1929 World Series

vs. 1929 World Series (4-1) Philadelphia Athletics (104-46, AL) vs. Chicago Cubs (98-54, NL) BR 1929 World Series Summary

In the 1929 World Series, the Philadelphia Athletics beat the Chicago Cubs in 5 games.

Cubs players in the dugout (Stereogram photo)

The famous "Mack Attack" occurred in 1929, named for the legendary manager of the Athletics, Connie Mack, in which the Athletics overcame an eight-run deficit by scoring ten runs in the 7th inning of Game 4. The inning featured an infamous Cubs moment when center fielder Hack Wilson lost Mule Haas' fly ball in the sun, resulting in a bases-clearing, inside-the-park home run, although the A's still trailed 8-7 at that point.

Game 1 featured a surprise start by aging A's pitcher Howard Ehmke, whose record 13 strikeouts bested Ed Walsh's record from 1906 by 1, and stood until Carl Erskine broke it by 1 in 1953. Since the 1929 pennant races were decided by mid-August, Connie Mack had sent Ehmke out two weeks in advance to scout the Cubs hitters, and a well-rested and obviously well-informed Ehmke delivered the performance of his career.

Records: Philadelphia Athletics (W: 104, L: 46, Pct: .693, GA: 18) - Chicago Cubs (W: 98, L: 54, Pct: .645, GA: 10 ½)

Managers: Connie Mack (Philadelphia), Joe McCarthy (Chicago)

Umpires: Bill Klem (NL), Bill Dinneen (AL), Charlie Moran (NL), Roy Van Graflan (AL)

Summary

AL Philadelphia Athletics (4) vs. NL Chicago Cubs (1)

Game	Score	Date	Location	Attendance
1	Athletics – 3, Cubs – 1	October 8	Wrigley Field	50,740
2	Athletics – 9, Cubs – 3	October 9	Wrigley Field	49,987
3	Cubs – 3, Athletics – 1	October 11	Shibe Park	29,921
4	Cubs – 8, Athletics – 10	October 12	Shibe Park	29,921
5	Cubs – 2, Athletics – 3	October 14	Shibe Park	29,921

Matchups

Game 1

October 8, 1929 at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illinois

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Philadelphia (A)	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	3	6	1
Chicago (N)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	8	2
W: Howard Ehmke (1-0)   L: Charlie Root (0-1)
HR: PHI – Jimmie Foxx (1)

The 35-year-old Howard Ehmke's first-game appearance was no sentimental move by Connie Mack. The pitcher was considered to be over the hill; he'd won only seven games, pitched only two complete games, and worked a total of 55 innings in the regular season. Mack chose Ehmke over Lefty Grove or George Earnshaw because he thought the hard-hitting Cubs would find Ehmke's pitches baffling. He was proven right, as Ehmke struck out 13 Cubs, a Series record that would stand until 1953. Howard had spent the last few weeks of the season scouting the Cubs. (Source: Lee Allen, The American League Story, 1961)

Game 2

October 9, 1929 at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illinois

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Philadelphia (A)	0	0	3	3	0	0	1	2	0	9	12	0
Chicago (N)	0	0	0	0	3	0	0	0	0	3	11	1
W: George Earnshaw (1-0)   L: Pat Malone (0-1)   S: Lefty Grove (1)
HR: PHI – Jimmie Foxx (2). Al Simmons (1)

Jimmie Foxx became the first player to homer in his first two World Series games.

Game 3

October 11, 1929 at Shibe Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Chicago (N)	0	0	0	0	0	3	0	0	0	3	6	1
Philadelphia (A)	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	9	1
W: Guy Bush (1-0)  L: George Earnshaw (1-1)

Game 4

October 12, 1929 at Shibe Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Chicago (N)	0	0	0	2	0	5	1	0	0	8	10	2
Philadelphia (A)	0	0	0	0	0	0	10	0	x	10	15	2
W: Eddie Rommel (1-0)  L: Sheriff Blake (0-1)   S: Lefty Grove (2)
HR: CHI – Charlie Grimm (1) PHI – Mule Haas (1), Al Simmons (2)

After Hack Wilson's miscue on Mule Haas' hit, an unknown fan wrote lyrics to "My Old Kentucky Home" beginning with "The sun shone bright into poor Hack Wilson's eyes..." and ended "So we'll sing one song for the game and fighting Cubs, for the record whiffing Cubs far away." Manager Joe McCarthy, of course, was not in a jovial mood. When a boy came by after the game asking for a baseball, Marse Joe muttered, "Come back tomorrow, and stand behind Wilson, and you'll be able to pick up all the balls you want!" (Source: Baseball's Greatest Managers, 1961

Game 5

October 14, 1929 at Shibe Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Chicago (N)	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	2	8	1
Philadelphia (A)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	3	6	0
W: Rube Walberg (1-0)  L: Pat Malone (0-2)
HR: PHI – Mule Haas (2)

Composite Box

1929 World Series (4-1): Philadelphia Athletics (A.L.) over Chicago Cubs (N.L.)

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Philadelphia Athletics	0	0	3	3	1	0	12	2	5	26	48	4
Chicago Cubs	0	0	0	4	3	8	1	0	1	17	43	7
Total Attendance: 190,490   Average Attendance: 38,098
Winning Player’s Share: – $5,621   Losing Player’s Share – $3,782

External links

• 1929 World Series at WorldSeries.com (MLB.com)
• 1929 World Series at Baseball-Almanac.com
• 1929 World Series box scores and play-by-play at Retrosheet.org

Further Reading

• Bill Kashatus: Connie Mack's '29 Triumph, McFarland, Jefferson, NC, 1999.
• Jimmy Keenan: "The 1929 Mack Attack", in Morris Levin, ed.: From Swampoodle to South Philly: Baseball in Philadelphia and the Delaware Valley, The National Pastime, SABR, 2013, pp. 185-190.
• Norm King: "The 1929 World Series game-by-game summary", in Gregory H. Wolf, ed.: Winning on the North Side: the 1929 Chicago Cubs, SABR, Phoenix, AZ, 2015, pp. 283-287. ISBN 978-1-933599-89-2
• David S. Neft and Richard M. Cohen: The World Series, 1st ed., St Martins Press, New York, NY, 1990, pp. 128-131.
• Bruce A. Rubenstein: Chicago in the World Series, 1903-2005: The Cubs and White Sox in Championship Play, McFarland, Jefferson, NC, 2006.

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