Evening star., 1927-11-28

N EW 1Ohk, November %. al
N this talk that has been going
VI on about the elimination OF
A waste in industry and Ameri
cas- leadership in efficiency
methods hasn't reached the ears of
the base ball magnates. There are
prospects. however. that such roar
will be turned loose at the convention
of the minor leagues beginning De
cember 8 at Dallas, Tex, that 1t
will shake the ground under the feet
of a few of the guardians OF the ma
tional game.
Specifically. what is likely to hap
pen at Dallas is that the minors will
make counter move to the proposal
of the major leagues by asking that
the player limit for major clubs be
set at fewer than 40 men-perhaps
as low as 25 The 40-player limit has
been recommended by the advisory
council. composed of Commissioner
Landis and the presidents of the Amer
lean and National Leagues, and Will
he passed upon at the Joint major
league session in New York on De
Cember Is
If the minors have their way about
reducing the ajor club rosters. ii
would be the best thing that could
happen to big league base ball. That's
where the waste and lack of efficiency
methods enter into the situation.
Many Players Wasted.
In the words of one veteran base
ball man who communicated to this
correspondent the results of his study
of the subject. the big leagues are
throwing away more than 100000
hours of high class base ball every
season because they permit skilled
players to rust idly on the bench"
This base ball veteran has been an
observer of players and base ball
methods for about quarter of
century and he probably has talked
to more individual base ball players
than any one man in the United
States. He has fitted them to uni
forms, shoes and advice.
''If the player limit were cut down
from 40 to 25 men for each major
team" he said. there would be 240
more ball players ready to serve the
base ball public with their skill. That
would relieve the shortage of players
of which the minors complain and it
would mean a saving of those 100000
lost hours of base ball skill each sea-
SON.
1t is said that one major club at
the present time controls more than
100 players. That is somewhat ex
aggerated. but it is true that the club
does have lot of ball players clut-
tering up its back yard.
Another argument against the con-
troll of 40 or more players by one
club is that half of the managers
don't know what TO do with what they
have. They can come to no decision
III they lose game or two they be-
gin to make changes at once, simply
because they have so many players
at their command.
Too Many for Picking.
II can name two major league
managers" said the veteran. who
without having 40 players to fool
with might easily have won cham
pionships. They had the material
to win. but they saw so many stars
around that they don't know which
one to pick. When they picked one
they always wished afterward
that it had been the other
There is a time in the life ball
player when he is certain 20 boom
and do his best. He has at least five
years during which he plays at top
form. Sometimes he has more. but it
Is rather safe to count on five sure
years of high-class base ball Too
many of the boys are not getting an
opportunity today to show that they
have those five years. Their base ball
skill pines and droops away on the
bench
If the minor leagues of the country
could count upon 240 additional ball
players next season, the major
leagues, it Is argued. would step live
lier because the managers would have
to find some other way to try to win
ball games than by changing the
pitcher every inning. Better played
ball games would result-a point that
is of particular interest to the man
who pays his dollar at the gate.
downright 1927 /