Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-10-20
That Deal for Stahl.

mere q lot OF SUN IN the New YORK
base ball columns about that suppositi-
tious 'three-cornered deal" whereby La
porte may" go to Jim McGuire's. gang
and Jake Stahl may" be shifted from
the Sox to the Clarke Griffith crowd
The New York fan-feeders are already
beginning to figure rosily upon Jake's ire
mendous batting ability If this hypothet-
ical deal goes through.
1t seems to be necessary to preface
every spoken or written observation about
Jake Stahl with the perfectly true state
ment that, personally, and wholly aside
from his relationship TO the game of ball
he is a thoroughly agreeable and gentle
manly fellow. This has been said so
often it has become a bromide Every
body interested in base ball in Washing
ton knows perfectly well that Jake is a
gentlemanly fellow, just as all hands
know thoroughly well that Jake is not
and never was the Born Leader that he
used to be supposed TO be and was ac-
claimed to be when he first took hold of
the Washington club. No man in base
ball ever fell down more lamentably on a
Historically Worked-up reputation than
Jake did when put to the test, and, to do
him justice. the Born Leader" reputa-
ton was, in way, thrust upon him. and
he used to chafe upder It.
But, anyhow, acknowledging ii all about
Jake's personality being engaging and
I agreeable ii looks from where we ST that
the New York fans might he figuring too
sWeetly upon Jake's hitting powers III
case he does join the Yankees next year
Opinions vary as to whether Jake ever
was what is called a natural batsman' -
He certainly was some siugger when he
was with the Bostons and for d spell after
joining the Washington club. But he
didn't last long as hitter when he join
ed the Washington team. He couldn't
hit little bit after he became Washing
tons manager. 1t is customary to at
tribute playing managers slump in bat
ting to the strain of his managerial du-
ties. Is that always right? Fielder
Jones has always lined 'em out pretty
well since hes been manager of the Sox
| hasn't he? Larry Lajoe hit some for
years after he became manager of the
Clevelands. And there are other in
stances. So that it certainly doesn't fol-
low that a manager must necessarily fall
down as tier when he takes up the
managing reins. Just how badly Jake
Stahl fell down d hitter after he be-
came manager Of the Washington club is
! well known.
Now, I've talked with lot of Ameri-
can League pitchers about that. and all
OF them have told me--including tie neay-
ers most kindly disposed toward Jake
that they got next to him very soon after
he broke into the American League He
hit finely at first because he was new
TO the fingers and they hadn't had a
t chance TO dope out his idiosyncras.es 1t
. took them only few months to find him
out, and after that. say the pitchers Jake
was a snap. They could feed him all
kinds that he wouldn't get anywhere
near. II was the easiest imaginabl
thing, they told me. TO outguess him
He was always laying for stuff that never
( reached him. They had him on thai,
permanent staff after they traced hin
up and found out where he was shy
Washington fans will ca lily recall how
easy Jake was for pitchers who couldn't
get away with it even for the rest OF
the Washington layout before the re-
7 organization of the club.
Jake, il he tacks on with the Yanks
will go up against most of these sam;
+ old pitchers next year. Just how he's
going TO hit 'em merely because he'll b.
playing with the Broadway boys instead
of with the Washington team doesn't APP
pear in any handicapping system that
have been able to find. So that the New
York fans who are banking on Jake as
slugger may be camping out as to tina
une of expectations.