Cubs Retro Recap: May 2, 1917

“For nine innings, neither the Reds’ Fred Toney nor the Cubs’ Hippo Vaughn did not give up a single hit.”

I’m sorry, I don’t know how to do a block quote from my phone.

…of August 1965, also won by the Reds 1-0 in extra innings on a no-hitter by a Reds hurler. In the later game, Chico Cardenas took on Jim Thorpe’s role as spoiler with a home run off the left field foul pole. I believe these are the only two games in which the Cubs have been victimized by a no-hitter at the Friendly Confines – not bad for 96 years.

Al, if you have contacts at ‘GN, maybe you can see if a tape of that ’65 game exists. If you think of it, ask also about a possible recording of a Tenth Inning interview of Hippo Vaughn by Jack Brickhouse made in the very early ’60’s, done after the station had started taping most of its baseball programming. It was a great interview that focused on the double-no-hit game, and I think Jack might have arranged to have it archived, much as he did his well-known Tenth Inning interview with Branch Rickey.

I’d ask about it myself, but I did that years ago and got a form letter in return from (IIRC) Bob Vorwald indicating the station has no baseball archive. Of course, the many ’GN clips that have surfaced through the years tell a different story.

When things go wrong, they really go wrong. Would’ve had the game if. OT for fielding errors.

I find it interesting that many people seem to think of Wrigley as a hitters park. I don’t think it is necessarily proven to be true. The wind flips it quickly.

You just can’t make these names up. What a baseball history, these names help tell a great story.

Al, you’re depressing me with all the losing games and 100 loss seasons with the weather outside very May-like. Throw in some great games from great Cub seasons. I love these old recaps BTW.

…why they drop them on the field at the end of an inning is a mystery to me. Don’t they know they could trip on them and tear their ACL?

…a little like the monuments at old Yankee Stadium, or the batting cage in center at Forbes Field. A lesser man than Cubs 1917 centerfielder Les Mann might have had trouble playing the caroms off those two-by-fours at the base.

… the wall you see in right field, in front of the buildings on Sheffield, remained as the outer wall of the bleachers until they were renovated in 2005.

…Charlie Dressen, the Popeye Zimmer of his time, was the Decatur Staleys’ original quarterback. You could count on Jack Brickhouse to mention it often.

But what I did not realize until today when I looked-up the 1917 Cubs was that Bears’ occasional Head Coach Paddy Driscoll was a utility infielder on that 1917 squad. So both Halas and Driscoll played in MLB. Halas used to say that his biggest thrill in sports was hitting a foul ball “home run” off the great Walter Johnson.

It’s worth noting that Driscoll had three big league hits, Halas only two.

So the Reds had a string of 34 no hit innings – does this mean they were coming off of two consecutive no hit games? Thats gotta be a major league record, no? Has anyone else ever been no hit back to back?

1 penny = 18 cents today. What’s more, gold coins were very common back then, as the US was still on the gold standard.