Another Chicago Thriller

Pirates at Cubs, May 10, 1908

Another Chicago Thriller

The Pirates and Cubs have a really strange series. They started off with 5 in Pittsburgh, and are finishing it off with a 6th game in Chicago. I’m not certain I understand why it was scheduled this way, but so it is.

Pittsburgh dropped the first 3, but came back to win the next two. And they looked good for this one until the late innings.

Chicago scored 1 in the first, the Pirates got 2 in the 6th, and then the Cubs managed to tie it in their half of the 6th. And so it was until the 8th inning, when Frank Chance came up for Chicago with a runner on at second:

Now, a 1 run lead isn’t necessarily safe, even in a season like 1908 where runs are scarce. And, sure enough, the Pirates started knocking on that door again in the top of the 9th.

Ed Abbaticchio came up with two men out, the Pirates’ last hope:

That brought up the weak hitting bottom of the order. I decided to call upon Roy Thomas as a pinch hitter:

Thomas drew a walk against Three Finger Brown. The Pirates now theoretically could win the ballgame. I looked up and down the bench for another potential pinch hitter, but decided to let Harry Swacina hit for himself:

Swacina got his hit number, but it was unfortunately a 9 — which the grade C Brown easily stopped.

And that’s how this one ended.

I could have pinch hit for Swacina. I’m not sure if I should have or not. It was one of those really complicated decisions, one where there really isn’t a right or wrong answer.

These games kind of make you wish you were around for the days when everybody threw complete games, right?