The 1934 MLB champion St. Louis Cardinals hosted the 1934 NNL champion Philadelphia Stars at Sportsman's Park for Game 1 of their semifinal matchup. With the Stars dominant southpaw Slim Jones (20-4, 1.29 ERA) facing the Cards 30-game winner Dizzy Dean, a pitchers' duel seemed likely. But few could have predicted the extent of the mound excellence that was about to ensue.
Philadelphia put men at the corners with one out in the top of the fourth, but Dean escaped the jam with a strikeout and a ground out. Ernie Orsatti tripled with one out in the bottom of the fifth, but Jones extinguished the threat with a line out and a strikeout. Both aces were at the top of their game, handcuffing the batters in both lineups. With the game tied 0-0 after nine, the starters continued their duel into extras. Dean tossed 11 shutout frames before yielding the mound to Dazzy Vance. Jones did him one better, not allowing a run in 12 innings.
The scoreless tie continued into the 14th inning. St. Louis reliever Bill Walker sent the visitors down in order in the top of the frame. With one out in the home half of the inning, Frankie Frisch singled off fellow player-manager Webster McDonald. Frisch then called for a hit and run, which paid off when Ripper Collins singled to send him to third. McDonald intentionally walked Joe Medwick to set up a force at the plate. Batting with the bases loaded, Cardinals right fielder Jack Rothrock made solid contact, driving the ball to within a couple strides of the warning track in left. Deep enough for Frisch to sprint home with the winning run. And so ended this epic battle--the longest Diamond Legacies game I have ever played.
Cardinals 1, Stars 0 (14 innings)
Next up, Game 2 of the Yankees-Indians series.
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