Evening journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1888-1932, 1910-09-07
SIGNALS FEATURED
OLD TIMERS PLAY
Former Diamond Stars Had
Everything Worked on,
System
INDIVIDUAL GENERALSHIP
GASES ARE INNUMERABLE

of PLAY and yet those do not differ
materially. though one team may have
more signs than another Up-to-date
managers try TO bring their players to
q point where they do their own
thinking. for il IS found that this, at
ter all, is the best system on which
to run a team successfully.
Individual generalship ~ cases in
which the player, undirected by his
leader, makes q striking play-are in
Vulnerable Like the plays IN high
class team work. they make hero Of
the team who succeeds, while the poor
fellow whose plan miscues is the butt
Of derision. Such individual displays
of nerve and judgment are, as a rule,
strikingly characteristic Of the man
who makes them and are seldom
ednalled by an imitator William
LANCE, for example. a gigantic player
OF the Chicago team years ago, fast
despite his size, would often stand
quietly on first base until the catcher
had the ball. Then he would dart
TO second, trusting to the surprise
caused by such a move to make the
throw wild or the baseman's catch
uncertain
Jimmy Callahan. a fiett-footed play
er of the same period had a trick Of
rounding first at full speed and keep
ing on to second when he saw a hit
90 anywhere in the outield. Callahan
held that the fielder. astonished at his
daring. would tumble or throw badly,
and IN many cases his guess was right
Mike Kelly. Hughey Duffy and Tom
Mccarthy. brainy players Of the long
ago. devised half a dozen ways OF wig
Cling 10 a base and lodging the hand
Of the guardian. Bob Glenalvin in
vented a way of pushing the bat az the
bail with rigid arms and a sweep OF
only half distance. that netted him
scores OF hits-short sharp flies that
passed over the infielder's heads. fall
ing lust behind them. Individual
tricks of batting and base running
have been counted BY the hundred, and
all lent their sparkle to the game
New Situations Arise.
Fielding or defensive plays have 10
be brought into effect at every new
situation or the bases. and here is
where many an otherwise astute man
aeer occasionally goes wrong. Only
few vefrs ago. when the old Phila-
delphia club had two on bases and
7waNer,ut. and the regulation play IN
sucha crisis would be a sacrifice bunt,
the manager of a hostile team ordered
hts third baseman to come in close
The batsman was Delehanty utterly
useless. as a bunter. but a terrific hit
ter. When the unfortunate third base
man moved-came In TO take bunt
from a man who didn't, couldn't and
Wouldn't bunt--Delehanty crashed one
at him that hit him IN the leg. sent
him over in q heap and scored two
INNS
Many old. time-honored ideas of
team play are still faithfully observed
ny every club, despite the fact that
these traditions frequently make the
lnithful ones utterly ridiculous. and
lodges viii ulany- t.s,- |.1firf f,el.tis.,
that a commcn-sense nd.oniiN-n Vue
situation would be far more prontable
For instance. when the bases are
crowded and not more than one out
thu infielders step close in, with the
idea of throwing home on a grounder,
and cutting on "A run al the plate. A
certain scorer kept statistics part OF
one season on the results of this play
and the table showed that in 30 games
% men were caught sliding homo In
this fashion. while "a hit safely
through the close-drawn infeld, the
hits i'm most cases being taps that
would have been easily ielded by base
men in their usual positions.
On Stealing Bags.
With a man on first and the bats
mans call standing two strikes and
three balls. every manager still sends
the base runner down TO second on
the next ban pitched irrespective Of
the runners speed and slowness II
the next one pitched should be the
fourth bali. the runner could Just as
well walk TO second. ~ It happens TO
be strike. the runner, as q rule. Is
landed by q quick hurl TO second from
the catcher
One big league manager who was
given to numerous signals-for lit
tie while-was W n. Watkins, who,
when he frst broke into fast company,
planned an elaborate set of signs.
Watkins had each and every play
analvzed and set forth with detail and
precision. Some one once said that
there were 672.59e combinations posi-
Bile in the average ball game. Watkin:
had 2 signal for as many OF them as
his men could remember.
One Of his signals, so goes the story
was for a steal Of second. When h
tapped his own forehead the man o.
first-who. of course was supposed q
keep his eve on the manager-was Z
rush for the middle station One az
terhoon. with the score sewed up an
everything depending on the last raj
" Watkins team became 20 slug tn
leather Before the astonished opposi
ton would pull themselves togethe
the bases were full, and II looked a
4 nothing could prevent an avalanch
of runs At this critical moment
large horsefly 1T on Watkins face
Watkins slapped himself upon III
forehead. and instantly, with the yea
and fervor of a young colt at plal
the man on first stole second wit
the bases full.
Twenty years and more ago JAG
Glasscock gas handling the Indianar
oils team. It was far down in the rae
but playing good ball. The Me-
Yorks. playing as their fastest stride
the pace that won them the flag tha
season and the championship of tn
world. came along late in the schec
ule. and Glasscock was wild 70 bea
them. He had only two effective pitch
ers' ready for the brunt One of theI
was a lazy fellow, who hated 10 wor
oftener than was absolutely necessar
to keep him on the payroll--the othe
was Amos Rusie. then at the threshol
Of his great career.
Say, old man. said Glasscok TO n
lazy one. go in and beat them toda
and you won't have 10 work again tn
week The lazysone nearly flung h
arm OF and New York was beate
Then said Glasscock TO his gre