Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1916-08-06
ONE GREAT PITCHER
ENOUGH TO HOLD TEAM
UP TOWARDS COL UMN
Joe Tinker shows What lIiYh-Clnr.
Hurler Can DO For
His Club.
'ono srout pitcher can mako an,

"Ono great pitcher can make any
sort OF ball club perform Miracles
mays Joe Tinker, manager Of the Chi
cnEo Cubs. Tho history Of baseball
shows that moundsman who can win
from 60 to 20 per cent Of his games
can Int any ball club to or near tho
top OF any league.
| Miner Brown WAS such man. His
wonderful work In the old days was
the one big reason for the success OF
tho old Cub machine. II we hadn't
beon possessed OF Brown. the chances
are we never would have been in the
nEht Tor so many years.
men Brown faded. YOU know what
happened to the Cubs They no longer
pend upon: they didn't have man
they could shoot in and be reasonably
sure at the outset that the game was
won.
The reason the Giants OF 1914. 1915,
and 1915 haven't achieved anything re-
mar nIte is because they haven't a
club in the fight for ten years-amd
more re ), He was the mainstay
xans men sih, ne MIS- M, in the box. the oil!
him with IA 'we-can't-lose' spirit"nmd %
they rarely did lose with Matty AZ
work. Whenever McGraw wanted to
upon Matty. He knew that Mat,y
Giants Lnck Confidence.
But now all is changed Matty
isn't the old reliable of other years.
and no one has come to take his place
The result is that the Giants. without
hurler in whom they have supreme
confidence. aren't winning with the
The Washington team has been Il
tlac'nr IN me American League races
he 'ns nss1 thre W or four ggsar VIZ
him away from the club and 1t leaves
mite more than mediocre collection
But with Johnson in the lineup. it's
a different ball club: it's IL team that
plays with fire and with dash a club
mat played beyond itself. 1t idolizcs
Johnson, just as the Cubs idoliZcd
Brown and the Giants Mat,y in the old
days And IL thinks johnson invinci-
Die. Feeling so. IT adds at least -
per cent to the normal power OF the
1T was Grover Alexander who won
the pcnnant for the phillics last sea-
keeping them In the battle this season
The Phillies. without Alex. are not
imposing looking: they are not dan
brunt Of the fight for them; with his
h miEH1,y right right; arm TO hold back the
Morton Holds Indians Up.
The Cleveland club. on paper, does
pitcher in Guy Norton chap who is
being touted as second Johnson. He
mas oeen pitching a brand of baseball
that is almost fawless. and this has
inspired the other players behind him
They have played with a dash and
speed that is startling. and they will
continue TO play that way as long as
Morton pitches Superhuman baseball
Look where the Dodgers are this
around playing. yes That is par; OF
Il But the rca! reason is Jeff rfcffcr
The big fellow is whistling along this
year at an amazing clip.
ne dodgers play their ha
behind him. They have worlds of con-
f fo.a in him; they fcsl he cannot
1t gives them higher. notch in the
average column. That increases their
natural confidence and makes them
strive all the harder for the pennant
honors.
a club with a wonder pitcher never
can he counted out of any race. Al
iimcS II may slump and be far down,
but the old confidence never dies The
PLAYERS feel that their star will. in
some some way az, lead them upward and on.
keep on fighting ali the time
Three Grent Pitchers.
me run-but the players had conf
dencc in Big Bill James. They fig
ured that he would round into win
toward the goal. Big Biz did come
around and when he swung. he car
r,ed Rudolph and Tyler with him. In
pend upon. the Braves had three And
so they shot UP from the cellar TO the
top. remained there until the race was
over. and then beat the Athletics in
record time
Connie Mack. during the hcydcy OF
The Athletics career, had not only one
M two pitching wizards-Bender and
RANK. That pair carried the bulk OF
Inc pitching burden for years. and the
Athle,ics won quite AN assortment OF
remnants and worlds championships
Pack in 1905 the White SoX won
worlds championship with the weakest
mating club that ever reached the crest
3i modern baseball Their victory was
due to the Hcrcuean work of Ed
walsh. ably assisted by Doc white
ana Frank Smith. The latter pair did
great work. hut Walsh was the real
unliftcr.
And so il has been all along The
team with star pitcher has been the
tcam that wins. If had my choice
between mediocre team that owned
ono wonderful pitcher and a team
cluttcred up with heavy hitters and
only few ordinary twirlers. I would
choose the former team. And be-
ieNc eveio other manager in the game
/ would do the same"