The Washington times., 1932-03-16
WAITE STILL
CAPABLE
HURLER
By BABE RUTH

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla, Marcn
16.-I think Max Carey made a
very wise move when he ar
ranged for the signing of Waite
Hoye, and it will be no surprise
to see Waite win 10 or Is games
for the Brooklyn team this year.
And any club which can pick up
q pitcher good for 10 or IS games
will feel it did something worth
while.
The change in leagues should
add" to Hoyt's effectiveness. > He
had been working regularly in
the American League since 1919
and in the past two seasons he
had been with three different
clubS-the Yankees, Tigers and
Mackmen. Naturally a batter
who has been facing the same
pitcher for years knows just what
to expect from him.
Now things will be different
with Waite. He will be facing
batters who do not know him so
well, and he should be highly sue
cessful. You know Hoyt is no
where near as old as people think.
Big Lacquer At 20
He was a big league pitcher be-
fore he was 20 years OF age, and
it was only few months ago
that he celebrated his thirty
second birthday. There are IL or
IS pitchers in the big leagues
today who are much older than
he is.
Waite worked out with us for
q week at our training camp
this spring and I have not seen
him so light in years. He has
taken off about Is pounds since
last season closed and he looks
like player in the middle
twenties, rather than one of 80.
OF course Waite Hoyt hasn't as
much stuff as he had when the
Yankees were winning pennantS
in 1927 and 1928, but he still
has plenty of speed and, what is
more important, he knows how
to pitch. And the pitcher who
has been in the big leagues
number of years is the fellow who
is particularly valuable to club.
No matter Row much stuff a
young pitcher has, you cannot
bank on him as you can on a
boxman who has had the ex-
perience.
It is not surprising that Brook
iyn signed Hoyt. A year ago
Uncle Robbie was telling me why
ne signed Jack Quinn and Joe
Shaute.
"The batters in our league
don't know these fellows" he
said, "and I think both Of
them will help our club"
Everybody knows how well
Robbie's ideas in regard to these
pitchers came out. Quinn did so
well that he was one of the few
veteran pitchers in baseball who
received a better contract for
1882 than he received for 1881.
Shaute was particularly effective
against certain clubs and he also
made the deal look good.
Free Agents
Both Quinn and Shaute were in
the same position last winter that
Hoyt was in this year when
Brooklyn signed him. They were
free agents and able to deal for
their own services. A pitcher of
Hoyt's skill and experience might
be the difference between a win
ner and a second or third place
club.
Managers do not figure that a
player cannot have any good pitch
ing left in them when they en-
counter these free agents. I re-
member when Clarence Mitchell
was dickering for his own services
a few years ago and I imagine
some managers turned him down.
He landed with the Giants and
see what a pitcher he has been
for McGraw. He had one run of
IA straight victories after McGraw
signed him and Mitchell was past
80 when he joined the Giants.
This happens to many players
other than pitchers. Joe Sewell
received an unconditional release
from the Cleveland club last win
ter and the Yankees signed him.
Joe is far from through as a big
Lacquer. He played a lot of good
ball for us last season and he is
all set this year to put up a hard
fight against anybody who tries to
take third base away from him,
So don't be surprised if Hoyt
comes through IS a good pitcher
with the Brooklyn team. Waite is
still young en- ugh to last a few
years in the majors, md the
change in scenery may be the best
thing in the world for him. It
has been for many a ball player.