San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1925-10-11
Quinn GIVES
dope" ON
SIGNALS
Boston Owner Inclined to
Scott at Signal
Stealing.
By PETER KELLY

BOSTON. Oct. lU.-lL IAN "auH
to be dignified and respectful he call
him President J. 4. Robert Quinn bu
il be remembers that baseball make
all the fans kin he calls him Bob ol
Bobby 9,
And so we shall enjoy the fans
privilege and refer and allude TO th'
chief executive Of the Boston Amer.
can League baseball club as BOD
or "Bobby." ~
When Chief Bender came here WITH
the White Sox somebody asserted Una!
the Chippewa Indian, was most aurol'
as a sign detector. =,
That started it and soon a be,
was in progress and from 1t emerged
IN interview with Bobby Quinn
first player, then a secretary OF
business manager and now mag
nate. -
emnloyed or used in the strates!
90 the game and if it Is necessar!
to have signs and how old they are
and all that talk about inside base
hall. IL it is the real goods or PLAIN
unvarnished bunk.
That reminds me that one time
In the successful days OF the Pll-
srims, as the Boston American
League club team was called IN Jimmy
Collins early days as manager, some
new player asked Jimmy what ne
would do when he went to bat. DO
the right thing" said James. II that
isn't the epitome of real baseball Ia
like TO know what is.
NEVER HAD A SIGN.
I doubt that the Heavenly Twins
ever had a sign and boys they
worked that hit and run game to
perfection. Poor Tom Mccarthy,
what a keen mind he had. And what
a perfect mate Hugh Duffy was OF
@Them were the happy days"
Mccarthy and Duffy were in
cluster of stars in 1892 and for
couple of more years and / remem-
her / named them "The Heavenly
Twins after a famous book of that
time.
OF course we all know that
catcher signs the pitcher for
straight ball, usually fast, or q curve
or a waste ball once in a while 10
outguess the base runner or TO catch
one asleep ct a base and that the
second baseman or shortstop usually
transmits the sign to the outfielder.
ALL BUNCOMBE.
But all the fol dc rol that was
written about inside baseball was
buncombe.
However. this isn't fair TO Bobby
Quinn, and 50 we shall proceed with
the interview. We had asked him
about the signs and omens of base
ball, about strategy, etc, and this is
what we got and believe me its
straight from the shoulder talk for
Bob can talk and knows what for
as we said be has been through the
mill, as a player, secretary and mag
nate.
"Years ago there was nOtoriety
given to certain players who we're
said TO be nble TO catch the signals
of the opponents. said Bob. Zone
of the best so-called signal detectors
was Morgan Murphy, then with
Philadelphia. Morgan started in Bos-
ton 80 years ago.
~The talk was that these men
could tell everything that would be
done and created an impression
among the fans that baseball was all
signals.
The fact is that most Of these
men did not catch the signal Of the
catcher at all, but were able 10 tell
what the pitcher would deliver from
the way he held the ball.
NOTICED REGULARITY.
~In other words, when the pitcher
pitched his curve, he did some little
thing that be didn't do when be
pitched a fast ball. and by strict at
tention 70 the different peculiarities
of the pitchers it was easy for such
a man as Bender 10 let the batter
know what 10 expect.
@Tbat was done BY word tips
IL the pitcher were 10 deliver q fast
ball, the man who was supposed 10
have caught the signals would say
Get on your toes, boys If il were
a curve that was 10 be- delivered, be
would say, Get in the game. or
use some such other expression ais
had been agreed On az the confer
ence in the clubhouse with The play
ers before the game
"Of course, there were times when
the eatcher's signals could be seen.
In other words. some cqtchcrs could