The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1915-05-20
BIG LEAGUE STARS
Statistics Show Best Ball Play
erS Come From Country.
Most of Them Born i'm the
Summer Time.

If one is born in the country and
during the warmer months of the year,
he stands a better chance of becoming
a star baseball player than if he is
a city-born boy whose birthday is in
the months from November to April,
inclusive.
That, at least, is the conclusion of
Arthur Macdonald of Washington, D.
c., noted criminologist. who is inter
ested in the scientific study of the ball
player and of those things that go to
make for his success, outside of nat
ural ability to play ball which he
shows, and of the scientific side of
which he knows nothing and probably
cares less, so long as he can get his
bi-monthly pay check. The player
knows he can play ball little better
trying to find out the why?
Being born between May and Octo-
Der and in the country-which means
a place with less than 10000 inhabit-
about the lives of LAG of the 'crack"
players of the major league clubs. 1t
makes one think of Frank Daniels's
song, Never be born on a Friday, it's
most unlucky day
A Serious Matter.
Yet Mr.. Macdonald takes the mat
ter seriously. and shows that of the
admittedly best players in the game
81 per cent were born in the country
and SO per cent in the warmer months,
against 50 and per cent, respective
ly, for the city-born who first saw the
light of day in the colder months.
Furthermore, he points out in an
article in the American Physical Edu-
cation Review that similar conditions
exist in the highly successful in other
trades and professions, and, therefore.
is natural law that must prove true
for all ball players, no matter how
expert or positively "bone-headed"
they may be.
Siroi1a rIv an Jvzipor recnrdS he finds
that players under feet IL inches in
height are better batters and fielders
than those who are taller, and that the
superiority is greater in batting than
in fielding. Thus, the taller men, who
batted for an average of .250 or bet
ter, were but per cent of the whole,
while the shorter men had a percent
ase OF 81: iiStyosi sa, per cent of the
$50 or better. and but So per cent
of the taller men got into that
charmed circle of players.
Small ShOrtstops.
With a general average of feet
9 u inches for all of a group of $50
players, statistics of whom were avail
able, the pitchers averaged within a
fifth of an inch of six feet in height,
with their eighteen catchers an inch
and a half shorter, the shortstops be-
an average height of but scant feet
3 ~ inches. Catchers are the heaviest,
with an average weight of IFS pounds,
and shortstops the lightest, their aver
age being but 1877.
Mr.. Macdonald has dug up some
curious facts out of statistics person
ally collected at games. These show
that but 20 per cent of fair balls
batted result in safe hits. OF the TO-
OLA batted balls of which he has rec
ords 20 per cent were fly balls, 81 per
cent grounderS, per cent buntS and
9 per cent line drives. The latter are
the best balls to hit, for II per cent
resulted in safe hits, while the per-
of grounders was but s, and
of hunts, As. OF the long fly balls
but 20 per cent were turned into safe
hits and but four-tenths of one per
cent were muffed by the fielders
these to be poor productive
hits and incidentally that it is a rare
thing for a fielder to muff batted
ball.