The Washington times., 1915-07-05
MCGRAW SAYS---
Epers' crippled condition may be the
only thing which mill keep the Braves
from repeating---CubS look best to him
mean to loaf and dog It. but there il
that feeling underneath:


that feeling underneath:
"oh: well. Why should 1 worry. Il
can't be fred
II 1t was not for the poor baseball Of
this season. the Giants would be out of
| the race now. and so would the Braves,
too. Any flrst-class club would have
that pennant won now IL 1t had stuck to
It's knitting. But the laziness OF the
suppose ] ought to be thankful. because
we still have chance In good race.
However. l don't believe the Federal
| League will be in a position to force
soft contracts again, and l know 1t
won't force me. no matter how strong
| 1t is Give me a club Of ballplayers who
are only mediocre performers without
star among them. but who know they've
got to hustle for their jobs because they
| are subject to release, and Twill beat
team of stars over hundred and atty
four games who have soft contracts
for two or three years. 1t is human ma
ture to loaf when you can. and these
contracts invite loafing. Many of the
| boys don't intend to do 1t. but human
| nature makes them loaf just the same.
One reason the st. Louis club Is max
ing such a good showing Is because II Is
made up mostly Of players who know
! that II they don't show something they
! won't hold their Jobs In the big league.
and they hate the bushes" even worse
than they hate St. Louis. Most Of the
regulars on Huggins' club have been
traded there by other teams, the trading
| manager thinking he was taking star
| away from the willy little st. Louis
leader. When he came to examine what
| he got, he usually discovered he had
| traded $40 gold piece for a 70. Hug
gins was not forced to give these men
long contracts. because they were glad
enough to have Jobs. 80 they are out
there huz ling every day to hold them,
| and they are winning lot or Dali
The Federal League hit the club own
ers of organized baseball as sort OF
, hysteria when It broke. The players
naturally used 1t as a club to get the
best they could. / don't blame them:
| would have done II myself II / had
| been in that end OF the game. The club
gamblers. They were bluffed. AS soon
J as they read or heard that the Federal
| League was after star, the owner
, dashed to him and made him big offer.
| frequently bigger than he could afford
| to paw on the returns from his invest
| ment. 1t Is my opinion that lot of the
players who threatened to jump would
have stuck had 1t been put squarely up
| to them to remain at certain reason
! able salary or 20 over.
| am not for holding down players
salaries. but neither do I like to be held
| up. 1t IL not going to be so soft
| out and most OF them know 1t. 1t Will.
however. be a good thing for baseball.
Jimmy" McAleer, formerly the presi-
! dent of the Boston Red Sox and a very
and got out. He realized what would
happen. had a talk with him just after
we returned from our trip around the
world a year ago last spring.
| 1--WE were not making big money In
Boston. John" he declared. with the
! salaries we were paying before the
Feds came into the field. I don't want
to helm, foot those bills. because they
will be high"
| McAleer's prophesy rang true. and has
since been confirmed. zoe" Lannin lost
$50. 900 last season.
The Giants played better baseball In
the series with the Braves than they have
shown at any other time this season.
; One OF the most encouraging symptoms
| was the grand game which Matthewson
pitched. The two clubs which have
given him the hardest battle In the past
seasons are the st. Louis Cardinals and
the Braves. He beat the Braves IN a
| tight game. and he looked like the
| Matty OF old. 1t will break my heart
when that old bird isn't fit to work any
more. 1t won't seem like the Giants with
out him aboard. But l believe he ought
to go five wears more II he is not over
! worked. and I am trying to look out for
that personally. He deserves to take 1t
little easier now. for he has certainly
worked for the Giants.
The rest OF the team is too unsteady
and uncertain to get anywhere. You
| never know what Is going to break
The club may go like champions for
six innings and crack wide In the
seventh. with every man who can get
his hands on the ball contributing his
error. The team Is not to be depended
| upon as you could on the old Giants
| OF 1905 or the Cubs OF Chances day
such a ball club is a great relief to a
manager when he can figure pretty close
what Is going to happen II he attempts
a certain play.
why don't you tell your men to lay
It down more?" l was asked one night
during the season OF 1912.
| What's the use OF playing for one
run when the other club is liable to
make four or five any inning One run
is no safe lead for this team" I re-
piled.
To me right now, the Cubs look like
the best club in the league. not because
the team Is leading. but because of the
general showing they have made and
the spirit. Zimmerman is going better
than he ever did and staying closer to
the ground. He is leaving the umpires
alone. ] don't know what sort Of a
treatment Bresnahan has given him
but It certainly has worked. Roger
thinks he has another Mordecai Brown
| in label.
Hes another Three Fingered Brown
without the missing fingrs." Bresnahan
told me when was In Chicago.
Then you ought to be as good a
And" he answered, "if Biz Dono-
van could dig UP another Christy Ma
thewson OF II Caldwell turns out to
be anything like Big Six he ought to
become as good a manager as John
| McGraw."
1t was no weak comeback.
Copyright, 1915, by the Wheeler Syn
|