Democratic Sentinel, Volume 12, Number 29, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 10 August 1888 — BAT AND BALL. [ARTICLE]

BAT AND BALL.

■Detroit and New York Now Struggling for First Place in the Leagne. /Fielding and Batting Recsrdi of the Teams —News and Notes of the Garni [CHICAGO CORRESPONDENCE.] Since my last letter was written Anson’s boys ■have taken a great tumble. Leaving Detroit on ■the 21st still in possession of the lead, they went to Indianapolis, where nine out of ten (Chicago enthusiasts, were certain they would take two or possibly three games, cmd dropped three straight victories into the laps of the Hoosiera. Then they came hack to Chicago and met Detroit upoh the home grounds in three games. Two of these they lost to the Wolverines, so that, at this writing, the Detroit is tied with New York, while Chicago has dropped back into third place. Chicago s tumhle has' been a source of wonder to the team's admirers in this * city, and the cause hss. i been apparent to all. The team has been fielding and running bases as well as it ever did, hut it has not been "hitting the*ball a little bit. The Hoosier pitchers played with our batsmen at Indianapolis as a cat would play with a mouse, while Getzein and Conway of Detroit proved nuts entirely too hard for Anson’s men to crack. It was not until Detroit put Lady Baldwin in the box that the Chicago hitters began to find the ball, and when they commenced to get their eyes upon it in the game of Saturday, the 28th, they pounded the Detroit twirler out of the box and won the game by a score of 21 to 17 In the presence of nearly 10,000 people. The attack of hatting paralysis that has hung over our boys for the last month, therefore, has probably bqen lifted, and Chicagoans may hope for better things from them from this time out. Since my last letter was written President Spalding has dropped Brynan. He was in favor of letting the young pitcher go three weeks or moi e ago, when he received a fair offer from St. Paul, hut Anson said no, and that settled it. Whether or not Brynan’s slaughter in the Washington game here had any t earirg upon the action subsequently taken I cannot say, but I think had Brynan pitched a winning and brilliant game that day, instead of being knocked out of the box, that Anson would never have let him go. “When it comes to a choice between the home‘run slugger and the scientific batter, who cares :more to place the hall to advantage than he does to hit it hard, I’ll take the latter every time," says a veteran writer in the Sporting Life. “There should be no more credit givtn to a man for a home run or three-base hit than for a good sacrifice when a sacrifice hit is needed. A club which has two or three home-run hit.ers in its team will never show up very strong in team work, A player who is always talking about his base-hits and errors, rather thiyi about his club’s standing or the games it has won, is not a desirable or a strong man in his team. The conscientious, hard-working player—the man whose work will count most—is that one w o forgets his own record and thinks only of those points that will add a game ora run to his club’s record. Such a man has been Kelly, of the Bostons, and it is that which 1 as made him the great player whieh he has justly won the reputation of being. Anson is another of the kind. What does Anson case for four-base hits to his credit if his club loses the game? What does he care for four errors if hi 3 club wins?

“By the way, how that man is abused and barked at. Every time he opens his mouth to -question the decision of an umpire, as he has a right under the rules to do, it is telegraphed all over the country in a sensational way. Fearful exaggerations of the occasion are written up and Anson is pictured as the personification of abusiveness and obstinacy. Newspapers everywhere take turns in making mean references to him in that way and speak of him as a tyrant in his team. Now, tho truth plainly told is that his team tyranny amounts to merely a strict discipline and a total refrain from favoritism. His kicking consists in a firm habit of claiming every right during a game which he thinks belongs to his team. If there were more captains like Anson there would be less complaint made of bad ball playing. “Anson never was a newspaper favorite. The reason probably arises from his perfect indifference to newspaper attack. The old man goes right on playing ball and doesn’t think it worth while to reply to anything the reporters may say about him or the Chicago team. The consequence is Anson is exasperat ng, and the more sphinx-like he remains the worse he is abused. It has been a sort of unaccountable situation to me—the manner in which the Chicago press treats the Chicago team. It never gets any praise or any credit for well-doing, but L ird, how it is abused and blackguarded if it strikes a bit of reverse. While the team was in first "place last weak fighting like a band of heroes to retain its position, it was most unmercifully assailed becauselt had lost a game at Detroit. On 3 paper insisted that the club was about to ‘toboggan’ down ,toward the tail end. Now I admire the pluck of Anson aud his men more than I admire the work of any other League team. The work of that team has been marvelous under ■the circumstances. It has so far made a vigorous bid for first honors, whereas it ought to be held in high esteem at home if it ended up in third place. A team that, after getting rid of high-priced dissatisfied stars, can fill their places with raw material and go right on at the head of the profession, deserves more praise than the New York or Detroit clubs, whose veteran teams are under obligation to their backers to occupy first and second places. I want to be one of a few at least who are ready to take off their hats and make a respectful obeisance to Captain Anson and his band of plucky base-ball players.” Mr. Spalding’s trip to Australia will just be in the nick of time this winter. They have begun ball pi ying in Melbourne already, and the Melbourne Cricket Club have taken “the Yankee game” in hand, and, judging from the report of an initiatory game which the cricketers plaved with the newly organized “Melbourne Base-Ball Club,” they like the game exceedingly. What will they say when they see base-ball played by Spalding’s American expertß? The visiting party to Australia next November —which with the players and accompanying tourists will number over two hundred-will go in their own chartered steamer. For those having money and leisure to take the trip no excursion could be more attractive or enjoyable.

PLAYERS’ RECORDS. The latestpuWished statistics are interesting: Ryan leads the league in batting. His average is .343. Connor is second. Ryan has made 103 hits. No other batsman nas mode anywhere near that number. O’Brien and Beckley are a tie —.984 —at first base; Morrill, .981; Esterbrook, .981; Connor, .979 ; Brouthers, .975 ; Farrar, .974; Anson, .973. At short Kuehne is first, .979: Denny, .909; Wise, .895; Smith. 891; Shock, .887; Irwin, .878; Glasscock, .809; Williamson, .867; Rowe, .864 ; Ward, .840. The center-fie'ders’ averages are: Slattery, .958; Hanlon, .933; Sunday, .9^B; Johnstbn, .918; Hoy, .914; Hines, .903; Ryan, .900; Andrews, •837; Foster, .865. Bennett, of Detroit, has the best fielding average among the catchers. His average is .951. Daly, of Chicago, sec nd, .893; Buckley third. .874; Ewing fourth, .872. Bastian is the best third baseman, having an average of .930; Denny, .907; Nash, .907; Kuehne, .906; Burns, .884; White, .869; Mulvey, .866; Donnelly, .845; Whitney, .801. The pitchers’ fielding averages are: Keefo, .897“, Buffinton, .863; Getzein, .849; Sowders .845; Krock, .822; Madden, .816; Van Haltren, .808; Galvin, .798; Clarkson, .795; M. Baldwin, .793. Campau’s average as a right-fielder is 1.000; Fogarty, .934; Tiernan, .909; Coleman, .909; McGeachy, .899; Daily, .890,; Pettit, .887; Brown, .882; Thompson, .880; Shomberg, .857; Shock, .840 ; Farrell. .833 ; Kelly, .718. Joe Honiung has made only two errors in seventy games. His average is .980; O Rourke, .936 ; Farrell, .941; Sullivan, 938; Wood, .929; Lew, 313; Wilmot, .912; Twitchell, .901; Gore, 843; Fields, .843 ; Dalrympls, .836. At second base Bastian leads in fielding with .951; Richardson (De.roit), .938' Dunlap, ,931 c Myers, .929; Ganzel, .927 ; D. Richardson, 914; Pfeifer, .904. The latter has accepted 178 more chances than any other second baseman in the League. In club batting Detroit is first, .275; Indianapolis, .252; New York, .250; Chicago, 248; Boston, 232; Pittsburgh, .231; Philadelphia, .224; Washington, .202. In fielding Detroit leads with .910 j Boston, .898; New York, .897; Pittsburgh, .895; Philadelphia and Chicago, .894: Washington. .882; Indianapolis, .875.