| Show BATTERS TICKLED iHLY CONNECT WITH WIT Ii BALL LT ALONE IT BY MORDECAI BROWN Chicago Feb 2 Hit the ball ban squarely and line it to some uncovered portion of the field was Frank advice to young oung batters Selee was a great man manager manager manager ager and a great teacher of the same game when he was vas with the Cube Cubs and ana his memory will ever remain green with those fortunate players who ever came under his direction His advice was most moat mo t difficult difficult difficult cult to follow tollow however It Is impossible I to hit the ball where you want to and andeen even een more mora impossible to wallop It where you want to toI I 1 for example am always delighted when I hit the ball ban at all Believe me its hard enough to smash the ball ban any anywhere an anywhere where without trying to place it I dont care eare who tells you I cant believe that a batter hatter knows Just where to hit it and where hes going to place It In the first place a man may say to himself Ill just lambaste that ball on the trade trademark trademark trademark mark about fifteen inches from the end of the bat and stick it through first and second What is he lie liable to do Either miss the ball ban entirely or pop Imp up a tiny foul to the catcher Cant Place Ball You might as well tell a batter to plug the ban ball with the end of or his bat as Inform him to pick out a certain place There was never a batter who knew where on the bat he was going to hit bit the ball Of that fact I am absolutely certain Willie TIllie Keeter Keeler was one of the few batters battens who was pretty prett sure of ot hitting the ball some somewhere somewhere somewhere where when he tried but you notice he swing at the ball He poked his hie bat at it following the tho course of the ball ballas ballas as well vell as he was able Sometimes with a man on first base a shortstop will dash over towards toward second the moment the ball is pitched pitch 4 and the batter will line the ball through his h va vacated vacated S Seated position po Immediately some of the fans fana will UJ exclaim Gee that was WU swell placing the ball They really realty imagine that the batter picked out oat the spot pot in 10 instantaneously instantaneously The truth of the matter is that the fielder either started toward sec eec second oDd mid to bluff the runner from fro a stealing or orthe orthe orthe the batter got away with a blind bUnd hit and run play It was only a chance the fact that the tha ball went through the unprotected unprotected unprotected spot Mitchell Just Swings Mitchell of the Reds one of the best batters in our league last Jut year didn t know where he was going to slug UC the ball He is iB just ju t as pleased when he bunt bunts safely towards third base as when hen In ht h knocks a panel off a fence lie He is just Ii s p pliable liable ta t do one as aa the other for he lit place the ball and know where it is going It is 18 enough for him to hit safely Another grand batter Speaker of the th Boston IJo ton Red R d Sox Sex slams at the ball with intent to kill it His Hl success I am told toM toMis is due to the way he stands up at tin th tinplate plate That one of the greatest secrets of batting A batter who ho stands close and does not draw back but one who goes straight into the ball Is l more liable to hit it out He is more likely to get It U out of the infield too A man who ho draws back even a trifle is more liable to rap raJ ra a tame grounder at the infield Wagner Cobb Evers Speaker and Mitchell Kitchell slam right into the ball bali and their success is greater than the ordinary run of batters Dont let anybody tell you he can canhit canhit canhit hit the ball where he tries to For he ha cant ant unless he Is a Ive never nevel heard of |
