Al Schacht, the humorist pitcher-coach for many years with the Senators, loved to recall a story Wally Moses liked to tell from back in the 1930s.

“The Athletics opened their western trip in Detroit,” Moses recalled. “It had rained all the previous night and the mud and water were ankle deep on some parts of the field. But there were about 20,000 fans in the stands, so we decided to go ahead with the game.”

“Gerald Walker set the laugh tempo when he stole second with a slide which ended way out in left field. When he finished his slide he was more than a dozen feet beyond the bag and was easily tagged out.”

“But the real fun started along about the seventh inning when the Tigers placed a runner on third, with one away. The next batter hit a hard grounder to Billy Werber at third. Werber knocked the ball down, but it rolled away and became submerged in a big mud puddle several yards away from third base.

“The runner on third, having held the bag, made a break for home. Immediately Werber thrust his hand into the puddle as if he’d found the ball. The runner rushed back to third base, only to discover Werber was fooling. Then another break; another feint by Werber and back came the runner. That must have gone on for about two minutes when finally the umpire – of all people – pointed to where the ball was encased in the mud.”

“The runner didn’t score.”

— from Diamond Facts Figures and Fun, by Al Schacht