The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-05-26
The Art of Pitching

| Edwin A. Goewey, in Leslies.
 l In recent years the art of pitching l winning ball has advanced to such a | point that it may almost be considered l a science, and the really great twirl- CTS. such as Christy Mathewson, Walter Johnson and Grover Cleveland Alex ander are deep-t thinking, careful ard l tireless students of their art and each l has evolved something new in pitch | ing. The ambitious tosser who hopes some day to occupy a niche in base l balls hall of fame at the side of these leaders of modern twirling must pos- sess in addition to great natural abi1- l ity and an unusual physique, tireless energy and determination to study and learn, and never cease his labors un- til he has mastered the ability to "put
 everything" on the ball and mix 'em up' at will. In plain English, he must
 have a change of pitching pace and a considerable assortment of curves A few pitchers have succeeded without great speed. but not many With the qualifications mentioned, and at least fair support, he should win majority
 of his games; and he will achieve q
 standing in his profession in proper
 tion to the victories placed to his
 credit.
 Mathewson won distinction when
 backed. most of the time. by good
 teams. Alexander's support was fair,
 though not all that could have been
 desired while Johnson won his place
 despite the fact that his support sell
 dom was better than ordinary
 Whether Mathewson with his fade way ball was, in his prime, the supe- rior of Alexander and Johnson is matter of opinion. It also is de- batable question whether Big Ed" Walsh, the king of spitters," Mar quard. Cicotte, Schupp, Toney. Babe" Ruth and other first-class exponents of the modern school of pitching should be accredited positions ranking close to the "big three" However, of all of those now going strong and suf- ficiently young to have several years of activity ahead of them, Alexander is most prominently in the public eye. and with the improved team backing he probably will receive in Chicago. he should become the monarch of mod ern mound artists. He Is wizard with the horsehide, and the only thing he need fear for some time to come is a serious accident.
 Not, so long ago a noted scientist made the assertion that there was no such thing as a curve ball, and that those who believed otherwise were.vic- tlmS OI an OptlCAi liIuslOn. The SCien- tist was wrong, and dozens of. pitch, CTS. including Alexander, offered to prove to him that he was in error. There are curves and more curves and Alexander Is the master of most of them. AWlhen he thinks it necessary he also can slip "spitter" a "floater,'' ..'knuckle-ball." or a fork ball" His worlds record of 16 shutouts in 1916 should be a convincing argument as to his skill in the science of putting the ball across the plate so that the other fellows cannot hit it.
 While really top-notch twirlers strive to master all of the more familiar styles of curve pitching and many of the special balls with which their ri- vals achieve success each has some particular movement or trick which distinguishes him from his fellows And every one of them believes that if some certain fad of which he approves were followed by all pitchers. there would be corresponding improve ment on their part all along the line And, what is more to the point most of these suggestions are sound and sensible