The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1902-07-14
Four characteristics Of John j .
McGraw Are Given.
Citizen, Ball Player, Manager
and Business Man.
RAPID RISE TO FAME.
Educated Himself i'm Winters
After Ball Season.
Plays the Races Hard But is Yet
Worth $4,000.

ri M Cummings. in Baltimore News.1
The passing locally of John J. NC
Graw calls attention for the N omeht 10
his widespread differing characteristics
in the four roles he has been daily
called upon to fill In Baltimore-fne
private citizen. the ball player. the base
ball manager, and the proprietor OF a
high class bowling alley. In all or them
he was a study of unusual interest
To the casual acquaintance at
hotel where the Orioles might be stop
ping he was the urbane. polished, Well
informed gentleman Inform the
that that was Mr. McGraw. the man
ager of the Baltimore Baseball club
and, if he was addicted to baseball
the query was bound to come quickly:
Graw? Why. he doesn't appear to be
rowdy." Yet that is one of McGraw's
peculiarities. The DR.. Jekyu or the
leisure hours sometimes became veri-
table Mr.. Hyde when arrayed In base
hall uniform. His civility. his sense OF
5ustice-nay, even his deceney- dropped
from him as the shedding of cloak.
and the transformed man stood re-
vealed for all to see. I'm pireS were
his prey, and he would rend them with
the words his fury melted with all
the zest of the pictured Mr.. Hyde. In
business matters he was shreWd:
Those who patronized the Diamond
bowling alley came to see McGraw, the
baseball player; they stayed to frater-
nize with Robinson. the less famous
but jollier partner
MGRAW AS HE WAS
McGraw, when he came to Baltimore
a dozen or so years ago. had little to
recommend him. He was somewhat
uncouth, had no particular education
or polish, and was rather quiet in dis
position. But he studied not only the
profession he expected to follow, but
the things necessary for him to take a
higher place among his fellow men, He
attended college in the winter months
and delved in the science of the ball
field through the summer. He gradu-
ated in both branches of learning He
became an adept in the finer points OF
the national game. many of which he
thought out and introduced. 1t may
be said that If he did not actually in
vent the "bunt" and the chop style
of base hits, he and Keller more than
any other men developed them They
were, above their fellows. physically
adapted to this peculiar style of hitting.
Slight in body, fast runners, and left
handed batters, this pair became the
bette noir of opposing pitchers and teams
because of their proficiency in beating
out these infield hits.
McGraw not only had the admirable
batting eye" necessary to carry out
his intention to "bunt'' or to "chop, .
but he and Keller could, above. all
others, make and place. ordinary safe
hits to the best advantage. And Nc
Graw went further, as his own method
of fielding hunts" taught others how
to render them less valuable as a means
of getting a start" He began to turn
his attention to working pitcher for
a pass" on four bad balls. His method
was to pick out the good balls with
unerring eye and catch them on a
slanted bat in such a manner that they
would fly foul. and in due time the
pass would cone In 1899, the year
the Orioles were in the National league
under his management, McGraw work
ed this scheme n r,aFfootinn nd
passed to first a greater number of
times than any other two men in the
business. AT that time the rule re-
garding the Intentional fouling OF of
balls was a dead letter.
WHAT CAUSED THE TROUBLE
This proficiency in fouling off balls
proved McGraw's undoing in the Ameri-
can league. So much attention had been
called to his skill in the art during 1899
that whenhe became the head of the ex-
banded American League club in this
city in. 1901 his one idea was to get to
first in that manner. The American
league enforced strictly the rule calling
intentional fouls strikes, and 1t Is no
wonder that the umpires, knowing not
only his propensity for, but his skill in,
so doing-a skill of which he and his
friends had openly boasted-should call
fouls fOm his bat strikes McGraw not
used to such a handicap, opened up his
batteries on the hapless official, who.
following instructions carried out on all
such offenders, would relegate him to
the bench or club house. The truth is
that McGraw got SO to depend upon
working" the pitcher for a base on
balls that he lost much of his batting
eye" which needs constant practice,
ard more often struck or fouled out
than he made a good, honest baseball
hit. This fact helped to worry him and
aggravate his grievance against the um-
pire, SO that he was liable to break out
on any pretext at any moment. Num-
erous retirements from the game result
ed in suspension after suspension, and
punishment but made him the more bit
ter. Owing to injury and suspension
he played but little last year and less
this. The former famous batter and