July 18, 1918: The Second Battle of the Marne

July 18, 1918: The Second Battle of the Marne is won by the Allies. It soon becomes clear that what we now call World War I has been won by them as well.

With Russia out of "The Great War," The German Empire, suffering mutinies within its Army and economic strife at home, was able to throw all of its forces at the Western Front. As with the First Battle of the Marne, nearly 4 years earlier, they had gotten within cannon range of the French capital of Paris on July 15. The French and British commanders were desperate.

But, as George M. Cohan said, the Yanks were coming. More than 250,000 Americans were rushed into combat. This battle would feature 52 German divisions, under the command of Field Marshal Erich Ludendorff, against 58 Allied divisions, under the command of Field Marshal Ferdinand Foch -- 44 of them French, 4 of them British, 2 of them Italian (Italy had switched sides in this war); and 8 of them American, under the command of General John J. Pershing, and fresh, rather than battle-weary.

They met at Dormans, about 17 miles east of Nogentel, the site of the First Battle of the Marne, and 80 miles east of central Paris. After 3 days, the result: The Germans lost 137,000 men; the French, 95,000; the British, 16,000; the Americans, 12,000; and the Italians, 9,000. That's 269,000 men dead in roughly 3 days: 137,000 German, 132,000 Allied. Death-wise, it was just about a stalemate. But the Allies also captured 29,000 German prisoners.

Ludendorff later said that the American troops were "decisive." And Chancellor Georg, Count von Hertling, who would resign in disgrace on September 30 -- and die the following January 4, at the age of 75 -- wrote:

At the beginning of July 1918, I was convinced... that before the first of September our adversaries would send us peace proposals... On the 18th even the most optimistic among us knew that all was lost. The history of the world was played out in three days.

Even the overall German commander, Field Marshal Paul von Hindenburg, admitted that the American troops made the difference between winning and losing the war. By the time Hindenburg died in 1934, his successor as Chancellor of Germany would say that the real reason that Germany lost was a "stab in the back" by Communists and Jews. That Chancellor's name was Adolf Hitler. He lied.

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July 18, 1918 was a Thursday. These baseball games were played that day:

* The New York Yankees and the Detroit Tigers played a doubleheader at the Polo Grounds, due to a rainout the day before. The Tigers won the opener, 4-1. Bill James outpitched Herb Thormahlen. Ty Cobb went 0-for-2, but drew a walk and had an RBI on a groundout. He left the game with an injury, and didn't play in the nightcap.

Trailing that game 2-0 going to the bottom of the 9th, the Yankees got doubles from Ray Caldwell (normally a pitcher but playing center field that day), Wally Pipp and Ping Bodie, sending the game to extra innings. In the bottom of the 10th, they got singles from Roxy Walters, Frank Gilhooley, Caldwell and, in spite of his nickname, Frank "Home Run" Baker, and won, 3-2. Ray Keating was the winning pitcher, in relief of Joseph Finneran.

* The New York Giants beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 8-5 at Robison Field in St. Louis. Rogers Hornsby entered the game due to another Cardinal's injury, and went 2-for-3.

* The Brooklyn Robins beat the Chicago Cubs, 3-2 at at Weeghman Park in Chicago. Zack Wheat went 3-for-7. The ballpark was renamed Cubs Park in 1920, and Wrigley Field in 1926. The Brooklyn team became the Dodgers in 1911, then the Robins in 1914 in honor of manager Wilbert Robinson, and then the Dodgers again after he was fired after the 1931 season.

* The St. Louis Browns beat the Boston Red Sox, 6-3 at Fenway Park in Boston. Dave Davenport outpitched Lore Bader. George Sisler went 1-for-4. Babe Ruth went 0-for-3 with a walk, and had an RBI on a groundout.

* Another rain-forced doubleheader was played at Shibe Park in Philadelphia, but were also rained out. This one was also made up as part of a doubleheader the next day. The Chicago White Sox won the 1st game, 3-1. The Philadelphia Athletics won the 2nd game, 4-3. Over the 2 games, Eddie Collins, the former A's star now playing 2nd base for the White Sox, went 3-for-8. Shoeless Joe Jackson didn't play in either game: He was working in a shipyard as World War I duty.

* The Cleveland Indians beat the Washington Senators, 5-1 at National Park in Washington Park. (It was renamed Griffith Stadium in 1922.) Stan Coveleski outpitched Jim Shaw. Tris Speaker went 2-for-4 with a walk and an RBI. Senators Pitching legend Walter Johnson appeared as a pinch-hitter, but did not reach base.

* The Philadelphia Phillies beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 1-0 at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh. In the top of the 13th inning, Ed Burns bunted, and pitcher Cy Slapnicka threw the ball away, allowing Gavvy Cravath to score. Both pitchers, Slapnicka of the Bucs and Elmer Jacobs of the Phils, went the distance. Slapnicka would later become a scout for the Cleveland Indians, discovering Hall of Fame pitchers Bob Feller and Bob Lemon.

* And the Boston Braves and the Cincinnati Reds were rained out at Redland Field in Cincinnati. (It was renamed Crosley Field in 1934.) The game was made up as part of a doubleheader 3 days later. The Braves won the 1st game, 5-2. The Reds won the 2nd game, 7-3.