Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1907-04-30
REAL VALUE OF
A BALL PLAYER.
A QUESTION OF SALARIES.
arpercmincnce of TwiTler Is Proved by
The Confidence shown by Spec
taIors During Games

rbo interest displayed by the fans In
ais-nasIug whether certain balplayers
~, worth the salaries that they have
[ssr demanding prior to the opening
~ tse season causes a writer IN the St
Yo,,s Republic 10 take up the real value
ns players. He says
t-nouestionably, a great pitcher Is worth
mora ihan any other man OH a baseball
team. by great we mean a man Ike
wsddell at his best, at Matthewson was
IA 1906, as Rusie was in 1891. as Nichols
was In the SOS, as Young was In his
earlier wears with Boston and Cleveland
which means a pitcher capable of win
ling game Of baseball with the verY
slightest assistance from his team >,
waved Wy the confidence spectators who
flvor him possess when he Is employed
TsEe. for instance, Petty last season
Whenever he Went In TO pitch the specta .
tors fen that the team. no matter of
shat men 1t was composed would win
FAKE the exploits of the White Sox
Lass scar as a criterion They could not
b.t. neither We're they emlnent on the
h.ses for they seldom got on them, But
the pre-emlnent ability of their pitch
ers won them the cha mpionship from
aelders IKE New York
Whist won Connie Mack his cham
ponshIpf Pitchers; He never had hit
tins team or n fielding team or a base,
running team But he had the pitchers
They were enough,
CATCHERS HAVE HIGH VALUE.
As good pitching is Impossible with,
the receiver stands next in Importance
to the dispatcher. AS matter Of fact
all great championship clubs possessed u
Il Bo SIC s had Bennett. bergen and crg.
an Baltimore had Robinson, New York
had Ewing, and now, Bresn9hun. The
White Sex have Sullivan, Mack had
schreck, The Old Browns had Bushone
A splendid instance Of the value OF q
catcher WAS given by o'Connor in St
Louis last year Much inferior as d
cer and Hickey old Jacks ability 70
get f,li value ont OF the pitchers made
lhe team s. per cent sSrongeT. when he
y.Ees. resetiy ~ So we td mIst take
catcher is the most valuable man to
As for inneldery, they precede out
felders In the catalogue. Between them
there is slight choice. II there be any
Il lies IN the shoEtsSpp position, for th9
zeason, tbas many more chances go that
way Jhan any othe--
toward lief! field and general tendency
10 send al but h!t-andrun plays that
way the third baseman must be taken
hH next III llllVTlhUtF. No uNuDts ne is,
The second and frs basenen coins next
~ order. though either may make him
self Of untold value 10 his team.
Ou,telders, even granted thar they
can hit hard. are Of less imperat,ve
necessity to their teams than any
others, Just one thing Is asked OF
shem, that they hit, Provided they do
Ihar many shortcomings win be over
looked. OF all men q good Outflelder
viii be ess missed than any Other SUI.
De1lor player Take great sho-tstop,
az a great third basGman. or a great
catcher out OF the game and you will
destroy the rythym and morale OF the
team. Not so with a great outfieIdeT-
a vivid illustration Of this WAS given
IN the case where O'Connor, a catcher,
and a Joke as an out1ield, once salts
tac1orlly substituted for McAleeT.
vtp king of fly chasers. In the days Of
1s& Despite the loss Of its great cen.
Ter fielder the Cleveland club for many
weeks won games and finished a good
second IN the race Had il lost Young
Clppy thinner Wallace, Mexican or
Shds, all great players, it could not
have done so.