Evening star., 1928-11-12

walk as the boys say, he will start
the 1929 season in center field for the
Bears. This he declared after he
signed his Newark contract, but, of
course, If some budding youngster hap
pens to be developed at the training
camp Iris probably will retire from ac-
tive duty. as his business with the
Bears will be to win ball games
To Angle for New Talent.
The new manager of the Bears left
for Cleveland after he signed his con-
tract. He will attend the meeting of
the International League in Toronto
next month and will attempt to
strengthen his ball club by putting
through several trades.
The signing of Speaker with the
Bears means the end of Iris as major
Lacquer after % years with the Red Sox,
Indians, Griffmen and Athletics. He
finished his career as a bench warmer"
for the Athletics and was not even used
by Mack as a pinch-hitter in the big
series against the Yankees at the
Stadium. Not SO long ago Mack an
nounced that waivers had been asked
on Speaker and Cobb.
There is hardly any doubt about
Speakers ability as a manager, as he
the world championship for the Cleve-
land team in 1920. In 1926 he landed
the Indians in second place, but that
Winter the Dutch" Leonard letters
were published and the names of Cobb
and Speaker were mentioned in them.
Lands finally exonerated both great
outfielders
The Cleveland club, however, released
Speaker as manager and he signed to
play with Washington in 1927 at big
salary-said to be $4,000. While he
had a good year in 1927 as a hitter,
Clark Griffith decided that he was un-
able to pay Speaker his big salary and
last year the outf1elder became men,
ber of the Athletics.
Spoke and Cobb Benched.
For while he held pace with the
youngsters on Macks ball club, but
soon slowed up both in his hitting and
fielding and about the middle of the
season he and Cobb we're benched by
Mack! The benching of Speaker meant
that his major league career was at an
end and so was that of the Georgia
Peach"
Quite few base ball men say that
Speaker was the greatest outfielder of
all time That is, the best all-around
outfielder. Back in his day with the
Red Sox and his first few years as a
member of the Indians, Speaker was
by far the best defensive outflelder in
the major leagues and was not far
behind Cobb in batting.
Not as fast as Ty on the bases,
Spoke" was far superior to Cobb as an
outfielder. Then, too, Spoke" played
nearly every batter that came up to
the plate perfectly and probably made
no more than two mistakes a season
in his Judgment of playing for the va
rious batters In the American League.
1t was a real treat to watch Speaker
play the outfield when he was at his
best.
While member of the Red SoX,
Speaker helped the Boston team to win
the American League pennant and the
world championship in 1912 and again
in 1915. The late Joe Lannin was
owner of the Red SoX in 1915 and tn
Winter of that year sold Speaker to the
Cleveland Club for $4,000 in cash and
Sam Jones, the pitcher, and Chet
Thomas, the catcher.
Pilots Cleveland Club.
In 1919 he became manager Of the
Indians, succeeding Fohl. The next
year he beat the Yankees for the Amer
world series he conquered the Brooklyn
Robins in five out Of seven games for
the championship.
Speaker started his Major League
career with the Red Sox back in 1907.
He was purchased from the Houston
Club of the Texas League for a mere
S4OO. He finished the 1907 season with
the Sox and was farmed out to the
Little Rock Club in 1908. He came
back to the Boston Club late in the
1908 season, started playing center field
and was a regular with the Red Sox
until he was sold to the Indians.
He would have led the American
League in batting number OF times
if 1t had not been for Cobb. His great
est batting wear was in 1925, when he
batted .389. He frequently batted over
300 One of his poor years was in 1919.
when the Indians won the flag. That
season Speaker batted .296.