Greatness in Waiting: An Illustrated History of the Early New York Yankees, 1903-1919 - Ray Istorico - McFarland, Feb 1, 2008 - - 232 pages
The newborn Yankees first took the field on Wednesday, April 22, at American League Park in Washington, losing to the Senators 3-1. Jack Chesbro was the starting pitcher and Dave Fultz had the first base-hit in Yankee history that day—a hit and run single that drove in Willie Keeler in the first inning to score their only run. More accolades for the assembled Yankee team came from the Washington Post: "Where is there a pitching staff to beat or even equal it? ... Keeler, Fultz, and Davis, with McFarland as substitute, will care for the outer pastures. What an outfield!"
The first home game at Hilltop Park came on April 30, 1903, as the Yankees defeated the Washington Senators 6-2. Fans paid 50 cents for seats in a single deck-covered wooden grandstand that ran from first base to third base. Seats in the bleachers cost 25 cents. Box
seats were priced at one dollar! All things considered not a bad price for seeing the "Greatest Team in Years." Unfortunately, for Yankee owners Frank Farrell and Bill Devery, manager Clark Griffith, AL President Johnson, as well as New York fans, this collection of talent never took form as a consistent winning machine in 1903. By June 4 they posted a won lost record of 15-22 and had lost 6 games in a row. On June 7, the Washington Post made note of the Yankees'/Highlanders' struggles: "The Gordon Highlanders have failed to make good and the New York papers are knocking the team to death. Worse than that, the people are staying away from the games. Clark Griffith is a better pitcher than manager." Griffith, on his way to a 14-11 record in 1903, might not have argued with that assessment.
The reason for the Yankees' disappointing showing in 1903 was not difficult to decipher: A. Excellent pitching from Jack Chesbro: 21-15 with a 2.77 ERA (300 hits in 324.7 innings pitched) B. A .500 record from Jesse Tannehill: 15-15 with a 3.27 ERA (258 hits in 239.7 innings pitched) C. An offense not scoring enough runs to maintain any type of winning streak. Williams and Ganzel, at 82 and 71 RBI respectively, would lead the club in 1903. The next highest RBI total was 45—achieved by third baseman Wid Conroy, outfielder Herm McFarland and Shorstop "Kid" Elberfeld (who was not even on team until being acquired from the Detroit Tigers on June 10, 1903—the first trade in Yankee history). Elberfeld appeared in 90 games, taking over as starting shortstop, replacing veteran Herman Long, who was traded to the Tigers along with infielder Ernie Courtney for Elberfeld. By September 9, 1903, the crowds were still staying away, even as the Yankees swept the Philadelphia Athletics in a double-header at Hilltop Park to gain third place, the highest spot in the standings they would reach all year. The attendance figure for that day in the Yankees' 16,000 plus capacity home field: 2,604. The fact was the New York City subway (planned as the IRT—Interborough Rapid Transit) was not fully completed in 1903. Many fans were not willing to take the long trip (50 plus minutes from mid-town Manhattan) via train to see a team not living up to preseason expectations. In a pointed letter to Giants Owner/President John T. Brush printed in the Chicago Daily Tribune, Yankee team president Joe Gordon noted that added transportation convenience would mean better attendance at Hilltop Park and a fan base rallying in support of the Yankees: "While conceding your club has drawn more spectators than ours, I attribute this fact wholly to better transit facilities at the Polo Grounds. This condition, however, is merely temporary, and next season the underground rapid transit system will convey our patrons from the post office to our gate in twenty minutes." The subway trip did become easier in the future though it took a while longer than Gordon predicted. By 1906, a stop was added at 167th street—minutes away from the entrance to Hilltop Park.
1903—Aftermath
The box score of the September 9 double-header win against Philadelphia reveals manager Clark Griffith shook up the lineup from the beginning of the season in hopes of generating more offense, dropping Davis and McFarland down in the order.
Conroy 3B Elberfeld SS McFarland RF
Fultz CF Williams 2B Beville C
Ganzel 113 Davis LF Pitcher
Pitching, and expectations of a successful season, were on the mind of shortstop "Kid" Elberfeld when the Yankees again reported to Atlanta for 1904 spring training. As reported in the Atlanta Constitution on March 11, 1904: '[Elberfeld] has been engaged in the occupation of a farmer for the last few months and looks well and strong. He has a little farm of about twenty acres a few miles outside of Chattanooga and is preparing for that time when his effectiveness as a ball player will become a thing of the past. `I am glad to get back to work again ... and I am in good condition.'" Elberfeld went on to predict good things for the Yankees in 1904: "I think that we have a good chance to finish high up in the league this year. The pitching staff is a hummer. Powell, Hughes, Griffith and Chesbro will be hard to beat."
The major changes were in the New York outfield, Fultz being replaced by Danny Hoffman as starting center fielder. The 23-year-old Frank Delahanty, referred to as "Pudgie" despite a 5'9", 160 lb. frame, was in camp for his second year, vying for an outfield job. Infielder Frank LaPorte (holder of another unfortunate nickname: "Pot"), was also in his second year with the team. LaPorte would win the starting job at third base, previously handled by Wid Conroy and Joe Yeager. LaPorte's contribution to the offense in 1906: a .264 average with 2 home runs and 56 RBI—seemingly modest totals but those numbers exceeded the statisties posted by most major league third basemen in 1906. Williams at second base and Elberfeld at shortstop were again the glue of the infield, a strong double-play combination as well as being two of the most productive batters on the team. Williams led the team in RBI in 1906, knocking in 77 to go along with 3 home runs and a .277 batting average. Elberfeld missed time with minor injuries, appearing in 99 games and batting .306. He missed additional games for another reason: suspensions. Some background is in order.
Elberfeld was one of the most intense competitors in baseball history, an aggressive, tobacco—and expletive—spewing player. He earned the nickname "The Tabasco Kid" for his competitive play. When opposing players slid in to bases, slashing him with their spikes, Elberfeld poured whiskey on his wounds to cauterize them. Ty Cobb stated that Elberfeld gave as good as he got when he covered the second base bag as Cobb tried to steal: "On my first attempt I slid into second head forward. In a flash it seemed that Elberfeld gave me the knee. Stepping on the bag to receive the ball from the catcher he blocked my slide by corning down on my head with his knee. My forehead and face were shoved into the hard ground and the skin peeled off just above the eyebrows. The clever way in which he did this completely blocked me.— I had run into a real big leaguer."
A real big leaguer for certain—though not one without 'baggage." On June 9, 1903, the Yankees sent 37-year-old shortstop Herznan Long and infielders Ernie Courtney and Paddy Greene to the Detroit Tigers for Elberfeld and pitcher John Deering. This transaction was the first trade in Yankees history. Ed Barrow, later the Yankee general manager and president for 24 years, was Elberfeld's manager at Detroit. According to a newspaper report of June 3, 1903, "[Elberfeld] was fined $200 and indefinitely suspended for disgraceful actions on the ball field on June 1 and for indifferent playing during the games of May 20-30 and June 1." According to Barrow: "He utterly disregarded the rules and regulations, refused to obey the orders of his captain and manager to such an extent that we feel called upon to put a stop to it." Needless to say, Detroit was happy to unload Elberfeld and, despite Barrow's admonition, the Yankees were happy to acquire the 5'7" 158 pound sparkplug. Elberfeld was known for leaning into pitches, purposely getting hit to reach first base, a quality admired by his teammates. He would rage against umpires (and occasionally teammates) during his career but Elberfeld provided a badly needed aggressive quality to the fledgling Yankee team.
Elberfeld's aggressiveness, such as spitting tobacco juice in an umpire's face, provided anxiety for owners Farrell and Devery and manager Clark Griffith, as well as entertainment for the crowds.
The Yankees also provided entertainment for their fans in 1906—and proved Griffith's fight for the pennant prediction was a correct assessment—but it was a definite struggle at the beginning of the season. Eventually, the New York team was in the middle of the pennant race, battling against the White Sox and the Indians.
"Battling" would also apply to relations between the Yankees and the umpiring crews. It started as they sunk from 4th to 6th place in the middle of May, 51/2 games out of first. On Monday, May 7th, Tim Hurst was the umpire at first during a game at Hilltop Park against the Senators. Griffith was coaching at first when Frank LaPorte hit a ground ball to the Senator shortstop and seemed to beat the throw to first base. Hurst yelled "Out!" Griffith exploded with anger over the call. Hurst grabbed Griffith by the arm and yelled, "Get out of the game!" An on-field brawl between the two men was prevented with Elberfeld (of all people) holding Griffith back. Hurst and Griffith finally ended up at the New York bench, Hurst slugging Griffith in the mouth. They were both suspended for five days by AL president Johnson. To describe Hurst as "pugnacious" would be an understatement. He joined the American League in 1900 and once spit in the eye of Philadelphia Athletics second baseman Eddie Collins after hearing Collins complain about his umpiring. A riot in the stands ensued. Hurst was fired by the AL, eventually becoming a boxing referee (possibly a more suitable venue). He died of "acute indigestion" in 1915.
Elberfeld, not to be outdone, clashed with umpire Billy Evans in next day's game and was fined $50. The year 1906 was Evans' first in major-league baseball, joining the AL crew at age 22, becoming the youngest major league umpire in the process. According to the New York Times of May 16, 1906, these eruptions and the Yankees' poor early-season record supposedly led to a "dissensions in the ranks." Griffith had an immediate response also quoted in the New York Times: "There is no trouble between my men and myself. I called my men together today and they gave me their assurance that they were heart and soul with the club...."
Griffith's words rang true. By the end of August the Yankees had climbed all the way to 2nd place, 3 games out. A long home-stand at Hilltop Park was punctuated by a 3 game sweep of the 5th place St. Louis Browns and 2 double-header sweeps of the lowly Senators (7th place) on Thursday, August 30th and Friday, the 31st. Home attendance, and profits for owners Farrell and Devery, soared this year to a total of 434,700 people (the league average being 367,260). Unfortunately, this home-stand was also punctuated by another suspension for Griffith and another $50 fine for Elberfeld. Griffith argued that Browns base runner Harry Niles was out on a close play. Elberfeld chimed in and they were both ordered off the field by umpire Jack Sheridan. Sheridan was known for establishing the practice of crouching while calling balls and strikes, a seemingly innocuous move at first but it was quickly adopted by all umpires because it afforded a more accurate view of the plane of the pitched ball. He also used no protective gear other than a mask, his agility was said to be enough to avoid being hit by foul tips. Two man umpiring crews were the standard in these times and the Yankees certainly had "issues" with Sheridan as well as Evans, who worked with Sheridan observing the senior umpire.
The August 29, 1906, edition of the New York Times ran the story: "Yesterday [Griffith] was notified by President Ban Johnson that he had been suspended indefinitely ... Elberfeld ... escaped without any penalty other than the customary fine attending dismissal from the grounds."
On Monday, September 3, 1906, Elberfeld found himself in the midst of another flare-up. In the first game of a double-header against the Athletics at Hilltop Park, he made a permanent enemy out of home plate umpire Silk O'Loughlin by running after O'Loughlin and attempting to spike the umpire after a disputed call went against New York. Elberfeld was forcibly removed from the game by police. Elberfeld still refused to leave the park premises so Griffith ushered him out of the Hilltop Park gate. An afterthought to all that excitement is the fact the Yankees won the game 4-3. They also won the second contest under unique circumstances. In the 9th inning with the A's leading 3-1, the Yankees rallied to win (by forfeit). With Willie Keeler on second and Wid Conroy on third, second baseman Jimmy Williams strode to the plate. Home plate umpire O'Loughlin called two strikes and then Williams hit a ground ball towards third.
John (Schoolboy) Knight, the Athletics third baseman, stepped back to field the ball—right into the path of Keeler who was racing towards third. Keeler fell onto the dirt as the ball rolled into left field and Conroy crossed the plate. Keeler got up and also scored, tying the game. Philadelphia's players ran towards O'Loughlin, screaming for Keeler to be called out on runner's interference. O'Loughlin, never one to tolerate excessive complaining, ordered the A's at least two times to stop their argument and leave the field. When they refused to comply O'Loughlin ended the game, awarding the Yankees a 9-0 victory by forfeit. Elberfeld must have at least been happy with the turn of events—despite receiving a suspension from AL president Ban Johnson. The Yankees were certainly pleased. It was their ninth win in a row. They would not stop there.
The next day the Yankees won another double-header up in Boston (the amount of double-headers played in this early period is astonishing compared to today's schedules). The Yanks blasted the Red Sox 7-0 in the first game in support of pitcher Walter Clarkson. Al Orth was in total control in the second game as New York shut out the Sox 1-0. Bill Hogg kept the Red Sox in check on Wednesday, September 5th, and the Yanks rolled on 6-1. They returned to the friendly confines of the Hilltop on Thursday and continued their winning ways against the Red Sox and the Athletics, capping it off with an 11-4 rout against Philadelphia on Saturday, September 8th, behind the pitching of Chesbro. The Yankees had won 15 games in a row! Their record stood at 77-48 and they were in first place. Was the juggernaut that Ban Johnson wanted to create in Manhattan, and the winning team which Farrell and Devery hoped they were getting, finally in full formation? Was the 1906 American League pennant within the Yankees' reach?
Unfortunately, the second place White Sox went on a winning streak of their own, taking 7 games in a row from September 12th to the 18th, vaulting from second place to first with an 83-51 record. The Yankees visited Chicago on Friday, September 21, and struck back, sweeping yet another double-header by scores of 6-3 and 4-1 with important pitching contributions from Chesbro in the opener and Bill Hogg in the second game, placing and keeping New York in first place. A brief setback occurred on Saturday. "Smiling" Al Orth didn't have his best stuff and the White Sox took the contest 7-1. The Yanks found themselves half a game out of first. Sunday's game was a pitcher's duel between Bill Hogg and Chicago right-hander Ed Walsh (on his way to a 17-13 record). Hogg limited the White Sox to two hits and the Yankees prevailed 1-0. "There were over 30,000 maddened fans on the field, packed like barrels of mackerels in the stands," said the Washington Post the next day. A look at the box score reveals that the 31-year-old Elberfeld, batting lead-off; at .306, and the veteran Keeler, the second place hitter, at .304, were an effective combination. First baseman Chase batted third, with 76 RBI, second to only the Yankee clean-up hitter and most valuable cog in the lineup—Jimmy Williams, with 77 RBI.
The White Sox, on the other hand, were well on their way to earning the nickname "The Hitless Wonders," the game Hogg pitched against them being indicative of their typical offensive attack for the season. While the overall Yankee team batting average in 1906 was .266 (second only to the Indians at .279), the team batting average for the White Sox was only .230. A .300 batting statistic was an unknown to any starting player on the Chicago team. Second baseman Frank Isbell came closest with a .279 average. Veteran shortstop George Davis, 35, contributed 80 RBI, 23 more than any other player on the team. The Chicago pitching staff more than made up for the lack of offensive firepower—left-hander Niek Altrock and right-hander Frank Owen won 20 and 22 games respectively, Ed Walsh won 17 and lefty Doc White went 18-6 (with a microscopic 1.52 ERA). Overall, the White Sox starters had an ERA of 2.13.
The first home game at Hilltop Park came on April 30, 1903, as the Yankees defeated the Washington Senators 6-2. Fans paid 50 cents for seats in a single deck-covered wooden grandstand that ran from first base to third base. Seats in the bleachers cost 25 cents. Box
seats were priced at one dollar! All things considered not a bad price for seeing the "Greatest Team in Years." Unfortunately, for Yankee owners Frank Farrell and Bill Devery, manager Clark Griffith, AL President Johnson, as well as New York fans, this collection of talent never took form as a consistent winning machine in 1903. By June 4 they posted a won lost record of 15-22 and had lost 6 games in a row. On June 7, the Washington Post made note of the Yankees'/Highlanders' struggles: "The Gordon Highlanders have failed to make good and the New York papers are knocking the team to death. Worse than that, the people are staying away from the games. Clark Griffith is a better pitcher than manager." Griffith, on his way to a 14-11 record in 1903, might not have argued with that assessment.
The reason for the Yankees' disappointing showing in 1903 was not difficult to decipher: A. Excellent pitching from Jack Chesbro: 21-15 with a 2.77 ERA (300 hits in 324.7 innings pitched) B. A .500 record from Jesse Tannehill: 15-15 with a 3.27 ERA (258 hits in 239.7 innings pitched) C. An offense not scoring enough runs to maintain any type of winning streak. Williams and Ganzel, at 82 and 71 RBI respectively, would lead the club in 1903. The next highest RBI total was 45—achieved by third baseman Wid Conroy, outfielder Herm McFarland and Shorstop "Kid" Elberfeld (who was not even on team until being acquired from the Detroit Tigers on June 10, 1903—the first trade in Yankee history). Elberfeld appeared in 90 games, taking over as starting shortstop, replacing veteran Herman Long, who was traded to the Tigers along with infielder Ernie Courtney for Elberfeld. By September 9, 1903, the crowds were still staying away, even as the Yankees swept the Philadelphia Athletics in a double-header at Hilltop Park to gain third place, the highest spot in the standings they would reach all year. The attendance figure for that day in the Yankees' 16,000 plus capacity home field: 2,604. The fact was the New York City subway (planned as the IRT—Interborough Rapid Transit) was not fully completed in 1903. Many fans were not willing to take the long trip (50 plus minutes from mid-town Manhattan) via train to see a team not living up to preseason expectations. In a pointed letter to Giants Owner/President John T. Brush printed in the Chicago Daily Tribune, Yankee team president Joe Gordon noted that added transportation convenience would mean better attendance at Hilltop Park and a fan base rallying in support of the Yankees: "While conceding your club has drawn more spectators than ours, I attribute this fact wholly to better transit facilities at the Polo Grounds. This condition, however, is merely temporary, and next season the underground rapid transit system will convey our patrons from the post office to our gate in twenty minutes." The subway trip did become easier in the future though it took a while longer than Gordon predicted. By 1906, a stop was added at 167th street—minutes away from the entrance to Hilltop Park.
1903—Aftermath
The box score of the September 9 double-header win against Philadelphia reveals manager Clark Griffith shook up the lineup from the beginning of the season in hopes of generating more offense, dropping Davis and McFarland down in the order.
Conroy 3B Elberfeld SS McFarland RF
Fultz CF Williams 2B Beville C
Ganzel 113 Davis LF Pitcher
Pitching, and expectations of a successful season, were on the mind of shortstop "Kid" Elberfeld when the Yankees again reported to Atlanta for 1904 spring training. As reported in the Atlanta Constitution on March 11, 1904: '[Elberfeld] has been engaged in the occupation of a farmer for the last few months and looks well and strong. He has a little farm of about twenty acres a few miles outside of Chattanooga and is preparing for that time when his effectiveness as a ball player will become a thing of the past. `I am glad to get back to work again ... and I am in good condition.'" Elberfeld went on to predict good things for the Yankees in 1904: "I think that we have a good chance to finish high up in the league this year. The pitching staff is a hummer. Powell, Hughes, Griffith and Chesbro will be hard to beat."
The major changes were in the New York outfield, Fultz being replaced by Danny Hoffman as starting center fielder. The 23-year-old Frank Delahanty, referred to as "Pudgie" despite a 5'9", 160 lb. frame, was in camp for his second year, vying for an outfield job. Infielder Frank LaPorte (holder of another unfortunate nickname: "Pot"), was also in his second year with the team. LaPorte would win the starting job at third base, previously handled by Wid Conroy and Joe Yeager. LaPorte's contribution to the offense in 1906: a .264 average with 2 home runs and 56 RBI—seemingly modest totals but those numbers exceeded the statisties posted by most major league third basemen in 1906. Williams at second base and Elberfeld at shortstop were again the glue of the infield, a strong double-play combination as well as being two of the most productive batters on the team. Williams led the team in RBI in 1906, knocking in 77 to go along with 3 home runs and a .277 batting average. Elberfeld missed time with minor injuries, appearing in 99 games and batting .306. He missed additional games for another reason: suspensions. Some background is in order.
Elberfeld was one of the most intense competitors in baseball history, an aggressive, tobacco—and expletive—spewing player. He earned the nickname "The Tabasco Kid" for his competitive play. When opposing players slid in to bases, slashing him with their spikes, Elberfeld poured whiskey on his wounds to cauterize them. Ty Cobb stated that Elberfeld gave as good as he got when he covered the second base bag as Cobb tried to steal: "On my first attempt I slid into second head forward. In a flash it seemed that Elberfeld gave me the knee. Stepping on the bag to receive the ball from the catcher he blocked my slide by corning down on my head with his knee. My forehead and face were shoved into the hard ground and the skin peeled off just above the eyebrows. The clever way in which he did this completely blocked me.— I had run into a real big leaguer."
A real big leaguer for certain—though not one without 'baggage." On June 9, 1903, the Yankees sent 37-year-old shortstop Herznan Long and infielders Ernie Courtney and Paddy Greene to the Detroit Tigers for Elberfeld and pitcher John Deering. This transaction was the first trade in Yankees history. Ed Barrow, later the Yankee general manager and president for 24 years, was Elberfeld's manager at Detroit. According to a newspaper report of June 3, 1903, "[Elberfeld] was fined $200 and indefinitely suspended for disgraceful actions on the ball field on June 1 and for indifferent playing during the games of May 20-30 and June 1." According to Barrow: "He utterly disregarded the rules and regulations, refused to obey the orders of his captain and manager to such an extent that we feel called upon to put a stop to it." Needless to say, Detroit was happy to unload Elberfeld and, despite Barrow's admonition, the Yankees were happy to acquire the 5'7" 158 pound sparkplug. Elberfeld was known for leaning into pitches, purposely getting hit to reach first base, a quality admired by his teammates. He would rage against umpires (and occasionally teammates) during his career but Elberfeld provided a badly needed aggressive quality to the fledgling Yankee team.
Elberfeld's aggressiveness, such as spitting tobacco juice in an umpire's face, provided anxiety for owners Farrell and Devery and manager Clark Griffith, as well as entertainment for the crowds.
The Yankees also provided entertainment for their fans in 1906—and proved Griffith's fight for the pennant prediction was a correct assessment—but it was a definite struggle at the beginning of the season. Eventually, the New York team was in the middle of the pennant race, battling against the White Sox and the Indians.
"Battling" would also apply to relations between the Yankees and the umpiring crews. It started as they sunk from 4th to 6th place in the middle of May, 51/2 games out of first. On Monday, May 7th, Tim Hurst was the umpire at first during a game at Hilltop Park against the Senators. Griffith was coaching at first when Frank LaPorte hit a ground ball to the Senator shortstop and seemed to beat the throw to first base. Hurst yelled "Out!" Griffith exploded with anger over the call. Hurst grabbed Griffith by the arm and yelled, "Get out of the game!" An on-field brawl between the two men was prevented with Elberfeld (of all people) holding Griffith back. Hurst and Griffith finally ended up at the New York bench, Hurst slugging Griffith in the mouth. They were both suspended for five days by AL president Johnson. To describe Hurst as "pugnacious" would be an understatement. He joined the American League in 1900 and once spit in the eye of Philadelphia Athletics second baseman Eddie Collins after hearing Collins complain about his umpiring. A riot in the stands ensued. Hurst was fired by the AL, eventually becoming a boxing referee (possibly a more suitable venue). He died of "acute indigestion" in 1915.
Elberfeld, not to be outdone, clashed with umpire Billy Evans in next day's game and was fined $50. The year 1906 was Evans' first in major-league baseball, joining the AL crew at age 22, becoming the youngest major league umpire in the process. According to the New York Times of May 16, 1906, these eruptions and the Yankees' poor early-season record supposedly led to a "dissensions in the ranks." Griffith had an immediate response also quoted in the New York Times: "There is no trouble between my men and myself. I called my men together today and they gave me their assurance that they were heart and soul with the club...."
Griffith's words rang true. By the end of August the Yankees had climbed all the way to 2nd place, 3 games out. A long home-stand at Hilltop Park was punctuated by a 3 game sweep of the 5th place St. Louis Browns and 2 double-header sweeps of the lowly Senators (7th place) on Thursday, August 30th and Friday, the 31st. Home attendance, and profits for owners Farrell and Devery, soared this year to a total of 434,700 people (the league average being 367,260). Unfortunately, this home-stand was also punctuated by another suspension for Griffith and another $50 fine for Elberfeld. Griffith argued that Browns base runner Harry Niles was out on a close play. Elberfeld chimed in and they were both ordered off the field by umpire Jack Sheridan. Sheridan was known for establishing the practice of crouching while calling balls and strikes, a seemingly innocuous move at first but it was quickly adopted by all umpires because it afforded a more accurate view of the plane of the pitched ball. He also used no protective gear other than a mask, his agility was said to be enough to avoid being hit by foul tips. Two man umpiring crews were the standard in these times and the Yankees certainly had "issues" with Sheridan as well as Evans, who worked with Sheridan observing the senior umpire.
The August 29, 1906, edition of the New York Times ran the story: "Yesterday [Griffith] was notified by President Ban Johnson that he had been suspended indefinitely ... Elberfeld ... escaped without any penalty other than the customary fine attending dismissal from the grounds."
On Monday, September 3, 1906, Elberfeld found himself in the midst of another flare-up. In the first game of a double-header against the Athletics at Hilltop Park, he made a permanent enemy out of home plate umpire Silk O'Loughlin by running after O'Loughlin and attempting to spike the umpire after a disputed call went against New York. Elberfeld was forcibly removed from the game by police. Elberfeld still refused to leave the park premises so Griffith ushered him out of the Hilltop Park gate. An afterthought to all that excitement is the fact the Yankees won the game 4-3. They also won the second contest under unique circumstances. In the 9th inning with the A's leading 3-1, the Yankees rallied to win (by forfeit). With Willie Keeler on second and Wid Conroy on third, second baseman Jimmy Williams strode to the plate. Home plate umpire O'Loughlin called two strikes and then Williams hit a ground ball towards third.
John (Schoolboy) Knight, the Athletics third baseman, stepped back to field the ball—right into the path of Keeler who was racing towards third. Keeler fell onto the dirt as the ball rolled into left field and Conroy crossed the plate. Keeler got up and also scored, tying the game. Philadelphia's players ran towards O'Loughlin, screaming for Keeler to be called out on runner's interference. O'Loughlin, never one to tolerate excessive complaining, ordered the A's at least two times to stop their argument and leave the field. When they refused to comply O'Loughlin ended the game, awarding the Yankees a 9-0 victory by forfeit. Elberfeld must have at least been happy with the turn of events—despite receiving a suspension from AL president Ban Johnson. The Yankees were certainly pleased. It was their ninth win in a row. They would not stop there.
The next day the Yankees won another double-header up in Boston (the amount of double-headers played in this early period is astonishing compared to today's schedules). The Yanks blasted the Red Sox 7-0 in the first game in support of pitcher Walter Clarkson. Al Orth was in total control in the second game as New York shut out the Sox 1-0. Bill Hogg kept the Red Sox in check on Wednesday, September 5th, and the Yanks rolled on 6-1. They returned to the friendly confines of the Hilltop on Thursday and continued their winning ways against the Red Sox and the Athletics, capping it off with an 11-4 rout against Philadelphia on Saturday, September 8th, behind the pitching of Chesbro. The Yankees had won 15 games in a row! Their record stood at 77-48 and they were in first place. Was the juggernaut that Ban Johnson wanted to create in Manhattan, and the winning team which Farrell and Devery hoped they were getting, finally in full formation? Was the 1906 American League pennant within the Yankees' reach?
Unfortunately, the second place White Sox went on a winning streak of their own, taking 7 games in a row from September 12th to the 18th, vaulting from second place to first with an 83-51 record. The Yankees visited Chicago on Friday, September 21, and struck back, sweeping yet another double-header by scores of 6-3 and 4-1 with important pitching contributions from Chesbro in the opener and Bill Hogg in the second game, placing and keeping New York in first place. A brief setback occurred on Saturday. "Smiling" Al Orth didn't have his best stuff and the White Sox took the contest 7-1. The Yanks found themselves half a game out of first. Sunday's game was a pitcher's duel between Bill Hogg and Chicago right-hander Ed Walsh (on his way to a 17-13 record). Hogg limited the White Sox to two hits and the Yankees prevailed 1-0. "There were over 30,000 maddened fans on the field, packed like barrels of mackerels in the stands," said the Washington Post the next day. A look at the box score reveals that the 31-year-old Elberfeld, batting lead-off; at .306, and the veteran Keeler, the second place hitter, at .304, were an effective combination. First baseman Chase batted third, with 76 RBI, second to only the Yankee clean-up hitter and most valuable cog in the lineup—Jimmy Williams, with 77 RBI.
The White Sox, on the other hand, were well on their way to earning the nickname "The Hitless Wonders," the game Hogg pitched against them being indicative of their typical offensive attack for the season. While the overall Yankee team batting average in 1906 was .266 (second only to the Indians at .279), the team batting average for the White Sox was only .230. A .300 batting statistic was an unknown to any starting player on the Chicago team. Second baseman Frank Isbell came closest with a .279 average. Veteran shortstop George Davis, 35, contributed 80 RBI, 23 more than any other player on the team. The Chicago pitching staff more than made up for the lack of offensive firepower—left-hander Niek Altrock and right-hander Frank Owen won 20 and 22 games respectively, Ed Walsh won 17 and lefty Doc White went 18-6 (with a microscopic 1.52 ERA). Overall, the White Sox starters had an ERA of 2.13.
Greatness in Waiting: An Illustrated History of the Early New York Yankees, 1903-1919
Ray Istorico
McFarland, Feb 1, 2008 - 232 pages
Before they acquired Babe Ruth or won a single championship, the New York Yankees (originally Highlanders) were a team that inspired the strongest of feelings in baseball circles. Stars such as Jack Chesbro, Hal Chase, and Brooklyner Willie Keeler drew loud followings, and the team made loyal fans of those who disliked the cross-town Giants or Dodgers. Even Ban Johnson prized the franchise, which gave his upstart American League a foothold in the nation's most populous city. Baltimoreans, on the other hand, nurtured an animus toward the team, which only a few years earlier had been called the Orioles. And former Orioles manager John McGraw hatched a plan, along with Giants owner Andrew Freedman, to sabotage the new club. This heavily illustrated volume combines a fully documented history of the deadball-era Yankees with more than 190 photos of the people, places, and events that figured prominently in the story.
Ray Istorico
McFarland, Feb 1, 2008 - 232 pages
Before they acquired Babe Ruth or won a single championship, the New York Yankees (originally Highlanders) were a team that inspired the strongest of feelings in baseball circles. Stars such as Jack Chesbro, Hal Chase, and Brooklyner Willie Keeler drew loud followings, and the team made loyal fans of those who disliked the cross-town Giants or Dodgers. Even Ban Johnson prized the franchise, which gave his upstart American League a foothold in the nation's most populous city. Baltimoreans, on the other hand, nurtured an animus toward the team, which only a few years earlier had been called the Orioles. And former Orioles manager John McGraw hatched a plan, along with Giants owner Andrew Freedman, to sabotage the new club. This heavily illustrated volume combines a fully documented history of the deadball-era Yankees with more than 190 photos of the people, places, and events that figured prominently in the story.
