The Baseball Hall of Shame: The Best of Blooperstown by Bruce Nash & Allan Zullo

Author:Bruce Nash & Allan Zullo [Nash, Bruce & Zullo, Allan]
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Tags: Humor, Sports & Recreation, Sports, Topic, Baseball, General, History
ISBN: 9780762784004
Google: 08_tqF69e5cC
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Published: 2012-03-06T05:00:00+00:00

RED FABER

Pitcher · Chicago, AL · October 7, 1917

In the 1917 World Series, Hall of Fame pitcher Red Faber scored his biggest triumph—and committed one of the Fall Classic’s biggest baserunning blunders.

As a pitcher for the Chicago White Sox, Faber dominated the New York Giants, beating them three times as the Sox drubbed the Giants, four games to two.

However, as a baserunner, Faber would have been better off sitting on the bench. That, apparently, was where he left his brains during the fifth inning of Game 2.

With teammate Buck Weaver on second base, Faber drilled a base hit to right field, but a strong throw home from Dave Robertson kept Weaver at third. Meanwhile, Faber, running with his head down, took second on the throw. Faber, who collected only four hits during the entire season for an abysmal .058 batting average, was thrilled with his World Series single. Assuming that Weaver had scored, Faber was so pumped that he failed to realize that Weaver was standing on third.

As the next batter, Nemo Leibold, dug in at the plate, Giants pitcher Pol Perritt didn’t even bother glancing back to second base. There was little reason for him to do so. Faber was a slow runner, and besides, Weaver was already on third. With two out and two on and the White Sox ahead 7–2, Perritt went into his windup.

Faber figured that even though he was no speed merchant on the basepaths, he could surely steal third because Perritt wasn’t pitching from the stretch. Faber just couldn’t resist the temptation and blindly scampered to third base, arriving in a nifty slide—and bewilderment.

Much to his astonishment, Faber looked up and saw Weaver peering down on him. After Faber was tagged out by third baseman Heinie Zimmerman on a peg from catcher Bill Rariden, Weaver asked his embarrassed teammate, “What the hell are you doing here?”

As Faber dusted himself off, he replied, “Why, I’m just going out to pitch, of course.”

ROGER PECKINPAUGH

Shortstop · Washington, AL · 1925 World Series

On the eve of the 1925 World Series, Washington Senators shortstop Roger Peckinpaugh was named the American League’s Most Valuable Player. Unfortunately, he was anything but that in the Fall Classic.

Peckinpaugh set a futility record that no one has come close to matching—he pecked and pawed his way to eight errors in one World Series.

Playing as if his glove was made of Portland cement, the fumbling shortstop contributed to three of his team’s losses. As a result, the Pittsburgh Pirates overcame a three-games-to-one deficit to win the world championship right out from under the shell-shocked Senators.

Peckinpaugh ranged to his right and to his left and deep in the hole to bungle balls throughout the Series.

He helped blow the second game in the eighth inning. With the score knotted at 1–1, Peckinpaugh bobbled Eddie Moore’s easy grounder. Moments later, Kiki Cuyler belted a homer, scoring Moore ahead of him, giving the Pirates a 3–2 victory.

After five games, Peckinpaugh had five errors, but the Senators were still ahead three games to two.

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