The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1908-09-15
.BASEBALLFIGURES
SOx and Cleveland Excel All
Others on Inside Play.
DetrOft's Poor Fielding Made Up
by Its Heavy Hitting.
COBB ANDLAJOIE @. *.
COBB ANDLAJOIE o. *
st. Louis Has Two Good Young
Hitters, Cleveland One.
Crawford and Mcintyre Doing
Some Heavy Batting.

Deeh very fortunate in securing two
young players who are in the 800 class
as hltters. The only other young fell
low IN the league to enjoy this dis
JUNCTION is WILDER Goode of Cleveland.
ana the way he has met the ball dur
ing the twenty-five games he has
played with the Maps. shows that he is
TO be rated as 300 hitter right along.
Inc TWO st. Louis men who are hit
ing ABOVE the classy figure are Pitcher
Crlss, pinch hitter, and AL Schweitzer,
ou1aelder. Crisis has been in fifty-one
contests, but has been to bat only fifty
two times. His average is 346. Last
week 1t was 375. If he keeps on going
In at critical times only. his figures will
PROBABLY be cut way down, as he has
fallen steadily.
Schweitzer. on the other hand, is
gaming all the time and looks like the
real-t thing as batsman. He has par
ticlpated in fifty games, went, to bat
l41 times and made forty-six hits. He
has had four doubles and two triples
stole four bases and made five sacrifice
hits. He is so fast in the field that he
looks like the biggest find of the
year Men who can clout 300 are
| mighty scarce and the st. Louis man
agement is tickleds half to death at
having recruited such a promising
looking youngster.
Napoleon Lajoie is clouting the ball
old days. when he was the terror of
the pitchers. Last week his average
was 279, now it is 2S3. In 1872 games he
has made 142 hits. Twenty-one We're
doubles. six were triples and one was
a homer.
Lajoie, Goode and Birmingham are
about the only Cleveland players who
| are doing much with the bat day In
| and day out. Bill Bradley tumbled
from 2" - 237 in one week and StovaN
Topped four points off his standing.
Josh Clarke lost six points. Bill Hinch-
man played only part of the week
| and moved up three points, While
Birmingham took on seven.
Tyrus Cobb of Detroit went from So
| to 1885, having recovered from the bat
| ting slump which infested him for a
| couple of weeks.-f1e is now hitting in
his old stride. Sam Crawford of the
| same club raised himself from 80 to
| 314, but Claude Rossman fell down one.
! Matty Mcintyre jumped from 2z1 to 2S3
and Schaefer added three points. These
| gains show pretty, conclusiyely why the
| Tigers are winning games so steadily.
| Josh Clarke, although hitting lightly.
| is getting on and Isl gaining a reputa-
| ton for being a. fast base runner. He
| is tied for second on the paths. Dough-
| erty of Chicago is the best base steal
er. He has purloined forty in lis
| games, or an average of "a per game.
| Clarke has swiped thirty-six in 1877
games. an average of .29. Hemphill
| and Turner have the same average
Cobb. who is supposed to be the prize
| demon, has an average of %, and is
seventh in the list. StovaIl and J..
| Clarke occupy tenth and ninth posi-
tions among those who have scored the
most runs.
Only good fielding and splendid PITCH
ing have held the Maps up we'll in the
race this year. Only three clubs have
hit poorer. Cleveland has batted 233,
Washington one point less, the Attn
letics one point less than that and Chi
cago, the hitless wonders" 221. On
the other hand, Detroit hit 267 as
club and ST. Louis 245. It is no won
With Clevelands splendid defense and
classy pitching there would be no race
at all in this league if the Maps were
anything like the Tigers and Browns in
batting. The race would be parade.
And Chicago. well, if the Sox could hit
at all they would be away to the front.
OF course, when it comes to defense,
Chicago and Cleveland have an edge on
all other clubs. The Soxs have fielded
963 and Cleveland and ST. Louis 962.
Detroit averages 955. From these fig
ures it will be observed that hitting is
not the only factor in winning a PEN
nant.
Detroit's deficiency in fielding is more
more than overbalanced by its over
whelming batting strength. Chicago's
great defense is not so marked that It
makes up for the Soxs lack of hits.
Therefore, on the statistics, Chicago
plays the best inside ball. Cleveland
1 is next, St. Louis has a reasonable
amount of it. while Detroit is playing
the finer points away below its much
! Vaunted reputation.