In the
1913 World Series, the
Philadelphia AthleticsThe Oakland Athletics are a Major League Baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From to the present, the Athletics have played in the O.co Coliseum....
beat the
New York GiantsThe San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....
four games to one.
The A's pitching gave the edge to a closer-than-it-looked Series in 1913. The great
Christy MathewsonChristopher "Christy" Mathewson , nicknamed "Big Six", "The Christian Gentleman", or "Matty", was an American Major League Baseball right-handed pitcher. He played his entire career in what is known as the dead-ball era...
lost his Series
swan song"Swan song" is a metaphorical phrase for a final gesture, effort, or performance given just before death or retirement. The phrase refers to an ancient belief that the Mute Swan is completely silent during its lifetime until the moment just before death, when it sings one beautiful song...
in the final game to an old college rival and eventual fellow Baseball Hall of Fame member,
Eddie PlankEdward Stewart Plank , nicknamed "Gettysburg Eddie", was a Major League Baseball pitcher. He is the first left-handed pitcher to win 200 games and then 300 games, and now ranks third in all-time wins among left-handers with 326 career victories and first all-time in career shutouts by a...
.
The Giants thus became the first
National LeagueThe 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 since the
Chicago CubsThe Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago . The Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the National...
(–) to win three consecutive pennants. They were also the second club (following the
Detroit TigersThe Detroit Tigers are a Major League Baseball team located in Detroit, Michigan. One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Detroit in as part of the Western League. The Tigers have won four World Series championships and have won the American League pennant...
(–) to lose three consecutive World Series; and, as of 2010, the last to do so.
The Series itself was an ironic face-off, as the Giants and A's would eventually become
crosstown rivalsIn sports, a crosstown rivalry is a rivalry between two teams in the same metropolitan area. It is a term primarily used in the United States and Canada. They are called "crosstown rivalries" because in most cases, they are held in large cities or metropolitan areas where each team represents a...
. The A's would win again in a four-game sweep in the
1989 World Series†: Game 3 was originally slated for October 17 at 5:35 pm; however, it was postponed when an earthquake occurred at 5:04 pm.-Game 1:Saturday, October 14, 1989 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum in Oakland, California...
, famous for the earthquake that struck before Game 3, which would be the last victory for the A's.
Summary
Matchups
Game 1
Tuesday, October 7, 1913 at
Polo Grounds (IV)The Polo Grounds was the name given to four different stadiums in Upper Manhattan, New York City, used by many professional teams in both baseball and American football from 1880 until 1963...
in Manhattan, New York
In the opener, Home Run Baker drove in three runs with three hits, including a home run. Frank apparently liked his nickname and wanted to hang on to it.
Game 2
Wednesday, October 8, 1913 at Shibe Park in
Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaPhiladelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
Mathewson and Plank matched craft and guile, and after nine innings it was as it had been at the beginning: 0–0. In the bottom of the ninth, the Giants had put on a stirring baseball version of the "goal-line stand". With none out, the A's had
Amos StrunkAmos Aaron Strunk was a center fielder who played in Major League Baseball from through . A member of four World Series champion teams, Strunk batted and threw left-handed...
on third and
Jack BarryJohn Joseph "Jack" Barry was an American shortstop, second baseman, and manager in Major League Baseball, and later a college baseball coach...
on second. The next batter,
Jack LappJohn Walker Lapp was a professional baseball player who played catcher in the major leagues from 1908 to 1916...
, grounded to first, where
Hooks WiltseGeorge Leroy "Hooks" Wiltse was a pitcher in Major League Baseball from 1904 to 1915. He was the brother of pitcher Snake Wiltse....
, a pitcher, was filling in. Wiltse made a good stop and threw home to nab Strunk. With Barry on third now and Lapp on first, Plank grounded to Wiltse and Hooks fired home again, getting a sliding Barry. Mathewson retired the next batter, and the game went into extra innings. In the top of the tenth, the Giants scored three runs, with Matty sprinkling a bit more stardust over his legend by singling in the winning run.
Game 3
Thursday, October 9, 1913 at
Polo Grounds (IV)The Polo Grounds was the name given to four different stadiums in Upper Manhattan, New York City, used by many professional teams in both baseball and American football from 1880 until 1963...
in Manhattan, New York
Game 4
Friday, October 10, 1913 at Shibe Park in
Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaPhiladelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
Game 5
Saturday, October 11, 1913 at
Polo Grounds (IV)The Polo Grounds was the name given to four different stadiums in Upper Manhattan, New York City, used by many professional teams in both baseball and American football from 1880 until 1963...
in Manhattan, New York
Composite box
1913 World Series
(4–1): Philadelphia AthleticsThe Oakland Athletics are a Major League Baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From to the present, the Athletics have played in the O.co Coliseum....
(A.L.) over
New York GiantsThe San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the National League West Division....
(N.L.)
External links