Thursday, June 11, 2015

World Series: Did You Know?

Frank "Home Run" Baker did not hit a home run in his first Fall Classic. You'd expect that from someone with that kind of nickname. At this point, 1910, he was not a home run hitter. He swatted only two that season. Still, he found ways to contribute. It was Frank's Philadelphia Athletics vs. the Chicago Cubs. Both teams had the wins that year. A whole lot. 104 for Chicago and 102 for good measure by Philly. The World Series was entering it's second decade, and Frank's A's were one of the better teams of it.

Baker collected three hits and a pair of RBIs in the first game at home. The Athletics needed that, for the rest of the team had only two RBIs. It was a 4-1 final by Philly, but the A's collected jut four hits outside of Baker's three.

The A's did much better in game two with a decisive 9-3 win over the Cubs. But Frank had only one hit and one walk. No RBIs or runs scored. A bad game for him. The good news was this thing was headed towards Chicago and Philadelphia was halfway to a world championship.

Baker delivered. He had a game of deadly two's. Two runs, two hits, and two RBIs. And one of his hits was a triple, so he did the next best thing besides a four-bagger. Philadelphia actually got a home run this game from Danny Murphy, who had two hits of his own. It was another laugher for Philly. 12-5 was the final score, and it was apparent the A's were the better team.

Chicago avoided the sweep with a 4-3 win in ten innings, but Baker helped keep the Athletics in this one. He collected another three hits, and scored a run. On the negative side, for the second game in a row, he was caught stealing.

Baker was held hitless in game five, but scored a run. Philadelphia, as a team, scored seven to Chicago's two. The were world champions in only five games.

Frank finished the 1910 Fall Classic with a .409 batting average, joining Eddie Collins and Danny Murphy in that category in the World Series. He tied Frank Chance for second in RBIs with four, behind Murphy's nine. But Frank would be back the next year to smack a pair of home runs.

Frank led the league in home runs the next three seasons, with modest totals compared to today. But he would also go on to appear in five more World Series. In 1921 and '22, he closed out his Fall Classic career as a teammate of another home run hitter. Babe Ruth!

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