[ifspuds]

1908: Where Did THAT Come From?

Top Hitter: RF Scott Podlasek (.307, 10 HR, 71 RBI)
Top Pitcher: Dave Zike (23-10, 2.52 ERA)
Top Prospect: CF Ray “Ray of Light” Brown

Team Record: 92-62, 1st place, lost World Series to NYA 4-2
Awards: Gold Gloves: P Sam Covallini (4th), SS Travis Hunt (4th, 4th straight), RF Scott Podlasek
Trades: None.

The Pirates put off their run for a season. Apparently, they were just storing up. In an amazing worst-to-first turnaround, the Pittsburgh Pirates gathered up all the disappointment of the first 7 seasons and tossed it out the window, racing to their first pennant by 8 games over the Chicago Cubs. What was the reason for their amazing season? Pitching, pitching, pitching. The Pirates had 4 20-game winners, led by Dave Zike. Who’s Dave Zike, you ask? Nothing other than a 5th round draft pick in 1902 who came out of nowhere to join the starting rotation in 1908 after tossing 27 innings in relief in 1905-1907. All told, the 4 primary starters for the Pirates had 20 or more wins, including a breakout season from Derek Callery (20-11, 2.56 ERA). After a 10-11 April, the Pirates stormed back in May and June to keep pace with the Phillies, finishing the month of June in a tie for first. It was July that saw them surge into the lead, riding an 18-7 month to a 4.5 game cushion. They struggled in August, but so did the rest of the National League, and they finished strong, 17-7 in September.

How did the team fare in their first World Series action? In the end, they fell in 6 games to the favored New York Highlanders, who’d obliterated the American League with 102 wins. The series began in Pittsburgh, where the visitors took game 1 in extra innings on Justin Tucker’s RBI single in the 10th. Game 2 was just as exciting, as the Highlanders tied it 2-2 in the top of the 9th, but Michael “Succotash” Borkholder ripped an RBI double in the bottom half to tie the series at 1. As the series shifted to New York, the Pirates took a 6-2 lead in the 7th inning of game 3, only to see New York come storming back in the 7th and 8th to take a 7-6 win. Game 4 failed to play to form, as the Highlanders knocked Sam Covallini around en route to an 8-2 win and a 3-1 series lead. The Pirates weren’t giving up though, again riding Dave Zike to a close win, this one by the score of 2-1. But New York had the last laugh, getting a shutout from Jassen Nelson to win the 1908 World Series. Pittsburgh would be back, though.