Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-07-01
Up to the Trojan

The Braves cause is now up to the
Trojan. No fan who saw his return last
Tuesday at the Polo Grounds can fail to
appreciate the tremendous value he Is to
the clan.
In four successive occasions the rally
ing Giants had tossed the keen harpoon
into the worlds champions quivering
flesh-and just as they looked to be on
the edge Of the Big Skid Colonel Evers
dashed back into the fray and turned the
tide.
Evers value is not SO much contribu-
tion Of base hits and great stops-where
he is also an athlete of worth. Rather
1t is from his excessive vitality, magnet
ism, energy and unceasing alertness and
courage which are never checked by de-
feat. He is a grand ball player-and
something more. He is a vital spark that
Fate has been unable to quench-the soul
of a machine that only knows how to
keep on lighting.
Matty and Evers
Old stars are hard to dim. On the day
that Evers, supposed to be all in. broke
through with so much glory we had n
brief talk with Mathewson, Matty was
another more than one solemn prophet
had figured all through, but at the first
real outbreak of summer weather he
cut back in with two victorious starts.
MY arm, Sblu hallys IHelS every
whit as good as 1t ever did. l haven't
had the slightest soreness, and now that
neuritis in my left shoulder has passed
out, I can't remember when l felt more
like pitching" The return of Matty means
as much to the Giants as the return OF
Evers means to the Braves. Matty has
been the main Giant factor for IA years,
and when ne is pitching winning ball the
entire club seems to show improvement
,n,,,1,I .CTl,k har
renewed confidence, which happens to be
big part of any success.
Certainly Mathewson never looked bet
ter in his life. He still looks as young as
he looked 10 years ago. His judgment is
still the rRrest In baseball Granted that
a portion of his speed has vanished, 1t
is impossible TO imagine man who
knows as much about the art of pitching
as he does, who is In prime physical
shape, and who has an arm that has
never known a days soreness is any
where near the end OF his career.
The Case of Plank
Take the case OF Plank. Plank is now
40 years old-fivo years older than Matty.
Yet only a day or two ago Plank, at 40.
worked against Bender at "a, and Plank
won by the count of 2 to o.
II Plank is still pitching fine ball at 40,
Matty, who is as exceptional as Plank
and who Is much the same type. should
have at least four or five more years Of
pitching left.
Value of the Spirit
AS is shown in the uprising OF Mathew
son and Eyers, II Is hard to hold the fight
Ing spirit down. There is again. the case
OF TraveTs, who was figured all through
after Ouimet and Travis had beaten him
In four straight matches. Yet those who
figured in this vein apparently forgot
that no man rises 10 the heights Travers
held without having had both skill and
And no man who has skill and
courage can ever be figured out OF the
running as long as he is able to take the
field IN shape to play.
The game battle that Leland Stanford |
furnished at Poughkeepsle must stand as |
me OF the big achievements OF the sport |
ng year. The Far Western crew wasn't |
igured within 10 leagues Of a frst-class |
ihowing. Yet. against almost impossible |
the Californian made one OF |
he gamest fights ever seen upon the |
owing waters OF the East.