Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1914-04-02
'RUBE' WADDELL
!. PASSES INTO
GREAT BEYOND
Baseball Expert Writes of Past
Experience With Famous
Southpaw TwirIer.
By O. B. Keller.

of sentiment about dead-a and
gone ball player, the thing to do
is to duck the ensuing column of
7point type. Then neither of us will
be Inconvenience.
The ball player in question is Rube
waddell. I put it in the present
tense because 1 hate the idea of hav-
ing to write "wasr about the Rube.
My sentiment for the Rube arises
from rather an odd mixing up of the
Rube's destinies and my humble own.
In fact (if you will pardon the per-
sonality), II the Rube had been some
thing else besides what he happened
to be 1t would be someone else writ
ing this Cor probably much better
story about him.
Strong for Striker outs.
You see, always was attracted by
the queer personality of the RUDE
and his mighty feats of pitching, and
especially his ability to pitch EN-
past" the batter. So one day (being
a clerk in an insurance office al the
some alleged verses about the RUDE,
and showed them ruthlessly UP
against P H. Whiting, who was then
SPIT ed. Of this paper, and he fell for
them, and the first thing I knew I
was working for a newspaper
Well. that led incidentally to my
making friends with the Rube, who
had innocently got me my job, so to
speak.
! went out and worked on The X. c.
Star about the time the RUDE finished
up with the Big Show, so that we
hit Glass AA ball Simultaneously, you
might say | journeyed about with
the X. C. Blues, and the Rube tolled
(somewhat erratically) for Joe Can
tillon in Minneapolis. and collided
with our boys occasionally, and usu-
ally with severe effects-for the boys.
lie was still some pitcher
A "Character Photograph"
I remember one afternoon | met
the Rube al the entrance to the ball
field in NiCollet Park, Minneapolis
! had a GraheX with me and the
Rube had his well-known ragged
glove and a new uniform coat, excess
givelv blue the kind Joe issued to his
hands,
stick out --our chest RUDE, and
get shot" | suggested
If there's one thing the Rube likes
i mean liked-better than another
it was being photographed. He stuck
out his chest. flexed hts mighty Shout
ders and drew UP his siX-feet-two of
husky manhood.
| have that picture to-day, 1t is
the best character picture ever have
seen Of a ball player. That is be-
cause the RUDE contrived for that
fleeing instant to look exactly like
himself huge. bombastic indomita-
BILE. unreliable. thoughtless, straight
forward. generous great, big, sim
ple-minded soul thinking only about
one tick ahead of the clock Ruoe
Waddell
A Track Meet Hero.
carried a big copy of that picture
North on my next trip and gave 1t to
the Rube That was the day he or
gaDized a track meet before batting
practice. and surprised everybody by
winning nearly all the events. In the
standing broad jump, he beat me
nearly two feet-and / used to think
something of myself at that game
saw the last really great game the
Rube pitched; in Minneapolis, against
the Blues He lost ii, too-and the
other pitcher was working his last
great game. diHD. @NANN AHe'N@Ne-Ai
nerlv of the Pirates. noW-Why'
don't know where he Is.
Neither of them was looking Tor
ward to the curtain or the Grim
Reaper in that game however.
The final score was / to 0. Inc
Millers got one hit off Nick, and our
boys got two off the Rube, put one
OF them came after the only base on
balls OF the game, ,,.,-
The Rube had no end Of funny
.,rnss with Joe Cantllon. who was
genuinely fond Of the big Albert me
called him), and used to watch over
him in the winter months. Joe used
10 take the Rube out fishing and let
him do all the rowing, as being espe-
cjallv good for the Rube's arm. And
the Rube appreciated It thoroughly
He would work his arm off for Joe
either in the boat or on the slap.
And finally, when Zoe couldn't use
the Rube any more, ana had 10 Seilu
him 10 the Northern League, 1t broke
the old Rube all up. As | recall IT,
he pitched only a part of one game
there He realized he was back In
the bushes at last, and it took the
starch out OF him.
Good bye, Rubel
think that the Rube came SUD
denly face to face with the contrast
between the Northern League and his
gloriouslv eccentric past-and It broke
his heart.
Well we know the finish. The
Rube was no man for half-mea sures.
When he went to rescuing food suf-
ferers in that grim emergency he did
the work of three men He put on
his gigantic frame a burden OF toll
and exposure that even it could not
endure The simple childish enthu-
siasm that once made him a supreme
figure on the slab now betrayed him.
Then came tuberculosis And We'd
nesday came the end
He Remains Tho Rube."
You may have noticed that all along
I have been calling him the Rube.'
think II should have been capital
ized-"The Rube" II that only could
be written the way men say II, u
would be very fine epitaph, for
million baseball fans say u Affection
ately-"The Rube.'
L. ~