Evening journal., 1912-02-02
GAME TODAY
IS FASTER
John HeydIer Says Baseball as
Played Years Ago Did Not
Compare With Present
Money BIG INCENTIVE
Fer COED TEAM WORK

John Heydler, secretary Of the Ma
tional League, is Of the opinion that
the twentieth century ball player put
up a hardergame than his predecessor
Of 20 or 30 years ago. Heydler thinks
the present-day player has more IN
centive to win than the old-timers. He
also believes the game is faster now
than it ever was.
Baseball has improved and Is fast
er than IL was 20 years ago. Heydlef
says. II simply had to do so. Thirty
years ago tho supply of young ball
PLAYERS was limited Today every
small city has a ball team and the
big leagues get the pick OF these
thousands of minor league performers.
There were no paid scouts in the old
DAYS. OF course, there were times
when manager would be tipped OF
to a promising yOungster, but clubs
could not afford to hire men for no
other purpose than to roam from
ocean TO ocean searching for budding
talent
Must Hustle for Jobs.
"The modern ball player also has
to put up faster game than the play
er of a quarter of a century ago, when
there was not benchful Of youngsters
ready to take the veterans job at the
first sign of a slow-up. Every spring
now there are many players afraid
they will lose their jobs. All teams
take a small army Of recruits to their
Southern training camps. These re-
cruits are young and ambitious and
their main desire I'm life Is TO be in the
big leagues Every season new stars
i are discovered, which means that the
lold-timers must make room for them.
"In the old days there were no
training camps OF consequence ana
few youngsters got chance to beat
out the seasoned veterans. Managers
were much more inclined to stand pat
in the old days than they arc now.
Money is the Secret.
"The worlds series is the greatest
incentive to fast ball. Players are
human. and the money that goes 70
both winners and losers in a worlds
series comes in handy in the winter
time.
"The races also arc closer now
than they ever we're. Of course, we
still have runaway races in the bic
leagues. but as a rule our campaigns
today are much closer than they were
in the early days of the National
League. Usually there was one team
which outclasscd the others so large.
, ly that IL was acknowledged as pen
= nant winner before the season was
, old. Close races mean better and fast
er ball A team in the race viii al
- ways fight harder than a team tina
0 is doundering in the second division
b The more teams with a chance 10
the remnant the faster baseball tn
. fans will get, as every team In III
a fight Is anxious to get a divvy OF th
u worlds series spoils.
II Games Harder Fought.
i "T also think that the present-da
> player makes a better uphill hgh
!, than the players of the eighties.
I, game nowadays is never won unit
= the last man is out I'm the ninth In
ming. 7 saw games years ago Il
/, which. when one team got a good lead
y the affair developed into a farce. Th
: outfielders Of the losing teams tool
y their time chasing balls. and did no
5 try to keep the winning team from
piling up runs. ] do not mean tina
e the old fellows we're shirkers or quit
. ters, but they did not take the gam'
. as seriously as IL is taken now, AM
! late rallies we're exceedingly scarce.
D Heydler would divide the history Of
organized ball in two eras. The first
era would be from the time the Ma
tional League was organized in 1876,
until the ascendeucy of the Baltimore
, orioles IN 1894. The second era would
be from the days Of the Baltimore
pennant winners to the present time