The Washington bee., 1912-03-02
PILFERING A BASE,
One of the Most Closely CaIcu-
lated Plays In Baseball.
WORKING A DELAYED STEAL.
The Way This Clever Trick, That Was
Invented by Harry stovey, Used to
Be Pulled off by Big Bill" Lange.
Anson's Wasted Sacrifice Bunt.

spAAb1ihS anu ullJIuS lue ulFLs IS the
finest draw and most closely calcu-
lated play in baseball and the one that.
above all others, reveals the mathe-
matical eXactitude Of the national
game" says Hugh S. Fullerton in the
American Magazine a player who
can run eighty-fve feet in three and
One-third seconds from a fat footed
start ought to reach second base ex-
actly tied with the ball, nine times
out of ten starts, if the play is per-
fectly made by the runner, pitcher,
catcher and baSeman. The slightest
inaccuracy or hesitation decides the
play.
1T seems q simple matter to run
ninety feet while a ball is being
thrown siXty-eight feet and caught
and thrown back approximately 132
feet, caught again and held in position
to touch the runner. Yet there are art
and science in the feat.
''There We're great base runners in
the old days This was chiefly because
in the early days stealing second base
was the chief aim Of the game. Mike
Kelly, Billy Hamilton. who in two
successive seasons stole over 100 bases,
and Big Bill Lange, who stole 100
times in one season, were ali great
runners who would be great under
present conditions. l recall vividly
Lauge's one hundredth stolen base,
which established his record. He was
on second base with no one out, and
CHICAGO needed one run to win the
game Arson was at the bat, and,
after his stOlid, businesslike style he
pOkcd down a perfect sacrifice bunt
and went numbering toward first base
Lange started for third base, stopped
and rotted back TO second. Halfway
to the bench Arson discovered where
Lange was and came near having
stroke of apoplexy. Lange had de-
Iiberately permitted his captain to sac
rifice without advancing. Then by
wonderful daShing start Lange stole
third base. scored on fly, and the
game was won. Because he won the
game Arson forcave him. but the mod
ern player who attempted such a thing
would be suspended and fined.
"The most effective steal ever devils
ed is the delayed steal. which. al
| though used during the early develop
ment of the game. was neglected for
| many years until revived by Manager
Chance of the Chicago Cubs. 1t was
used with great effect by Bill Lange
and appears to have been invented by
Harry StOypy, wonderful base run
ner of the early days. The theory OF
I the steal is to catch the catcher and
the inieldtr unprepared and out of
! position. and its success lies entirely in
/ its UneXPecteduc>>.
"Lange. the leading exponent of the
/ delayed steal. made it after this fash
! ion As the ball would be pitched he
/ would leave first base at top speed
! and sprint as hard as ne could perhaps
! twenty-ci@hr T." thirty-five feet, then
! stop short. hesitate and act as if he
! had bluudered and intended to try to
regain first base. If he succeeded in
/ drawing the throw To first base he
/ proceeded To second at top speed. But
/ in the great majority Of cases the
/ catcher would not attempt to throw to
/ either base. hut would keep mOtiOning
as if threatening to throw, and all
/ the time Iauge would he edging back.
inch by inch toward first. iOCkcying
with the catcher. The catcher, salts
fed that danger wa> .u~t and that it
, was useless 10 throw iu first, would
relax from throwing position. ease
/ down his arm and get ready to toss
the ball back to the pitcher. The
moment Lange saw the arm drop and
the catcher change the position Of his
feet he would dash at top speed for
second paSe. The catcher would leap
back into throwing position. raise his
arm again and throw. provided the
shortstoF md second baSeman had not
deserted the base and walked back to-
ward their regular positions. If they
lost fraction Of "a second i'm recover
ing the base Lange would beat the
ball The fatal he~itancy Of the catch
or and baScman gave him his oppor-
tunity
"Stpaiug third base from second is
much easier i'm reality than stealing
second from first although it is at
tempted much less frequently. The
runner moving up with his arm can
take more than twice the lead from
second base fhau from first, and, be
sides that. it is much easier to Gain u
Hving start. II has however, been
declared bad Judgment To steal third
eycerf i'm close -ames with one out
and the opposing pitcher going well
and preventing hitting In such cases,
where one run viii win or lie, stealing
third is advised by many. 1t Is more
difficult to see the pitchers movements
from behind him than from one side.
Still. the runner need not start as
ouickIz. but can start at top speed
wher ne sees the pitcher swinging his
arm. advance Il third of the way to
third base and then retreat in safety
because the c5frHcr's throw is much
longer. Also he is in much better po-
sition to take advantage Of any slight
slip in the work of the battery"
Wife's Mother, Of Course.
MRbel-Tf you- grandma has lost all
her teeth. how does she eat? Willie
heard ua say she had a biting tongue