Bisbee daily review., 1912-04-17
SCORER MAKES RECORDS FOR
 BALL PLAYER
lis Work Is of Greatest Im- portanee for All of Those Who Read of
 Ball Games
THE HITS AND ERRORS

Ot more importance to the great CT number Of baseball fans than any thing else is the score of the game are the runs. hits snd errors. The umpire has sole jurisdiction over the scoring of runs that may be doubtful but the scorer decides the number oi hits and errors in any game. And be cause Of the diversity Of opinion concerning those factors, the official scorer is given the final guess. al. though no one has to agree with him who does not want to.
 If the average fan had the say there would be many no hit" games in every season instead of an average of one a year. and the games in which the errors exceeded the total of safe hits would be numerous. Somewhere in the back of nearly every patrons head 10 the idea that if the opponent gets his hands on batted ball 1t is an error and that only the so-called clean hits" cout in the batting av- erages.
 Some of them may have submerged that idea under unwilling acquiesence with modern methods of scoring but lots of them still believe that ought to be the only basis of judgment They would penalize Joe Tinker and Harry Lord for getting their hands on base hits that ordinary inhelders would come no where near reaching They would rob Schlute or Cobb of a long base hit because some brilliant outfielder by desperate effort reach cd the ball but failed to hold it.
 Lest the reader think this is only an expression of personal opinion here Is the text Of rules prescribing when a base hit shall be accredited to the batsman:
 When the ball from the bat strikes the ground on or within the foul line and out of reach of the fielders.
 When a fair hit is partially or Is wholly stopped by a fielder in motion but such player cannot recover him self in time to field the ball to first before the striker reaches first base. or to force out another base runner.
 When the ball is hit with such force to an infielder or pitcher that he can, not handle it in time to put out the batsman or force out a base runner. In case of doubt over this class of hits
 
 CT exempted from charge Of an error.
 When the ball is hit slowly toward . fielder that he cannot handle it in time to put out the batsman or force out base runner.
 In all cases where base runner E retired by being hit by a batted ball unless batted by himself, the batsman shall be credited with base hit.
 When a batted ball hits the person or clothing of the umpire as described in rule 53, section 6.
 In no case shall base hit be scsor- ed when a base runner is forced out by the play"
 These rules ought to convince any doubters that 1t was the intent Of the rule framers to make the question whether or not an opponent touches a batted ball Of minor importance. Not only that. but 1t is not invariably necessary for an opponent to touch the ball in order to be charged with an error.
 Note that the first section of the quoted rules reads out of reach Of the fielders," instead Of without be ing touched by the fielders. as 1t might have been worded- IL is not in- conceivable that infielder might be squarely in front of bounding ball or easy rolling hit and miss it all to- gether with the hands. but that would not entitle the batsman to hit unless the ball took sudden false or crooked bound just as 1t reached the fielder. Seldom does it happen in the major leagues. however. that an infieIder makes that kind Of miss. IL is of more frequent occurance in amateur and minor league games be fore players have acquired that sklli which makes their judgment Of slow bounding balls almost perfect Con yersely. the average minor league dia. mond is more conducive to crooked bounders.
 The second section quoted is the cause of the widest gap between the professional and amateur scorer Ihe words ~in motion" are most import ant The ordinary bounder hit m such a way that the ordinary heid' er does not have to move for 1t, or