|
The
Story of the 1928 Championship Season
|
 |
|
|
1928
Cardinal Outfield: Martin, Hafey, Roettger, Douthit,
Williamson, Harper, Holm, Orsatti, and Blades (L to R). |
1928
Cardinal Infield: Bottomley, Frisch, Thevenow,
Maranville, & High (L to R). |
With Rogers Hornsby
gone to the New York Giants and Frankie Frisch in his place at
second base, the Cardinals nearly won the 1927 pennant, finishing
the season just 1 1/2 games back of the Pittsburgh Pirates, and
winning 3 more than they had the previous season. The
Pirates were swept by the Yankees in the 1927 Series.
Catcher Bob O'Farrell took over the managing duty for 1927, but
Sam Breadon replaced him for 1928, saying O'Farrell didn't possess
the needed leadership qualities. O'Farrell was traded to the
Giants early into the 1928 campaign. His replacement was
Bill McKechnie, who had won a pennant with the Pirates in
1925. "Deacon" Bill was a wise, soft-spoken,
highly regarded baseball man who played a conservative brand of
ball.
McKechnie did face an
immediate dilemma, though. Tommy Thevenow, one of the heroes
of 1926, had suffered a broken ankle in 1927 and late in spring
camp realized he wasn't going to be ready to open the new season
as the regular shortstop. Fortunately for the Cards, they
had a capable veteran backup in Walter "Rabbit"
Maranville, who had starred during Boston's amazing NL pennant run
14 years earlier.
There were other changes.
Third basemen Lester Bell had been dealt to Boston, so the
Cardinals opened the season with Wattie Holm filling the
position. Not much of a hitter, Holm eventually gave way to
jack-of-all-positions Andy High. The Cards picked up
outfielder George Harper from the NY Giants in exchange for 1926
MVP Bob O'Farrell, and not only did Harper bat .305 but on
September 20 he became the first Cardinal to hit three home runs
in one game. Coming in a deal from Philadelphia to replace
O'Farrell behind the plate was Jimmie Wilson, plenty capable
defensively.
Widely recognized as one of the
game's top batsman, Bottomley led the N.L. in home runs and
RBI's. Hafey was among the league leaders in both
categories, and Frisch had another excellent season. Taylor
Douthit got off to a torrid start and, though he waned down the
stretch, led the club in runs scored.
Meanwhile, pitchers Jesse Haines,
Bill Sherdel, and tireless Pete Alexander each worked more than
240 innings and won a combined 57 games. It added up to the
Cardinals' most successful season in the 37 years of their N.L.
existence. And the summer's long excitement generated yet
another club attendance record of 761,574, which was to remain the
standard until 1946.
The National League was as
competitive as it's been, with Cincinnati and Chicago establishing
themselves early as the teams to beat. St. Louis was
meandering along at 10-11 and in fifth place after splitting a
doubleheader with the Brooklyn Dodgers on May 6 at
Sportsman's Park. A six-game winning streak included a
four-game series in which the Cards outscored the Phillies 30-11
and quickly righted the ship.
The Redbirds ended a lengthy home
stand on May 27 - they had been in St. Louis since April 30 - but
hadn't been able to make much of a move. They went 14-12,
ending with three consecutive losses to the Reds. But their
season turned in a most curious place: the road, where they
compiled a 15-3 record during a trip that spanned more than three
weeks. The Cards moved into first place when Syl Johnson got
credit for a 5-2 triumph in 14 innings during a one-game visit to
Chicago's Wrigley Field. They held down first place for all
but four days the rest of the way.
Still, they led by just a half-game
on September 26. The Chicago Cubs aided the Redbirds by
handing the second-place New York Giants successive defeats.
The Cards clinched their second pennant in three years on
September 29 with a 3-1 victory over the Braves, in Boston.
That prompted this report: "Word of the Cardinals
winning the National League championship this afternoon was
followed by small demonstrations downtown and in many parts of the
city, but the reaction was not comparable with the great outburst
[in] 1926, when the Cardinals brought St. Louis its first pennant
in 38 years."
St. Louis' opposition in the World
Series once again were Miller Huggins' Yankees. Having
beaten this great team two years before, the Cardinals entered the
October festivity brimming with confidence, especially with New
York's left-handed ace Herb Pennock out with a sore arm and
centerfielder Earle Combs sidelined with a broken finger. So
it was a stunned Cardinal team that found itself steam-rolled in
four by the Yankees. There was nothing McKechnie's partners
could do to stop Ruth and Gehrig. Babe batted .625 and hit
three homeruns, all in the fourth game; Gehrig batted .545, hit
four homers, and drove in nine runs. Huggins
used just three pitchers to win the championship. Waite Hoyt
won the opener and the finale by scores of 4-1 and 7-3, George
Pipgras took Game 2, 9-3, and lefty Tom Zachary won Game 3, 7-3. |
Back
to Top
1928
Regular Season Highlights
|
|
Typical Lineup |
| 1. |
Douthit, CF |
| 2. |
High, 3B |
| 3. |
Frisch, 2B |
| 4. |
Bottomley, 1B |
| 5. |
Hafey, LF |
| 6. |
Harper, RF |
| 7. |
Wilson, C |
| 8. |
Maranville, SS |
| 9. |
pitcher |
Regular Season Offensive Performances
|
Pos. |
Name |
AVG |
OBP |
SLG |
HR |
RBI |
Runs |
SB |
Notables |
|
1B |
Bottomley |
.325 |
.402 |
.628 |
31 |
136 |
123 |
10 |
League leader in 3B, HR, & RBI's |
|
2B |
Frisch |
.300 |
.374 |
.441 |
10 |
86 |
107 |
29 |
2nd in League in SB's
|
|
SS |
Maranville |
.240 |
.310 |
.342 |
1 |
34 |
40 |
3 |
366 AB's - his only full season in St.
Louis
|
|
3B |
High |
.285 |
.355 |
.389 |
6 |
37 |
58 |
2 |
368 AB's in 111 Games
|
|
LF |
Hafey |
.337 |
.386 |
.604 |
27 |
111 |
101 |
8 |
3rd in League in HR & SLG |
|
CF |
Douthit |
.295 |
.384 |
.372 |
3 |
43 |
111 |
11 |
4th in League in Runs
|
|
RF |
Harper |
.305 |
.418 |
.537 |
17 |
58 |
41 |
2 |
shared time with Holm |
|
C |
Wilson |
.258 |
.333 |
.345 |
2 |
50 |
45 |
9 |
shared time with Smith
|
|
Team |
|
.281 |
.353 |
.425 |
113 |
|
807 |
82 |
|
Regular Season Pitching
Performances
|
Pos. |
Name |
W-L |
Pct. |
Sv. |
G |
GS |
CG |
SHO |
ERA |
Notables |
|
SP |
Sherdel |
21-10 |
.677 |
5 |
38 |
27 |
20 |
0 |
2.86 |
his only 20-win season |
|
SP |
Alexander |
16-9 |
.640 |
2 |
34 |
31 |
18 |
1 |
3.36 |
League Leader
in BB/G (1.4) |
|
SP |
Haines |
20-8 |
.714 |
0 |
33 |
28 |
20 |
1 |
3.19 |
|
|
SP |
Rhem |
11-8 |
.579 |
3 |
28 |
22 |
9 |
0 |
4.13 |
|
|
SP |
Mitchell |
8-9 |
.471 |
0 |
19 |
18 |
9 |
1 |
3.30 |
Mid-season
pick-up from Philadelphia |
|
RP |
Haid |
2-2 |
.500 |
5 |
27 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
2.30 |
Relief
specialist tied for League Leader in saves |
|
Team |
|
95-59 |
.617 |
21 |
154 |
154 |
83 |
4 |
3.38 |
League Leader
in CG & Saves |
Team
Accomplishments
| League Leaders: |
Doubles (292), BB (568) |
| League Leaders: |
CG (83), Saves (21),
Fewest BB (399), Fewest BB per game (2.5) |
Individual Accomplishments
| Runs |
Doubles |
Triples |
Home
Runs |
|
2nd
- Bottomley (123)
4th
- Douthit (111)
5th
- Frisch (107)
|
2nd
- Hafey (46)
4th
- Bottomley (42)
|
1st -
Bottomley (20) |
T-1st
- Bottomley (31)
3rd
- Hafey (27)
|
|
Total Bases |
RBI |
Runs Produced |
Bases on Balls |
|
1st
- Bottomley (362)
5th
- Hafey (314)
|
1st
- Bottomley (136)
4th
- Hafey (111)
|
1st
- Bottomley (228)
5th
- Hafey (185)
|
2nd - Douthit
(84) |
|
Slugging Pct. |
Stolen Bases |
Wins |
Win Pct. |
|
2nd
- Bottomley (.628)
3rd
- Hafey (.604)
|
2nd - Frisch
(29) |
4th - Sherdel
(21) |
2nd - Haines
(.714) |
| Complete
Games |
Saves |
BB
per Game |
|
|
T-4th
- Sherdel (20)
T-4th
- Haines (20)
|
T-1st
- Sherdel (5)
T-1st
- Haid (5)
|
1st
- Alexander (1.36)
2nd
- Sherdel (2.02)
|
|
|
|
Typical Lineup |
|
1. |
Paschal, CF |
|
2. |
Keonig, SS |
|
3. |
Ruth, RF |
|
4. |
Gehrig, 1B |
|
5. |
Muesel, LF |
|
6. |
Lazzeri, 2B |
|
7. |
Dugan, 3B |
|
8. |
Bengough, C |
|
9. |
pitcher |
1928
Murderer's Row After squandering
a 13 1/2-game lead and falling briefly behind the Athletics in early
September, the Yankees recovered to meet the Cardinals--winners of another
tight National League race--in the Series. With Herb Pennock lost to arm
trouble, the Yankees made do with just three pitchers in extending their
Series win streak to eight games. Back
to Top Game
Summaries
October 4 at New York
(attendance: 61,425) Cardinals
Starter: Willie Sherdel (LHP), 21-10 Yankees
Starter: Waite Hoyt (RHP), 23-11
| STL |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
|
1 |
3 |
1 |
| NYY |
1 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
X |
|
4 |
7 |
0 |
Homeruns:
Meusel - New York; Bottomley - St. Louis WP:
Hoyt (1-0) LP:
Sherdel (0-1) Yankees
lead Series 1-0 Highlights:
Ruth and Gehrig
started things off with successive doubles and a run in the first inning
of the opener, and when Bob Meusel followed Ruth's second double with a
home run in the fourth, the Yanks had more than they would need to support
Waite
Hoyt's three-hitter. The Cardinals' Jim
Bottomley homered off Hoyt in the seventh, but successive singles by
Mark Koenig, Ruth, and Gehrig produced a fourth Yankee run and concluded
the scoring.
October 5 at New York
(attendance: 60,714) Cardinals
Starter: Grover Cleveland Alexander (RHP), 16-9 Yankees
Starter: GeorgePipgras (RHP), 24-13
| STL |
0 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
3 |
4 |
1 |
| NYY |
3 |
1 |
4 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
X |
|
9 |
8 |
2 |
Homeruns:
Gehrig - New York WP:
Pipgras (1-0) LP:
Alexander (0-1) Yankees
leas Series 2-0 Highlights:
Gehrig homered in the
first inning of Game Two to get New York off to a 3-0 lead against
forty-one-year-old Grover
Cleveland Alexander. The Cards snapped back to tie the game, but the
Yankees retook the lead with a run in the last of the second and put
together four hits, two walks, and a hit batsman for four more in the
third. A final Yankee run in the seventh capped a 9-3 four-hit win for
pitcher George Pipgras.
October 7 at Saint Louis
(attendance: 39,602) Yankees
Starter: Tom Zachary (LHP), 3-3 Cardinals
Starter: Jesse Haines (RHP), 20-8
| NYY |
0 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
3 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
|
7 |
7 |
2 |
| STL |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
3 |
9 |
3 |
Homeruns:
Gehrig (2) - New York WP:
Zachary (1-0) LP:
Haines (0-1) Yankees leads Series
3-0 Highlights:
Jim Bottomley gave
St. Louis its first lead of the Series with a two-run triple in the first
inning of Game Three. But Yankee Tom Zachary gave up only one more run,
taking the third Yankee win as Gehrig drove in three runs with homers in
the second and fourth, and his teammates scored three more in the sixth
(thanks in large part to two Cardinal errors and Meusel's steal of home)
and a final (unearned) run an inning later.
October 9 at Saint Louis
(attendance: 37,331) Yankees
Starter: Waite Hoyt (RHP), 23-11 Cardinals
Starter: Willie Sherdel (LHP), 21-10
| NYY |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
4 |
2 |
0 |
|
7 |
15 |
2 |
| STL |
0 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
|
3 |
11 |
0 |
Homeruns:
Ruth (3) - New York WP:
Hoyt (2-0) LP:
Sherdel (0-2) Yankees
win the Series 4-0 Highlights:
New York completed
its second straight Series sweep with another 7-3 win two days later.
Waite Hoyt gained his second victory, mostly on the strength of five solo
Yankee homers, including three by Babe Ruth.
| Ruth burned the
Cards for 3 homers in Game 4 AGAIN in 1928. |
Back
to Top Series
Composite Box Score
|
NY (A)
|
|
PLAYER-
POS
|
AVG
|
G
|
AB
|
R
|
H
|
2B
|
3B
|
HR
|
RB
|
BB
|
SO
|
SB
|
|
Benny Bengough, c
|
.231
|
4
|
13
|
1
|
3
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
1
|
0
|
|
Pat Collins, c
|
1.000
|
1
|
1
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
|
Earle Combs, ph
|
.000
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
|
Joe Dugan, 3b
|
.167
|
3
|
6
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
|
Leo Durocher, 2b
|
.000
|
4
|
2
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
|
Cedric Durst, of
|
.375
|
4
|
8
|
3
|
3
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
2
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
|
Lou Gehrig, 1b
|
.545
|
4
|
11
|
5
|
6
|
1
|
0
|
4
|
9
|
6
|
0
|
0
|
|
Waite Hoyt, p
|
.143
|
2
|
7
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
|
Mark Koenig, ss
|
.158
|
4
|
19
|
1
|
3
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
|
Tony Lazzeri, 2b
|
.250
|
4
|
12
|
2
|
3
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
2
|
|
Bob Meusel, of
|
.200
|
4
|
15
|
5
|
3
|
1
|
0
|
1
|
3
|
2
|
5
|
2
|
|
Ben Paschal, of
|
.200
|
3
|
10
|
0
|
2
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
|
George Pipgras, p
|
.000
|
1
|
2
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
|
Gene Robertson, 3b
|
.125
|
3
|
8
|
1
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
2
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
|
Babe Ruth, of
|
.625
|
4
|
16
|
9
|
10
|
3
|
0
|
3
|
4
|
1
|
2
|
0
|
|
Tom Zachary, p
|
.000
|
1
|
4
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
|
TOTAL
|
.276
|
-
|
134
|
27
|
37
|
7
|
0
|
9
|
25
|
13
|
12
|
4
|
|
PITCHER
|
W
|
L
|
ERA
|
G
|
GS
|
CG
|
SV
|
SHO
|
IP
|
H
|
ER
|
BB
|
SO
|
|
Waite Hoyt
|
2
|
0
|
1.50
|
2
|
2
|
2
|
0
|
0
|
18.0
|
14
|
3
|
6
|
14
|
|
George Pipgras
|
1
|
0
|
2.00
|
1
|
1
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
9.0
|
4
|
2
|
4
|
8
|
|
Tom Zachary
|
1
|
0
|
3.00
|
1
|
1
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
9.0
|
9
|
3
|
1
|
7
|
|
TOTAL
|
4
|
0
|
2.00
|
4
|
4
|
4
|
0
|
0
|
36.0
|
27
|
8
|
11
|
29
|
|
STL
(N)
|
|
PLAYER-
POS
|
AVG
|
G
|
AB
|
R
|
H
|
2B
|
3B
|
HR
|
RB
|
BB
|
SO
|
SB
|
|
Pete Alexander, p
|
.000
|
2
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
|
Ray Blades, ph
|
.000
|
1
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
|
Jim Bottomley, 1b
|
.214
|
4
|
14
|
1
|
3
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
3
|
2
|
6
|
0
|
|
Taylor Douthit, of
|
.091
|
3
|
11
|
1
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
1
|
0
|
|
Frankie Frisch, 2b
|
.231
|
4
|
13
|
1
|
3
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
2
|
2
|
2
|
|
Chick Hafey, of
|
.200
|
4
|
15
|
0
|
3
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
4
|
0
|
|
Jesse Haines, p
|
.000
|
1
|
2
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
|
George Harper, of
|
.111
|
3
|
9
|
1
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
2
|
2
|
0
|
|
Andy High, 3b
|
.294
|
4
|
17
|
1
|
5
|
2
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
3
|
0
|
|
Wattie Holm, of-1
|
.167
|
3
|
6
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
|
Syl Johnson, p
|
.000
|
2
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
|
Rabbit Maranville, ss
|
.308
|
4
|
13
|
2
|
4
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
1
|
|
Pepper Martin, pr
|
.000
|
1
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
|
Clarence Mitchell, p
|
.000
|
1
|
2
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
|
Ernie Orsatti, of-1
|
.286
|
4
|
7
|
1
|
2
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
3
|
0
|
|
Flint Rhem, p
|
.000
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0 | |
