there was also a story that was widely circulated over the years and famously recounted in lawrence ritter's "the glory of their times", that at one point cobb was on first; he bragged to wagner that he was going to steal second and threatened to assault him physically doing it; wagner defiantly dared him to try it and placed an especially rough tag to cobb's mouth; and the two exchanged choice words. cobb denied it in his autobiography, and the play-by-play of the 1909 world series confirms that the event could not have happened as stated: cobb was never tagged out by wagner in a caught-stealing. the pirates won the series four games to three behind the pitching of babe adams.