Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-08-08
MANAGERS URGING
REMOVAL OF BAN
Believed Damp-BaII Huriers
Would Relieve Shortage
of Good Talent.
BY GEORGE MORIARTY,
Big League Umpire.

III RING. in a new crop Of spit
- ball pitchers" Is getting to
be a familiar cry around
IL the major league circuits.
Several managers and play
ers with whom have discussed the
matter frankly favor the return Of the
splitter, particularly to curb the high
pressure hitsmiths, who have been hog
ging the spotlight with their bludgeons.
AS high-grade pitching material Is
scarce in the minors, it Is thought a
new harvest of damp-ball fingers
should reinforce their ranks, and it Is
argued that they would find ready sale
in the majors If the ban were lifted.
The ban on spitbal pitching in the
big leagues resulted from trick-pttch-
ing epidemic. Russell Ford, who
pitched for the New York Yankees 20
years ago, started the freak ball craze
among pitchers.
Ford Started Craze.
Accidently, Ford discovered that q
ball with slightly roughened surface
would sail of straight line when de-
livered. After he had experimented
with emery paper hidden in the pocket
Of his glove Ford brought his famous
emery ball into vogue. Then followed
Cicotte with the shine ball and the
sailer. Soon batters faced q new dis
traction. That was before the introduce
ton of the lively ball and those deliv-
cries were banned by a rule which for
bids the application Of foreign substance
to a ball.
The admiration Of the modern ball
player is aroused by the skill of the few
remaining spitball pitchers. They have
always been very effective. Leok over
the slim list still In harness: Faber,
Quinn, Grimes and Mitchell. They
are all unusually clever above the ears.
Urban Shocker, who died a year ago,
was one of the great spitball artists
because he successfully mixed a slow
ball with his wet delivery. Shocker
also slowed up his splitter and thus used
1t as a change Of pace. Stanley Cove
leskie, who left the majors last season,
made hundreds of batters swing for
exercise. Burleigh Grimes, Pittsburgh
ace, has subdued National League slug
gers all year with spitters.
Takes Away Sharp Curve.
A trained spitball arm is not capable
Of propelling sharp curve. However,
sharp-breaking splitter is more easily
acquired than an explosive curve.
Therefore it is possible that many pitch
ers who possess only an ordinary curve
could adapt themselves to the splitter
with success.
In some quarters the umpires have
been held responsible for throwing out
so many apparently good balls during
the progress Of game. That Is the
wrong impression. The umpires are
| willing to keep damaged balls in play,
but such balls sail and do weird things
| in the vicinity of the plate. These
pranks cannot be observed from the
| stands. When the ball sails In an ur-
natural manner the batter invariably
asks the umpire to put another ball into
play. Also. conscientious pitchers re-
fuse to pitch a damaged ball.
In 1920 Ray Chapman, star shortstop
| for Cleveland, was killed with a pitched
ball. There was an unfounded run1or
that the ball was rough and sailed into
Chapman.
! No arbiter wants to be held re.
sponsible for injury resulting from q
roughened ball, and as long as the
pitchers and batters object to using
them the umpire must throw them out.
The cover of the lively ball cannot re-
tain its smooth quality after it has been
rifled against the concrete stands or
fences.
tCopyrisht, 1929. by North American News
| paper Alliance.)