Norwich bulletin., 1910-03-25
JOHN c. CHAPMAN RECALLS
 SOME FAMOUS BALL PLAYERS
Who Is the Greatest Pitcher? Ques-
 ton Which Cannot Be Answered, Says the Former Norwich Manager.

In the Baseball Magazine for April, John c. Chapman, formerly manager or the Louisville, Buffalo. Toronto, Merfden and Norwich clubs. who is well known to every fan of this city. has. an interesting article, entitled Who Leads? It will doubtless be read with much interest, as Manager Chap man is considered an authority on baseball players. The story follows:
 Who is the greatest pitcher ever? Ever since l was a boy l have heard this question asked. I maintain that 1t cannot be answered, for the simple reason that there have been so many really wonderful pitchers that judg- ment would be impossible. Let us go way back in the old days. There was Tom Pratt. Dick Mcbride, Martin, Jim Creighton, Arthur Cummings, Bobby Mathews and Al Spalding. all first class men. Spalding pitched for five seasons in Boston, and in four of those seasons led his club into the pennant, and the other year made a very close race of it for first place. He had speed and he had command He knew how to use his head and fool his opponent. Mcbride was another man who could outwit those to whom he was opposed. Mathews was a foxy pitcher and so was Arthur Cummings, the dfscoverer of the curve ball. l was present at the game between the Excelsiors and the Unions of Morrisiana at which Jim Creighton injured himself He did it in hitting out a home run When he had crossed the rubber he turned to George Flanley and said, '1 must have snapped my belt" and George said. TT guess not" It turned out that he had suffered a fatal injury. Nothing could be done for him and baseball met with a most severe loss. He had wonderful speed. and, with it, splendid command. He was fairly unhittable. Then there were such pitchers as Jimmy Calvin, who was sixteen years in the game: Tom Bond, Dave Foutz, Bob Caru-
 
 Charley BufHnton. Scott Stratton. Charley Ferguson, John Clarkson, Matt Kilroy. Ramsay, Tim Keefe, Mickey Welch. and, to get down to Waddell. big Cy Young. Philippe, Joe McGinnity, Amos Rusie, Christy Ma thewson, Muffin and Donovan of De- troit, Walter Johnson. Nap Fucker of Ed Walsh Jack Chesbro, Jess Tanne- hill, Eddie Plank and Chief Bender.
 Now. mind you. am not undertak- ing to mention all the crack pitchers to me Of these. I never knew one who was bit better than Charley Radbourn, man who would go in the box day in and day out and work un- der any and all conditions. who would pitch when men of the present day would shrink from the undertaking. Rad would go in the box when his arm was so lame that he could not | started to warm up; yet he would keep at it and pitch a game his oppon- ents could not fathom- He was a very strong man, full of pluck, and used splendid judgment in his pitching. That was great team that he had behind him-Joe Start, John Farrell and Jerry Denney on the bases, with John Ward at shortstop, when Rad was pitching. and Arthur Irwin at short with Ward in. the box, and Tommy York, Paul Hines and Clin Carroll in the outfield. Behind the bat there were Barney Gilligan and Vincent Maya. The Providence team was the best balanced team of its Rad great support. It was due to the splendid confidence the men had in each other that they achieved wonder full results. Now. no one was in the class with Jerry Denney on third. He was ambidextrous and could play with either hand. Rad was about capa- ble with his left as he was with his right and was wonderful fielder. He liked to go on the field and warm up with the boys, and would go in the infield or the outfield-it mattered not to him-anywhere where there was an opening-he loved the game so well. Rad could hit little bit. too. and so could Ward, and rarely has any club had such a pair of hitting pitchers. These two were in the memorable game of eighteen innings, played in II Ward pitched and Radbotlrn played in the outfield and won the game with a home run hit. That game is still dis cussed by fans, and there is a diver sity of opinion as to who was in the box. Remember, the pitching dis tance those days was 45 feet. The hitting was better than it is today, the ball was livelier and harder. therefore, to handle. The batsmen of today have more time to gauge the ball than the nlaVRrS had in those days
 Ferguson of the Phillies. who died in the zenith of his career, was an- other splendid ballplayer. who could doubtless play every position better than any other one man ever could. He was also very fine batsman and speedy chap on the bases.
 Charles Nichols: who served the Boston National league club during der. He had remarkable command and speed, and was comparatively young when he retired. He did not begin to last nearly as long as that Denton Young. familiarly known as "Cy," who was such a power in the Cleveland and St. Louis National league clubs, and did more than any one man to make the Boston American league club a success No man ever had better command of the ball than did this pitcher. Her certainly is a model ball player, just as modest as he IS ShllIuI.
 Then who will ever forget that pair of Mutrie's Giants-men who helped secure that title-Tim Keefe and Mickey Welch ?-both alive today: Welch in Holyoke. along with that crack first baseman. Tommy Tucker, and Tim Keefe in the city he has made his home so many years-Cambridge I last met Keefe at the bier of one of the finest pitchers of all days@John G. Clarkson, that graceful and wonder full pitcher.
 Then, New York had in Amos Rusie one of the best drawing cards that ev- CT wore a uniform This player was worth $25,000 a season to the New York club. When it was announced that he would pitch, the Polo grounds would be packed. Many maintain that he had more speed than anyone who ever delivered a ball. Certainly he was a terror to the heaviest batsmen.
 Of the pitchers of today Mathew son seems to have the preference with the lovers of the game and is the idol of New York rooters. With such a club as Chicago behind him he would be fairly invincible. He has not the