El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1897-06-18

| He Is the second OaSemau OF the
Cincinnati club, and for his release
Arson offered &c. 900 last season.
McPLee was born in Massena, N. Y.
Nov. L, 1859. His father was a Scotch
man, aud his mother came from a
prominent Yankee family of puritan
stock John T. Brush, president Of
the Cincinnati club, was a SO born in
Massena, N. Y. Although about t. e
same age Brush and McPhee never
knew each other until Brush became
the owner of the Cincinnati club.
When McPhee was Z years old his
family removed to Keithsbu a small
ham'e Of / 700 inhabitants in western
Illir OILS where Park Wilson, the great
barkstop of the New York club, was
born and reared. Wilson's father was
running dry good store in the town,
round helper in the store. Both Will
son and McPhee played with local
team called the Ictorias. They were
called by the fans the "hy -catchers. y
The team sent east for uniforms and
| played all the clubs of the surrounding
towns, b ing leading feature for the
county fairs at that time. This club
won the first prize in the district
league. The prize was nickel-plated
| bat. McPhee was at that time playing
| behind the bat and was a good catcher.
He was the young "st player 10 the
| team, being onlv l6 years of age. In
1877 he and Elmer Rockwell were
signed by the club at Davenport, Iowa,
and they constituted what was then
known as crack t'e"y, with Rock
well in the box and McPhee behind the
bat.
JOINS THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION.
In the Davenport club McPhee also
played second base and in the right
field in 1878. In 1870 McPhee did not
play ball, but secured a position as
clerk in q commission house in Daven
port. In the spring of 1880 he w Mt to
Akron, Ohio, and played second base
in the semi-league which played the
Clevela club on off days.
In the autumn of 1880 0 P. CaylOr
formed the American Association. and
sent Charlie Jones, the old left fielder
of the Reds, to Akron to sign McPhee,
Sam Wise and Kemmier, the two lat
ter being now out of the business,
while McPhee is still playing with |
Cincinnati.
When asked how to play second base,
McPhee said he played it no different |
than any one else. He said that good |
shortstop is a great help to the second |
baseman, and when the two uuders' and |
each other well they can cover much |
more ground and do it safely.
STUDYING THE PITCHERS.
He says the batters are getting things |
down so fine now that they can fool all |
the ielders, usually hitting the ball as |
they please and driving it where least |
overwhelmingly the tielders would |
take certain positions for the right |
hand men and other positions for the |
left-hand men, but now there is no |
such thing as catching the batter by |
sniff ing.
There was also Much interest in
studying certain bstterS who were |
known TO drive the ball in given direc- |
lions, but now the batter hits to dodge |
the tielders, and this part of the sport |
is almost down to fine art, so much so |
that the fielders are unable to keep up |
with it. |
McPhee has held the second base |
record off and on for many years and is |
without dOub at the head of the list |
on the average. While he is consider |
ed one of the best men that ever cove = |
ed second base, he also stands high as a |
good batter and a man who attends |
strictly to his business in the general |
interest of the team.
In view of the announcement that |
the British admiralty is contemplating |
the sending out of an Antarctic eXpe- |
dition it may be of interest to recalls |
that the highest point yet attained in l.
the Sou h Polar region is SlS statute |
miles from the south pole itself re-
cent writer has made the comment that |
at almost exactly the same distance
from the north pole, on the west coast
of Spitzbergen, small hotel has been
erected for the entertai nment of sum-
mer guests. There would seem to be a
series of fairly easy triumphs in store
for the pioneer Antarctic explorers of
this osine decade of the ninteenth
century. The undiscovered Antarctica
fills place on the face of the globe as
Europe.