The New York herald., 1922-08-06
NEHF And PIRATES
(. One STRIKING CASE
Giants Southpaw Has Beaten
sA Corsairs Twelve Times
in a Row.
PSYCHOLOGY Is THE CRUX
Matty Was Reds H0odoo and
PfieSter Was Poison for
Old McGrawmen.
ny DANIEL.


needed light on a most perplexing
problem. The jinxes themselves are
able TO furnish no truly illuminating
Information on the powers and quail
ties which make them jinxes, and
their victims will not admit that they
really are afflicted with particular
hoodoo.
How is 1t that you are able to beat
the Pirates any old time you face them
how come you have trounced that
bunch twelve times in a row." we
asked Arthur Nehf. the Giants south
paw, the other day. What pitching
qualities make you so deadly against
Pittsburgh, and yet not SO deadly
against the Dodgers, who are not
rated as great a team as the Smoky
City OUTFIT
We'll that's tough question" Art
replied. Il beat the Pirates because l
Just beat them--that's all Perhaps they
have become accustomed to taking beat
ings whenever pitch. But as matter
of fact ! have not studied the club anu
Its players any harder than / have the
six other teams in the league and their
batsmen. / do not doubt that there is
ciared Art, who is an electrical engineer,
Rose Polytechnic, 1912, and knows "Old
PEy" when he sees him.
How the Hoodoo Does 1t.
That the question OF psychology ana
mental state enters into the proposition
on both sides there isn't the shadow of a
doubt. 1t makes the jinx--we are deal
ing with pitchers, in the main-go into
the box with feeling of supreme con-
fidence and invincibility. He knows that
he has a certain mental advantage over
his victims and he gets them to feel the
same way. The players IN support OF the
jinx catch that feeling from their pitcher
and the result Is condition which gives
half the victory to the hoodoo even be-
fore he throws a single ball.
Baseball history is full OF all sorts Of
Jinxes-pitchers who could beat a certain
Grub any old time, even il the personnel
OF that club kept changing continually
great pitchers who simply cou.d not beat
certain club--great Fingers who could
not stop batsmen who were only medio-
ere against other hurlers-and stellar
Datsmen who could not hit certain
pitchers who were only mediocre
against other hitters. Pitching skill and
personal idiosyncracles no doubt have a
lot TO 90 with these conditions--but
One OF the outstanding iinxes was
Christy Mathewson, and his particularly
easy victims were the Reds We be-
Ileve that for three successive seasons
Matty won every game ne pitched
against the Cincinnati club. The Reds
sometimes hit him hard but Matty al
ways smiled. made weird passes at the
Reds in the pinches with his famous
fadeaway and the Rhinelanders were
licked beyond all doubt. They knew they
we're beaten before Matty tossed a bali
PAester Jinx for Giap.s.
What Big Six was for the Reds Jack
Pfiester. the left handler of the old Cubs,
was for the Giants. A left handler with
Jacks style was particularly mean for
Jhe free swinging New Yorks OF those
;3ays. and Pfester was a particularly
mean left handler of that mean type.
Jack was simply poison for McGraw's
men. As we remember II. Pfiester was
IN the box that memorable afternoon
when the Cubs walloped our Giants by
10 to ! and knocked Matty out OF the
box. Lavender was another pitcher who
bothered the New York hitters inordi-
nately.
The boy who could trim the old
Giants with startling ease, any old time
Nm and out OF condition. was Harry
GoveleGkie Of the Phillies. VINO got the
3obriquet Of Giant Killer" Harry was
got what might be called n smart pitcher.
put he had a whale OF a fast ball and
fine change of pace lie knew he had
5t on the Giants. and while other clubs
&allopeo Harry, Harry just kept on
walloping the giants.
Harry passed on the vendetta against
New York to his brother Stanley Of the
Cleveland club. who has established him
self as something Of jinx for the YAM
KEGS. When Stanley was In his prime
two and three years ago he had the
Yankees where he wanted them every
time he faced them.
Just now the Giants have no particu-
lar hoodoo. though they find II ex-
tremely hard to beat certain pitchers
Reuther and Grimes OF the Dodgers. for
example. Virgil Cheeves the Chicago
indian, threatened 20 develop into a
,real Giant bewitcher, but the New YorlSs
have clipped the wings Of this bird sew
eral times this season.
Adams No Longer Troubles.
Babe Adams could beat the Giants
with rnonotonous regularity until late
last season. The veteran. by virtue OF
his remarkable control and change Of
again and held them to very few hits
until the fatal series--fatal for the
Pirates~-of last season. The Babe was
knocked out in the last game after he
had been prepared for a fortnight.
Since then Adams has not had any par
ticular terrors for the Giants and when
the Pirates came here to win four
straight last week Bill McKechnie kept
the Babe on the bench and named
Hamilton over him. Cooper, who was
easy for the Giants In 1921 and 1920.
seems to have found himself again in
his meetings with the McGraw outfit.
The Yankees have had all sorts of
jinxes year IN and year out. In the
old days Walter Johnson had them
'nufaloed. AL he had TO do was to put on
y glove and step into the box, and those
Yankees were slowed down to a mean
der Walter stll has some OF that
Aoodoo stuff left. Urban Shocker Is one
0f the Yankee hoodoos now. True. the
Yankees have done better against him
n.ris season than In 1921 and 1920. but
Urban still Is verv much eligible 70 be
rated as a rare pest for the New Yorks.
Eed Faber OF the White Sox IN one OF
the Yankee hoodoos. Diclxie Kerr, the
loft handler who refused 70 sign with the
white Sox this year was another New
York link. The Yankees shed no tears
when Dick announced that he would not
piay with Gleason's club this season.
Pruett Is Ruth's "Pcst."
A nYiking example Of the pitcher who
Ia n 1nx for a particular star hitter is