- Spitball Ace Will Succeed Elliott as Starting Hurler
- Doak Has Pitched in More Games This Year Than Any Brooklyn Flinger
- Future Hall of Fame Manager Uncle Wilbert Robinson Says Doak Can Still Beat Tough Clubs
- Doak pitches complete 6-hit 11 inning game, beats Cincinnati 1-0
By THOMAS W. MEANY
Game Date: June 7, 1928 Cincinnati at Brooklyn
IT WAS 14 years ago that William Leopold Doak, a young right-handed spitballer with an admitted future startled the baseball world by leading the National League hurlers. Doak was then in his second year with the St. Louis Cardinals and had just cast his first vote. Since that time much water has flowed under many bridges and many youthful wonders have come and gone. Ol’ Bill himself has retired from the game, manipulated the pesky footage in Floridian real estate and come back again to his first love. And how!
Believe it or not, the aged spitballer has just about won himself a regular berth on the Brooklyn pitching staff at this late day and date, and that pitching state is touted as one of the best in the majors. His 11-inning shutout of the Reds In the second game of the series at Ebbets Field yesterday was a gem. It would have been a worthy feat for a reigning star, but for a veteran like Doak it was truly phenomenal.
Topped League In 1914.
Consider that when Doak topped the National League in 1914, not one member of the team that opposed him yesterday was in the majors and six of them had not yet started playing professional baseball. Babe Ruth had yet to hit his first home run; Ty Cobb had not reached his peak; Tris Speaker was still on the upgrade; Nap Rucker was winning for the Superbas; Buck Wheat was still coming on; Rogers Hornsby was receiving his first professional trial, and Lou Gehrig was in grammar school, a youngster of eleven years.
Nor was Doak’s effort yesterday a flash in the pan for the veteran. He has pitched remarkable ball for the Dodgers this spring, although he has won only two games and lost one. Aged as he is, the old harmonica wizard has pitched in more games than any other member of the Flatbush staff – 12. He has pitched 20 innings and has allowed only three earned runs, for an average of 1.35 per nine inning game.
His control has been apparently shaky all season but he has yet to walk a man in a pinch. He passed nobody yesterday, because he couldn’t afford to, yet in the nine Innings he pitched prior to yesterday’s game, he walked 14 men. And not one of those scored on him.
After a two-year layoff last year, Doak won 11 and lost eight with a ball club that was a joke. His earned run average was 3.48. In 1924 he won 10 and lost three games for the Dodgers when he was obtained from the Cards in exchange for Leo Dickerman. When Brooklyn was thudding down the homestretch in its thrilling bid for the flag that year, Doak pitched and won 10 successive complete games and allowed only nine earned runs in that stretch.
Bill and his blue bandana have seen but three opponents wave at third strikes this year, but those strikeouts pulled Doak’s lifetime record for strikeouts to 1,002. There are only six pitchers in the majors who have struck out more men than Doak – Alexander, Grimes, Vance, Rixey, Meadows and Faber.
As Babes Before Doak
The Reds, the way they are going now, have a good attack. It is necessarily so or the Reds would not be leading the league. Yet good as their attack is, they were as babes in the hands of the eager veteran. Only once was Bill in trouble throughout the contest and then it was through an error. This was in the ninth when Pipp opened with a line single to right which went through Babe Herman and Wally got to second. Zitzmann ran for him and went to third on a sacrifice.
Doak exhibited all his craft when he made the left-handed hitting Purdy hit to right field. Pid chopped one to Bancroft and Dave made a fine play in cutting down Zitzmann at the plate.
The best proof of the fact that Doak’s spitter was breaking sharply downward is afforded by glancing at the box score. The outfielders had exactly four chances, while the infielders had 51. The Reds continually beat the ball into the ground and the Dodger infielders played exceptionally well, coming up with every chance offered.
Because of his work yesterday, Doak is likely to replace Jumbo Jim Elliott as a starting pitcher. Jim has not been going so good of late and Bill looks ready to start in turn. In the third game this afternoon Dazzy Vance will face Jackie May.
By Thomas W. Meany, The Brooklyn Daily Times
