The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-08-21
| MOGULS PLEASED
 TO RETAIN HOPS. .ONKANGAROOBALL.
Since Home Runs Draw Crowds, Even Charlie Eb-
 bettS Is Satisfied
(By WESTBROOK PEGLER .cnNnd Wire Tn I,he ARe-H Rrn d


 NEW YORK, August 20-When the cash-regi gisters have ceased their joy ous dangling at the close of the an nual revival known as the world series and Judge Landis has waggled his property hat for the last time in the calm eye of the movie machine, as the crowd files Oup of the park the proposal will again come before the operators of the baseball busi- ness to remove the hops from the certified ball of the major leagues.
 They will be gathered about a vast taole Tn Ine Waldorf with sweatlls silver pitchers close to hand, and with cheroots strewn about, ranging in size from the pencil model to the Louisville Slugger Pattern. They will be just like mine owners or lumber Barons or hide and leather magnates in strictly business discussions of trade conditions. It will be proposeu as 1t has been proposed at every joint meeting of the major leagues for three or four years that the home run has become rather com monplace and a bit of a nuisance since Babe Ruth set himself up as a specialist and able imitation of his act was displayed by Ken Will l1ams, Rogers Hornsby and Cy Mn- Hams. It will be proposed that the hop in the ball has now served it's purpose of enlivening the spectacle and swelling the public interest, in consequence of which there devel- oped also a prominent and althogeth- CT gratifying swelling of the gate receipts
 And right there someone, prehaps Uncle Charlie Ebbets or Barney Dreyfuss or Connie Mack, will sug- gest that, such being the case. 1t would be a good idea to Increase. rather than diminish the hop on the standard ball used for major league games.
 Therefore, next year and perhaps for an indefinite term of years, the home run and the rat-tat-tat Of smaller hits will continue.
 Outside the council room. the ball Barons will tell people that there IS no such thing as the rabbit or kan garoo ball and will swear by the name of St Ananias, patron of pro- fessional sport throughout the land, that the ball which hoped over the efence more than 1000 times a sea son is the same ball that was used IO years ago, when Home run baker total for season was only
 The stronger slappers of the two leagues have driven out almost 500 home runs this season to date. and each of the 16 clubs still has about 50 games remaining in which to run some figure beyond the total of 1,054 in 1922.
 The science of advancing runners slowly and by strategy around the bases, one at a time, by stealing. by sacrificing and placing small hits has been abandoned since the club owners breathed the spirit of the kangaroo into the ball.
 And, although the home run Is no longer the interesting spectacle that
  Held yard where an ordinary double or pop fly becomes a homer by clear ing nigh wall, 1t still draws more customers than the strategic style of baseball was drawing when the ne- cessity for change became ap- parent.
 Unlike football and some of the other games of America, which are played for sports sake, baseball's rules are made for business purposes and the equipment of the players is prescribed with the same considera- tions in mind The shine ball and other more or less mysterious de- liYeries were barred. not because of unfairness to the batter, but becaus the lack of hitting had affected the attendance.
 Babe Ruth's four-piece bat was barred by Ban Johnson because 1t appeared that the man who first dis covered the hop in the rabbit ball had TOW discovered a way to make every hit a homer. There is nothing in baseball law to disqualify the four piece bat, the rule prescribing only the length and thickness of the bat and forbidding that it be loaded with metal.
 The appeal of art is not strong at the meetings of the magnates. Artis- tic baseball paid little as compared to business baseball with the kanga- roo proiectile in use.