September 24, 1926: The First Ever Pennant Clincher For The Cardinals

On September 24, 1926, the Cardinals clinched the National League Pennant for the first time ever with a 6-4 victory over the Giants at the Polo Grounds in New York. The game was broadcast over more than 50 loudspeakers in downtown St. Louis with thousands of fans listening to the play-by-play in anticipation of the pennant clinching victory. It didn't start out the way Cardinals fans would like when Giants outfielder took Flint Rhem deep in the first that put the club down 3-0. It took no time for the Cardinals to respond, Lester Bell doubled, then took third on a wild pitch and scored on a single by Bob O'Farrell. Shortstop Tommy Thevenow kept the line moving by getting on with a double, then the Cardinals starter day ended as he was lifted for pinch hitter Specs Toporcer. The move paid off as Toporcer doubled in the tying run, then Billy Southworth connected with a two-run shot that gave the Cardinals a 5-3 lead. It was all they would need as Wee Willie Sherdel took over pitching duties and went the rest of the way allowing 7 hits and just one run. The Cards added a little insurance with a run in the seventh before the Giants plated their final run of the contest in the eighth. As the final out was recorded  and the Cardinals laid claim to the National League Flag, the City of St. Louis began a party that they hadn't had since 1888 when the club won the pennant as a member of the American Association when they were known as the Browns. According to the Sporting News, "Great cheers went up from these many assemblages, and immediately a demonstration was on. Factory whistles shrieked, automobilists tooted their horns, trucks went about with cutouts open and the drivers were backfiring their engines, impromptu bands and parades were organized and howling thousands surged through the streets, tying up traffic in general. From office buildings, great wads of paper, ticker tape, and confetti were released, falling like snow of a Dakota blizzard on the pavement below." The party had merely started as the fans were eager to welcome the National League Champions home with great celebrations planned. This was the beginning of a new era in Cardinal baseball.

Check out the box score: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NY1/NY1192609240.shtml