The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-04
SPIKE SHANNON OUT
WILL Nor BE IN-. MONTGOMERY
 ETA AGAIN.
Does Nos Seem to Want to Return "Reminiscences of Cstchers This
 CImh Has Turned

1n6 question Has DGCh cEttiS0 Spike shannon will not be on Grem- iiliger's team in 1909. shannon. when he Is right. is one of the brainiest ana best backstops that ever came Soutn. He does not want to come back, now ever. and rather than force an unwlii- Ing player he will be sold or traded and some club will get star
 By strange coincidence the Mont .goniery club has always had among the sbest catchers of the Southern League. Starting in 1892, the first team that Montgomery ever had under organized ball. Hene Peitz was discovered and developed by an accident. Gus Land was doing the catching with Peita at short. over in Macsn one trip Lana hurt his hand 90 that he @ had 10 get
 Peitz modestly said he thought thai he could catch and Lewis put him back of the bat That was the beginning or greatest catchers in the world, He drifted from Montgomery Into the ols leagues where he was the star or sev- sral clubs SR there s2i,s for ysai5,S anG n9w ss American Association. <. Then came Mike Kehoe, another catcher that has proved to be one or of the catchers in the American League now. Another great catcher m vent gomery was Wilkie Clark He had the best arm of any backstop ever Tn temper got the best of him. Then there was Pat Millerick, whom Tom O,Brien traded from Birnlin gham; Doc least, Hub Hart and Spike shannon On the subject of catchers The St. Paul Dispatch says:
 Z .Crack pitchers are all right-a base ball team has to have them to win
 Nevertheless teams that have won pennants and have not had capao e, bfainy catchers are as scarce as hens
 saThe catcher stands there behind the bat. inning after inning and game at- ter game, taking pounding ana nll- ing q less spectacular role than any other member of the nine. His work Is not as showy: supe-hcially viewed, he is more of a dray horse than any one of his fellows. but in reality he IS greeter power in the teams success though often he doesn't come in for as much credit as the players who work more in the open. so to speak.
 "In the old National League days of re the chicasgoans won the penn9nt and they had for chief catcher Jlm White. a baekstop who used his head. Lew Brown. who caught for the cham thinking catcher. as was Charley Shy der. who caught for the Bostons when they won the pennant in lSas l
 Here isfa list of the pennant win ners from that day down to the pres CTS and there isn't backstop in the as his hands: 1879, Providence. Lew Brown. 1880 and 1881. Chicago. Silver Flint; 1888, Boston, Myrtle Hackett and Mike Hines. 1884 Providence Giiligan Flint: Fir % isss. Chicago. Mike Kelly: IsS7: Detroit, Bennett and Ganzel; 1888 ana 1889. New York. Buck Ewing: 1890. 1891. ,1ss2 and 1893. / Boston, Bennett, Ganxel and Kelly; 1894 1895 and 1S96. Baltimore, Robinson; 1899 and 1900. Brooklyn, Charles Farrell and Jim Me Zimmer: 1904 and 1905, New York, Bres- nahan: 1906. Chicago. King
 Great catchers were Bennett. EW- ing Russong Ke,S R6S,9son Gsand ana Farre And great present day catchers are Roger Bresnahan and Johnny Kling, both identified strongly with pennant
 success of the New York and Chicago
 "Miie Kelly caught for the Boston
 Brotherhood teaTi wnlr9 nr9anizaiion tesm "Gn in 1890. the only year of its existence Apropos of Flint. there is in one of the old guides the interesting statement 1 caught s35 games of the 1895 that his l team played. Jim McGuire must have | a stilf more extended record Of ser
 "Dock Bushong was with the St l Louis American Association team wheT | if won the pennant under 'Comiskey IT | 1885 and Charley Snyder, with the Gin l cinnatis in 1882 Not all the grea | catchers have been confined to thu l championship teams, but materia | share of the success of the varlou! l nennant winners was due to the pres l ence behind the bat of such masters al
 Bennett. Ewing, Daily. Bushong; kllng | Bresnahan Snyder, Kelly Giligan
 Farrell. Robinson and other experts | with whom the mere physical duties O 1 their position was a matter of second ary import. They were generals l thinkers. planners. originators.
 | In American, Too.
 American League successes, too 1 have been made by teams that possess | ed this same shrewd, capable type o l backstop. A star in every departmen | is Billy Sullivan of the world's cham
 pion White Sox. The Chicagos won tht | and 1906. Sullivan being with them II l all of these years.
 "The catchers of the Athletics Whc won the American League pennant ir | 1902 and 1905 are Schreck and Powers | inc latter being a good general. Tho | neerless Lou Criger was Boston's main l Stay behind the bat when that s+ut
 won the American League pennant 1T l 1903 and 1904. ,,-, ...
 since the American National series be, | gan have been the Bostons of tho i American League; the New Yorks o' 1 the National League. .-kling, Sullivan l Rresnahan and Criger are the respec' 1 five catchers for these teams and th' | value of each in helping to win the 1 highest honors in baseball IS matter