1927 World Series
Encyclopedia
In the 1927 World Series, the New York Yankees
swept the Pittsburgh Pirates
in four games. This was the first sweep of a National League
team by an American League
team.
That year, the Yankees
led the American League in runs scored, hits, triples, home runs, base on balls, batting average, slugging average and on base percentage. It featured legends Babe Ruth
and Lou Gehrig
at their peaks. The team won a then-league record 110 games, finished with a 19-game lead over second place, and are considered by many to be the greatest team in the history of baseball.
The 1927 Pittsburgh Pirates
, with MVP Paul Waner
, led the National League in runs, hits, batting average and on base percentage.
The 1927 New York Yankees had perhaps the most feared line-up in the history of baseball. Nicknamed "Murderers Row," their batting order boasted the all-time great Babe Ruth
at the top of his considerable powers, hitting .356 with a then-record 60 home runs and 164 RBI that year. He was complemented by future Hall of Fame
rs Lou Gehrig
at first base, who hit .373 with 47 home runs and a league-leading 175 RBI, Tony Lazzeri
at second base who drove in 102 runs with a .309 average, and center fielder Earle Combs
, who hit .356 and scored 137 runs as the team's lead-off hitter. Left fielder Bob Meusel
also drove in over 100 runs, with a .337 average. The rest of the team, composed of shortstop Mark Koenig
(.285), third baseman Joe Dugan
(.269) and catcher Pat Collins
(.275) was not as great but no one was an easy out either.
The team's pitching staff was led by another Hall of Famer, Waite Hoyt
, who had his best season with a 22–7 record and a league-leading 2.63 ERA to add to his league-leading wins total. Three more pitchers won 18 or more games, rookie Wilcy Moore
(19–7, 2.28), Herb Pennock
(19–8, 3.00) and Urban Shocker
(18–6, 2.84). Moore would have won the ERA title under current rules, but in those days qualification was based on the number of complete games pitched, and he made only 12 starts all year: 13 of his wins and a league-leading 13 saves (figured retroactively) came during his 38 relief appearances. Rounding out the staff were veteran Dutch Ruether
(13–6, 3.38), George Pipgras
(10–3, 4.11) and swingman Myles Thomas
(7–4, 4.87). This was a staff almost as strong as the team's fearsome hitters.
Not surprisingly, the Yankees ran away with the pennant under the leadership of manager Miller Huggins
. They finished with a record of 110–44, 19 games in front of the second-place Philadelphia Athletics. They were overwhelming favorites to win the World Series.
during the regular season, finishing 1.5 games ahead of the defending World Champions St. Louis Cardinals
.
The Pirates also had their share of future Hall of Famers, but they were not quite of the caliber of those of the Yankees. The team's best hitter was right fielder Paul "Big Poison" Waner
, who hit a league-leading .380 and drove in 131 runs, also a league-leading total. His brother, rookie center fielder Lloyd "Little Poison" Waner
hit .355 and scored a league-leading 133 runs, in spite of his almost complete lack of power (he collected just 25 extra-base hits in over 650 plate appearances). Third baseman Pie Traynor
hit .342 and drove in over 100 runs, joining shortstop Glenn Wright
who also topped the century mark. However, Wright and Paul Waner also led the team in home runs with 9 each, underscoring the huge difference in power with their rivals: the Pirates hit 54 home runs as a team, fewer than Babe Ruth by himself, and barely a third as many as the Yankees' 158.
Other solid hitters for the Pirates included first baseman Joe Harris, who hit .326 with 73 RBI, second baseman George Grantham
(.305) and left fielder Clyde Barnhart
(.319). In fact, catcher Johnny Gooch
, who hit .258, was the only regular besides Wright to hit below .300, and back-up outfielder Kiki Cuyler
added his own .309 average in 285 at bats to the parade, as the Pirates batted .305 as a team—pitchers included!
The Pirates' pitching was not as dominant. Two veterans of the 1925 World Championship team, Lee Meadows
and Ray Kremer
both posted 19 wins, with Kremer leading the league with a 2.47 ERA. Carmen Hill
had pitched part of six seasons in the majors before 1927, never winning more than three games. In 1927, he put everything together, winning a team-leading 22 games against 11 losses, with a 3.24 ERA at age 31. Vic Aldridge
went 15–10 as the fourth starter, but his 4.25 ERA was well over the league average. In the bullpen, Johnny Miljus
put together a good season, posting a 1.90 ERA in 76 innings, with an 8–3 record.
in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
The 1927 World Series opened under sunny skies and balmy weather at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on Wednesday, October 5. The crowd of 41,467 saw Yankee right-hander Waite Hoyt (22–6, 2.64 ERA) and Pirate ace Ray Kremer (19–8, 2.47 ERA) oppose each other in Game 1.
The Governor of Pennsylvania, John S. Fisher was at Forbes Field, as well as New York City Mayor Jimmy Walker. Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis
was seated near the Yankees’ dugout. National League President John A. Heydler was in another field box.
Adding to the festivities was a brass band in red coats that paraded around the field before the game. The photographers took pictures of Pirates' Manager Donie Bush and the Yankees' Miller Huggins shaking hands. The Babe was photographed with Huggins, Bush, Mayor Walker, Lou Gehrig, and the Waners.
When the game started, Earle Combs hit the first ball Kremer threw and drove it deep to left field, where Clyde Barnhart caught it. After Mark Koenig struck out swinging, Babe Ruth came up. He swung at the first ball and singled to right field for the first hit of the series. Then on a count of three and two, Gehrig hit a short fly to right field. Paul Waner tried to make a shoestring catch, but the ball got through him for a triple and Ruth scored.
In the bottom of the first, the Pirates tied the game at one. Lloyd Waner was hit by a pitch, moved to third on his brother's double, and tagged up on Glenn Wright's sacrifice fly. With one out in the third, second baseman George Grantham kicked Koenig's grounder behind first base for an error. Ruth again hit Kremer's first pitch and smashed a single to right, sending Koenig to third. Gehrig walked.
With the bases loaded, Kremer walked Bob Meusel, forcing home Koenig. Tony Lazzeri then grounded to Wright, who got the ball to second in time to force Meusel, but Grantham could not get rid of it in time to complete a double play. Ruth scored. With Gehrig on third and Lazzeri on first, a double steal was attempted. Catcher Earl Smith made a bluff throw to second and then threw to Pie Traynor at third, catching Gehrig halfway between the bases, but Smith let Traynor's return throw to the plate get past him for an error. Gehrig scored. The Yankees led 4–1.
The Pirates picked up one run in the bottom of the third on Kremer's double and Paul Waner's single, making the score 4–2. After Hoyt developed a blister on a finger of his pitching hand in the fourth, Huggins watched him carefully. Koenig doubled to center in the fifth and went to third when Ruth grounded out to Grantham. Gehrig's sacrifice fly to Paul Waner scored Koenig.
The Pirates came back with one run in the bottom of the inning on Lloyd Waner's double and Barnhart's single to left. After Lazzeri doubled in the sixth, Pirates Manager Donie Bush lifted Kremer and brought in right-hander Johnny Miljus, who retired the side.
Pittsburgh came up in the eighth trailing 5–3. Wright lined a single over Lazzeri's head. Then Traynor lined a single to center. Wright stopped at second. Huggins decided that Hoyt had had enough and called for Wilcy Moore.
Grantham grounded to Gehrig who threw to Koenig in time to force Traynor at second. On the play, Koenig was bowled over and had the air knocked out of him. Wright went to third on the play and scored on Joe Harris's single to center, making the score 5–4. On a daring run and long slide, Grantham beat Combs's throw to third. Smith then grounded to Gehrig, who stepped on first to end the inning. Moore retired the Pirates in order in the ninth. The Yankees won Game 1 of the World Series, 5–4.
in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
With a crowd of 41,634 at Forbes Field, the Yankees and Pittsburgh Pirates played Game 2 on Thursday, October 6, 1927.
The Pirates opened the scoring in the bottom of the first after Lloyd Waner tripled down the left field foul line. Then Clyde Barnhart drove Babe Ruth up against the concrete wall in right to catch his sacrifice fly. Waner scored.
Down 1–0, the Yanks came up in the third. Earle Combs singled between Joe Harris and George Grantham. When Mark Koenig lined a single over second, Combs raced to third. Then Lloyd Waner fumbled the ball, Combs scored, and Koenig reached third. Ruth then lifted a high sacrifice fly to Lloyd Waner and Koenig scored. Lou Gehrig doubled to the exit gate in right center. Glenn Wright then made an acrobatic stop of Meusel's drive toward left but could not regain his balance to throw Meusel out. Gehrig reached third base. When Tony Lazzeri hit a sacrifice fly to Paul Waner, Gehrig scored. The Yankees led 3–1.
Pipgras pitched beautifully. His fastball was blazing, and his curve broke well. Over the first seven innings, he scattered only six hits. With the score 3–1 in the eighth, Meusel singled over second. On a hit-and-run play, Lazzeri singled to right field. Meusel raced to third. When Aldridge threw a wild pitch almost knocking Joe Dugan down, Meusel scored and Lazzeri went to second. Dugan attempted a sacrifice, but catcher Johnny Gooch pounced on the ball and threw to third base to get Lazzeri, who was called out as he slid over the bag.
Aldridge then walked Benny Bengough and Pipgras. With the bases loaded, manager Donie Bush took out Aldridge and replaced him with Mike Cvengros, a left-hander, who hit Combs, forcing in Dugan. When Koenig singled, Bengough scored making the score 6–1, and the Bronx Bombers would hold on to win, 6–2.
The teams travelled to New York for Game 3.
Starter Herb Pennock opened the game by retiring Lloyd Waner on an easy roller to Mark Koenig. Rhyne and Paul Waner then hit fly balls to Bob Meusel in left. With the Yankees up in the first, on a count of two and two Earle Combs slapped a single over second base. Koenig got an infield hit on a ground ball that bounced off Meadows' glove and was kicked about by Rhyne. Combs reached second. After Ruth popped to Wright behind second, Gehrig got hold of a fastball and drove it to the running track in left center field. Combs and Koenig scored, but Gehrig was thrown out at the plate. The Yankees led 2–0.
Pennock was in total control. He retired the Pirates in order without a hit over the first seven innings. Lazzeri opened the home half of the seventh with a single into short center, only the Yankees' fifth hit of the game. Joe Dugan sacrificed Lazzeri to second, and when Meadows tried to beat the runner to the bag, Dugan was safe at first.
Miller Huggins sent up Cedric Durst to bat for Grabowski. When he grounded out, Lazzeri went to third and Dugan to second. Rhyne fielded Pennock's slow grounder but threw to the plate too late to get Lazzeri. Dugan landed on third and Pennock on first. Koenig then doubled to the right-field bleachers scoring Pennock and putting Combs on third.
Left-hander Mike Cvengros replaced Meadows. Ruth then crushed a home run high into the right-field bleachers. The crowd cheered wildly as he trotted around the bases behind Combs and Koenig. The inning finally ended when Cvengros struck out Gehrig and Meusel. The Yankees led 8–0 and would hold on to win easily.
Looking to become the manager of the first American League club to sweep a World Series in four straight games, Miller Huggins sent Wilcy Moore to the mound against the Pirates on Saturday, October 8, 1927. Carmen Hill pitched for the Pirates.
Lloyd Waner opened the game with a drive off Moore's glove that the Pirates' outfielder beat out for a hit. Mark Koenig threw out Clyde Barnhart as Waner advanced to second. Glenn Wright singled to right and Waner scored. The Yankees tied the game at one in the bottom of the first. Earle Combs singled to right, moved to second on Koenig's hit to right, and scored on Babe Ruth's single to right.
The Yankees came up in the sixth. Combs singled to short center field. After Koenig missed a third strike, Ruth came up and hit his second home run of the series into the center field stands. The Yankees led 3–1.
In the seventh, Earl Smith grounded to Gehrig and was beaten by a toss to Moore, who came to cover first base; however, Moore dropped the ball for an error. Pitcher Emil Yde ran for Smith. Fred Brickell batted for Hill. Lazzeri, in his haste to make a double play on Brickell's grounder, misplayed the ball. Yde reached second, and Brickell was safe at first. Then Lloyd Waner dropped a sacrifice bunt, moving Yde to third and Brickell to second. Barnhart singled over second base, scoring Yde and sending Brickell to third. The Pirates tied the game at three when Paul Waner lifted a sacrifice fly to Combs, scoring Brickell.
There was a new battery for the Pirates in the seventh: right-hander Johnny Miljus and catcher Johnny Gooch. The score remained tied through the seventh, eighth and top of the ninth. The Yankees came up in the ninth with a chance to win the game and the series. Miljus opened with a walk to Combs. Koenig then dropped a bunt down the third base line for a single. With Ruth batting, Miljus suddenly let loose a wild pitch. Combs took third and Koenig went to second. Bush ordered Miljus to walk Ruth.
The bases were loaded. Gehrig came up and missed a third strike. Meusel then came up with one out, and Miljus struck him out on a called third strike for the second out. Lazzeri was the next batter. With Combs, Koenig, and Ruth on the bases, Lazzeri swung and hit a long foul ball into the left field bleachers for strike one. On the next pitch, Miljus uncorked another wild pitch. Combs raced home with the winning run, and the series was over.
(A.L.) over Pittsburgh Pirates
(N.L.)
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
swept the Pittsburgh Pirates
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series Champions...
in four games. This was the first sweep of a National League
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...
team by an American League
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League , is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league based in the Great Lakes states, which eventually aspired to major...
team.
That year, the Yankees
1927 New York Yankees season
The New York Yankees season was their 25th season. The team finished with a record of 110-44, winning their fifth pennant and finishing 19 games ahead of the Philadelphia Athletics. New York was managed by Miller Huggins. The Yankees played at Yankee Stadium. In the World Series, they swept the...
led the American League in runs scored, hits, triples, home runs, base on balls, batting average, slugging average and on base percentage. It featured legends Babe Ruth
Babe Ruth
George Herman Ruth, Jr. , best known as "Babe" Ruth and nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Sultan of Swat", was an American Major League baseball player from 1914–1935...
and Lou Gehrig
Lou Gehrig
Henry Louis "Lou" Gehrig , nicknamed "The Iron Horse" for his durability, was an American Major League Baseball first baseman. He played his entire 17-year baseball career for the New York Yankees . Gehrig set several major league records. He holds the record for most career grand slams...
at their peaks. The team won a then-league record 110 games, finished with a 19-game lead over second place, and are considered by many to be the greatest team in the history of baseball.
The 1927 Pittsburgh Pirates
1927 Pittsburgh Pirates season
The 1927 Pittsburgh Pirates season was a season in American baseball. That year, the Pirates won the National League pennant, which was their second in three years and their last until 1960...
, with MVP Paul Waner
Paul Waner
Paul Glee Waner , nicknamed "Big Poison", was a German-American Major League Baseball right fielder.-Pittsburgh Pirates:...
, led the National League in runs, hits, batting average and on base percentage.
The New York Yankees
Babe Ruth
George Herman Ruth, Jr. , best known as "Babe" Ruth and nicknamed "the Bambino" and "the Sultan of Swat", was an American Major League baseball player from 1914–1935...
at the top of his considerable powers, hitting .356 with a then-record 60 home runs and 164 RBI that year. He was complemented by future Hall of Fame
National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 25 Main Street in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests serving as the central point for the study of the history of baseball in the United States and beyond, the display of...
rs Lou Gehrig
Lou Gehrig
Henry Louis "Lou" Gehrig , nicknamed "The Iron Horse" for his durability, was an American Major League Baseball first baseman. He played his entire 17-year baseball career for the New York Yankees . Gehrig set several major league records. He holds the record for most career grand slams...
at first base, who hit .373 with 47 home runs and a league-leading 175 RBI, Tony Lazzeri
Tony Lazzeri
Anthony Michael "Tony" Lazzeri was an American Major League Baseball player during the 1920s and 1930s, predominantly with the New York Yankees. He was part of the famed "Murderers' Row" Yankee batting lineup of the late 1920s , along with Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, and Bob Meusel...
at second base who drove in 102 runs with a .309 average, and center fielder Earle Combs
Earle Combs
Earle Bryan Combs was an American professional baseball player, who played his entire career for the New York Yankees . Combs batted leadoff and played center field on the Yankees' fabled 1927 team...
, who hit .356 and scored 137 runs as the team's lead-off hitter. Left fielder Bob Meusel
Bob Meusel
Robert William "Bob" Meusel was an American baseball left and right fielder who played in Major League Baseball for eleven seasons from 1920 through 1930, all but the last for the New York Yankees...
also drove in over 100 runs, with a .337 average. The rest of the team, composed of shortstop Mark Koenig
Mark Koenig
Mark Anthony Koenig was an American shortstop in Major League Baseball. He played for 12 seasons from 1925–1936. He was the starting shortstop for the New York Yankees 1927 Murderers' Row team, and was the last surviving member of that legendary team...
(.285), third baseman Joe Dugan
Joe Dugan
Joseph Anthony Dugan , was an American professional baseball player. Nicknamed "Jumping Joe", he played in Major League Baseball as a shortstop and third baseman from 1917 through 1931. Dugan played for the Philadelphia Athletics , Boston Red Sox , New York Yankees , Boston Braves and Detroit...
(.269) and catcher Pat Collins
Pat Collins
Tharon Leslie "Pat" Collins is a former professional baseball player in Major League Baseball. He played for the St. Louis Browns, New York Yankees, and Boston Braves. In his career, he hit 33 home runs and drove in 168 runs.-External links:* at Find a Grave...
(.275) was not as great but no one was an easy out either.
The team's pitching staff was led by another Hall of Famer, Waite Hoyt
Waite Hoyt
Waite Charles Hoyt was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball, one of the dominant pitchers of the 1920s, and the winningest pitcher for the New York Yankees during that decade...
, who had his best season with a 22–7 record and a league-leading 2.63 ERA to add to his league-leading wins total. Three more pitchers won 18 or more games, rookie Wilcy Moore
Wilcy Moore
William Wilcy "Cy" Moore was a former professional baseball right-handed pitcher over parts of six seasons with the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox. He led the American League in ERA as a rookie in 1927 while playing for New York.For his career, he compiled a 51-44 record, with a 3.70 ERA and...
(19–7, 2.28), Herb Pennock
Herb Pennock
Herbert Jefferis Pennock was a left-handed Major League Baseball pitcher best known for his time spent with the star-studded New York Yankee teams of the mid to late 1920s and early 1930s. Pennock won two World Series championships with the Red Sox and then four World Series championships with the...
(19–8, 3.00) and Urban Shocker
Urban Shocker
Urban James Shocker , born Urbain Jacques Shockor in Cleveland, Ohio, was a Major League Baseball pitcher for the New York Yankees and St. Louis Browns from to ....
(18–6, 2.84). Moore would have won the ERA title under current rules, but in those days qualification was based on the number of complete games pitched, and he made only 12 starts all year: 13 of his wins and a league-leading 13 saves (figured retroactively) came during his 38 relief appearances. Rounding out the staff were veteran Dutch Ruether
Dutch Ruether
Walter Henry Ruether was an American baseball player who pitched for five different Major League teams...
(13–6, 3.38), George Pipgras
George Pipgras
George William Pipgras was an American right-handed starting pitcher and umpire in Major League Baseball. Known as "The Danish Viking," he spent most of his playing career with the New York Yankees, breaking in as a rookie in 1923...
(10–3, 4.11) and swingman Myles Thomas
Myles Thomas
Myles Lewis Thomas was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball. He was born in State College, Pennsylvania. He threw and batted right-handed, and he was also 5'9.5" tall and 170 pounds. He was nicknamed "Duck Eye" by Babe Ruth.On April 18, at the age of 28, he made his major...
(7–4, 4.87). This was a staff almost as strong as the team's fearsome hitters.
Not surprisingly, the Yankees ran away with the pennant under the leadership of manager Miller Huggins
Miller Huggins
Miller James Huggins , nicknamed "Mighty Mite", was a baseball player and manager. He managed the powerhouse New York Yankee teams of the 1920s and won six American League pennants and three World Series championships....
. They finished with a record of 110–44, 19 games in front of the second-place Philadelphia Athletics. They were overwhelming favorites to win the World Series.
The Pittsburgh Pirates
The 1927 Pittsburgh Pirates were by no means a weak team, but they certainly suffer in comparison with their American League rivals. The Pirates went 94–60 for manager Donie BushDonie Bush
Owen Joseph "Donie" Bush , was a Major League Baseball shortstop in the American League for the Detroit Tigers and the Washington Senators...
during the regular season, finishing 1.5 games ahead of the defending World Champions St. Louis Cardinals
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...
.
The Pirates also had their share of future Hall of Famers, but they were not quite of the caliber of those of the Yankees. The team's best hitter was right fielder Paul "Big Poison" Waner
Paul Waner
Paul Glee Waner , nicknamed "Big Poison", was a German-American Major League Baseball right fielder.-Pittsburgh Pirates:...
, who hit a league-leading .380 and drove in 131 runs, also a league-leading total. His brother, rookie center fielder Lloyd "Little Poison" Waner
Lloyd Waner
Lloyd James Waner , nicknamed "Little Poison", was a Major League Baseball center fielder. His small stature at 5'9" and 132 lb made him one of the smallest players of his era. Along with his brother, Paul Waner, he anchored the Pittsburgh Pirates outfield throughout the 1920s and 1930s...
hit .355 and scored a league-leading 133 runs, in spite of his almost complete lack of power (he collected just 25 extra-base hits in over 650 plate appearances). Third baseman Pie Traynor
Pie Traynor
Harold Joseph "Pie" Traynor was an American professional baseball player, manager, scout and radio broadcaster. He played his entire Major League Baseball career as a third baseman with the Pittsburgh Pirates . He batted and threw right-handed...
hit .342 and drove in over 100 runs, joining shortstop Glenn Wright
Glenn Wright
Forest Glenn Wright, nicknamed "Buckshot" , was a former professional baseball player who played short stop in the Major Leagues from 1924-1935. Wright would play for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Brooklyn Dodgers, and Chicago White Sox...
who also topped the century mark. However, Wright and Paul Waner also led the team in home runs with 9 each, underscoring the huge difference in power with their rivals: the Pirates hit 54 home runs as a team, fewer than Babe Ruth by himself, and barely a third as many as the Yankees' 158.
Other solid hitters for the Pirates included first baseman Joe Harris, who hit .326 with 73 RBI, second baseman George Grantham
George Grantham
George Farley "Boots" Grantham , was Major League second baseman who played for the Chicago Cubs, Pittsburgh Pirates, Cincinnati Reds, and New York Giants between 1922 and 1934. He attended Northern Arizona University.-External links:...
(.305) and left fielder Clyde Barnhart
Clyde Barnhart
Clyde Lee Barnhart , is a former right-handed outfielder and third baseman in Major League Baseball who played for the Pittsburgh Pirates...
(.319). In fact, catcher Johnny Gooch
Johnny Gooch
John Beverley Gooch was catcher who played in Major League Baseball between and through . Gooch was a switch-hitter with a hysterical name...
, who hit .258, was the only regular besides Wright to hit below .300, and back-up outfielder Kiki Cuyler
Kiki Cuyler
Hazen Shirley "Kiki" Cuyler was a Major League Baseball right fielder from 1921 until 1938. He was born in Harrisville, Michigan.Cuyler broke into the big leagues in 1921 with the Pittsburgh Pirates and became a fixture in the lineup in 1924...
added his own .309 average in 285 at bats to the parade, as the Pirates batted .305 as a team—pitchers included!
The Pirates' pitching was not as dominant. Two veterans of the 1925 World Championship team, Lee Meadows
Lee Meadows
Henry Lee "Specs" Meadows was a professional baseball player. He was a right-handed pitcher over parts of 15 seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals, Philadelphia Phillies and Pittsburgh Pirates. He was the National League wins leader in 1926 with Pittsburgh...
and Ray Kremer
Ray Kremer
Remy Peter "Ray" Kremer was a former professional baseball player. He was a pitcher over parts of ten seasons , all with the Pittsburgh Pirates. He led the National League in ERA in both 1926 and 1927. For his career, he compiled an 143-85 record in 308 appearances, with a 3.76 ERA and 516...
both posted 19 wins, with Kremer leading the league with a 2.47 ERA. Carmen Hill
Carmen Hill
Carmen Proctor Hill born in Royalton, Minnesota was a pitcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates , New York Giants and St...
had pitched part of six seasons in the majors before 1927, never winning more than three games. In 1927, he put everything together, winning a team-leading 22 games against 11 losses, with a 3.24 ERA at age 31. Vic Aldridge
Vic Aldridge
Victor "Vic" Aldridge , nicknamed the "Hoosier Schoolmaster," was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Chicago Cubs, Pittsburgh Pirates and New York Giants, and was known to be an excellent curveball pitcher. Before his playing career he was a schoolmaster,...
went 15–10 as the fourth starter, but his 4.25 ERA was well over the league average. In the bullpen, Johnny Miljus
Johnny Miljus
John Kenneth Miljus nicknamed Big Serb and Jovo, was Serbian-American baseball player who pitched in Major League Baseball between and . Miljus batted and threw right-handed...
put together a good season, posting a 1.90 ERA in 76 innings, with an 8–3 record.
Series Summary
Game 1
Wednesday, October 5, 1927 at Forbes FieldForbes Field
Forbes Field was a baseball park in the Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from 1909 to 1971. It was the third home of the Pittsburgh Pirates Major League Baseball team, and the first home of the Pittsburgh Steelers, the city's National Football League franchise...
in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
The 1927 World Series opened under sunny skies and balmy weather at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on Wednesday, October 5. The crowd of 41,467 saw Yankee right-hander Waite Hoyt (22–6, 2.64 ERA) and Pirate ace Ray Kremer (19–8, 2.47 ERA) oppose each other in Game 1.
The Governor of Pennsylvania, John S. Fisher was at Forbes Field, as well as New York City Mayor Jimmy Walker. Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis
Kenesaw Mountain Landis
Kenesaw Mountain Landis was an American jurist who served as a federal judge from 1905 to 1922 and as the first Commissioner of Baseball from 1920 until his death...
was seated near the Yankees’ dugout. National League President John A. Heydler was in another field box.
Adding to the festivities was a brass band in red coats that paraded around the field before the game. The photographers took pictures of Pirates' Manager Donie Bush and the Yankees' Miller Huggins shaking hands. The Babe was photographed with Huggins, Bush, Mayor Walker, Lou Gehrig, and the Waners.
When the game started, Earle Combs hit the first ball Kremer threw and drove it deep to left field, where Clyde Barnhart caught it. After Mark Koenig struck out swinging, Babe Ruth came up. He swung at the first ball and singled to right field for the first hit of the series. Then on a count of three and two, Gehrig hit a short fly to right field. Paul Waner tried to make a shoestring catch, but the ball got through him for a triple and Ruth scored.
In the bottom of the first, the Pirates tied the game at one. Lloyd Waner was hit by a pitch, moved to third on his brother's double, and tagged up on Glenn Wright's sacrifice fly. With one out in the third, second baseman George Grantham kicked Koenig's grounder behind first base for an error. Ruth again hit Kremer's first pitch and smashed a single to right, sending Koenig to third. Gehrig walked.
With the bases loaded, Kremer walked Bob Meusel, forcing home Koenig. Tony Lazzeri then grounded to Wright, who got the ball to second in time to force Meusel, but Grantham could not get rid of it in time to complete a double play. Ruth scored. With Gehrig on third and Lazzeri on first, a double steal was attempted. Catcher Earl Smith made a bluff throw to second and then threw to Pie Traynor at third, catching Gehrig halfway between the bases, but Smith let Traynor's return throw to the plate get past him for an error. Gehrig scored. The Yankees led 4–1.
The Pirates picked up one run in the bottom of the third on Kremer's double and Paul Waner's single, making the score 4–2. After Hoyt developed a blister on a finger of his pitching hand in the fourth, Huggins watched him carefully. Koenig doubled to center in the fifth and went to third when Ruth grounded out to Grantham. Gehrig's sacrifice fly to Paul Waner scored Koenig.
The Pirates came back with one run in the bottom of the inning on Lloyd Waner's double and Barnhart's single to left. After Lazzeri doubled in the sixth, Pirates Manager Donie Bush lifted Kremer and brought in right-hander Johnny Miljus, who retired the side.
Pittsburgh came up in the eighth trailing 5–3. Wright lined a single over Lazzeri's head. Then Traynor lined a single to center. Wright stopped at second. Huggins decided that Hoyt had had enough and called for Wilcy Moore.
Grantham grounded to Gehrig who threw to Koenig in time to force Traynor at second. On the play, Koenig was bowled over and had the air knocked out of him. Wright went to third on the play and scored on Joe Harris's single to center, making the score 5–4. On a daring run and long slide, Grantham beat Combs's throw to third. Smith then grounded to Gehrig, who stepped on first to end the inning. Moore retired the Pirates in order in the ninth. The Yankees won Game 1 of the World Series, 5–4.
Game 2
Thursday, October 6, 1927 at Forbes FieldForbes Field
Forbes Field was a baseball park in the Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from 1909 to 1971. It was the third home of the Pittsburgh Pirates Major League Baseball team, and the first home of the Pittsburgh Steelers, the city's National Football League franchise...
in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
With a crowd of 41,634 at Forbes Field, the Yankees and Pittsburgh Pirates played Game 2 on Thursday, October 6, 1927.
The Pirates opened the scoring in the bottom of the first after Lloyd Waner tripled down the left field foul line. Then Clyde Barnhart drove Babe Ruth up against the concrete wall in right to catch his sacrifice fly. Waner scored.
Down 1–0, the Yanks came up in the third. Earle Combs singled between Joe Harris and George Grantham. When Mark Koenig lined a single over second, Combs raced to third. Then Lloyd Waner fumbled the ball, Combs scored, and Koenig reached third. Ruth then lifted a high sacrifice fly to Lloyd Waner and Koenig scored. Lou Gehrig doubled to the exit gate in right center. Glenn Wright then made an acrobatic stop of Meusel's drive toward left but could not regain his balance to throw Meusel out. Gehrig reached third base. When Tony Lazzeri hit a sacrifice fly to Paul Waner, Gehrig scored. The Yankees led 3–1.
Pipgras pitched beautifully. His fastball was blazing, and his curve broke well. Over the first seven innings, he scattered only six hits. With the score 3–1 in the eighth, Meusel singled over second. On a hit-and-run play, Lazzeri singled to right field. Meusel raced to third. When Aldridge threw a wild pitch almost knocking Joe Dugan down, Meusel scored and Lazzeri went to second. Dugan attempted a sacrifice, but catcher Johnny Gooch pounced on the ball and threw to third base to get Lazzeri, who was called out as he slid over the bag.
Aldridge then walked Benny Bengough and Pipgras. With the bases loaded, manager Donie Bush took out Aldridge and replaced him with Mike Cvengros, a left-hander, who hit Combs, forcing in Dugan. When Koenig singled, Bengough scored making the score 6–1, and the Bronx Bombers would hold on to win, 6–2.
Game 3
Friday, October 7, 1927 at Yankee Stadium (I) in Bronx, New YorkThe teams travelled to New York for Game 3.
Starter Herb Pennock opened the game by retiring Lloyd Waner on an easy roller to Mark Koenig. Rhyne and Paul Waner then hit fly balls to Bob Meusel in left. With the Yankees up in the first, on a count of two and two Earle Combs slapped a single over second base. Koenig got an infield hit on a ground ball that bounced off Meadows' glove and was kicked about by Rhyne. Combs reached second. After Ruth popped to Wright behind second, Gehrig got hold of a fastball and drove it to the running track in left center field. Combs and Koenig scored, but Gehrig was thrown out at the plate. The Yankees led 2–0.
Pennock was in total control. He retired the Pirates in order without a hit over the first seven innings. Lazzeri opened the home half of the seventh with a single into short center, only the Yankees' fifth hit of the game. Joe Dugan sacrificed Lazzeri to second, and when Meadows tried to beat the runner to the bag, Dugan was safe at first.
Miller Huggins sent up Cedric Durst to bat for Grabowski. When he grounded out, Lazzeri went to third and Dugan to second. Rhyne fielded Pennock's slow grounder but threw to the plate too late to get Lazzeri. Dugan landed on third and Pennock on first. Koenig then doubled to the right-field bleachers scoring Pennock and putting Combs on third.
Left-hander Mike Cvengros replaced Meadows. Ruth then crushed a home run high into the right-field bleachers. The crowd cheered wildly as he trotted around the bases behind Combs and Koenig. The inning finally ended when Cvengros struck out Gehrig and Meusel. The Yankees led 8–0 and would hold on to win easily.
Game 4
Saturday, October 8, 1927 at Yankee Stadium (I) in Bronx, New YorkLooking to become the manager of the first American League club to sweep a World Series in four straight games, Miller Huggins sent Wilcy Moore to the mound against the Pirates on Saturday, October 8, 1927. Carmen Hill pitched for the Pirates.
Lloyd Waner opened the game with a drive off Moore's glove that the Pirates' outfielder beat out for a hit. Mark Koenig threw out Clyde Barnhart as Waner advanced to second. Glenn Wright singled to right and Waner scored. The Yankees tied the game at one in the bottom of the first. Earle Combs singled to right, moved to second on Koenig's hit to right, and scored on Babe Ruth's single to right.
The Yankees came up in the sixth. Combs singled to short center field. After Koenig missed a third strike, Ruth came up and hit his second home run of the series into the center field stands. The Yankees led 3–1.
In the seventh, Earl Smith grounded to Gehrig and was beaten by a toss to Moore, who came to cover first base; however, Moore dropped the ball for an error. Pitcher Emil Yde ran for Smith. Fred Brickell batted for Hill. Lazzeri, in his haste to make a double play on Brickell's grounder, misplayed the ball. Yde reached second, and Brickell was safe at first. Then Lloyd Waner dropped a sacrifice bunt, moving Yde to third and Brickell to second. Barnhart singled over second base, scoring Yde and sending Brickell to third. The Pirates tied the game at three when Paul Waner lifted a sacrifice fly to Combs, scoring Brickell.
There was a new battery for the Pirates in the seventh: right-hander Johnny Miljus and catcher Johnny Gooch. The score remained tied through the seventh, eighth and top of the ninth. The Yankees came up in the ninth with a chance to win the game and the series. Miljus opened with a walk to Combs. Koenig then dropped a bunt down the third base line for a single. With Ruth batting, Miljus suddenly let loose a wild pitch. Combs took third and Koenig went to second. Bush ordered Miljus to walk Ruth.
The bases were loaded. Gehrig came up and missed a third strike. Meusel then came up with one out, and Miljus struck him out on a called third strike for the second out. Lazzeri was the next batter. With Combs, Koenig, and Ruth on the bases, Lazzeri swung and hit a long foul ball into the left field bleachers for strike one. On the next pitch, Miljus uncorked another wild pitch. Combs raced home with the winning run, and the series was over.
Composite box
1927 World Series (4–0): New York YankeesNew York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
(A.L.) over Pittsburgh Pirates
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series Champions...
(N.L.)