The Washington times., 1908-08-31
Game Today at 4 P. NJ.

Game Today at 4 P. ID.
The weird and amateurish exhibition
| of umpiring given here last week BY Mr..
| Egan, Of the American League stan,
must give pause 10 all who are inter
ested in the welfare Of baseball
/ That something is wrong with the
present system Of allotting umpires IS as
apparent. IN fact, the principal trouble
seems TO be that there is no system
whatever in the way President Ban
Johnson handles his men. II he has one
/ il must be to exasperate public and
| Iplayers by assigning the least experience
/ ed men TO the most important series,
possibly with the hope Of developing the
moral character OF the said players and
lpubIic, by imposing upon them addition
al burdens Of the flesh. The trouble
with this great scheme for the uplift
1 is that the essential factor, TO wit, the
/ bad jumps, may be eliminated by an en-
iraged proletariat before the sweet uses
/ OF adversely accomplish their eontem-
plated object.
| Johnson's Absurd Mistake.
No finite mind can conceive why Egan
alone and slngle-handed should be sent
to umpire important games for the De
( trOit Tigers, or why any single umpire
should get that job The fact that this
young man was sent here is indisputaDia
| evidence that the head Of the American
League is shy on executive ability. The
/ savage comments from even the con-
| lservative papers around the circuit seem
20 have finally altered through the pres
identiaI skull and we note that Egan
/ is now doubled up with Jack Sheridan
/ IN the momentous games in Detroit De-
tween the Tigers and Cleveland. Even
that was not such a brilliant thought,
/ considering the miserable exhibition
Egan gave when the Tigers were in
/ the Capital
Egan's deficiencies are 50 plain and
! so serious that there is no excuse for
/ johnson or anybody else who ever saw
/ as many as three ball games not being
! next 10 them. He may be a young man
} Of great promise, but he has not yet
/ arrived. Nay, he IS not even just
/ around the corner, but IS tied up down
/ the road somewhere, out of sight and
| hearing. He viii need a lot Of leading
/ before he reaches the select class of
/ major league arbitrators and that Is
/ exactly what he is not getting.
Yeung UmEs Need Coaching.
Umpires are human. even though
! league presidents place them upon a
/ superhuman plane. They have TO be
| developed, they must acquire the tricks
/ of the trade as they advance. A bush
4 league umpire has almost as much 10
/ learn IN the most select circles as a
/ bush league player. The contrary opin-
/ ion that they emerge fun grown from
the presidential brow is al wrong
/ A young ump in the American OF
! National circuits should he considera bly,
/ doubled up for his entire first season
/ with such good men as Jack Sheridan
/ or Tommy Connolly and not be trusted
| alone, unless accidents or sickness re-
/ This is the common sense view, hence
4 We are not surprised that il is not
the rule with Ban Johnson,
Egan's Deficiencies.
such exceedingly and gIaringly bushy
work as the calling of plays before they
are completed, losing sight Of the ball
failing TO keep an eye on the man ou
/ base when the bah is in the air and the
like failings Of EgaE, iacite the players
/ to profanity and the fans to fury. Ans
of his older umpires could tell Egar
that these little mistakes are decIasse
among the best people and must be
| corrected II he wishes to receive pleas
ant mention when be visits a city, bal
they appear TO have held of and failed
10 give him the straight steer, or he has
not been coupled with them enough tC
/ be wise.
| Joe Cantiuon, who IN his day was q
good umpire and never lacked in nerve
was discussing the umpire question the
other day and gave a few ideas that
might we'll be adopted by Johnson. said
The.
Zone of the things the average run OF
! people does not know IS that a new UNI
pire IN the maSor leagues has a lot e