THE RUDE AWAKENING

September 8, 1924

Rachel made the mistake of bringing her new Robins pennant over to the Polo Grounds today. The first balled-up pretzel wrapper hit the top of her hat by the 2nd inning and the first shower of peanut shells by the 4th, and then it was time for us to move our seats because I was still in my after-wedding glow and didn't feel like punching anyone's nose.

It was another pitching mismatch, but this time for the Giants. Hugh McQuillan got Wheat to bounce into a double play to end out 1st, and then New York went to work on Art Decatur. Frisch singled, O'Connell got plunked, scorching George Kelly singled and so did Hack Wilson and we were down 2-0 lickety-split.

Then Fournier smashed homer no. 29, best in the league, way out into the right bleachers and Rachel jumped up and yelled and waved her pennant until she had to duck for cover. There's always a couple good handfuls of Brooklyn fans at the Grounds, and most of them make it out alive but it always helps if you're a girl. The peanut shower happened after we tied it up in the 4th on a Brown walk, a bunt and singles from High and Taylor, and we found a more calm area just past the first base grandstand, where I convinced Rachel to roll her pennant up for a while.

It gave us bad luck. Fournier let an easy grounder go through his legs and down the right field line, a play you almost never see, Gowdy reached on a boot by Mitchell and one McQuillan double later we were down for good 4-2. Ruether tried to keep the game close by relieving Decatur in the 8th but all he did was give up two singles and a three-run cannon shot to Travis Jackson, and the hollering of the Giants fans sank us deeper in our seats.

The only good thing was that the Robins ended the season series 13-9 against them, but it didn't make Rachel any happier. She was still blaming me for making her roll up her pennant, and wouldn't talk to me for the first ten minutes after we walked out the grandstand tunnel, and I said this is stupid and it's about time we left on a real honeymoon already. "Uh-uh," she replied, "Your Phillies are playing at Ebbets tomorrow and I can't leave unless it's with a good baseball feeling."

Great. Now I have to root against my own team to get us out of town.
—Vinny

BRK 010 100 000 - 2 8 3
NYG 200 200 03x - 7 9 1

All other ball games today:

PIRATES 5-9-1, at REDS 0-6-1
Let's go down the Bucs check-list. Solid pitching performance from average pitcher? Yup, Ray Kremer shutout, strands all eleven runners he puts on base. Clutch hits from backup Johnny Gooch? Yup, two of those. Kiki Cuyler home run? Yup. Stupid untimely error by opposition? Yup, Hughie Critz again. The season series ends in an 11-11 tie, but this is is a big loss for Cincy in the pennant race department.

CUBS 11-15-0, at CARDINALS 4-9-2
The Cards get eliminated with the Bucs win, then get clawed to death by the Cubbie bears with Aldridge shutting them down. Hornsby gets two more hits and nobody cares but him.

at ATHLETICS 6-10-2, SENATORS 5-8-1 (10 innings)
Whoa, boy. Butterworth better get back to work soon because his league could have an actual race a-brewin'. It's the third dumb loss in a row by the Nats, this time on a Dykes single off Russell in extras after Sam Rice lets a Max Bishop single dunk in front of him in the 7th, then skip by him for a 3-base error and tie game.

at RED SOX 8-11-3, YANKEES 6-12-0
Leave it to the Yanks to not get over .500 with a completely stinky game at Fenway. Up 3-0 in the 2nd, Waite Hoyt allows two Boston walks and four straight singles to put his team behind. New York gets two right back and then Hoyt allows two more walks and three more singles in the 5th and the Sox never trail. Ruth chips in with an 0-for-5 show. There's three more games to play up there between these two, with Boston just a half game behind them again.

NATIONAL LEAGUE through Monday, September 8
Pittsburgh Pirates	85	51	.625	—
Brooklyn Robins	79	59	.572	7
New York Giants	78	59	.569	7.5
Cincinnati Reds	78	60	.565	8
Chicago Cubs	69	68	.504	16.5
St. Louis Cardinals	65	71	.478	20
Philadelphia Phillies	55	82	.401	30.5
Boston Braves	39	98	.285	46.5
AMERICAN LEAGUE through Monday, September 8
Washington Senators	83	52	.615	—
Detroit Tigers	76	61	.555	8
Chicago White Sox	71	65	.522	12.5
New York Yankees	67	68	.496	16
Boston Red Sox	67	69	.493	16.5
St. Louis Browns	65	73	.471	19.5
Philadelphia Athletics	58	78	.426	25.5
Cleveland Indians	59	80	.424	26