Democratic Sentinel, Volume 11, Number 13, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 29 April 1887 — BASE-BALL [ARTICLE]

BASE-BALL

Lively Times Predicted for she Season of 1887 on the Green Diamond. Hard Hitt'nj and Active Base-Bcnning Among the Products of the New Buies. [CHICAGO CORRESPONDENCE.] The American Association teams played the first championship games of the baseball season of 1887 on the 15th of April, and on the 28th of April the first championship games of the present season will take place between the teams of the National League. Thus within a few days both the great base-ball organizations of the country will have launched upon their season’s contest for the capture of their respective pennants, with every indication that the games will be attended by even a more remarkable degree of interest than has marked the progress of the contests through any seasons past. As in past years at the commencement of the season, speculation is rife among admirers of the game everywhere as to the relative strength, the probable position of the teams at the end of the season, and the c haracter of the fight they will make, with a strong favoring, of course, of the team belonging to the city from which such admirers may hail. There is a good deal of speculation among players, as well as patrons of th«' game, regarding the probable effect of the new rules. As a rule the players, particularly pitchers, condemn the new pitching rules. They render the pitchers work harder, make more work for the fielders, and prolong the length of the game. Outsiders, however, seem pleased with the new arrangement. Spectators who pay to witness base-ball games like to see plenty of action. They like to see plenty of hard hitting and lively base-running. From eveiy indication they are likely to get a surfeit of both this season. Heavy batting and daring base-running will be the feature of the games, and large scores will be the result. The lovers of the game will seldom see any scores like 2 to 1, or any “Chicagos.” The new rules were made so that the whole nine might play ball and not the pitcher. Last season the fielders had very little to do, and seldom won any applause, which made them feel that they were no more than automatons. Now they will have a chance to show how nimble they are. The games will take more time to play than they did under the old rules, because the pitchers can very seldom retire the three men in one, two, three style. The twirlers will have to work very hard to earn a record, as they must either allow a man to hit the ball or give him a base, but which will count just the same as if a man had knocked the cover off the ball. What most of the players grumble at is the four strike system, which they say will help to make poor batters’ records as large as those who handle the bat freely. The heavy hitters of the League say that if a man can’t hit a ball in three trials he ought never step to the plate. Three strikes and out is a regular household word, and it will be a long time before the people will get acquainted with four strikes. The patrons of the game will find that there rules were adopted to show the energy of each and every man on the team, and if they are given a fair trial they will suit everybody. President Nick Young, of the National League, was asked not long ago if he anticipated any trouble wi;h the new rules, and he promptly replied: “I do not. These rules were not formulated until they were thoroughly discussed in all their bearings by the managers and the most prom nent players in the profession. Of course they will be experimental to a certain extent, but they are in many respects superior to the old rules, and will conduce very materially to make the contests more exciting an<f attractive. If, however, after a satisfactory trial, they should prove a failure —which T do not expect—they can he easily changed by a special meeting of the League committee, which has lull power to make whatever changes may be deemed expedient.” In Spalding s Guide, which has just been issued in this city, President Young is allowed two pages to give his “Points on Scoring.” The points are in the nature ot the advice which the teacher of a kindergarten school usually gives his pupils, and to infant scorers may prove valuable.

home About a dozen ideas are I I abroad regarding the prop- '. er position of a pitcher under the new rales. The correct style is illustrated. plate. The general impression is that the pitcher must keep both of his feet firm on the ground from the moment he takes his position until the ball has been delivI ‘I cred. This is not so, as l pitchek’)3 Iwill be seen by the accom- ! BOX, : pariyiug diagram. : No. lis the pitcher’s po- ; ! sition for right foot. I 1 No. 2is the pitcher's po--3 : sition for left foot. I ! No. 3is the place be I 2 : makes his step with the [ 1 [ left foot when delivering ; : the ball. Aright-banded pitcher stands with his left foot a little to the left of his right, which must rest on the rear line of the pitcher’s box. The ball bas to be held in plain view of the umpire, then the preliminary arm motion is brought into play, and, as the ball is delivered, the step from No. 2 to No. 3 is taken. ' Notes of tlie Game. Spalding’s Official Base-Ball Guide for 1887 surpasses all of its predecessors in the great amount of valuable information it contains. It is embellished with cuts of President Spalding. M. J. Kelly, Roger Connor, James O’Rourke, Dan Bronthers, and A. C. Anson. The Guide enters npon its second decade as a standard hand-book of the national game. It may be said to open up a new era in the history of the game, as it presents for the first time a new code of playing rules which govern every professional olnb in the country. A feature of the Guide for 1887 is the explanatory appendix to each class of rules of the new code. Another specialty is the monthly records of the championship contests of the two leading organizations of the country. The grand stand of the Athletic Club of Philadelphia is fitted up with opera chairs, and the Btand looks very much like a theater.