Season 6 is over, and we've crowned a new champion. Resolutes or Blue Legs? Recap below!
It was apparent right from the start that Radbourn and Clarkson both had their best stuff working. Radbourn's only mistake was grooving a pitch that Jake Beckley mashed for a triple in the second. Beckley scored on Frank Grant's sacrifice fly, giving the Resolutes an early 1-0 lead.
After that score, the pitchers settled in for a fearsome duel. Baserunners were few and far between, and the game moved quickly. In the blink of an eye, it was the bottom of the sixth and Pete Hill had just singled. Hill dashed for second, but King Kelly -- healthy once more -- gunned him down with a perfect throw. The Resolutes failed to steal a base in this game after swiping five against Frank Chance in Game 4.
The score remained 1-0, but the Blue Legs had a golden opportunity in the top of the seventh with runners at the corners and only one out. Hughie Jennings, however, bounced the ball weakly toward first, allowing Beckley to field it cleanly. The big first baseman stepped on the bag and threw to second base to execute the rare and exciting 3-6 double play. Clarkson had escaped the jam, and was now six outs away from matching his understudy, Christy Mathewson, who had authored the league's first-ever playoff shutout in the previous contest.
With the pitcher's spot leading off in the eighth, the Blue Legs lifted Radbourn for a pinch hitter. Radbourn had given them seven innings of one-run ball, but Clarkson had been just that much better. After pinch hitter Chance failed to reach base, Billy Hamilton singled and soon was bolting for second. He had absolutely owned Connie Mack all through this series, but Mack threw him out in this absolutely pivotal moment.
Al Spalding came in to pitch for the Legs and got three quick outs in the bottom of the eighth, setting the stage for a ninth inning that would determine the fate of two franchises. Nap Lajoie, Dan Brouthers, and King Kelly were next in line for the desperate Blue Legs, for whom a 1-0 deficit had never seemed so insurmountable. Lajoie grounded out and then Brouthers flied out to center. No game-winning homer for him tonight. The Blue Legs were down to their final out. Star catcher King Kelly lofted one into right field, and it fell harmlessly into the glove of Elmer Flick.
Game over. The Resolutes are champions!
We didn't get our first playoff shutout until Season 6. Turns out it would only take one more game to get the next one. Baseball is funny that way! On a related note, the key number for this series is 18; since winning Game 3 on Big Dan's walk-off bomb, the league's best offense went 18 straight innings without scoring a run. That, my friends, was a pretty epic collapse. Even so, I have to hand it to the Resolutes, who beat the odds and truly earned this championship.
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