Merkle's Boner

[FrankWakefield]

John, good stuff there... Merkle and Pendleton.

Reminds me of the Buffalo Bills, going to the Super Bowl but not winning. So, as a player I think I'd rather go to the World Series 6 times and lose all 6 rather that play 20 years and not ever get to the World Series.

[Casey2296]

Great piece Erick.

[ParisianJohn]

Originally Posted by FrankWakefield

John, good stuff there... Merkle and Pendleton.

Reminds me of the Buffalo Bills, going to the Super Bowl but not winning. So, as a player I think I'd rather go to the World Series 6 times and lose all 6 rather that play 20 years and not ever get to the World Series.

Tough call!!! I guess I'd agree with you but to keep getting that close and losing each time. Maybe two losses would be the ideal!

I always felt badly for Pendleton as the first 3 Series he went to (1985, 1987 and 1991) were all in odd-numbered years, so at that time it meant the AL had home field advantage. It all 3 of those Series Pendleton's team had a 3-2 lead and then lost Games 6 and 7 on the road. In fact, in the last two Series all seven games were won by the home team.

Even worse yet for Terry, he played with the Braves in 1994 and 1996, but in 1995 (when they won a World Series) he was with the Marlins and missed out.

[Mark17]

Originally Posted by ParisianJohn

I always felt badly for Pendleton as the first 3 Series he went to (1985, 1987 and 1991) were all in odd-numbered years, so at that time it meant the AL had home field advantage. It all 3 of those Series Pendleton's team had a 3-2 lead and then lost Games 6 and 7 on the road. In fact, in the last two Series all seven games were won by the home team.

Even worse, Pendleton should've had the game winning RBI to win the 1991 World Series, if not for the most underrated play in World Series history: Knoblauch's fake out of Lonnie Smith:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eM5kHJUBRSE

[ParisianJohn]

Originally Posted by Mark17

Even worse, Pendleton should've had the game winning RBI to win the 1991 World Series, if not for the most underrated play in World Series history: Knoblauch's fake out of Lonnie Smith:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eM5kHJUBRSE

Oh yes, that's right! I remembered Lonnie Smith was the runner but forget it was Pendleton at the plate for that play. Ouch.

And to go back to the 1985 World Series, Pendleton's team lost Game 6 in part due to Denkinger's infamous call at first. And very similarly to Merkle in Game 8 of the 1912 World Series, while a ton of people remember Denkinger's blown call not so many remember that on the very next pitch Steve Balboni popped up in foul territory near first base and the ball wound up falling between the first baseman and the catcher (Jack Clark and Darrell Porter). Given another chance, Balboni then lined a single to the outfield to get two on with none out, giving more momentum to the Royals.

[jakebeckleyoldeagleeye]

Let's don't forget good old Steve Bartman. To me the goat is Alex Gonzalez who booted a sure double play that would have resulted in the Cubs still leading 3-1.

[pawpawdiv9]

i was just going thru a Auction--and remember this thread.
So, i also got interested and read the info around this excitement.
Wow.
Heres the xtra tad i was looking at:

Rare original Type I photograph capturing a heated argument between the New York Giants and Chicago Cubs during their historic final game on October 8, 1908, to decide the National League pennant. This is, to the best of our knowledge, one of only three known images from this game, and the only example of this photo to appear at auction. The game was a make-up of the famous “Merkle’s Boner” game on September 23rd. In that game, the Giants had seemingly defeated the Cubs in the ninth inning on a two-out base hit by Al Bridwell. However, Fred Merkle, who was on first base at the time, failed to touch second base before exiting the field (a common practice at the time). Second baseman Johnny Evers noticed this, called for the ball (there is some dispute whether he retrieved the actual ball Bridwell hit), and stepped on second for the force out, thereby negating the winning run. After a lengthy argument by the Giants, the umpires upheld the call. They also decided that it was too late to start another inning and declared the game a tie. The importance of the game became apparent at the end of the season when both clubs finished tied for first. As a result, National League president Harry Pulliam ordered that the game be replayed on October 8th at the Polo Grounds. The Giants, of course, lost the game, thereby forever immortalizing Fred Merkle’s name in the annals of baseball history.

The image pictures numerous members of the Giants and Cubs huddled together around home plate as the umpires watch the fracas. We don’t know the nature of the dispute, but Cubs catcher Johnny Kling looks particularly upset. There are no descriptive markings on the photo to identify the game or date (we know it is 1908, because the uniform style worn by the Cubs here was used only during that season). However, we can accurately determine it is from the October 8th makeup game because we found a nearly identical image, taken by George Grantham Bain, that is housed in the Library of Congress. (The Bain photograph pictures nearly the exact same scene as the offered photo, only it was taken either a few seconds earlier or later, because the position of the players is slightly different.) Bain’s photo is clearly marked by his customary etching in the negative that reads "Dispute - Giant - Cub Final Game '08."

It is incredible that given the importance of the October 8th makeup game that so few photos from the contest exist. Aside from the offered photo and the Bain example housed in the Library of Congress, the only other image we know of is that featured on a real-photo panoramic postcard that pictures a game-in-progress scene. This is both a rare and historically important Type I photo that would be welcome addition to any advanced baseball photograph, New York Giants, or Chicago Cubs collection. The photo (6.75x4.75 inches) displays a “Spooner & Wells, Inc.” credit stamp on the reverse, along with a handwritten number in pencil. There is a tiny chip in the lower-left corner, a few minor surface wrinkles, and adhesive residue on the reverse. In Excellent condition overall. PSA encapsulated as Type I Authentic.