Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1913-06-08
Tommy Broke in as Pitcher, but
Was Reformed by Wallop
From Pitched Ball.
GOT START ON SCHOOL TEAM
Local Star Won First Fame With
Gadsden,. Where He Was Mar
vel at Batting and Stealing.
By Percy Fl. Whiting.

lIN TE III OlL iiO"t We re SOAllB u
w win a million ball games"
That's what Tommy Long
always says after a victory. "Oh,
we'll, we have to lose a few, Wen win
tomorrow sure" That's what he
says after they lose one. His opti-
mism is there to stay. 1t can't be
downed or ever dampened. Tommy
Long believes in success. Therefore
ne succeeds. If Dave Robertson
doesn't look ont, Tommy will believe
lin success 80 strong that he will grab
off the batting lead Of the league and
be back on the Washington team
next spring.
! Tommy believes that this is his
year. His good ones run in streaks.
He had a great year over in the
| Southeastern two years ago. Then
he wasn't so good last year with
Mobile. This year he is back stronger
than ever.
TOMMY LONG has been playing
ball as long as he can remember
and has been regular player on
I regular. team for years. The fact 49,
Tommy has been playing ball for
| somebody or other for eight years
and he isn't but 20 years old now.
Tommy started his schooling and
| his baseball at the same place-Jack
son, Ala, at the First District Agrt-
cultural School He didn't go to an
agricultural school with any particu-
lar idea Of being a farmer, you under
stand II Just happened that he lived
at jackson then; in fact he started
going to that school when he was Z
Tommy's last three years at the
Agricultural School he made his
school team and played great bail
batting over 400 each year.
n IKE half the ball players OF the
l. world, Tommy Long started OF
as a pitcher. And 1t was with his
fame as a hurler pretty well scattered
abroad in Alabama that he went to
the Marion Military Institute in the
| fall of 1908 He made the Nj. NJ. l.
team easily enough, though II was
a strong ball club, and was pitching
good ball when the accident happened
that cured him Of being pitcher.
While batting one day a swift
throw caught him on the arm. He
went out of the game for that day
and out Of the pitching box for good.
I His arm never came back strong
enough so that he could continue
pitching after that day. So that
! transferred Tommy to the outfield to
get the benefit Of his hitting, and he
| has been in the outfield ever since.
Long kept right on hitting better
than 400 with Marion Military In
stitute his two years there, and that
| in spite of the fact that his club
played some Of the best college mines
of the South.
! COING back into the nearest ap-
NJ proach to ancient history that
Long can furnish 1t appears that the
| first game Of ball he ever played with
a regularly organized and uniformed
team was Sor the Freshman nine at
the First District Agricultural School.
| He went is as a pitcher and won his
game-though he has forgotten the
score.
It was in 1903 that Long played his
| first professional ball After the
! school season was over he slipped up
| to Uniontown, Ala, and played with
the team in that little town.
One notable game was hurled by
Long for Uniontown. That was
against the Southern University nine
with Frank Allen, now OF Brooklyn,
on the slab for the collegians. Tommy
lost that one, 3 to 2. Each man gave
teen men, Long ten.
IN 1910 Long went in for pro-
fessional ball. Paul Stephenson,
a resident Of Gadsden, had been
named manager OF the Gadsden Club,
and when he went out for players he
bethought himself Of Long. whose col
lege playing had been very brilliant.
He rounded up Tom without a strug-
gle and for two months the present
Cracker outielder played good ball
Then one day at Knoxville, in
sliding into second base Longs foot
caught in the hard ground, his leg
turned and two ligaments were torn
loose In his leg. Il was a nasty acct
dent and Long went home for the rest
Of the summer.
THE year 1911 found Tommy Long
1 back with Gadsden. but that year
old King Bailey who used TO pitch for
Nashville in prehistoric days. was
the manager. After the first game
of the season Bailey went to Long.
MY boy" said he, you don't be
and I'll sell you this fall 10 the big
leagues"
But he didn't wait until fall
Long hit such a tremendous clip
that Bailey wired Mike Kahoe. scout
Of the Washington Club. 10 go right
down and Mike went. Nike remained
three days. The third day. at the last
OF the game, Long beat out a bunt,
and stole second. third and home.
That night Kahoe went to the pres
ident OF the Gadsden Club and said.
I'll take that young man" And from
that day to this Tommy has been the
property Of the Washington Club.
Long had a wonderful season with
Gadsden. He batted 1865. stole IS
bases and scored 100 runs IN 101
games. The Gadsden team, largely
because OF Longs great work, nm