The Washington times., 1914-03-29
IT'S HARD TO MAKE GOOD.

ious that my son should follow in m
IT'S HARD TO
/ know how hard 1t is to mako god In
the big league. and how big a per-
centage there is against a boy oecom-
ing a star. Anybody can see this whom
he stops to think that there are thou-
sands Of ball players in this country and ana
! room for only about 400 among the top;
notchers. The entrance OF the FeoerA
League into baseball will not increase
the number Of big league players oy
more than 200. And / know that there
are just as good men men, IN als sae IN 'u the big biz
| leagues today, but they have never been
| discovered and therefore never haa
a chance to make good. Scouts and
managers tell you that they canno' sse
| more left Of big league caliber. The
| trouble is not that they do not exist, but
| that they cannot be found
After a player has pade good In the
| big league and established ms posi-
tien in fast company. however. l be.
I iieye that baseball is one OF the best
professions there is right now not
only because OF the money In IL but
! for other reasons scatter your eye
over the men in the MAJORS toc-y;
and yCL Ii Ik1- [AcsC --s
and driving automobiles .ao would
be Ecrktrx u coal mines o. cotton
nils or Ii <Grns G-hsr ve-y Enr-
r1urerarrre traat. Z r1sy eaf 70.
paszs sse.E ne I1ili--T oI giIT Ia. aHG
IT.. opening ngd nur hsrI dtrsr-'i
them
| PeupIs VIII tail Ym chat haseoaIl
I-saas q unchina.. alfG -far Allec RcI
LAOS ran years dr servtGs. FneE Ee A
20 bGuxsr 1I5r enough fGc rae Big
Ieag1Ees- MAJ ias n0e SII.>s- - y,
ring .Gr the tHrIr.- TE>Y oo:It 20
tie 1rfstes ar sIIch pt1qers a1 S1ss
HzT-1rG and EEie "zscS-- Ray
Ezcrd dying sr1ks. willie Euo
vIthaCr fzn5s. "A al present . III rhat
he ls IlztIe 70 tte say tag even De-
completely down ard oCt
There are 10 more B1xs Fay
mon1, and '~Rgb.~ WaddsHs In the
business now. b>cAus> there H. no
roc m for them, ard IL Won De pohs
before you will nave heard Of The
last ben.ft being given for an oid
and broken down big Ieszuer VINO
Eas a good fellow when hs had IL
Ball players are making a professioh
oEt Of The gam 7, @ In 1900 taa rs BY W The ;hs
players as a sport and pleAsant way
to spend their time.
Matty and Plank.
In EOntra~ 10 fs<J JUiJaA o4'' ''"~
dell. take Plank. Of the Athletics. and
Mathewson OF the Gtsnts, VINO wore
! really contemporaries Of the other pslr'
but who have taken advantage OF their
opportunities and care OF themselves
| and are still doing good service FOR
their respective teams. II you look
| back through the history OF baseball
you will md that Flank and Mathew
son were among the first to take base
! ball seriously and to look to the fu-
ture. Neither one Of these will need
a benefit when he hangs up his uni
form for the last time nor Will ne
| lack for a remunerauve occupation.
Steady stars of this sort would have
been good at almost any tuainess they
had turned their hands to. Eddie
Plank has shown that he Is good
farmer as well as pitcher. in the very
| Sne place he has at Gettysburg, Fa-.
! while Matty is busy with many inter
| ests outside Of baseball. The infiu-
| ence OF these two men in changing the
| views OF players generally toward the
profession and improving the position
Of the ball players has been very ex-
| tensive. according to my notions.
But let US take a look at baseball
! as a profession from the point of view
! of the man just horning into the big
| league. AS have said. once player
| makes good in the majors it Is a great
profession No costly eparaton Is
required for the game. Nearly all the
| big figures In baseball today have been
poor boys with"a; finished educat'ons.
| Connie Mack deserted the job OF a hand
! in shoe factory to take up baseball.
| He risked a lot when he made the
change, and admits y himself. but de-
clares that he put the move up to his
mother. and she approved.
hr Mc(,rav shufch
on trains up near where he was born
in Truxton. y. Y. BIZ butch" ! mean
newsbov who cells PAPERS. candy.
etc. but they tell me John used to en-
gage IN little baseball while laying
over between trips until finally he got
a chance as a pitcher with the WeIlcs-
vile team. A college education is not
necessary for ball player to ne sue
coming into the big league every year.
and I think they have done the pro-
fession good. They generally make
good players. too. il they have anv nat
pral ability. because they have been
taught to think.
Even I recall the days when there
existed among the old timers pref
udice against the college boy who
tried to break into the big league. He
was generally regarded as an invader
by the type that was in baseball ton or
fifteen wears ago. and the treatment he
received was none too kind, as rule.
Here is an example Of what happened
TO many a college player when he tried
/ to get into the game ten or twelve
years ago.
A pitcher who is now one Of the big
stars Of the game was pitching for a
little minor league team UP In Massa-
chusetts several years ago. and the
way the bushers were rapping his de-
livery did not hint that some lay he
was to be regarded as perhaps the
greatest that ever lived. Every man
a crack at the ball. and they we're all
hitting 1t the Straight ones and letting