The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-10-11
DECLINE OF HEAVY BATTING.
AVERAGES OF THE PLAYERS IN
THIS YEARS GAMES.


Pitchers Overcoming the handicaps
Placed Upon Them-Burkett, of the
Spiders, Heads the List of Heavy
Hitters-Long's Ten Assists in One
Game the Great Individual Feat of
the Seasons PIaying-La JOie, Me-
Phee and Irwin Hold the Base
mems Records.
President Young has not made up the
averages of the National League clubs,
club and players yet, but from figures
carefully gone over the averages are
pretty we'll established.
One thing is manifest from the batting
averages, the pitchers were not hit as
hard as formerly The batting has been
sinking since 1894. In that year Duffy led
the league with a percentage of .4S4 and
the average batting ngure of the league
players was about .2T7. In 1895 the rule
making a caught foul tip a strike-a SEN
sible and necessary codicil-was added,
and the batting suffered a slight shrinkage
as the result. Burkett who led. had
percentage of 426, and the average of
batting was .271-a falling off Of six points,
solely from the foul tip rule. This year
Burkett again leads, with a record Of .4O5,
and the average of the team is not over
1853.
AS there was no essential change in
rules, this result clearly indicates that
the pitchers are fast overcoming the han
dicaps placed upon them, and will, in
another season or so, have something like
the old scientific mastery of the ball that
made great twirlers kings in former days.
Most of the winning pitchers of 1896
were the same men who starred in 1896
the good old reliables For three years
the great pitchers have been Rusie, Nee
kin, Nichols, Young, Cuppy, Killen, Haw-
ley, Griffith Mercer, Breitenste.n, with
Hoffer added last season. Rusie was out
of IL this year, but everyone of the old
| relia bles was again powerful this sum-
mer. The newcomers who did well were
Friend, Pond, Briggs, McJames, Klobe-
danz and Payne; fair to medium pitchers
who played beyond their former speed
were Dwyer, Rhines, Ehret and Wilson.
Taylor was about the only star to show
a deterioration.
OF individual feats, among the finest
were the ten assists of Long in Il single
game, Burl0ett's and Delahanty's eight
putouts in left field, Anderson's twenty
one putouts on first base in a nine-inning
game and Child's ten assists in a game.
Long had nine assists without an err
ror and twice eight assists. Reitz ac-
cepted thirteen chances in a single game.
Jennings had nine assists without an err
ror, and in another game put out five and
assisted eight times with but one error.
Corcoran had four putouts, nine assists
and one error in game Joe Kelley twice
put out seven men in a game three times
six. Brodie twice put out seven men and
| Hoy three times put out that number.
| Dahen accepted thirteen chances twice
without an error. Burke of the Cincn-
natis four times made seven hits in a
! game and twice made six hits in a game.
Aug. l. at st. Louis, Mo, Blake, in CEN
| ter field made six putouts in each of two
games on the same day.
LaJoie leads the first basemen, but of
those who played the entire season there
was fine race between Connor, Tucker,
| Beckley, Arson and Lachance. Connor's
percentage was 1887, fuckers, 1885, Beck
! ley's 1855, AnSon's and Lachance's. 1884, ano
Tebeau's .9S1.
McPhee leads the second basemen with
| the wonderful record of .972-the greatest
record ever made on the bag. In his last 80
| games McPhee made but one misplay and
! in those games accepted It's out of 176
| chances.
| 1t is also a Cincinnati player who leads
the third basemen-Irwin. His percentage
is 1888, against 1928 for Lave Cross George
! Davis had the fine percentage of .925, Nash
| had .915 and Collins .912
| OF the men who played regularly at
short, Jennings led with a percentage of
| 927. Monte Cross had the fine record of
| 1868 for 81 games, George Davis 1885 for 40
| games and young Dolan of Louisville 1892
for "A games. Longs percentage was 1902.
Patsy Donovan and Mike Tiernan lead
| the outfielders, with the fine record of 1863.
| Sam Thompson is a close third, with 1887,
and then come Delahanty and McAleer,
with .965.
Brodie had more putouts than any other
outfelder and Thompson and Donovan led
in assists, with 80 each.
Ely proved the premier sacrifice hitter,
with &c to his credit. Duffy and Hallman
made q each and Tenney and Demont 20
each.
Although McCreary ranked as one of the
heaviest hitters in the league, he struck
out SO times. thinner came next with IS.
Tom Brown had As, Lush "A, and Cart
wright 40.
The only honor not heretofore won by
Baltimore has now been gained. The
"Orioles'' won the Temple cup series this
year about as easily as they won the pen
nant defeating Tabeau's "Terrors'' four
straight games. The series was not a sue
cess from financial standpoint, and there
was not the interest taken in 1t that has
been taken in former games. This is to
be regretted, as the money derived from
the games goes to the players comprising
the winning teams and they deserved
some reward after their hard seasons
work.
The foot ball team of the Savannah
Athletic Association has arranged a
game with the Jacksonville Athletic Club
to be played in Jacksonville some time
this month or next The boys should now
get down to practice and see to it that Sa-
vannahs name is upheld on the gridiron.
Joe Corbett, a brother Of "Pompadour
JIM" erstwhile champion of the world,
LII. L. II L.. L..