Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1918-09-02
Totals 1855 374S Totals 7240 S6s
LESS since originally doped.
xGain since originally doped.

just as IL is easier TO dope sldhe
horses than it is to figure selling
platers, we find to-day that doping
the Chicago Cubs and the Boston
Red Sox is harder than it has been
to dope any teams in the last twenty
years. If it is a stake horse against
selling platter the job is easy, but
here we must figure selling platers
on each side, trying to hold place
with old stake horses and run as a
team.
The figures indicate that the
Red Sox have eighty-six points the
better of the hitting ability. and
eighty-six points is small margin.
We find this offset to a degree by
the fact that the Cubs have the
better fielding team by tifty-eight
points.
|, The margin is too small to indi-
cate any marked superiority for
either team great enough to enable
either to win on straight class.
1t figures that the Chicago team
as a team is better in that its
strength is more equally divided and
better scattered through the bat
ting order. We discover. too, that
Mitchell has much the better hit
ting arrangement of his team, so
that the Cubs are liable to score in
any inning, whereas you may figure
safely that the Red Sox, when they
score, must do so with the head of
the batting order up. In other
words the Boston club is dead"
three innings of each game because
the attacking stresgth is badly
broken when Agnew and Coffey are
to bat, and the team is much less
liable to maintain a rally than the
Cubs.
This doping is funny business.
The fact is that the Red Sox ought
to outfigure the Cubs by at least
$50 points on season, yet so well
adapted is MitchelPs team to meet
the situation now at hand that his
team looks better. This is solely
because of the left-handed batters
Ruth, Strunk McInnes and Hooper
while the right-handed batters are
weak wallopers.
This would not be so great a
handicap under ordinary circum-
stances, but the fact that Mitchell
has two great left-handed pitchers
primed and ready makes the Red
Sox seem to have less hitting power
than it really possesses.
The left-handed pitchers, of
course, will argue that they hit
lefthanded pitching. l never have
known a left-handed batter who did
not think he could hit lefthaRders,
but the truth is that. with a few
exceptions, l have never seen left
handed batter whose average against
left-handed pitching was as high as
against righthanders and. further,
none of them (excepting Fred
Clarke) ever hits against good left
| hoy anh tho rannrta from
Chicago camp are that Vaughn and
Tyler are good.
The change from the North Side
grounds in Chicago to the south hit
Boston considerably. was conf
PEELED to add points to Hooper's de-
fensive value because of the larger
grounds on which he will play and to
deduct from Ruth's value as a BAT
ter because OF the same facts. All
along l nave been afraid that Ruth
would upset the dope and the series
/ by punching three or four long fiIes
over the short fence in Chicago. Not
that it makes a bit of difference, but
one hates a series spoiled by nits
which are at best fiuky and games
won by nigh flies that would be
caught on fields of average size.
Whether Boston will be affected by
the schedule which compels the Red
Sox to play three games away from
home or not is doubtful. There are
times when superstitions of that kind
do affect +he work of teams and it
is certain that the Red Sox have
not been strong road team this
year and have been we'll nigh invln-
chile on their own grounds.
The Cubs are helped by getting
away from heir own field. They never
liked the grounds and last year had
an idea that they could not win on
the North Side park. They will play
all their games off their home field,
which, while it appears unfair, does
not hurt, even If it fails to help them.
After the teams move to Boston the
Red Sox will have the advantage in
every way and the Cubs will be
handica nped somewhat.
/ 1t would be a fairer arrangement
to play on Braves field, so that each
team would be off it's own field, but
more imaginary than real.
1t would be we'll for the lmpires
to look over the Red Sox park care
fully. especially to examine the pitch
er's club before the series starts and
thus avoid argument.
Now that we have studied thc
position values of each team and
have rated them as to figures. the
real task OF doping comes. We know
now just what each man is worth
to hfs club in his position and against
the pitching he must face. The lob
now is to apply those values to actual
play and figure what each man ought