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Show Tom Shibe Says Lively Ball Fault of Hurlers Tom Shibe, Philadelphia baseball manufacturer, denies that the ball is lively; that is, he disputes quite vigorously vig-orously the statement made by John McGraw the other day that the rabbi! is the liveliest in the history of the game. "There is not one thing wrong with the ball we make" Shibe said. "There has been no change in the manufacture manufac-ture of the sphere since 1909. Trouble is that the pitchers are not as good as they used to be, and the young fellows coming up just take a toe hold and slam for all they are worth. They won't try scientific hitting, nothing but bust it. "Players follow Ruth, Gehrig, Simmons, Sim-mons, Foxx and others, who are riding the ball far and wide. Nowadays the placing of hits is unknown. The boys just slug, for they like the homers, triples and doubles that ring off the bats. "That ball is made according to the instructions of the two league heads and according to the rules of baseball. After it is made it is shipped to the heads of the two circuits. They are all wrong about the ball being any livelier than last season or any other season since we put the cork center in it." |