Evening journal., 1916-03-13
347 PLAYERS we're
CAUGHT Off bases
Sherrod Smith Led Major
Leagues in Trapping
Runners
SUPERBA PITCHER
NIPPED Is MEN

When Fred Clarke. canned Sherrod
Smith. Superba southpaw, in the
spring of 1911. he turned loose a
young man who four years later was
to prove cleverest in both major
leagues in catching men OFF the bases.
The young Georgian picked 10 OF
his opponents off their bags last sea-
son. Tom Hughes. of the Braves,
who. like Smith. has known the feel
ing OF being cast adrift by a major
league manager. ranking second. with
a record Of a dozen of his adversaries
trapped away from their resting
places. Charles Bartholomew Adams
Of the Pirates and Edward Vivian
Cicotte, of the White SoX each shared
10 men on the bags, while Grover
Alexander of the Phils. Al Mamaux.
of the Pirates. Joe Boehling, OF the
Senators and Jim Scott, of the Pale
Hose. each got 9.
The leaders of the other teams in
catching men mapping were Nabors,
for the White Elephants. with s.
Tesreau for the Giants, Coumbe for
the Indians, Perdue for the Cardinals
and Shore for the Red Sox, with q;
roney for the Reds. with g. Weilman
for the Browns. with g. and Cheney
and label for the Cubs. Dubuc and
Dauss for the Tigers and Caldwell
and Shawkey for the Yanks. with T.
The last named picked four men off
the hassocks while he was working
for Connie Mack. so he claimed, dur
ing the year. the same number OF
victims as Nabors, who possibly this
year will take away from Smith his
present title Of "The Demon Bag
Watcher"
Has Matt killrOy'S Tricks.
Smith has a good many of Matt
Kilroy's old tricks-the wiggling foot,
the hunching shouldet and the light
ming shot to first.
It was John Evers' impression, be-
fore last season opened, that Tom
Hughes was about the best man in
the National at holding men up on
the bases and picking them off. while
George Moriarty. eX-Yank, whose
opinion was sought as to the Ameri-
can Leaguers cleverest in this re-
spect. named as his choices Eddie
Cicotte and Jim Scott. and said,
further. the greatest OF them all prob
ably was Ed Walsh. The Alibi King
was in so few battles last season no
comparisons can be made on the dope
rs to whether he now is as good in
picking men off the sacks as his two
teammates.
There were. in the two major
leagues last season. 347 PLAYERS
trapped OK the hassocks by the hurl- /
ers. Six met their fate at third. fifty
four at second and the rest expired at !
first. Ray Fisher. OF the Yanks. was
one of the slabmen who defrauded
Of his rights by nipping
him OF third. Ty Cobb was the VIC I
tim of the Vermont Pedagogue.
The other artillerists who did what
Fisher did to the Georgia Peach
were Dick Niehaus of the Cards.
George McQuillan. of the Pirates. Ed
die Cicotte OF the White Sox. Dutch"
Leonard OF the Red SoN and Bob
Shawkey (before he came to the
Yanks). their respective victims be
ing Bert Niehoff. OF the phils. Ollie
O'Mara OF the Robins. George Mcbride
OF the Senators. Bert Shotton OF the
Browns and Wallie Pipp of the Yanks.
In specializing at catching men of
second Carl Weilman OF the Browns,
Tiger Nemesis. and Fritz Coumbe Of
the Indians. who snapped the earliest
OF the White Socks winning streaks.
starred. Each gathered in five vic
Tins az the keystone sack. The Giant
pitchers who caught men OF second
were JEFF Tesreau, Poll" Perritt and
Ralph Stroud; the Yankee pitcher.
Ray Caldwell. and the Superba pitch
ers. Sherrod Smith, Jack Coombs and
Nap Rucker.