| Show c SP CE RAN HAN across Oscar Vitt the other ather I night and we stopped stepped to talk about Bob Deb Feller Based on an his natural ability his gain In expert expert- I I y t Y iw d ence once and the way he has been rounding round ing trig into shape everybody everybody ev eVe expects the Van Meter Meier fireball fireball fireball fire fire- ball pitcher to have havea a great year So I 1 discovered d does o a e s Vitt Ill fie cant can't miss the manager of af the Indians said This will be his best year Grantland Rice nice UP to now another step on an his way to being perhaps the greatest pitcher we have ever looked at Let me tell you yau about this kid You Yau hear all about his fast ball and his curve ball ball you'll you'll find the ballplayers ball ballplayers ballplayers players will talk more mare about his curve ball than his fast ball because that's what he strikes them out aut with withIn within within In the clutch clutch but but you yau dont don't hear much about how haw hard he works to improve himself And that if you yau ask me me is the greatest asset he has has or or that any ball player has He lIe Practices Hunting Heres one detail I 1 rounded all the pitchers up one day and talked to them about aboul bunting I 1 dont don't mean fielding bun bunts Is I 1 mean doing the bunting themselves When I 1 send you yeu up there to sacrifice I said what do you yau do da Most Masl of af the time you yeu bunt the ball right back to the pitcher pilcher for far a force farce play or er you yau pop pap the ball in the air Anybody can learn to bunt if hell he'll only give a little time to it And remember this Youre You're working for fer yourself when youre you're at the plate just as much as you yeu are when you yeu a II W 3 4 5 tea 1 nOD BOB FELLER are re in the box bex You Yeu can help yourself your self self self-or or you yau can wreck your ball bal game Do you yau realize that by learning learning learning learn learn- ing to bunt so that you yau can move mave runners along when youre you're up there trying to sacrifice you yau might win two more mare games a year Two more mare games won wen might make a difference in your record recard for fer a season and might make a difference in the standing of af the club They all agreed with me They had to 10 because I 1 was Wall right Du nut you Ou know who has done most about abou it It iI dont don't you Sure You guessed It Teller reller He lie came to 10 me after arter practice that thai day when everybody else was heading for the club house and anti asked me If I 1 could get a couple of fellows s to 10 o throw to him Throw to you yau I asked him What do you want them to throw to 10 you au for fer he So Sa I can practice bunting said You Yau bet your life Ill I'll get somebody somebody some same body bady to throw to you yau I saidI saidI saidI said I got get a couple of strong-armed strong young fellows out aut to throw ta to him and he practiced bunting for far an hour Hes He's been at it every day ever since The other ather pitchers have been practicing too taa But Dut not nat like this kid All lIe He Had Ilan to Say You see 1 I told him If he could bunt it might win sin two more ball games Barnes a year ear for him That's all allI I J had to say Hed He'd do anything to win two more games a year Hed He'd stand on his head In the box if Ir be he bethought bethought thought it ii would help him that much Its the same way with pitching with men on an the bases That was his big weakness weakness but but it isn't an any more mare They might steal on en him once in a while just like they will steal on an any pitcher once ance in a while But Dut if they think they are going to torun torun torun run on an him this year like they used to they're crazy I hope hepe some seme of af them try it He lIe was a sucker for fer them once but once but hes he's laying for far them now in kid Its a great thing to see a like that The average kid breaking In as young as he did did why why I 1 was looking at him the other ather day and thinking to myself he still looks like a baby baby and and getting aU all that all J that at publicity pub the the average kid would have got gat a swelled head and you wouldn't have been able to tell him any thing But Dut this kid just hangs around waiting for far you yau to tell him something or ar asking questions of af me or some seme of the older alder players on an the club club and and he is II a B cinch to wind up as one ane of the greatest pitchers we ever had maybe had maybe the greatest |
