The Washington times., 1929-04-11
SAYS CAME
TO-DAY IS
Refined
BY Babe Ruth

ATLANTA, Ga., April IL.
The more I see Of baseball
and baseball men, the more
I'm convinced that everything
about the game has changed
and for the better.
A lot Of people seem to think that
Interest in baseball Is falling off
and that golf. tennis. swimming and
pther sports have taken something
out Of baseball. I don't think so.
I have never seen more enthusiasm
from the fans than have this year
and on this exhibition trip which
che Yankees are taking.
And I have never seen more en-
Ghusiasm from the players either.
OF course to those of us in the big
Leagues baseball is q business---a
real business like law or medicine
or any other business. But it never
gets over being game either. I've
been around a good many years,
but still get kick from playing
end I think the other veterans are
khs same way.
f8WE. SGNENNU VWt 80 H@tN
about the change i'm players.
The players OF today and ne
1ylayers Of 20 years ago are as
different as day and night. In
the did days ball players were
an easy.gOing, rough lot who
never gave thought to to-
morrow, and never cared much
what happened to them today.
& : i 2 i
The ballplayer of today is seri-
Gus minded young chap who takes
the game seriously. and who Is Al:
ways locking ahead. In the old
DAYS. q ball club had to have. all
sorts OF training rules and a couple
OF detectives to keep the players
straight. Today players seem to
realize that their careers depend on
their keeping fit, and rules have
gone out. The Yankee ball club
has been pretty successful or
kyayaization you'll have to admit, and
now and then you read stories in
the paper about the strict rules
Hug has and the, cops he keeps
around to enfnrces them. t
That's the bunk. Hug has no
rules at all--except common sense
He puts II straight up to the play
hrs themselves to take care OF them
selves. and they do It. / guess
we've got fewer rules than any
club i'm the league-and we have
less trouble.
The change in. players has been a
great thing for the game. too. a
lot of the rodyism IL gone. Players
watch out for each other, and
there's more real cooperation than
ever before. In the old days it was
every fellow for himself. Now
every man IL interested in every
other man, and instead of looking
after his own position and forget
ting the rest, you'll find the players
on the lookout to improve club
in every department. Hug men
ffoned that the other day in the
clubhouse when he commented on
the fact that at least a half dozen
PLAYERS had come to him recon-
lnending some other player they
knew whom they thought ought to
get . tryout.
To us old timers. and real
fxe that I'm an old timer my.
self, the change Is particularly
noticeable. Herbie PennOck was
talking about 1t the other day.
"Babe," he said, baseball is get
ting to be big thing these days.
I'm prouder today of the fact that
I'm a professional baseball player
than ever have been in my life. :"
The other day before we left
ST. Petersburg | got q great kick
out Of an old lady who was stop
- &taa hNtnl
She came over and asked me to
Sign d baseball.
"You know she said when I
came down here I thought baseball
was 4 roughneck game and all the
PLAYERS were rough necks. But
i've been watching these boys and
I've decided that they're just like
NV boys at home. They're all gen
tlamen and. ! like them. When !
get back up home (she lived in
Columbus. Ohio. I'm going up to
Cleveland when the Yankees come
to town, and I'm going to see you
play every game"
And I'll bet she'll be there. too.
fCopyright 1929 by the christy
walsh Syndieate)