The evening times., 1911-08-16
St LOUIS MAN
HAS A SCHEME
Proposes a New Way of Deal.
ing With the Average Ques-
tion That is Interesting.

ing With the Average Ques-
tion That is Interesting.
A st. Louis man has figured out a
system Of keeping baseball averages
which is intended to make the figures
show more clearly than they do at
present just what q players value to
q team Is. His plan Is to score by
bases instead Of simply by hits.
There is great interest among both
players and fans as to the batting
averages. and all players would rath-
er get four hits in day than have
good dinner that night. It is feared
that many athletes would prefer to
get three or four hits than to have
their side win the ball game without
any hitting assistance from them. Hit
ting Is the delight Of the athlete and
the fat batting average his greatest
pride. But under the present system
OF computing the averages. a single
with two men out and no one on bases
counts just as much in figuring the
percentages as home run with the
bases full.
To Make Averages Show Players
Merit
The idea is to dope out the aver
ages SO as to show more plainly than
they do now just what actual execu-
tton toward winning q ball game q
batter has done.
The st. Louis plan, which is in
dorsed by Harold Lanigan, the sage of
sport and stage, is to count, in figur-
ing a players batting average, the
number OF bases which he makes him
self on his hits, as we'll as the num-
Der of bases which he causes others
to make. The base is taken az a unit
not the hit. For instance, q player
making single with no one on base
would be given one point, as he has
gained one base. But II there is a
runner on first when he makes his
hit and the runner advances to Sec
ond on the bingle, the batter gets
credit for two bases. If the runner
got to third on the hit, the batter
would get three bases, one for get
ting to first himself and two for ad-
vancing the runner from first to third.
A player making home run would
get four bases, providing the bases
were empty when he sent out his
drive. II the bases were full he
would get credit for ten bases, four
for himself, three for the man who
went home from first; two for the
runner who scored from second and
one for the runner on third.
A player making sacrifice hit
would be given credit for the bases
advanced by the runners who moved
up on his successful bunt. A man
who singled and stole second would
get credit for two bases. the equal
of the batter who made two-bagger
with the bases empty. A batter work
ing the opposing pitcher for a base
on balls would get credit for one base.
II there was runner on first when
he drew his pass he would be given
two bases, for he not only reached
first himself, but forced the .preced-
ing runner down to second, the same
as If he had made a hit.
A somewhat similar system is sug-
gested in providing for pitchers aver
ages. which at present are unfair to
the twirler with q weak second-Gli-
vision club. AS it is now a pitcher
who holds his opponents to three or
four hits and one run and loses his
game by a score Of to 0, is charged
with defeat just the same as the
man who gives dozen bases on balls
and is knocked all over the lot. Good
pitchers with inferior clubs have not
the slightest chance to stand high in
the records.
Can't Show True Worth
Men like Rucker, johnson, Keefe
and Gaspar, who are tied up with sec
ond-division teams, cannot show their
true worth in the averages, for they
are bound to lose lot of well-pitched
games on account of the weakness of
their support.
In the proposed system the work of
q pitcher is figured on the base sys-
tenn also, just like the batter. That
is, the bases actually made of him
are computed, counting all those made
on base hits, bases on balls and any
other points for which he is respon-
sible. In this way really good pitch
ing will show in the averages, and
the flrst-class man with the poor club
viii have a chance to stand up along
side the pitcher. who is lucky enough
to be with a winning team. There is
good deal Of merit in these sugges-
tions. and they will be considered at
the next meeting Of the Baseball
Writer'S association.
WALTER MILLER MEETS
JOE CARR TONIGHT
otk'5 = d. y D.