The Pirates quickly disposed of Giants’ starter Hugh McQuillan in a big first inning, but some stellar relief pitching gave New York a chance to get back in the game. In the end, though, the Bucs pulled it out in the tenth, 6-5.
The game didn’t look destined to be a tight one in the early going. The Pirates made a switch in their lineup, reversing right fielder Kiki Cuyler and second baseman Eddie Moore, with Moore batting second and Cuyler, who came into the game batting 372/445/637, third. With one out, Moore singled and Cuyler got hit by a pitch. Clyde Barnhart drove Moore in with a single and Pie Traynor knocked in Cuyler with a double. Glenn Wright then finished McQuillan’s day, launching a three-run blast to left, his sixth home run of the season. With Pirates’ ace Lee Meadows starting, a 5-0 lead seemed to presage a breather.
But it didn’t. Giants’ manager John McGraw turned to Wayland Dean and he kept the Pirates off the board through the rest of regulation. The Pirates loaded the bases with two out in the second and didn’t score. They didn’t threaten again until they got runners to second and third in the seventh, but Dean deflected Traynor’s grounder to shortstop Travis Jackson, who threw to first in time. Dean had little trouble in the eighth or ninth.
The Giants got on the board against Meadows in the bottom of the third. Two singles, one by Dean, and a sacrifice put runners at second and third for New York’s standout young first baseman, Bill Terry. He lined a single to center to drive in both, making it 5-2.
In the sixth, the Giants knocked out Meadows and tied the game. With one on and one out, Hack Wilson hit his second home run of the series. Jackson followed with a single and catcher Frank Snyder tripled to tie the game at 5-5. Bill McKechnie went out to get Meadows and brought in struggling righty Vic Aldridge.
Aldridge was just as good in relief as Dean. He started by getting a shallow fly, then a second fly to strand Snyder at third. He retired the side in order in the seventh and eighth, then worked around a single and a walk in the ninth to send the game into extra innings.
The Pirates finally got to Dean in the top of the tenth. With one out, Traynor hit his second double of the game, then moved up on a ground out. That brought up Boots Grantham, whose two-out single put the Pirates ahead, 6-5. Earl Smith followed with a single to put runners at the corners. With Aldridge up the Bucs tried a delayed double steal, but the return throw to home caught Grantham.
The Pirates only needed the one run, though, as Aldridge set the Giants down in order in the bottom of the tenth. Aldridge allowed only one hit over four and two-third scoreless innings, earning his first win with the Pirates after two losses. Barnhart and Smith each had three hits.
