Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1912-07-22
BY John ("Chief''l MEYERS.

y ernoon when I'm there behind the
plate all weighted down with an
iron mask and big protector and a
four pound mitt and shin guards-and
the boys come sliding in, spikes first
regardless think that being a base
ball catcher is no business.
The boys don't care much for YOU
when they're headed from third tc
home. And they've got the right OF
way, you know. You've got to stand
there and duck the spikes and the col
llsion, and put the ball on them first
outpoint the fast ones, loaded down as
you are.
And you've got to stand behind the
swinging bats (and get one once in a
! Whlle) and pick up foul tips on the end
OF your bare fingers, and you've got tc
do more work than anybody on the
CLUB, considering that you're on the
job every day. and the only harder
working fellow, the pitcher. goes in only
every four or five days
But | wouldn't trade my Job as a
catcher for any other know of. at that
10 my mind. it's the most interesting
most exciting of all You see more
know more learn more about the game
behind the bat than in any other 20
sltlon And the game is stiH the big
thing to me.
am going to try to tell here just
what the job of a catcher" is. from the
inside viewpoint, the catcher's-iust
how he works, what he has to do. how
many things he has to watch.
| Work Starts in Morning.
Wen start, then, in the morning
| That's the beginning of the catchers
day Say we're at home and are tc
play the first game of a series with q
visiting club that afternoon. Before
doing anything else, l get with the
pitchers and we talk over these fell
lows we've got to deal with. beginning
with the top of their lineup and going
all the way down.
What can they hit? Or. rather. what
can't they hit? That's our problem
What are we going to serve them? We
talk over each Of the eight men down
to the pitcher. We don't usually bother
about him, for pitchers are VIGOROUSLY
poor hitters, although I'll bet many a
National league battery in the morning
discusses Old Doctor Crandall, of our
club, who's the Larry Laioie of twirl-
ers. However, that's Incidental
! How do we know what these visitors
can or can't lay their bats on? We
have to study every man. That's a
catcher's job all his catching life When
l broke into the big league the old
catchers and pitchers on the New York
club taught me all they knew about the
other chaps. Once in while | have
got tips on batters' weaknesses from
friendly mask men of other clubs, but
not often. Nearly always it is matter
Of close study.
When there is new man in the OPP
posing lineup whose weakness hasn't
yet been got at. of course, we're up
against it. There's nothing to do but
try him out. Perhaps for few times
Well serve him something which is just
what he wants. He whales II and
laughs at us That's why. because of
the undiscovered weak point, many a
youngster splurges 400 in the big show
for a time and then drops back to 200.
We get him.
Like General Laying Plans
You see, then, the theoretical part of
the game comes first. It's like a gen
eral laying his plans before the battle.
How these plans are going to work out
is the big question that only game
itself can settle.
Before the bell rings in the after
noon the man who is going to pitch has
talked over with me the first three tor
four or five of our opponents again. AS
the first man walks out swinging a
couple of bats we know just what Wre're
going to offer him. And he knows, that
we know that,
play BALI"
Now, this fellow. say, is flow ball
hitter. That means he can Iand on a
ball served between his waist and his
knees and lift It far and fast. His
weakness, then, Is a high ball. There
fore. the first one coming<to him is one
high up around his nedk in the hope
! lfldl ne may ld-ht Il VInS AT II. II ne
Hays his bat onthat ore at all. it will be
weak blow. Well--he doesn't. Ball
one.
The next one then, comes a trife
lower-enough lower, maybe. to fool
the batter into making a try for it, or
to fool the umpire into calling it a
strike The oAever fellow knows this
and let's thathone go. He's getting us
in hole Two and nothing"
Now oneS must be handed to him
within hisj hitting range-say, a ball
about hifwaist-but with a curve that
breaks toward him or away from him
We mlst see whether or not he can be
fooledythat way.
Bong
There it goes A pretty single to
right and he's safe on first
Now my job gets exciting. In my
Lopinion, the toughest situation for a
4 catcher is "one on and none down
Especially if the runner is a clever
brainy fellow. He's going TO try 10
worry me- And so is the next man up