June 18, 1908 - Cubs win, Badass defense to thank
Cubs defeat the Giants 7-5 in a see-saw battle at the Polo Grounds
Who's the big winner? Frank Schulte is the big winner!
Despite an offense-heavy day that saw 12 total runs, it was outfielder Frank Schulte who was the hero of the day ... making three spectacular plays on defense to preserve the win for the Cubs. Schulte made a diving catch on a bloop hit (called "the swellest catch seen in years" by the Chicago Tribune), threw a guy out at home, and robbed a home run at the fence. He also went 2-5 at the plate. I'd say that's a pretty damn good day!
By the way ... Schulte totally looks like a character from Boardwalk Empire. He'd be that guy who would never speak (and you weren't sure if he even knew how), and he'd crack somebody's head open anytime Nucky needed him to ...
Also noteworthy from this game is the fact that the Chicago Tribune made sure to point out the INSANE number of pitchers that Giants manager John McGraw "used up" during the game. Guess how many pitchers he used?
Three.
THREE!
Yup ... that's the 1908 version of "Taxing Your Bullpen."
Hey a fun tidbit about Giants manager (and future Hall of Famer) John McGraw ... smiling was BANNED in the dugout. Yup ... there's no crying in baseball, and there's apparently no smiling either.
Everybody say hello to John ... John hates smiling. He and Buddy the Elf would definitely not get along ...
Speaking of pitchers and the totally different way they were treated in this era, Cubs starter Ed Reulbach got yanked in the third inning after walking five batters. In today's game, that would probably mean a side session or two to work on your command.
Meanwhile in 1908, that meant player-manager Frank Chance telling the Chicago Tribune that he was going to make Reulbach start the next game, as well as every game after that "until he gets so he can pitch a straight ball across the plate." Enjoy your dead arm, Ed!
By the way ... Big Ed went 24-7 on the season with an ERA of 2.03 ... so get off his back!
So thanks to the stellar defense of Schulte, the Cubs win and move to 32-17 on the year. Pittsburgh also won today, so the Cubs lead over the Pirates remains at two. Game two of the four game series with the Giants is tomorrow.
