The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-10-24
CURIOUS THINGS IN BASE BALL.

Special to the Indianapolis Journal.
| NEW YORK. Oct 23.-Let US remember some
curious things In the base ball season now closed.
| 1t was singular accident that occurred to Ames
| Pringle. the pitcher of the Utica club, while
playing with the Ithaca club, at Utica on Oct.
8. Pringle is heavy weight, and strives to
| pitch the swiftest possible ball. While doing
this and endeavoring to curve the ball, he not
| only broke his arm near the elbow but dislocat-
ed his shoulder. The first instance on record of
base ball player committing suicide occurred
at Grand Rapids, Mich, on March 20, when
John E. Sullivan, the old third -baseman Of the
| Grand Rapids club of 1883, who was a ma
tive of Rochester N. Y, in fit of dependency,
| destroyed himself at his residence in that city.
The one prominent pitcher who played
himself out in 1886 was one-armed Hugh Daily.
The good effect of plucky rally in the closing
part of an uphill contest was strikingly illus
trated on April "a, at Andover, Mass, in match
between the Phillips Academy and the Boston
| College. When the Boston players went to the
bat at the last half of the ninth inning the score
stood to against them. They then spurted
| at the bat to the tune of five safe hits, which
| yielded them four runs and the game.
at ball match was that gathered at the Polo
grounds or-the afternoon of Decoration Day,
when 20,709 people paid admission, and some
hundreds gained entrance over the fence. In the
morning 5000 people were present SO that dur
| ing the day over 80 900 witnessed the contests.
| The largest number ever gathered on
the Brooklyn club grounds, at Wash
ington Park, on two consecutive days, were
| present on last Good Friday and the day follow
ng the turnstile count exceeding Ia, 600 for the
| two days It is a rule at most of the profess
| sional ball games that when a ball is knocked
over the fence the boy who returns it to the
grounds is give free admission. On April 2, in a
game at Washington, foul ball was hit over
the fence, and at once the betting crowd in the
grand stand began laying wagers as to whether
white boy or negro would bring it back. On
inquiry it was found that little girl had cap
tured the ball, and the result was that all bets
were off. During the progress of game at
Thurlow, Pa, last April, tornado carried the
grand stand over the fence with several people
on it, Strange to say, no one was seriously hurt,
but hundreds were badly scared. The finest
| grand stand yet built on ball ground is that
constructed last spring on the st. George
| grounds, at Staten Island. It is three-story
| building four hundred feet in length by sixty in
breadth, and will seat over 5000 There is also
| dining room on the ground floor, two hundred
feet by fifty, which will seat thousand persons
| at the tables.
A remarkable game was played at Savannah
on March 20 between the Pittsburg club of the
American Association, and the Savannah club,
| of the Southern League. Not run was scored
on either side up to the close of the fourteenth
inning In the fifteenth the Pittsburg team got
| In single run, and won. This was the finest
80
novel struggle took place at Washington Park,
Brooklyn, on April 8, between the Brooklyn
| team and the Long Island Athletics, the four
Brooklyn batteries playing the match, Terry
and Schneider being the first battery for Brook
| Ign, and Harkins and Clark were the second.
The other two Brooklyn batteries-Toole and
Old6eld, and Porter and McCauley-playing in
| the other side The former won. The worst
defeat inflicted on an Intercollegiate Associ-
alton nine by League club this season was
that given by the Philadelphia club on
| April 2, when they whipped the Brown
| University nine by 81 to 0. One of the note
worthy victories of the Yale College nine was
that scored at New Haven, on April Z when the
collegians defeated the Eastern League profes.
sional team of Jersey City by 3 to 0. The lead
| ing teams in the League and American Associa-
ton for 1886 are those whose players were nearly
| the same the last month of the season as the
! first while the tail enders in both organizations
are the teams who were changed so often during
| the season that scarcely an original player re-
NAMED to finish. The monthly record of the
League season shows that Detroit has the best
record for one months play, they having won
| 20 out of 20 in May. and 20 ont Of 26 in July.
Chicago's best record was in May, 18 out of o.
| New York's best was 16 out of 81, in June and
| Philadelphia's IL out OF "a. in July. Boston's
| best was IL out of %, in July; st. Louiss best,
| 10 out of 90, in August; Kansas City's best, s
out of "a, in August, and Washington's best.
8 out of 81, in September. The Baltimore club
played eight tie games in 1886, they leading the
Association clubs in this respect singular
feature of the contest between the mines of the
| Pennsylvania University and Columbia College,
| at Philadelphia, on April IL, was the fact that
| the Pennsylva nine made no less than eleven
runs off ten safe hits, while the Columbus
| scored but six runs though they made thirteen
base hits. The Metropolitan team went to New
ark April 8, to play the Newark team. In the
fourth inning dispute arose over decision
made by Umpire Dave Pierson, during which
| Burns, of the Newark club, assaulted Foster, of
the Metropolitans, and no would have injured
him seriously had not Roseman, OF the Metro
politans, collared him and brought him to terms.
The Metropolitans then left the field, and the
two clubs did not meet again during the season.
Burns is rough of the first order, and unfit to
| be companion of q reputable team.
In the American Association, Atkisson, of the
Athletics, disposed Of the Metropolitaus without
their making a single hit on June Is. Terry, Of
the Brooklyns, pitched out the St Louis cham
pions without their making a single safe hit on
July "a, and Ki.roy did the same thing at Pitts
burg on Oct. 6. The first triple play of the
season was made April s by players Of the Tech
naley nine while playing with the Boston pro-
fessionals. The best pitching done by the
that of Toole, who is also the best
nslder, batsman and base runner of Brook
lyn's four pitchers. Toole played in twelve
championship games, and of these he won four
| with Pittsburg and one each from the Cincin-
natl and Louisville teams. Had he been given
half the show that Porter was Brooklyn would
haye had second place sure.
The best managed teams In 1880 were the Chi