On This Date in Sports October 9, 1934: Just Ducky
In collaboration with the Sportsecyclopedia.com
The St. Louis Cardinals slam the Detroit Tigers 11-0 in Game 7 of the World Series at Navin Field. Even with the game out of reach, the Cardinals known as “the Gashouse Gang” continued to play hard as Joe Medwick injured third baseman Marv Owens with a hard slide. This raised the ire of Tiger fans leading them to throw debris at Medwick. Concerned over safety, Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis has the Cardinals left fielder removed from the game.
The St. Louis Cardinals rose into a powerhouse in the National League in 1926, beating the New York Yankees in a thrilling seven-game World Series. They returned to the series in 1928 and lost to New York but had become a National League powerhouse. The Cardinals of the ’30s were known for their aggressive hard-nosed style of play, as they won two straight pennants in 1930 and 1931, splitting a pair of Fall Classics against the Philadelphia Athletics. With dirty, grimy uniforms and an unkempt look, the players earned the nickname of “the Gashouse Gang.” Referring to dirty soot-covered workers at refining plants of the day.
The St. Louis Cardinals returned to the World Series in 1934 after posting a record of 95-58, with a lineup that featured five players with batting averages over .300. (Ripper Collins, Joe Medwick, Player-Manager Frankie Frisch, Spud Davis, and Ernie Orsatti). On the mound, the Cardinals were led by Dizzy and Daffy Dean. That season saw Dizzy Dean win the National MVP as he became the last National League pitcher to top 30 wins in a season.
In the American League, it was the Detroit Tigers reaching the World Series for the first time in 25 years after winning 101 games in the regular season. The Tigers were led by Hank Greenberg, who hit .339 with 26 home runs and 139 RBI and Charlie Gehringer, who hit .356 with 11 homer and 127 RBI while Player-Manager Mickey Cochrane won his second MVP award.
Dizzy Dean started Game 1 of the World Series General Crowder was on the mound for Detroit. With two runs in the second and one in the third, the Cardinals began working on the aggressive style of ball they were known. While Charlie Gehringer singled home a run for Detroit in the third, the Cardinals attack continued with a home run by Joe Medwick in the fifth as they eventually built at 8-1 lead in the sixth inning. The Tigers would score two runs late, including a home run by Greenberg as St. Louis took the opener 8-3.
Schoolboy Rowe made the start for the Tigers in Game 2, as the Cardinals countered with Bill Hallahan. With runs in the second and third, the Cardinals held an early 2-0 lead as they looked to take a stranglehold before going home for the middle games of the series. Still trailing 2-1 in the ninth, the Tigers tied the game on a one-out single by Gee Walker, as the game went into extra innings. Rowe would pitch all 12 innings, earning the win Goose Goslin singled home Charlie Gehringer to win the game 3-2.
At Sportsman’s Park in St. Louis for Game 3, the Cardinals called upon Paul “Daffy” Dean the lesser-known of the Dean Brothers to make the start against Tommy Bridges. Once again, the Cardinals took the early lead, scoring a run in the first a run in the second and two in the fourth. The Tigers meanwhile did not get a run until Hank Greenberg slammed a two-out triple in the ninth as the Cardinals won the game 4-1.
In Game 4, the Tigers began fighting back as Elden Auker opposed Tex Carleton on the mound. The Cardinals got a run in the second but watched helplessly as Detroit put three on the board in the third with Bill Rogell and Hank Greenberg even proving the key hits. The teams would score runs over the next few innings, as the game was deadlocked 4-4 after four. In the eighth inning, the Tigers blew the game open with six runs with Rogell and Greenberg leading the way again in a 10-4 win to even the series.
Dizzy Dean returned to the mound in Game 5, as Tommy Bridges made his second start in three games on just a single day’s rest for Detroit. Surprisingly it was Bridges standing tall, as he allowed just one run on seven hits as the Tigers went home with the series lead after 3-1 win, as Charlie Gehringer hit a home run in the sixth inning to lead the way.
Paul Dean took the mound for the Cardinals in Game 6, as they needed a win to force a seventh game at Detroit’s Navin Field, while Schoolboy Rowe hoped to pitch Detroit to a championship. After trailing 3-1, the Tigers got the momentum as they as Gehringer and Greenberg drove in the tying runs in the sixth. However, Daffy Dean came up in the seventh and knocked in Leo Durocher to again give St. Louis the lead 4-3 in the seventh. It would prove to be the final score.
Game 7 had Dizzy Dean on the mound for the Cardinals against Detroit’s Elden Auker. The Cardinals loaded the bases against Auker in the third and cashed in, as Frankie Frisch cleared the bases with a double, igniting what would be a backbreaking seven-run rally. In the sixth with the score 7-0 in favor of St. Louis, Joe Medwick knocked home Pepper Martin with a triple. On the slide into third, his spikes would catch Marv Owens in the shin. Medwick would score on a hit by Ripper Collins to make it 9-0. When he returned to his position in leftfield, fans began throwing empty bottles and rotten fruit at Ducky Medwick. Looking to restore order Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis singled over the umpires to have Medwick removed from the game to stop the Detroit riot. The Cardinals would add two more runs and won the game 11-0 to claim their third World Series Championship.