The Waterbury Democrat., 1937-08-23
7igerBench- Warmer Outhits Dil1aggio
BASEBALL SCOUT HAS GREAT PART IN BIG LEAGUES.
Ty Cobb Was Bought for $7OO, While Strand at
 $4O,OOO Was Failure

This is the fifth of series of
 six Illustrated articles on ~The
 Other Side of Baseball"
 BY RICHARD McCANN
 NEA Service Sports Writer
 0-Men who go a-huntin' for pub- lie enemies have a snap job com pared to that of the little posse of men known as major league base ball scouts who beat about the bush- ss in search of public heroes.
 The G-Men, at least. have fineer- prints to go by. The baseball scouts have nothing.
 The unceasing search for talent IS the most exasperating, discour. aging part of the business of con- oucting a baseball firm, And the purchase of talent is the biggest of all gambles.
 The baseball scout, you see. no matter how astute he may be. never knows for sure just what he's pay- ing for. Records mean little when man is lifted from the obscurity or Q minor league and showed into the hot, whitening glare of major league headlines.
 Connie Mack, for instance. paid out S40,000 for Paul Strand. who had 8 400 batting average in the Pacific Coast League. As things turned out. Strand wasn't worth the carfare east. On the other hand. Detroit once paid only $700 for a .240-hitting outfielder in the Sally League named Ty Cobb. You may have heard of him.
 Sometimes, of course, a lnigh.pric- ed piece of baseball bric-a-brac. such as Lefty Grove who cost sl00.. 900, is more than worth hi sour. chase price. But, as Q rule, this business of appraising ball players IS as big a gamble as the hosses.
 Scout Travels 10000 Miles
 The strange part about most of the 30 or so regular major league scouts is that they couldn't get into 'tne pig show themselves when they were players and yet here they are opening the door to the majors for countless youngsters.
 The Cardinals Charley Barrett oean Of scouts, never could get out of the Texas League as an out fielder, but he has shown the way up to Jeff Tesreau, Art Fletcher Jim Bottomley, Charley Grimm. Chs Mancuso. Chick Hafey, Pepper Mar tin. Bing Miller, Muddy Ruel--aw. you can't begin to name the men MT. Barrett has squinted at and said, "Yeah-I think heIl do. m take him
 MT. Barrett, and many other scouts. will travel as much as 2O.- 900 miles annually by auto, train. ptis, plane, and, once. in his case, by tractor. Mir. Barrett had to ride such a vehicle up a rutty mountain road to take a gander at some hay. pitcher who had all the fellers around and about flabbergasted.
 There are some 500, 900 young men and old performing in minors, sand- lots, and colleges. A scout considers himself lucky if he finds one among all who Is a major leaguer right off the bat. Most of the discoveries need further seasoning.
 Bramham Saved Minors
 In the case of outfielders, a scout looks for speed. e good arm, and hitting power for extra bases.
 The first baseman must be a good batter. and have the ability to shift his feet. The other infielders must have timber backs and shoulders, I good hands, speed, and ability.
 A catcher must have a good arm, he must be deadly tagger, and he must be smart and alert. Ala scout asks of pitcher is e fast ball. Poise, curves. technique can be taught; change of pace and con- trol can be acquired.
 All players. regardless of position, size, color. or creed, must have courage. quiet habits, sound health, and even disposition. Sometimes a sco t is willing to overlook habits ant disposition, but courage and hea tn must always be there.
 Five years ago a scout did not have to 90 far to look for players. Back in 1882 there were only Il mic nor leagues. Baseball was dying at its roots.
 But along came William c. Bram- ham as czar of minor league base- ball resolved to return the game to local citizens. Mir. Bramham, elect- ed president of the National Asso- ciation of Professional Baseball Leagues Che still holds the post). be- lieved that major league ownership killed local interest by robbing the game of inter-city rivalry.
 His campaign was 50 successful that only about 20 per cent of minor league teams are owned by major clubs. The rest have working agree- ments with the major outfits.
 And as a result of MT. Bramham's tireless efforts, the number of mi. nor leagues has trebled in the last five years. There are now 37 in operation, ranging from three Glass AA loops to % in Glass D.
 This total of 20 Glass D leagues is the brightest result in the cam- paign. These are the kindergar. tens of baseball. By putting the lower rungs back in, MT. Bramham Is helping more youngsters get Q start up the ladder to the big show.
 NEXT: Coaches and trainers.