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Message #: 17214
The unluckiest team in the universe endures its weekly dose of incredibly bad split cards, sabotage defense all over the field, out-LOBbing our opponent by the usual country mile, and a relatively new wrinkle: massive amounts of timely, rally-killing GIDPs. There were *NINE* of those in just the last 3 games of this series. Apparently we'll try anything, no matter how self-destructive, to offset our all-time record-setting LOB differential... Game 1: The Chicago LOB Machine was running smoothly as ever (200% more LOB than our opponent) and Cub batters went a perfect 0 for 10 on split card chances, getting the adverse result each and every time -- the average split card was a tick shy of 17. With all of that "support" it was all that Luckless Claude Passeau could do to keep the game close, but he did so by permitting the Giants nothing until Passeau himself could drive in the game's first run in the 4th, his single also contributing to the second run when Lenny Merullo worked a bases-loaded walk with Passeau aboard. Passeau made that lead hold up, losing a shutout only when Rudy York had a split card chance at a gopher. York does not play for the Cubs; of course he got the good split. Back-to-back MVP candidate Bill Nicholson negated that, and more, with his 3-run non-split card homer one inning later. Final score: 7-1, with Passeau tossing a complete-game 4-hitter, walking nobody and fanning 9 Giants. ================================================================================== Game 2: Three well-timed DPs (only 2 were GIDPs; we had to line into 1) thwarted rallies, and no sooner had the Cubs clawed their way back from a 2-0 deficit than Hiram Bithorn gophered one to Mel Ott which was the only non-single among the 18 hits the teams combined for today. Cubs lose a close one, 4-2, as the coffin lid closes a little more on the 1943 season. ================================================================================== Game 3: Today's themes were sabotage defense and *FOUR* timely little rally-killers hit into (plus a runner gunned at the plate). A passed ball and an error, both with 2 outs in the first inning, got the Giants off on the right foot but the Cubs rebounded with single runs here and there to take a 3-2 lead after 6 innings. Starting pitcher Tiny Bonham not only pitched adequately but contributed with the bat, garnering a couple of hits and a pair of RBI. Those came in the 7th when Bonham batted with 2 outs and the sacks full and inexplicably ignored the normal "strand the bases loaded" sign from the third base coach, and doubled. Feeling guilty about his mistake, Bonham promptly gave back the 2 runs he drove in, with the help of a 2-out blown-x play. That completed the scoring for the day, and Tiny held on for a 7-4 win. ================================================================================== Game 4: A contest quite similar to the series opener with a luckless underachieving Cubbie pitcher (Jesse Flores in this case) pitching a gem of a ballgame but having to suffer a great deal of non-support both in the field and at the plate (11 LOB, 2 more timely DPs) before his team finally got its act together. Flores went the distance, scattering 6 singles and a double, and allowing just 2 runs (0 earned) in Chicago's eventual 8-2 win. The CHN offense showed up in force just after another sabotage defense attack, with Gold Glover Marty Marion not even immune from the Keystone Cops act, which enabled the Giants to cut sharply into our lead. Nicholson homered again and second baseman Mickey Witek had a 4 for 4 day at the plate, raising his batting average to .326 -- a figure quite possibly a few points higher than his fielding average. Even with all the DPs and runners otherwise shot down on the basepaths, we achieved our customary "win" in the LOB column and remain steadfastly on pace to obliterate the all-time record for LOB futility relative to our opponents. Alan |
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