The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1905-06-10
SWIFT BASEBALL
ON TAP TODAY

ON TAP TODAY
| To-day will see the opening of the
| second round in the race for the chan1-
| pionship of the first series. 1t looks
now as though the Elks will cfnch the
first period, thereby getting in the
finals. 1t is almost certain that they
will have harder picking in the second
| series, as all the teams will be
strengthened and playing better ball.
In the first game today the Elks and
Colts will fight it out. In their first
game the Elks came out on top, win
ming a hard fought game by the score
of five to two. Since that time the
Puns have improved and they will line
up strong this afternoon. There are
some bets being made with the E,lks
favorites with odds of two to one
These two teams play a somewhat
similar game and things should be in
teresting from the start. Hampton and
Desha will rub up against each other
on the slab.
In the second game the Kams meet
the Reds. This game should go to the
H. A. C.'s as they usually have an
easy time with the Rams. Chances
are that Richards will pitch today and
Reuter- be saved for Mondays game
against the Punahous.
THE CHAMPION FAN.
NEW YORK, May 1S.-The champion
baseball fan of the season was dis
covered today when George Sneven.
after making the trip from Boston to
see the New York-Chicago game, took
a flying leap from the train at the
125th-street station on discovering that
the express he was on did not stop
there.
Sneven weighs 225 pounds and was
bowled along the platform for about
forty yards and received a number of
severe contusions and a badly bruised
arm, but even this did not discourage
him or prevent him from seeing the
last three innings.
az wish I'd seen the other innings,
but then, a man can't have every
thing" said Sneven philosophically.
THE SPIT BALL.
From the best information obtainable
upon the subject it appears that Hide
i
watching an amateur going through
the motions OF pitching. Hildebrand
noticed that the ball was taking pecu
liar shoots and turns, and he accord
ingly, made inquiries of the tyro as
to the cause of it. The amateur spat
upon his fingers and applied them to
the ball. Hildebrand noted the fact
with care and remembered it.
1ittIa Ontfial5RT returned
to California in the Fall of 1902 he
signed to play with Sacramento. Pitch
er Stricklett was on the same team
and in the throes of a streak of bad
luck Hildebrand took him in hand
and illustrated to him the new delivery.
Stricklett applied himself conscien-
tiously and soon was able to make use
of his knowledge in the league games.
This was Mike Fishers first season as
manager, and his team was a bad
tail-end. Sacramento took a wonderful
brace in the Fall and finished one of
the strongest teams. This was due to
the effectiveness of Strickletts deliv-
cry as he was winning every game he
pitched. 1t wasn't long before the
PLAYERS noticed him wetting his fingers.
and then they gave the ball the nam
that is now one of the most talked of
in baseball circles-the spit ball
What strange gyrations the simple
wettng of the fingers caused with the
ball they did not then know. 1t was
a thing of mystery, not to be learned
until later. In that Winter of 1902 the
All-Americans went to California and
played the Sacramento team. Strick-
lett pitched two games against them.
shut them out inn one game and beat
them decisively by a score of IS to 3
in the other. In the latter game Ches-
bro. the famous New York twirler,
was engineering the bends for the All
Americans. Ise was q close observer
and soon noticed Stricklett wetting the
ball Stricklett, deeming his secret one
that would out sooner or later, will
ingIy showed Chesbro how to secure
shoots so freakish that it was difficult
work for the catcher to stop them.
When the spit ball came into the
care of Chesbro its real development
began. The renowned pitcher applied
himself assiduously to it in practice but
used it very seldom in games during
the season of 1903. All the time, how
ever, he was perfecting his control of
it, and in 1904 it was made his principal
stock in trade. The phenomenal sue
cess he made of it during last season
is a matter of too recent baseball his
tory to require any comment. In the
meantime Stricl1lett secured engage
ments with other teams and showed
other pitchers how to use the spit ball,
until it became general, the first in
PRODUCTION of the freak into organized
baseball coming. however, with Hide
brands Illustration to Stricklett.
Youngsters who desire TO acquire this
bah so that they may BATTLE other
youngsters. would do we'll to follow the
direction given in this, the best recipe
on the market. Wet the index and
middle fingers and apply them to the
ball which is delivered from the hand
the same as a straight ball The ball
viii leave the hand with all the speed
of a straight ball. but as it nears the