Sox Century: Aug. 3, 1917

After surviving a couple of tough tests in New York and Boston with a two-game lead intact, the White Sox had a chance to fatten up on the Philadelphia Athletics. Then again, the Sox were supposed to do that the last time, the A’s ended up taking three of four at Comiskey Park.

This time, Pants Rowland’s crew restored their roles, taking the first game of the series thanks to some Sox-on-Socks violence.

Philadelphia starter Harry “Socks” Seibold couldn’t find the strike zone on what turned out to be a very short afternoon. He started his game with a dreaded leadoff walk, and after Buck Weaver flied out, issued another free pass to Eddie Collins. Joe Jackson beat out an infield single to load the bases, and Happy Felsch drew the third walk of the inning, which forced home the first run and Seibold out of the game.

In came Walter Anderson to limit the damage, which he did admirably enough. A productive out made it a 2-0 game, and a Swede Risberg single tacked on another run. But hey, Anderson ended up pitching 8 ²⁄₃ innings of relief and saving the bullpen. Three straight one-out singles made it a 4-0 game, but Felsch’s second baserunning out of the game ended the last Sox rally.

Still, Jim Scott had all the runs he needed. He carried that 4-0 lead all the way to the finish line with a six-hit shutout, with three walks to three strikeouts. He hadn’t won a game since May 12, a stretch covering 10 games and seven starts, but this game marked a return to form, as the Chicago Examiner emphasized:

Scott’s unexpected showing wasn’t entirely due to his returning at a time when the picking was soft. The former curve ball wizard really looked the part of a good pitcher.

The Chicago Chicago Tribune’s summary.

Scott’s slab performance was the most encouraging part of the exhibition, all things considered. There is no denying the ability of the Mack youngsters and veterans to hit the ball. The have been making a lot of fuss for western pitchers lately, but have not been winning consistently because their own slabmen could not down the opposition. Today the Wyoming nimrod held the Athletics to four solid hits, not including the two scratches, and the Rowland camp is correspondingly gleeful.

Meanwhile, the Red Sox dropped a 2-1 decision to the Cleveland Indians, allowing the Sox to gain a game for a third consecutive day.

Record: 64-37 | Box score