Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1915-01-15
BY GEORGE T. STALLINGS.

Il Catching iTke0 HILL McUFdWa IdSSeu
him along and his general reputation
when he came to Boston was that he
was lazy.
4 They tell story about Hank
while he was with the Giants which
can be taken for what it is worth.
Gowdy was anxious to get away from
the club and go home for two or three
days, and he asked McGraw's permits
Z sion.E
Why should / let you go?" asked
Mac" Nobody else gets vacations. !"
Gowdy was catching in batting pracs
tise the next afternoon. and he got
one, and Gowdy stuck finger right
into it. It split open his hand and he
had to quit catching.
"Can go away, Mac until 1t gets
well?' asked Gowdy
Il suppose So" replied McGraw re-
/ luetantly.
The relating of this incident is no
criticism of Gowdy. When a young
fellow is only substitute on team,
with three or four catchers ahead OF
him any time it comes to selecting
il
the future, and IL is liable to take the
ambition out of him. As | have said.
one of the best things that have ever
did was sending Gowdy to Buffalo for
one season, where he had a lot Of ex4
perience. Still, when he first returned
! to the Braves he had a notion that he
should not work every day. l over
heard a conversation between Gowdy
and Evers down at the other end OF
the bench one day last season. Said
Gowdy:
We'll, I'm working every day. r
don't see why / should. Rariden
catches only once in while"
Il play every day. don't II" an
Schmidt and the rest of US work every
day? What are you, one of those
twice week guys?'
Gowdy had no answer for that. And
it was not long afterward before he
would get sore If / did not tell him to
catch every day.
Why don't you let me work today,
George? he would say, II thought to
lay him of.
simply relate these anecdotes,
which come to my mind, to show how
different men must be handled to get
the most out OF them. Gowdy was de-
veloped through driving and urging
and abusing little. Evers helped a
lot in this, and today / consider
Hank one of the greatest catehers
in the game, Before the worlds Sc.
ries Drophesied to friend:
I'll bet you right now that Gowdy
outfits, outcatches and outthrows
Schang in the series"
At that time Schang was rated as
the greatest catcher in the game, but
he played with me q year In Buffalo
once and | knew something about
him. He is fine, clean, young fell
low, but ! could not let this fact stand
in the way of what had discovered
that he could not hit slow ball
with fish net
Before the worlds series between
the Giants and the Athletics in 1913 /
sent McGraw a wire from Boston say
ing that would drop OF in New York
on the way to my plantation in Geor-
gia, as had some information for
him. was not able to stay for the
series, but as / was eager to see the
National league entry win thought
would tip McGraw of to what /
knew. / met him accordingly in New
York and went over the Athletics with
him.
Whatever you do, John" / warned
him, don't let any of your pitchers
give Schang a fast ball. If you do
he will. break up your ball game for |
you l know"
guess Mac" was not so sure that |
/ knew, but he took my advice and |
warned his pitchers Marquard got |
into a hole with three on the bases |
and Schang at the bat in the first |
game and stuck the fast one over and |
Schang picked it for three bases. |
Away went the ball game. had said |
to McGraw:
Throw the ball to him underhand,
If necessary, but don't give him a fast
one.
Many pitchers, however, figure that1
they know more than anybody else |
and this fact accounts for most of the /
hits in the pinches. Matty lobbed the
ball to Schang in that series and he i
could not do anything with it. But
that wise old boy figures every batter
all the time Some pitchers get In
the hole and they forget everything
you tell them. warned my pitchers
before the series that they must work
Schang and work him right. They
did. He only got one fast ball during
the series at which he had a chance
to hit, and he knocked that over third
base for a double. James was trying
to sneak fast one over on him and
outguess him after he had been slow
balled to death.
McGraw says he is responsible for
Gowdy
How do you figure that, sMac'?" / 4
asked him.
He came to me first baseman, .
McGraw, and I hit on the
idea of putting mask on him. / first
stuck him behind the bat III
When McGraw put Gowdy behind n
the bat he began the career of one Of II
the greatest catchers the game is yet
10 know, | think The big fellow has
, sxr,sx1 et,o<z1 fsx<. II