Deacon Phillippe
October 8, 1902
Pittsburgh, PA
The A’s faced the Pirates again today after being shutout in game 1. Pirates player-manager Fred Clarke was feeling extremely confident as his ace hurler, Charles “Deacon” Phillippe takes the mound today. Charles is an AYZ who won 33 games during the regular season. His opponent is left handed superstar Eddie Plank, a BY who won 30 games, and was often matched up against the other team’s best hurler.
Phillippe shuts down the visitors in the first, and unlike yesterday, the buccos get off to a good start. Honus Wanger gets a two out walk and after a bit of cat and mouse with Plank steals second base. Clarke then draws a tough 8 pitch walk Bill Bransfield slips a single into right center field that scores Wagner for the first run of the day. Plank then gets out of the inning with no further damage, but with Phillippe on the mound, this could already be enough.
Lafayette Cross gets the first hit of the day with one out in the second, but is stranded at second after he stole it one out later and the Pirates waste a good opportunity in the bottom half of the inning with runners on second and third after a couple of singles and a stolen base with one out and Plank escapes with no runs allowed, and the score is still 1-0 Pittsburgh after two innings of play.
The A’s go quietly in the third, and the Pirates continue to rough up Plank, who hangs tough and strands runners on the corners in the third and the game is still at a 1-0 Pittsburgh lead at the 1/3rd mark.
The A’s tried the patient approach in the 4th inning and they got a real threat together with a pair of walks with one out, but again Phillippe showed why he was the #1 man in the rotation this season and when the Pirates strand yet another runner in the bottom of the inning the score still stands at 1-0 Pirates.
Monte Cross walked with one out in the top of the fifth inning, but Plank’s sacrifice bunt attempt was right at Phillippe for a rally killing double play, something the Pirates did not do very well this season, but the inning ended one out later with no scoring again.
Phillippe then got into a groove at last and retired the next 9 hitters until the A’s made their last, final effort of the afternoon, as Dave Fultz led off the 9th inning with a single, and stole second base. Tully Hartsel then walked, but Jasper Davis then struck out and the wind seemed to come out of the sails. Ralph Seybold grounded out and Lafayette Cross whiffed to end the game and the Pirates win 1-0 and take a two to nothing lead as the train departs for Philadelphia.
