Random Game Story
Baseball Player Won-Loss Records
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Brooklyn Dodgers at Philadelphia Phillies, Baker Bowl, Philadelphia, PA
September 4, 1929


Introduction

My series of random game stories goes back to the 1920s: to 1929 specifically for the second time. And, ironically, my second 1929 game takes place in the same place as my first 1929 game, a mere eight days later. This time, the Philadelphia Phillies opponent is the Brooklyn Robins. The Robins got their nickname from their manager, Hall-of-Famer Wilbert Robinson. Robinson would retire after the 1931 season and the Robins would be rechristened by the nickname for which they are still known to this day, the Dodgers.

This game (which was the first game of a doubleheader) was a battle between the fifth- and sixth-place teams in the National League. The Robins entered play with a 1-1/2 game lead over the Phillies in the (somewhat meaningless) battle for fifth place. The Phillies' starting pitcher was left-hander Harry Smythe. Smythe's first major-league start was eight days earlier. He entered this game, his third start, with a record of 3-1 with a 2.27 ERA.

Smythe had his work cut out for him. Because his opponent was arguably the best pitcher in the National League, perhaps in the major leagues: Dazzy Vance. In the previous season, 1928, Vance had won 22 games (22-10 for a team that finished 77-76) and led the NL in ERA (2.09), shutouts (4), WHIP (1.063), and strikeouts (200). The 1928 season was the seventh consecutive season in which Vance had led the league in strikeouts. So far, however, 1929 had been a bit of an off-year for Vance, who entered the game with a 10-11 record and a 3.59 ERA.

First Inning
The first batter to face Smythe was Eddie Moore, who beat out a groundball to shortstop Tommy Thevenow. Johnny Frederick grounded back to Smythe. The next batter, Babe Herman also hit a grounder back to Smythe who caught Moore too far off second base and tagged him out. Herman was then caught stealing to end the inning.

The bottom of the first inning was even quicker as Vance put the Phillies down 1-2-3.

Second - Third Innings
The second inning was nearly as uneventful as the first inning. Wally Gilbert hit a two-out single to right field in the top of the inning but was thrown out trying to stretch it to a double.

Chuck Klein led off the bottom of the second with a single but he got no farther than second base with the inning ending with the first strikeout of the game.

Hall-of-Fame shortstop Dave "Beauty" Bancroft led off the top of the third with a single to center field. He made it to third base but via groundouts by the next two batters. Moore made it three straight groundouts and the inning was over.

The bottom of the third inning saw the game's first extra-base hit, a double by Fresco Thompson. But it came with two outs and after a walk to Bernie Friberg, Vance got Lefty O'Doul to ground out to end the inning and keep the game scoreless.

Fourth Inning
The pitchers' duel continued in the top of the fourth inning as Smythe pitched his third three-batter inning - the first one that was a true 1-2-3 inning.

Chuck Klein grounded out to lead off the bottom of the fourth inning. But Pinky Whitney singled to left-center field. And Don Hurst finally broke the scoreless tie with a two-run home run to right field. Thevenow followed with a double to left field. And when Walt Lerian followed that with a walk, the Phillies looked poised for a huge inning. But Smythe hit into a 6-4-3 double play and the Phillies had to be content with a 2-0 lead after four innings.

Fifth - Seventh Innings
The fifth inning saw the two teams trade doubles. Gilbert doubled with one out in the top of the inning but got no farther than second base. Klein doubled with a runner on first base and two out in the bottom of the inning. But Friberg stopped at third base and Whitney then lined out to first base to end the inning.

The top of the sixth inning was a three-batter inning which ended with Johnny Frederick grounding into a 3-6 double play. The bottom of the sixth inning saw the game's fifth double - this one by Thevenow. But, for the fifth time, the batter who doubled failed to score.

Both teams had two baserunners in the seventh inning. But a 4-6-3 double play got Smythe out of trouble in the top of the inning and Pinky Whitney fouled out to the catcher with runners on first and second to end the bottom of the inning.

Eighth Inning
And so, the game moved on to the eighth inning with the Phillies leading 2-0. Through seven innings, Vance had given up nine hits, but had worked around most of them, while Smythe had allowed only seven baserunners - with four of them being eliminated on the bases via a caught stealing, an outfield assist, and two double plays (in that order).

Did Smythe have two more shutout innings in him?

That was enough for Phillies manager Burt Shotton who came out to relieve Smythe. Somewhat oddly, this was the first time all season (and, hence, in his major-league career) in which Smythe left a game before it finished. In his first nine games, he entered in relief and finished the game (picking up one win, one loss, and two saves). His first two starts had been complete games (both victories). Here, then, in his 12th major-league game, he finally failed to finish a game.

The new Phillies pitcher was Claude Willoughby. Willoughby got Gilbert to ground into a force play to end the inning. But the damage was done. The Robins led the game 4-2.

The new Robins pitcher in the bottom of the eighth inning was Johnny Morrison. He walked Thevenow with one out but pinch hitter Cy Williams fouled out to the catcher and pinch hitter Spud Davis grounded out to end the inning.
Ninth Inning
The top of the ninth inning saw a new battery for the Phillies. Davis stayed in the game to catch and the new pitcher was Lou Koupal. Koupal walked Val Picinich with one out, but the next batter was the pitcher, Morrison, who grounded into an inning-ending double play, 4-6-3.

And so, the game moved to the bottom of the ninth inning, with the Robins leading 4-2. The Phillies had one last chance and they had the top of their lineup due up to try to do it.

Game Summary

Vance picked up the win, improving his record to 11-11. The 1929 season ended up as something of a clunker for Vance. He finished the season with a 14-13 record and a 3.89 ERA. The 1929 season also snapped Vance's string of consecutive seasons leading the NL in strikeouts at seven - his 126 strikeouts were third. Vance did, however, lead the NL in strikeout-to-walk ratio for the sixth (of what would eventually be eight) consecutive year. Vance bounced back strong in 1930, leading the NL in ERA for the third (and final) time with a 2.61 ERA.

The Robins won Game 2 of this doubleheader 9-7 to open up a 3-1/2 game lead over the Phillies in the battle for fifth place. Unfortunately for the Robins, the lead didn't hold. The Phillies ended the season in fifth place, one game ahead of the sixth-place Robins.

Details of the game are shown below. First, I show Player won-lost records for all of the players who participated in the game. Baseball Player won-lost records are constructed so that the players on the winning team earn two pWins and one pLoss in the game while the players on the losing team earn one pWin and two pLosses. I also show expected wins and losses, eWins and eLosses, which are context-neutral. Full play by play details of the game are shown below the won-lost tables. My Player won-lost records are described in more detail in this article and throughout my website.

Retrosheet Box Score and Play-by-Play


Runs by Inning

 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Final
Brooklyn Dodgers0000000404
Philadelphia Phillies0002000013


Player Won-Lost Records by Player: Summary

Basic Player Won-Lost Records
(sorted by net pWins)
pWins pLosses Net pWins eWins eLosses Net eWins
 
Brooklyn Dodgers
Johnny Morrison0.420.14
0.28
0.130.22-0.09
Rube Bressler0.210.06
0.15
0.080.16-0.08
Dazzy Vance0.290.14
0.14
0.420.400.02
Max Carey0.140.02
0.12
0.050.020.03
Dave Bancroft0.160.04
0.11
0.130.090.04
Eddie Moore0.180.10
0.07
0.150.21-0.06
Wally Gilbert0.120.08
0.03
0.090.14-0.05
Hank DeBerry0.090.06
0.03
0.050.08-0.03
Johnny Frederick0.160.14
0.02
0.080.26-0.18
Del Bissonette0.120.10
0.02
0.140.130.02
Val Picinich0.020.00
0.01
0.040.010.03
Billy Rhiel0.010.01
0.01
0.010.000.01
Lou Koupal0.010.01
-0.00
0.040.030.01
Babe Herman0.100.10
-0.01
0.070.14-0.07
Team Totals21
1
1.471.89-0.42
   
   
Philadelphia Phillies
Chuck Klein0.150.09
0.06
0.230.080.14
Don Hurst0.180.14
0.04
0.310.110.21
Claude Willoughby0.010.00
0.01
0.010.000.01
Lou Koupal0.010.01
-0.00
0.040.030.01
Spud Davis0.000.03
-0.03
0.000.02-0.02
Bernie Friberg0.050.08
-0.03
0.140.100.04
Cy Williams0.000.04
-0.04
0.000.02-0.02
Walt Lerian0.010.05
-0.04
0.040.06-0.02
Tommy Thevenow0.070.12
-0.05
0.190.110.08
Fresco Thompson0.060.15
-0.09
0.100.15-0.05
Lefty O'Doul0.090.18
-0.10
0.140.15-0.02
Les Sweetland0.000.20
-0.20
0.000.03-0.03
Harry Smythe0.320.59
-0.27
0.540.410.14
Pinky Whitney0.060.33
-0.27
0.100.15-0.05
Team Totals12
-1
1.851.430.42


Player Won-Lost Records by Player: Detail

Player Won-Lost Records: Batting
(sorted by net pWins)
pWins pLosses Net pWins eWins eLosses Net eWins
 
Brooklyn Dodgers
Rube Bressler0.180.04
0.13
0.040.08-0.03
Max Carey0.130.01
0.12
0.040.010.03
Dave Bancroft0.090.02
0.07
0.070.050.01
Del Bissonette0.070.02
0.05
0.080.060.03
Hank DeBerry0.090.06
0.03
0.050.08-0.03
Dazzy Vance0.040.01
0.03
0.030.020.01
Val Picinich0.010.00
0.01
0.030.000.03
Babe Herman0.090.09
-0.00
0.050.09-0.03
Eddie Moore0.050.05
-0.00
0.060.10-0.04
Johnny Frederick0.130.13
-0.01
0.050.25-0.20
Johnny Morrison0.000.01
-0.01
0.000.05-0.05
Wally Gilbert0.030.07
-0.04
0.080.11-0.04
Team Totals0.900.52
0.38
0.590.90-0.31
   
   
Philadelphia Phillies
Don Hurst0.130.07
0.06
0.210.080.13
Chuck Klein0.120.08
0.04
0.170.060.11
Tommy Thevenow0.040.02
0.02
0.130.030.10
Bernie Friberg0.030.02
0.01
0.100.050.04
Spud Davis0.000.03
-0.03
0.000.02-0.02
Lefty O'Doul0.040.07
-0.03
0.080.09-0.01
Walt Lerian0.010.04
-0.03
0.030.05-0.01
Cy Williams0.000.04
-0.04
0.000.02-0.02
Harry Smythe0.000.06
-0.06
0.000.09-0.09
Fresco Thompson0.010.09
-0.08
0.040.10-0.05
Les Sweetland0.000.20
-0.20
0.000.03-0.03
Pinky Whitney0.030.28
-0.26
0.040.12-0.08
Team Totals0.400.99
-0.59
0.810.740.07


Player Won-Lost Records: Baserunning
(sorted by net pWins)
pWins pLosses Net pWins eWins eLosses Net eWins
 
Brooklyn Dodgers
Johnny Frederick0.020.00
0.02
0.010.000.01
Dave Bancroft0.010.00
0.01
0.010.010.01
Billy Rhiel0.010.01
0.01
0.010.000.01
Dazzy Vance0.010.00
0.00
0.010.000.00
Rube Bressler0.000.00
0.00
0.010.000.01
Wally Gilbert0.000.00
0.00
0.000.000.00
Val Picinich0.000.00
-0.00
0.000.00-0.00
Del Bissonette0.000.00
-0.00
0.000.00-0.00
Max Carey0.000.01
-0.00
0.000.00-0.00
Babe Herman0.000.01
-0.01
0.000.03-0.02
Eddie Moore0.010.02
-0.01
0.010.06-0.05
Team Totals0.060.06
0.01
0.070.11-0.05
   
   
Philadelphia Phillies
Chuck Klein0.010.00
0.01
0.010.000.01
Pinky Whitney0.000.00
0.00
0.000.000.00
Fresco Thompson0.000.00
-0.00
0.000.000.00
Lefty O'Doul0.000.00
-0.00
0.000.01-0.00
Don Hurst0.000.00
-0.00
0.000.00-0.00
Tommy Thevenow0.000.00
-0.00
0.000.00-0.00
Walt Lerian0.000.00
-0.00
0.000.00-0.00
Bernie Friberg0.000.03
-0.03
0.010.02-0.01
Team Totals0.020.04
-0.03
0.100.15-0.05


Player Won-Lost Records: Pitching
(sorted by net pWins)
pWins pLosses Net pWins eWins eLosses Net eWins
 
Brooklyn Dodgers
Johnny Morrison0.420.13
0.29
0.130.17-0.04
Dazzy Vance0.240.13
0.11
0.380.380.00
Lou Koupal0.010.01
-0.00
0.040.030.01
Team Totals0.670.27
0.40
0.640.73-0.08
   
   
Philadelphia Phillies
Claude Willoughby0.010.00
0.01
0.010.000.01
Lou Koupal0.010.01
-0.00
0.040.030.01
Harry Smythe0.320.53
-0.21
0.540.310.23
Team Totals0.330.54
-0.20
0.600.350.25


Player Won-Lost Records: Fielding
(sorted by net pWins)
pWins pLosses Net pWins eWins eLosses Net eWins
 
Brooklyn Dodgers
Eddie Moore0.120.03
0.09
0.080.050.03
Wally Gilbert0.080.01
0.07
0.010.02-0.01
Dave Bancroft0.050.02
0.04
0.050.030.02
Johnny Frederick0.010.00
0.01
0.020.010.01
Rube Bressler0.030.02
0.01
0.030.08-0.05
Val Picinich0.010.00
0.00
0.000.00-0.00
Hank DeBerry0.000.00
0.00
0.000.000.00
Babe Herman0.010.01
0.00
0.010.03-0.01
Del Bissonette0.050.07
-0.02
0.060.07-0.01
Team Totals0.370.16
0.21
0.260.29-0.03
   
   
Philadelphia Phillies
Chuck Klein0.020.01
0.01
0.050.030.02
Spud Davis0.000.00
-0.00
0.000.00-0.00
Walt Lerian0.000.01
-0.00
0.010.010.00
Fresco Thompson0.050.06
-0.01
0.060.06-0.00
Pinky Whitney0.030.04
-0.01
0.060.030.03
Bernie Friberg0.020.03
-0.01
0.040.030.01
Don Hurst0.050.07
-0.02
0.100.030.07
Lefty O'Doul0.040.11
-0.07
0.050.06-0.01
Tommy Thevenow0.020.10
-0.07
0.060.07-0.02
Team Totals0.250.43
-0.18
0.420.310.11




Play-by-Play Summary

Baserunner on _ BaseOuts at _ of PlayTotal pWins byTotal eWins by
Play ResultBatterPitcher1st2nd3rdStartEndOffenseDefenseOffenseDefense
Top of 1st Inning
S6/Gmoore102smyth101000.02460.00180.03340.0065
13.1-2fredj101smyth101moore102010.00970.01440.01160.0301
FC1.2X3(1);B-1hermb102smyth101moore102120.00150.01150.00050.0275
CS2(24)bresr101smyth101hermb102230.00000.00670.00000.0180
Total Runs Scored:0
 
Bottom of 1st Inning
8thomf106vancd101010.00000.01550.00000.0234
6/Pfribb101vancd101120.00000.00990.00000.0208
31odoul101vancd101230.00000.00640.00000.0249
Total Runs Scored:0
 
Baserunner on _ BaseOuts at _ of PlayTotal pWins byTotal eWins by
Play ResultBatterPitcher1st2nd3rdStartEndOffenseDefenseOffenseDefense
Top of 2nd Inning
53bresr101smyth101010.00000.00970.00000.0257
8bissd101smyth101120.00000.00600.00000.0234
S9.BX2(94)gilbw101smyth101230.00780.02040.03330.0445
Total Runs Scored:0
 
Bottom of 2nd Inning
S9kleic101vancd101000.01320.00270.03390.0049
8whitp103vancd101kleic101010.00050.02720.00130.0244
43.1-2hursd101vancd101kleic101120.00440.02230.01410.0367
K/Cthevt101vancd101kleic101230.00010.01670.00020.0208
Total Runs Scored:0
 
Baserunner on _ BaseOuts at _ of PlayTotal pWins byTotal eWins by
Play ResultBatterPitcher1st2nd3rdStartEndOffenseDefenseOffenseDefense
Top of 3rd Inning
S8bancd101smyth101000.02710.00070.03100.0028
53.1-2debeh101smyth101bancd101010.01220.01820.01430.0364
43.2-3vancd101smyth101bancd101120.00030.00980.00260.0160
53moore102smyth101bancd101230.00010.01650.00020.0259
Total Runs Scored:0
 
Bottom of 3rd Inning
9leriw101vancd101010.00000.01880.00000.0249
43smyth101vancd101120.00000.01240.00000.0237
D9thomf106vancd101220.00790.00000.04340.0000
Wfribb101vancd101thomf106220.00010.00050.03470.0001
43odoul101vancd101fribb101thomf106230.00000.02280.00070.0239
Total Runs Scored:0
 
Baserunner on _ BaseOuts at _ of PlayTotal pWins byTotal eWins by
Play ResultBatterPitcher1st2nd3rdStartEndOffenseDefenseOffenseDefense
Top of 4th Inning
43fredj101smyth101010.00000.01020.00000.0237
7hermb102smyth101120.00000.00750.00000.0254
7/FLbresr101smyth101230.00000.00430.00000.0254
Total Runs Scored:0
 
Bottom of 4th Inning
3/Gkleic101vancd101010.00000.01980.00000.0249
S/78whitp103vancd101110.00990.00350.03430.0051
HR/F9D.1-Hhursd101vancd101whitp103110.08160.00010.11640.0001
D7thevt101vancd101110.00930.00000.04380.0000
Wleriw101vancd101thevt101110.00570.00020.03450.0002
64(1)3/GDPsmyth101vancd101leriw101thevt101130.00000.04280.00060.0540
Total Runs Scored:2
 
Baserunner on _ BaseOuts at _ of PlayTotal pWins byTotal eWins by
Play ResultBatterPitcher1st2nd3rdStartEndOffenseDefenseOffenseDefense
Top of 5th Inning
63bissd101smyth101010.00000.01130.00000.0237
D7gilbw101smyth101110.02620.00000.04380.0000
5/Lbancd101smyth101gilbw101120.00370.01630.00030.0266
8debeh101smyth101gilbw101230.00010.01250.00100.0236
Total Runs Scored:0
 
Bottom of 5th Inning
63thomf106vancd101010.00000.01360.00000.0237
S7fribb101vancd101110.00680.00270.03430.0051
8odoul101vancd101fribb101120.00030.01570.00070.0244
D7.1-3kleic101vancd101fribb101220.01600.02250.04940.0081
3/Lwhitp103vancd101kleic101fribb101230.00000.03160.00110.0294
Total Runs Scored:0
 
Baserunner on _ BaseOuts at _ of PlayTotal pWins byTotal eWins by
Play ResultBatterPitcher1st2nd3rdStartEndOffenseDefenseOffenseDefense
Top of 6th Inning
S8vancd101smyth101000.03640.00070.03100.0028
16(1)/FOmoore102smyth101vancd101010.01860.02490.01830.0371
3(B)6(1)/GDPfredj101smyth101moore102130.00080.08950.00100.2177
Total Runs Scored:0
 
Bottom of 6th Inning
2/FLhursd101vancd101010.00000.01120.00000.0197
D7/F7Sthevt101vancd101110.01030.00500.05050.0126
FC6.2X3(65)leriw101vancd101thevt101120.00010.02010.00030.0278
Ksmyth101vancd101leriw101230.00000.00880.00000.0208
Total Runs Scored:0
 
Baserunner on _ BaseOuts at _ of PlayTotal pWins byTotal eWins by
Play ResultBatterPitcher1st2nd3rdStartEndOffenseDefenseOffenseDefense
Top of 7th Inning
S8hermb102smyth101000.04160.00070.03100.0028
8bresr101smyth101hermb102010.00180.02290.00210.0244
S8.1-2bissd101smyth101hermb102110.05660.00980.04050.0122
46(1)3/GDPgilbw101smyth101bissd101hermb102130.00000.04370.00060.0508
Total Runs Scored:0
 
Bottom of 7th Inning
7thomf106vancd101010.00000.01130.00000.0254
3/Gfribb101vancd101120.00000.00780.00000.0249
Wodoul101vancd101220.00310.00000.03450.0000
S4/G4S.1-2kleic101vancd101odoul101220.00620.00570.03920.0119
2/FLwhitp103vancd101kleic101odoul101230.00000.01270.00100.0200
Total Runs Scored:0
 
Baserunner on _ BaseOuts at _ of PlayTotal pWins byTotal eWins by
Play ResultBatterPitcher1st2nd3rdStartEndOffenseDefenseOffenseDefense
Top of 8th Inning
Wbancd101smyth101000.06140.00000.03450.0000
S7/F7S.1-2debeh101smyth101bancd101000.08120.02710.04310.0216
S7.2-H;1-2carem101smyth101rhieb101bancd101000.13770.01880.04560.0258
13/SH.2-3;1-2moore102smyth101carem101rhieb101010.02410.01340.02500.0345
FC3.B-1fredj101smyth101carem101rhieb101110.12300.04760.04410.0367
43.3-H;2-3;1-2hermb102smyth101fredj101carem101rhieb101120.05600.06810.03010.0344
S7.3-H;2-Hbresr101smyth101fredj101carem101220.18310.00560.04760.0044
S9.1-3bissd101smyth101bresr101220.01860.00160.05260.0036
64(1)/FOgilbw101willc102bissd101bresr101230.00170.01360.00310.0240
Total Runs Scored:4
 
Bottom of 8th Inning
13hursd101morrj105010.00000.03510.00000.0209
Wthevt101morrj105110.02250.00000.03450.0000
2/FLwillc103morrj105thevt101120.00080.03540.00210.0207
43davis101morrj105thevt101230.00040.02630.00130.0238
Total Runs Scored:0
 
Baserunner on _ BaseOuts at _ of PlayTotal pWins byTotal eWins by
Play ResultBatterPitcher1st2nd3rdStartEndOffenseDefenseOffenseDefense
Top of 9th Inning
43bancd101koupl101010.00000.00480.00000.0237
Wpiciv101koupl101110.01030.00000.03450.0000
46(1)3/GDPmorrj105koupl101piciv101130.00020.00850.00060.0543
Total Runs Scored:0
 
Bottom of 9th Inning
63thomf106morrj105010.00000.04640.00000.0237
S6fribb101morrj105110.02170.00010.02890.0028
E3/G.1-2odoul101morrj105fribb101110.04230.03540.04710.0209
S3/G.2-3;1-2kleic101morrj105odoul101fribb101110.08800.04840.04670.0192
43.3-H(UR);2-3;1-2whitp103morrj105kleic101odoul101fribb101120.02390.21000.01780.0463
IWhursd101morrj105kleic101odoul101220.04550.00310.08900.0015
53sweel101morrj105hursd101kleic101odoul101230.00000.20310.00060.0266
Total Runs Scored:1
 

Traditional Box Score and Play-by-Play

Article last updated: June 6, 2020



All articles are written so that they pull data directly from the most recent version of the Player won-lost database. Hence, any numbers cited within these articles should automatically incorporate the most recent update to Player won-lost records. In some cases, however, the accompanying text may have been written based on previous versions of Player won-lost records. I apologize if this results in non-sensical text in any cases.

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