X PITCHING sad winning
>our games.** I have often
been asked by devotees of
the American game, "how
ranch figure does brain work
cutr*
ajany an ronest young ta
natic has asked me that
question during the ten years
and more that I have been
pitching major league base
ball. peering at my bead
meanwhile as though he ex
pected some sorb reply as “no
beadwcrk whatever." Many
an older and wiser baseball
follower. fortified by the
»>U ju kuaslcdse that comes to men after
pears jf sqwittiar a the grand-stand, has asked me the same
tfetu ■ a Baodifred fora. I
li jb much 'i*ure u:j«* bra In work cut? 1 don't quite know
n.**-tf 1 do km a that bo pitcher, however powerful or agile,
can !. |* to become a great performer without being thoroughly
•qai.ipBd from the shoulders up ” The steel arm is desirable,
t* - . -id r. • is even more de>irahle. but. without the little filling
ay ms"ter that Is popularly supposed to inhabit the skull,
a - >*chsr aught Just an well pack bis suit-case and go back to
•»*■» ’ HI ■ • ■ urn ha » .--5 tat IhMwrei it isn’t
t- raa ia the arm. because lots of longshoremen could snap a
P*! hnr’n arm tn two wttk a single twist; it * the combination of
•- and body, the perfect co-operation of mind and muscle, that
makes a Burn a successful major league twirler.
Most pitchers who break into fast company and stay there
if MMMmdy I—wrrflBg their nbOKy. are men that went
through a long course of sprouts
before they got anywhere. They,
like hundreds of successful men in
other walks of life, were forced to
look, listen, and learn before they
bad anything like an
even chance to win
their spurs
Many things have
been said and written
about pitchers out
guessing batters, and batters out
guessing pitchers, and to tell the
truth there has always been a
question in tny mind about the
Outguessing proposition I have
seen so many instances where
guesses went mrong—so many hun
dreds of instances—that ! am
about 'he .ast human being in the
world to poae as an oracle on the
subject of pitching psychology.
Ap-r-M, p DEVLiN >ever’n< :e*s. mere certainly is a
kx of psychol.Tgy about pitching
a baseball. Gear :n* that a rber needs something more than
a clear bead, it must be admitted that the successful pitcher is
always a student There are a hundred and one little things
tbi: every good 'airier has in his repertoire, a hundred and
<ae little t: ags that the average baseball lover doesn't know
aaytbiag about. I taw always made it a practice, before going
:: o a cm al aerie*, to get settle kind of authentic information
about tie strength or weakness of every batter slated to face
aw cad oar* 1 know post lively that » bat'er doesn't
like speed. 1 feed kirn ocean* jf it If 1 find that
ki» u a low cone, lie * that for a
Mrndr diet.
* ben «e M the Athletics in the season of 1905.
alter bavins woe tbe National b-mgae < hampionshtp.
I reaitied that a rood part of the pitching burden
would be os my shoulder*, and I began making in
gw-w* abesr the weak and strong points of the
Aawrwaa league ckampsons
Ki*ie Crass, who pUyed on Connie Mark's in
held ta 1MC was known by me to be a dangerous
ni ter, though hw average was not high. He was
tbe kind of a bitter wbo was alaays bobbing up
wmi k kit it t time when a hit meant
trouble. and just before the series start.
«d. I 4)4 a little quiet detective work
through friends of mine who knew the
came and knew Monte i had been
Udd that Monte s weakness was a hick.
!»' tall M ltd I talked to "Kid"
«..tad»d <d tk» Philadelphia Nat local*.
FRANK CHANCE.
MM mo that ( ram hod fought against and overcome his
weakness and tad de.eioped into a murderer of the high, fast
dotsverp. Keeping Gleaaoa > advice in mind. I gave Cross noth
ing hut too curves during the series, and bad him helpless from
the Mart Had it not been for Gleason s tip. Monte's always
dangers** hat might have caused rouble in that series, for
there were nat very ckue games before it was all over.
The great** strength of a pC< uer. aside from his control, is
• hat it-*- players call uis mixture ' That means no more nor
leua thaa what the word implies—his variety of fast and slow
halis. bis serving of this or that curve What we call the
'change of pane." the delivering of a fast and then a slow bill
wMh tb. same preliminary motioaa. and the mixing of a high
faai ball and a slow curve are the success
ful pitcher's beat assets.
1-"**- o! baseball have often asked me
bo* 1 d* <•.) with a batsman whom 1 have
never laced and about whose batting ability
1 kn<>w nothing Every seasoned pitcher
has a called on often enough to meet
t«m • r. be never saw before, and in such
V t ■ <es he must rely largely cn luck.
■ a 1 am faring a new batsman for the
•nt time. I pay particular attention to two
tMf tbs position he aaaumes at the plate
and the way te bolds his bat. If. for in
stance. be bolds his bat well up toward the
middle there i*n t much use of sending him
speed Hatters of this type are always ready
for speed ai.d they can meet the fastest
ball a man ever threw. A low curve on
the 1 aside srill do for s starter, and If
such a batter Roes after It and fails to
runner*. you have bis ■'number-’
r»ED CLARK, The barer who stands back from the
of P ttaburg plate with a long bat and a grip near
the end is the one who can send a low
iWTr into the south— stem quarter of the adjoining section.
While a halter asr work hard and overcome a certain weak.
t, » hat does mat boesarllr mean that be becomes a great
ttier la centering bis energies on overcoming his weakness
for a high ball he may lose his strength
on low balls because he has been contin
ually fed high ones by opposing pitchers.
In that case I would try him on a lbw
ball and if it was found that he could
still hit that the only thing left would be
a curve ball or change of pace. It is
often the ct^e that a pitcher cannot de
ceive a batter's eyesight but he
can deceive him mentally. For in- /
stance, most any batter can hit a M
slow ball if he knows it is coming.
The same is true in regard to a f.
fast ball, but If he is
expecting a fast ball
and gets a slow one,
a strike out or a
weak grounder to the
infield will be his
best effort.
Some batters, a
few of the chosen.
th». f MATHEWSON.
that the most studi
ous pitcher can detect. Men like Hans Wagner and Lajoie don't
care much what the opposing pitcher has to offer.
I have often been told by my friends that a pitcher is about
90 per cent, of ,the game, and have never failed to assure them
that nothing could be further from the truth. A winning
pitcher helps a baseball team a whole lot. of course, but there
are eight other boys on that team, and nobody knows it better
than the winning pitcher. The recent series between the Giants
and Yankees will prove my point.
In that series I got away with every game in which I par
ticipated. but I won because I received magnificent support,
both in the field and at the bat. Had George Wiltse been right,
or had M eGraw sent in Ames or Crandall, the story would
have been the same if the support had been of the same splendid
caliber. The wonderful work of Devlin. Devoe and Doyle—
the wonderful work of the whole team, for the matter of that—
made defeat practically impossible. With that great machine
working behind me and with the greatest manager of them all
backing me up. I simply couldn't love. That's how much a
pitcher is 90 per cent of the game.
As a matter of fact, it would be impossible to establish the
mathematical relation of the pitcher to a ball club. Figures in
baseball are often misleading. One pitcher may work brilliant
ly for 13 Innings and have a 1 to 0 defeat marked up against his
record, while on the fallowing day another pitcher may luckily
win a 10 to 8 game. It is a matter of record that in the
season of 1909. I^eon Ames of the Giants, in finishing a 17
inning game and participating in two extra inning ties,
pitched 30 consecutive innings without allowing a run and
yet did net win one of the games.
From this it can be seen that the winning power of a
team must depend largely upon its run getting ability. To
reacn an estimate or value we win say
that offensive play is half the game. I
think that conservative. That would
leave but 50 per cent., and the pitcher
could not be all of that. 1 would sav
that about 20 per'cent, of the strength of a ball
club lies in the pitcher's box. No matter how ef
fective a pitcher may be in the box he cannot win
unless the team bats in runs behind him. It is
true, however, that the work of a pitcher can have
a very strong influence upon> the work of the
rest of the team. Disgruntled fans frequently
make the assertion that inflelders and outfielders
will not support certain pitchers. That idea is er
roneous. Ball players always want to win. no
matter who is in the box. It is usually lack of control on the
part of the pitcher that disconcerts or demoralizes the infield.
Flayers lose confidence because they are uncertain as to what
will happen next. The catcher may call for a “pitch-out"_
that is, a ball thrown wide of the batter, so that the catcher
can have a clear throw to second to catch a runner who is
about to steal. The inflelders all see this signal and both the
shortstop and second baseman leave their positions to assist in
making the play. If the pitcher does not pitch-out, as expected
the batter may hit the ball through the spot left vacant and up^
set the whole team. Once they lose confidence in a pitcher in
a game, it is very difficult to regain it. It is not that thev will
not support the pitcher. On the
contrary, it is the fault of the
pitcher who will not give them
a chance. If the pitcher
has control everything works
smoothly.
If it were true that pitching
is 90 per cent, of the strength
of a ball club, it would be log
ical to assume that the team
having the best staff of pitch
ers would always win the nen
nant. That Is not true.
The baseball reader
who pays attention to
records will notice
that the teams which
win the pennants al
ways have several
players who lead in
their respective de
JOE TINKER i«uiuieiiu. auu this
does not necessarily in
clude the pitchers. For instance, the Baltimore club, back in
the early nineties, won three successive pennants with pitch
ers whose names can scarcely be remembered.
The hackneyed cry of “ What we need is pitchears" could well
be changed to "What we need is hitters, base runners and field
ers. Without them there can be no pennants.
Some of the best pitchers ever connected with professional
baseball have received bumps from sources so humble that
any false esteem they may have held for themselves has van
ished like the snows of last season. Cy Young, the noblest old
Roman of them all, has been beaten by Tillage teams. The best
pitchers of the world's champions, not long after they had
trimmed the Cubs, were beaten by the unknown Cuban teams
they faced during their late barn storming trip. They pitched
good ball, the kind of ball that would defeat any team if it
came to a matter of whole season s record, but luck, the one
thing above all others that makes baseball the thrilling and
perfect game it is. decreed otherwise. There are times, you see.
when all the science and all the outguessing in the world will
not avail.
1 shall never forget a trimming 1 got
from a village team in Michigan. Just
after we had defeated the Athletics for
the world’s championship in 1905. Frank
Bowerman and I went on a hunting trip.
As soon as the natives of Frank's home
town, Rom^o. Mich., knew that I was
his guest, they came and begged us to
do the battery work for the Romeo club
in a game they were to play with the
club representing the adjoining
town. IV e agreed, and I am afraid that
our willingness cost a lot of honest
Romeo villagers everything except their
family plate. The thought of defeat
never entered their minds, an/ more
than it entered ours, but the little rival
towns club came over to Romeo and
gave Messrs Bowerman and Mathewson.
fresh from their big league triumphs, a
touch of high life that they never forgot
They beat us 5 to 0, and I guess they
are celebrating it to this day. I don't
know just how they managed It, be- -hONUS" WAGNER
cause I was in perfect trim at that time.
1 had everything, as we say in professional circles, and they hit
everything I had. I didn't mind it much myself, but 1 felt sorry
for poor Bowerman. He had to keep oa living there, and 1
didn't.
The real test of a pitcher's ability arrives when the oppos
ing team gets men on bases. His responsibility is increased
while his freedom of pitching motion is restricted. He must
watch the base runner constantly and at the same time must
deliver the ball to the batter with the
least possible swing of the arm. In
other words, he can't wind up.” Some
pitchers And it difficult to get as
much speed, curve or accuracy with
the short arm motion as they do with
their usual swing. This affects some
pitchers mentally, as the curtailment
of physical effort prevents them from
concentrating their mind on the man
at the bat. At the same time the base
runners, and frequently the coach
ers, are constantly trying to annoy
them. To protect himself
the pitcher most try and de
tect some action on the part
of the base runner w’nch will
indicate when he is going to
attempt to steal the next
base. In this he is mate
rially assisted by the catch
er. Once the pitcher or the
catcher discovers when the
SHERWOOD MAGEE, runn7 " 10 lu<*
of Philadelphia. r*medy is aImPle- ^'fquent
throws to the base will pre
vent the runner from getting too much of a lead, and when
he does start, the ball is pitched out of reach of the bat
ter so that the catcher can have a clear throw to second.
While the pitcher is watching the base runner he knows
that the base runner is also watching him. in an effort to as
certain whether the bail is to be delivered to the plate or to the
base. Therefore, no preliminary movement on the part of the
pitcher must betray his intentions.
George Van Haltren, the famous base runner of his day.
once told me that he could tell to a cer
tainty when certain pitchers were going to
deliver the ball to the batter. This en
abled him to get a running start and many
times the poor catcher was blamed for
allowing a stolen base, when in fact the
pitcher was unconsciously at fault. John
McGraw. manager of the Giants, spends
several weeks each season in ■
teaching his young pitchers to
overcome that kind of a weakness.
The tremendous popularity of the
national game—its popularity is grow
ing every year—means that in the
years to come there will be hundreds
of baseball stars where there are doz
ens now. Every healthy boy has it in
him to become a good ball player,
though he may never care to follow
the pastime professionally. Being a
professional player myself, I may be
over-fond of the game to which I owe
so muco, out i can mine oi many otn- 3AM CRAWFORD
er callings and many other pastimes of Detroit,
that a boy might better shun. Base
ball is always played out in the sunshine, where the air is pure
and the grass is green, and there is something about the game,
or at least I have always found it so, which teaches one how
to win or lose as a gentleman should, and that is a very fine
thing to learn.
The Offense Defined
Gtacid Graft, aa attorney of Terre
Haaia. tad. **• oaee called Into a
^lodry atore » that ton to aettla
F ham. Oeaeral." espMaad the
mm. *1f I take a watch fraa Mr.
,—■ mm tea cents aad tb«e keep It
up far a week and charge him
an defier* ahaa he eetae. to get h.
„
what percentage do I make? We
have been figuring for half an hour
and only get up to 900 per cent., and
that la but a dollar, so we decided
to leave it to you.**
"Well.” said the General gravely,
"you most know that it is a fact, and
It has been demonstrated by calcu
lating machines, that at certain points
is progressive numbers the law gov
erning them changes. In your case the
law would change long before It
reached the six dollars, and woud run
out of percentage and into what is
known and designated as larceny.
Canine Prudence.
“Do you want to be taught human
speech?" asked the St Bernard.
“No," replied the collie. “We dogs
are now regarded as remarkably in
telligent. But a reputation for sagac
ity is peculiar. The more you talk the
more you are liable to lose it”
Patriotism—and Patriotism
There are two kinds of patriotism.
First is the variety which seeks to
separate one’s country from other
countries and set her over against
them, as their rival or enemy—and
then glories In her power to outshine
or overcome them, to put them to
shame by her superiority, or to bring
them to her feet in subjection.
The other is the patriotism which
seeks to identify one’s country with
the Interests of our common human
Ity; which considers her as the helper
and friend of all the needy, as the
champion of the oppressed, as a
leader among those who are working
to extend the boundaries of freedom
and peace and eager to co-operate
with all other peoples of good will in
breaking down the barriers that keer
nations apart.—Washington Gladden.
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For Self and Wife
BY IZOLA FORRESTER
j - __
(Copyright. 1911. by Associated Literary Press.)
"I'm positive it’s Ralph.” Vera1
leaned forward in her steamer chair
to get a good look at the man who
had just passed. “He has marched
around about 40 times so far this
morning, Phil, and I do wish you'd
find out for me.”
“I didn’t know you were so keen
; on digging up Ralph.” Phil’s tone
; was a mere grunt of disgust, from
! the depths of his rug. “Didn’t that
; die out at Pinehurst last fall?”
“Didn't what die out?" Vera
looked meditatively and innocently
out to sea.
"Weren’t you engaged?”
“Not exactly."
“Not exactly? Upon my word. Vera,
you girls get on my nerves. You
think love's a polo game. When a
chap come s a cropper, you lift your
eyebrows, and say it’s too bad he
I can’t play right. You know Ralph
was awfully cut up after you left,
and—when did you see him last?”
Vera rose, smiling mysteriously.
“Phil, it wouldn’t be right for me
to tell you. It’s bad enough to en
courage those—er—polo players, but
it's worse to give a description of
how they took the tumble. Go and
find out from the ship's list if it is
Ralph; there's a dear. And If it is,
look him up. and be nice.”
Most unwillingly Phil obeyed in
; structions. There was over six years
| between Vera and himself, and an
i elder sister has rights which even a
i fellow of eighteen has to recognize,
i Carefully he went over the list of llrst
| cabin passengers, but found no such
j name as Ralph Maynard.
“He’s in stateroom D. promenade
deck, because I asked a steward.”
Phil protested. “Who's got that room
—can you tell?"
"Somerset Lane, for self and wife."
the purser told him. “I think they're
just married, and on their honey
moon.”
“I don’t believe It,” Vera said,
calmly, when Phil brought back the
news. “It Is Ralph. I know, now.
Vera’s Face Was a Study.
because I bowed to him as he went
by the forty-first time, while you
! were gone, and he knew me. Why
should he ship under an assumed
name?"
"Maybe It's a secret marriage."
suggested Philip archly. "He's a wise
1 old dog. anyway.”
"He is not. Phil. If ever there was
an open-and-above-board. straightfor
ward boy. It's Ralph Maynard. Did It
give the wife's name?”
Phil shook his head.
"Just said for self and wife.”
"But where's the wife? If he were
on his honeymoon, would he be tramp
ing the deck madly hour after hour?”
“Maybe she's seasick." -Phil sug
gested brightly. “I saw him talking
to that old chap from Virginia in the
1 smoker this morning, so on the way
back up the companion way I ran into
him and asked if he knew Somerset
Lane. He said he did. that he was a
bully young chap, and it was a shame
his wife was so delicate that she had
to keep to her stateroom all through
the passage over.”
Vera's face was a study. She
frowned and pursed her pretty lips
tensely. Some way, she could not
: picture Ralph's wife at all. She could
only remember the last night at Pine
hurst. It had been in September, and
the Carolina beach looked wonderful
ly fair In the rich, golden moonlight.
Hatless, they had mounted horses and
gone for a canter at low tide along the
wet sands, far. far out, to what they
called Lovers' Leap. It was a jut.ing
headland of rock that cut off the
beach. And It was here that Ralph
had taken his chance with Fate. She
could see him still, bending toward j
Both Qualities Are Needed
_ »
The Beautiful and the Useful Must
Be Developed to Make
Mankind Perfect.
Mankind can only be made by all
; men. the world by all its powers to
| gether. Often enough they war
| among themselves, but even as they
try to destroy each other, nature
holds them together and brings them
forth again. From the first animal
impulse towards construction up to
the highest exercise of intellectual
art, from the laughter and shouts of
childhood up to the glorious utterance
of the orator and the singer, from the
first scuffles of boyhood up to the
huge armaments by which nations are
lost and won, from the faintest kindli
ness and the most transitory affection
up to the most burning passion and
the deepest bond; from the merest
sensation of the tangible present up
to the most mysterious presentiments
and hopes for the furthest spiritual
future, all this, and far more, lies In j
man. and must be brought out and
unfolded; only not In one man. but In
many. Every capacity is Important,
and all must be developed. One in
dividual can only work for the beau
tiful. another only for the useful;
but both are needed to make a man.—
Goethe.
Used Fists Instead of Pens.
A unique method of settling a polit
ical dispute was recently adopted by
two Queensland journalists, Mr. Mur
phy, editor of the Charleville Times, a
Liberal organ, and Mr. Kilner, editor
of the local Guardian, Labor. They
decided to settle the matter by a pub
lic fight with boxing gloves. The
hall was crowded and both men fought
fiercely. The first round was decided
ly in favor of Mr. Murphy. In the
second round Mr. Kilner fared even
worse. The third finished him com
pletely and In less than a minute be
was hanging on the ropes in a dazed
condition.
her from his saddle, his face a bit
hard and tense in the cool moonlight,
his eyes full of yearning. She had
said no, of course—every girl does
the first time she is asked by a man
—and if he had been older he would
have understood the challenge In her
eyes and words, and fought the game
out with her to its whining. She had
wished him to win, but the next
morning when she had risen she got
the news of his departure for New
York on the first train out.
And now he was on board, under
an assumed name, in a stateroom
"for self and wife.”
“I say, Vera, here he comes,” Phil
said suddenly. “I’m going. Good
| luck, sis. You might offer my con
gratulations with your own. They
say lemons are good for seasickness."
The next moment Ralph Maynard
stood in front of her, cap off, very
erect, and on the defensive, but with
the same splendid brown eyes that
could plead a cause better than all
the lips in the world, she had once
thought.
“I would have spoken before, but
you didn't seem to remember me,
\ Miss Chalmers.”
“We've only been out one day?”
She looked up with a smile, but it
was not an encouraging smile. A
girl does not feel sunny and sweet
tempered toward a man who takes
unto himself a wife six months after
he has made love to her. "I had not
noticed you before.”
“May I take Phil’s chair for a
while?”
“Surely, if you wish.” She waited
a moment, then said gently, very gent
ly: "How is your wife, Mr. Maynard?”
"Good Lord, I’m not married,”,
gasped the boy. "How can you asfc
that, when you know I never loved
any woman in the world but you,
Vera? Why, I heard at the last min
ute you and Phil were sailing on this
boat for the Tuttle wedding in London
and I caught it at the last minute, just
i for the chance of even looking at
! you.’’
"Haven't you a wife in stateroom
D, who is seasick and unable to ap
! pear during the voyage?”
He met her clear blue eyes un
| flinchingly and tried to speak, but she
went on. "Didn't you tell the old gen
; tleman from Virginia, in the smoker,
that your wife was delicate? Aren't
you registered on the list as Somer
set Lane? Oh, Ralph, I never thought
you could do such a thing! And then
to make love to me—”
She tried to rise, but he caught
both her hands and held her firmly.
“Listen, sweetheart,” he said. “I
! was fool enough to let you get away
from me last fall at Pinehurst, but
you won’t this time. I am registered
as Somerset Lane. Don't struggle,
please, till I get through, and the
passage was booked for ‘self and
wife.’ ”
“Then where's your wife?" she
flashed back.
"She's a myth." he laughed. “It was
too late to engage a regular passage
on this boat. Everything was taken.
So I hustled to the brokers' offices
and landed a ticket and booking for
Somerset Lane and wife—”
“But who are they?”
"Who cares? I took the double
booking, of course, for the chance of
crossing with you. And I had to
carry it out. didn't 1? I am Somerset
Lane, pro tem. If my wife isn't sea
sick. where is she? I have to tell
something about her, or they'll accuse
me of having thrown her overboard.
Don't you see?"
Her eyes were full of mirth. "It's
very suspicious.”
“Xot half so suspicious as it will
be when I come back on another boat
under my own name, with another
wife. Can you risk it, Vera?”
She hesitated and sighed, then
laughed again.
"I suppose that is really as near as
you’ll ever get to a proposal, Ralph,
so I'll have to say yes. You may
book passage for self and wife on the
return trip, but don’t you dare take
it on this boat.”
High-Class Samoan Dialect.
Robert Louis Stevenson described
amusingly how the Samoan noble had
a private dialect of his own. quite dis
tinct from the common people’s. Th6
ordinary words for an ox, blood, bam
boo, a bamboo knife, a pig and an
oven were taboo in a noble's presence
And the noble had special words of
his own for his leg. face, hair, belly,
eyelids, son, daughter and wife, his
dwelling, spear, comb, sleep, dreams
and anger, his food, his pleasure in
eating, his ulcers, cough, sickness, re
covery and death, his being carried
out on a bier, the exhumation of his
bones and his skull after death.