The Detroit times., 1910-03-24
BY PAUL HALE eRusKE.

SAN ANTONIO. Texas. March "a
When they get to talking OF great
baseball players, past and present. the
Tigers always have to allow the last
word To Jim Delehanty. ITS been
good many years now since the
mansled corpse Of Jim's big brother
Ed went over the cliff at Niagara In
and some folks have been fitted with
memories so short that they have for
gotten Eds records. To Jim, how
ever. they will be always fresh. For
Ed was. and still Is. Jim's big hero.
The man who led the American and
National league batters for 80 many
seasons was the model OF the boy Jim
and remains so to this day. And woe
to the man who would try TO argue
with Jim that Wagner OF any other
man Is the equal OF what Ed Dele
hanty was once, The one representa-
tive OF the famous Delehanty family
still remaining In the big leagues VIII
come across with statistics and an ar
roy OF incident which Is sure To put
to rout any sort OF opposition.
II wonder II any of these people
who talk about Wagner's batting rec
ord know that Ed Delehanty. In l6
years In the National and American
leagues. batted for grand average
of .377?" inquiries Jim. There was a
batter And his hits netted him two
or more bases almost as often as
they did only one.
Could Blunt EN- Too.
And perhaps he couldn't hunt, He
always had the hird-baseman backed
away out into left field, for that was
the only way they could hope to get
him on a ground ball. and many Is
the time that he used TO out-game
them and just dump II down.
And some Of them say that Ed
wasn't fast, Why there was lot OF
fuss made last fall over Ty Cobb's
wonderful record on the sacks. IL
was a good record too-a grand rec
ord. I'm free 10 admit But Ed Dele
hanty stole II bases one year-prac-
tically tieing Cobb-and was always
well up In this department OF the
game. He used TO say he stole those
bases when they weren't looking. II
was true that he was such big
strong man, they couldn't get IL
through their heads that he was a
dangerous runner"
Il never expect to see a batting
feat like the one Delehanty had one
day in Chicago" said Charlie O'Leary
when Del got through. 1T was the
one that set the worlds record for
the big leagues or any other league.
guess. Four home runs and single
out OF five times at bat was the mark
Delehanty set that day / was little
kid but I'll remember 1t to my dying
minute. And the single he got was
a harder hit ball than any OF his home
runs"
A Friend Of the Younqster.
The first time ever saw Ed Dele
hanty was when the Washington club
dropped in TO play series at st
Louis" IL was Tom Jones. adding his
hit TO the Delehanty eulogy. In the
first inning of the game | had the bad
luck TO spike Billy Keister, then q
member of the Washington club He
was always nagger and he thought
II gave him an advantage over me.
suppose, so he started In to make life
n burden. He'd come over and coach
at first base. calling me a fresh kid
and asking me II was trying TO make
n reputation by spiking veteran bal
players. | tried my best TO keep my
temper. but | felt myself slipping.
ED Delehanty must have seen the
trouble and along In the middle OF
the game he came to me and said
Kid, don't you mind a thing that wine
bag says. II he makes another crack
go back at him hard. You'll never
regret 1t. II you don't. they'll be or
you like that, all the time you're II
the league
The next time Keister came dowr
my way | went out and met him.
told him that one more word from
his trap would cost him about thre,
teeth and I said wouldn't wait til
after the game but would start some
thing right there on the field. Tha
Yves the way I took Ed Delehanty':
advice. And would you believe 1t
Keister shut up like a jack-knife ant
ever after that was as pleasant TO me
as II we'd always been pals.
ED Delehanty was the young bal
players friend"
Pitcher Can't Fool EN-.
The zest with which Edgar Willet
has attacked the job OF getting him
self into shape after the winters let
up is occasioned by his thorough
recognition of the fact that pitcher
must have endurance TO go the route
Edgar means to be in shape to take
his regular turn with Mullin at the
very start Of the season. In addition
10 the work he has been doing at the
Aald Irdaar hac ran.iln rl.r o1ornad 4 h.