Montana oil and mining journal., 1936-06-06

last half of the eighth inning with
runners on second and third there was
one out and the score tied one to one.
Los Angeles runners we're impatient to
move homeward. Jack sensed some
thing was going to be pulled. From his
position at shortstop, he told Peabody,
Helena pitcher to keep the ball high
on the batter The batsman finally
hit one, and the runners were off to
the races. F1annery hollered to Pea
body to cover the ball and shoot it
home. The runner was out by many
feet. Jack hunted up Manager Cronin
Of the Angels after the game and asked
him about the play Cronin admitted
it was a brain child" of his and re-
had ordered the play tried out. He
wasn't q bit disappointed over the
failure Of the play TO work, and told
Jack that it would yield many runs for
his team before the season was over.
The Helena club of that year. too, was
a great exponent of the squeeze play"
The formula was sent on TO Griffith,
and the Yankees, then the Highlanders.
were the first major league club to
employ the squeeze"
Umps Called Him mister"
An umpire's life was anything but
a bed of roses when Flannery was in
the game Jack had fiery temper and
the nerve to back it up While arguing
with an lump" Jack would step on
the arbiter's feet, wave his fists in the
face of any or all umpires, tell them
what he thought of the breed, and
dared them to send him to the bench
more trouble than all other players in
the league. All umpires addressed Jack
as Mister Flannery"
After he quit playing he now and
then was pressed into service to UNI
pire games. If any player questioned a
decision or tried to ride" him, that
player was inviting q fine, expulsion
from the park and what is known as al
good sock on the jaw.
Jack was never a Ty Cobb on the
bases. He didn't have Cobb's speed nor
could he execute the fade-away slide
like the Georgia Peach, but he was just
as big a threat. When Jack was on
the bases, players learned not to get
in his path, and, when he crashed into
bag, his feet were sure to hit any
obstacle. Jack got away with many
stolen bases because Of tinid base guar
dtans. If a baseman didn't like the way
Jack hit the bag, they were promptly
asked what they were going to do about
it, Nothing pleased him more than
stealing base, unless 1t was to wrangle
with umpires or to pile up base hits.
Wherever Jack played, whether 1t
was in the American Association, Cen
tral, Three Eye. Coast, Pacific North
west or Montana State league. the fans
would veil fire" as he came TO bat.
Before he took up professional baseball, |
Jack was a member of the Butte fire
His first pro-engagement
was with a Butte team. In his first time
at bat in his first game there, the fans
greeted the Flannery Lad with shouts
Of Fire" Fans Of other cities took |
up the call.
Greeted by Friends IN East
One year Jack took over the manage
ment Of the Grand Rapids team Of the /
Central league in mid-season. His re-
lease was purchased from the Tacomsl
club. He got on a rattler and headed
for Wheeling, West Virginia, where the
Grand Rapids team was scheduled to
play a series of three games. It hap
pened that four or five Butte men
we're in Washington at the time One
Of the number noted in the WashinR-I
ton Post that Jeck Flannery would
make his debut as manager Of the
Rapids team with the opening game OF
the series. The Butte bunch decided
10 run down to Wheeling and say Hell
Ion to Jack. They went from the train
70 the ball park. When Jack made hig
first appearance at bat, the prnlInI
relied 'Fsire. Jack looked at the stands
1ut couldn't make out who the friends
were.
jack knew the yelling crew had tol
be friends froam the northwest or the