Show Player Ty Cobb and I His Baseball Career t j BY E. E G. G BROWN Tyrus Raymond Cobb star tar outfielder J of or tho the Detroit Americans merican has had th thA tho A most rapid rise riBO In baseball circles of any of at tho the great stars of tho the diamond f During his lils v first full y year ar iu in what professional pro pro- ball players call can fast fast com corn jJ pany paDY Cobb not only mado made good but 4 h he surpassed the wildest prophecies of s 1 his most ardent a admirers for he led t his league in batting and established an enviable record as a base I In loss than faur four years ho jumped from a month a cub to ono one f of the highest priced ball baU players in either cither league and all this ho lie has accomplished ac- ac before reaching the tho age ago at which tho the ordinary American citizen can vote r His IUs great playing and wonderful batting bat batting ting for t the e Detroit Tigers last year was Wa la largely elY responsible for that team winning the American league championship cham chain and he has been a great fac- fac i tOT tor in keeping his team in tho the lead during the present season Last year Cobb was the baseball S. S sensation this year ho he has proven tho the i. i baseball marvel Besides being the greatest batter in his hs league Cobb is probably the tho most nervous ball player that over ever wore sp sped ed shoes When he ho first began his career as a real ball player it was next to impossible to keep him still He generally began racing as soon as he was the tho batter batter up He Ho would run runt t to the tho plate smash the tho ball into the field and start on a mad chase to first If thrown out he be kept on running turning around and continuing his gallop gal lop till ho reached the players' players bench Ty as every overy baseball ll fan in the i country knows him is a tall well knit I southerner with hair as fia flaxen ten as s pulled taffy mild mUd blue eyes and a smile that reflects the tho south southern em sun that bronzed his skin since he ho was vas a cotton picking tad hd on his grandfathers grandfather's farm in Geor Geor- gia gla He is six feet and three quarters of or an Inch in height and weighs pounds when stripped for tor action Cobb is proud of the fact that he IB LB the youngest man who over ever led either of the big leagues in batting and his success on the diamond has gone far toward eliminating tho the juvenile tricks that wore were t the e bane of his play fellow ers' ers existence when he first Joined d tho Tigers In the following article Tyrus tells everything he can remember of his past life both on and off of the ball field BY TYRUS COBB t L You'd You scarce expect one of my 3 age ae e eHo Lb Mo Ho be writing a piece picco for the paper but butr butI Kl r I am as 36 you you on can cm see sec for yourself our elf Maybe May May- be bo roud alo scarce expect ono one of my l fJ se age e to be bo leadin the league leacue in batting bat bat- ti ting but etc Four years ago I. I too t would have hao been surprised mayhap in incredulous re if any am one had bad tol told me that I J would be doing Join both in in Anno Domini IOOS 1008 But two years vears ago ao I would have Imn believed anything about m- m elf that an any ono one prophesied for 1 just about that time tinH I he began nn to dei de de- i i a great in fu m my ability Un do to-do do thing r- r rJ J I was nas born boru in Ga on Dc Dc- er IS 18 Royston is is in Banks pud ud ou the tho day ay I arrived it w was g resting ly under a snow now bank for they hail had a fair sized fall of snow now tin iri m Georgia Georcia that year jear T I get this information information in in- formation from hearsay But I can readily read read- ily ih lS' lS bel believe oo that Royston was covered overe with oven even if the if-the the fall wasn't a aen heavy en one oue for the tho whole to town consisted of a farm or two Mj- Mj grandfather Iy owned a u cotton plantation down lown there and aud I r was n-as raised ruise on ou his land Of course the news of my arrival spread about the countr countryside side anI and the ministers from the neighboring towns a Z a footrace to the farm so as to got tLc job of christening me One patriarchal hal gentleman of the tho gospel was was t fleeter hector than his 1115 contemporaries t for be he got ot there thero first firt and by the the time be came caine camp the family had already picked out out o. o title for me inc I dont don't know now from froni archives es they ever succeeded suc sue in dl digging ciu the name of Tyrus us 15 hut but they fell for it it t. t an and 1 I was the goat coat from Cobb inserting in in- The They separated Tyrus lYTUS by Raymond t bO o you see sec I have hR ono one of those triangular names Was Wa Cotton Picker The first thing thine that I can remember of my nn- carl life lifo is that r I picked licked cotton cotton cotton cot cot- ton alone with ith a a. lot ot of other kid kids Most lost of the other kids were H shady characters char and the their l' l mammies carried baskets bas bas- Itch filled with cotton on their heads beads Not on the kid kids kids' head but on their own On-D the mammies mammies' he heads Fooling with w tho cotton balls baUs and fi fighting pitched battles with them go cot ot rao roo into tho the habit of handling the phere and this early education stood me ino in in good 00 1 stead tead when many manx years later I broke into baseball Contrary to to the general belief I be began ao playing baseball twelve c years ago aco It was when t. t I. I was was a tot of S years cars and the thc position post post- tion tion I held was on the tho Royton Roy Koy- I ton tOIl Midgets I played with them for fora forc c a 2 eason at tho end of which I r retired tired r. r F ith three cent 25 balls a 3 homemade f. f bat and a catchers catcher's mitt spoils of a season on the diamond When I went out ont to try tIT for the team next year vear I found that I had outgrown t L my wy midgets midget's a un uniform orm and was theror there there- r r More Compelled to H farm out to th the L lankier ler team whom we Wc bad had bad as chief chieft t opponents the season before We Ve pLied played t I lea rue ono one league game ame every overy I t week and tho contesting teams were always wan tho the same Tho only difference in ln the lineup was the tho umpire and when the latter official became keyed up to too the proper pitch ho he would rule ono one of ht the tc c players out of the ganie gane and take i his bIS 16 place himself A A. now umpire would be oe selected and the game came ame continued 1 when I STOW grew older I played on a ai i regularly or organized amateur team knows known as tho the Royston Hero T r held down my old position of shortstop and a after ter a season with them bern and a few flyers 8 into what is called calle semi pro semiprofessional U ball hail I signed up with the u Augusta club of the South Atlantic Ba ratting Batting Got Him Job The lea league ue was a new one and I was f n nc tho first applicants f for r a job Co On owned ownell and mana managed ed ede th the ii ne e An Augusta sta team and he gave ave mo me a t out Ho JIo had a speedy speed young yount fellow Oss up a couple of balls but neither of o of them em got cot past pass tho plate I didn't 1 understand tho tIlO sei science nce of batting battin th then n IS as s well as I 1 do now and ind I J just swung at t each of tho the pitched balls ball for all I t r. r was as worth They sailed way out past t a y af of the tc fielders and n then than Con ConI I Put i m another pitcher r. r t 4 t JIe IIo wa wasn't nt BO 50 o speedy speed but he be had a a. t ricky y curve First Fint he put over vcr an out t rn Curve dve hand and I stepped across tho the plate j j. j i no w an cd it Then there came an r. r I t in in shoot and it went the tho same gamo way After After Af- Af Af ter I had slammed out about seven so-en flies jes told toW me mc to report for duty n right richt ht awa away I was on the job iob about three hours earlier r than anybody dy else elee I r Iwas Iwas was getting ettin a salary of 50 0 a month but I was as so anxious to play pIa that I believe i I would have paid for lor the thc pr privilege e. e I lacked experience was voting and un unsophisticated and I guess t I was generally gen gen- geni i emIly what is termed CI punk by hy the I fans nowadays At an any rat rate rato I did not I Imako make mako good oo and was Wa f farmed f out to the I Ann Anniston ston e club i lib of Alabama in tho Ten Alabama league ue This was only i if n f water tank kind of a a. league e an and hero I made good I knocked knocke so man many home borne runs that it got ot to be bo a a. a common occurrence occurrence oc oc- currence for me my average with the stick heiD being 30 Th The Tho Anniston club paid me 75 a k month and ond it Wa was not long I before Sti recalled me to the Augusta club at a salary of a aa aa a a. month The main trouble with me mo while I was with tho the Au Augusta club was that I T was too kiddish IJ I was always alas on tho the thorun run un run and try as 35 I would ouM T r could not break brak myself of tho the habit of chasin chasing a wild Indian linhan However Howe on my second trial with that team I came up to expectations expectations and after finishing the tho year vear at atthe atthe atthe the head hearl of tho the league in batting I 11 heard th things n s that led me to believe that the Detroit club was after me mc I found out cut later that I was mistaken The Detroit club wasn't eh dying n to get ct hold bold of me but Manager fana er William Ar- Ar monr amour had bad seen een mo at work and decided that I was good l eno enough h to travel tra with his team I believe he lie oven cen went so BO far a as to pa pay the 50 out of his own pocket that the tho Augusta club charged for my relea release Later he was able to I convince the Detroit club that he be had hadnot no not made a mistake You see seo after that I r just had bad to mako make good That was n-as in in 1 and md the nc next nest t year I T was an extra ex cx cX tra tra U on the team until late in the thc season season sea sea- I son ou when they gave ga rao mo a chance and andI I made tho the most of it Last Lat year car I came caine into my own ow-n. I am proud to say sa- that I r led the tho lea league c in batting hatting and ba base c stealing and I hope to be able to say the same thin thing next year tear Barring an accident I dont don't seo see how T J can help being being- in the lead in battin when ben the season ends and anil from all indications I will have hn an excellent II opportunity to show what I r can do against the best pitchers in the tho other I league I Of course I Ive Ic c got ot a n little schooling My Iy folks Ya al always s 's believed that school was good for a 1 youngster and they saw sass to it that I put in iu a part of my time limo at nud nul f and Arithmetic r Ive I've e never regretted it Xo No one ever cr docs does After fter finishing my elementary school chool education I put in two years at ata a prep school in Stone Mountain n Park and was just about ready to break into college o when th the death of f my father prevented pro mo me from carrying out m my plans Tells About Greatest Game I believe e the greatest ball hall game that I ever e played in was a tho the one ono between Detroit and ana Philadelphia for tho the championship championship cham last season ou Of course COUlSO that game was as not specifically for the pennant pennant pen pen- nant anal but hut the winning of the rag ras depended depend depend- ed on the tho outcome of tho the game came The De De- were eight ht points ahead nhea in the league leacue race and we wc had only two more games to play We were scheduled to play playa a double hea header er with Philadelphia the last games with them for the season sen- sen son and nod they were ero giving hin us a hard fi fight ht Let me mime see cc oc this game aIDe took place at I Philadelphia elphia on Sep September ember 30 of last year The Time grounds were literally packed with people The whole town was baseball base bac ball mad even worse than Chic Chicago q O in inthe th the worlds world's series senes People climbed over o center field fieM fence feuce trees tree outside of the field were Vere festooned with fans and the housetops as far as ono one could eo were ere suffused d with enthusiasts who were unable unable un un- un able to get et auy any nearer the scene of ac ac- ac- ac tion Wild Bill Donovan pitch pitched ell the entire game ame for us Dygert tho the spitball artist began becan tho the game for tho Athletics He last lasted cd through the first inning and part of the second Then Thea wo we faced Rube Waddell and his wonderful left hand shoots lIe He held us down for tor a a. while but we got ot busy in tho the fourth inning and made four runs This didn't help much for when wo we came to bat in tho the ninth the score stood 8 to 6 a against u us Then we got to the Rube for fair Sam Saimi Crawford singled i clell and find I hit the ball over right Sold field fence for a homer thus Heine tho the score Say if I live to be a hundred Ill I'll never for forget et the joy that our boys hos felt and showed that they tho- felt when the they saw that ball go sailing over the fence As T J wont around tho the bases Herman Schaefer went with me step for step pounding me rue on the back on every ery stride The rest of tho the bunch stood dancing dancing dane dane- ing at the tho players' players bench like a 3 band of wild Indians We e made another ono one in the eleventh and the Athletics followed suit again up the score core Tho fourteenth in inning inning in in- I nin ning was a squally equally one Har Harry Davis lifted a n high one ODe to the edge of the crowd in center Crawford rau ran like a wild man to make the tho catch and as 33 ho trag was about to grab ab the ball a cop pushed I him and anI tho the ball went into the tho crowd I If Umpire 0 had harl allowed I I the hit lilt it would have been good for two b bases bises ses under the ground round rule and Davis would have o scored on Danny Murphy's Murphys sin single lo which followed If you OU ever er saw a scarce scared cop eop there was ono one at the game that afternoon The excitement that followed hi his act of pushing Cra Crawford was in intense tense and it looked for awhile as if there would bo be a riot It seemed scorned to me that every player on both teams was out on the field at once arguing arg with Umpire and Connolly Whilo the argument was at its height bt Monte lonte Gross Cross of the Athletics and Claud Ro Rossman our first baseman had a little litto and Claud was chased out of the game anle Tho The fans invaded the field and it took ten minutes to get them off Rossman put on ou bis his street clothes and walked out the crowd while they were wore uttering lire dire threats a as to just how hen they were rero going to tear hun him to pieces wh when n he lie appeared They didn't nizo him and ho joined in the fracas and was waR loudest in denunciation of him him- self Tho The crowd never tumbled 1 Well the tho result of that game undoubtedly edly gave us tho the pennant Neither side eido was able to score Ecore and it was called a a. atie atie tie at t the e end of tho the seventeenth inning I firmly believe that that was not only the greatest game came I lever ever pI played a EJI but 1 T Tam am nm certain that in many respects it was the most sensational game came in in the tho history of baseball Some folks have Java hon been kind lond ellou enough h to sa say eay that I sac saved the game However that may be he I am ani certainly I proud to have ha played in in it Every baseball player that that- ever lived has some sort of hobby or superstition I have one superstition that is silly but butI I cant can't overcome it It is is this thie I always always al al- al W ways S 1 like c to have the umpires |