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Show SeeifBg Big Leegue Baseball "T Tl By BILLY EVANS FZ 3 J Sportswriter, Big League Umpire and General Manager of the Cleveland Indians Has baseball improved during the last 25 years? Yes and no. In some respects it has made decided progress. prog-ress. In other ways it has slipped back Just as far. There is no easier way to start an argument than to - tell some star player of a score of ears hack that the game Is much faster. That is his cue to open up and, believe me, lie has plenty of logic on liis side. Several years ago a Boston newspaper news-paper conceived the idea of having a number of former outstanding stars, niany of them favorites, return to that city for on old-timers' game. It was one of the most interesting affairs ever staged. In that game were such former greats as Larry Lajoie, Bill Bradley, Jimmy Archer, Cy Young, Jimmy Collins, greatest of all third basemen, Bill Dineen, Kip Selbach and many others. Some of the players play-ers were men who had starred In the majors 35 years back. It was my good fortune to be ura- i ' "r'-'"t; in Boston while those old-time stars were gathering for this game. For a week, each day would bring four or live back to the scenes of their former triumphs, when their names were a dally feature of the sport page headlines. Some of them indulged in short workouts in an effort ef-fort to limber up a bit. At dinner or sitting around the lobby of the hotel, I made It a point to discuss with most of the veterans the present-day style as contrasted to that of the past. A number of the old-time stars were close students stu-dents of the game, players who in their day gained much of their suc-. suc-. " cess because of keen minds. It might he supposed they were biased in their opinion. 1 didn't find them that way. Most of them were fraidt to admit that in certain respects - there had been Improvement; a good many were willing to believe that perhaps It was about fifty-fifty, but not a single player expressed the opinion that the game of today was an Improvement in any way over the article ar-ticle of ball they played a score or more years back. "It looks to me as If tj;e players' passion for long drives has taken if much away from the game," remarked the great. Jimmle Collins, universally conceded to be the greatest third baseman of all times. "I notice that most every player grips his bat at the end and takes a healthy cut every time he swings. "I understand the ball Is much livelier live-lier and home runs much easier to make, so no doubt that explains the 'Uike a healthy swing system' as Indulged In-dulged In by all players today. Not a single player in all the games I saw choked up on his bat and tried to place his hits. Not one player tried to beat out a bunt. I saw only two bases stolen in six games. No player tried a delayed steal. Not a single double was attempted. "I have always believed that playing play-ing for one run called for much more inside stuff than trying to get runs in clusters. Apparently a one-run or even a two-run lead is not considered consid-ered much of a margin these days. "In our day one of the greatest offensive of-fensive threats was the steal. Pitchers Pitch-ers paid close attention to the base-runners, base-runners, particularly men on first Developing De-veloping a movement that would drive the runner back or make him stick close to the base, was considered a most necessary asset for each pitcher. "Undoubtedly all players, fired by the fame that came to Babe Ituth as the result of his ability to make home runs, took up the Ruth style of always al-ways taking a healthy swing at the ball. But after all there is only one Ruth. Players like him come to the game about one in every 25 years or more. Baseball Is still a great game, but no better. It has newer and different dif-ferent thrills but no more than in our days." The thoughts of the thinking brainy Jimmy Collins expressed the feeling of every old-timer present. ((Si by the Bell Syndicate. Inc.) |