Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1958-04-13


Mort Cooper was pitching, and we couldn't touch
him. They were leading us 10 in the ninth inning,
and we hadn't gotten a man to second base
Finally, one of our fellows gets to first base.
and Leo Durocher orders the next guy TO bunt him
over, even though we're the road, where you
don't play for ties. We knew that If we got man
to second, could beat Cooper.
Sure enough, it was double, double, double
three straight doubleS-and we beat him. Once we
got that man to second we knew every pitch Cooper
was going to throw. We had their signs but until
we got a man to second-where he could see the
catcher give those SignS-we were dead.
I'VE had the signs of every club in the league,
SO we won the pennant. We had every one of Bill
Dickeys signs in the 194l World Series but the
Yankees beat us, anyway. That was the series
when Mickey Owen dropped the third strike and
when we had a lot of other bad luck
I've seen Gil Hodges of the Dodgers rush in
for a bunt tag out the runner going TO first base,
then throw to get the runner going into second.
You can't gamble like that unless you have infor-
nation. Hodges knew the other teams bunt sign.
I'VE stole those signs easily. With a man
second base one of our fellows, that is. he'd watch
the opposing catcher. II the catcher put down one
finger our man would touch his cap our signal for
one. If two fingers followed. our man would touch
mis- chest, signal for two, and so forth.
"On the bench we'd have guy watching the
catcher,s movements. Maybe after 1-2-l flash
from the catcher our hitter would get fast ball.
The next PITCH after the same l-2-l sign from
the catcher, might be a curve. The fellow the
bench was watching for the switch-the move by
the catcher, the hand on the knee, the adjustment
of the mask, anything, that would mean the signs
had been switched What fast ball
a curve with the same set of signs.
Get the signs, including the switches, and you
know what's going to be pitched Dixie Walker,
Dolph Cami and Billy Herman would drool at the
prospect of knowing what was headed their way.
Its easy to relay the information to the hitter.
Come on Joe could be a ball Belt it. boy
could be the fast one But a coach can make mis-
takes, and when he yells something indicating a
curve is coming and instead fast one arrives, the
hitter Is in danger
There signs and call-offs A call-of can
be merely clappng the hands. We have signs to
hit, to take to hit and run, and to bunt, but
control the hitter only when the count is and 0,
and and and I. Otherwise, he's on his own.
The runner has to know hit-and-run, steal
and bunt signs The shortstop has to know all
those. plus those of the pitcher and catcher plus
signs with the second baseman-So they'll know
who will cover secondhand signs with the pitchers
for pickof plays
THE third baseman should be alert to see if
he's catching the signs of his catcher. If he is he
shouldn't be, and he should tell the pitcher and
catcher about it. The outfielders should know the
pickoff signs so they can be on the move to back
up the play"
Lavagetto feels fans would enjoy baseball more
If they would attempt to detect some of the signs
try to discover flaws in pitchers deliveries which