The Washington times., 1905-05-21

ever hear @ one that lost a game be-
cause he hit it too hard?
Nights well go back to the beginnin.
which was one year when we Were bat
ting with the Cloverdales for first place
in the CoTndroppers' League, and the
fight was getting very hot. Sam Mer-
ritt read 10 us out of an Eastern paper
the other day Of a pitcher named Red
Ames out in New York who had in
vented what he called a stop ball.
and the Corndreppers League pitchers
began 10 throw their arms out tryin
TO pitch It,
It amt no curve nor no shoot, nor
nufhin like nuthin' was ever invented, y
said Sam, ITS jest pitched right up
from the box as big as a couple O bal
looms. and the batter sees the juice
ooZin' out, of it and goes up on one
leg and swings like the ball was goin'
on the dun map. and right here the
stop ball gifts in its work. Just when
the batter has pictures in his mind of
batterin' down the left field fence the
ball hangs in the air for second, the
hat whistles by. and then the bail
speeds on its way into the ketcher's
padded palm. That's the way the stop
ball acts, that New York paper says,
and it compliments the inventor In a
huh lot off bang-up langwidge."
Then Reggie Van Rensselaer,, our best
pitcher. who owns up to havin' a little
on McGinnity. he tried to git the stop
ball, but after he had tore the hide
off,n dozen new balls putting fancy
clutches onto them he gave 1t up.
Nuthin' in it fer me- says he. ut
may be possible, but it amt probable
Lamp Hymes. who is so good on
<.1fr.x Ha
If his life defended on 1t. tried to get
the stop ball, but ehucked It up.
Il put Chesbro next the spit ball"
says he. but dum'f I can get this.
This here Mr. Ames has cert'nly got
1t on US good pitchers this time"
Delaney Unfortunate
Dan Delaney tried it an dislocated his
wrist He said nobody could pitch It
without he stood on his head So there
the thing lay
And II is right here that SiIe stebbins.
OF the CloveTdales. comes into this tale.
He want no pitcher at all, but a orn-
efy-punk rightfe1der. He had heard the
talk O. the stop ball, but it didn't con-
vey nuthfn to his mind till one dav
wflen there wasn't any game on account
O soggy grounds he was in Il pool an
II
one them stop shots on a pool table
one where the cue bali cracks another
out o the bunch and loses ali It's force
an lays there spinnin' in nice nc s,tion
for the next shot
Ihe minute Right Fielder Stebbins saan
that shot he uttered whoop an rushed
out INTO the air to cool his throbbir'
temples. Tor the greatness of the t1ist,ov
cry ne was about to make overpowered
him. ~ V - ca
george Washington crossin' the Del
aware, says he, you are a dead una
solomon IN ali his glory, get down there
Dani webster, take a back seat I've
soL you all beat. One weeks practice
an III De hyin' to the East to bust
open the ranks o the National and
<ahaericsan ~ leagues an make MeGraw and
Grifi1th and Fred Clarke groyeI on their
knees TO me-
Ihen he went an got a baIl-a base
pan, ! mean-and got a kid to field the
throws back to him an one to hat on.
sHey went out to the ball grounds He
planted himself about sixty feet froro
the. backstoD. otii
Now. says he to himself. 1.-THE oues-
s.ien en IS now 20 make that bali ston lest
Lat ~ II does on pool table Saw fhfs
t etye-snlilln ball is the cue BAH an
lne Dat Is the object ball an nv good
iIghI arm is the cue. I've got 70 mn =
fwizzling twist onto 1t SO when ii hits
It1e pat 1t won't move"
Had It Figured.
So then he up an throwed the he1,
oit sllis Judgment was poor an the baI
ss'ehl n under the grandstand. And then
ne throwed another and near made a
tpictnre frame o the kid with the hat
ana then he pondered some more. and
Inaiiy ne fiEgered that he had to draw
the Dali Dit to overcome the natural
force o his throw when it hit the baf
That's what he said afterward. He had
1t all down IN figgers.
eeh' ne put the draw onto his next
taFow and sizzled one down To the xtd
with the bat, an he reached his bat o,,t
an tapped IT, and, 10 an behold. the baIi
alant go sallin' out 10 left field. nor TO
shorfstop. nor nowhere. 1t Just hung
lnsfe IN the air. sizziin' round ike q
puzz saw. ana the kid with the big mitt
reaches out and picks it out O. the air
Ike a girl pickin' gooseberries an
.tnTows IL 20 Stebbins. Siie's eyes were
so DUN bugged out he couldn't even
lsoIler 'Eureka!" which is proDer n
say when you make a new discovery.
That was what Reggie sung out when
he discoeYred the medicine ball.
Wen. Stebbins threw that bali again
and then hull lot o. times, and II
worked every time. He let Tim Nc
Ginnis, the Cloverdale manager, In, and
the next Gay we were facin' Sile Steb
bins, who had beer a right fielder. and
he was pitchin' the stop ball TO US. and
we were not what you'd call numbering
II Hardly
We had never seen the thing worked,
and before the game was two innfn's
old we never wanted to see it again and
was wishin' Stebbins d drown in the
s0aIeF bucket or break his arm, We'd
git up 70 the plate an git set and
swing on nice. straight ones over the
riate. ard the minute the bail hit the
hat I'D give a little jump an hang
there IN the air, an the keteher'd reach
out freekled and warty right fist and
pull the ball in an throw us out as we
was speedin' for first. We lost the game
'leve,i TO nuthin'. Stebbins didn't strike
out. but nobody didn't git a hlt,
SO il all amounted 10 the same thing.
They carried him out o. the grounds on
their shoulders that night and named
him step Bali Sfebbins." cause he'd
beat The champions.
What made the game so important
was the fact that II was the deciding
seriez of an exciting season. The
needed 20. take four straight