South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1915-06-05
BATTERS CANNOT
WASTE ANY TIME
GUESSING HURLER
Heaviest HitterS in Big Leagues
Do Not Try to 0ut-Figure the
Pitcher - What Fournier
Says About 1t.

NEW YORK, June 0.-The bat !
ter who tries TO outguess a pitcher !
never lands in the 400 class. Such !
player has his mind concentrated !
on what the pitcher is going to throw
more than he has on the natural OBJ !
jet Of his visit 10 the plate--to hit
the ball.
Jacques FOurnier Of the White Sox
the 1915 batting sensation of the
American league, furnishes an excel !
lent example Of what happens TO
batter who tries TO outguess the
pitcher-and one Who doesn't. Cobb, I
Jackson. Wagner. Collins, Lajoie. |
/ Speaker and the other famous hit
tiers Of the present era OF baseball,
don't try 10 outguess a pitcher. They
swing at every good ball that comes
along not worrying about how 1t is
going 10 break. But they've always
followed that course. Fournier's case
is different.
In 1913 Fourier hit for .234. Up
TO mid-season in 1914 he didn't hit
much better than $50.
And then I took a tumble to my
self" said Fourier. "AI along I
had been working on the theory that
/ q successful batter was one who out
( guessed the pitcher. Every time I'd
step TO the plate I'd try to figure out
I
/ ing 10 throw and then I'd set myself
for such a delivery.
Would Not Work.
Sometimes did outguess the
pitcher. Oftener 1 didn't. But al
ways was worried over the uncer-
tainty Of the guessing game. Had /
guessed wrong, or was l right? The
continual worry took my mind off the
fact that was in there to bat-not
| TO play a guessing game.
We'll, one day last summer we
stacked up against Walter Johnson.
/ I figured it wasn't any use trying to
/ outguess him so l just walked up to
/ the plate and banged away at what
! he served up TO me. made two
/ home runs that day. Ever since L
have not been trying to do any out
/ guessing l keep in mind only one
\ thing when I go to the plate-that
/ l must hit the ball. I think that sys-
tenn has been q success"
IL surely has. Fourier started off
at a whirlwind pace and he has been
maintaining it, He swung into May
: with batting mark around .45O and
has entered June with very little Of
/ it shrunken away. If he maintains
! his present clip he will have a fine
! chance to grab away the 1915 bat
ting championships from Ty Cobb
and all the others who give him bat
tie.
ArmandO Unhappy.
Armando Marsans gets a daily sal
airy sufficient TO buy him $40 cool and
foaming lager beers, he doesn't have
, TO do one tap of work, and yet he is
very. very unhappy.
ArmandO, who is a Cuban gent,
Jumped from, the Cincinnati Nationals
to the St. Louis Feds and a court in
junction was quickly secured which
keeps MaTsans from playing. His
salary is $1,000 a year or $40 a day.
And he has nothing to do but prac-
tice one hour a day and loaf during
the others.
But I hate loafng." said the fleet
Cuban outielder. Il want to play
ball. 1t makes me sick because I
can't play"
Clarence Rowland who manages
the White SOX, wants his men TO steal
at least one base for every three that
he advances.
Rowland.
Rowland's aim for his players is
high-but inconsistent. Baseball does
not permit man TO average a stolen
base for every three that he ad-
vances. even though he be a rein
Carnated DeerfOOt
What Happens.
If a gent singled and the next bat
ter sent him home with a triple the
runner would owe himself a stolen
base because he would have advanced
three bases without pilfering one If
a fellow smashed out a home run he
would owe himself a stolen base. If
he got a base on balls and then went
all the way home on a Wild throw
TO catch him mapping he would owe
himself another stolen base.
i George Burns OF the Giants was the
best base stealer in either the Amer
lean or National league last year.
Burns scored two runs and stole 60
bases. BY scoring 100 runs he ad-
vanced 800 bases beyond first. OF
those advances only 62-Or One-ffth
of the total advances-were made
through pildfers Eddie Collins in
l1914 scored 1872 runs and stole 5S
bases That makes Collins average
about one base stolen for every six
advanced.
And Burns and Collins are about as