I Meet The New York Giants

My Dad was a New York Giants fan. He told me I was too, but I was only five years old when the team moved west and don’t quite remember back that far. As the years unfolded, Dad told me about many of their stalwarts, such as right-fielder Mel Ott, first baseman Bill Terry and pitcher Carl Hubbell. I read up on them and learned they were all great players. Then I decided to go way back, and started to learn about the team’s pioneers.

As I read up on the old Giants, I started to wonder who my favorites would have been. High on my list was Christy Mathewson, a gentlemanly, college-educated, right-handed pitcher who won 373 games for the G men. His numbers are hard to believe. For example, in 1909, the average number of runs he gave up to the opposing team was 1.14 per game. If the Giants scored two runs every time “Matty” pitched that season, they were in great shape. Other statistics are equally staggering, such as his winning 30 games or more for three seasons in a row (1903 – 1905).

He was even better in playoff situations, when the Giants were playing for all the marbles. It’s difficult to top his performance in the 1905 World Series, when he shut out the Philadelphia Athletics three times in six days. It is incomprehensible to me how one guy could be that dominant against major league hitters, but that’s how baffling Mathewson could be when he was on his game. It was a stunning accomplishment. There’s a tiny snippet of him on You Tube that just blows me away. You can see it here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unwlec-YNYI

The all too brief, grainy film seems to reach out across eternity, touching us with a brief glimpse of baseball immortality. I see pitching mechanics that remain in use to this very day: a slight backward bend at the waist, an arched back and an over the top delivery. The film was placed on the You Tube site by the good folks at the Dead Ball Era, which is a superb internet site that I find very helpful when looking for information on players from baseball’s early days.

Another big star in the New York Giants constellation I learned about was Manager John McGraw, the bullying, dictatorial power behind the team. He was a control freak who might be taking prozac if he were living today. He was a street smart guy, a fighter who would exploit any advantage in his zeal for victories. He argued frequently with Umpires. He wasn’t at all tentative about getting on his own players when they made mistakes, too. His winning formula consisted of  talent, bluster, strategy and fear. He was the engine that drove the Giants for over thirty years. I would have watched my step around him. Of course, if you played hard and smart, you’d have no better friend or supporter. I would have given him a great deal of respect, because his drive and determination contributed to the team’s many successes in the early twentieth century.

I was amazed to learn about Luther “Dummy” Taylor, a deaf-mute who was with the team for nine seasons. Mind you, there was nothing disabled about Taylor’s performance on the pitching mound, such as in 1906 when he went 17-9 with a 2.20 ERA. He was a gifted athlete who would have been among my favorites. Manager McGraw learned sign language to communicate more effectively with the right hander. When it proved helpful, he had the team’s players learn some sign language, too. I’ve read this was how the use of signs in baseball games got its start.

There were more, but they, along with a center fielder who hit .368 for the Giants during their 1922 World Championship season, a fellow named Casey Stengel, will have to wait for another day. I’ll close with the promise that those old Giants will get their day here at Grubby Glove. In the meantime, here’s a look at the Polo Grounds, their old yard.