The Washington times., 1911-01-04
LONG IS PREFERRED
TO HANS WAGNER
Selection of AStar Nine for All Time Leaves Out Pirate
Shortstop-Frank Selee Choice for Manager of
Mythical Team.

BOSTON, Jan. 4.-Picking an all-star
baseball team for all time is no easy
task, yet that is what 8. p. Carrick, a
Boston baseball man, has essayed tO
do.
The most difficult problem confronting
one in selecting such a team is that of
elimination. There have been so many
clever ball players at every position
that it is no easy task to sift the list
TO an all-star aggregation.
The time element is important Those
who have starred for at least five years
are singled out as worthy Of being in
cluded in the charmed circle.
Many players extraordinarily bril-
liant in their individual performances,
offensive and defensive, have been of
little value to their clubs" says the
local dopester, sometimes from tenn
permental causes and sometimes from
sheer inability to reduce themselves to
integral portions of the machine SO
necessary for baseball victory.
I'm making the selection I have first
taken into consideration the players
worth as an individual, and second-a
close second-his value as an integral
portion of the machine. Whenever a
mans individual ability stands out so
far ahead of those Of all rivals that
there Is no close second he has been
chosen.
Thus Lajoie. whose supreme ability
to bat and to play the second bag puts
him in a class above all others who
have played or are playing second base,
except perhaps Eddie Collins, who is
eliminated by the five-year ruling, is
picked to cover the midstation In pref
erence to McPhee. Burdock. Pfeffer,
Dunlap, Evers and the host of others,
all justly estimated as great second
basemen.
Long Better Than Wagner.
Long is preferred to Wagner, despite
Hans six batting championships, be-
cause of his greater gfound-covering
ability and his value as an inspirer Of
his teammates.
There should be no quarrel over the
choice Of Collins for third basenian.
His ability to handle bunts, drives, and
Texas leaguers and his worth as a bats
man are too well known to require COM
ment
''Tenney is the choice for first base
man largely because of his creative
ability. He is the man who first saw
the possibilities of the position, and Is
the virtual creator of the modern style
Of first-base play. He has had many
imitators, few Of whom have been
really excellent.
Hugh Duffy, manager Of the Chicago
White Sox, is chosen as left fielder
mainly because Of his worth as posi-
ton player, though, of course, his great
ability as a batsman also has been con-
sidered. No other outfielder ever had
so good a knowledge of the peculiartties
of the opposing batsmen as did Duny,
and no other Toutfielder ever exerted
such knowledge to better advantage.
"Chick Stahl has been chosen as ceE-
ter fielder because of his all-round aoil-
ity as a fielder, batsman and base
runner, and Cobb has been placed IN
right field for the same reason.
mo follower Of modern baseball VIII
dissent from the choice Of Mathewson
and walsh, ~and surely Cy Young's long
and meritorious record entities him to be
placed in the honor roll. The great
work Of Nichols in the nineties will ap-
peal to those who were following base
ball decade and more ago, while the
real old-timers will recall the mastery