Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-10-14

fense and by collecting 42 hits to the
Phillies' 26. And yet in spite of those
thick margins of superiority the Phillies
came within one run of each losing bat
tie and completed the five games with 10
runs scored against II. The only wonder
is that they were able to make battling
so close, so far as runs were concerned,
for in all other ways they were up against
a club that had them faded TO the frazzle
that you read about. The one feature
which prevented the Red Sox winning
the last four games in a romp by easy
scores was the steadiness and the game
ness of the Philly defense and the lack
of concerted power in the Red Sox attack.
The power was there, but 1t wasn't con-
sistently applied until the final game,
when three runs were needed In two in
nings to save the afternoon. Then the
old rataplan of swats began to echo in
the rafters and among the caves as
Gamer, Lewis and Hooper opened up a
fresh bombardment. There were two
strikes called on Hooper and no balls in
the ninth when Rixey pushed one over,
and instead of waiting the right fielder
let drive for one of the hardest raps of
the week, a punch that would have rolled
for a homer in almost any park
There is no part of an argument but
that the better ball club won. And yet
of all the series we have ever seen, Fate
IN InlS one JUST closed out came nearer 10
being master of the final result The
querer part of it all is that the better ball
club, with the bulk of the breaks, barely
slipped through with its skin still on in
all four victories. That part of II is we'll
beyond the confines of the dope. Here
is an example: Those short Philly fences
might have been built for Cravath. 1t was
over their tops that he blazed the major
part of his trail to home-run fame. Yet
in Philadelphia Cravath. in three games,
struck only one solid blow, a low line
drive, while in Boston, where the fences
lie back against a dim horizon he hit the
ball with the power of Baker or a Craw-
ford. Cravath got three blows that in
Philadelphia would have been home runs
In Boston they were merely outs. And
in Philadelphia, where a long hit would
have done the job, he couldn't hit one
over the plate, much less over the fence.
Take the final game. In the first inning
after Stock had been hit and after Ban
croft and Paskert had singled, "Gavvy"
was up, with none out and the bases
full. A boding hush fell upon the multi
tude. The big moment had arrived.
Eager eyes were focused on the blue sky
beyond the adjoining walls. Which fence
would he hit one over? The answer was
a soft, spongy tap to Foster. and resulted
in double play, and only the double OF
Luderus gave the Phillies their jump.
only to paddle the ozone with series
of Gus Hills that left the ball intact
Even when a triple by Gardner i'm the
second and a homer by Hooper in the
third had tied the count the Phils still
had their chance when Luderus belted a
winning fly over the right-field wall pre-
cedlng singles by Niehoff and Burns and
a wide peg by Gardner in the fourth for
two additional tallies. But even these
were not enough-not with Alexander still
left warming up. Not with Lewis and
Hooper adjusting their sights to the low
fences beyond Cravaths home range A
two-run lead wasn't enough for the
Phillies at any stage where the Red Sox
were going out and getting exactly
enough runs TO win. They were not
wasting anything-not a Red SoX tally
went to waste In the last four games.
They had at all times after that first
game Just enough to win-but they always
had enough. In their first three contests
they won by superior defense. In their
last stand they won by slugging attack
that rolled up 2l bases. When their de-
Tense failed they came bounding through
with the wallop scoring more runs when
needed In the last two innings than they
had scored before In any one full game.
The one factor above all others which
crushed the battling Phils was the Red
SoX outheld. They maintained to the
finish the form they were expected 70
snow. OF the IL Red SoN runs, Hooper
Lewis and Speaker scored seven and
drove two more in. Lewis led the batting.
with a mark OF .44i. seven points above
the slugging Luderus. Hooper finished
with 1868 and Speaker was Just below
800. Added 10 this, the value of their
outfield defense was even beyond the
power of their attack They cut on more
hits and more runs than they made.
Duffy Lewis alone would have beaten any
ordinary club. No outfelder IN world
series history has ever before given such
an all-around exhibition OF rare worth
or has been such a vital factor In ball
clubs success.
AS for the Phillies, they made a good,
game stand against a club that ordinarily
might have beaten them much worse.
The dope for them was not so keenly
cast Luderus and Bancroft Travelled
true 10 form and Alexander won his game.
But always In their case will come the
memory Of Alexander still warming up
when one run stood between his mates
and extinction-that and 0abby cravath
winding up with an average of .l15. after
having done his main sluRging Ia a bali
park surrounded by Speaker, Lewis and
Hooper Ia place OF a short fence 10 be
carried BY almost any good average ay.