The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1923-06-16

admit I'm looking at this thing
from my point of view, but there
are other players who are fire.
quently passed, and that doesn't
seem just right from several other
points of view.
This is what / mean:
Baseball is team game. II Q
fellow is passed Intentionally he
might Just as well be on the bench.
Certainly, he doesn't figure in the
strength of the team so far as that
pass is concerned. AS look at 1t
the idea Of game is to determine
the difference between two teams.
Every player ought to have an
equal chance. Under the present
system we don't get 1t.
1 know It's q tough problem to
solve and that several efforts
have been made to solve 1t. A
year or 50 ago the rules commit
tee considered the advisabiIity Of
penalizing the pitcher when he
gave an intentional base on balls,
but this brought up question 40
to how an umpire could tell when
the pass was really intentional.
to pitch the ball very wide Of the
plate II he wants to pass q batter.
He can Just throw bad balls.
I've had an idea about this whole
business buzzing around In my head
for some time and / wonder IL it
would work out? It doesn't make
any difference II the pass 10 inten-
-.
Suppose the pitcher passes man.
It is agreed, to begin with. that
every player ought to have the
same chance at the bat. Why
couldn't another man be put on
first to run for him while he stays
at the plate? This would pena1ize
the pitcher and not the batter. At
the same time 1t would be a fair
test OF teams entire strength.
I'VE talked to some newspaper
men and players about 1t and most
OF them like the idea. A few said
1t might drag out the game 6nd
make 1t too long, but claim 1t
would quicken the game. There
wouldn't be so many bases on balls.
In my first fifty games this
season / drew sixty.fOur passes.
AT this rate IN have close to 200
mt the end Of the season. I'm 1921,
when / made my home run record,
i only drew IA the entire season.
You can see from this just what
! I'm up against this year.
80
go There's another feature about this
whole business that DOESN'T work
out quite right. I hope readers
won't object IL I use myself as an
example.
I'm hitting lot more this sea.
SON than I did last year, but I'm
behind my home run schedule. On
the other hand, I'm getting many
more bases on balls. The home
runs appear in my record, but the
get a bad break there, too.
I'm interested in winning ball
games for my team, but at the
same time people expect me to hit
homers and I'd like to oblige. But
because I'm being passed more than
ever in the past I don't get the
chances did last year and the year
before, and that, frankly, is what
gets my goat, even If it cuts down
the number of times I strike out.
I'd rather fan and. take a chance on
getting homer than be passed, as
I was against Cleveland in our re-
cent series, when I drew ten passes
in three games.
I'm curious to know what the
baseball readers think of my solu-
ton of the base-on-balls problem.
Would you mind writing me at the
Yankee Stadium, New York? I'd
like to hear from as many fans as
possible.
Expressions from fans in all parts
Of the country are invited. I'd like
to know what the baseball public
thinks of pitchers giving batters In
territorial passes. Perhaps some fan
can solve the problem with a novel
suggestion. Write me at Yankee
Stadium, New York.
Copyright, 1923 by The Christy Walsh
Syndicate.)