Hawk Gowdy was a one-man wrecking machine in the 1914 Fall Classic. His "Miracle Braves" got the pitching from Bill James and Dick Rudolph (2-0, each), but it was a case of "Move over guys, I'll provide the offence, here!"
And supply it, the catcher did. The favourited Philadelphia Athletics were in for a quick surprise that was as fast as it was shocking. The Boston Braves were on their way to a stunning sweep.
Gowdy hat hit .243 with only three home runs and forty-six RBIs in the regular season. But you've all seen it from Billy Martin in 1953, Bobby Richardson in 1960 (And 1964 for good measure). Bucky Dent in 1977, and Ray Knight in 1986. For that matter, Kirk Gibson was not supposed to play at all in 1988, and we all know how that appearance ended.
Gowdy did hit a home run, but it was not as dramatic. But with that, he had more home runs then all other players in the 1914 World Series combined. His assault of Philadelphia pitching came in his very first plate appearance of game one. Philly was at home and about to get embarassed.
Even the great Chief Bender could do nothing to stop Gowdy, who doubled home a run in the top of the second, and came around to score later. It was all Boston needed. But Gowdy was not done, and neither were his teammates. He added two more hits, scored another run, drew a walk, and never was retired. The final score was Boston 7, Philadelphia 1. Game two was closer, but Boston won it, too!
Gowdy could only draw two walks in the second tilt. But Bill James pitched a two-hit shutout. Boston themselves managed only seven hits and one run. Nonetheless, they were heading home up two games, and this thing was not about to head back to The City Of Brotherly Love.
Philly sure gave it their all in a must-win game three. Thew led 1-0, 2-1, and even 4-2 after 9 1/2, but Boston was not about to be denied. Gowdy tied it in the bottom of the second with a double, then went to work in the important bottom of the tenth. Leading off, he went yard to make it, 4-3. The Braves squared this thing at four with a sac fly. The coupe-de-grace was provided by Hank in the bottom of the twelfth. Gowdy got it all started with his second double of the game and third of this Fall Classic. He later scored the winning run on an error. Boston was now up 3-0 and looking for the sweep.
Philly did not go down easily. The teams traded runs in the bottom of the fourth and top of the fifth. But in the bottom of that frame, it was Boston's Johnny Evers with a double of his own, and it scored two, breaking the deadlock. Boston hung on from there, being held to just six hits (none by Gowdy, who could only draw a walk) to Philadelphia's seven. But with a 3-1 win, the Miracle Braves had won it all.
Gowdy did it all.
Highest batting average, .545
Highest on-base percentage, .688
Most runs scored, 3
Most doubles, 3
Most triples, 1
Most home runs, 1
Most RBIs, 3 (Tied with Rabbit Maranville)
Most walks, 5.
Gowdy must have been the miracle man on the 1914 Boston Braves!
References
Baseball Almanac, Inc. Baseball Almanac: Baseball History, Baseball Records and Baseball Research. Baseball Almanac, Inc. Web. 12 May 2015, <http://www.baseball-almanac.com/>.
Enders, Eric. 100 Years Of The World Series. New York: Sterling Publishing Co., Inc. 2005. Print.
Neft, David S., Richard M. Cohen, and Michael L. Neft. The Sports Encyclopedia: Baseball, 1992. 12th ed. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1992. Print.
Nemec, David et all. 20th Century Baseball Chronicle: A Year-by-year History of Major League Baseball. Collector's Edition. Lincolnwood, Ill: Publications International, 1993. Print.
Retrosheet. Web. 13 May. 2015. <www.retrosheet.org>
Sports Reference LLC. Baseball-Reference.com - Major League Statistics and Information. http://www.baseball-reference.com/. Web. 12 May. 2015.
Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Web. 12 May 2015. <https://en.wikipedia.org/>.
And supply it, the catcher did. The favourited Philadelphia Athletics were in for a quick surprise that was as fast as it was shocking. The Boston Braves were on their way to a stunning sweep.
Gowdy hat hit .243 with only three home runs and forty-six RBIs in the regular season. But you've all seen it from Billy Martin in 1953, Bobby Richardson in 1960 (And 1964 for good measure). Bucky Dent in 1977, and Ray Knight in 1986. For that matter, Kirk Gibson was not supposed to play at all in 1988, and we all know how that appearance ended.
Gowdy did hit a home run, but it was not as dramatic. But with that, he had more home runs then all other players in the 1914 World Series combined. His assault of Philadelphia pitching came in his very first plate appearance of game one. Philly was at home and about to get embarassed.
Even the great Chief Bender could do nothing to stop Gowdy, who doubled home a run in the top of the second, and came around to score later. It was all Boston needed. But Gowdy was not done, and neither were his teammates. He added two more hits, scored another run, drew a walk, and never was retired. The final score was Boston 7, Philadelphia 1. Game two was closer, but Boston won it, too!
Gowdy could only draw two walks in the second tilt. But Bill James pitched a two-hit shutout. Boston themselves managed only seven hits and one run. Nonetheless, they were heading home up two games, and this thing was not about to head back to The City Of Brotherly Love.
Philly sure gave it their all in a must-win game three. Thew led 1-0, 2-1, and even 4-2 after 9 1/2, but Boston was not about to be denied. Gowdy tied it in the bottom of the second with a double, then went to work in the important bottom of the tenth. Leading off, he went yard to make it, 4-3. The Braves squared this thing at four with a sac fly. The coupe-de-grace was provided by Hank in the bottom of the twelfth. Gowdy got it all started with his second double of the game and third of this Fall Classic. He later scored the winning run on an error. Boston was now up 3-0 and looking for the sweep.
Philly did not go down easily. The teams traded runs in the bottom of the fourth and top of the fifth. But in the bottom of that frame, it was Boston's Johnny Evers with a double of his own, and it scored two, breaking the deadlock. Boston hung on from there, being held to just six hits (none by Gowdy, who could only draw a walk) to Philadelphia's seven. But with a 3-1 win, the Miracle Braves had won it all.
Gowdy did it all.
Highest batting average, .545
Highest on-base percentage, .688
Most runs scored, 3
Most doubles, 3
Most triples, 1
Most home runs, 1
Most RBIs, 3 (Tied with Rabbit Maranville)
Most walks, 5.
Gowdy must have been the miracle man on the 1914 Boston Braves!
References
Baseball Almanac, Inc. Baseball Almanac: Baseball History, Baseball Records and Baseball Research. Baseball Almanac, Inc. Web. 12 May 2015, <http://www.baseball-almanac.com/>.
Enders, Eric. 100 Years Of The World Series. New York: Sterling Publishing Co., Inc. 2005. Print.
Neft, David S., Richard M. Cohen, and Michael L. Neft. The Sports Encyclopedia: Baseball, 1992. 12th ed. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1992. Print.
Nemec, David et all. 20th Century Baseball Chronicle: A Year-by-year History of Major League Baseball. Collector's Edition. Lincolnwood, Ill: Publications International, 1993. Print.
Retrosheet. Web. 13 May. 2015. <www.retrosheet.org>
Sports Reference LLC. Baseball-Reference.com - Major League Statistics and Information. http://www.baseball-reference.com/. Web. 12 May. 2015.
Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Web. 12 May 2015. <https://en.wikipedia.org/>.
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