The Washington herald., 1921-10-14
Rawlings and Frisch's Great
Plays Blast Yanks Hopes
Fans Pray for Homer as Babe Rushes Into
Breach, But Injured Star Fails-Hoyt in
Great Form, Beaten By Error.
BY WILLIAM sLAvENs McNUTT.
UNITED News STAT oorrespondsnt.)


Oct. 13.-The New York GiaDts won
the baseball championship of the
world today after stellar defensive
play in the final inning asainsta fu-
rIous assault by the game Yanks
that turned the watching crowd into
a mob of raving maniacs. The score
was / to o. Anything might have
happened in that memorable last in
ming, and a good many things did.
il was one Of those innings that
makes slaves for life of baseball
fans Men go to ball games year
after year hoping to see something
of the sort and just about the time
they get tired and indifferent and
ready to quit the pastime. a similar
situation occurs aAd the fading fan
tendance in the hope that IL may
happen once more.
In the last half of the ninth-the
Yanks came to bat one run to the
bad. Waite Hoyt. the Brooklyn
schoolboy. had pitched wonderful
hall, but a boot by the usually de-
pendabIe Peckinpaugh had given
the Giants a run. With Art Nehf
throwing them over like twisting
streaks of wild lightning, that one
run looked as big as a wholesale
bootlegger's yearly profit.
Pin Hopes ON Babe.
In that last half Of the ninth Pip
was due at the plate. He did not
appear. Nehf threw a few to keep
warmed up and the crowd beloved
for action. Then. out from the dusk
Of the Yankee dugout stepped the
great Babe Ruth. bandaged and
1imping, but carrying his big bat in
his hand; stumpinE stolidly up TO
the plate to give everything that
misfortune had left to him to put
his fading team across.
A home run would tie the score.
The crowd rose and roared for that
home run. The stage was all set
for the Babe. It was the spot Of a
life time for him. During the
American League season the huge
slugger had swung with all the
power that lies in his great back
and shoulders and all the accuracy
that his keen brown eyes give him.
and sent the ball SPEEDING far up
and out for a homer on fifty-nine
occasions. Once more. Just once
morei
somehoE the crippled and band
aged hero of the diamond. standing
there at the plate with ripples of
agony running under the tanned
skin over his set jaws as he waggled
his big bat. made one think Of an
other great old timer. one Samson,
who was badly crippled and put out
Of the running. and who in a mo-
a. =,
a moment of his one-time strength
and was rewarded
The Babe stood there at the plate
with the fans on their feet in the
great steel and concrete bowl howl
ing. and prayed for Just an instant
Of theStrengtFr that @as his fifty
nine times during the past season.
Just one instant's coordination OF
tortured brain and damaged slnew;
one mighty true swing OF his great
bludgeon. and a small white speck
travelling high and far and fast into
the distant bleachers. while one
lone. limping figure trotted around
the bases. and nine >disconsolate
foes dug at the dirt with their
Cleats and shook their heads: one
lone. burly figure trottIng the base
paths, while thirty thousand mani
acs shrieked and danced in worship
at the shrine of his skill and
strength, and raving millions before
scoreboards from the bleak tundra
country Of Nome to the warm coral
Of Key West acclaim him king OF
all,
Home Run King Fails.
That was what one instant of his
70
he stood there. wracked with pain
and risking amputation of his
mighty left arm to hit just one
more.
Art Nehf burned one up to him
and the Babe fouled ii. His fea-
lures were twisted with agony as
he swung The big fellow let the
next one go by and the umpire
called 1t a strike. Two strikes and
no balls! One more chance for the
great moment!
The next was a ball. The next
was a good one and the Babe put
all that was left in one mighty
swing. But il must be remem-
bered that big as the Babe is, the
co-ofdination of eye and brain and
muscle that makes his phenomenal
biting possible is as delicate Va
thing as the mechanism of the
finest. tiniest Swiss watch. You
cant put a grain of sand into a
tiny Swiss watch and expect II to
keep perfect time. and you can't
cripple and carve the big Babe and |
expect his hitting to be true to the !
haiE line necessary to get perfect
power and accuracy into his great |
swings.
He topped the ball by the frae-
tlon' Of an inch and instead of hit |
ting, into the right field stands he |
grounded out weakly to Kelly. As |
he bhambled back to the dugout. |
his head hanging, disconsolate and |
beaten, the crowd gave the game |
big fellow the greatest cheer that |
anyone has yet won during the |
series. The Babe would not smile |
nor look up nor lift his cap. He |
was not suilen: just heartbroken at !
being unable to command his great |
powers at the moment when his |
team most sorely needed them.
More Closing Thrills.
Last half of the last inning. One
man down and one rum needed to
tie. The Babe was eliminated, to |
be sure, but Aaron Ward. who |
kicked away the seventh game be-
hind Mays, came to the plate and /
managed to wait for four bad ones |
Ward on first, one down, and one /
needed to tie. Home Run Baker
walked to the plate. A homer won
the game. A double tied it. He
III L.