Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1899-01-29

eeld- consisting Of Belts, Spratt, anC
SCOTT sfratton. three better nelders coul'
not be found for covering GROUND ana NM
rloVine. The 'cranks' VIII all be sOrrl
10 hear that Captain Newell VIII not D'
with MS next season, and more so II h'
| sells his interest in the team, as the wofi
/ last season Of the Reading team IS due
! mainly 90 John 4. Neweus hard and
earnest work IN his part OF managing the
team"
/ Among the playing departments Of
/ baseball that have come I'm for more oi
/ loss agitation of late IS that of batting
( a plant having gonc-up that there IS not
/ enough batting. There was falling on
/ I'm The bctting last year, as the records
/ show. and various causes have been as
signed for the slump. among others that
! the pitchers are getting too good. Noth-
1 ing onlvens n game like hard hitting
/ but. for all that, Il IS the long close
games, with 10, 2-1. 3-2, and 4-5 scores
/ that are most talked about
"rhese close games are the kind That
make baseball history said Arthur IT.
I win the other day I'm discussing the SUD
I ject "and / am satisfied that the batilns
| is hard enough II wouldn't do 10 put
/ the pitcher back any further, as ne
| couldn't stand it.
or an increase Of batting IS wanted the
| ONLY feasible way TO DO il is to increase
the size Of the feld-that Is, the space Tor
fair hits. TO do this lines could be laid
out. starting from the homc-plate, ana
continuing straight out 20 the fences, IN
stead of touching first and third bases ~
a foot or so on the outside of those bases,
the base bags remaining i'm the same
place MS now.
"This plan would mean that good
many close hits that now are foul would
be fair. In consequence there would be
more safe hits. and the first and third
basemcn and left and right-iielder would
have to DO more hustling, particularly
the out-nelders. as the new lines would
be widening more and more the further
they We're from the home-plate.
"But do not believe that any changes
are needed i'm the playing rules The
game as # is is all right, if they will let
up on this idea that a baseball game Us
a dog fight. This latter notion IS some
thing new There was just as much scrap
ping twelve years ago as there IS now,
and IL one player spoke sharply o. an
other for some real or f9ucied wrong
there was no talk Of putting him out of
the game. /
Baseball to-day IS better than "a ever'l
was. IF they viii let the players play it, |
An baseball wants SIS for the home pa I
irons Of q team TO feel that their team |
can beat anything that comes along on /
home grounds The home feeling should !
be that we are going to win to-day no |
matter what club was to be the home /
teams opponent. Given a team th't can /
win O majority OF its home games from /
strong teams as we'll as weak teams and /
MS patrons will have confidence In II ana {
)atronze it,"
There seems 10 be q growing feeling
In college circles against playing exhibit
ton games with professional teams. The
adoption Of this plan would mean that
he collegians, and not the professionals.
would be the sufferers. Professionals
IAN learn nothing from playing against
.ollege teams, while college players can
earn a whole lot by playing with pro-
CssiOnals. There is no good objection !
10 q college team playing q professional I,
cam. and as it is the college teams de-
sire TO win, it would seem that it would
be 90 its benefit TO play the professional
cam.
At most Of the leading colleges the
baseball outlook for the coming season |
S good Harvard. Yale. Princeton, and /
have enough Of last years
players left 10 form a strong nucleus for
his years nine. and Harvard and Yale,
n particular had strong teams last year
Yale's outheld, consisting Of Wear, Wal
ace, Eddy-twO of whom remain-and
ireenway, being one Of the best ever
seen nj d college and the whole team
strong enough TO vanquish both its llar-
Yard and Princeton rivals. DOleful things !
ire predicted for the Blue this year, but
D good pitcher will just about fix the
cam all right, as it will be strong In
lther respects. Princeton loses First
laseman Kelly and Shortstop Butler. but
'etoins two good pitchers-Eildebrand
md Harrison-and its fine catcher, Kafer.
Harvard has the most holes to fill, but
l1s some frst-class men left, including
'aptain Haughton, Shortstop Laughlin,
md Catcher Reid.
The report of the Board Of Discipline
mas stirred up the rowdy-ban question
once more, and the attention Of the peO-
Pie IS being called 90 the tiresOme Old
subject just as much as IL the league had
not already proved its inability 70 cope
With it, The Boston Journal has the
to say regarding the report:
il IS plain that the Board Of Discipline,
'reated 10y the National League OF Base
lall Clubs. must be either abolished OF
made more powerful This is revealed
BY the first report Of the board, which
las just been made public.
The scope and effect OF the Brush mea-
sure. which was the basis of the creation
IF the board are limited. as the board
'epOrts, to obscene indecent, and vQl-
gar language upon the field by players en-
,aged in playing q game Of ban during
he championship season" Therefore,
the fact that not a single complaint has
,een made 20 the board of a violation OF
his measure necessarily proves one OF
wo things: % That no such occurrences
rave taken place, and. therefore the con-
inued existence Of this tribunal is both
die and unnecessary; or CD that the ma
hinery for bringing such occurrences 10
be attention of the board Is inadequate"
The first conclusion is obviously ridicu-
Gus. This the board admits when It says
hat while no member OF this body has
lirect knowledge that the Brush mea-
ure has been violated, q number of COM
,laintS have been made in the public !
,rCss. and by individuals, that such vio-
atoms have occurred" There is alum
liant evidence 10 support these COM
laints. Besides. experience has also
demonstrated that ungentlemanly con-
uct on the BAN field is far from being
Oniined 10 'obscene, indecent, and vul-
ar language Profanity and insulting |
words. gestures and actions and SINH.
lr conduct are quite as annoying 10 {
pectators equally as reprehensibe and
onstitute as powerful basis for REFORM
tory legislation"
Every word Of this IS undeniable. ire
utable. The national game needs a thor
ugh securing, and no securing can be
one except by the board Of discipline.
( the powers exercised by K at present
re futile 10 curb the lawleesness that