1914 Boston Braves: Bouncing Back

1914 Boston Braves: Bouncing Back

1914 Boston Braves: Bouncing Back

The record books will say that the Boston Braves finished the 1914 season with a 94-59 record, winning the National League pennant by 10 games over the New York Giants, but one would need to look deeper at just how the Braves arrived at this position. Up until July 4 the Braves had the worst record in the National League, going 26-40 and sitting in dead last in the standings. However, thanks in part to the tremendous starting pitching trio of Dick Rudolph, Bill James and Lefty Tyler, the Braves bounced back in the final 89 games, going 70-19 the rest of the way and claiming 1st place on September 8. From that point on the Braves never looked back.

Ties were not officially recognized in Major League Baseball in 1914, but the Braves had 5 ties, 2 against the Cincinnati Reds, and 1 tie each against the New York Giants, Pittsburgh Pirates and St. Louis Cardinals.

Outfielder Joe Connolly batted .306 with 9 home runs and 65 RBI’s off 122 hits, 28 doubles, 10 triples and 12 stolen bases. First baseman Butch Schmidt batted .285 with 71 RBI’s off 153 hits, 17 doubles, 9 triples and 14 stolen bases. Second baseman Johnny Evers batted .279 with 137 hits, 20 doubles, 3 triples and 12 stolen bases. Outfielder Les Mann had 4 home runs off 96 hits, 16 doubles, 11 triples and 9 stolen bases. Outfielder Ted Cather batted .297 in 50 games with 11 doubles and 7 stolen bases. Catcher Hank Gowdy had 3 home runs off 89 hits, 17 doubles, 6 triples and 14 stolen bases.

Third baseman Red Smith batted .314 in 60 games and had 3 home runs, 17 doubles and 4 stolen bases. Outfielder George “Possum” Whitted had 11 doubles, 4 triples and 10 stolen bases. Shortstop Walter “Rabbit” Maranville had 4 home runs and 78 RBI’s off 144 hits, 23 doubles, 6 triples and 28 stolen bases. Third baseman Charlie Deal had 13 doubles. Outfielder Larry Gilbert hit 5 home runs in 72 games.

Dick Rudolph went 26-10 with 138 strikeouts and a 2.35 ERA, recording 31 complete games and 6 shutouts. Bill James went 26-7 with 156 strikeouts and a 1.90 ERA, recording 30 complete games, 4 shutouts and 3 saves. Lefty Tyler went 16-13 with 140 strikeouts and a 2.69 ERA, recording 21 complete games, 5 shutouts and 2 saves. Otto Hess recorded a 3.03 ERA, 7 complete games, 1 shutout and 1 save although he went 5-6. Relief pitcher Dick Crutcher recorded a 3.45 ERA, 5 complete games and 1 shutouts although he went 5-7. Paul Strand went 6-2 with a 2.44 ERA and 1 complete game.

The 1914 World Series pitted the Boston Braves against the American League Champion Philadelphia Athletics, and for the Braves, they would have to borrow Fenway Park from their local rivals the Boston Red Sox as the South End Grounds had closed. The Athletics were heavily favored to beat the Braves.

Shibe Park in Philadelphia hosted Game 1 on October 9, and the Braves would beat the Athletics 7-1. Dick Rudolph threw a complete game, giving up 5 hits and 1 run but recording 3 strikeouts. Hank Gowdy had 3 hits in this game. In the top of the 2nd inning Gowdy had an RBI double, and Rabbit Maranville followed with an RBI single. In the bottom of the 2nd center fielder Amos Strunk had an RBI single, but that would be all for Philadelphia’s offense. Rabbit had an RBI single in the top of the 5th, Possum Whitted had a 2-run triple in the top of the 6th, and Butch Schmidt followed with an RBI single. In the top of the 8th Rabbit struck out, but a double steal by Schmidt of home plate and Gowdy of second base was successful, scoring another run.

Game 2 was a different story altogether as the Braves beat the Athletics 1-0 on October 10. Bill James pitched a complete game, giving up 2 hits and 3 walks but recording 8 strikeouts. In comparison Philadelphia pitcher Eddie Plank also pitched a complete game and gave up 7 hits, 4 walks and 1 run while recording 6 strikeouts. Les Mann and Johnny Evers both had 2 hits in this game. In the top of the 9th inning Mann had an RBI single.

Fenway Park hosted Game 3 on October 12, and the Braves narrowly beat the Athletics 5-4. In the top of the 1st inning second baseman Eddie Collins reached on a sacrifice fly ball error, which scored right fielder Eddie Murphy. In the bottom of the 2nd Gowdy had an RBI double. In the top of the 4th center fielder Jimmy Walsh had an RBI double, and then Rabbit had an RBI single in the bottom of the 4th. In the top of the 10th, Philadelphia third baseman John “Home Run” Baker had a 2-run single, and the game would get tied again in the bottom of the 10th with a solo home run by Gowdy and a sacrifice fly by Joe Connolly. In the bottom of the 12th right fielder Herbie Moran bunted the ball to third base and reached on an error to score Mann.

In Game 4 on October 13 the Braves completed their miraculous upset of the Athletics and their miraculous season by winning 3-1. Dick Rudolph pitched another complete game, giving up 7 hits, 1 walk and 1 run, but striking out 7 batters. In the bottom of the 4th inning Butch Schmidt had an RBI ground-out. Philadelphia’s only score came in the top of the 5th with an RBI double by pitcher Bob Shawkey. In the bottom of the 5th Johnny Evers put the final stamp on the World Series with a 2-run single. Game 4 lasted only 1 hour and minutes, so it didn’t take long for Boston’s National League team to start celebrating a championship. This would be the only World Series title the Braves won in Boston.