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BLACKSOX WIN WORLD SERIES
CHICAGO -- Eddie Collins drove in Game Seven’s winning run in the bottom of the 12th inning as the 1919 Chicago Blacksox defeated the 2001 Seattle Mariners. Collins, the diminutive second baseman for the greatest team of all time, was awarded the World Series MVP. He batted .308/.438/.692 with 3 homeruns, 8 RBIs, and 4 stolen bases. Lefty Williams (1-1, 1.52 ERA), pitching on three day’s rest, and matched the fully rested Mariner ace Freddie Garcia (0-0, 1.32 ERA) by tossing 5 innings and surrendering 2 runs. Eddie Cicotte (1-1, 1.54 ERA) was called out of the bullpen and pitched 6 1/3 shutout innings on only two day’s rest. Red Faber (1-0, 0.00 ERA) received the victory after pitching 2/3 of the top of the 12th inning.
The Chi-Sox trailed the Mariners three games to two after losing three straight at Safeco Field in Seattle. With Williams and Cicotte both unavailable to pitch Game Six, manager Kid Gleason gave the ball to Roy Wilkinson, the hurler who pitched an improbable shutout and drove in the only two runs in the League Championship Series against the 1980 Phillies. Wilkinson once again came through in the clutch, tempting the fates by hurling a five-hit complete game to force a Game Seven. Eddie Murphy, who had the greatest regular season for a hitter in any era, (.464 AVG, .576 OBA, 237 hits) led in average (.400), on base percentage (.482), and hits (10). In the League Championship series, he also led in the same categories (.636 AVG, .680 OBA, 14 hits).
“We did it. God gave us a second chance to win it all, and we did it,” the tearful manager Kid Gleason said. “We’ve waited a century to show the world that we were the greatest team ever to take the field. Eight of our guys made a mistake in 1919, and heaven knows that they’ve paid the price. But now all of that has been rectified, and God will allow them to join all of us in Heaven, to play baseball forever.” Seattle manager Lou Pinella looked exhausted after the game. “I thought we had the game won in the first inning after we scored two runs off Williams,” he said as he wiped tears from his eyes. “Then the Sox get two runs off Freddie (Garcia) in the bottom of the inning. Freddie didn’t give up anything in his first start, and I thought Williams was out of gas. I could not believe that he hung in there, and what Cicotte did was impossible. I have to tip my hat to Chicago. We threw Freddie, Arthur (Rhodes), Jeff (Nelson), Sasaki, and Norm (Charlton) at them, and they beat Norm in the end.”
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