The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1921-04-13

legs r1glQ. Otherwise they may double
over and break.
Protect your arm when sliding. Keep
it clear of the under side of your body.
Otherwise double up under your body
and be broken or seriously injured.
Dig Little Pit.
When practicing sliding, it's best to
dig a little pit six to II inches deep,
three or four feet wide, and about -
feet long, and fill it with sand or soft
earth. In that way you run no risk
of real injury while learning to
slide.
Never try to slide between a base
mans legs, unless it's absolutely nee
essary. He spreads his legs for the
main purpose of trapping you as you
come in. Try to hit the bag on one
or the other side of him.
Having reached your base in safety,
get up quickly. Don't loiter. Be
ready to shoot for the next base How
do you know-unless you are on your
feet and watching-that the baseman
hasn't muffed the ball or that the
catcher hasn't thrown wildly to the
outfeld?
Keep you eyes open-he alert-a'-
ways. Never fail TO take advantage OF
the other fellows misplay. Opportu-
mites don't come often Grab them
when they do. They win ball games.
A run made on an error isn't as spec
tacuar as a home run, but it counts
as much in the total.
Keep Eye on Ball.
When you make a hit, try to keep
your eye on the balls progress. Hay-
ing reached first base safely pivot on
the left foot-not on the right. Pivot
ing on the left brings you facing sec
ond base. Now you are in position
to make a run for second if the drive
is an especially long one, if fielder
is fumbling it, or the throw TO first is
, wild
Stretch hit whenever there Is an
even chance in your favor. That's
pulling the unexpected and when you
do the unexpected you surprise and
probably upset the opposition. You
are usually justified in attempting to
stretch a single into a double, when
you reach first while the ball is still
bounding toward an outfelder He
isn't expecting you to do any stretch
ing That's he time to cross him.
The chances of stretching hit In
such a case are very favorable, espe-
cially if you are a fast runner. First
of all, the outfielder not expecting you
to advance farther than first base, is
loafing on the play. When he sees
you running for second, he gets excit-
ed He makes a quick stab at the
Iball.
Being excited, he may tumble y. If
he doesn't, he may throw it wild. If
the outfielder doesn't bobble or toss
wildly, the baseman may blunder. He
will be excited, too.
Chances With Runner
Therefore in such a situation, the
chances are with you, because to get
you, it's necessary for the outfielder
to make a perfect pickup, perfect
throw, and for the baseman to make
a perfect catch, and a perfect stab
and they must do it while they are
excited.
When on the bases. you can at all
times take a lead off the bag a little
farther than the baseman for the
simple reason that if throw is made
to that bag. all you have to do is run
and slide back into it. The baseman,
on the other hand, must run there,
then get the ball and then put it on
you.
While on the bases, always keep
yourself facing the man with the ball.
Maintain a position so that when the
ball goes into play, you can advance
to the next bag, or dart back to your
own, as may be necessary, without an
iota of lost motion.
Worry the opposing infield-and
especially the pitcher Keep pacing
back and forth Get a tantalizing dis
lance off your bag but never too far
so that you can't get back in safety.
Bluff steals. That helps to rattle the
pitcher-and that's what one of the
chief aims should be. Get the other
fellows excited, and as nervous as pos