Omaha daily bee., 1910-05-08
DANGERS FOR MAN At BAT
Some of the Best Hitters Laid Out by
PitcheSp.
EXPERIENCES OF JENNINGS
Manager of the Detroit Club Was
once Unconscious for Four
Days from a Tap by
Amos Rusie.

DETROIT. Mich, May THAT more
batsmen are not injured by being hit by a
pitched ball speaks well for the skill OF the
pitcher. In the old days. too
the pitcher would not infrequendy let one
20 straight at the bstters head in order
20 drive him away from the plate. Such a
proceeding is rare nowadays. Working
the edges of the plate seems to have proved
more effective. Nevertheless. the fire the
batter faces is dangerous.
one of the worst cases of head hitting
was that of Hugh Jennings, now manager
of the Detroit club. by Amos Rusie. Jen-
nings, with Baltimore then, was noted for
his close hugging of the plate and his
willingness to accept a base by being hit
by the pitcher lie relied upon his quick
ness of eye to minimize the effect Of the
blow Rusie had a wide, jumping curve
ball. Jennings was willing to turn his
shoulder. accept DETECTING blow, or let
it hit his shirt front or the slack Of his
knickerbockers. He could do this with
pitchers of average curve. but Rusie's
curve was too sharp in the break and too
fast for him to avoid Jennings stood
close and got one full in the head. lie fell
flat. For four days his life was despaired
through. though he never was the same
nervy man again at the plate. and Il was
months before he could play.
when He Got Bumped.
jennings by the way, is an extremely
durable person. While at Cornell he dived
face first against the concrete bottom Of
an empty swimming tank. The man is a
marvel of vitality and energy. He sus-
tanned two shocks that would have killed
the average man. yet he is as full OF
energy today as a dynamo.
Roderick Wallace the famous infielder
of the Browns, had his batting efficiency
seriously and permanently impaired twelve
years ago when he was hit in the head by
ball thrown by Chick Fraser who was
then with the Louisville club. Wallace
was knocked flat. and it was many days
before he went to bat again. A constitu-
ton of iron enabled him to withstand the
shock but he never was quite the same
hitter afterward
Dan Hoffman, the center fielder Of the
Browns, was the victim of fearful blow
at the hand of Jesse Tannehill. then with
Boston some years afterward. Hoffman
was at the time deemed the most promising
young player in the American league. He
was having his first season. and a brilliant
one II was. One day he made a triple, a
double and single against Tannehtll in
three trips to the plate. The fourth time
up TannehilI hit him a terrific blow over
the right eye. 1t almost killed the trained
and muscular young athlete. Hoffman lay
as IL dead and it was four days before he
recovered consciousness. Then his nerves
were ruined. From 40 pounds he declined
to 12S lie could not sleep nor eat for six
months, and the following season he had
to get along as best he could with only
one eye. Hoffman says that 1t has taken
him six years to get back his full strength.
He has never been able to hit left-handed
pitchers since the day he was hurt. Now.
six years later Hoffman is at the mercy
of the average left-handed pitcher.
Johnny Lush Hurt.
Johnnie Lush the star pitcher of the
Cardinals, was hit by Andy Coakley on the
neck and all but killed. His neck has
never been straight since that time and for
years his health was seriously impaired.
Roger Bresnahan was hit and severely
hurt by Jack Taylor in 1904, For a long
time after this injury Bresnahan wore a
semi-mask that protected the exposed side
of his head against the pitcher.
Hundreds of lesser lights have been hit
and injured to a degree less serious than
those mentioned. 1t all goes to show that
baseball is not without its great dangers,
especially to men at the bat. Most of the
injuries on the field have come about
through collisions between fielders, such
as the one that cost the life of Hub Col
Inns. Collins fatal collision was with
Harry stovey at Boston many years ago.