The wageworker., 1907-08-23
PITCHERS HAVE
HOODOO CLUBS
'TWlRlERs WHO CAN BEAT
STRONG TEAMS OFTEN EASY
FOR WEAK ONES.
RECORDS TELL QUEER STORIES
Uncertainty Of National Pastime 10
Cause Of Much Of its Popularity
Boston q cinch for LeifieId, Of Pitts
buro-cIeveland Likes Delivery Of
"Rube" Waddell.

Hardly day passes but what one
hears fan say that SO and SO is going
to pitch to-day and that he will win
or lose. as the case may be. To one
who is not acquainted with the facts,
the average set OF baseball followers
would think that these prognosticators
know all about 1t. But in many cases
they are wrong.
Why are some pitchers successful
against one team and a rank failure
against another? Take the case of
Lefty Leifield, of the Pirates, against
Boston, since the left-hander has be-
come a Lacquer. He has pitched ten
games against Tenny's men and won
nine Of them. Five games he won by
shutting them out. He has never lost
game in Boston. Mathewson,
couple of years ago, won ten straight
games, all he twirled against the Pi-
rates. This year Leifield has defeated
st. Louis six times, and st. Louis is
his home.
'"Three-Fingered' Brown has pitched
against every team in the National
league this year, and Pittsburg was
the only team he has found any
trouble to defeat-he has pitched in
three full games against the Pirates
and has won but one of them. He had
no trouble to win four from New York
and the same number from Cincin-
natl. Vic Willis has won both games
he has pitched against New York, but
has lost three to Chicago. He has
also beat Brooklyn three times, but
could not win from Philadelphia.
Philippe, who had not won a game
from Chicago for years, has won two
out of three from them this season.
Ames has won but one game from the
Pirates, his first game in the league,
when he defeated Scanlon, both start
ing the same day in the National
league. He was defeated last season
for the first time after his winning
streak, and received his only coat of
whitewash of the season from Pitts
burg.
In the American league one can find
just as complicated cases as in the
older league. Why is 1t that Donovan
has not pitched against Chicago.
Walsh against Detroit, Killian against
Philadelphia, Dygert against Cleve-
land, Patten against Cleveland, ETC.?
Donovan has won four times from
Philadelphia and three from New
York, while all he could do was to
split even with Cleveland. Joss can
win from every team except Phila-
delphia, while Clarkson has defeated
the team under Mack's management
twice. Walsh has won five games
from st. Louis; still he could do no
better than break even with Boston,
q team below the Browns in the stand
ing. Plank, who has won two games
he has pitched against Detroit, has
lost the only pair he has been on the
rubber in against st. Louis. Waddell,
who has won both games from Chi
cago, he has pitched, has won one
from Cleveland in three and one from
Detroit in four trials. Doc White, who
took Detroit into camp four times, has
been able to win but one from New
York out Of four.
Why Is 1t that Young could win all
his four games against New York but
could only win one out of three from
Philadelphia? Mullin has NO trouble
to win from Cleveland, but finds all
other teams, even st. Louis and Wash
ington. hard to beat. Leibhardt has
been able to break even in four games
with Chicago, but cannot win from
Philadelphia, who is fourth In the
race. Case Patten won two and lost
two with Chicago, but lost all three
he has pitched against Detroit. This
rule can be found all through the
baseball is SO popular-it is so uncer.