The Chickasha daily express. (Chickasha, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1899-current, 1910-08-12
SMALL PITCHING
STAFFS CARRIED
Modern Managers R0lyOn Fewer
but Dependable TWITIsIs.
IDLENESS PROVES INJURIOUS.

Foolish to Have Many Slab Artists
While Most Of Them Sit on the
Bench-PiIots IN Bic League He-
ginning to Realize Folly Of Il.
That long pitching strings are no
longer necessary and that four or i've
dependable men are worth two or
three times that number Of ordinary
twirlers is a &act-
Previously the necessity Of having
seven men, each one ready at all times
to take his turn at box. was point
rhat was emphasized BY managers.
And during last season, too, the major
league manager who did not have at
least six available men for the box
figured shat he was heavily handicap
ped in the fight for the coveted bunt-
ing.
Things have changed, however. The
wonderful work OF the pittsburg
pitchers last season and the now very
patent fact that four twirlers prac-
aleally did the brunt Of the work for
the Pirates have given managers and
owners cause for believing that too
many pitchers are worth hardly as
much as none at all.
Last season. with Camnitz. willis,
Maddox and Leiiied performing in
their turn, the Pirates were up ID the
race throughout the entire season. ana
they finally drew away easily from all
other competitors at the end. In pre.
yious years It was the pitching OF
Mordecai Brown. pfelstef, Overall
and Reulbach that won for the Cubs.
and every one for years has realized
thHt Christie Mathewson has been The
real mainstay OF the Giants. This
only goes to show the value OF one
good pitcher to a team With four
dependable boxmen the ordinary man
ager should be reasonably well satis-
tied
In 1909 the Aied Sox had one Of the
biggest strings Of pitchers III the coun-
try. They had Hal. Karger, Wood.
Cicotte, Matthews. Arellanes. Pane.
Wolter and Schlitzer at the seasons
end, while previously there were Ryan.
Chech. Steele and Morgan as members
Of the pitching corps. And yet had
Morgan pitched the bali for Boston
that he did for the Athletics and Young
had been retained. these two. with
ArelIanes and one other reliable man
to take his turn in the box, might cast
" have beaten out both the Athletics
and Tigers and brought the pennant to
Boston.
The better part Of the pitching for
Connie Mack's club was done BY four
men. Plank, Bender. Krause and Nor
gan. and they are doing the same thing
this year. -Four OF i've regular men
on any team would be worth double as
much as string Of nine or ten men
with only one or two Of them in first
class pitching condition.
Too many pitchers are a hindrance
instead OF help II Cicotte, Wood
and Wolter had been IN shape to help
out Arellanes last season the pitching
staff of the Red Sox would not have
been the weakest IN the American
league. But the wildness Of Wood, the
Injury to Cicotte and the bad start that
Wolter got in the spring handicapped
the team SO heavily that ArelIanes was
forced to do pretty nearly half the
pitching for his team.
Managers and owners both are be-
ginning to realize the folly Of keeping
lve or six abiebodied men upon the
bench while the bulk Of the work is
left to couple Of good men and lot
Of second stringers. Travelling is *
penslve, and salaries today are at
pretty high figure. If the work could
be got out Of FIVE men the saving
both In travelling expenses. salary aud
general efficiency would be consider
able and owners would be willing to
tack a snug slice on to the compensa-
ton OF the five dependable men who