1913 New York Giants

1913 New York Giants / Franchise: San Francisco Giants / BR Team Page

Record: 101-51-4, Finished 1st in National League (1913 NL)

Clinched Pennant: September 27, 1913

Managed by John McGraw

Coaches: Eddie Mullaney and Wilbert Robinson

Ballpark: Polo Grounds IV

History, Comments, Contributions

The 1913 New York Giants won their third straight pennant. They got off to a middling start, as on May 27th they were in 5th place with a 16-16 record, but once they got going, there was no stopping them. They won 12 of 15 games in early June and by June 30th were just a half-game in back of the first-place Philadelphia Phillies as they headed to National League Park for a four-game series. They swept all four games, with twin aces Christy Mathewson and Rube Marquard combining to win the first three, and by the end of July had increased their lead to 8 1/2 games, never looking back after that.

By that point of his career, Mathewson had evolved from a strikeout pitcher to one who relied on his pinpoint control, as he walked just 21 batters in 306 innings, and went a record 68 consecutive innings without issuing a walk from June 19th to July 18th. He never walked more than two batters in a game all season. Mathewson, Marquard, Jeff Tesreau and Al Demaree all finished in the top ten in the National League in ERA. In fact, they occupied 4 of the top 8 spots, with Mathewson winning the title at 2.06. Their team ERA of 2.42 was the best in the circuit by almost half a run (the Pittsburgh Pirates were next at 2.90).

A very famous incident occurred in a game between the Phillies and Giants at the Baker Bowl on August 30th. In the top of the 9th inning, with New York trailing 8-6, Giants manager John McGraw asked umpire Bill Brennan to have spectators removed from the center field bleachers as they were, he claims, distracting his hitters. When Phillies acting manager Mickey Doolan refused to do so (the gesture would probably have caused a riot), he forfeited the game to the Giants, and bedlam ensued nonetheless. Brennan was attacked by irate fans when he tried to board a train out of Philadelphia later that day and had to receive armed police protection. The Phillies appealed to National League President Thomas Lynch, himself a former umpire, and he reversed the ruling, awarding the Phils an 8-6 win. It was now the Giants' turn to be appalled, and they appealed to the League's Board of Directors, who ruled that both Brennan and Lynch were wrong, and ordered the game to resume at the point where it was interrupted. That took place on October 2nd, and no further scoring occurred.

World Series

Game	Score	Date	Location	Attendance
1	Athletics - 6, Giants - 4,	October 7	Polo Grounds	36,291
2	Giants - 3, Athletics - 0 (10 innings)	October 8	Shibe Park	20,563
3	Athletics - 8, Giants - 2	October 9	Polo Grounds	36,896
4	Giants - 5, Athletics - 6	October 10	Shibe Park	20,568
5	Athletics - 3, Giants - 1	October 11	Polo Grounds	36,682

Further Reading

• 2022 San Francisco Giants Media Guide, pg. 518
• Richard Adler: Mack, McGraw and the 1913 Baseball Season, McFarland, Jefferson, NC, 2008.
• Robert D. Warrington: "The Great Philadelphia Ballpark Riot", in Morris Levin, ed.: From Swampoodle to South Philly: Baseball in Philadelphia and the Delaware Valley, The National Pastime, SABR, 2013, pp. 164-171.

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