The Pecan Park Eagle

The Larger-Than-Life 1927 Yankees

As they proved again in Game 2 of their current series with the Houston Babies, the 1927 New York Yankees are not a club that simply kills by the power of fatal force. Like a late night cocktail laced with cyanide, the Yankee hosts possess the ability to ut an opponent to sleep for a much longer sleep than they had planned. And it sort of happened that way in Game 2.

The Babies had been nursing a 2-0 lead over New York since the first inning behind Larry Hajduk as the Yankees struggled with the loss of starter Herb Pennock for the series with a strained left throwing arm after six. Thomas, Shawkey, and Moore handled the 7th, 8th, and 9th in a scoreless relief effort for the Yankees, but it wasn’t until the 8th that New York broke through for 3 runs against Hajduk and reliever Patrick Lopez that the Bronx cheers took a positive turn.

Bob Shawkey (W, 1-0) got the win for New York. Patrick Lopez (L, 0-1) took the loss for Houston. Pennock is now lost to the Yankees for the balance of the series and we shall have to wait and see how the Yankees adapt to that missing weapon in their heavily armed mound corps.

Miller Huggins & Company

Babies Bounce and Rattle Yanks in 1st.

The Houston Babies came out playfully in the first. After Herb Pennock took out Mark Hudec on a swinging third strike, four consecutive singles by Robert Pena, Zach Hajduk, Deacon Jones, and Tom Murrah pushed the Babies into a 2-0 lead that they would hold for almost the entire game.

Pennock Out with Arm Pain.

The quickly settled into a further scoreless pitching duel between Hajduk of the Babies and Pennock of the Yankees until the top of the 7th. That’s when Pennock discovered prior to his first pitch of the inning that his left arm was suddenly hurting him too much to continue, Fearing tendon  damage, manager Huggins pulled his ace lefty in favor reliever Miles Thomas. Thomas swiftly disposed of the Babies and then left the game in the bottom of the 7th for a pinch hitter.

Bob Shawkey took over the pitching for the ’27 Yankees in the top of the 8th. The Babies cracked him for singles by Jones and Murrah again, but they couldn’t score.

Yanks Rally in 8th

With one out in the bottom of the 8th, Mark Koenig lashed a triple into the right field gap off Larry Hajduk. A walk to Babe Ruth then prompted manager Bob Dorrill to rest the tiring Hajduk. In came Patrick Lopez to pitch for Houston. Lou Gehrig then bounced a grounder to the right side that rolled between the legs of 2nd baseman Tom Murrah. Koenig scored on the error with Ruth and Gehrig holding at 2nd and 1st.

Bob Meusel then hit a little lopsided roller to third that worked like an unintentional bunt. Mark Hudec charged the ball in time to throw out Meusel at first as Ruth and Gehrig moved to 3rd and 2nd with two outs.

Then came the “Snake from San Francisco” – Tony Lazzeri.

Lazzeri lashed 2-2 pitch to deep left center for 2-run RBI double. With Ruth and Gehrig now scoring the tying and go-ahead runs, the Yankees had taken a 3-2 lead they would never relinquish.

Lopez then got Joe Dugan on a pop fly to 3rd for out number three, but the damage was done. Ace reliever Wilcy Moore came in to shut down the Babies after walking Bob Stephens to start the 9th inning

Their fate through two was now sealed to an o-2 deficit in games won fiar, square, and impressively by the ’27 Yankees.

What Now?

The clubs will take today off for travel to Houston. The teams will remain in the 1927 time zone, and will have to deal with all realities pertaining to Houston in that era. The two clubs will arrive by train at the downtown Union Station at 10:15 PM this evening. Their Game 3 will be played at the George Ranch Cow Pasture No. 2 at 3:00 PM Wednesday (our time). Results of Game 3 will be reported here at the Pecan Park Eagle on Thursday of this week (our time).

Game 3 Pitching Match Ups

Dutch Reuther takes the mound for the 1927 Yankees in Game 3. He will square off against Marie “Red” Mahoney of the Houston Babies.

Post Game Comments:

Bob Dorrill: “Nobody ever said this was going to be easy.”

Mike McCroskey: “…or even possible!”

Babies Club (in unison): SHUT UP, McCROSKEY!!!”

GAME TWO BOX SCORE: BABIES AT ’27 YANKEES; JUNE 4, 1927.

BATTING:

2BH: MARTIN (1);

RBI: JONES (1), MURRAH (1)

TEAM LOB: 7

BASERUNNING:

SB: Z HAJDUK (1), JONES (1), MURRAH (1)

CS: JONES (1)

FIELDING:

E: PENA (1), MURRAH (1)

DP: 1

PITCHING:

BATTING:

2BH: COMBS (1), GEHRIG (2)

3BH: KOENIG (1)

RBI: LAZZERI 2 (2)

TEAM LOB: 7

FIELDING:

E: Koenig (1)

DP: 0

INJURIES: PENNOCK, ARM STRAIN, OUT FOR REST OF SERIES.

PITCHING:

TIME: 1 HOURS 56 MINUTES

ATTENDANCE: 61,954

UMPIRES: GROUCHO, HARPO, CHICO, AND ZEPPO

HOUSTON BABIES FANS ARE ALSO TIME TRAVELING TO 1927 NEW YORK TO WATCH THEIR TEAM TAKE ON THE CLUB BEST KNOWN AS MURDERER’S ROW!

It was a hard-fought game to the very end. Bob Blair of the Babies and Waite Hoyt of the ’27 Yankees both brought their “A” games to the Bronx this afternoon and kept the game at 1-1 through both of their earned by fatigue only departures in the 9th. What had loomed from the start as a possible explosion by Murderer’s Row in Game 1 had taken another road from the 3:00 PM first pitch. Guile, deception, stuff, and speed ran into batters from both sides, keeping all baseballs in the park as something of a Yankees Stadium rarity. The Yankees did have some fun with doubles today, using the last to produce a walk-off victory of this long awaited meeting by the Houston bunch.

Say it aloud phonetically so you don’t silently read it wrong, people, That city that starts with the letter “H” is pronounced “HUGH-STUN” – and NOT “HOUSE-TUN” – the way you’re presently thinking. OK?

Michael J Fox (Marty McFly) and Christopher “Doc” Lloyd made all special arrangements for this time travel series back to 1927, with some considerable help from Jay Leno’s garage crew in making the modifications needed to at 1927 Model T Ford that made t suitable for time travel to New York in the early summer of 1927. Jay Leno even accompanied the Babies’ special celebrity crew. Why did Leno come? “I just wanted to see how New York made it in the days prior to Letterman,” Jay snickered as he answered. St. Michael McCroskey, the angelic alter ego of the Macro Babies pitcher also came along as Ms. Gaga’s spiritual adviser.

“I wanted an adviser for appearances sake,” the lady smiled, ” so I didn’t need someone with a lot of inhibitions in his own bag of big town fun things to do.”

‘Foreword to the Past’ Time Travelers Make hot landing in the 1927 Bronx House That Ruth Built.

“THE HOUSTON BABIES ARE TIME TRAVELLING TO 1927 NEW YORK TO PLAY THE GREAT YANKEES’ MURDERERS’ ROW CLUB. – IF THE BABIES CAN MAKE IT THERE, THEY CAN MAKE IT ANYWHERE!”

Prior to the game, the large crowd of New Yorkers at The Stadium  did gasp aloud at the incredible roar of a fireball  that suddenly appeared in deep death valley and then came rushing to the pitcher’s mound in the form of one of Mr. Henry Ford’s automobiles, but none that rolls with far more speed and power than any of us  has ever seen until now. None of us in the press box crew of 1927 caught the names of the two older male passengers and one younger gentlemen driver who departed the vehicle, but I doubt that any of us will ever forget the lady who came with them. “Lady Gaga” – some kind of black sheep royalty, we suppose, departed the car almost undressed in an outfit that looked more like skin thank silk or satin. She also wore an abundance of feathers that even parted her long platinum hair, directing it in all ways of the compass.

Then she began to sing. That is, we think it was singing. It was the voice moving words in a melodic style that has heretofore, until yesterday, escaped the sensitive entertainment palates of up-to-date-on-all-things-new New Yorkers of these Roaring Twenties. At any rate, Lady Gaga finally got around to throwing out the ceremonial first pitch. By then, none of us were surprised that it turned out to be a beautifully down-breaking curve on the outside of the plate that found its way home to Benny Bengough, our ceremonial catcher. Benny actually kissed the ball before asking Lady Gaga to sign it for him.

Afterward, Lady Gaga took a seat in the front row box of Mr. George Gershwin. The two music people spent seven innings in animated conversation and each were seen taking notes. They left the stadium going into the 8th and were not seen again. No word is available on the destination of the pair, but something musical and alcoholic on 42nd Street is likely to have occurred after the two were spotted later on the A Train to Harlem. We hear that Josephine Baker was in town. She and Gaga would have been a hoot together, had they met up. We just don’t have any facts to report on that sidebar issue.

Meanwhile, back at the game.

Murderers Row was a little silent in Game 1, but the great Yankee dynasty still found a way to get the job done. After their 12th inning 2-1 win, the ’27 Yankees lead series with the Babies, 1 game to 0.

Going into the top of the 9th, Blair and Hoyt both had held the game to a scoreless tie through 8. Hoyt of New York would be the first to yield.

With one out in the 9th, Babies right fielder Bob Stephens ripped a crisp opposite field single to right, Pitcher Bob Blair then whacked a hard single to left that moved Stephens to 2nd. The hit gave Blair a 3 for 4 day at the plate, enough to convince Yankees manager Huggins that he was ready to make a change for the suddenly tiring Hoyt. With two on and still only one out in the 9th, Huggins brought in ace Wilcy Moore to hopefully quell the Babies rally. Not all ideas work. Right away. If at all.

On a 2-0 count, lead-off hitter Jimmy Disch then laced a long single to left center off Moore, scoring Bob Stephens from 2nd with the first run of the game and a 1-0 Babies lead over the ’27 Yankees. The run, of course, was charged to the departed Hoyt.

No more damage. With Disch eager to run from 2nd and Blair hanging loose at 1st, third baseman Bill Hale then popped out to shortstop Koenig for the second out. Moore then followed by getting the dangerous Phil Holland on a slow roller play from third to first for a 5-3, side-retiring out.

Going to the bottom of the 9th, it was Houston Babies 1 – 1927 New York Yankees 0.

Yankees shortstop Mark Koenig answered the call of “last-chance-9th” by drilling a double into the right center field gap. Then Koenig got lost in his enthusiasm. When the sound of contact with Ruth’s bat on the first pitch from Blair then registered to everyone’s ears as “gone,” Koenig went into an almost ceremonial run to third in anticipation that Ruth’s “homer” had just won the ball game for the ’27 Yankees.

The trouble is – it wasn’t a home run. The Ruth ball was caught by right fielder Bob Stephens with a leaping catch at the wall. It was all Koenig could do get back to 2nd after the third base coach desperately caught his runner’s attention again. Now the potentially tying run remained at 2nd with only one out sealed in the bottom of the 9th.

Lou Gehrig was the next scheduled batter. Gehrig promptly launched a 1-0 pitch on  sharp line drive to right center that hit the fence and bounded away. This time Koenig scored easily to tie the game as Lou Gehrig larruped into 2nd with a double of his own. It was now 1-1, but New York had the winning run at 2nd in the presence of Gehrig.

Babies manager Bob Dorrill didn’t hesitate. He pulled ace starter Bob Blair in favor of reliever Tony Cavender. “Fresh over Tired” played out for the second time in the same inning.

Lou Gehrig, Babe Ruth, and Tony Lazzeri – along with Bob Meusel and Earle Combs, they were the heart of Murderers Row.

Cavender bought some time, He retired Bob Meusel on a lazy fly to left and then got Tony Lazzeri on a one bounce grounder to the mound that easily converted to a 1-3 putout end to further scoring threats in the 9th.

Extra! Extra!

The Extra Inning Waltz played on. For the next two plus innings, pitching continued to dominate the 1-1 tie – and the two dancing stars were pitchers Tony Cavender of the Babies and Wilcy Moore of the Yankees. Going into the bottom of the 12th, neither man had yielded another hit. In fact, the RBI single that Moore had given up to Disch in the 9th still remained as the only hit given up by either man. Period.

Things eventually change. Humans make mistakes. Pitchers get tired. Balls get bigger. And batters get lucky. Whatever the basis here, some of these factors were about to settle matters.in the bottom of the 12th.

After Bob Meusel led off the bottom half of the Yankees 12th by powering a 360 foot drive to left center that Alex Hajduk barely reached in time after a spectacular run, Babies manager was ready rest “No Hit Tony” Cavender in  favor of ace reliever Ira Liebman.

Liebman promptly gave up a long foul to Lazzeri that barely missed being fair as it departed the park down the left field line.  It was oh-so remindful of the foul that Lazzeri hit against Pete Alexander in the 7th inning of Game 7 in the 1926 World Series, but that was then. And this is now. And good as he most times is, Ira Liebman is not “Alexander the Great.” There would be no magic strikeout today as Lazzeri blasted an 0-2 pitch past Ira’s ear and into center field for a clean base hit.

Mike Gazella, who was now playing 3rd base, then topped a little nubber to a hustling Phil Holland on the infield grass for a slam-bam 4-3 put out. Two men were now out, but the potential winning run was now at 2nd in the presence of Tony Lazzeri.

Bearing down, Liebman then fanned catcher Jim Grabowski in three hard-swinging whacks at some high heat. Grabowski apparently forgot. He doesn’t   have the arcade tools to play for the big Kewpie doll at this carnival. He should have settled for making contact with a hittable pitch. After all, not every member of “Murderer’s Row” gets to fire a gun. Some have to  be accountants, lawyers, and security account collectors.

With two outs now and Lazzeri on second as the potential winning run, ’27 Yankees manager Huggins made another critical decision. He sent in righty Ben Paschal as a pinch hitter for reliever Wilcy Moore. Huggins wanted the game now, even if it meant thinning out his pitching staff in a much longer extra inning game, should the move not work.

It was a lucky pup pick. After fouling off five itches on his way to running the  count full, Paschal finally saw one he couldn’t refuse. He blasted the ball over the shortstop’s head and on its skimming way to the all in left center. Neither Hajduk in left nor Burns in center even bothered to give chase as they saw the hustling form of Tony Lazzeri tearing around third and head for home and victory.

Combs and Koenig were the first to greet the smiling Lazzeri as the ’27 drew yet another taste of their favorite brew. – It’s called “winning.”

Final Score: 1927 New York Yankees 2 – Houston Babies 1 (12 innings).

The Series today at 3:00 PM with right-handed Larry “Buffalo” Hajduk going for the Houston Babies against lefty Herb Pennock of the 1927 New York Yankees, again at Yankee Stadium 1.

Post-Game Comments

Miller Huggins: “Those boys from Texas have got a good little club. Any unknown team that can waltz into Yankee stadium, our house, and make us play 12 innings to scratch out two runs is got to be doing a whole lot of the right things.

Bob Dorrill: “I agree with Miller. I’m proud of our guys. We didn’t come up here to lose – and I don’t think we will. We just have to keep our feet on the ground and stay away from 1927 New York and all it’s many distractions, if possible.”

Mike McCroskey (Babies player): “I think I’m going to just stay in my room tonight and watch television.”

A Chorus of Babies Players: “Sorry, Mac! We didn’t have the heart to tell you in advance!”

Surrounded here by his two fine sons, Alex and Zach, Games 2 Babies pitcher Larry Hajduk gets ready for his start in Game 2 against lefty great Herb Pennock of the ’27 Yankees. watch for the results in tomorrow’s edition of the Pecan Park Eagle

GAME ONE BOX SCORE: BABIES AT ’27 YANKEES; JUNE 3, 1927.

BATTING:

2BH: HOLLAND (1); BLAIR (1)

RBI: DISCH (1)

TEAM LOB: 10

BASERUNNING:

SB: A HAJDUK (1)

FIELDING:

E: A HAJDUK (1)

DP: 2

PITCHING:

 INT WALK: CAVENDER

BATTING:

2BH: KOENIG RUTH, GEHRIG, DUGAN, PASCHAL (1 EACH)

RBI: GEHRIG, PASCHAL (1 EACH)

TEAM LOB: 8

BASERUNNING:

CS: COMBS (1)

FIELDING:

E: COLLINS (1)

DP: 1

 PITCHING:

TIME: 2 HOURS 30 MINUTES

UMPIRES: LARRY, CURLY, AND MOE

ATTENDANCE: 63,454