The Yankee Baseball League: The Base Ball Life of Patrick O'Farrell, vol. 2

[Orcin]

Originally Posted by Big Six

I realize not posting for almost two months will tend to destroy any momentum a story might once have had...but if anyone out there is still interested in following Volume 2, I'll be picking the story back up promptly. One thing after another kept me from having much time for OOTP for a while.

Don't worry. We are here for life.

[Big Six]

Originally Posted by Orcin

Don't worry. We are here for life.

Good. So am I.

[Big Six]

Originally Posted by Tyke

Still here, Big Six, and looking forward to seeing how Pat's return to the diamond goes.

Thanks, Tyke. I am too. I confess; I'm rooting for him to be a good player, at least, but I'm promising myself (publicly) that I won't play Baseball Deity and change his ratings to make him a star, or to keep him on the scene. I've thought of several story lines that I can use in a variety of scenarios regarding Pat's performance, decline, etc. So, no matter what OOTP has in store for him, the tale can go on.

[Big Six]

Berkshire Eagle
August 5, 1930

MOHAWKS WIN, 1-0, IN O'FARRELL'S RETURN
Williams, Holcomb Team Up For Shutout
O'Farrell Pinch Hits, Draws Walk

PITTSFIELD--Officially, 4660 people were present at Springside Park today to watch the Mohawks defeat Holyoke, 1-0. Several thousands more may one day try to claim they were there, to see the return of Pat O'Farrell to the diamond as a player.

O'Farrell entered the game in the bottom of the seventh inning, pinch hitting for Jason Miller. When he stepped from the dugout, carrying a pair of bats, the crowd rose to its feet and applauded as Pat doffed his cap and waved. He quickly made a move to quiet the crowd, but they did not heed his request, cheering for a full minute.

Pat faced Papermakers lefty Jim Smith, who had been pitching a dandy of a game; the Mohawks scored in the first inning and since then, Smith had tossed zeroes at them. Millard Tate stood at second for Pittsfield, having singled and moved up on a sacrifice by pitcher King Williams.

Smith, who is usually a cool customer, later admitted to a case of nerves. "I mean, that was Pat O'Farrell up there," he said. "Wouldn't you be nervous?"

Fans who wanted to witness a dramatic moment were denied that pleasure, as O'Farrell didn't take the lumber off his shoulder. Smith missed with his first two pitches, threw one strike, and then misfired twice more, giving O'Farrell his base. Mr. Smith need not feel too badly about this. Mr. O'Farrell drew 2,002 bases on balls in his major league career, and 37 more in 59 World Series contests.

When the inning ended, O'Farrell headed out to third base, where Miller had been stationed, and he played the last two innings there without accepting a fielding chance. Williams set the Papermakers down in order in the eighth, and Chester Holcomb did likewise in the ninth to sew up the Mohawks' victory.

After the game, O'Farrell patiently tried to turn the attention of the press away from himself. "Talk to King Williams," he suggested. "He pitched a great ballgame. I didn't even swing the bat."...

[Big Six]

148 Cherry Street
Stockbridge, Massachusetts

Mr. Bill Carrigan
54 Pine Street
Lewiston, Maine

August 8, 1930

Dear Bill,

Thanks for your letter of the 5th. I had no idea the Boston papers would ever print a story about something as silly as an old man drawing a walk in a baseball league up in the mountains. There must not have been much else going on. I'm sure a boy rescued a kitten from a tree somewhere; that's bigger news than anything I did!

Between you and me, it has been a lot of fun being around a ball club every day, putting on a uniform, getting out on the field again. I don't think I realized how much I'd missed it. Nothing I'll ever be paid to do will ever match the thrill of stepping to the plate with a bat in my hands. I'm lucky that I'm getting the chance to do it again.

I've played the last three nights, and I'm feeling better than I thought I would. My back and knees were hurting pretty badly my last year in Boston, but the time off seems to have done them some good.

I'm swinging the bat pretty well. I wish I could say the same thing about my fielding, though. I thought I might be OK at third base, but now I'm not so sure.

I cost us a game the other night when I made an error; he came around to score, and we lost 3-2. It wasn't an easy play--I had to move pretty far over toward short to get to the ball--but I still should have had it. It was my third error in three games, and if I don't get better I'll tell the manager to get me out of there.

It was especially frustrating because earlier I hit a home run to tie the game. I don't think I've ever hit a baseball farther in my life! I've driven in six runs in the three games I've started, because I've been lucky to get each of my three hits with men on base.

We are in second place, now, a game ahead of Torrington. That's a big deal, because the top two teams play a series for the championship. Fitchburg is on top--that's the team with Archie Graham. He's hitting about .340, but he broke his foot and he'll be out for another two weeks or so.

Anyway, that's what is going on with me. Sarah and the kids are all doing fine, and I hope your family is well, too. Write me back when you have a chance, or give me a call. Maybe if we make the Series here, I'll get you some tickets!

Your pal,
Pat

****
Pat's home run traveled 432 feet.

[Big Six]

Berkshire Eagle
August 21, 1930

Dear Sporting Editor,

Imagine, if you will, that you are the manager of a professional baseball club. Your team is battling for a place in the championship series of its league.

Your team added a new player two weeks ago, a third baseman who brought with him a reputation as a strong hitter. Despite this reputation, your new third baseman has a batting average of .218. What is more, he has made six errors in the field. He has not committed a miscue in nearly a week, but there is no reason to believe he has suddenly become a sure-handed fielder.

Most significantly, since this player arrived, your club has won seven games and lost eight.

Would you continue to give this man a place in your lineup? Would you continue to have him bat third in your order? Remember, your club is a contender, not an also-ran. You do not have the luxury of giving extended try-outs to hopeful players.

My guess is that your answers to my questions would be "no." If you know baseball, you would certainly answer that way.

Why, then, does John Sanders, when confronted with this exact situation, continue to write Pat O'Farrell's name on his line-up card each day?

Mr. O'Farrell was once a legendary player. Mr. O'Farrell is now nearly forty-three years of age. His day has passed him by. Were he an attorney like his father, Pat would be in the prime of his career. He is a ball player, or should I say, he would like to be, although his claim to that title is now, sadly, questionable.

Mr. Sanders would do well to end the O'Farrell experiment sooner, rather than later. If he is motivated by the prospects of losing gate receipts if he were to bench O'Farrell, let me remind him that fans come out to the ball park to watch a winning club. They do not come to watch an old, slow player try to regain the glories of his youth.

Sincerely,
A Mohawks Fan

[Big Six]

Berkshire Eagle
August 29, 1930

MOHAWKS RALLY IN EIGHTH, EDGE BENNINGTON
Pittsfield Winners In Five Of Last Six Games

PITTSFIELD--After a shaky start that saw them fall behind by a 7-4 count, the Pittsfield Mohawks went on the warpath in the latter innings and squeezed out an 8-7 victory over Bennington yesterday at Springside Park.

The decisive blow was a pinch home run by Ezra Thompson, who came up with Victor Anderson on third, two out in the eighth and with the home team trailing 7-6. Thompson deposited a pitch from J.J. Stephens over the right field fence to give the Tribe the runs it needed to win the ballgame.

Pat O'Farrell continues to hit the ball hard and often. He reached base on each of his four trips to the dish. Pat rapped three hits, including a two-bagger, and drew a base on balls.

Not surprisingly, the Mohawks' hot streak--five wins in six games--coincides neatly with Mr. O'Farrell's. In the six games of Pittsfield's current home stand against Torrington and Bennington, the third sacker has racked up 13 hits in 23 at bats, including three doubles, and he's walked five times without striking out once. That's a .565 average, and he's found a way to get on base almost two-thirds of the time during that stretch.

There is probably some connection between the Mohawks' inspired play and the large crowds that come through the turnstiles at Springside Park each day. Crowds of 4,800 or better have been the rule lately, neatly filling the ballpark which holds just over 5,000.

O'Farrell's troubles with the glove continue, however; he has also committed five errors in these same six recent contests, and one cost the Mohawks a run in a contest they lost to the Bears, 5-4, in extra innings.

Pittsfield manager John Sanders could move O'Farrell to first base, but that would mean displacing Chandler Maxwell, a .300 hitter with power who can't play anywhere but first. So, it appears that if Sanders wants O'Farrell's bat in the lineup, he has to endure his sub-standard defensive play...

[Big Six]

Holyoke Transcript
September 8, 1930

A month or so ago, I sat at this very typewriter and composed an open letter to Mr. Patrick O'Farrell, in which I made what I thought at the time to be a very strong case against his return to the ball field as an active player. I did not flatter myself that Mr. O'Farrell would pay the least bit of attention to my argument, and his decision to step out of the coaching box and into the batter's box for the Pittsfield Mohawks came as little surprise. Pat is a competitor, and the opportunity to compete was understandably more than he could resist.

At first, O'Farrell's performance made me think I had been right. He struggled at the plate and was tragically inept in the field. It is safe to say that at no time in his baseball career had O'Farrell ever looked so overmatched; I saw him as a rookie with the Red Sox back in 'Aught-Seven, and he was far better then. The fans of the Yankee League were seeing a shadow of the player he once was, with only glimpses of the grace and power that made O'Farrell a legend of the game.

I am, honestly, delighted to report that I was wrong. Pat O'Farrell has recently demonstrated that he can still play a mean game of baseball.

His performance in yesterday's contest between the Papermakers and Mohawks in Pittsfield offered ample evidence of O'Farrell's art. Pat did nothing magnificent; he singled, drew two bases on balls, and scored a run in four times at bat. He started two double plays from his position at third base. He was thrown out attempting to steal a base, on a beautiful peg from Holyoke catcher Bob Bass. O'Farrell simply played a clean, stylish game of baseball, helping his team win the game, 7-3. He raised his batting average to .308, which is a fine mark--especially for a man who will celebrate his forty-third birthday in a week.

Perhaps most importantly, O'Farrell has sparked the Mohawks to a recent run of good play that has them comfortably in the Yankee League playoff picture. Their victory gives them a three-game edge over the Papermakers for second place, and the way the 'Hawks are playing right now, they will be awfully tough to beat out for that spot.

Yes, Pat, I was wrong, and if you're reading this, I hope you'll accept my apology for writing you off too soon.

[Big Six]

Berkshire Eagle
September 21, 1930

ON TO THE SERIES!
Mohawks End Regular Season With 11-3 Victory Over Danbury
Yankee Series Begins In Fitchburg Tomorrow

PITTSFIELD--With a crowd of over 5,000 cheering wildly, the Pittsfield Mohawks put an exclamation point on the regular season with an 11-3 victory over the Danbury Stars.

The Pittsfielders had already clinched a spot in the playoffs, and today's result leaves them six games ahead of third-place Holyoke, with an 86-74 record. They will face Fitchburg, the loop's regular season champion, in the Series.

The Blue Sox, who held on to first place most of the season and finished at 89-71, will be a formidable opponent, but skipper John Sanders believes his club will be ready for action. "We had a good club all year long, and now, with Pat O'Farrell starting to hit the ball like Pat O'Farrell, I feel very good about our chances in the Series."

O'Farrell rapped two singles, scored a run, and drove in two more today, giving him a total of 30 runs batted in since he joined the Mohawks lineup on August 4. "I'm seeing the ball very well," said the veteran. "It took a while for me to get comfortable at the plate. Every team in this league has some good pitchers."...