The Savannah morning news., 1903-06-14

started from first to second when Bug
made his nit. So all alone, and without
assistance of any kind, young Smith
made a record which is unique among
ball players.
That triple play seemed to take all
the starch out of the Reds. 1t also had
the effect of steadying down the Will
mington team and giving them suffl-
Gent nerve and courage to play to the
best of their ability.
Reese, the scrub pitcher, struck out
a lot of the Reds best batters and at
the end of the game the famous play
ers from Cincinnati had to go home
with a score of 4 to against them.
1t is, of course, easy to say that
young Smiths wonderful catch was
only a fluke. Perhaps it was. Ad-
hitting that and admitting further that
his coming down squarely on second
base with both feet was a piece of
good luck, it must still be admitted
that it took quick and cool thinking
to lead him, the minute he struck the
ground, to start after the runner from
first, instead of throwing the ball to
home, which nine out of ten players
would have been certain to do.
Here is the story of a bit of quick
baseball thinking, which resulted in
turning Jack Doyle of the old New
York team against his best friend,
Tom Mccarthy, perhaps the surest
thrower and one of the quickest field
ers who ever played in the National
League.
Boston and New York were playing
in the latter city, and Doyle was at
bat for New York. New York had
men on first and second. Tom Brown
was the best runner on second, and
he was famous as one Of the fastest
and most daring runners in the game.
Tom Mccarthy was out in the left
garden for Boston.
Doyle lined out a sharp grounder in
to left field. Mccarthy ran up on it,
scooped it with one hand. and without
stopping to look or even to gather
himself together sent the bail sailing
in to first base.
Ninety-nine fielders out of a hundred
would have thrown the ball to home
in order to cut off the runner. partic-
ularly when a fast man like Tom
Brown had been on second, when the
ball was hit. Doyle naturally figured
that Mccarthy would follow the rule,
so he overran first thirty feet on his
was to second, and was caught far
off the base when he tried to get back.
Brown meanwhile had stopped after
overunning third, in fear of the nat
ural throw to home, and no run was
scored. The next man to bat flew out,
ana the game was over, with Boston
a winner by one run.
AS Mccarthy came in from field
Doyle met him and in something of a
huff asked why on earth Mccarthy
had thrown to first instead Of putting
the ban home. which would have been
the proper thing to do.
Just because / knew that everybody
would think that was the proper thing
TO do answered Mccarthy. Tom
Brown, knew, was we'll aware that 1
am a. good thrower and he would stop,
after turning third to see if / was
seeking 1t home. And you, I figured
out, would run past first with the idea
of getting to second while the bail was
on it's way to the plate. I won by do
ing just exactly what nobody expect
ed me to do"
But Doyle declared that Mccarthy
had taken an unfair advantage of
him, and the relations between the
two never got back to the old friendly
footing.
Released for "a Good Play.
Arson was a quick thinker on the
ball field, but once he released the best
second baseman that ever wore a suit
for thinking a little bit quicker than
anybody else on the nine.
The second baseman in question was
Bad Bill Eagan. Everybody who re-
members Bad Bill will admit his SUI
premacy on the second bag. When the
play we celebrate came up there was
MI