The Washington herald., 1917-08-23
M'GRAW KNOWS HOW
TO BUY REAL STARS
Famous Pilot Puts Out the Cold
Cash for Players He Wants.

New 1ork, Aug. IA System VI
picking green young pastimers from
the. bush and developing them into
big league stars may be followed by
other major league managers as far
as they like, but John McGraw has
other ideas as to the building up OF
championship baseball teams.
Money is the basis Of Johns re-
cipe for developing pennant-grab'
bing combination. The other mair
top pilots are welcome to the Nc
Graw share of trying to stun bush
league birds with big league dress
ing. John wants none of IT,.
1--WE can't get players a stocl
phrase of the majority of the mana
gers. is not to be found in the Nc
Graw vocabulary. When the New
York pilot needs a pastimer ht
doesn't beat 1t to the sticks to give
the once-over to timber in the hick'
ory league Nothing like that fol
"the little Napoleon"
All he does is to jam three or foui
hundred thousand dollars in his soch
and Jingle 1t in the ears. of the own
er of a regular big-time player whC
would Mt In nicely with the Giants
Pillng about four pounds OF pure
uazuma before the bulging eyes oi
said owner. John says, Give me So
and-So."
Now So-and-So Is a star. JohI
knows 1t, the owner knows 1t. every
body knows It, The owner alst
knows that he Is going to weaken his
own outfit by selling the star per
former. But what can he do? There
is the money right before him, and
it's as pretty a lot of coin as eve
left the mint.
The result is always the same. Johr
and the owner exchange a few
pleasantries on the high cost of pas
timing and So-and-So joins thu
Giants lineup.
No fault is to be found with Nc
Graw for his method of gathering ir
the live ones. On the contrary. yot
have to hand II to him for his ability
to put over the clever stuff in graft
flying his ambition to furnish New
York with a winner.
Looking over the regular Giant.
of today. it is found that Burns
Robertson. Holke. Fletcher. SchupI
and Tesreau came up from th'
minors to New York. while all thu
rest of the Giant brigade were tried
and true big-timers before theI
Joined the present National League
high-fiiers.
Heinie Zimmerman was a stal
with the Cubs and Benny Kauff. 9
former Yankee, was the sensation
of the Federal League. Buck Her
zog had pastimed brilliantly will
the Boston Braves and Cincinnati
Reds. George Gibson was Pitts
burgh's star backstop for years
while Bill Rariden was at one tint
the Braves leading catcher.
Hans Lobert starred for year,
with Cincinnati and Philadelphia
Joe wilhoit is a former Bostor
Brave and Lew McCarty came from
the Brooklyn Dodgers.
OF the Giants pitchers, Anderson
saw service in Cincinnati and IL
the Federal League. Benton was
with Cincinnati Perritt and Sal
lee are former st. Louis stars and
Demaree twirled for Philadelphia
and Chicago.
One thing, perhaps, that made
y
bling these topliners is the supposed
deep-dyed hunch in Nationa'
League circles that Gotham must
have a winner il the league is tc
enjoy continuous prosperity. Thi:
may or may not be fact. II IL is
true, how in the name of Zet
Sprouts has the American League
got by?"
II tho success of the Junior
league had depended upon having g
chapionship outfit in New York
Ban Johnson and the remainder Of
the A. L. powers would have hat
to go to work long ago. There
never has been such an article as
American League champions IL
Manhattan. And yet the record!
indicate that the Johnson circuit
has had it on the National League
for quite some spell, in pastiming
attendance and championships.