Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-01-24
BOOM BASE RUNNING.
Exciting Part of Game Should Be En-.
couraged.

Just who originated the slide to a base
is matter of some doubt, writes Sam
Crane in the New York Journal. Tim
Murnane was among the players who first
slid, and he usually went in head first, al
though he could slide on his side. This
was away back in the seventies, and know
that l took the idea from Murnane's bril-
liant slides and all-around base running
80 II Sir Timothy was not the first player
to do the slide he was pretty near it.
Murnane was an adept at getting down
to first. He was left-hand hitter and he
merely tapped the ball. He very seldom
swung hard. He was away like flash, and
being fast runner he had the infielders
Dothered not a little. He was at his best
as batter when the "fair FOUL was in
vogue. That trick allowed batter to put
the bah down on fair ground, and then if it
bounded out foul 1t was allowed as fair
hit.
Ross Barnes, the old second baseman of
the BoStonS, was one of the best hitters at
that style there was in the business, and
Murnane was a close second. AS the fair
FOUL did not give the fielders an even
chance 1t was soon abolished and MUIR
names batting averages were then very
much lower. But as base runner and pur-
loiner of bases ne was in a class by him
self.
If there were any players who did the slide
l hasten to give him credit for being the
originator of the stunt.
1t appears to me as if base stealing was
becoming almost a lost art There was
comparatively little of it done last season
Why is this SO? Surely the catchers are
no better throwers today than in years past
Where could betters, swfter more ac-
curate throwers than Buck Ewing. Char
ley Bennett "Slver" Flint or Charley Sny-
der be found?
One great cause of the lack of good base
stealing In the American League last year
was owing to the umpires falling to enforce
the balk rule. Dineen of the Bostons was
the worst offender of the whole lot 1t was
almost an impossiblity for runner to get
a lead on him. 1 have seen him make
deliberate balk time and time again, but
never saw him called down for it or penal
lied in any way. What is the use of the
rule If umpires fail to enforce it? The rule
was made with the intention of helping
base stealing. That is one of the prettiest
features of the game, and should be assist
ed instead of being killed by the balk.
The speediest runners are not always the
best base stealers. There are few faster
men on their feet than George Browne of
the Giants, still he is not good at sliding
or stealing. He can get around the bases
on a long hit with the speed of the wind,
and very few players, if any, can beat him
in getting down to first, but that lets him
out. He hasn't the knack of getting the
start on the pitcher
Bill Dahlen is like selling platter along
the better base runner Bill can wriggle
away from baseman like an eel and man
age to get the start-the jump on the op-
posing twirler.
1t may be intuition, but it appears to me
as If Dahlen uses his head a bit better
than Browne. Devlin is another good base
runner, but he is not so very fast as a
sprinter.
Then there was Mccormick, the ex-Giant
That youngster could get down to first like
a house afire, but he was anchored after
that. He couldn't steal money let alone a
base. He didn't know how to Slide nor
could he get start. Manager McGraw
saw McCormiek's weakness as a base run
ner at once. and in Savannah last spring
he took him away out in the corner of the
| field and kept him at running and sliding
for hours at time, but he couldn't beat into
McCormick's head the knack of throwing
himself away from the baseman. And as
long as Mccormick plays ball he will al
ways be a poor base runner.
Base running should be fostered instead
of knocked