The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1912-06-23
Rand Old Man of Baseball Is Not Thrc
|C1r Come Back, >
|oys Old CIV Young
T,pirler Rusticating on His Farm Insists That
He Is Not Superannudted Yet

of baseball on the American people is
due. to considerable degree to the
high standard of efficiency which the
game has developed. We of this day
have made great fetish Of efficiency.
Considering. length of service and stan
efficient pitcher the game Of baseball
has SO far produced.
Young began his baseball career with
amateur teams organized from the
farmer lads with whom he played. He
ran tremendously to legs and arms. but
he had brains and could throw like q
cannon ball. He driftcd naturally to
the pitching end of the game, and be-
fore many seasons had passed his name
club. In time he began to pitch pro
reasonably. and eventually secured a
position with the Canton (Ohio) team,
Of what was then the Tristate league.
Ioung's skill and cunning grew with
his years, and it was not long until he
had achieved as much repute in the
Trlstate league as he had enjoyed in
his native town. One night travelling
man dropped into the Hawley house in
Cleveland, then the resort Of the Ma
tional League ball players, Davis Haw-
ley, one Of the proprietors of tue hotel,
was also interested in the Cleveland
ball team,
Dave" said the travelling man to
Hawley, "why don It uou sign this fell
low Young for the Cleveland clubq You
are badly in need Of pitchers, and I tell
you this chap is one of the greatest
pitchers who ever took part in q game
I have had the chance to see him work
a dozen times, and there ism It chance
in the world that he It be able to
hold his own in the National leaeue,'
Hawley knew the travelling man to
be good Judge of ball players, and
the upshot of the matter was that
Young was signed on trial by special
arrangement with the Canton club.
war, on at that time in Cleveland. the
National league and Brotherhood both
having clubs In the city. The National
league had not been drawing very we'll
new phenomenon. Consequently, when
the day came for Young to make his big
league, debut a large crowd was at
It was an August afternoon In 1890.
The Chicago team. led by Adrian Anson,
then known as the greatest ball player
in the, history of the game, was to play
from the clubhouse for practice an un-
couth figure, that brought a litter from
the stands. shambled along behind them.
1t was Denton T. Young, the new ''phe-
nom-"
Darius Green, the Pied Piper. and other
noted characters OF fact and fiction. had
nothing on Young for weirdness of ap-
pearance. The baseball kniclserbookers
ne wore had been made for man many
inches shorter, and served the recruit lit
tie better than a bluff His jersey shirt
stretched across his massive body like
drumhead, and his arms danged through
its sleeves almost to the shoulder. He
dragged himself across the field BASH
fully, every angle OF his great frame ex-
aggerated and emphasized, and the
ct a
The great Arson saw Young. "Is that
the phenom?' he asked with sneer.
Young heard the sneers and the jibes,
but Il they were noticed & was shown
only by a deeper flush on his sunburned
face. He began to pitch TO his catcher
as II he were in his home town and
with care. Gradually the stands sat up
and took notice The gauut figure lost
It's uncouthness as he warmed to his
work, and the ball shot to the catcher's
even greater speed than the flash of the
sphere in the sunlight. The wise ones
nodded their approval. II he can pitch
10 the batter as well as he can to the
good man after ALL" they said.
The game began and the Chicago bat
ters strode to the plate arrogant and con-
down their bats and returned to the
bench, puzzled and baffIed- Anson, on the
side lines. hurled jibes and cutting re-
when Anson himself went to bat he. like
the traditional King OF France. marched
right up to the plate. and marched right
down again Anson had no words to
express himself, but the other Chicago
exhibition of pitching they had ever seen.
And so 1t was throughout the game.
Young grew even more effective as the
innings passed and Chicago left the field,
beaten and blind with rage Then the
crowd which had laughed at the uncouth
figure Of the new pitcher arose in q. mass
and gave him an ovation the like of
which he hardly recelved even on the oc-