October 9, 1905: Mathewson, Giants dominate Athletics in World Series opener as interleague championship resumes

The fall classic, the world’s championship of baseball, was not yet regarded as an integral part of the national pastime in 1905. While there was a championship series in 1903 between the American League-winning Boston Americans and the National League champion Pittsburgh Pirates, whether this interleague postseason series would become a regular event was far from certain.

In fact, the 1904 NL pennant-winning New York Giants decided there was no “tradition” to continue. After Boston again won the four-year-old AL’s flag in 1904, Giants owner John Brush and manager John McGraw made good on their pledge that “under no circumstances would the Giants take part in post-season competition against an American League representative.”1

“There is nothing in the constitution or the playing rules of the National League which requires its victorious club to submit its championship honors to a contest with a victorious club in a minor league,” Brush proclaimed.2 McGraw’s well-known hatred of AL President Ban Johnson, along with possibility of losing to what Brush and McGraw considered an inferior league champion, were also major factors in the decision not to play the postseason series.

To avoid a repeat of 1904’s events, the National Commission agreed early in the 1905 season to play a “World Championship Series” between the two league champions.3 For players, managers, and owners, the championship series was a matter of money and prestige.

The Giants were clearly the best team in the senior circuit and had a substantial lead over the Pirates for a large part of the season. Still, it took until September 29, in the season’s next-to-last weekend, for New York to clinch the pennant.4 A tighter race in the AL saw the Philadelphia Athletics, led by manager Connie Mack, eke out a close win over the Chicago White Sox to grab a spot in the “world’s series.”5

There was still speculation about whether A’s star pitcher Rube Waddell would be available for the series. In September, Waddell had injured his left shoulder “while horsing around on a railroad platform in Providence.”6 His absence allowed Chicago to cut the A’s lead from four games down to a half-game, though Philadelphia eventually won the pennant by two games.7

Attention shifted to the championship games themselves for, according to the New York Times, what “has excited the patrons of the game probably to a greater extent than any other event that has occurred in the history of baseball.”8 Given the proximity of the New York and Philadelphia teams, it was determined that there would be alternating home and away games for the first four games in the best-of-seven series. Game One was set for Monday, October 9, at Philadelphia’s Columbia Park.

“The weather was ideal” for the “20,000 breathless spectators,”9 reported the New York Evening World, as Philadelphia southpaw Eddie Plank took the mound to face Christy Mathewson of the Giants. It was a point of pride in the Keystone State that both starting pitchers were Pennsylvania natives.10 The Evening World noted that the Giants, in their new uniforms of all black with white trim, “made a far better appearance than did the Athletics in their dust-covered suits of white.”

New York’s leadoff hitter, catcher Roger Bresnahan, was struck in the ribs by the first pitch from Plank. But Plank quickly put to rest any concerns about his possible wildness. Bresnahan was erased when right fielder George Browne grounded into a force. Center fielder Mike Donlin popped up for the second out. First baseman Dan McGann’s double sent Browne to third before left fielder Sam Mertes struck out to end the threat.

In the home half of the first, Mathewson was perfect, inducing a groundball to second off the bat of left fielder Topsy Hartsel, a fly ball to center from center fielder Bris Lord, and a grounder back to the pitcher from first baseman Harry Davis. It was a quick inning for both pitchers in what looked as if it could be a classic pitchers’ duel.

The Giants loaded the bases in the second inning but could not put a run on the board. With one out, third baseman Art Devlin bunted for a single. Second baseman Billy Gilbert also reached on a bunt single back to Plank. After a double steal by Devlin and Gilbert, Mathewson struck out. With first base open, Bresnahan received an intentional pass, but Browne grounded out to end the inning.

The A’s were hitless until the bottom of the fourth, when Hartsel led off with a single to center. The hit came to nothing as Lord and Davis grounded into force outs and third baseman Lave Cross grounded out to shortstop.

The Giants finally broke through in the fifth inning. It started with a leadoff single from Mathewson. Bresnahan reached on a force out and stole second. Browne, headed for an 0-for-5 day against Plank, popped up to short for the second out. Donlin followed with a single to left, scoring Bresnahan with the game’s first run. Donlin took second on the throw to home on the play so the A’s intentionally passed McGann. Mertes then hit a clutch double to make the score 2-0.

Matty was up to the task of protecting the lead, though he yielded a leadoff double to catcher Ossee Schrecongost in the sixth and another double to Philadelphia second baseman Danny Murphy in the eighth.

New York added an insurance run in the ninth on a single by Gilbert, a sacrifice by Mathewson, and an RBI single by Bresnahan. Mathewson finished off his four-hit shutout by pitching around the A’s third double of the game, this time by Davis, to retire the side in the ninth.

In the pre-pitch-count days, the New York Times reported that Mathewson “found it necessary to twirl only ten floaters in the first two innings,” while estimating that Plank “pitched at least twice as many balls” as his Giants’ counterpart.11

Matty’s performance was lauded by all observers. He “did everything that was desired. His speed was terrific and his control was perfect.”12 The headline writers were also effusive – “Hail Mathewson the Champion of All Pitchers” read one in the Evening World. In front-page coverage, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported, “It was unquestionably the pitching of the Giants’ premier boxman, backed up by great team work, that kept the White Elephants guessing and netted them nothing but nine goose eggs.”13

Recognizing that the best-of-seven series was just beginning, both managers were diplomatic and planning their next move. McGraw told reporters, “Mathewson is certainly a phenomenon and the rest of the boys are not far behind. … I think we’ll win the series. I think we’ll probably pitch Joe] McGinnity tomorrow, and we won’t overlook any opportunity offered to get another victory.”14

Mack was “greatly disappointed” at the outcome but gave credit to the Giants: “They played a great game and won on merits. … I think of putting in Charles Bender at the Polo Grounds and we may change the tune.”15

Acknowledgments

This article was fact-checked by Kevin Larkin and copy-edited by Len Levin.

Photo credit: Christy Mathewson, SABR-Rucker Archive.

Sources

In addition to the sources cited in the Notes, the author consulted Baseball-Reference.com and Retrosheet.org for pertinent information, including the box score and play-by-play.

https://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1905/B10090PHA1905.htm

https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/PHA/PHA190510090.shtml

The author also consulted the following:

Thorn, John, Phil Birnbaum, and Bill Deane, eds., Total Baseball, 8th Edition (Toronto: SPORT Media Publishing, 2004).

Notes

1 Charles Alexander, John McGraw (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1988), 108.

2 Sporting Life, October 1, 1904: 5.

3 A three-man National Commission had been formed in 1903 in an effort to bring peace between the two major leagues and end the raiding of clubs for players. The commission, composed of American League President Ban Johnson, National League President Harry Pulliam, and Cincinnati Reds owner Garry Herrmann, agreed in early 1905 to arrangements for a World Championship Series beginning that October. See Richard Adler, Mack, McGraw and the 1913 Baseball Season (Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, Inc., 2008), 57, and Alexander, 116.

4 The Giants led the NL most of the 1905 season but did not clinch the title until they swept a doubleheader in St. Louis on September 29, including Mathewson’s 31st win of the season in the opener. The Athletics were in a tighter race and did not clinch until October 6, the next-to-last day of the season, when the St. Louis Browns defeated the second-place Chicago White Sox. Despite the closeness of the races, a meeting had been widely anticipated, including by some newspapers, nearly a month before the season ended. “Giants and Athletics May Meet for the Championship,” Brooklyn Times Union, September 10, 1905: 7.

5 The A’s clinched on October 6 when the second-place White Sox dropped a 6-2 decision to the St. Louis Browns. “Grand Base Ball Pennant Is Won by Athletics, the Defeat of Chicago Giving Them the Championship of American League, Philadelphia Inquirer, October 7, 1905: 1. The coverage by the New York Times included one of the early references to the “world’s series.” “Teams Ready for World’s Championship,” New York Times, October 8, 1905: 11.

6 Adler, 15. Much has been made of Waddell’s absence from the 1905 series as speculation focused on whether he was really injured or whether gambling interests may have had a role in keeping him on the sidelines. See Steven A. King, “The Strangest Month in the Strange Career of Rube Waddell,” The National Pastime, Vol. 33 (2013), https://sabr.org/journal/article/the-strangest-month-in-the-strange-career-of-rube-waddell/.

7 Both Waddell and Mathewson won the pitching triple crown in their respective leagues in 1905. Waddell had 27 wins, 287 strikeouts, and an ERA of 1.48. Mathewson finished the season with 31 wins, 206 strikeouts, and a 1.28 ERA.

8 “Teams Ready for World’s Championship,” New York Times, October 8, 1905: 11.

9 Bozeman Bulger, “Giants Outclass Athletics,” New York Evening World, October 9, 1905. Exact attendance figures may be impossible to determine. Another article from the Evening World says 23,000 spectators were in attendance. Retrosheet.org lists attendance of 17,955. The New York Times lists a paid attendance of 17,945. “Giants Triumph, 3-0, in Inter-League Game,” New York Times, October 10, 1905: 4. Regardless of exact size, there is little doubt that the crowd size exceeded the listed capacity of 13,600 for Columbia Park. Philip J. Lowry, “Green Cathedrals” (New York: Walker Publishing Company, 2006), 175.

10 Allen Sangree, “Giants Outclass Athletics,” New York Evening World, October 9, 1905: 2.

11 “Giants Triumph, 3-0, in Inter-League Game,” New York Times, October 10, 1905: 4.

12 “Giants Triumph, 3-0, in Inter-League Game.”

13 “Christy Mathewson’s Clever Pitching Gives New York First Game with Athletics for World’s Championship,” Philadelphia Inquirer, October 9, 1905: 1.

14 “Giants Triumph, 3-0, in Inter-League Game.”

15 “Giants Triumph, 3-0, in Inter-League Game.” Bender shut out the Giants on four hits in Game Two, but New York responded with three shutout wins to clinch the title.