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JOE WOOD |
FENWAY'S FIRST TEAM
1912
WORLD SERIES, GAME #4
Joe Wood baffles the Giants,
the Red Sox again take the Series lead
October 11, 1912
...
The Red Sox took the fourth game by a 3-1 margin, behind the great work by Joe Wood, notching his second victory of the series. Giants’ hitters saw the best pitcher they had faced
all season and did well to get the nine hits off his curves, drops and
changes.
Boston
took the lead 1-0 in the second inning on some clean hitting, increased it
by a run in the fourth and held the Giants safely until the seventh when
Wood was hit for two singles and a double, allowing the Giants to score
their only run. Joe Wood dominated until the sixth, when the Giants
got very busy and from that point on he was working on his nerve, with New
York fighting for every inch. Jeff Tesreau did much better since his
first attempt with the Red Sox, becoming more effective as the game moved
along. In the sixth and seventh inning he struck out five of the six
men he faced. In the field, a sensational one handed catch by Red
Murray, killed a triple by Harry Hooper in the fifth.
The
Giants played a smooth fielding game, but their best effort was tame in
comparison to the leather thrown around by the Boston infield.
Heinie Wagner showed why he is considered one of the top shortstops in the
majors. He was superb in making numerous plays like the one on Art
Fletcher’s grounder behind second base, which he picked up 10 ft behind
the bag and got him with a lightning throw to first. Larry Gardner
was also faultless in the field, also chipping in with a triple in the
second and a single in the ninth that started a Red Sox rally.
Both
Steve Yerkes and Tris Speaker failed to get sacrifice bunts down in the
first and second with no one out, cutting the Sox out of two runs which
would have given Wood a good cushion to work from, because Tesreau was
wild in the early innings. It was far from the Red Sox best game
with the bat, squandering an opportunity to take a commanding lead.
In the seventh, with two outs and Fletcher on second and only one run
behind, Moose McCormack hit a ball behind second that Yerkes smothered,
but had no chance at getting him at first. McGraw waved Fletcher
around third and Yerkes pitched a perfect throw to Hick Cady to nail
Fletcher at the plate.
The Giants really never had a chance against Wood, who was tough in the clinches, when he did his best work. Wood nailed down his victory with an insurance RBI in the ninth inning with a single of his own. The day
was cloudy and a heavy rain in the morning made the field slow, which ended up helping Wood. In the games so far, the Red Sox have played steadier in the field, with the hitting being practically even. The two teams are well matched and each game has been very close. The Red Sox now lead the
series 2-1. |
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