| Show I WAGNER PLAYED FIRST BASE FOR HALF AN INNING WITH ONLY ONE HM HA H I l Nap Na Laje Got onto Into Big Bg Lage Accident ij ns Thinks Manag Managers rs Keep Youngsters Youngsters' on r Bench ench Too Long Without Trial r By Hans Wagner WagnerN 1 N TELLING of my sale to Louisville I was thinking so much Ji Si about m myself that I forgot to mention another YO young ball r who made mad ry when taken out of our league into fast f Company company 1 illy Nash of the Philadelphia club had been over to P tirl orl to look me mo over That was wa U n George Stallings Stalling wouldn't eena even een Barrow a Barrow my carfare a as full tull purchase J Tee j have 0 me with the it'll at how ho bad O George Glorge orge didn't want me Inc ash asJa was wall very ery anxious to get another ayer er named nam Phil Gler Uter then playing th tho Pall River In a different league all 11 Paterson lie couldn't cOllie come to toyia yia with Fall River and was waa about to top tot su p t another young oun player with Fall River lUver he was wa toW told who might turn out to be a pretty good ban ball player Yby not take him Z Zt ZI rm t I. his hi name 1 a asket keA Nash interested much c tl he wasn't apoleon Napoleon the they call tu o ne Cl la can hit pretty good and nd ought be a good when he gets a experience AM dont don't care car much about him de- de ared I Is Gler Oler The man want Jl finally wound up In Ina Nash Nah a 11 agreeing t t paY par 1500 2500 to get Gler when the therl t promised d to throw Lajoie rl je t r good 1 measure e 1 1 ien n the seasOn was over Nash went O 0 Woonsocket to locate locale the bo boy boyle a le lo and sign him to a contract even ift i-ift r. r didn't amount to much as he The h boy lives here a policeman 1 Nash He lIe drives a cab and It If II 11 go Ito over to that cabstand you ou will ably find him was all up on the box looking or a fare tare when Nash came up The he heto to him anc lie to iatter atter was wall explained ready In a minute to sign So Nash f out the paper a right there and La- La 1 f es signed the h contract t using T the Ii top t ot t him cab tor or a writing table The old 1 paper pape still tili tI shows shows- h the marks a t That's i 11 how L j I one of ot the h e gre greatest ate s t ball bail players that ever lived went to Ith fl Phillies lUell And let me ins tell you ou that as some sonic team of ot hitters Delehanty wason waon A on the club a. a well as Lajoie When hen fellows lit Into a pitcher It was going Delehanty made four tour r home runs In n one on game I believe he hei i could hit a ball harder than anybody I Ift ft ever ever saw except Babe Ruth CHEWING THAT TUAT BIT I am trying not to ramble but It r like I cant can't ever g get t away from fromI I my day days In Paterson As I was looking up the old dope Jope on oil Lajoie I ran across a note o from o a fan a caking asking n me to men's mens men men- l' l da 13 s 's Io sonic some n odd plays S and accidents e s durIng durIng dur- dur 1 Ing my days y I 1 reckon k I am am the only player r In n the thet t I world who vho ever had bad to play first base pa half halt Inning with my gloved glo hand only because the other was locked in m my hip iR pocket All of ot us In those days carried loose chewing tobacco In our hip pock jeta ets Many ball bali players do now That 4 1 Is what got me inc In trouble th I. I Our Paterson team was waa playing Hartford Hart- Hart iford lord ford and Sam lc was vas pitching I walked At th the beginning of 01 the Inning fAt ever to first base picked up my glove and nd then reached In my Ship pocket for tor fora v-a v a a chew I went ent to pull my hand band out rand nd in some way th the lining caught and r. r fitl II was locked I couldn't get my hand out to save my life Ufe I must have hae looked funny from tram the bench The players say ay I did I was struggling with one hand In my pocket I and arid waving my other at Ic tryIng try- try ine Ing to tell him not to pitch 1 I was wu helpless s- s Sam am evidently didn't understand He lie shot slot the ball over o and the batter hit it id wn to Goat Fitch at shortstop I waved aed and waved but that didn't stop He lie picked UI up the time ball and whipped it over o to me like a bullet j There was but one thing to do So I my bare hand In my pocket I I reached up with the free gloved hand handI I and caught the ball bail In th the stands and j on the bench they thought I was crazy ft Finally Manager Barrow discovered something was wrong rong and called to the umpire to stop atop the tho game He lie came over to ito me Inc and seeing the difficulty led me nit back to the bench Even Een Barrow get my hand free tree and he had to cut he pocket out with a knife so I rould t ouid go on with t the game n The lining had wound itself r about bo my y wrist istl like k kIt a It rop rope YOU YOU CANT CAN'T KEEP p A 4 t. t GOOD MiN MAX DOn It was about that time timo that I got my first injury in baseball I was hit on the knee or got it bruised in n sliding and the knee got worse and wor worse e. e It swelled up tip as big as your our head The f. f doctor was call called d In a day or two and round found 0 I had a water t on the I knee 1 y In those 0 days a we e played oo oi the tho Polo Pol Polor i r y In jn New York when the Giants Were r e out t of town So Ed Barrow took i to oo a 1 hospital SI in New e dY York r t and had my knee tapped for tor the tho water I was told old t to tp stay In the hospital for a a. wee week Ie I couldn't stand it though I I never got ot so o lonesome in my whole life t Ill I'll never e et t forget on the day Yb I borrowed e a pl pair i i of ot crutches and hobbled down to the ball I park j Mr Barrow I r pleaded I cant can't I stand it up to that hospital Take Tak me mc methe MO op the trip with I you Ill I'll go on li crutches Ive I've got to havo these lows s 01 to talk to It certainly was a tragedy to me I r ut have had bad tears In my eyes tAlI l right harrow Barrow finally agreed i. up P your our things timings and well we'll take 1 matte made the the entire trip of or ten days das or I. I lnore ore nore on crutches hutches and never missed ed a l l. ame At the end of ot that time I was vas I i If It I had stayed stay in n that hospital It L I. dont don't believe I ever would rave got J i r T ow W that Jumps jump mo me right back to the Louisville club Fred Pred Clarke was teach- teach me mea a lot about baseball but gee I h had hada d da a a. lot to learn lIe He knew I could i hit hit but he lie couldn't find any place to put me nto when wIlen I wasn't batting He lie tried me ne l Iri In the outfield But there I 1 had a good chance to f W off oft my arm but sometimes I 1 Showed It off too much Many lany times I a a. peg to the plate but overplayed overplayed over over- played m my hand and heaved the ball bail in the grandstand i 1 I Free re encouraged me all aU he could but t I he was was' worried to know what to do with me In In- tho those e days you know OW when a fellow tellow was signed he lie was to pia play They didn't take on young Youn fellows and let them sit on the ij Ii J bench until they had absorbed some j knowledge of ot the game TO GO BUT lT OUT V 4 As a a. matter o of ot fact I think managers I In 11 this day and time often orten make a mistake mis- mis fake take In keeping a a. young fellow on the b Bench too long Often Otten they keep p him for tor six months and then trade him without knowing what he really can do There have been many great players who never would have been heard of It H. H they had been jud Judged judge e merely by the way ay they carried themselves and by their actions on the tho bench In the old I days lays we Ve either played ball and mado made good or we were fired tIred out didn't know it at the time but larke spoke to Barrow Darrow my old manIg manager manager man man- I g ager II 1 about me saying he had not yet found tp nd the right spot for tor me that I was wasted to ted tod green and awkward in the positions 11 had played L i f 1 Why ont Cant you ou try him at short suggested ted I 1 played him there lOId jie he did pretty well be a a. good idea agreed CJ Ive tried everything else ant anC do tie any harm in trying Yes I believe v Ill I'll experiment n PJ n a f few clays daysI I was placed at short short- Mop atop op and that began my real major league career as an Infielder I 1 realized would have to learn a lot and make good and I set act about to learn it I was Ii-was wa not a natural born shortstop I acl to train myself to bo bl a a good goot me- me janic and I did it by watching others othel's ivI then practising practicing their There Therel l J i a w whole ole lot to Pl playing bet beI be- be t 1 I 1 f J I sides sidell merely stopping the time ball bail and throwing t to first hasp No team ever won a pennant without an expert experienced skilled mechanic at short Malta Make no mistake mis mis- tale take about that Ill I'll go into moro details details details de de- de- de tails later laler Copyright 1023 1123 in U U. S. S and anil Great Britain Cuba Japan and South America Amer Amer- Ira ica by North American Newspaper AIlIa Al AI- lIa liance Ilance c All ri rights reserved j i Tomorrow Aim An Answer to Some Inquiries In In- Irons From te s I I |
