The Washington herald., 1914-08-30

the national game there is absolutely
nothing to stop a team which Is pounding
the baseball-the only way Is TO pound
back and the hardest FOUNDER. will win.
And that preparatory sentence enables
US to introduce to you the Athletics.
representatives In the American League,
and team which has done more TO BRING
gray hairs to the heads Of opposing man
| ayers than the Federal League war and
the consequent high cost Of baseball
talent
Pitchers In the American League say
that when Connie Macks men begin to
slam the sphere the only way is to put
everything possible on the baseball and
trust that an indelder or outfielder will
get in the way OF Il on its return journey
and stop II in self-defense. And. as Ty
Cobb recently said. you can't tell where
the attack Is going to break loose: Il
may be at the top Of the batting order;
II may be at the bottom"
Now for Figures.
All this makes Il worth while TO en-
pioy some mathematics in determining
just how powerful the Athletics o1ense
is. True enough. baseball experts have
said that In the national pastime figures
frequently do lie" Usually they fiirt
with the truth For instance, a third
baseman might go through a season Ct
say 100 games and make only five errors:
he simply would refuse to take a chance
on a ball hit toward him which he was
afraid he could not handle clearly. On
the other hand. the best third sacker
in the game in the same number Of games
might have twenty-five or thirty mis-
plays; he went after every thing In sight.
unmindfuI of his percentage. That is
why statistics often give a mistaken idea
Of the true ability Of players
However, Mr.. Mack's attacking army
prove that figures do not lie. They are
in FIRST place today. And they lead the
league primarily because they have
driven out more hits and scored more
runs than any other team in the Ban
johnson organization
Including the double-header with De-
troit last week, the Athletics had been
credited with the amazing total Of 81
hits-an average Of nine hits to the game
Or, IL you care to put IL another way,
that is a hit a player for every game
PLAYED this season. When you realize
that other clubs have to be content with
five hits a game and less, you will ap-
precIate what a powerful drive there is
behind the bats OF the Champions.
Better STILL however, is the evidence
that the hits were not wasted. The Ath-
letics have scored $50 runs. which means
that they averaged about five tallies to
the game. Under ordinary circumstances
It takes a hit, a sacrifice and then an
other hit to get man across the home
plate Teams seldom average less than
a counter for every two hits for any con-
siderable period of time. Some will aver
age a run 70 three. four and five bingles-
Yet figures prove that Mack's men get
five runs for every nine hits Fans may
reduce that TO fractions II they want o
be exact about the amount Of attack
expended for every run.
speed on Bases.
The Mackmen do not put their heads
down and run wild on the bases, but thev
steal when IL appears good baseball
Their total Of stolen bases so far is lsS
and at the same time they had been
credited with I59 sacrifice hits. which
means that they pull about two thefts
and the same number Of sacrifices in
every three games. The Champs do not
always win with singles. for they got
!. PA total bases on their s64 hits-in round
figures twelve bases for every nine hits,
or, say, a single and a triple as an aver
age for every contest played
Now. is everybody agreed that when
Connie Mack's team is the one considered
figures don't lie?'' The Athletics not
only can hit the ball, but they hit It when
the humps count II ever a team de-
served to lead a league and is free from
the taunt of baseball luck" that team
is playing at Shibe Park in the year 1914
II is a fact that the Mackmen are cred
tied with the use Of a wonderful amount
OF inside baseball" In newspapers and
magazines. special writers devote col
umns to the brain work OF the Athletics.
And II also undoubtedly is a fact that the
majority OF the men in the Mack school
think quicker than the players on other
teams. They size up a situation in an
instant and grab Old Opportunity before
he runs away.
However that may be, the inside base
baIT' which is winning the pennant for
the Philadelphians this season is the
crack Of the bat as IL collides with the
sphere. The figures-to refer to them
once more-show that for when a team
is getting five tallies for every nine bing-
les that team is smuggling. smuggling. slug
ging. Their smashing attack is tearing
its way through all sorts Of opposition
and depositing runs at the home station.
And. after all, that is the kind Of base
ball the fans like to see.
Did you ever stop to figure out how
pitcher must feel when he takes the
mound to hurl against Mr.. Mack's nine?
OF course, Mr.. Christy Mathewson and
Mr.. Reuben Marquard have written elo-
quently on the subject but even they
did not care to place their real sensations
on the pages Of baseball history.
What n Pitcher Faces.
Look them over First steps up Eddie
Murphy, a little man, hard to pitch to
and a left-handed hitter. He may get a
base on balls. but he slams the sphere
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS his ninety-nine hits
He is a fast and competent base runner,
and it is proper that RUDE Oldring, q
slugger and a good man at the hit-and-
run game, bats next. RUDE swings from
the right side of the plate and drives the
ball to any field. Murphy's seventy-one
runs Indicate that he Is getting on base 4
lot, that Rube Is helping him around, and
not by hunts either. for RUDE is credited
with only six sacrifice hits. Oldring also
is getting on base and completing the cir
cult. as his ifty-one tallies prove-not to
mention his eighty-eigh safe knocks
The pitcher who has retired Murphy
and Oldring Is indeed fortunate. In most
cases one Of them will be hanging around
on the bases when-weIl. you all know
who comes next. Eddie Collins, one of
the most dangerous men at the plate in
the game, bats third. He can drive the
ball 10 the far corners of the park. he
can tap It over or between the infielders.
he can bunt and beat the throw to first.
or he can wait the pitcher out. There Is
nothing Collins cannot do well on the
attack.
Eddie's record is all the evidence neces-
sary He had made 10 hits; he had
scored ninety-eight runs; he has stolen
forty bases, and he has sacrificed thenty-
three times His hits have totaled LIS
sacks. or pretty near an average Of a