The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1922-03-26
I'm THE WORLD OF SPORTS
BIG LEACUERS LIKE
RUBBER-CORED BALL
Cork Center Sphere Becomes Lopsid-
ed When Hit and Is Diff
cult to Pitch.

The wide agitation over the official
major league baseball of 1921 seems to
have resulted in a revulsion of feeling
in favor of the standard, all rubber
cored ball on which the game was built
up and against the various cork CEN
ter, composition center balls, etc, with
which the major leagues have beeen
experimenting during the past five or
six seasons.
There has been a tremendous amount
of agitation about the cork cored ball
among major league players. The
pitchers complain that any but an all
rubber center ball will become lopsided
and uncomfortable after it has been
hit hard a few times, that only the best
Para rubber should be used for cores
in baseballs. The major league balls
have had centers made up of a cork
inner-core, moulded in a rubber-outer
core. This design was taken from an
Englishman's idea for an improved
cricket ball. The only difference is
that the English inventor found it nee
essary to put rubber into the cricket
ball, the center of which originally
was wholly of cork a wood substance,
where there previously had been moth
iuS puL pure Z dId IuDpeEs 1t may De
added that the rubber cored baseball
always has been a much superior i'm
plement of play to the cork-centered
cricket ball.
Major league pitchers claim that the
two piece core hurts the baseball. They
say that when the bat hits the ball the
pressure on the rubber covering of the
cork core is not evenly distributed as
=.
core, but operates on one side only of
the core. This causes the ball to bulge
on one side, become lopsided, the pres
sure has a grinding, loosening effect on
the cork inner core, which may become
partially or wholly displaced or pull |
verified, thus affecting the truth of
the entire sphere. So when the pitcher
tries to curve or otherwise direct the
ball, the bulgy, disorganized sphere |
cannot respond. The displacement of
the cork inner-core also spoils the |
centrifugal force OF bound and re- |
bound. The ball will not fly truly off
the bat, and after 1t has been hit a |
few times, will lose shape and begin to |
disintegrate, will fly and bound un-
truly, 'etc.
The Importance of the ball being
perfectly true may be understood when
it is known that one smart pitcher held !
that the fact that one side of the ball
bore the linked monogram of the pres
ident of the league was enough to af- |
feet its flight to the batter. A baseball
cannot be lopsided, bulgy, soft any
where. 1t must be perfectly true. To |
that end manufacturers of high grade |
balls spare no expense to perfect their |
product.
The speed at which a ball flies when |
hit is due more to manner of winding |
and quality of yarn than to the nature |
of the core. The fastest rubber core
would, if loosely wound with yarn, |
make dead ball. The gerat merit of |
the all rubber core lies in that it lends |
itself to any shape or shapes the ball |
may take when hit by the bat, and, by |
its all around residence, helps the ball |
to regain and retain it's proper, perfect |
~ spherical shape instantly after being |
hit.
1t is difficult for the man in the
street to understand why it was Deem
ed necessary to monkey with the orig |
inal all rubber cored ball. Probably just !
to be "monkeying." Experience has
taught that the way to improve a ball |
Is 10 put fupDef into II, not to take |
rubber out Of 1t. The cork center |
cricket ball was improved by the in
PRODUCTION of rubber. The solid gutta |
percha golf ball was improved by the |
insertion of rubber core. How the |
all rubber center baseball was to be |
improved by the insertion of cork, a |
species of wood inner core, is not easy
to understand. Just a manufacturer |
experiment, no doubt.
The all rubber core BAH has always |
remained the favorite with the minor
leagues. the amateur boys, etc, and |
big league players would be glad to see
manufacturers return to It for big
league purposes.