CUBS COME FROM BEHIND TO WIN WITH BOMBARDMENT IN EIGHTH
HAD MADE ONLY ONE HIT IN FIRST SEVEN INNINGS, BUT WILD BILL WEAKENS UNDER STRAIN
Los Angeles Herald, 12 October 1908
Chance’s Champion Balltossers Pile Up Six Tallies and Win Game by Sensational Rally, Which Netted One Home Run, Triple, Double and Three Singles, in Addition to One Base on Balls—Overall Was Steady Throughout, Allowing Four Safeties and One Run—Tinker Starts the Fireworks
CHICAGO, Oct. 11.— After eight innings of clockwork baseball today, “Wild Bill” Donovan, premier pitcher of the champions of the American league, weakened under the prolonged strain, and the Chicago world’s champions captured their second game of the present series, 6 to 1. Detroit’s hopes, which were high after seven innings, in which Chicago had made only one hit, were dashed in the eighth. In that sensational portion of the game Donovan was hit for a home run, triple, double and three singles. Incidentally he walked one man and allowed another to score on a wild pitch.
Overall, on the contrary, was steady throughout the game, holding the Tigers to four hits and one run. That run marked Detroit’s despairing effort in its half of the ninth.
Nothing could have explained the excellence of Donovan’s work up to that fatal eighth. He had speed, an assortment of curves, which he mixed up in baffling style, and he cut the corners with the greatest precision and speed. He had the best of Chicago’s batsmen swinging wild and twice struck out the redoubtable Kling.
Not until the sixth did the world’s champions connect with his wizard curves. Then the distinction fell to Overall, who, considering the high class of ball he pitched, did not need the added glory. But he did poked a short fly just beyond Downs—and the Chicago enthusiasts cried loudly for a run. It was their first legitimate chance for ridding themselves of their excitement. Donovan, however, only smiled, and a moment later the side was retired In a flashing double play.
Not a runner of either side reached first base until the third. Then Overall passed Downs and the latter was sacrificed to second, where his obsequies as a runner were performed. This was farther than Chicago went. Overall reached first before Rossman, who stopped his grounder, instead of covering the bag himself, and waited for Donovan to do so and the latter dropped his throw. But the big Chicago pitcher got no farther. Again, in the sixth, Overall reached first on his single, but with these two exceptions Chicago could do nothing with Donovan’s benders—that Is, up to the eighth. Then it was different.
Overall’s pitching was masterly. He was found for only four scattered hits, no two of which were in the same inning, and one of which has to be counted because Messrs. Overall and Kling both went after Schaefer’s bunt, each stopping for the other to field it, and It went for a hit. He issued passes twice. Crawford and Mclntyre, who hit above .300 all season, were unable to connect safely with his delivery. But he was effective in holding down Crawford with the kind of ball he pitched. Crawford Is known as one of the surest hitters of a high ball in either league, yet Overall curved them around his neck, or shot them straight across without getting into trouble.
Each side was credited with an error, but neither of them figured in the score. Up to the eighth the game was a pitchers’ battle, with both sides for the most part going out in one, two, three order. It began to look as if the experience of last year’s championship series, when the same pitchers worked, would be repeated, namely a tie game. There comparatively was little noise. The spectators were too highly keyed by the neck-and-neck struggle to indulge in much cheering. And, besides, despite bright sunlight, the air was rather chilly, which also had a subduing effect.
A number of rugs and blankets were used with comfort in various sections of the stands. The main grandstand held a fair sprinkling of women, whose headgear, when It happened to be of the latest sweeping model, which nearly was always, created considerable merriment, not unmingled with malice. The stand was crowded, and in one wing men and boys stood up and cheered wildly whenever a woman with a gigantic fall fashion in hats walked down the aisles. Outwardly, the applause was good natured, but it had its inception in the fact that one of those hats would block the view of half a dozen spectators, while anyone sitting at the side of a woman thus bedecked had to lean far aside to keep out of range. However, with the beginning of play, the mockery of cheers ceased and the fair spectators saw the game serenely through.
To Joe Tinker belongs the credit for breaking the spell which Donovan had held over the Chicagoans for so long. Steinfeldt struck out and Hoffman had reached first because Schaefer, after a beautiful one-handed pickup of his weak grouder, had thrown low. The crowd scarcely hoped for more than a single, and hardly expected that, when Tinker went to bat. Donovan sent a fast, waist-high inshoot over the plate; that is to say, partly over it. It never got all the way, for the stocky Chicago shortstop, who already had popularized himself by fast, clean fielding, swung viciously. The ball soared high, so high that it seemed certain it must drop into Cobb’s hands, as that fielder was playing well back as a result of previous experiences with Tinker. But there was an unusual amount of energy behind the hit, and it sailed high and clear into the stand in right field. Tinker, preceded by Hoffman, trotted around the circuit amid the first real cheering of the game.
Horns were blown, bells rung and throats strained to increase the ovation. Manager Jennings sought to persuade Umpire Klem that the hit should go for only two bases, but Klem only smiled. Such hits always have gone for home runs. The ground rules provided that hits into the overflow on the field should restrict the runner to two bases, but this certainly had nothing to do with that tremendous wallop of Tinker’s.
The application of the rule was illustrated by the next man at bat, Kling. He drove the first ball pitched Into the overflow crowd in left field and stopped running when he had reached second base. This onslaught had affected Donovan, but he still smiled and retired Overall on a weak grounder. He went to pieces, however, when Sheckard, next up, singled over second and scored Kling. The whole team, in fact, seemed to be stunned by the suddenness of it all. Sheckard made a desperate steal of second and went on to third on Evers’ safe bunt. Rossman, in a moment of absent mindedness brought about by the general catastrophe which had happened to Detroit’s aspirations, allowed Evers to flash away from first and reach second standing up, while the ball remained in the first baseman’s hands., Schulte then tripled to deep left center, scoring Sheckard and Evers, and then to finish matters up, Donovan threw a wild pitch and Schulte trotted home. This was Chicago’s sixth and last run. Chance walked and stole second, while Schmidt was musing over the ball on Detroit’s sudden fall in fortune, but Steinfeldt. flew out, retiring the side.
Detroit substituted Davy Jones for O’Leary for a final try for victory, and the sub was given his base on balls. He went to second on Crawford’s out and scored when Cobb singled to center. Rossman, however, hit into a double play and the game was over.
The attendance, due largely to the chilly weather, was only 17,760 paid admissions, according to official figures made public after the game. The gross receipts were $26,927. Late candlelight (there still is such illumination in certain quarters of Chicago) saw shivering, blue-lipped lines before the various ticket windows. Some of them, who might be distinguished by the camp-stools they carried, had been there all night. Some had had their breakfasts, but many others, with coat collars upturned and shoulders hunched over against the sharp October chill, drew on the cold larders in their pockets for sustenance.
Thus they stood while darkness disappeared and day came, for hours, until the gates were thrown back and the ticket sellers appeared. Later, many of those who had been in line all night, or since early in the morning, were to be seen all morning trying to dispose of their purchases at a slight advance in price to late comers. Many of them, however, were compelled at the last; moment to unload their tickets for less money than they paid. A number of professional scalpers, who, it is said, had secured a large number of tickets, in the end sold out at a discount of 60 to 75 per cent. When play began the grandstands were filled and there were few unoccupied seats in the bleachers. To restrain the overflow crowd, low board fences were erected in left, right center and along the foul lines back of first and third bases. Some of the spectators preferred to stand behind this fence rather than to sit in the more distant bleachers.
Two hundred policemen, under the personal direction of Chief Shippy, experienced no difficulty in keeping the crowd behind the barriers.
The score;
CHICAGO AB R H P A E
Sheckard, If 4 1 1 3 0 0
Evers, 2b 4 1 1 0 6 0
Schulte. rf 4 1 1 1 0 0
Chance, 1b 3 0 0 12 1 0
Steinfeldt, 3b 4 0 0 1 1 0
Hoffmann, cf 3 1 1 0 0 0
Tinker, ss 3 1 1 2 3 1
Kling, c 3 1 1 8 0 0
Overall, p 3 0 1 0 3 0
Totals 31 6 7 27 14 1
DETHOIT (sic)
AB R H P A E
Mclntyre, If 4 1 1 3 0 0
O’Leary, ss 3 0 0 1 1 0
Crawford, cf 4 0 0 4 0 0
Cobb, rf 4 0 1 1 0 0
Rossman, 1b 4 0 0 8 1 0
Schaefer, 3b 3 0 2 0 1 0
Schmidt, c 3 0 1 7 0 0
Downs, 2b 2 0 0 0 4 0
Donovan, p 2 0 0 0 1 1
*Jones 0 1 0 0 0 0
Totals 29 1 4 24 8 1
*Batted for O’Leary In ninth.
SCORE BY INNINGS
Chicago 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 •—6
Detroit 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1—1
SUMMARY Two-base hit—Kling. Three-base hit— Schulte. Home run—Tinker. Sacrafice hit—Donovan. Stolen bases—Sheckftrd, Evers, Chance, Double plays—Tinker to Chance; Downs to O’Leary to Rossman. Left on bases—Chicago, 2; Detroit, 4. Bases on balls—Off Overall, 5; off Donovan, 7. Wild pitch —Donovan.
Time of game— 1:24.
Umpires— Klem and Connolly.
Official attendance—17,760.
GAME IN DETAIL BY INNINGS
First Inning
Detroit—Tinker at short acted as general receiver for everything hit in this Inning. Mclntyre lined low and straight into his hands and a moment later he threw both O’Leary and Crawford out at first, making pretty stops and throws in both cases. No runs.
Chicago—Mclntyre, after a short spurt, captured Sheckard’s fly. Evers lined out to Crawford and Schulte struck out. No runs.
Second Inning
Detroit—Cobb attempted to bunt the first ball pitched, but lifted a puny foul, which Kling grabbed. Rossman went out, Evers to Chance, and Schaefer’s foul toward third was pulled down by Kling. No runs.
Chicago—Downs threw Chance out at first. Crawford took Steinfeldt’s fly to left center after a stiff run and Hoffmann struck out. No runs.
Third Inning
Detroit—Schmidt sent an infantile grounder to Overall, who threw him out at first. Downs was passed without a single strike called. Steinfeldt grabbed Donovan’s sacrifice with one hand and threw the wild one out at first, Downs taking second. Mclntyre struck out. No runs.
Chicago—Downs made a fine stop of Tinker’s sizzling grounder and threw him out to Rossman. Kling struck out. Rossman took Overall’s bounder, but Donovan, who covered first, dropped the throw and Overall was safe. Sheckard flew out to center. No runs.
Fourth Inning
Detroit— struck out. Schulte captured Crawford’s Texas leaguer after a hard run. Cobb grounded out, Overall to Chance. No runs.
Chicago — With the Chicago supporters rooting for a hit, Evers popped a fly to Rossman. Cobb made a splendid catch of Schulte’s line drive. Chance flew out to Mclntyre. No runs.
Fifth Inning
Detroit—Rossman flew to Sheckard. Schaefer got the first hit of the game, a sharp drive over second, much to the noisy gratification of the Detroit supporters. Schmidt drove safely to right, but Schulte’s quick throw-in held Schaefer at second. Downs struck out, and Steinfeldt took Donovan’s high infield fly. No runs.
Chicaco—Steinfeldt struck out. Schaefer threw Hoffman out at first. Tinker’s long fly was taken by Cobb. No runs.
Sixth Inning
Detroit — Mclntyre struck out. O’Leary grounded out, Evers to Chance. The little second baseman took Crawford’s slow grounder in one hand, running forward at full speed, and threw him out at first.- No runs.
Chicago— Kling struck out a second time. Overall singled cleanly over Downs’ head, Chicago’s first hit. Sheckard hit to Downs, who threw to O’Leary, and Overall and Sheckard were doubled. No runs.
Seventh Inning
Detroit — Cobb’s fly was easy for Sheckard, as was a similar drive by Rossman. Overall and Kllng politely allowed Schaefer’s bunt to roll between them and it went for a hit. Schaefer was caught off first by Overall, but Tinker failed to hold Chance’s throw and the runner was safe at second. Evers threw Schmidt out at first. No runs.
Chicago—Evers grounded out, Downs to Rossman. Rossman retired Schulte on a grounder, unassisted. Chance struck out. No runs.
Eighth Inning Detroit—Downs struck out. Donovan, in attempting to bunt, sent a pop-up just in front of the plate and Kling captured it. Mclntyre out, Evers to Chance. No runs.
Chicago—Steinfeldt struck out. Schaefer made a fine one-hand pickup of Hoffman’s grounder, but threw low, and Hoffman was safe, although Rossman made a phenomenal stop of the throw. Tinker hit into the right field bleachers for a clean home run sending Hoffman in ahead of him. Kling doubled into the overflow crowd in left field. Overall out, Donovan to Rossman, Kling taking third. Kling scored a minute later on Sheckard’s single over second. Sheckard stole second. Evers beat out a cleanly handled bunt and Sheckard took third. Evers stole second. Schulte sent a screaming triple to left center, scoring Sheckard and Evers, and same home himself on a wild pitch. Chance walked and stole second. Steinfeldt flew out to left field. Six runs.
Ninth Inning
Detroit —D. Jones, who batted for O’Leary, took first on a base on balls. He went to second on Crawford’s out, Evers to Chance. Cobb singled to center and Jones scored. Rossman hit to Tinker, who retired Cobb at second and doubled Rossman at first. One run.
