The sun., 1919-03-02
Latham, Keller, McGraw,
Thomas Also Demons at
Getting to First Base.
BUSH GOOD RUN GETTER
ssDonie" and George Burns
Best Of Present Day Top
pers Of Batting List.
~ sHoRTsToP.

Q successful ball club than q good leadoff
man. livery club that hopes to figure In
o pennant race must have its quota OF
sluggers. but in order to realize on tho
long. cleanup wallops somebody FIRST
must get on base Even to students Of
baseball II Is remarkable how frequently
the leadoff man will start an inning.
Many times he will lead OF four times
In the same game.
One dopester who delights in delvfng
into such things once examined the rec
ord OF star leadoff man and found
that in 60 per cent. OF the times
he went to bat during q season he led
Off an inning.
Baseball has It's favorite types for
different roles. The great pitchers have
mostly been big, strapping fellows.
while lean. graceful fellows with long
reaches now Is the most desired style
Of first basemen. Tho perfect leadon
man has changed little during basebalfs
history. He Ia a little bit Of q man.
preferably a left handed batsman. with
q great eye at bat, a good hitter. but
more than that he must have the faculty
Of getting on.
In the early part OF the 1916 season.
when the Yankees were making real
bid for the pennant. Frank Gilhooley. be-
fore breaking his leg in Washington. was
getting on base more than half OF the
time that he came to bat There was
one stretch in which he got on base SIX
teen times in twenty-five times up. and
: in most every case he was the FIRST bats
man I'D in the inning. It seemed impos-
sible to keep him of the bases he would
get on somehow whether he would hit,
receive his base on balls. get hit by
pitched ball or get on by reason OF an
error. He got on base and after he did
20 he had the faculty Of getting around.
GiIhooly Too Fragile.
Gilhooley has been too prone to injury
and ON the whole has been too cratic to
be given a place among the great leadoff
men of baseball. His work In the 1916
season merely is cited as concrete e1-
ample of the possibilities Of fast, quick
thinking leadoff player.
There is OF course much room for dis
cussion as to who was the best leadoh
man that baseball has produced. Arthur
Irwin, now manager Of the Rochester
team, who has seen all OF the great stars
come and go since the National League
was organized in 1876, would place Billy
Hamilton, the old time Philadelphia and
Boston National League outfelder, at
the very top Of his list.
Arlie Latham, who acted rs baseball
tutor to the King of England last sum-
mer, also has his claims to the honor. for
when he led off for the old St Louis
Browns during their championship years
of 1885. 1886, 1887 and 1888 there was
no leadoff man in the game who gave
pitchers more trouble.
Miller Higgins. who himself was one
OF the best leadoff men baseball ever
has known, says Roy Thomas, like
Hamilton, a Philadelphia outfielder. was
the best man at leading of he ever saw
in baseball Roy was developed at the
University of Pennsylvania when Arthur
Irwin was coach there. and Arthur also
places him very high among the crack
leadoff men in baseball. Roy. however,
was well past his crest when Husgins
broke into the National League.
John McGraw OF the Giants, who led
Off part of the time for the old Orioles.
is considered by many to have been
basebalrs greatest leadoff men. while
Willie Keller also has his adherents.
Why Hamilton Leads.
Considering all points, Billy Hamilton
deserves the crown of them all.
Hamilton was n remarkable hitter He
batted over 800 for twelve successive
seasons, as his great speed enabled him
to beat out many hits. Billy also had
great eye at bat and drew many bases
on balls.
There never has been a man IN base
ball who knew more about converting
hits or bases on balls into runs than
Hamilton. He was a wizard on the
base paths and would steal on the
slightest provocation. Several times he
stole over a hundred bases year. and
he still holds the National League
record of 115 made in 1891.
Thomas was not as great batsman
he oil ,,y,
around 800, and five times went above
that mark. Roy was by no means a
sIugger. but he was one of the
smartest hitters baseball ever had.
He could stand at tho plate all day long
and foul balls into left field all day
long. Thomas could wear. pitcher
ragged, and in self-defence the pitcher
often would stick one over or let Roy
walk. His favorite hits were sharp
singing jabs through the infield.
The foul strike rule was adopted en-
tirely to prevent Thomas and a few
other smart hitters like him from drag.
gifsg along games ~ IsisSer.--erth with
the foul strike rule In effect Thomas
continued TO foul 'em or.
Back about 1906. when Thomas al
ready was on the wane, the Phillies
were playing Pittsburx at their own
grounds. and, with storm impending.
Philadelphia led, 2 to /. at the end OF
the sixth inning. Pittsburg made six
runs in the seventh, and then the Phil.
lies prayed for rain, so the score would
revert to the sixth inning.
Sailing for Time.
When Thomas came up the sky was
let black and il was as dark as night
But the Phillies had been hippodromlne
and the umpires refused to call tbs
gFnle. Thomas began to foul off every
thing that was pitched to him, even
when the Pittsburg pitcher delibera tsly
tried TO walk him. Eventually, how
ever, Roy had to take his base on balls
but 1t took the pitcher ten minutes to
walk him. And still the rain held on
After further dilatory tactics the game
was given TO Pittsburs.
Arlie Latham also was famous for his
ability to foul Off balls. He got many
bases on balls. in addition to being a
sweet hitter When Latham was at his
best he has been fifteen minutes at bat
touiing of balls before he got enc that
he liked.
Abner Dalrymple. the old outflelder OF
Ansons Colts when the Chicago Ma
tonsls were winning pennants, also was
great leadoff man in his time as
WAS Shorty Fuller, the midget shortstop
OF the Giants In the '9Os. shorty wasn't
much OF a hitter. but he was tiny and
had the faculty of getting on base, and
once he got on he was a dangerous base
runner For quite a stretch johnny
Ward also was first batter up for the
old time Giants and was a highiy sue.
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