Walter Johnson


Max Carey

Pie Traynor

Roger Peckinpaugh

Walter Johnson is arguably the greatest RHP baseball has ever known. In addition to winning 417 games with generally inferior Washington Senators teams, he twirled a record 110 shutouts.

After 17 years with the Senators, Johnson finally got a chance to pitch in the World Series in 1924. He lost the opener to Art Nehf of the New York Giants in 12 innings, 4-3. Four days later, John McGraw's club beat him again 6-3, with three of the runs unearned. Pitching four scoreless innings in relief in Game Seven, Walter was the winning pitcher when the Senators plated a run in the bottom of the 12th.

When Washington amazingly won the AL pennant again in 1925, the "Big Train" pitched a five-hitter in the opener to defeat Pittsburgh 4-1. Then he outdid himself with a 4-0 victory in Game Four to give the Senators a 3-1 lead in games. No team had come back from such a deficit in the 21 Fall Classics to that point. Since Johnson had aggravated an old leg injury whlie running the bases in Game 4, he hoped he wouldn't have to take the mound again. However, the Pirates won Games 5 and 6. That set the stage for Game Seven at Forbes Field.

The 37-year-old rightie got a break when rain postponed the finale to give him a third day of rest. The field was still soaked the next day, but the game was not postponed again. In addition to battling the wet field and continuous rain, the players had to compete in a fog that enveloped Forbes Field. Washington LF Goose Goslin later said, "The fog was so thick I could just about make out what was going on in the IF from out there." Many at the time and down through the decades criticized the umpires and Commissioner Landis for playing the game under those conditions. The Pirates didn't relish the prospect of hitting Johnson's fast ball in poor visibility.

The home team's prospects looked even dimmer when the Senators struck for four in the first against Vic Aldridge. The score held up until the bottom of the third. Johnny Morrison, who relieved Aldridge, blooped a single to CF. Eddie Moore smacked a long double to LCF to plate Morrison for the first run off The Big Train in 15 innings. Max Carey singled home Moore to cut the lead in half. The premiere base stealer of the NL, Carey advanced to second on a groundout and then stole third. Clyde Barnhart singled him home.

Joe Harris doubled home two runs to put the visitors up 6-3 in the top of the fourth. Ray Kremer replaced Morrison and shut down the Senators for three innings. In the fifth, the Pirates plated a run on back-to-back doubles by Carey and Kiki Cuyler.

After a 1-2-3 sixth, Johnson started the 7th by getting Moore to pop up. But Roger Peckinpaugh, the AL's MVP and generally considered the top SS in the league, muffed it for his seventh error of the Series. Carey then laced his fourth hit of the game, a double that drove home Moore and cut the lead to 6-5. After a sacrifice and groundout, Walter had a chance to strand Carey at third. However, Pie Traynor tripled to the RCF fence to tie the game. An excellent relay caught Pie trying to stretch his hit into a homer.

20-30 years later, and certainly today, Johnson would not have stayed in the game to face Traynor. But in 1925 player-manager Bucky Harris sent his ace back to the slab for the eighth inning. He had the lead again after Peckinpaugh somewhat redeemed himself with a line shot over the LF fence. Walter retired the first two batters. Then C Earl Smith doubled to RCF. Carson Bigbee, hitting for Kremer, doubled over Goose Goslin's head in LF to tie the game. Still, Johnson labored on. He walked Moore. The pesky Carey then grounded to Peckinpaugh who fielded it cleanly but committed his eighth Series error with a wild throw to second for what would have been an inning-ending forceout. Peck went from goat to hero and back to goat. To compound his misery, Cuyler hit a ground rule double into the jubilant crowd in RF to give the Pirates a 9-7 lead.

Bucs manager Bill McKechnie sent Red Oldham to the hill, and he saved the game with a perfect ninth.

Johnson's line: 8 IP, 15 H, 9 R, 5 ER, 1 BB, 3 SO, 130 pitches

James Harrison wrote in the New York Times the next day:

In a grave of mud was buried Walter Johnson's amibition to join the select panel of pitchers who have won three victories in one World Series. With mud shackling his ankles and water running down his neck, the grand old man of baesball succumbed to weariness, a sore leg, wretched support and the most miserable weather conditions that ever confronted a pitcher.

Harris has also been blasted for keeping Johnson in the game. Even McKechnie said, "Johnson didn't seem to have much stuff out there today and the boys continued their clouting." AL President Ban Johnson sent Harris a telegram:

You put up a game fight. This I admire. Lost the series for sentimental reasons. This should never occur in a World Series.

Carl Hubbell

Lefty Gomez

"Rowdy" Dick Bartell

Gus Mancuso

George Selkirk

Lefty Carl Hubbell of the New York Giants, widely considered the best pitcher in the NL, began the 1936 World Series by defeating the mighty New York Yankees 6-1. When the same two teams met in the 1937 Fall Classic, "King Carl" hoped to repeat his opening game magic.

Before a disappointing crowd of only 60,573 in Yankee Stadium on a muggy October afternoon, Hubbell was masterful for five innings, retiring eleven in a row after Joe DiMaggio's first inning single. The Giants pushed a run across in the fifth for a 1-0 lead.

Then Carl committed a double cardinal sin.

• He walked the leadoff man in the sixth inning.
• To make matters worse, that batter was his opposing moundsman, Lefty Gomez.

SS Frankie Crosetti, after attempting to bunt twice, singled to left to send Gomez to second. Next came the play that Giant manager Bill Terry called the "break of the game." With 3B Red Rolfe at the plate, C Gus Mancuso rifled a throw to catch Gomez off 2B. However, SS Dick Bartell dropped the ball as he tagged Lefty for an error. Rolfe then singled to left to load the bases. This brought up CF DiMaggio, in the second year of his Hall of Fame career.

• DiMaggio singled to left-center scoring Gomez and Crosetti to give the Yankees a 2-1 lead. Rolfe raced to third and DiMag took second on the throw to third.
• The Giants decided to walk 1B Lou Gehrig intentionally.
• C Bill Dickey hit a grounder that diving 2B Burgess Whitehead knocked down. Rolfe scored and the bases remained loaded. 3-1 Yanks
• LF Myril Hoag grounded to 3B Mel Ott, who forced DiMaggio at the plate.
• RF George Selkirk singled to plate Gehrig and Dickey and send Hoag to third. 5-1 Yanks.

Terry took out Hubbell and set off one of the strangest chains of events in World Series history.

• After a delay, RHP Dick Coffman finally appeared from the Giant bullpen in LCF.
• C Mancuso told home plate umpire Red Ormsby that Harry Gumbert was the new P.
• Accordingly, the stadium PA announced Gumbert as the new hurler.
• While Coffman warmed up, 3B coach Artie Fletcher, a former Giant, protested that Gumbert had to pitch to at least one batter since he had been announced.
• After conferring, the men in blue agreed with Fletcher and ordered the bewildered Gumbert to the mound from his spot in the dugout.
• Given only the minimum eight pitches allowed a reliever, Gumbert induced 2B Tony Lazzeri to hit a grounder up the middle that Whitehouse missed for another E.
• Coffman then replaced Gumbert and walked Gomez. This created another oddity – a P walking twice in the same inning.
• Crosetti flied to short left before Rolfe walked to force in a run.
• Finally, DiMaggio flied to CF to end the Giants' agony.

The Yankees tallied seven in the inning, all charged to Hubbell, although only four were earned. They added Lazzeri's solo HR in the eighth for an 8-1 triumph.

The Associated Press reported that Meeker OK "was deep in gloom, silent sorrow for the ill luck of this town's No. 1 citizen – Carl Owen Hubbell." The town had "locked up shop in high spirits this afternoon and crowded around radios to listen to G. O. Hubbell's boy pitch another world series game for the Giants." Carl's father said, "I hope that he has better luck next time. I guess we're kind of like the little boy who ran over the calf. We haven't much to say."

Three days later, Hubbell turned the tables on the Yankees in Game Four at the Polo Grounds. The Giants hit Bump Hadley with a six spot in the second, and Carl cruised to a 7-3 complete game victory. However, that was the Giants' only win in the series as the Yankees won the second of what would become four Series triumphs in a row.

Hubbell would never get a chance to pitch in the World Series again.