The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1914-07-09
FOURTH TENSEST MINUTE in SP0RTS--WHEN
SNODGRASS milf LOST GIANTS THE Pr


they had struggled SO long, APP
peared within the very grasp of
the New York Giants McGraw S
crowd seemed TO have snatehed
victory from certain defeat. Saved
from four straight losses at the
hands of the Red Sox a muffed fly
had allowed them to tie one game
they won another-by luck
Boston, arrogant. confident, had
the series seemingly won beyond
doubt. Then a little row. little
faint-heartedness In choice OF
pitchers. a sudden break, panic,
CONSERVATION and shout came
upon Boston.
The Giants, hope revived.
fought their way to even terms,
and ia the deciding game, led.
Mathewson, pitching superbly,
cunningly, with all the skill of the
greatest master the game has
known, had stopped the Red Sox-
In one moment he had wavered
and Numbered and a recruit had
evened up the score-and the two
teams, tied struggled to the finish
of the final game of that series of
surprises, in October, 1912.
In the tenth che Giants had
scored, in spite of the desperate
rally of Boston-and with Ma
thewson pitching all Boston's
hopes seemed blighted.
The bitterness of lit might
have been" had sunk into the
hearts of the twenty thousand
Bostonians who were seeing the
cup snatehed from their lips.
Boston, desperate, came for the
last chance, the score to 1
against them In the field the
gray-clad warriors from New
York were quivering with the
tensity of the situation.
Clyde Engle was the first to
face Mathewson. have seen
Matty in scores of games, but
never before did l see the tense
drawn expression of fear come
to him. He pitched and Engle hit
the ball far and high TO left cen
ter between M1rray and Snod-
grass.
Either man could have caught
the ball almost without an effort
under ordinary circumstances bat
the nerve tension was too great
IL was Snodgrass' ball.
He hesitated, looked despair
inglY toward Murray who scream
ed to him to take it. Snodgr5l5s
started again, hesitated, locke
toward Murray as If seeking as
sistance, and, seeing that he alone
was responsible, made a final
effort to reach the ball. 1t struck
his hand, dropped. rolled a few
feet. and before he could retrieve
IL the slow-footed Engle had
reached second.
The crowd that had been silent
suddenly turned into a bowling
hopeful mob, screaming, fmplor-
ing, begging as Hooper faced
Mathewson. Hooper drove a fierce
line smash to left center, and this
time Snodgrass, as If trying to
redeem the blunder, made a elev-
er catch.
Mathewson was pitching care
fully, studiously. He refused to
give Yerkes a good ball to hit and
Yerkes refused to hit at a bad
one and drew a base, bringing
| Speaker to bat.
On the bench the Red Sox, VINO
a moment ago had been eursing
through gritted teeth, leaped 70
the fray, screaming. bowling, mad
with the chance to win and save
! the day.
Iris Speaker, the greatest hit
ter of the team, came to bat. lie
was no longer the smiling, good
natured Speaker but a man VINO
looked upon every opponent as
deadly foe, and uDon MathewsOn,
one of his best friends, as his
most-hated enemy He cursed
Matty as he stepped to the plate
and Mathewson, a bit shaken and
quiverfng with anxiety, smiled
and dropped a slow, twisting
curve inside the plate. Speaker
swung.
The ball popped at an easy are
toward first base. and the crowd
groaned again. The ball arehed
perhaps fifty feet high, toward
first base and only a few feet out
side the foul line. Merkle could
have trotted I'm and caught all
save one I'm q million fouls of that
kind, but he stood near first rs
If paralyzed, never moving. never
offering. Meyers sprang toward