Evening star., 1915-02-02
RESTRICTED ROSTER
OPPOSED BY MINOR
Head of Local Club to Attend
League Meeting to Thwart
PIayer-Limit Rule.
DONOVAN CALLED FROM
SOUTH TO TALK TRADES
Sherwood Magee Complains Hard
Hitters Are Handicapped in
Base Stealing.
BY ]. ED GRILLo.

Indica tons are that the American
League will not adopt a limit on the
number of players which each club will
be allowed to carry. Connie Mack and
Clark Griffith both are against this
measu and President Ben Minor of
the local club WHO is going to attend
the meeting in New York tomorrow.
proposes to put up !, hard fight against
the limit rule.
The principal objection to the rule so
far as the local club is concerned is
that it will make a lot Of players ava iia-
BILE for the Federal League, oppor-
tunty which should not be offered the
outlaws" Furthermore, it is going to
work hardship on many clubs fortunate
enough to have large squad of promis-
ing players should they be forced to turn
these players adrift.
Manager Griffith is confident the effort
TO pass such rule will be beaten and
he also believes the National League will
lift the limit if the American takes the
lead. 1t is, of course, realized that II
the rule should be passed the Nationals
would suffer no more than any other
Cub. In fact. Griffith would have less
trouble cutting his squad down five or
six players. as the case might be, than
several of his rivals.
Griffith now has twenty eight play
ers on his list. He expects to take
them all to Charlottesville to train be
fore making further cuts. He has
eleven pitchers. three of which could
easily be dropped without hurting the
teams strength. There also are cou-
pie of Texas League outfielders and
an amateur who stand little chance OF
being sensations, and one of the utility
infielders also could be spared. so there
is no need for alarm if the effort to
have the limit rule beaten should fail.
the Yankees has wired Bill Donovan.
who is in the south in search of
training camp, to come to New ork
at once. for it is believed some deals
will be pulled off during the sojourn
of the American League magnates
there this week. Ban johnson admits
big deal is apt to be pulled this week
which will give the Yankees star ball
player or two. and it is essential that
Bill Donovan should be on the scene OF
action, for the new owners are not
making a move so far as the playing !
end of the team is concerned without
consulting Donovan.
Charley Deal. who has jumped the
Braves for the Feds because George
Stallings would not consent to raise
his salary. really had much to do with
winning the world title from the Ath
letics last fall.
His playing at third base was nothing
short of brilli%nt, and it is question
able if Red" Smith, whose place Deal
took. could have done as we'll
III the first game Deal probably paved
the way for II victory when he handled
Schmidt's throw to third after the lat
ter had gone to right field for Baker s
foul and Schmidt's throw went to stop
Murphy. Deal made a remarkable stop
of the ball, and then, by quick twist
of his body, touched the runner, just in
the nick of time. This happened in the
first inning.
1t was Deal who made two-base hit
over Strunk's head, and it was he who
scored the only run that afternoon.
Deal also figured in the play that day
when SchanS Was retired while going
from second to third on half passed
ball by Gowdy, Deal handling the throw
perfectly.
In the two games at Boston Deal
played without a flaw. He was just IS
valuable to the Braves as was George
Rohe to the White SOx in the series
with the Cubs in 1906, and yet Robe
was dropped into the minors after the
series was over.
SherW ood Magee contends that hard
hitter Is handicapped in base stealing.
Magee would like to shine on the bases,
but he admits that he is at a disad-
vantage because many of his hits are
for extra bases. Here is his kick:
hitter hasn't the same chance to pile
up a lot of stolen bases as a light
hitting batsman. For instance, during
d season I make something like sixty
five double, triples and home runs
Every time that l make a hit for extra
bases I lose a chance to steal a base
The light hitting player whose safe
hits are confined mostly to singles has
IT all over slugger when it comes to
the base-Stealing records.
The time when Honus Wagner made
his best mark base stealer was
when he had Claude Ritchey batting
back of him on the Pittsburgh team.
] don't want to take any credit away
from Honus. but really Ritchey helped
Wagner lots of times in pilfering sec
ond base. Ritchey would stand at the
plate with his bat held shoulder high
and almost over the home plate. This
made it very difficult for a catcher to
throw the ball to second base
THE catcher's view of second base
was obscured, and he either had to
throw over or under the bat Pat Moran
tells me that when he was with the
Chicago club he was driven wild trying
to figure out a scheme to get ahead OF
that Wasner-R -Ritchey combination II
any catcher ever found a way to beat
1T l never knew it. Yes. sir, clever
batsman like Ritchey was can help a
man on first base a lot when il comes
to stealing the middle sack"
DYr nCAY IN