OSCAR DOES THE CHARLESTON

August 16, 1924

The Black Phils took over the Arcadia Ballroom last night, getting all kinds of free drinks, free food, and not-as-free girls. At least that's what I heard. Cy and me and Benny were a little too scared to show our faces in white public after the beating we gave the home team, even though a lot of coloreds went to this dancing club, as I remember from back in May.

"This was just a one-game thing, right?" Benny asked Cy, who just shrugged his tall shoulders and chewed on a toothpick. "Probably. Pittsburgh didn't to seem have any problems with us. Guess we'll know after tomorrow."

Well, tomorrow just happened, and I'd say we knew after the top of the 1st inning Willie Wells doubled with one out off Vic Keen, Charleston got him to third with a grounder, and Super Mule Suttles went to town with a booming triple over Jigger Statz' head in center. Stearnes and Scales doubled around a Jud Wilson walk, and four Black Phillie runs were on the board.

I guess scoring three runs most every inning yesterday wasn't good enough for these guys, because this time they racked up four more in the second. Torriente singled and stole and with two outs Oscar bashed one way out of there, snickering at me as he rounded third. Suttles then doubled and Turkey homered and I thought Keen was going to drop dead before his manager Bill Killefer had a chance to pull him.

We got a little less greedy after that, scoring only one run in the 3rd, two in the 4th and three in the 5th. Keen was actually left on the hill for all of this, and I can't blame Killefer. Why stick in worse pitchers and wear everyone out for the next one?

The crowd that was just shocked yesterday was five times more angry today. A bunch of times Turkey had to run around trash that was being thrown from the bleachers, and the umps even stopped the game once to get it cleaned up. The Cubs got mad enough themselves against Nip Winters to get homers out of Grimes and Hartnett later (Gabby's 25th!), but a lot of the fans left by the 5th inning and missed them.

Rube Foster gathered everyone in the club house after, and even he wasn't happy. "We gotta give 'em more of a chance, darlins," he said "Oscar? Better put on some bunt plays tomorrow or there won't be any fans left and they won't let us do this any more." Oscar said OK, but we all could see he wasn't doing cartwheels about it.

They dragged me and Benny back to the Arcadia tonight though, and we got a good look at Oscar being plenty happy. We'd heard he was popular with the ladies, and they were all over him like ants on a muffin crumb. He just kept smiling and grinning at each one and whispering things and soon enough he'd pulled one out on the floor and was doing a full-blown Charleston with her. They say Oscar's the most talented colored player because he can hit for average and power and run and field like the wind, but I bet they didn't know he can also skate on polished hardwood.
—Vinny

BLACK PHILLIES
441 230 200 - 16 19 0
CUBS
002 000 012 - 5 8 1

Other National League games today:

at PIRATES 3-8-1, GIANTS 2-2-2 (10 innings)
The awful Giants continue to do the league no favors, getting a total of two singles in 10 innnings off Johnny Morrison, the worst starter in the Buc rotation. New York has a 2-0 lead as late as he 7th, but no one in their right mind thinks this will hold up. Carey homers off Nehf to make it close, Clyde Barnhart (!) doubles in the 8th to tie, and after Ross Youngs' predictable two-base error with two outs in the 10th, Carey doubles in the winner.

ROBINS 6-13-1, at REDS 5-14-0
Zack Wheat goes nuts against Tom Sheehan with a homer, two singles and a double, but Cincy still makes it fun with a 2-run shot by Ike Caveney off Doak in the 8th. Ehrhardt saves it and the Robins tie the red for second again.

at CARDINALS 19-19-2, BRAVES 0-8-3
What 's getting lost in all this Cubs Park carnage is that St. Louis has destroyed the Braves even worse for two days running. That's a 32-0 score on 38 hits, folks.

NATIONAL LEAGUE through Saturday, August 16
Pittsburgh Pirates	74	39	.655	—
Cincinnati Reds	68	47	.591	7
Brooklyn Robins	68	47	.591	7
New York Giants	62	52	.544	12.5
St. Louis Cardinals	56	57	.496	18
Chicago Cubs	54	59	.478	20
Philadelphia Phillies	44	71	.383	31
Boston Braves	30	84	.263	44.5