1908 World Series Game 5

Cubs: 2 Tigers: 0

W: Overall (2-0)

L: Donovan (0-2)
The Cubs scored single runs in the first and fifth. Hall of Famers Frank Chance and Johnny Evers each singled in runs. Orval Overall became the first pitcher to strike out four batters in an inning. In 2013, Anibal Sanchez became the second hurler to do so in a postseason game. Overall remains the only one to accomplish the feat in the World Series. Overall threw a 3-hitter and struck out 10. Tiger starter Wild Bill Donovan also tossed a complete game in a losing effort. The final game drew only 6,210 fans. Chicagoans stayed away from the ballpark to protest the club's ticket scalping scheme.

There was no World Series MVP in 1908. The award had not been created yet. However, Frank Chance might have won it had the award existed. He batted .421 with 2 RBI and .921 OPS. Three-Finger Brown was another candidate with a 2-0 record and 0.00 ERA in 11 innings. The final candidate, Orval Overall, went 2-0 with a 0.98 ERA and 15 strikeouts in 18.1 innings.

Other players with good World Series for the Cubs included Johnny Evers (.350, 2 RBI, .381 OBP), Solly Hofman (.316 and 4 RBI), and Wildfire Schulte (.389, 2 RBI, .950 OPS). Ty Cobb was the only Tiger hitter that performed well. The Georgia Peach batted .368 with 4 RBI, and .821 OPS. George Mullin pitched a complete game victory, struck out 8, and allowed no earned runs in his only start.

The Tigers returned to the World Series in 1909, but did not win a Fall Classic until 1935. Chicago has yet to win another World Series despite seven NL Pennants from 1910-1945. They have not won a pennant since 1945.

1908 World Series Game 1

Chicago Cubs: 10 Detroit Tigers: 6 (Cubs lead 1-0)

W: Three-Finger Brown (1-0)

L: Summers (0-1)
The 1908 World Series featured the first rematch in the Fall Classic. The World Champion Cubs won the pennant after winning a one-game playoff with the Giants. The game was actually a make up for an earlier contest that ended in a tie. The Giants had appeared to win that game, but Fred Merkle failed to touch second base and was forced by Johnny Evers. With fans streaming onto the field, no one knows for sure if Evers actually had the game ball. Either way, the Cubs won the pennant and faced the Tigers for the second year in a row. The series featured three Hall of Fame umpires with Tommy Connolly, Bill Klem, and Hank O'Day. The Tigers boasted Ty Cobb, Sam Crawford, and Hughie Jennings. The Cubs fielded four Hall of Famers in Frank Chance, Johnny Evers, Joe Tinker, and Three-Finger Brown.

Detroit should have won Game 1. They led 6-5 in the 9th in the opener in Detroit. The Cubs chased Ed Killian while Ed Reulbach pitched into the seventh for Chicago. The Cubs dropped five in the top of the 9th for a 10-6 victory. Jimmy Sheckard went 3-for-6 for the victors. Wildfire Schulte, Harry Steinfeldt, and Joe Tinker all tallied two hits. Tigers Ty Cobb, Matty McIntyre, and Claude Rossman all had two hits as well.

1907 World Series Game 5

Cubs: 2 Tigers: 0 (Cubs win series 4-0-1)

W: Brown (1-0)

L: Mullin (0-2)
Once again, both starters pitched a complete game. Three-finger Brown shutout the Tigers on 7 hits. George Mullin also allowed 7 hits, but surrendered 2 runs, 1 earned. Chicago scored single runs in the first and second innings while Detroit did not threaten Brown after a fourth inning threat. The Cubs won their first World Series in 1:42. The game would take twice as long today.

The Cubs pitching staff posted a 0.75 ERA in the 1907 World Series. They used four pitchers in the Fall Classic. Each pitcher posted a win. Hall of Famer Mordecai Three Finger Brown won his only start with a shutout. Meanwhile, the Tigers staff finished with a 2.15 ERA. George Mullin lost 2 games to the Cubs with a 2.12 ERA.

Offensively, Harry Steinfeldt batted .471 with a double, triple, 2 RBI, and 1.197 OPS. If there was a MVP, Steinfeldt might have won it. Johnny Evers hit .350 for the Cubs. Hall of Famers Frank Chance and Joe Tinker both finished with a .154 average. On the Tigers side, Claude Rossman hit a healthy .450 with 2 RBI and 1.026 OPS. Outfielder Davy Jones batted .353. Hall of Famers Ty Cobb and Sam Crawford performed poorly. Cobb hit .200 and Crawford .238.

Both teams returned to the Fall Classic in 1908. Once again, the Cubs skunked Detroit. The Cubs have yet to win another World Series. The Tigers would win the 1909 AL Pennant, but lost a 7 game thriller to Pittsburgh. Detroit would finally win a World Series in 1935.

1907 World Series Game 3

Chicago: 5 Detroit: 1 (Cubs lead 2-0)

W: Reulbach (1-0)

L: Siever (0-1)
The Cubs led 5-0 by the fifth in a battle of Eds. Detroit started 18 game winner Ed Siever while the Cubs utlized 17 game winner Ed Reulbach and his miniscule 1.69 ERA. The game was never really in question. Johnny Evers had three hits, including two doubles, and an RBI. Harry Steinfeldt had two hits and a RBI. Sam Crawford drove in Detroit's only run and Claude Rossman had two singles. Reulbach went the distance allowing 6 hits, 1 run, walked 3, and struck out 2. Siever went four and was replaced by Ed Killian. Killian went 4 and allowed 1 run.


 

1907 World Series Game 1

Tigers: 3 Cubs: 3
The White Sox shocked the Cubs in the 1906 World Series. The Sox did not repeat as AL champs, but the Cubs did win another NL Pennant. The Cubs won 107 games behind Hall of Famers Frank Chance, Three Finger Brown, Johnny Evers, and Joe Tinker. Meanwhile, the Detroit Tigers rose to the top of the American League behind Hall of Famers Hughie Jennings, Ty Cobb, and Sam Crawford. 1907 was the first World Series to feature a Hall of Fame umpire. Hank O'Day and Jack Sheridan both reached Cooperstown as umpires.

The series opened in Chicago with Wild Bill Donovan squaring off against Orval Overall. Donovan had a career year for the Tigers. He went 25-4 with a 2.19 ERA.Cub starter Overall also had a career season with a 23-7 record, 1.68 ERA, and league-leading 8 shutouts. The Tigers had the Cubs by the tail, but blew it.

The Cubs led 1-0 into the eighth inning. The Tigers rallied for three against Overall. Sam Crawford raked a two-run single and then Claude Rossman's sacrifice fly gave the Tigers a 3-1 lead. They took that lead to the final frame looking to continue the Cubs World Series problems.

Chicago came out swinging in the ninth. Chance singled to right. Harry Steinfelt was hit by the pitch. Johnny Kling popped out to first. Evers reached on an error to load the bases. Wildfire Schultz grounded out to first to score Chicago's second run. Then, Boss Schmidt allowed a third strike to get past him to allow the tying run to score. Johnny Evers was caught trying to steal home to end the inning, but the damage was done. Schmidt had committed a major error. This might be the greatest blunder in Tiger history. The game went 12 innings, but ended in a 3-3 tie. Darkness forced the game's end.

Davy Jones and Sam Crawford each had three hits for the Tigers. Schmidt added two. He also committed the big error to allow the Cubs to tie the game and surrendered 9 Cub steals. Jimmy Slagle, Kling, and Evers slapped two hits each for the Cubs. Wild Bill Donovan pitched a complete game, allowed 10 hits, allowed 1 earned run, walked 3, and struck out 12. Overall went 9, allowed 9 hits, 1 earned run, walked 2, and struck out 5. Ed Reulbach pitched three scoreless to finish for the Cubs.

Game 1 was the Tigers only look at the World Series. The Cubs swept the next four games. Schmidt's error turned the entire series around. Had he held on, then perhaps the Tigers pull the upset as the Sox did in 1906.

1906 World Series Game 4

Cubs: 1 White Sox: 0 (Series tied 2-2)

WP: Brown (1-1)

LP: Altrock (1-1)
Three Finger Brown demonstrated why he made the Hall of Fame in Game 4 of the 1906 World Series. He tossed a 2-hit shutout evening the series at 2 games a piece. Game 1 winner Nick Altrock was the tough luck loser for the White Sox. He allowed 7 hits and only a single run.

The game was scoreless until the seventh. Frank Chance singled and was sacrificed to second and third. With two out, Johnny Evers singled to give the Cubs the lead. Solly Hofman and Chance each had two hits for the victors. Put together, they doubled the Sox offensive output. Brown held the crosstown rivals hitless until the sixth. The game ended with the tying run on second.

1906 World Series Game 1

White Sox: 2 Cubs:1 (Sox lead 1-0)

WP: Altrock (1-0)

LP: Brown (0-1)
The 1906 Cubs won regular season games and won the pennant by a whopping 20 games. The team boasted four Hall of Famers including Mordecai "Three Finger" Brown and the legendary infield of Joe Tinker, Johnny Evers, and Frank Chance. They greatly outmatched their crosstown rivals and World Series opponents. The Chicago White Sox won 93 games and included Hall of Famers George Davis and Ed Walsh. They would have finished 23 games behind the Cubs.

The Cubs started Brown in Game 1 while the Sox started 20 game winner Nick Altrock. Both men retired the first nine batters. The Cubs broke up the no-hitter with 2 outs in the fourth, but failed to score. Brown retired the first twelve Sox in order. Then, George Rohe tripled to lead off the fifth. He scored on an error by catcher Johnny Kling. Sox led 1-0.

The Cubs remained confident. Brown's downfall came from a leadoff walk in the sixth. Altrock reached on the base on balls, was sacrificed to second, and scored on a single by Frank Isbell. It turned out to be the winning run. The Cubs scored on a wild pitch in the sixth, but Altrock shut the door after that. Harry Steinfelt flew out to end the game. Sox won 2-1.

Both Altrock and Brown tossed 4-hit complete games. Brown walked 1 and struck out 7. The walk turned out to be the winning run. The winner Altrock walked 1 and struck out 3. The batter Altrock walked also scored.

Frank Chance: Baseball Hall of Fame Class of 1946

Born: September 9, 1876

Debut: April 29, 1898 (Cubs)

1905: Became Cubs manager

1906: Cubs win 116 games, but lose World Series to White Sox

1907: Cubs win World Series

1908: Cubs win World Series

1910: Tinker to Evers to Chance is written by Franklin Pierce Adams

1910: Cubs win Pennant (Lose World Series to A’s)

1912: Left Cubs to manage Yankees Cubs record: 768-389 (.664) 4 pennants & 2 championships

1913-14: Managed Yankees 117-168 (.411)

1916-17: Managed in Pacific Coast League and became part owner of a team

1923: Managed Red Sox 61-91 (.401)

Died: October 15, 1924

1946: Elected to Hall of Fame

Accomplishments:

As a Manager:
946-648 (.593) with 4 Pennants and 2 World Championships

11 seasons as a manager

100 win seasons: 4

MLB record 116 wins (1906)

90+ win seasons: 7x

As a player:
2x World Champion

.296 average

20 HR

596 RBI

403 steals

1274 hits

798 runs

556 walks-319 strikeouts

.394 OBP

Led league in runs (103): 1906

10+ triples: 4x

Led league in steals: 2x

20+ steals: 9x

30+ steals: 5x

40+ steals: 3x

50+ steals: 2x

67 steals (1903)

.300+ average: 4x

.400+ OBP: 4x

Led league in OBP (.450): 1905

Postseason: .300, 0 HR, 6 RBI, .774 OPS (4 World Series-70 AB)

Johnny Evers: Baseball Hall of Fame Class of 1946

Born: July 21, 1883

Debut: September 1, 1902 (Cubs)

1905: Began feud with Joe Tinker. It started over cab fare.

1906: Cubs win Pennant (Lost World Series to White Sox)

1907: Cubs win World Series

1908: Alerted umpires about “Merkle’s boner” costing the Giants the pennant

1908: Cubs win World Series

1910: “Tinker to Evers to Chance” is written by Franklin Pierce Adams

1914: Ejected 9 times during the season

1910: Cubs win Pennant (Lose World Series to A’s)

1913: Player-Manager of the Cubs: 88-65 (.575)

1914: Traded to Braves

1914: Braves win World Series

1914: NL MVP

1914: .279, 1 HR, 40 RBI, .390 OBP

1917: Selected off Waivers by Phillies

1917: Retired after season

1920: Coached for the NY Giants

1921: Managed Cubs for second time: 41-55 (.427)

1922-23: Coach for the Chicago White Sox

1924: Managed White Sox: 51-72 (.415)

1929: Made final appearance

1929-32: Coach for the Boston Braves

After 1932: GM for Albany Senators “for a time.”

1938: Spoke to Joe Tinker for first time in 33 years while doing radio broadcast of the World Series

1946: Elected to Hall of Fame

Died: March 28, 1947

Accomplishments:
3x World Champion

1914 NL MVP

.270 career hitter

12 HR

538 RBI

778 walks-292 strikeouts

324 stolen bases

919 runs

1659 hits

11 triples (1912)

20+ steals: 7x

30+ steals: 3x

40+ steals: 2x

108 walks (1910)

Hit .300: 2x

.400 OBP: 3x

.873 OPS (1912)

Postseason:
.316, 0 HR, 6 RBI, .718 OPS, 11 runs, 8 SB, 24 hits (4 World Series)

Hit .438 in 1914 World Series

Managerial:
180-192 (.484)

Joe Tinker: Baseball Hall of Fame Class of 1946

Born: July 27, 1880

1900: Played in Pacific Northwest League

1901: Purchased by Cubs

Debut: April 17, 1902 (Cubs)

1905: Began feud with Johnny Evers over a cab

1906: Cubs win pennant (Lose World Series to White Sox)

1907: Cubs win World Series

1908: Hit pennant winning double off Christy Mathewson

1908: Cubs win World Series

1910: Tinkers to Evers to Chance poem is published by Franklin Pierce Adams

1910: Cubs win pennant (Lose World Series to A’s)

1912: Salary dispute led to his sale to the Reds

1913: Player/Manager of Reds (64-89)

1914: Jumped to Federal League

1914-15: Managed in Federal League (173-133)

1915: Won Federal League Pennant

1916: Purchased by the Cubs

1916: Managed Cubs (67-86)

1916: Retired

Retirement: Scouted, managed, real estate and club management.

1938: Tinkers and Evers talk to each other for the first time since 1905 when reunited to broadcast the World Series

1946: Elected to Hall of Fame

Died: July 27, 1948

Accomplishments:
2x World Champion

.262 career

31 HR

783 RBI

Led league in games played (157) in 1908

Hit .317 in 1913

114 triples

10+ triples: 5x

336 stolen bases

20+ steals: 11x

30+ steals: 5x

41 steals in 1904

Postseason:
.235, 1 HR, 6 RBI (4 World Series)

As a Manager:
304-308 (.497) 1 Pennant