By C. Jedediah Butterworth
Base Ball Freescriber
September 28, 1924
Because it will be another day before we learn which ball park I will be meeting Master Spanelli in for the World Series, I decided this would be an ample opportunity to briefly discuss the warring attributes of the two participants. In short, my fearful predictions.
FIRST BASE: Charlie Grimm (Pgh.) vs. Joe Judge (Was.)
These are the two best fielding first-sackers in the sport. Judge is a far superlative hitter, but Grimm has had his lion’s share of important strikes. Still…Washington advantage.
SECOND BASE: Rabbit Maranville (Pgh.) vs. Bucky Harris (Was.)
The Senator skipper has been a sterling leader, and has driven in the second-most winning RBIs on the team after Goslin, but Maranville is his hitting and fielding match, and not averse to swatting the occasional back-breaking triple from his eighth slot in the lineup. …Draw
SHORT-STOP: Glenn Wright (Pgh.) vs. Roger Peckinpaugh (Was.)
Both men can muff balls, but both have extraordinary range and start numerous twin-killings. Both are also stronger against left-hand pitching, so with Pittsburgh starting two left-handers and Mogridge the only one for the Senators…Slight Washington advantage.
THIRD BASE: Pie Traynor (Pgh) vs. Ossie Bluege (Was.)
No contest in this corner. Fielding is even and excellent between them, but Pie is by far the better batsman…Pittsburgh advantage.
LEFT FIELD: Kiki Cuyler (Pgh.) vs. Goose Goslin (Was.)
The most valuable man in each league, and patrolling the same outfield meadow! Goslin (.328, 14, 143, 21 GWRBIs) owned the first half of the season, Cuyler (.364, 15, 140, 17 GWRBIs) the second, but Kiki is a much better flycatcher and has 31 stolen bases in 37 tries to boot…Pittsburgh advantage.
CENTER FIELD: Max Carey (Pgh.) vs. Nemo Leibold (Was.)
Carey takes this competition for his superlative speed (50-6 stealing bases) and better hitting-punch, though Leibold makes fewer errors and can get on base nearly as well…Pittsburgh advantage.
RIGHT FIELD: Eddie Moore/Clyde Barnhart (Pgh.) vs. Sam Rice (Was.)
Moore has a sizzling bat but Barnhart is weaker against portsiders. Rice does more things well, though, and if he notches one more run batted in his last two games in Boston he will finish with 100, against zero home runs…Washington advantage
CATCHER: Earl Smith/Johnnie Gooch (Pgh.) vs. Muddy Ruel/Bennie Tate (Was.)
Smith is the most powerful and dangerous at the backstop position, but Ruel is always on base and will be instrumental in keeping Cuyler and Carey from robbing the basepath store…Washington advantage.
STARTING PITCHING: Ray Kremer, Lee Meadows, Johnny Morrison, Emil Yde (Pgh.) vs. Walter Johnson, George Mogridge, Curly Ogden, Tom Zachary. All of these twirlers are capable of pitching suffocating games. All are also capable of being shellacked, though the Big Train certainly the least likely, and he may start three of the contests. For that reason alone…Washington advantage.
RELIEF PITCHING: Babe Adams, Arnie Stone, Wilbur Cooper (Pgh.) vs. Alan Russell, Firpo Marberry, By Speece (Was.) Adams is the cream of the crop, and Cooper joins the pack from the rotation. Russell has a rash of saves but has been plain horrible in September, and Marberry is a human heart palpitator….Pittsburgh advantage.
BENCH: The Senators are far wider and deeper, with Doc Prothro, Lance Richbourg and Earl McNeely adept with the stick. Jewel Ens and Gooch, if he isn’t starting, lead a much paltrier Pirate brigade…Washington advantage
MANAGERS: Bill McKechnie (Pgh.) vs. Bucky Harris (Wash.) One of the better battles on hand. Harris is quicker to make substitutions because he has more to draw from, but the Pirates have been getting timely hits all season no matter what order they’re put in…Draw.
BALL PARKS: Forbes Field and Griffith Stadium are home run cemeteries, perfectly suited for both teams’ gap-shooting attacks. Each club leads its league in triples and is near the bottom in clouts. Pittsburgh must drop its final game in Chicago and Washington must win both of theirs at Fenway to bring the home advantage to the Senators, so at this writing, the Steel City should likely prepare for the first festivities. By my count, that is 6-4 in advantages for Washington. But nothing has gone the way it has supposed to in 1924, and I am usually a poor soothsayer, so I will lean toward the club with the probable extra home game. Pirates win in six games.
EDITOR’S NOTE: The 1924 World Series between Pittsburgh and Washington will be “tweet-casted” live right here beginning Monday night at 10 p.m. Eastern time, 7 Pacific and continuing at that time through the week, with full accounts to appear on my blog site, 1924 and You Are There! the following morning.
