New-York tribune., 1915-03-14
BY JOHNNY EVERS,
Captain of the Boston Braves.

Ol HtINOUS WIN hlhNoiAs -"
the national game, do you ever stop 10
consider upon whom baseball depends
for It's popularity for its very exist
ence?
The answer is found in every school
ward, in every lot. on every open space
where a ball may be batted and caught;
YES. even in the streets OF our Dig
cities. | refer to the youth OF TINS
country. II the backbone OF baseball.
Suppose even though the -. po.I-
tion test the limits of your imagination
suppose that the youth Of the United
States should take "a sudden and gen
eral aversion 20 baseball. Suppose II
should boycott the game quit playing
il. quit beng interested in u, quit try
ing to shiny o:cr those FENCES What
would happen? Baseball would be
knocked out more completely and more
thoroughly than any Champion hghter
has ever been s,.Orn OF his laure!s and
sent tumbling backward into the scrap
heap. Baseball would pass fro.l re-
ality into a memory and from that
and in only a comparatively short time,
too-into a forgotten pulp. Nothing
would remain but a few dCst-covered
record books.
OF course. | don't believe that such
a thing will ever happen, but the con
dition that | have asked yea 10 mag
inc serves to illustrate point want
TO bring out the Importance of the
youth OF this country TO, and its IN
mediate connection with. baseball.
Every boy at some time or other has
tried to play baseball. Tha is the
reason he comes fan. He under
stands the game. lie feels th-t he IS
part OF il, and the person who feels
that way is III, one who derives the
greatest enjoyment from sitting IN the
stands and watching others play 1t. it
is like everything else. One has to un-
derstand the game TO be interested
in it.
Must Understand Game.
Take man who is regarded as an
all-around lete. and .Ltroduce him
10 squash. or some such game, Tor the
first time as a spectator. DO you think
he'll enjoy it? Not much. Yet he is an
a,l-sround athlete, supposedly inter
ested in anything where athletic PROV
ess plays a part. Why won't he ENJOY
it? Simply because he does not under
stand the game. Let him play II once
or twice. and you have an enthusiast
in the embryo, at least Hence the
popularity Of baseball.
And because this is true ! believe
that every effort should 10 made by
those who are Interested in the wei
fare Of baseball TO furnish youth with
the necessary facilities 10 play baseball.
As ! promised at the conclusion OF my
last article. am going to try 10 give
the young and ambitious players VINO
are anxious to make headway IN the
game. and possibly some day move into
The places left vacant by the passing
Of the present stars OF the game, few
pointers that may help them.
At the outset, however, ] want TO i'm
press upon their minds that there may
be book-taught lawyers. physicians, en-
gineers and the rest, but there are no
such human beings as book-taught ball
PLAYERS. The limitations of playing
ability depend entirely upon the boy,
vouth or man himself. No one can
made a ball player, but ball player
can make himself. That is something
which every youngster starting out .n
the game will do we'll to remember.
In the first place. the fundamental.
or. rather, the elementary school OF
baseball means practice and plenty oil
it. 1t means application. While prac-
tising the game, study 1t, too. 10 90
this properly. plenty Of practice Is nee
essarv. | do not mean by this that the
regular school studies should be
shirked for the sake of finding time TO
practise. On the contrary, you Will
find that the ball players who attain
the greatest success IN their CHOSEN
profession are men who are studlous'
A Youngsters early schooling is ar
ranged to develop his brain and MAKE
il capable of grasping things as much
as for the knowledge that he acquires.
have referred TO this because 1t AIDS
me in bringing out the point | want to
make. namely. that the player who sue
ceeds is the one who has learned 10 use
his brains.
As | remarked in a previous story,
there are many players IN ;he MINOR
leagues Of this country who can outhlt
and outheld players in the major
leagues. but they have been relegated
10 the minors because they could not
outthink their rivals in the majors.
Some ono once remarked that IT IS
possible to do two things at once LIZ
orally speaking, that some one was
letter perfect. However, this axiom
does not apply TO baseball You can DO
YOUR studying during school hours and
during the other hours that 1t re-
ouires. and vet you can apply yourself
to baseball without placing either IN
jeopardy.
GRAY Matter Essential.
Il is brain work that the big league
manager first looks for when q recruit
. is turned over TO him for trial in the
big show. That recruit is supposed 10
have natural ability AT hitting and
fielding or pitching, else the scout
never would have recommended him.
Therefore, the big league manager
weighs the new one above the shoul-
ders at the first opportunity.
Satisfied that he has head" the
manager is willing 10 devote time TO
perfecting the mistakes IN rs style OF
play. 10 teaching him the finer points
Of the game as II Is piayeu III the
majors. But II the manager decides
that the recruit has no head, - that re-
cruit is among the first TO be put on
the skids which lead backward into
the bush. -,
This is true because the player who
h.s "head" can learn, whereas the
,iaver who has no head" IS generally
'rcf,ned 10 be bullish and stubborn
simn;v because his brain has not been
developed TO the point OF efficiency
yvbcre II is capable Of realizing the
benefits Of what his manager IS trying
TO teach him. In other words, the
player without a head is the one
Who is always inclined to think that ne
knows il all. II is waste OF time TO
try 10 teach hi and lon, experience
has taught managers that the best way
is TO put a minor league tax on him
and give him mis- railroad fare. lie Is
an evil influence TO have around.
To the ambitious younSster STUDY
ing game of baseball means but
mo thing He must watch players OF
recognized ability play the game, care