Four Runs in Ninth Give White Sox 6 to 5 Victory Over Browns

Browns’ First Error in 23 Innings, Made by Bob La Motte; Is Fatal

By MARTIN J. HALEY. St. Louis Globe Democrat - June 3, 1926

After scoring three runs in the eighth inning and forging ahead of the White Sox, 5 to 2, yesterday, the Browns were beaten, 6 to 5, when the Sox came back with four runs in a ninth-inning rally which knocked out Milton Gaston, who with Alphonse Thomas had engaged in a pitchers' battle until the eighth inning. The Browns kayoed Thomas in their penultimate sortie, then continued to attack Hollis Thurston, but were stopped cold by Chicago's crack right-hander, Ted Lyons, in the ninth.

Upsetting Gaston in that final frame, Johnny Mostil, Moe Hunnefield and Manager Eddie Collins singled in succession, to place the score at 5 to 3. Then Earl Sheely immolated, advancing Hunnefield and Collins to third and second, from which points they scored the knotting runs when Bibb Falk lined a long single against the right field concrete.

Ballou Relieves Gaston

That attack closed Gaston’s stay on the mound, Win Ballou replacing him. On Ballou's first pitch, Falk stole second, aided by Bubbles Hargrave's wide throw to Billy Melillo. Then Alex Barrett bounced what appeared a harmless roller to La Motte, but Bob turned the grounder into a football, Falk scoring what proved to be the victorious marker from second base when the ball bounded up La Motte's arm and trickled into shallow left field.

That error, by the way, was the first for the Browns in twenty-three innings, or since the second inning of Monday's second game against Detroit. La Motte had been inserted at the short field just a few minutes prior to the miscue, as he relieved Walter Gerber, who had given way to pinch hitter Bennett during the Browns' eighth-inning flareup.

In the Browns' assault which drove Thomas to cover were five straight hits, the first of which was Hargrave's home run. This clout skidded across the pavilion roof just inside the foul line and broke the 2-2 deadlock that had existed since the third inning. Marty McManus then singled to center and Baby Doll Jacobson to left. Gerber was taken out and Bennett sent in. Thurston relieved Thomas. Bennett singled to right, McManus scoring, and Gaston singled to left, Jacobson scoring. With the head of the order now coming up, more runs seemed imminent, but Thurston suddenly became effective and retired Sam Rice and Melillo on infield outs for the inning’s end.

Prior to the eighth inning neither club had counted since the third, when each nine scored twice. For Chicago, Mostil hit a homer at the start of the third and Hunnefield singled. He advanced to second on Collins' ground out and stole third. Sheely walked and Falk lined to Jacobson, Hunnefield scoring.

The Browns' Third

In the Browns' portion of the third there were four straight singles. Rice laced to right and Melillo to center. George Sisler's blow went through Hunnefield, Rice scoring, Melillo taking third. Ken Williams got a hit when he bounced to Hunnefield, who first sought to throw to the midway in an effort to head off Sisler, then had to switch his throw to Sheely when Manager Collins failed to cover second base. Williams beat the delayed throw, after which Hargrave struck out. McManus walked, to fill the bases, but Jacobson's best was a foul to Sheely.

Following that round until the eighth, the Browns did not get the semblance of a hit off Thomas. The Sox, after their third and until their ninth got only three hits off Gaston. When the game was written, however, it didn't appear as if a battle of the mound had been waged, for the Sox wound up with thirteen hits and the Browns with eleven.

Zachary vs. Faber Today

Tom Zachary for the Browns today, probably Red Faber for Chicago.

Nine Browns were struck out by Thomas yesterday. Hargrave, incidentally, hit his homer after striking out three straight times. In three different innings, Thomas fanned two locals—Hargrave and Gerber in the second, Gerber and Gaston in the fourth and Williams and Hargrave in the fifth.

Thomas came to the Sox from Baltimore of the International League, where he won 32 and lost 12 games last year.

When the Sox took the field for the first inning, Johnny Harris was stationed in right field before Barrett found out that he was supposed to be the right fielder. The Sox already had their first inning. Tough to have secrets on ball clubs.

We've seen Eddie Collins make many a grand play, but Eddie's twenty seasons in big time are beginning to tell on him. Yesterday he pulled two bad plays. He failed to cover second base with a double play in sight in the third inning, and in the eighth, after having McManus trapped in a runup between second and third, Ed threw the ball to a Chicago player who was standing near the third-base foul line and McManus, who was about 12 feet from second at the time, retraced to safety.

Ban Johnson again was a spectator. His conferences with Ball may lead to some sort of a Brownie upheaval, but nothing has developed as yet.

Hank O'Day, the veteran National League umpire, also was a spectator. Hank is here convalescing from the appendicitis operation he underwent at St. John's Hospital in April.

Melillo made a sparkling glove-hand catch to rob Falk in the eighth.