Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1915-02-02
MORE INSIDE
STUFF FROM
G. STALLINGS
BY GEORGE T. sTALLINGs.

game. vi COuFSeJ lEOln Tie CiIuO We
knew we had the championship
cinched we had been preparing ouI
| signs and studying the Philadelphia
team and going over the weaknesses
of the Athletics together and figuring
how we could get the percentage
which, as / said, is our clubhouse sle-
gan
The Athletics were also making
some preparations and did not hold
our club as lightly just before the
series as some of the fans seemed to
think. A few of the Philadelphia
rIayers made some by-plays which
were ineffective but which showed
that they had been doing some think
ing. Host OF the Boston players went
out to Shibe park on the day Of the
last game of the American league
schedule when the Athletics were
playing the Yankees.
Yankees Helped Mackmen.
Connie Mack knew that the Boston
over and so he pulled something
which was meant to have a twofold
effect. The Yankees had nothing to
gam or lose by winning or losing that
last game, but they had a chance to
help the American league In the
worlds series. Therefore the New
York pitchers went into the box and
just laid the ball over that plate in
the groove with nothing on 1t and the
Philadelphia hitters busted 1t all over
the lot Connie figured this would
give his players confidence, since the
surest way Of curing batting slump
is to have a twirler 60 in with moth
ing on the ball. The players get to
hitting this easy delivery and believe
that they can bat any sort of pitching,
and often they can. This is the old
remedy for the batting slump. There.
fore. Mack probably thought this
hard hitting in the last game of the
season would give his men confidence.
But, more important. he figured II
would scare u.s. The smart manager
of the Athletics thought that if some
of our young pitchers In the stand saw
the reputed heavy artillery OF the Ath.
letics smearing the delivery they faced
Tall over the field their confidence would
be shaken when they stepped into the
box But ! had been training their
confidence for just this ordeal. told
the whole club to show up in my
room at the hotel right afer dinner
that night. In the meantime / had
carefully collected all the box scores
of the Athletics for the. previous
month, thanks to a newspaper friend
of mine. j.. - *...>
staIIIngs Explains to Team. ~ .
you boys saw the Athletics bat.
ting that ball pretty hard out there
today" told my men. $50 have
brought along the box scores of their
last games of the season to show that
they can't hit hard when the pitcher
is putting something on the pill. OF
course. when a twirier stands up there
and just throws them over, as the
pitchers did today, a blind man could
bust them. Even old Fred Mitchell
here could have made couple of
home runs on that stuff" :,
As a matter of fact, the Athletics
had been In a batting slumS and a
pretty bad one, for some time just
before the series and they had not
been hitting at all. In fact, they
stayed in the slump throughout the
series, although the pitching they
faced would have made any club lcok
as though 1t was in Rslump. But on
the night Of this meeting my players
made a careful study OF the box scores
that / had collected and they saw
that the hitting of the Athletics had
not been terrific at all. Especially
did my pitchers study these box scores
and their confidence was not shaken a
bit by them, but strengthened little,
If anything. / was bending every en-
ergy to win that series, for this was
the big chance of my career and
knew it. did little sleeping the last
two or three nights before the first
game Neither did / sleep for several
nights after the last game, although I
knew we had the thing wanted most
won and they could not take it away
from US. The strain had been great.
If the series had run game or two
longer, think would be in the bug.
house now. s.,e, .-. ..
WrangIe Gave Them Pep. ....
Then came the big blowup, which I
regret now, but which, / figure, was a
big help to my team then, though we
would have won without it. l had
been trying to hit upon scheme that
would send my club into the series
fighting mad, with real crouch over
something definite. The sun in the
outfield at Shibe park is bad for a
ball player who is not used to th4
grounds and so j asked Mack IL he
minded II we took a little practise in
his park on the day before the first
contest while his club was not using
1t. When it begins to get along to-
ward the late afternoon on those
grounds the outfeld is one Of the
toughest in the country to play, be.
cause the sun siants right into the
fielders' eyes.
OF course Mack and his club were
used to the grounds, where the con-
tests in Boston were to take place. be-
cause it was the American league
park, and the Athletics had been play.
ing ball there all summer. Therefore,
! thought it only fair that our outfield-
ers should get a couple of hours in