The Detroit times., 1912-07-17

THOSE MUCH RIDlCulED
BOSTON PITCHERS HELD
TIGERS TO 1885 AVERAGE
Fifty Points Lower in Club Bat
ting Than Cellarites
Were Tiges
DOPE WAS FAR, FAR OFF
Everybody Used to Take Plea
sure Predicting Downfall
of Sox Hurlers
DOPE WAS FAR, FAR OFF
By RALPH L. YoNKER.

That much ridlculed Red Sox pitch
Ing stan held thes Tiger sluggers U
a batting average OF .195.
When it is remembered that up tC
the Boston series the Tigers were
hitting az a club at .272 average
and that .195 Is so points below wha'
the tailend batters, the Browns, are
hitting, II doesn't take an expert In
statistics to see that the Sox hurlers
have been doing some pitching.
That is a big tumble for the Tigers
1T seems bigger when the force OF
the cascade is increased by the recol
llection that the Tigers weak hitters
have been doing the most valiant
work with the willow.
Among the stars Cobb is the orr
one who has lived anywhere near up
TO his reputation in this recent series.
With iris Speaker egging him on the
way Joe Jackson does, Cobb couldn't
help but keep up good gait. Craw-
ford has been weaker than usual this
series: Witt hasn't struck his stride
since returning to the game, and
Bush has taken slump.
Deiahanty has returned TO the line
mp with an improvement in hitting,
but he has hardly caused the Hub to
no set afire by the friction or his
pace.
Yet all this performance was
against the staff of pitchers whom
every body was criticizing as being
too weak for team aspiring TO the
championship II was the general
opinion of eastern critics early in the
season. and of western critics later,
that the hurlers couldn't stand the
strain.
Even now some of the best experts
fail to see why the Sox pitchers are
doing as well as they are. They say
they shouldn't on form.
Be that as it may, the Tigers got
only 81 hits OF them in AZ innings,
or an average of six a game.
In the meantime our pitchers we're
beins pounded for 45 hits in 43 in
nings, or an average of nearly nine
hits game.
Buck O'Brien was said to have
passed into the has-been class this
spring. He didn't show up well early.
But he won his game against the
Tigers with six hits. s.s-.a
Joe Wood held the Figes to FIVE
hits to win another game, and Col
llins gave them four hits In one and
4 six In another to win two more games.
Charlie Hall, the old-time Tiger
killer was the only man who appear
ed easy. He was raped out OF the
box with six hits in three innings,
Lou6en being responsible for most OF
the rapping. Then Bedient essayed
10 finish the game, allowing four hits
In five innings. Wood replaced him
In the ninth, giving nary a hit.
Throwing aside the early dope
sheet for a while and scanning this
Tiger-Red Sox record, II looks as II
the Boston pitching stan isn't the
weakest In the world by any means.
The Cobb-Speaker duel resulted in
+ a shade for Speaker, although a hit
more for Cobb or one less for Speak
er would have changed the COM
plexion OF the result
Cobb got eight hits for 13 bases In
the 19 times he was at bat, whila
Speaker got nine hits for the same
number OF bases In the 20 times be
was 4up.
The duel extends only as far as
hitting. In the matter of base run
ming, Cobb, as usual, is conceded TO
have II on the Boston gardener.
Speaker got only two extra base
hits. One was a double, the other
home run. Cobb got three extras, two
triples and one double.
Cobb has It on Speaker In this
series, however, when other facts than
the figures are consulted. While
Speaker was hitting against such
men as Moran. the Tigers new south
paw from Washington and Lee, Cobb
es9was facing that Red Sox pitching that
has been commented upon.
Tiger fielding, by the way, was
nothing TO rave about in this series.
The Tigers committed 13 errors 10
the Red Sox five, making their aver
age 81 in comparison to the Sox
.97s.
Jennings evidently wanted to save
Dubuc for the Athletics today. There
seemed TO be no other reason for
using Moran yesterday.
II look sas II it would be the Tisers'
policy for the rest OF the season 20
lay the foundation for a new team fo-
1913. This Boston series has wilted
the last pennant prospects for this
year. but that never-dylug hope foT
the future makes the Tigers look for.
ward to the coming year.
The Tigers start a series of four
days with the Athletics at Philadel.
phia today.
That old time fight between the
clubs viii be lacking to some extent
but nevertheless the Tigers will scra,
Tor the sake of Boston and Washing.
ton II they don't for anything else.
lPHHIIE0 RIIY MARSHALL