The Calumet news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 1907-1938, 1910-08-03
THE FREAK PLAYS
|. ENL|VEN BASEBALL
BIG LEAGUES OFTEN PULL OFF
THE RIDICULOUS IN THEIR
BASEBALL REPERTOIRE
SAYS PLAYERS

Chicago, Aug. 3.-Freak plays help
liven up the game of baseball. Many
of them are humorous to high de-
gree If costly To the other side. II the
home club makes them and they are
fatal, the joke is not quite so appar-
ent. The discussion of freak plays
came up at prominent baseball head
quarters in Chicago after a recent
game, which the Cubs lost to Brook
Ign.
There were three freak plays in that
one engagement, two of which were
on the Dodgers. In the first inning
Manager Chance of the Cubs was Civ
en- a hit when schoolboy could have
made the out by simply staying on
his feet. Chance hit down to Tony
Smith. who fielded the ball I'm a perfect
fashion. Burch, i'm the meantime was
tearing for first and became so mixed
up that he fell fiat on the ground.
There stood Tony Smith with the
sphere in his hands looking vainly for
some one to throw to, for he remem-
bered the cardinals principle of letting
the ball go as soon as you get 1t.
Burch more than got even little
later, however, by scoring the first
tally for the Dodgers. He had been
neatly trapped between second and
third and just as Zimmerman was go
ing TO tap him on the shoulder and
sing your out" Burch lodged under
his arm and slipped onto third. In
ninety-nine cases out of hundred he
would have been nailed.
Then Lennox came through with a
catch that is seen perhaps i'm one game
out of thousand He was all set for
Steinfeld's fly which seemed To hesi-
tate the instant before reaching him
and change it's course. Lennox stuck
out his bare hand and the ball lit
smack on the ends of his fingers. II
weighing II. The position was so per-
ilous that Barger dashed up and made
grab for IL, fearing that il would
drop to the ground before the out was
established.
One of the real freak plays of the
diamond. which had in it's elements of
the heroic, came to light this past fall
in Chicago. One of the Leland Giant
players, n colored fellow, was on Sec
ond. If the writer remembers his
name correctly il was Greene. Any
way, he started to steal third and
slid to the bag to beat the throw. In
getting a foothold his right leg was
twisted and snapped so audibly that
those In the grandstand heard ii and
shuddered.
The game fellow, perceived that the
ball was thrown over the third base
mans head. got up with difficulty and
tried to hop home on his well leg,
dragging the broken member behind
him. He almost reached the plate
safely, but nature could hold out no
longer and he sunk into faint, while
the catcher touched him out-much
against his will as he afterwards adj
mitted He said such gameness should
have been rewarded.
1t would be unfair to the reputation
of one OF the greatest or all pasepah
characters not to pay some tribute to
"Old Cy" Young of Cleveland at this
point "Old Cy". as he is affectionate-
ly known from one end of the country
to the other, won his five hundreth
victory on Tuesday 1t was an extra
inning affair, too. just to make 1t all
the more memorable.
This breaks the worlds record and
probably will stand for many years
II IL ever is broken. Five hundred
games won Is something that seems
like fairy story. It took Young over
90 years of major league experience
to turn the trick. When you consider
that 20 victories in one season is an
extraordinary number for any pitcher
to win-and then multiply that by 25
YOU will have some conception of Cy's
record.