Season 4 Championship, Game 1

Game 1 offered no small amount of drama! 

Right from the get-go, it was clear that Mickey Welch didn't have his best stuff. He allowed a lot of hits throughout the game, but managed to keep the Canaries off the board until Honus Wagner had an RBI groundout in the top of the third. Jesse Burkett tied the game in the bottom of the inning with a run-scoring single. 

In the fifth, Canaries star Ed Delahanty struck out on an awkward swing and was removed from the game. I consulted Dr. Dee Twenty (get it?), and it turns out that Delahanty will miss an additional game recovering from the strain. That's a huge blow for the Canaries. Delahanty has played his entire career for this team and has been a model of consistency and excellence over the past four seasons. Reserve outfielder Pete Hill will take his place in the meantime.

Things started to look up for the Birds in the top of the sixth, when ace pitcher Tim Keefe helped his cause with an RBI base knock, putting his team ahead by one. Their slim advantage wouldn't last for very long. Keefe took the mound in the bottom of the frame and promptly gave up a leadoff single to Cap Anson. Next up was Big Sam Thompson, who has absolutely owned Keefe this year. Thompson crushed a two-run shot that gave his team its first lead of the night. Thompson was followed by catcher Roger Bresnahan, who blasted a solo bomb on the very next pitch. For only the third time in league history -- and the first time ever in the playoffs -- teammates had hit back-to-back homers. Keefe wouldn't surrender another run, but the damage was done, and reliever Rube Foster finished up for the Birds.

Staked to a 4-2 advantage, Welch settled in and cruised through the later innings. In the ninth, he got two quick outs before giving up a single to George Davis. The next batter, left fielder Fred Clarke, legged out a triple that brought Davis home and tightened the score to 4-3. With the tying run just 90 feet away, Buck Ewing dug in against Welch. The veteran catcher couldn't square up to Welch's wicked screwball and grounded out to end the game. 

Game 2 will shift to the Canaries' field, and the Haymakers will try to claim their third straight league championship!