering into the left-field bleachers, and the Senators led 3-0.
After an uneventful sixth, the Giants finally got on the board in the seventh. Zachary walked the first batter, George Kelly, and Irish Meusel followed with a single through short, moving Kelly over to third. Hack Wilson then bounced into a double play, scoring Kelly. The next three half-innings went 1-2-3. Zachary gave up only his third walk of the game, but also his third in four innings, to Frank Frisch to open the ninth. After inciting Ross Youngs to pop to short, Zachary surrendered a single to Kelly. Sam Rice's relay from right field was bobbled and by the time the ball got to the plate, Frisch, a very aggressive player, had beaten a close play and had made it all the way around. The next batter was Irish Meusel, and he forced Harris to make a great fielding play and was thrown out.

With Kelly advanced to second, the barrel-chested Hack Wilson (5'6", 195 pounds in his prime) singled to right to drive the last nail in Zachary's coffin, and Kelly scored the tying run. Firpo Marberry, who'd led the A.L. With 15 saves on his way to his 11-12, 3.09, 1924 showing, was summoned from the bullpen to get the last out, which he did promptly, striking out Travis Jackson. The deflated enthusiasm of the partisan crowd was quickly regained in the bottom of the ninth inning. Joe Judge walked on four pitches -- none of which came near the strike zone -- to lead off. Ossie Bluege sacrificed by bunting to Bentley. Roger Peckinpaugh then struck his second double in two days, and the Senators had the first World Series win of their history.

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