The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1912-04-03
DETROIT TIGERS
PASSED ALEXANDER
Refused to Buy Great Philadel-
phia Pitcher When They
Had Chance

Grover, Cleveland Alexander, pitch
er extraordinary Of the National lea
que, this distinguished youngster who
burned so many hoes in the warclubs
of the members of the 300 sticking
division that he set the circuit on fire
at an early date and closed his first
big league campaign with a record of
twenty-eight victories in forty-one
games with the Phillies, came within
an ace of landing in the Detroit bas-
ket in 1910. and thereby hangs a tale
of which Catcher Harry Beckendorf is
the author. A regular scouts word
that Alexander was not ripe for fast
company was accepted as the straight
dope by Manager Jennings, notwith-
standing the fact that both George
Mullin and Wild Bill Donovan had
strongly recommended the purchase of
the pitcher after looking him over.
If Alexander had been gathered in
by Detroit in the summer of 1910-and
the Syracuse club owners were willing
TO close the deal-an entirely new
chapter might have been written into
American league history, and Baker
Coombs, Bender and other Mackmen
might never have broken into the
worlds championship series of 1910
and 1911
Detroit needed one great finger of
Alexander's calibre in 1910 and again
last season The ex-New York State
Lacquer would undoubtedly have car
ried the Tigers along in the lead, but
the golden opportunity was past up,
and here is how Beckendorf tells about
1t:
The story has gone the rounds a
few times. but this is just how De-
troit lost out on Alexander" said Har-
ry. Early in the summer of 1910
the tip was slipt to Hughie that the
New York league had uncovered a
HEAVIER who was nearly ready for a
try-out by the big fellows and that the
pitcher had not been spotted as yet
by any OF the majors.
while the club was pulling off a
series In Philadelphia with the Ath-
letics Manager Jennings decided to
send one of his pitchers to take look
at Alexander, Mulhn was delegated
for che job and he jumped to Scran-
ton. where Syracuse was booked at
this time, got into the stand without
being recognized and spent the after
noon studying every angle of Alexan-
cer's work The Syracuse fielders were
playing punk ball, booting and muff1ng
like sand-lotters, but Alexander stuck
gamely to his guns, never showed the
slightest sign of quitting and event
ualiy pulled what looked like a lost
game out of the fire.
'Mullin got into communication with
Jennings and recommended the pur-
chase OF the pitcher but while Hughie
was very laVoraDly impressed win
the report he decided that he would
have Donovan lamp him, and accord
lngly Bill donned his whiskers and
went into the bush.
Donovan also had a fine chance to
watch Alexander work in a game in
which he was called upon to show
everything he had In stock in order to
win. His report verified everything
MuIiIn had said. although neither said
Alexander was a second Mathewson.
They advised Hughie to hook him and
the result was the sending of a hired
scout to Syracuse to pass the final
Judgment and buy IL Alexander was
the gooda.
The scout also got a line on the
hurier. but II may have been that
Alexander was not going good gated
that day and failed to make an i'm
Dgsssion on our man. At any rate he