The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-12-27
By HANS WAGNER

By HANS WAGNER
 am often undecided as to which is the most interesting in baseball the studying of opposing pitchers and infielders so as to steal a base or their perfecting of a defense to pre- vent base stealing.
 Skill is offsetting the fast base running of an opposing team marks the difference between a really great infielder and just plain infielder who can pick up grounders and throw the ball.
 wrote some time back that nc pennant was ever won with an inex perienced shortstop or second base man. It simply can't be done. To work perfectly around the bag each of those men must be skilled me chanic so drilled in the tricks of his trade that they become second nature. 1 have also said that a base runner | must watch. the pitcher and the in fielders closely so as to learn what i their various moves mean. He must remember, though, that they are also | watching him.
 Fans often ask me how it is that | an infielder can make a great stop and throw to the right base without 1 having any time whatever to study out the situation. Now, some players do that by instinct, but not many Most of them do 1t by preparing their plans in advance.
 Every good infielder or outfielder on a team figures that the ball will be hit to him. He sees the situation on the bases and decided just where he will throw the ball in case he does get it. Therefore, he doesn't nave to figure He gets the ball and whips Il to the spot already decided on in ad' svance,
 If the bases are full. with none oi one out, for instance, every infieldei knows that he must throw the ball tt the plate He doesn't have to hesitate If there is a man on first base ane grounGer is hit to the infield tnt infielder knows that he must get the ball to second base for double play or force-out To prepare for thi: the second baseman indicates to tht shortstop, or the other way around which is to cover the bag. If tht batter bits left handed there is usual ly no need to give signal. Th' shortstop will cover unless, by chance he gets the ball.
 Crowd Misses Fine Points.
 It is easier, you know, for th' shortstop to make a play on oas' stealer than for the second basemar to do it. That is why he does th' most covering as rule. The second bas eman is often between the runner and the bag, which makes 1t more difficult for him. Still, if the batter Is hard left field hitter the secont baseman signals that he will cover In this case the shortstop might leav' his position only to have the battel hit right through the hole.
 There are many ball players wn' are specialists-expert on certain plays. oddly enough the crowd or th' writing experts seldom know this
 One of the most difficult plays tt make in all baseball is the shortstol or second baseman taking low throw from the catcher-one that hits then in the feet-as the runner is stealing The fellows tell me I was good a that on account of my hands but think Joe Tinker was about as cleVe at that as any ball player that eve1 lived. Another great man on the par ticular play was Arthur Fletcher Miller Huggins, the present manager of the New York Yankees, was bearcat in taking low throws. Thi! is remarkable in his case because O his small size and correspondingil small hands. Huggins had no Tear O , the base runner. and that also helped
 The other wonderful players on tha low throw play were Claude Ritchel of the old Pirates, Eddie Collins O. the White SoX and Harry stem feldt of the old Cubs.
 | Another of the most difficult play: in all baseball is handling sacri' flee bunt when first and third bases are occupied and none out. The in field is guessing from the momen lit starts. If either the first basemaI or the third baseman tries to cover his base it is almost impossible tt beat the play. To overcome this w doped out a scheme in the old day' where the third baseman would g' in for the bunt and the shortstoI would cover, provided, of course, th' ball was bunted toward third as il should be,
 The best man I ever saw on thal 'play was Tommy Leach, third base jman of the old Pirates. Jimmy Collins Twas also great at it.
 A Play For Nerve And Accuracy. The play at first base is broker iup by the first baseman coming il land the second baseman covering That is not nearly so difficult, though it may seem like the same play. Int second baseman is accustomed to GOV fering first base more than the short must be ready to cover second, Il necessary.
 Hal Chase believe, was the origi' nator of the play where the first baseman gets a bunt and throws to third when there is a runner on sec ond. That takes great speed. I have seen other players do it, though.
 While on the subject of hard plays to make. don't forget that making shoe-string catches on liners hit tC the outfield. To do that a player must have great nerve and also accuracy. If the ball gets by him il may go for three bases or a home run. Often 1t is better to play il safe and take the ball on the bounce The greatest men on, making those shoe-string catches I ever saw were Jimmy Slagle, Jimmy Sheckard and Dummy Hoy.
 Another standing problem Tor in- fields is stopping the double stea. with runners on first and third bases l The best men l ever saw at that were Pitchers Christy Mathewson and Joe McGinnity. There are sew eral defensive plays. but they had the best. Their scheme was for tn. catcher to throw a foot over their head, and throw hard, as if f>the ball were going all the way to second The catcher can't be timed about it. If he does the bas. runners will get -