The United States formally entered World War I on 6 April 1917 and the first global conflict in human history affected virtually everyone in some manner. One aspect of American life not anticipated to be uprooted by this catastrophe: Major League Baseball. Hundreds of current and future MLB players served in WWI, including Hall of Famers such as Ty Cobb and Christy Mathewson as well as Grover Cleveland Alexander whose brutal war service was depicted in film by future President Ronald Reagan.
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| Major League's Opening Day in Cincinnati, 2017 |
Due to shorthanded rosters, the 1918 season ended early and it marked the only time the “October Classic” was played entirely in September. On 5 September 1918, the Boston Red Sox traveled to the Windy City to face the Chicago Cubs in Game 1 of the World Series. That day, newspapers were dominated by news of World War I, including the latest American dead. In Chicago, one of the headlines read, "Chicagoans on the List," and it was a particularly harrowing moment in the city for another reason: Someone, possibly self-proclaimed anarchists and labor activists, had the day before tossed a bomb into a downtown federal building and post office, killing four people and injuring dozens more.
The Chicago games were played at Comiskey Park, the home of the White Sox, instead of the Cubs new Wrigley Field—what was called Weegham Park at the time—because it held more fans. Game 1 that day, however, attracted fewer than 20,000 fans, the smallest World Series crowd in years. This may have been due to the ongoing World War One exhibition at the city's Grant Park, which was drawing over 100,000 attendees a day. When they got to the ballpark, they didn't make much noise, in any case. That could have had something to do with the 1-0 masterpiece visiting Red Sox star Babe Ruth was pitching. "There was no cheering during the contest, nor was there anything like the usual umpire baiting," reported one Boston newspaper.
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| Action at Third Base from Game 1 of the 1918 World Series |
Perhaps the most enduring legacy of that 1918 World Series is unrelated to actually playing baseball. During the seventh inning stretch of Game 1, the military band struck up an impromptu rendition of the “Star-Spangled Banner.” Red Sox third baseman Fred Thomas, playing while on leave from the Navy, snapped to attention and saluted the flag. The rest of the players turned to face the flag with their hands on their hearts. Fans followed suit. As the band played the final notes, the entire stadium joined in the melody. The performance was so popular it was repeated for the rest of the series
Even though the Star-Spangled Banner did not become the official national anthem until 1931, this patriotic moment in 1918 began a lasting tradition, reinforced during the Second World War, that continues to this day of playing the anthem before major league baseball games. Further, as John Thorn, Major League Baseball's official historian, put it, "Certainly the outpouring of sentiment, enthusiasm, and patriotism at the 1918 World Series went a long way to making (the song) the national anthem."
Note: Another World War I-related event was taking place in Chicago as this game was being played. Check out yesterday's entry in Roads to the Great War.
Sources: The National World War One Museum, Kansas City; the World War One Centennial Commission
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