Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-08-12
IS 1T FUN FOR BALL
PLAYERS TO PLAY BALL :?

the sun Tor couple or hours every AFTER
noon and dig dftches," was the way Red
Donahue. the pitcher. now with the De-
TROLLS, expressed his view when asked about
the fun" some weeks ago. Il think most
of the old-time pitchers have got the same
way of feeling about 1t, even IL they don't
nudge to the front and say so. A pitcher
Is liable to have this distaste of the game
grow on him even more than the other
players. The best pitcher never knows how
he's going to perform when his day to go
in and work comes around He may feel
all right and work out all right before the
game, and yet go in and get slaughtered In
the very first inning, and then get dragged
out and chased to the bench with the whole
gang bowling at him. The dread of this
keeps a lot of pitchers awake nights as
their working days draw along There's no
fun in any old game in which man Is
liable to be shown up and crushed. And it's
particularly bad when the thing means
bread and butter to a fellow. That old gas
about 1t being pretty soft for pitchers De-
ing carried around the country on palace
cars and housed and fed at the best hotels
and only having to work a couple OF hours
every five or six days, Is pure sludge-Juice.
I'd heap rather work at some corner OF
the game where I'd be used every day than
to endure the strain of figuring on whether
I would be in shape to make good when my
working days swing along. But can't see
where the fans get the fun notion as to
the player of any corner Of the game. It's
toll ball playing. and more often thankless
toll than not"
Jimmy Collins the manager of the Bos-
ton Americans dwet upon the thankless-
ness of the ball players job In a talk I had
with him last spring.
Most of the players work. he said, els
done upon the road. in the cities Of the OPP
position, where the fans are naturally agin
him and disposed to pick on and jeer him at
every stage OF the journey. 1t would be
hard to exaggerate the effect Of this strain.
Ball players are taught, of course, to steel
themselves against the tauntS of the OppO-
sition fans. but few of them ever become
really used to it, though they are obliged
to swallow it. Suppose man had to go
out on a lot and make clock. or wheel
barrow, or a kite, or do anything else. In
the presence of thousands of people wholly
against him, and do this every day for
long season-isnt 1t natural to suppose that
the thing would get on his nerves In the
course of time? When a ball player gets
away from his own town he's in a hostile
camp. In the enemy's country. He knows
that every minute of his time in uniform,
and the knowledge is depressing and dis
heartening in spite of all the backbone he
raises up to meet 1t. There can't be any
pleasure in doing anything In which you're
liable to be jeered at and ridiculed for the
slightest mischance, and that's the reason
why most seasoned ball players have no
more real zest in the game than you could
expect a dog-catcher to have In his work
for you're to remember that most people
who watch the dog-catcher at work are
ag'in him."
Old Jim Mcclure. who. according to some
of the authorities, has been playing the
game since some time before the Seminole
war. frankly admits that while habit IL
so strong with him that he can't keep out Of
1t. the game itself has been drag upon
him for good many years now.
"Treadmill work. when alrs told" was
Jim's way Of putting 1t. Same old thing
yesterday. today, tomorrow. forever. Like
walking in a circle. A hit. a bunt, steal
no variety worth mentioning, the old thing
cut and dried and sawed and split-how
can 1t help becoming like 80 many doses
of sulphur and molasses to the fellows
who're up against 1t all the time? Why
do keep on playing the game, then? Why
does a man keep on doing anything? Be-
cause. l s'pose. most of us are fellows that
can do just the one thing and we don't
know of any way Of getting out Anyhow.
when 1t comes to that, believe that every
man knocks his own trade or business.
Guess it's the same way with ball players.
Il must be hard job to have to sell and
fit shoes on people every day, year in and
year out. I'd hate that, / know. Must be
punk work managing railroad system all
the time. when it comes to that, or rum
ming national bank. or anything else. The
queer part of 1t is, though, that nobody
pretends that it's fun to be shoe clerk.
whereas 1t seems to be the common notion
that the funniest thing on earth that you
can do is to play professional ball for a
living"
After all of these rather weary and pro-
sale views of their occupation 1t Is pleas
ant to be able to record what one Of the
greatest optimists in the game our own
Lave Cross has to say upon the subject
DO 1 enjoy playing the gamer" he said
in reply to the question. II certainly do.
II may be that I'm childish or simple
! minded something, but I'm bound TO
| ment in going out on the lot and playing a
game of ball. Nope. 1t never got on my
nerves a little bit-by the way. 1 can re-
member the time when ball player wasn't
supposed to have such fine-ladyish attach
uients as nerves, but I guess we won't talk
about that part of 1t. But 1 want to say
this: When the time comes that l don
get any enjoyment out of the game any
more I'm going to quit playing. I myself
don't see how ball player can deliver the
best brand of goods he's got in stock when
he feels that his work Is drudgery. toll a
task to be dreaded. If the game was a
hardship to me 1 know that I'd have a
hard time working myself up to the pitch
where I'd be able to do my best. Lack Of
variety? Why, I've never seen two ball
games just alike in all of the games I've
played and I'm ashamed to edge out to the
firing line and state just how many ball
games I've played-'scuse me. l wouldn't
think of naming the number within a thou
sand. There's always the chance for the new
situation in a game of BALL there is in
billiards. and even If there weren't there's
plenty of exhilaration and fun and sport
or whatever you want to call it, in the old
| game 20 entertain and amuse me from one
| end of the season to the other. / enjoy
| tho whole seance from warm-up to the trek
| of the bus. / like to win, but l never
| could see the sense OF the crouch thing
| when It's not a win. I am only speaking
| of and for myself, of course-remember
| that. There are. I know. plenty OF play
| ers, good plays and good fellows too who
| are sick and tired of the game. But I
| can't enter into their feeling of tiredness
| for the reason. as 1 say, that l probably
| can't understand It. for ia just as lief
| SO on playing the game twelve months in
| the year II that were asked of me. But
| this Is just the difference between liking
| your work and not liking It. and 1t just
| happens that I'm one OF the fellows who
| does like his C. L. c.
| DRIVER THROWN.