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Show Seeing Big League BASEBALL . By BILLY EVANS Sportnrriur, Big Lsague Umpire and General Manager of the Ckvtland Indians Baseball has been very kind to me. I have enjoyed my work. It has dovetailed dove-tailed with what I kidded myself Into terming my "literary" efforts. I not only umpired, but also tried to be a spectator In every game that I have officiated. I wanted to get both slants. It waa my very good fortune to have been the umpire In some of the greatest ganioe that have been played In the last 25 years In the Majors. I have picked out the high apots In these contests, the unusual happenings, the superlutlvea of baseball and Intend to dwell on them at length In various articles. I umpired the first game Walter Johnaon ever pitched. I marveled as he turned back the slugging Detroit TIgors In his league debut, using nothing noth-ing but a fust ball. That was all he i knew. He boasted no curve, slow one or change of pace. Simply burning speed. Johnson In that game, as well aa many others In the early part of his career, attempted to keep the opposition oppo-sition from hitting the ball by throwing throw-ing It so fast the batters couldn't see tt He succeeded quite well. That may sound like wild exaggeration, exagger-ation, but tt Isn't. I can truthfully ssy that Walter Johnaon Is the only pitcher who ever caused me to blink behind my heavy iron mask. His speed In the early days waa so great that every now and then, much to my disgust I would And myself closing my eyes and calling tbetn. That's a first time confession. However, It never caused any trouble, trou-ble, as the batsman was doubly handicapped hand-icapped when pitted against Johnson. John-son. Ee not only bad to follow the Walter Johnson. flight of the ball, but also hit It Every Ev-ery now and then after calling a strike on a batter with Johnson pitching, be would turn and say to me: , "What was that laat one, B11L a fast one or a curve?" Such a query usually usu-ally brought a look of Indignation from me. Then the batter would Invariably In-variably reply : "I'm not kidding or kicking. I really real-ly didn't see the last one and I was wondering whether It was a fast one or curve." Having wrung such 'an admission of Ignorance from the batsman, I would proceed to tell him what I thought It was without any tear of contradiction. If I happened to blink on the same ball and had no better Idea of the pitch than the batter, I still had the edge. Charley Street first caught Johnson In the Majors and Is regarded by Walter Wal-ter as the greatest catcher of all time. For practically three years he called for nothing but fast balls from Johnson. When opposing batters asked him where Johnson's curve was, he Invariably answered: Why use the hook when you boys can't see the fast one?" ' The batters, tearful of Johnson's great speed, would have much preferred pre-ferred looking over Johnson's curve after he acquired one. The curve ball, yon know, Is not thrown with nearly so much speed. What are the superlatives of baseball base-ball aa I have seen them In the Majors Ma-jors over a score of years? What are the greatest pitching feats of various sorts that have come under my observation? obser-vation? What would I class as the greatest batting feat? What plays In the field Impressed me most? I will try to enumerate them as they appear to me. The umpire, watching the different teams perform day In and day out, year after year, sees many unusual things. I have officiated In more than 3.000 major league games and more than 50 world series contests. If I touched briefly on the many events worthy of mention, I could fill a large-sized large-sized volume. ((5 by th Bell Syndicate, Inc.) |