Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-07-08
SQUEEZE REMAINS
DESPITE SLUGG|NG
Griffmen, Under Harris, Said
to Have Been Best in
Use of Play.
BY GEORGE MORIARTY,
Big LEAGUE Umpire.

TIME squeeze play remains an out
standing device of inside base
ball despite the constant howl
i of, Hey big boy! Sock it over
the WALL"
Hardly a day passes without this
emergency stunt being attempted by
big and minor leagues to put over the
tying or winning run. 1t is also used to
increase q lead.
Fans approve the squeeze play, be-
cause it is spectacular: only when the
batter misses the pitch do the partici-
pants look ridiculous. The play seems
to sweep the fans with surprise, and
that always pleaSes.
1t is not definitely known what play
ers invented the squeeze play. but
possibly it came into being as the re-
suit of an accidental Swing bunt"
which scored a run. Infielder Joe
Yeager of the New York Americans
introduced a play in the big league in
1906. Before that. Yeager said. 1t was
common in the International League.
Others Take it Up.
After Yeager had demonstrated the
merits of the play other clubs. almost
without exception. pressed 1t into serV-
ice as a pet trick. Before 1906 ended
the wholesale attempt to adopt 1t also
ended. The opposing batteries COM
bated it with the pitch-out.
At the plays inception. Clark Grit-
nth, then manager OF the New YORK
Americans, was one OF IT'S most EN-
thusiastic supporters. Finally IL was
learned that only few batters on eaG a.
club could execute the play prontaoly.
At first every batter on the New
York club tried to add the squeeze to
his bag of tricks. When the expert
mental stage had passed Griffith al
lowed only Willie Keeler and Hal Chase
to pull it. These two batters were par
ticularly adapted to the play. They
could shift their feet and bunt wide
pitches as we'll as perfect ones.
Chase was the best and most daring
squeeze play performer OF all time.
Chase flashed only one signal to the
runner, with the understanding that
he should start for home on each sue
ceeding delivery till the play failed or
went over. Chase succeeded in the
vast majority of attempts.
At Detroit one day he decided 70
try the squeeze on Red Donohue, one
of the craftiest pitchers OF his time.
Chase fouled four successive pitch-outS
and laid down a beautiful bunt on the
fifth attempt, scoring the runner.
Nationals Good at IL.
The Washington players OF the
Harris regime were the most successful
squeeze play manipulators in the his
tory of the game. The play aided this
club greatly in winning two remnants.
1t was an obsesSion with Manager
Harris. Peckinpaugh, Bluege, Judge
and Ruel were the other Washington
players who had the opposition on edge
in close games because of this play.
But it remained for the Yankees to
invent a new angle to the trick by
pulling it with two men out. Outfielder
paschal beat Cleveland last year in the
tenth inning by dumping bunt and
beating 1t out while the run was
scoring. Babe Ruth pulled 1t In a most
astounding manner last week against
the Athletics. Two were out and
Combs scored from third on the brazen
hit. making the count 3 to 3. The
Yankees won in the fourteenth.
(copyriEht, 1929. by North American News
paper AllianceD