Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1912-09-27
the same seven men throughout each

McGraw is always getting the
strongest man in there in the pinch,
and, instead Of this system being a
sign of weakness, it looks to me more
like the indication of strength in a
club. McGraw can take Devore out
of the game and send Crandall to bat
for him in an emergency. Ii is we'll
known that Devore is weak against a
~left-handed pitcher and that Crandal
enjoys them. Then if Crandall gets on
the bases, Becker is sent to run for
him and takes Devore's place in the
outfield. The club has not been
weakened any by the shift and in the
few minutes that Crandall has been
introduced at the bat it has been
greatly strengthened. Many times
in pinches this season Crandall has
driven in the runs which won for us
when appearing as an emergency bat
ter. 1t also requires a great deal Of
judgment to know just at which stage
to introduce the pinch hitter. BY this
arrangement McGraw can take adj
vantage OF a ripe opportunity in the
middle of the game instead of hav-
ing to wait until the eighth or ninth
inning, as most managers do, before
introducing heavy artillery.
Then by shifting the lineup Nc
Graw gains something else. A substi-
tute cannot learn the game by sit
ting on the bench day after day any
more than a girl can become a prima
donna studying in a correspondence
school. BY getting four outfielders
in the game three or four times a
week and five infielders, he keeps all
these men in top form in case one Of
the regulars is injured. Then his
team will not be weakened. This
changing of the team looks to me
more like strength than weakness.
No man can keep in condition by sit
ting on the bench.
McGraw will not study the Boston
club in any, preliminary course to a
large extent. He will not have scouts
observing the team in action. He pre-
fers to depend on his W judgment.
"Snap Judgment for mine." he
says. when you get a lot Of scouts
reporting to Q you get many opin-
ions confused in your brain and you
don't know what to do"
He probably will send two or three
of the pitchers over to Boston to
watch the Red Sox work before the
series and that is all. He has a fair
knowledge OF the habits Of some of
the players from his observations in
1909, when the two teams met in a
post-season series. Against each pit
cher he probably will have worked
out a style of attack before the I'M
pire calls the first game. These plans
always will be open to amendment.
subject to McGraw's own observa-
tions. He can size up a pitcher and
discover his flaws quicker than any
other man l ever saw.
i think that Wood Is a pitcher who
is likely to suffer at the hands of
Mac" because ] have heard that he
is one of those pitchers who are al
ways in the hole with three balls and
one strike or three and nothing on
the batter. McGraw will work him
for passes sure and get him up in
the air If he is shy on control. The
Giants are probably the best walters
in the world when they get a pitch
er who Is uncertain. 1t is McGraw's
idea, anyway, to make the opposing
slabman pitch as much as possible to
every batter. and nothing upsets
Mac" so much as to see one Of his
men winging at a bad ball. AS soon
as Wood steps on the slab McGraw
will be out on the lines studying ev-
cry move and watching for some vul-
nerablbe spot. Once he finds it he
will just pound, pound, pound at 1t.
Another report which has reached
McGraw's ears is that the Boston
catchers are not good throwers. He
has one of the best base running
teams ever put together, and, II the
Red Sox catchers experience any
difficulty in restraining the Giants
on the bases. he will turn them loose
to run wild.
AS far as managers go, the Giants
lave all the best Of it. McGraw mover
lets an opportunity get by him He
sees II EN- all. Rival managers a1mit
that he is right oftener than any 9TH