(LOT 329)
1912 New York Giants vs. Boston Red Sox World Series Unscored Braves Field Program
The 1912 Fall Classic would pit the New York Giants versus the Boston Red Sox, with each team having already claimed a World Championship. Led by the great Christy Mathewson's three shutouts, the Giants bested the Athletics in 1905, while Boston had won the inaugural 1903 World Series against the Pittsburgh Pirates. This showdown would be played at both Brush Stadium and Fenway Park, with Boston's new home field replacing the former Huntington Grounds Ballpark and opening its doors to the public on April 20, 1912. Ironically, this would be only five days after the Titanic's momentous sinking on April 15, 1915 in the frigid waters of the Atlantic Ocean, tragically claiming the lives of over 1,500 passengers.

The 1912 Series would see two of baseball's greatest pitchers, Christy Mathewson and "Smoky" Joe Wood strut their stuff, with manager's John McGraw and Jake Stahl leading their formidable clubs to 100+ wins, easily winning the pennants in their respective leagues. In a tightly fought eight game series (Game #2 ended in a 6-6 tie due to darkness), the Red Sox would eventually prevail, beating the immortal Christy Mathewson 3-2 in a 10-inning battle to capture their second championship. As a magnificent heirloom from that renowned Fall Classic, presented here is a seldom surfacing 1912 World Series un-scored Fenway Park program issued for one of the five games played at this historic ballpark, and possibly the final "clinching" game eight.

The program has remained in superb condition, with the obverse side revealing a bold black caption "CHAMPIONS 1912" and a neat array of six hanging stockings on a clothesline that spells out "RED SOX." Additional verbiage includes: "WORLD SERIES - FENWAY PARK BOSTON - Souvenir Biography and Scorebook - Price 10 Cents." Most significantly, the 110-year-old spine is completely intact, with some negligible corner wear and scattered wrinkles not impeding the fine overall aesthetics. A charming "ARROWS COLLARS and SHIRTS" ad graces the back cover, and the critical interior un-scored lineup cards have retained a majority of their original luster. Boston's pre-printed lineup includes Hall of Famers Harry Hooper (in the #1 spot) and Tris Speaker (in the #3 hole), with New York's scorecard listing Cooperstown inductees Christy Mathewson and Rube Marquard as two of the Giant's six pitchers.

Of course, the highlight of the Series would be the final game, when the great Christy Mathewson would take a 2-1 lead into the bottom of the 10th inning. Ably assisted by two fielding muffs including Fred Snodgrass dropping Clyde Engle's lazy fly ball for a two-base error and Tris Speaker's foul pop-out inexplicably falling between Mathewson, Merkle and Meyers, the Red Sox rallied for two runs to literally "steal" the game from the Giants and seize the World Series title. An historically significant keepsake from that classic Series, this outstanding program conjures up memories of how the infamous "Snodgrass Muff" ultimately led to the demise of John McGraw's Giants as well as the sheer joy for a seemingly countless number of Red Sox faithful!

MIN BID $500