Evening star., 1907-11-19
BATTING STARS OF
THE MAJOR LEAGUES

Some weeks ago the athletic director of
a great university gave out an interesting
interview of the various physical require
ments necessary to the athlete who would
excel in any of the great outdoor sports.
He spoke of the short lower leg and
strong ankle of the jumper; the long
muscled, cIean-cut frame of the runner;
the broad, sturdy frame of the foot ball
player. and so on But when he came
to base ball he threw up his hands.
Base ball players are of all shapes.
sizes and ages, and there is not the
slightest warrant for naming anything
but good health as an essential" he
said.
Young Ty Cobb, champion batter and
hero of the American League and the
veteran Hans Wagner, who again dis
tanced all corners for honors in the Ma
tional League, seem to show the wisdom
of the experts views. Both men ar
rived at the same place, but by widely
different methods.
Cobb's Sensational Rise
Cobb shares with Hal Chase the fame
of being the most remarkable young
player of the day" and Cobb's rise to
first place was even more sensational
than the Yankee stars. Coming from
very minor league, the Southern. in two
years of big league ball he is the most
talked of player of the season. Besides
leading the American League in bat
ting, with an average of .352, the young
Detroit player showed the veterans of
the league how to steal bases, leading
the list with 40 pilfered bags.
Cobb was under twenty when he came
to Detroit, and it was his business. by all
big league tradition, to walk softly for a
couple of years and speak when spoken
to But he made of ut har
He was filled with admirable con-
Ceit. He believed himself to BE- one of the
best ball players in the country and he
did not intend losing any time in proving
1t. He began to bat and run bases as If
he had right to, and he tielded with
headlong aggressiveness that made
him a bitter enemy or two on his own
club. and finally wound up in a pitched
battle with another outffelder of the
Tigers. Cobb licked him and went on in
the same old way
This year he was the sensation of base
ball His batting and base-running were
the fan talk of eight cities OF medium
height. with straight, clean but musc1l-
lar build, powerful tapering legs. a quick,
accurate eye, a wonderful throwing arm,
and. above all. a superbly insolent con-
fdence in himself, he became the greatest
ball player of the league while but little
more than boy.
Wagner Consistent at Bat
Big, awkward, conscientious, good-na-
tured Hans Wagner, steady and strong in
his years of base ball lore, greatest ball
player in the country, is the direct an
uthesis of young Cobb. So much has been
written for years of the virtues and abil-
ity of the great Pirate shortstop that
even a apitulation Is almost super
fuous This year. however, he accom-
plshed one feat that adds to his hon
ors. He established a new record for
long batting success on the diamond. this
being the fifth year that he has held. the
National League title He won the bat
ting championship with a mark of $40
and the baserunning honors with 81
stolen sacks. He is just behind Cobb in |
batting honors and far ahead in base |
running on the year.
No one ever saw anything graceful or |
about Wagner on the dia-
mOnd. His movements have been likened |
to the gambols of a caracoling elephant
He is ungaYnly and so bowlegged that |
when he runs his limbs seem to be mOv- |
ing in a circle, after the fashion of |
propeller. But he can run like the wind |
When he starts after a grounder every |
outlying portion of his anatomy ap-
has ideas of its own about the |
proper line Of dill eCtion to be taken His |
position at the bat is less awkward and |
the muscular swing of his great arms |
and shoulders IS strong enough to drive |
the ball farther than most batters who |
hit from their toe spikes up.