The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1911-09-14
MACK HAS SPIES LOOK
 AT NEW YORK
Athletics Manager Wants to Learn Weak Points of
 McGraw's Men

Connie Mack is not a manager who rots shoes by standing still. Corne- lius ever since the Giants have shown championship form has pick ed the Polo Grounders as the team which will win the National League pennant Mack hopes New York will win the flag, for then his work will not have been for enaught. Right away you become suspicious and ask yourself the question, What work ~ Whereupon you ares informed that MT. Mack for several days has been spying on the Giants. Mack IS the general. Others are the spies. It is simply one of Mack's wayssof en- gineering a baseball campaign.
 For several days these specially ap- pointed spies, it is reported, have been trailing the Giants Also they will accompany the New York team for the rest of the season. Prob ably fans will catch their cigar whiffs in Boston; maybe Pittsburgere will exchange conversation with them, and so on until the Giants return home and the informers have made themselves acquainted with all the Giants weak points. q
 How does it benefit the Athletics? Maybe you do not believe these mi nor details have a material effect in a world series. but Mack does. Eiv- cry weak point in the Giant team Mack expects to have before him be- fore the series opens and in that way he will be prepared to use an attack that will check the fast work P Of the Giants on the bases. Of course. if the Giants lose out, Mack's work will have been for nothing. But Mack is willing to take the chance. If the race is won by New York, Cor nelius thinks he will be just that far ahead of the game.
 What do these spies do? They do not sit in the stands and enthuse ovc- the play. They are interested in the game from a strategic standpoint. If .Merkle comes to the bat and swings weakly at a low ball and meets a high one squarely they jot it down. The next time he comes to bat they watch to see if he ''bites'' again. on point and Macks wants to know about it. It may be a good point for Bender. Plank or Coombs. This is only one~ instance.
 They study. every players strong and weak points and watch the changes of McGraw's attack. Partic- ular. attention is given to pitchers. They learn just what kind of balls the boxmen use. Every little detail is jotted down, and this. too. is re-
 If the Giants swin out, Mack will feel that he is well equipped to tackle them. knowing, as he will, their weak points.
 Base stealing promises to be an important factor in the expected worlds series between the Giants and the Athletics. Mack, in a measure. fears the Giants base stealers. In this respect the Giants are we'll forti- fled.
 Tn Philadelphia the fans believe that Mack will have to do lot of tall coaching with his pitchers and catchers to hold the Polo GrounderS on the sacks. Baseball writers in the Quaker City say that Mack has not a pitcher who is an adept at hold ing a runner on first base. They did. however, in last years world series. They also say that Mack has not the best throwing catchers in the American League and for that reason he will have to teach his players to interpret the other teams signals.
 That was the system the Athletics used against the Cubs last year and in 1905. when they played the Giants for the worlds title, Last year it worked against the Cubs; but it prov ed a failure against the Giants. And that is one reason why Mack thought he had better get some spies together and so gather early information i'll case the Giants win.