Evening star., 1915-06-06
BY ERNEST J. LANIGAN.

John J. McGraw. manager of the
Giants thinks he was as good base
runner in his time as any of the mod
ern flyers and the records bear him
out in his contention. McGraw con
siders that his best season as a base
runner was in 1899, when, for the first
time, he was his own boss, heading A
collection of Baltimore left-overs ana
Brooklyn cast-offs. That year. playing
in 11s games. John J. executed seventy
three steals, giving him base-runnine
average of .619. Thrice before 1899
McGraw had bettered this record, but
his previous performances are open 10
suspicion. not because of partisan
scoring, but because the rule as re-
CARDS steals was not the same as II
is now. There was a time in the middle
nineties when man who scored from
third after a fly to the outneid was
rewarded with a steal and there also
was time when larceny was cred
tied to an athlete who took more thah
one base on an infield out. The stolen
base rule of 1893 was practically the
same as the stolen base rule of the
present time.
The Little Napoleon was more or
less active participant in ss9 Na-
tional League championship games pc
tween 1891 and 1906. flching in these
conflicts AIS hassocks The highest
base running average he ever had was
in 1895, when he pinched SO sacks In
SO gagements-record, az. In 1895,
following an attack OF typhold' NC
Graw had an average Of .6S4, gained by
stealing 13 bases in l9 games. Two
years previously his mark was .626 OBJ
tained from II thefts in 1913 debates.
In 1891 McGraw stole bases in 81
=
in 1899 40 bases in 127 games; in 1897
AZ bases in 105 games: in 1898 AZ bases
in l41 games; in 1900 2s bases in IS
games: in 1902 bases in "a games;
in 1903 bases in II games; in 1904
no bases in five games: in 1905 one
base in three games, and in 1905 no
bases in four games. McGraw ceased
being a terror to the backstops after
Dick Harley. who played in the majors
with the Phillies. Cardinals, Reds and
goods emporium in Philadelphia. spiked
him in 1902.
Comparing McGraw's 1899 record with
those Of the modern flyers. one finds
that it only has been beaten by one
man in recent years, and that man did
Fritz Maisel of the Yanks. who. like
McGraw, reached New York by way
of Baltimore, got away with thirty-siN
thefts in ffty-one games in 1913-an
average Oh .lUO. tylue VI tie
Nationals, when he set the American
League record for steals in 1872, had a
base-running average of .511, while
Bob Bescher, holder Of the modern
National League record for larcenies
made in 1911, when he was wearing
Red livery. possessed a stealing credit
of 523 Both these figures are much
below McGraw's 1899 exploit.
Scorers in the ma jor leagues never
have kept track. and probably never
will keep track, Of the number Of time
a man gets caught trying to steal. but
this data is collected nevertheless. and
il throws some light on player
bility as a base runner, since the reai
sack snatchers require very little AID
from the man at bat. This year Tyrus
Cobb, whose record of 1arcenies beats
that of any player in organized bali
two big leagues. has been nipped hve
times trying to add to his total of
thefts. The men who tagged him were
WalIie Schang twice) and Ben Esan.
Sam Agnew and Ray Schalk fonce).
Fritz Maisel has been turned back
the same number Of times ~ the
Georgia Peach. while Clyde Milan has