The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1906-03-21
WILL BASE SLIDING
BECOME LOST ART2
No Longer Do We Hear Cries
of "SIide! SIidell'
IT HAS WON MANY GAMES
Ball Players Believe That Sliding Is
On the Decline, as Runners Are
Afraid of Being Injured
BY Spikes.
IT HAS WON MANY GAMES

Do you suppose Birmingham fan could
be made to believe that any part of
baseball art is retrogradlng? Perhaps not
but here is one that will make them sit
up and take notice. Wiseacres in the game
are out in the open with the assertion
that sliding to bases will soon become
lost art unless a few bitches are taken
in the present methods of training. Think
of it a minute. Do you ever hear of any
body these days being touted as a great
slider. The shades of old slide Kelly
Slide,' are becoming DINNER as pennants
! like poker chips pass from one team to
! the other. 1t is quite true that Kelley
lived in an age when there was little
to write about except John L. Sullivan
and Fourth of July pienlcs so that famous
slide was worth fortune to press
agents.
There are still scores of ball players
who can slide like an eel but the younger
generation is not improving the art As
an old bail players puts it they hate to
hit the dirt" These youngsters think so
much of their speed that many of them
want to make the base on their feet so
they can pose as sprinters Clark Grif-
fifth has noticed the passing OF this one
time great art and is making his men
scrape up the earth with their uniforms
to give them nerve and experience He
maintains that many games have been
| lost by players not exerting themselves
to wriggle around an infielder who has
bag covered. The slide is always ac-
| eompanied by a certain amount of dan
! ger, but 1t is spectacular and the public
needs that for its money. In olden days
a ball player who could not slide was
! looked upon as a mediocre no matter how
! clever his work in other departments.
Now it is different. The proud player of
today frequently thinks it a little I'M
digniied to plough his way to second
base through the dirt with thousand
ladies' looking on. He doesn't like to spoil
his clothes The old time sliders realized
the danger of their feats and ten years
ago it was not uncommon to see a run
ner on reaching first base pull long
glove over his forearm This was prepara-
tory to his slide to second and the glove
was to prevent tearing of his skin by
sand and gravel Then the slider went into
the bag head forward. There is the one
place where the modern ball player has
it on the old timer. With the coming of
McGraw, Griffith, Keller and stars Of
! that ilk base runners were taught to slide
feet forward. That is considered correct
for two good and sufficient reasons First
| it eliminates danger of having the head
and face injured by tcolliding with the
hag 81
spikes makes many a baseman step side
ways and frequently in his nervousness
| he drops the ball. In other words the
ball player of today knows how to pro-
tect himself. He had rather make the
baseman get out of the way of his spikes
| than take a chance on having his own
face carved into ribbons Still with all
this improvement in the manner of slid
ing modern players like to dodge and IT
is with difficulty they are made to take
to the dust No more do we hear the cry
| of "Slde, slide, slide" in a close place.
Something must be done to revive it.
| In a search of reasons for the retrogres-
sion of the slide it is found that a large
majority of ball players believe it is due
to the danger of being spiked The spike
worn in the bottom of baseball shoe is
a dangerous weapon, and it can be used
so cleverly as to deceive the most watch
full umpire. Many ball players have been
deliberately spiked so as to put them out
of commission, and for this reason base
runners are timid about taxing a chance
on sliding. There is a rule Of ethics among
professional players as TO who shall have
the right of way in sliding to a base The
baseman is supposed to step aside and
touch the runner as he slides by. To block
him, that is stand in the way of his
reaching the base is considered unprofes-
sional and unsportsmanlike. A baseman
who keeps up this style of play sooner
or later gets his. Players who have been
so blocked the second time will go into
the base with the deliberate intention of
cutting him down.. That is they will
go at him so their spikes will cut into
his legs The average ball player is
clean sportsman and above all things
admires fair play. When he once gets the
worst of it nobody knows how to get
even better than him.
The Highlanders will attempt to play
the Birmingham club again today if 1t
turns warm enough and If it proves a
failure the game will be played tomorrow.
In the meantime Griffith is keeping his
team in winter quarters but giving them
plenty of work. Moriarity was to have
arrived last night but his train is sew
eral hours late due to the recent floods.
STORM AT ASHLAND.