And Manager John McGraw’s Giants, down three games to two in the 1917 Series, were back at their old tricks in Game 6. And it wasn’t pretty. Rube Benton of the Giants and Red Faber of the Chicago White Sox were engaged in a 0-0 struggle when the American Leaguers came to bat in the fourth inning. Eddie Collins led off and grounded to Giants third baseman Heinie Zimmerman, who made a base-throwing error on the play. Joe Jackson’s ensuing fly ball dropped by right fielder Dave Robertson, leaving the White Sox with runners on third and first.
Happy Felsch then grounded back to Benton, who saw Collins break from third and threw to Zimmerman in an attempt to get Collins hung up. Zimmerman ran Collins toward home plate; the White Sox star bounded past catcher Bill Rariden to make it a Zimmerman-Collins race to the plate. Collins won, with major assists from Rariden, Benton and first baseman Walter Holke, all of whom left the plate unattended as Zimmerman chased Collins across it. Jackson moved to third and Felsch to second during rundown, and they scored Chick Gandil’s single. Faber already had enough runs to win.
The Giants cut the deficit to one with a two-run fifth, but the White Sox salted away the victory and their second World Series crown with an insurance run in the ninth, winning, 4-2.
Faber, besides winning Game 6, also was victorious in Games 2 and 5, the latter triumph coming in relief. But Faber had some off moments, too, as in the fifth inning of the second game when he tried to steal third base — which was occupied at the time by teammate Buck Weaver. And he was a 5-0 loser in Game 4 as the Giants’ Ferdie Schupp pitched a seven-hitter and Benny Kauff slammed two homers.
Eddie Cicotte, a 28-game winner, beat the Giants and pitching rival Slim Sallee, 2-1, in the Series opener and Felsch added a homer. After Faber’s 7-2 victory the next day pushed Manager Pants Rowland’s White Sox into a two-games-to-none lead, New York tied the Series on the shutout pitching of Benton (a five-hit, 2-0 victory) and Schupp. But the White Sox regained the Series lead in Game 5, breaking loose for three runs in both the seventh and eighth innings and winning, 8-5. Five players — Chicago’s Collins, Jackson and Felsch and New York’s Robertson and Rariden — had three hits..
The chain of events set the stage for Game 6, another not-so-memorable moment in Giants history.
While Faber grabbed most of the headlines in the 1917 World Series, the Giants’ Robertson was another notable performer. Despite his costly error in Game 6, Robertson won plaudits for his 11-for-22 performance at the plate. Collins was a force, too, as evidenced by his .409 average for the White Sox.
In an oddity, famed Olympic Games athlete and football star Jim Thorpe made the only Series “appearance” of his major-league career in Game 5 — but never got onto the playing field. Listed as the Giants’ starting right fielder for that game, the righthanded-hitting Thorpe, positioned sixth in the batting order, was removed for a lefthanded pinch-hitter, Robertson, in the top of the first inning after the White Sox had lifted lefthanded starter Reb Russell in favor of righthander Cicotte.
Still, nothing in this fall classic stood out quite like the Giants’ knack for coming up with the big misplay. Again.
This article was originally published on TSN
Game Recaps from Retrosheet
1917 World Series Stories
The 1917 Post-Season Games
World Series: Chicago White Sox (4) defeated New York Giants (2)
World Series Game 1 Played on Saturday, October 6, 1917 (D) at Comiskey Park I
NY N 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 - 1 7 1 CHI A 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 x - 2 7 1
BOX+PBP WP: Cicotte (1-0) LP: Sallee (0-1) HR: Felsch (1)
World Series Game 2 Played on Sunday, October 7, 1917 (D) at Comiskey Park I
NY N 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 2 8 1 CHI A 0 2 0 5 0 0 0 0 x - 7 14 1
BOX+PBP WP: Faber (1-0) LP: Anderson (0-1)
World Series Game 3 Played on Wednesday, October 10, 1917 (D) at Polo Grounds V
CHI A 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 0 5 3 NY N 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 x - 2 8 2
BOX+PBP WP: Benton (1-0) LP: Cicotte (1-1)
World Series Game 4 Played on Thursday, October 11, 1917 (D) at Polo Grounds V
CHI A 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 0 7 0 NY N 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 2 x - 5 10 1
BOX+PBP WP: Schupp (1-0) LP: Faber (1-1) HR: Kauff 2 (2)
World Series Game 5 Played on Saturday, October 13, 1917 (D) at Comiskey Park I
NY N 2 0 0 2 0 0 1 0 0 - 5 12 3 CHI A 0 0 1 0 0 1 3 3 x - 8 14 6
BOX+PBP WP: Faber (2-1) LP: Sallee (0-2)
World Series Game 6 Played on Monday, October 15, 1917 (D) at Polo Grounds V
CHI A 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 1 - 4 7 1 NY N 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 - 2 6 3
BOX+PBP WP: Faber (3-1) LP: Benton (1-1)
