The Washington herald., 1921-10-06
Carl Mays Subway" Ball
Puzzles National Leaguers;
Douglas Hit in Pinches
Frank Frisch, With Four Hits, Gets All But
One of Teams Hits-Ruth Drives in First
Run With Single = McNally Furnishes
Thrill With Steal of Home
NH By @ A. LOVETT.
Cw.shingtsn Herald and Chicago Tribune
Correspondent.)

Pitching will decide the issue,
forecast John Joseph McGraw.
And both the manager of the
Yankees. American League cham
pIoas. and the chief strategist and
part owner of the Giants, title hold
ers of the National League, were
right in so far as the first game
of the 1921 world series of base
ball was concerned. The pre-con-
hist statements of the bench-gen-
erals of the contending teams were
1koFne out on the diamond of the
historic Polo Grounds this after
noon when, before no more than
$1,000 fans, the Yankees triumphed
decisiveIy over the Giants in game
that was more one-sided than the
40 score indicates.
Out-pitched and out-hit, out-field-
edsand out-generalled, the pennant
possessors of the Heydler circuit
were excelled in every department
of.the errorless game by the Am
erfcan League entry in the annual
classic. and II not outclassed col
ectively. were outplayed individu-
ally. excepting only Frank Frisch.
whose hitting and fielding was the
brightest feature of the Giants per-
formance. And. at that, Mike Nc
Nally. the Yanks' comparatively un-
Sophisticated third baseman. was
ode OF the outstanding stars of the
winners offense.
Opening Crowd n Frost.
The pre-series dope ran fairly
true to form. True, the Giants
board OF strategy, consisting of Nc
Graw. Hughey Jennings. Johnny
Evers and Capt. Dave Bancroft, put
one over to the prognosticators by
starting Phil Douglas when the ex-
perts agreed Arthur Nehf, left
handler and leading pitcher Of the
stan, should and would be the hurl-
ing assignee for the opening game.
And the crowd, or lack of 1t. was
something of a frost, and a rebuke
to excessive charges and to the
Giants management which is
charged with having played into the
hands OF SPECTATORS. who, in many
instances must have been stuck
today with sheaves of tickets. The
gaping holes in the upper grand
stand unreserved sections attested
also to the overadvertisemento of the
crush for seats and the futIlity
of eleventh hour efforts to squeeze
into Brush stadium.
But, on the other hand. in keep
the facts that Babe Ruth hit in the
first Yankee run, Frisch was the
star and George Kelly the bloom
er" OF the Giant attack and Carl
Mays underhand delivery baffled
the rank and file of the McGraw-
ian host
The game Mays twired in his
distinctive. subway fashion was one
Of the finest contributions of pitch
ing skill to the history of latter
day world series. Calm and calcu-
lating, with almost perfect control
and a splendid appreciation of the
batting weaknesses of his oppo-
nents. Mays bowled along through
the nine innings OF a thoroughly
merited shutout victory. He fin
strongly than he started, forcing
Kelly to hit into a double play for
the final outs of the sterling con-
test
Friseh Alone Solved Mays.
Save for Frisch. who poled four
clean hits. one a triple, in his four
trips to the plate, Mays held the
National Leaguers in the hollow
Of his hand and seemed at his best
without his windup, on the few
men in position to score. He al
loYed but one hit. a looping safety
OF the handle of Rawlings bat
with two out in the seventh. aside
from Frisch's quartet of ineffective
blows. He issued no passes, al
though he hit Rawlings on the thigh
trying for an inside corner in the
second frame, struck out Kelly
when the Giants had their best op-
portunity to break into the run
column, in the fourth, and was
in the hole" with a count of three
balls. with or without strikes, on
no batter.
30 subdued was the Giants as
sault that eighteen taps were
handled by the Yankee infielders-I
including Mays, who took care of
thFee,-and no one of the eighteen
was a hard hit ball. A nineteenth
infield out was a bounder in front
Of the plate whereon Schang
tossed out Snyder. For the most
partthey were topped balls and
where PeckinpauJh and Ward had
the greatest difficulty in coming in
foF slow hoppers. Peck's work was
dazzling and far outshone Ban
crcft'A He had ten fielding chances,
'inE4 and three of them sparkled,
requiring quick shifts in and to his
right, and lightning throws Only
two of the FIVE balls caught by
Yankee outfielders were line drives,
and none required fancy fielding.
DougIes Performs Well.
Douglas, although his moist ball
was not working to perfection and
he walked four, pitched a meritor-
ious sort Of game. He famed six
to Mays one, but the Yankees
showed a happy facility for making
a majority of their hits count, took
daring chances on the paths and
forced breaks that told in the final
accounting.
Hitting at first and second balls. |
Huggins' men showed no inclination
to wait out Douglas and got OF to |
a merry start. Miller opened with |
a crazily-bounding single over sec
ond, Rawlings getting to, but not
behind the slam. Huggins was
using the bunting game to the /
utmost all afternoon, SO Peck ad-
vanced Miller with a martyr tap
and Ruth promptly smote Douglas |
first offering for a line single into
center, Miller cantering home |
That Bob Meusel then hit into a |
double play mattered not. The |
Yanks were out in front, and as
events proved, never to be headed |
After the first stanza the Yanks ]
went hitless for three innings, al
though Ward strolled In the second
and Ruth was passed to start the
fourth. but McNally started trouble |
for the Giants when he opened the
fifth with a line double to left. I