Stereopticon view of Cubs dugout, Wrigley Field
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Dates: | October 8–14 | |||||||||
Radio: | NBC, CBS | |||||||||
Radio announcers: | NBC: Graham McNamee CBS: Ted Husing |
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Umpires: | Bill Klem (NL), Bill Dinneen (AL), Charley Moran (NL), Roy Van Graflan (AL) | |||||||||
Hall of Famers: | Athletics: Connie Mack (mgr.), Mickey Cochrane, Jimmie Foxx, Lefty Grove, Al Simmons. Cubs: Joe McCarthy (mgr.), Kiki Cuyler, Gabby Hartnett, Rogers Hornsby, Hack Wilson. |
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In the 1929 World Series, the Philadelphia Athletics beat the Chicago Cubs in five games.
The famous "Mack Attack" occurred in 1929, named for manager of the Athletics, Connie Mack, in which the Athletics overcame an eight-run deficit by scoring ten runs in the seventh inning of Game 4. The inning featured an infamous Cubs moment when center fielder Hack Wilson lost Mule Haas' fly ball in the sun resulting in a bases-clearing, inside-the-park home run, although the A's still trailed 8–7 at that point.
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Because seven of the eight regulars in the Cubs' batting order hit right-handed, the only exception being first baseman Charlie Grimm, Athletics manager Connie Mack decided that he would start only right-handed pitchers against the Cubs, and keep his left-handers in the bullpen, even though two of his best starters, Lefty Grove and Rube Walberg, were southpaws.
Accordingly, Game 1 featured a surprise start by aging A's pitcher Howard Ehmke, whose record thirteen strikeouts bested Ed Walsh's record from 1906 by one, and stood until Carl Erskine broke it by one in 1953. Ehmke would also start Game 5, but failed to get out of the fourth inning in that one.
AL Philadelphia Athletics (4) vs. NL Chicago Cubs (1)
Game | Date | Score | Location | Time | Attendance |
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1 | October 8 | Philadelphia Athletics – 3, Chicago Cubs – 1 | Wrigley Field | 2:03 | 50,740[1] |
2 | October 9 | Philadelphia Athletics – 9, Chicago Cubs – 3 | Wrigley Field | 2:29 | 49,987[2] |
3 | October 11 | Chicago Cubs – 3, Philadelphia Athletics – 1 | Shibe Park | 2:09 | 29,921[3] |
4 | October 12 | Chicago Cubs – 8, Philadelphia Athletics – 10 | Shibe Park | 2:12 | 29,921[4] |
5 | October 14 | Chicago Cubs – 2, Philadelphia Athletics – 3 | Shibe Park | 1:42 | 29,921[5] |
Tuesday, October 8, 1929 at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illinois
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||
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Philadelphia | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 1 | |||||||||||
Chicago | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 2 | |||||||||||
WP: Howard Ehmke (1–0) LP: Charlie Root (0–1) Home runs: PHA: Jimmie Foxx (1) CHC: None |
This was the first World Series game played in Wrigley Field.
The 35-year-old Ehmke's first-game appearance was no sentimental move by Mack. The pitcher was considered to be over the hill; he'd won only seven games, pitched only two complete games, and worked a total of 55 innings in the regular season. Mack chose Ehmke over Grove or Earnshaw because he thought the hard-hitting Cubs would find Ehmke's pitches baffling, and that with Ehmke's sidearm delivery they would have trouble picking up the ball against the white-shirted fans in the bleachers at Wrigley Field. He was proven right, as Ehmke struck out thirteen Cubs, a Series record that would stand until 1953. Howard had spent the last few weeks of the season scouting the Cubs.[6][7]
Among those in attendance at the game was 9-year-old John Paul Stevens, who would grow up to become a Supreme Court Justice. A lifelong Cubs fan, Stevens later said, "And that was my first game, a tragic game for a young boy to go and see in person!"[8]
Wednesday, October 9, 1929 at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illinois
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||
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Philadelphia | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 12 | 0 | |||||||||||
Chicago | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 11 | 1 | |||||||||||
WP: George Earnshaw (1–0) LP: Pat Malone (0–1) Sv: Lefty Grove (1) Home runs: PHA: Jimmie Foxx (2), Al Simmons (1) CHC: None |
Jimmie Foxx became the first player to homer in his first two World Series games.
Friday, October 11, 1929 at Shibe Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||
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Chicago | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 1 | |||||||||||
Philadelphia | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 1 | |||||||||||
WP: Guy Bush (1–0) LP: George Earnshaw (1–1) |
Game 3 was a strong showing of two defensive teams at their best, and this classic pitchers' duel was a nail biter.
Saturday, October 12, 1929 at Shibe Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||
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Chicago | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 10 | 2 | |||||||||||
Philadelphia | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | X | 10 | 15 | 2 | |||||||||||
WP: Eddie Rommel (1–0) LP: Sheriff Blake (0–1) Sv: Lefty Grove (2) Home runs: CHC: Charlie Grimm (1) PHA: Al Simmons (2), Mule Haas (1) |
Sticking to his righties-only policy, Mack rolled the dice again in Game 4 by starting 45-year-old Jack Quinn. Unlike Ehmke, however, Quinn was no challenge to the Cubs hitters, who torched him for seven runs before Mack pulled him in the sixth inning, setting the stage for the "Mack Attack" in the bottom of the seventh.
After Wilson's miscue on Haas' hit, an unknown fan wrote lyrics to "My Old Kentucky Home" beginning with "The sun shone bright into poor Hack Wilson's eyes..." and ended "So we'll sing one song for the game and fighting Cubs, for the record whiffing Cubs far away." Manager McCarthy, of course, was not in a jovial mood. When a boy came by after the game asking for a baseball, Marse Joe muttered, "Come back tomorrow, and stand behind Wilson, and you'll be able to pick up all the balls you want!"[9]
The 8–0 deficit overcome by the Athletics is the largest in playoff history.[10][11]
Monday, October 14, 1929 at Shibe Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||
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Chicago | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 1 | |||||||||||
Philadelphia | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 0 | |||||||||||
WP: Rube Walberg (1–0) LP: Pat Malone (0–2) Home runs: CHC: None PHA: Mule Haas (2) |
Mack gave Howard Ehmke his second start of the Series, but without the advantage of surprise and without the white shirts in center field, he was not nearly as effective, being touched for two runs and taken out in the fourth inning. The A's rallied with three runs in the bottom of the ninth. Mule Haas tied the game with a two-run homer, and after a double by Al Simmons and an intentional walk of Jimmie Foxx, Bing Miller hit a walk-off double, scoring Simmons to end the game and the Series.[7]
1929 World Series (4–1): Philadelphia Athletics (A.L.) over Chicago Cubs (N.L.)
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
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Philadelphia Athletics | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 2 | 5 | 26 | 48 | 4 |
Chicago Cubs | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 17 | 43 | 7 |
Total attendance: 190,490 Average attendance: 38,098 | ||||||||||||
Winning player’s share: $5,621 Losing player’s share: $3,782[12] |
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