Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-07-16

Cleveland In the old twelve-ciub league
The score was close. Philadeiphia had two
men on bases, and I'D DeIshanty was OF
bat
He cracked q long line drive across the
LETT field fences sure home run. The pan
was going over the fence high In the an.
when suddenly It changed It's course. arop-
ped straight down. hit the top OF the renee
and bounded back into the loS
The crowd. which had given up In de.
spair was astonished The Cleveland lett
fielder got the ball and. by quick throw,
cut down O runner at the plate and Deie-
hanty was held at second. The next man
went out and Philadelphia was beaten
Investigation after the game proved that
the ball had struck telephone wire lead
ing to a factory Just out side the grounds.
The people in the left-field bleachers saw
It. but the others were puzzled TO account
fer the queer antics of the sphere.
II
Clark Griffith tells OF play that hap
pened when he was playing in the coast
league for which refuse to vouch. 1t ap-
pears. from Grirs story. that Seattle had
a left fielder whose arm was deader than
Rameses II and nearly as dead as Harnesses
]. He couldn't even lob the ball back TO
the diamond.
In close game one afternoon against
Butte at Butte one OF the Butte players
hit long foul fly to LETT field and the dead
armed man went IN pursuit of 1t. The heid
was lined with carriages. and near the
foul line stood a blackboard to which We're
hitched two wild mustangs. As the dead
armed ball player came tearing along after
the foul the mustangs got scared and start
Ell to run away.
The dead-armed man caught the ball and
the runner on third started home, lettering
along knowing the fellow couldn't throw
him out. The dead-armed man. after his
jumping catch. kept right on. and before
he could stop he collided with the runaway
blackboard and fell clear over into it. The
iunaways dashed across the field. The base
runner lodged to avoid them. and the dead
armed man. leaping from the blackboard.
tagged the runner the line and COM
pleted the double play.
Grif also has grizzly bear story, but that
is too tall to tell. Somebody might doubt It.
But here is a true one for which G. Webb
Murphy will vouch. because it happened
to the team of his home town, Wilmington.
Ohio. shortly before Murphy bought Gin
cinnati. The game was between Whining
ton and New Vienna, and II was played on
the 'gas-well' grounds at New Vienna, so
called because about twenty feet to one
side of the home plate was pump drawing
water from the gas well that never pro-
duced any gas.
The game was close, with New Vienna
leading up to near the close, when two Will
mingtons made hits. Harve West. the only
straight-armed first baseman that ever
lived. was at second when Reese, pitching
for New Vienna, made a wild pitch. The
ball hit the shoe of Stan Arthur, bounded
crooked, jumped into the spout of the gas
we'll and disappeared.
Arthur, who afterward starred with To-
ledo. rushed over and gave one of the best
exhibitions of quick thinking ever seen.
Selling the pump handle, he pumped as
hard as he could. and after about five
strokes pumped the ball out, grabbed 1t
and by quick throw to Reese shut off
West at the plate.