THE LORD FLIPS A COIN

June 1, 1924

Well, I went to church with Mama after breakfast today, and I guess God can't take care of everyone's prayers. I asked Him to do something nice for Rachel because her Robins were stinking bad, but all that probably did was confuse Him, because the Phillies were playing them up at Ebbets later and it's his job to take care of me first.

So I guess He just flipped a coin, because by the time I got over to Mort's to check his baseball ticker, Couch, Sand, red-hot Holke and George Harper had just led off the 3rd with hits and we had a 3-0 lead on Bill Doak, who's been nothing but great so far. A Mitchell triple and Johnston single in the 5th made it close, but Holke singled in another the next inning to put he Phils up 4-2.

Andy High whacked a 2-run homer in the 6th to tie the thing, and that's when Benny showed up with this huge grin on his face. I asked what he was so darn happy about because Brooklyn had just tied the game and he said he was having dinner out with Ruth that night. Ruth who? I asked. He looked at me like I had a faucet on my head. "Miss Philadelphia, you dope!" Seems that she had picked up that photo of her he dropped at her feet before getting hauled off, and it had two verses of an original love poem I saw him scribbling on the back. She was "swooning" the rest of the day as Benny put it, and tracked him down the next morning through the police. Which was why he never showed up at Baker Bowl. They went to Independence Hall, picnicked at the river and came close to smooching in Rittenhouse Square.

Anyway, the Phillies scored a run in the 7th on a Wilson double and another in the 9th on a bases-loaded walk, and Couch beat Brooklyn 6-4 with the help of 15 hits but Benny hardly reacted to it. His eyes lit up like fireflies every ten seconds whenever he most likely thought of the lovely Ruth. He asked if I wanted to meet her and suggested maybe she had a nice friend. So I said sure, but it would have to be after school tomorrow because I couldn't dare skip another day, and that's how I planned my Monday. The good thing is that the Phillies will be off, so that's one less thing to distract me from my school work.

Good night, reader-people!
—Vinny

PHL 003 001 101 - 6 15 0
BRK 000 022 000 - 4 9 1

Other National league games today:

at GIANTS 7-15-0, BRAVES 0-4-2
Look out, league, here come dem Giants! Bentley throws a complete 4-hit shutout and New York breaks a scoreless tie by clubbing Genewich late for all their runs as they get to within three games of the top. Guess it was just a matter of time.

at CUBS 5-9-1, PIRATES 3-9-0
The Cubs have been tough all year on the Bucs, and are now 5-6 against them. Meadows takes a 3-2 lead on Aldridge into the 7th but Grantham booms a big 3-run homer with two outs in the 7th for the ball game. Pittsburgh luck has suddenly gone to sleep.

at REDS 3-9-1, CARDNALS 2-11-3
Hornsby's double in the 6th gives St. Louis a 2-1 lead, but Sothoron and his defense give it up in the bottom of the 9th. Single, Toporcer error, double by pitcher Mays and Hornsby error and that's that. Cincy's been winning like this all season, even when smothered with injuries.

NATIONAL LEAGUE through Sunday, June 1
Pittsburgh Pirates	29	14	.674	—
New York Giants	27	18	.600	3
Cincinnati Reds	27	20	.574	4
St. Louis Cardinals	24	23	.511	7
Brooklyn Robins	22	22	.500	7.5
Chicago Cubs	21	26	.447	10
Philadelphia Phillies	20	26	.435	10.5
Boston Braves	12	33	.267	18