The daily sentinel., 1912-02-19
SENTINEL READERS HEAR
STORY OF TY COBB
Sentinel Provided with Advance
Copy OF personal "Reminiscences
of One of the Most Famous of
Baseball Players.
(By TY COBB.l


The editor of the Baseball Maga-
zine has supplied me with a list of
questions which he assures me the
great American public would like to
have answered Some of the ques-
tions are a bit personal and such as
| would prefer to let someone else
answer or dodge altogether, but ball
players are after all type of public
servant and as such are in a way
responsible to the public for their
records on the diamond. At any rate
the public. through the pages of the
Baseball Magazine, seems to have me
up for cross-examination, so ! will
try TO answer some of its questions
as well as | can.
What Are the Greatest Plays l Ever
Made,
1t is pretty hard for a ball player
to write about the greatest plays he
ever made. If he didn't make an oc-
casional good play he would have to
get out of the business, because that
is what he is hired for. And a
player in the ordinary run of the
luck makes so many plays that he
knows are foolish and gets so many
call downs from his manager and
fellow team mates as well as the
public that he Is perhaps entitled
to little satisfaction when he has
done something slightly above his
average work. In my case, since the
public has asked me this question it
VIII pardon me for trying to answer
1t as briefly and simply as ! can.
In a game at Cleveland in 1903 |
was fortunate to score under circum-
stances that were bit unusual. De-
troit was one run behind when |
came up to bat in the ninth inning.
| hit sharply to short, who Jagged
on the thow so that 1t fell by first
base. l was safe, and Immediately
afterward stole second. | saw that
the throw TO second was bad so l
kept on to third. Here l decided to
take a chance on bad throw, and
started for home As / expected the
throw to third was hurried and a
| trifle wild. so ! managed to beat out
the throw home by hair, thus tying
the score. Detroit finally won the
game.
In Philadelphia in the season of
1910 | was on first when Delhanty
singled By doing the hurry-up act
! managed to get home on this, dodg-
ing Thomas at the plate by very
close play.
In the same city in 1911 l had
great luck in base stealing on one
occasion. The Athletics were one
run to the good when | got on first
base. and as their pitcher was in
great form and | could scarcely en-
pect safe hit to bring me home
had to steal. | did manage to steal
second and third and finally slid
home with the tying run, though they
beat us out in the finish.
In batting my mind always goe.
back to the now celebrated Thinning
tie which we played in Philadelphia
in 1907. Rube Waddell was pitch
ing, and when | went to the plat,
felt none too sure of the outcom,
as it was the ninth inning and tn,
Phillies were in the lead. However
something had to be done, so mad,
a desperate try at one of Rube's fas
ones, and ! can assure you | fel
greatly relieved when l saw the bal
sailing into the distance for hom,
run and knew that defeat wa,
changed TO at least tie
In fielding, | remember very wei
an incident in Washington toward tn,
close of the 1909 season. Detroi
had six games to play and had to vii
five of them to be sure of the pen
nant The score was 3D.. in favor O
Detroit in the ninth inning. Their
was a man on second and one ou
when the batter at the plate hit
low, hard liner to field If it wen
safe the runner would score and tn
game would be tied. When | starte,
after 1t there didn't seem to me on
chance in thousand of my gettinl
1t. ] had to run and dive for it
landing flat on my face, but caugh
the ball and the game was victor,
for Detroit.
What Position on the Diamond Il
the Hardest to Play?
l have been told that the averag,