Philadelphia manager Connie Mack had astounded the baseball world by starting veteran Howard Ehmke in Game 1 over George Earnshaw or Lefty Grove. The move paid off as Ehmke outdueled Cubs ace Charlie Root 3-1.

Now the question became, "Who will be Mack's starter for Game 2?" He couldn't go wrong either way. Earnshaw led the American League in wins with 24 and ranked second in the league in strikeouts. Grove won 20 games and topped the junior circuit in ERA and strikeouts.

Since Mack did not reveal his choice in his syndicated newspaper column, reporters speculated that he might be considering someone other than Earnshaw and Grove. The Chicago Tribune headline blared, "Earnshaw or Quinn to Pitch for A's Today." Quinn was 46-year-old spitballer Jack Quinn, who supposedly Mack might start because of the suc­cess that another spitballer, Burleigh Grimes, had against the Cubs that year, going 5-1 with a 2.29 ERA. Both Quinn and Grimes had been allowed to continue throwing the spit­ter after the pitch was banned in the major leagues in 1920.

Earnshaw was Mack's choice to face Cubs ace, Pat Malone (22-10, 3.57 ERA).

Game Two was played on "a day that was no sort of day for any sort of ball game" (West­brook Pegler). "The wind bustled in off (Lake Michigan), cold and aggressive, and the flags on the masts around the eaves of the ballpark stood out like boards all afternoon."

After two scoreless innings, the A's took the lead on 1B Jimmie Foxx's three-run homer in the third. Malone told reporter Irving Vaughan that Foxx, a notorious bad ball hitter, clouted a delivery that was intended to be a brushback pitch. "Malone shot it at his head with the idea of giving him a scare," wrote the reporter. "Pat managed to get it close to his target, but Foxx, instead of flopping to the ground, waved his stick and the ball went away."

Philly put another three-spot on the board in the 4th on 3B Jimmy Dykes' single, an error on SS Woody English, a walk, a run-scoring groundout, a walk, and a single by LF Al Simmons. All three runs were unearned. 6-0 Athletics.

Meanwhile, Earnshaw put four goose eggs on the Cubs' side of the scoreboard, but he didn't have a 1-2-3 inning.

The Cubs finally got to him in the 5th. 2B Rogers Hornsby and CF Hack Wilson singled in the 5th with one out. But after RF Kiki Cuyler became Earnshaw's seventh strikeout victim, three straight batters, LF Riggs Stephenson, 1B Charlie Grimm, and C Zack Taylor, stroked singles to cut the lead to 6-3 and bring the tying run to the plate. Chicago manager Joe McCarthy chose Cliff Heathcote, a left-handed batter, to hit for P Sheriff Blake.

Mack called in Grove to put out the fire. McCarthy responded by telling righthand hit­ting Gabby Harnett to replace Heathcote. Harnett, an outstanding catcher who was lim­ited to pinch-hitting all season because of a sore arm, struck out on "a fast ball that could scarcely be seen." 6-3 Athletics.

Grove retired the Cubs in order in the 6th and 7th. He got an insurance run when Foxx led off the top of the 7th with a single, was sacrificed to 2nd, and scored on a single by 3B Jimmy Dykes.

After Simmons' homer made it 7-3 in the top of the 8th, Chicago finally got a baserun­ner off Grove when Taylor singled with one out. But Lefty struck out the next two batters.

The Cubs threatened in the 9th on a walk to Hornsby and Wilson's single. But Grove got a forceout grounder from Cuyler and a popfly from Stephenson to put the A's up 2-0 in games.

Grove's final tally: 4 1/3 innings, 3 hits, 0 runs, 1 walk, 6 strikeouts.