Evening star., 1909-03-07
ARE HEAVY H|TTERS
LOSING PRESTIGE?
PLAYERS of Active Minds Are
Coming to the Front
as Leaders.

The hero OF the ball field in the past has
been the great batter. The hero OF the
ball field in the future will be the man
who thinks.
Though the great batter Is still a bless
ing to any base ball team, he has lost
his prestige. In time he will be forced to
give his seat'of honor to the Quick-minded
player who always does the right thing
at the right time. He will always hold
his place in tie game. for great is his
value. But greater still will be the play
er with an active mind, the one who can
win games by strategy and cunning
rather than by brute strength.
These thinking players have been de-
veloped to such an extent in the last
five years that We now have whole clubs
that think. A thinking club doesn't need
the heavy batters to drive In the runners
and win the games. 1t gets its victories by
outwitting the opponent and after all, It
isn't the number of runs team scores,
or the number OF hits it makes, but the
number OF games 1t wins. that counts in
the end. when the championship is to be
decided.
Base ball statistics compiled by Ernest
IIanigan, a New York sporting writer.
have brought to light many interesting
facts that are seldom known by the fans.
1Hey SNOW tn6 DdtterS OF lNe TWO Dig
leagues who have been leaders In driving
in runs and, OF course. disclose the fact
that Hans Wagner is best OF all. having
driven home 1O6 tallies for the Pittsburg
club with timely hits from his mighty
bat. Ty Cobb Is second. having sent
Detroit club. Mike Donlin Of the Giants
is third. the New York captain sending an
even 100 giants across the plate.
Why Cubs Beat Giants.
But the figures bring to eght other
facts. They show that it is not always
the teams with big batters that win PEN
| nants. The fight between the New York
Giants and the Chicago Cubs for the
National League championship shows this
point clearly. The Giants scored Col runs
during the season and the Cubs tailed
but GA, yet the Cubs won one more game
than the New Workers and copped the
pennant. The Giants batted IN 54S runs
during the season and counted but 1O3
by other means, such as scoring on err
rors, passed balls, stealing home. etc
The Cubs batted in only 507 runs. but they
scored III by other means. showing they
were more keen OF mind and quicker
Consequently though much weaker In hit
ting, they were able to beat the Giants
out FOR the championship
A great difference also is shown by
comparing the Detroit team and the
Chicago White Sox, though Detroit must
DC given credit for grasping q. oppor-
tunities. However. were ii not for ner
great and many hitters, she would have
tumbied badly in the race of 1905. De
trot scored 64I runs to 537 for the White
Sox. and yet Coniskeys boys batt'ed the
Tigers on the closing day of the season
TO see which team would get the pen
nant The Tigers with no more runs
than the Sox were able to win but two
more games in an entire season.
Cleveland lost the pennant by not be-
, ing alert 20 inside plays. The Maps
scored 56s runs during the year, many
more than the White Sox. but they didn't
games out Of the fire that might just as
well have been won by them as by their
opponents. It's the team that can land
those close battles that lands the pen
nant as rule. The White SoX are su-
preme i'm this manner of winning. De-
troit wins by heavy hitting. Ii the III
gers can't hit the ball and drive the VIC
| tory home they are powerless TO WIN
| 1t IN any other manner.
Browns Lack Speed.
The Browns of last year We're a bit
| lacking IN base ball strategy. They
scored enough runs during the season
| 20 have won the flag. But they LEI sew
eral tight games get away that team
with quicker wits and quicker base run
| ners. too. would have Won.. The Browns
| scored 544 runs. more even than the Sox.
yet the Browns won but SIS games. Here
Is one item that tells a, part OF the reason.
| The Wnte SoX stole home thirteen times
| during the season and the Browns stole
| home but four times
Daring and c'ever base running prob
| ably kept the Chicago club iE the race
| to the last Gay of the season, while the
| Browns were counted out more than a
week before the end. The Cubs scored
/ fourteen runs during the season by steal
| ing home No other National League
| club had more than seven such scores
| That is because no other club has such
| activeminded players as Johnny Evers
| Joe Tinker, Frank Chance. Artie Holman
| Frank Schultz and Jimmy Sheckard
Not one Of the above named players IS
! seen as leading hitter, bat any one
| of them has more base ball brains than
| the two champion major league batters
| combined.