Cleveland broke the game open in the fourth inning with a barrage of singles and doubles, scoring five runs. An error by Browns third baseman Harlond Clift scored Hale, then Lyn Lary belted his second double to right field for another run. Roy Hughes followed with another two-base hit to score Johnny Allen and Lary. Trosky singled to cap the scoring and put the game out of reach. Hogsett took a seat on the bench to watch a parade of four Browns relief pitchers finish the game.
Johnny Allen gave up seven hits in the fifth through seventh innings, but managed to dance out of trouble, allowing only two runs in his nine-inning stint. One of the runs came via a booming triple by former Indian Joe Vosmik. The temperamental Allen pitched well, in spite of throwing just eleven innings in spring training. He kept himself under control, only tossing the rosin bag a couple of times when he disagreed with the home plate umpire.
The 9–2 victory pleased the crowd, who were also entertained by a wild brawl in the right-field seats. It took a handful of police to break up the fight between several obviously drunken fans. Later some of the colorful bunting hanging from the upper level caught fire due to a careless fan lighting his cigar. Quick-thinking young men attempted to douse the flames with beer and soda until water was located to put out the blaze. All of the rousing activity, plus a total of twenty-two hits between the two teams, made the game last an unusually long two hours and forty-five minutes.
The Indians to a man were jubilant in the clubhouse. There were plenty of smiles, including Johnny Allen yelling from the showers, “I only need nineteen more wins!” They had played hard and hustled, completely deserving the one-sided win. Manager Steve O’Neill talked happily with reporters, pleased that his boys had put on a good show. Now all attention turned to Saturday’s game and the season debut of still–high schooler Bob Feller.
Throughout spring training, every pitch Feller threw, every warmup toss he made, was carefully scrutinized by reporters and fans. Now, on April 24, the baseball realm would see how he fared. At game time there were 12,000 fans in the seats, a fine crowd for the day after the home opener. Among the ticket holders were an unusual number of young boys, already members of the growing Feller fan club. They anticipated a big win, with at least eighteen or twenty strikeouts.
For St. Louis, leadoff hitter and former Indian Bill Knickerbocker walked to home plate. Feller started with a few curveballs when suddenly a severe pain raced through his elbow. He panicked for a moment, not sure what to do. Feller desperately wanted to make a good showing, especially in his first start of the year. His elbow throbbing, he made the decision to keep the pain to himself. He shook off the signs from Frankie Pytlak until he saw the one for a fastball. Feller blazed away, though the aching in his arm was almost unbearable. He stuck with the fastball, trying not to make eye contact with his puzzled catcher.
Knickerbocker looked over several pitches, then trotted to first with a walk. After a fly ball for out number one, Joe Vosmik stepped up to the plate. He picked out a fastball for a sharp base hit. Feller kept throwing the hard one, but could not find the plate, walking outfielder Beau Bell and player-manager Rogers Hornsby. That brought in the first run of the ball game, still leaving the bases loaded. The free-swinging Harlond Clift chased three fastballs for the second out. After another walk forced in run number two, Catcher Rollie Hemsley lined a base hit to make the score 4–0. Feller got the third out and walked back to the dugout without talking to Steve O’Neill or Pytlak.
In the second inning Feller loaded the bases again, this time with none out. After he retired Beau Bell, Rogers Hornsby came to the plate with a choice opportunity to crack the game wide open. In spite of the mounting pain in his elbow, Feller gamely struck out the Browns’ big hitter. Harlond Clift swung away, lofting a fly ball to Bruce Campbell. The fans stood and applauded their hero for escaping the inning unscathed.
The Indians batters came to life in the bottom of the second inning. Sammy Hale smacked a double to left field and Campbell walked. St. Louis pitcher Jim Walkup checked the runners and delivered to Frankie Pytlak, who hammered the ball to the fence. Both runners scored while Pytlak raced to third with a triple. Feller came to bat with a chance to cut into the lead. Once again the fans stood as Feller singled, scoring Pytlak from third. Now the Indians trailed by only a run.
Feller struggled through another four innings until he gathered his courage and confessed to O’Neill that he had hurt his arm. Trainer Lefty Weisman took Feller to the clubhouse and carefully examined the arm. It did not appear to be anything serious, allowing Feller to advise reporters he would throw again in a few days. Though the Indians lost the game, 4–3, the big story in the papers was the scary arm injury and the possible ramifications.
On the positive side, Feller had struck out eleven batters in his six innings. After giving up the four runs, he blanked St. Louis over the next five innings. He did walk six Browns. Walks were a major concern of the front office, but out-of-town writers would reference them as evidence that Feller was just wild enough to be effective.
Several days later the elbow had shown little improvement. Cy Slapnicka called team doctor Edward Castle to examine his ailing pitcher. A complete assessment revealed several torn fibers just below the elbow. Dr. Castle instructed Feller to rest the arm for two weeks before doing any kind of throwing. The diagnosis calmed Slapnicka and Alva Bradley, but they maintained a small amount of worry. The two men had made a large investment in the hard-throwing right-hander. They could stand another couple of weeks, but anything more might be viewed as a serious predicament.
Trainer Lefty Weisman believed a bone in the right arm might have been dislocated from the elbow. Weisman had no formal medical training, but had spent over fifteen years treating damaged ballplayers. He recommended a visit to a bonesetter practicing several blocks from League Park. Cy Slapnicka quickly discounted the suggestion, preferring to take the advice of experienced doctors. His lack of faith in Weisman proved to be a major error in judgment.
On Monday, May 10, Feller left Cleveland on a chartered airplane bound for Des Moines, Iowa. He was returning home to Van Meter to rest his arm and attend his high school graduation. He was taken aback by all the local folks waiting to greet him and asking pointed questions about his pitching arm. Feller thought he could go home and escape all the attention; however, any plans to rest quietly and study for finals were quickly foiled. He spent any time he could find cramming for final exams, which took place Thursday. The subjects tested were physics, literature, American history, and psychology. Feller passed with ease, scoring two seventy-nines, a seventy-four, and a seventy. Not bad at all when you consider he had left school over two months ago, yet still retained a good portion of what he had learned over the winter.
The much-anticipated graduation took place on Friday evening. The high school auditorium had just four hundred seats available, usually more than enough for any occasion. It proved to be totally insufficient, as approximately eight hundred curious people jammed inside the tiny hall. Among the crowd was an army of newspaper reporters and radio men with microphones. WMAL radio, all the way from Washington, DC, set up their equipment for a live broadcast to be aired nationally. The parents and relatives of the twenty graduates were shocked by the ruckus around them. This kind of attention was usually reserved for the president of the United States.
Feller arrived at the auditorium wearing a new dark gray suit with a red rose pinned to his lapel. He could not help but note the large contingent of reporters and radio announcers just below the stage. As class president, he addressed the audience in a low voice, speaking rapidly. He said, “When I was playing baseball in high school, little did I realize that I would be playing big league baseball today.” He reached for his diploma, nearly dropped it, then scrambled back to his seat. The other graduates, clearly nervous in front of all the reporters and microphones, stumbled through their orations and songs. With the motto “The higher we rise, the better the view,” Bob Feller’s high school days were officially over.
A few days later Feller left Van Meter to meet up with the Indians on their eastern road trip. Besides his much-publicized injury, there was a list of mounting issues facing the ball club. On May 1, Johnny Allen complained of severe pain in his abdomen. The Indians rushed him to a St. Louis hospital,