Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 253, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 9 November 1917 — BURNS RATED AS GREATEST SUN FIELDER [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

BURNS RATED AS GREATEST SUN FIELDER

The best sundog In the big leagues I Here. In a sentence, you have the opinion of a majority of National league managers regarding George Burns, left fielder of the Giants. Burns Is rated by many as the greatest sun fielder since the days of Wee Willie Keller, who, though he faced the sun day after day was seldom known to muff a fly ball, and whose batting eye was not dimmed by the rays of Old Sol. This Is Burns’ sixth year as a member of the Giants. He came to the New York club from Utica In the spring of 1912 and stuck through the season, although he played in only 29 games. Since that time Burns has missed few regularly scheduled games with the clan of McGraw and he goes on from year to year, hitting and fielding as consistently as though the very turning of the clock depended upon his being in the lineup. Started as Catcher. Burns is a short and rather chunky athlete, and when he broke into professional baseball with Utica in 1909, at the age of twenty, he started out to be a catcher. Because of the fact that small catchers, of the Ray Schalk type, were not attractive to the scouts

In those days, Burns was eventually shifted to the outfield, and although he made good as first catcher with the Utica club it was believed that his wonderful hitting ability could be bettered If he played the .outfield. So Into the garden went Burns, and after two years of it he was grabbed by the Giants. He has been with McGraw ever since, and his baseball experience in professional ranks has been limited to the two teams. Hughle Jennings once said of Burns: “He is as good a player as ever drew on a spiked shoe. It’s too bad he hasn’t a little more aggressiveness In his makeup. He would be doubly wonderful. There’s nothing he doesn’t or cannot do well on a ball field.” That’s Burns. Ask any of the big leaguers about him and you’ll get the same answer, and It is a tribute none too good for him because, with all of his ability, he is one of the most unassuming ball players in the game, and he doesn’t care a tinker’s rap for publicity. Burns was born at Utica, N. Y., in 1889. He is five feet seven inches tall and weighs around 175 pounds in condition.

BEST SUNDOG IN MAJOR LEAGUES.