The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1921-12-09
PITCHERS CONQUER
RATSMEN AGAIN BY
USE OF CURVE BALL
BY FRANK q. MENKE


Once again the flinging persons have
met an obstacle seemingly insurmount-
able-and hurdled it in successful
fashion.
Ever since baseballing began the
apparent aim of its ruling powers has
been to handicap the pitcher. Through
all the years whenever any reforms
were instituted, it was always with
the purpose of increasing batting and
making the pitchers task all the
harder
In the remote period the pitching
distance was around As feet. At GER
tain times the pitcher was permitted
five and then six bad ones before a
batter got a base on balls. In an
other era the pitcher was allowed TO
use saliva, slippery elm and a few
other things to assist him in the noble
art OF deceiving the slugger-
As the years skidded onward the
baseball powers made the work of the
pitchers harder and still harder. Al
most every new rule that was made
was a handicap to the mOundsmen 1t
was discoura ging. Yet pitchers, seem
ing 20 be made Of the stuff that viii
not recognize defeat have met each
reform. beaten it--and then gone
along bravely, gamely, about their
business of beating the batters to a
cory pulp.
Pitchers Come Back
When they moved the pitcher back
TO so feet, it ruined his effectiveness
only for a while. Then he began
to NOW down the willow wieldcrs
from the 60-foot range as easily as he
did from 45 When they decreased
the numberof balls from TO 5. and
then to i. he was undjscOurage d-and
continued 10 BATTLE the swatsmiths.
Pitchers, it would seem, have
mighty agile and resourceful brains.
Every time the baseball folks stopped
them in one way, they would perfect
new one and continue to place the
bat5men at a disadvantage. Through
the years they're been outsmarting
the batters despite all the help given
! to the batters by basebalIs ruling
powers.
! A year Of two ago when drastic reg
ulatiOns barred freak deliveries. it was
/ tough blow to the pitching fTatern-
! ity. And when the lively ball came
/ into existence at about the same time,
! it was a dual smash which would
/ have crumpled any normal human be
/ ing. But pitchers apparently aren't
! normal and are made Of the kind OF
stuff that nothing ever can conquer
completely.
Deprived Of the use of the emery ball
the roughing process, the splitter, and
things Of that sort. the pitchers stun
bled a bit-fOr a while. And they
stumbled even more so when the live
~ ball was put into play which made
it possible for batters 10 hammer the
horsehide out OF the lot with only an
average jolt But the pitchers
through the fag end of 1921. demon
strated that once again. they have
met the trouble-and whipped it.
CO Back to Curves.
/ The boys have gone back to curve
pitching. The old round house offer
inRs, the tantalizing drop, the old fash
Toned in-shOOt have made their reap
pearance-atter years of comparative
disuse.
And that curve ball pitching is con
quering the batsmen.
, The Giant twirlers demonstrated
that cOnclusively in the world series
of 1921. They cUrve-balled the Yam
KEGS into defeat. They were constant
ly serving up the old time twisteTs-
and got away with it,
In the other years the Giant twirl
ers. like all the others. more or less
abandoned the curves. They figured