The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1914-10-06
SIDE LIGHTS ON
THE WORLDS SERIES
sPECULATIoNs on POSSIBILITY
OF PLAYERS "CRACKING"
UNDER THE STRAIN
(Daily Sport Letter, l. \. s.
BY FRANK q. AIENKE

| New York, Oct. 6.-Those who are
looking for the Braves to crack dur
ing the world series may be just as
greatly disappointed as was John
McGraw.
The theory that a good ball team
will go TO pieces in an important SER
les was exploded long ago, and so has
been the theory that a star player
will crack under the strain and ex-
element and put. UP miserable ex-
Inhibition.
Look over the records of world
series players and world series
teams, and you will find that with
rare exceptions, the best team always
has grabbed the bunting, and that
the star players have shone just as
brightly in world series as they did
during the regular season.
Eddie Collins, Frank Baker and
Jack Barry, of the Athletics, are fine
examples of the exploded theory. The
trio has fielded Just as brilliantly
during world series game in which
they have figured as they did in the
regular season that preceded them.
In some cases they have done better.
In the 1910 world series Collins
hit for .429, Baker for 400 and
Barry for 235. Barry during the
series hit for his normal average,
while Collins and Baker hit above
theirs. Strunk, in 1910, hit .27S
during the series -an average that
he had maintained thruout his big
league career.
In 1911, Collins hit for .286. That
was below his normal average. One
more hit would have placed him we'll
over the 30OemaTk. He was robbed
of that hit by a sensational catch by
Murray of a drive that looked like
sure triple. Baker, that year, hit
375, while Barry dubbed them out
for 368-over 100 points above nor
NAL.
In 1912 Iris Speaker, the Boston
slugger, got a 900 average out of
the series, which was a trife below
normal The other Red Sox hit
around their normal averages. Mey-
ers, the Giant catcher, hit for .375
during the 1912 world series. The
other Giants hit around normal.
In 1913, Baker hit for $50, Col
Ilins .420. lSchang .357. Barry 800,
and Oldring for .273. These averages
we're much above normal, showing
that in the Athletics case, at least
the good lhitters, sometimes play bet
| ter baseball during a short world
series than they do during, the regu-
lar season.
Ty Cobb is one example to the CON
trary. The great Tiger batter emery
ed from three world series with q
miserable batting record. But il
wasn't due to nervousness or crack
ing" The Georgian simply happen.
ened to fall into the batting slumI
toward the end of each season, and
he couldn't get out of it in time tt
make good showing in the worlc
series.
It's the same with fielding. TIL,
= finished fielder comes out of a series
with fielding average just abou
on par with that of the regular sea
son. The Importance of a series nev
er has caused any great difference il
the game put UP by player. TAX
the average of the players who hav
II participated in two, three or fou
series and total them and you vii
find that their combined batting an
+. fielding averages during the worl
/. series combats are just about equs
: to their grand averages covering a
: their years in baseball.
The good pitchers fare just abor
. the same during world series &
they do during the regular season
Mathewson's 1912 record, of cours
e is the big exception. Matty worke
in. three games and failed to wi
. The other was tied. But in eac
. game Matty encountered hard luc
: ibis pitching skill was just as prom
. nent during all those three games
J it was during the regular season, b
.s a few fozzles behind him and fe
. breaks" for the Red Sox robbed hi
of victory.
Bender and Plank. the great pal
have figured in four world seri
ise combats. This year will make the
- fifth Take their averages GOVERN
the other series in which they ha
figured, count up the hits they ha
> permitted, the strfke-outs score
Va the bases on balls given and numb
of games won and lost and you w