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The Baseball Primer
By Hugh S. Fullerton
iOopjrtgbg 181 S, by W. G. Chapman)
Baseball needs a Webster and a
standing-revision board to keep the
dictionary of the game up to date.
The sport is building its own language
so steadily that, unless some step soon
is taken to check the Inventive young
men who coin the words that attach
themselves to the pastime, inter
preters will have to be maintained in
every grand stand to translate for the
benefit of those who merely love the
game and do not care to master it
thoroughly.
Joe Campbell, the Chaucer of base
ball literature, was sitting in his office
one evening, lamenting to me that his
paper (The Washington Post) would
not permit him to write as he pleased,
but Insisted that he confine his writ
ings to straight English. I reached
over and took the sheet he just had
finished. “'And Amie Rusie" it ran,
“made a Svengali pass In front of
Charlie Reilly’s lamps and he carved
three nicks in the weather." What
could be plainer or more expressive
of the fact that Rusie had hypnotized
Reilly Into striking out? Or what
could be more graphic than Lennie
Washburn’s description of u ball that
was hit hard and instead of bound
ing, “hugged the dirt," as the players
say, and tore its way through the
grass.
The following does not pretent to be
a complete dictionary of the base
ball language. It merely is the prim
er, containing some of the commonest
iWords and phases, with an explana
tion of their meaning:
Air (up in) —Excited, unnerved. A
term used to describe the condition of
a pitcher who loses his courage or
presence of mind at critical stages of
a contest.
Bean (N) —The head of a player
(V) to bean —to pitch or throw and
hit the batter in the head (see
Lima).
Bean Ball —I fast ball pitched at
or near the head of a player who Is
standing too close to the plate with
intent to drive him back. Often used
to drive timid batters away from the
plate, after which the pitcher usu
ally throws a fast curve.
Big One (The) —The third strike.
After two strikes are called the “big
one" is left. The percentage of safe
hits made by batters after two strikes
are called Is extremely high, and the
term probably results from that fact.
Bingle—A clean base hit, the ball
being driven clean over or past the
fielder without presenting a chance for
any possible play.
Bite—A term applied to batters who
are weak in that they cannot resist
the temptation to strike at a curve
ball, especially at a slow curve. The
message “He will bite" passed through
a league among the players generally
means the end of the usefulness of
that player.
Bleachers —Uncovered field seats on
baseball parks. Term originated in
the south where the colored spectators
were forced to sit in the sun, and
were “bleached."
Boner —A stupid play; a blunder In
the science of the game. Term adapt
ed from the idea that a player mak
ing a stupid play has a head composed
entirely of osseous tissue.
Bone-head —A player noted for mak
ing stupid plays; one adapter spoke
of a player’s head as his “armored
turret.”
800t —An error, in the making of
which the player fumbles with his
! A
x-*, ’
A;.,,: 1
Joe Tinker.
hands and allows the ball to bound off
his feet or legs, kicking or “booting"
it. Why does he waste his efforts
booting baseballs" inquired Boze Bul
ger of a new Infielder, “when Yale is
mourning the lack of a punter?”
Break (The) —The turning point of
a game of ball; the critical play which
starts a stampede of the defeated team
and a fusillade of hits by the atacking
club. Also “the breaks” are used to
expess the luck of the game. “The
breaks were all against us” means
that in every instan^ in which luck
entered into the play, it favored the
opposing team.
Bunt—A ball, struck with the bat
with the Intention of dropping or roll
ing it onto fair ground and only a
short distance, forcihg the infielders to
hurry the play to throw out the run
ner. It is used chiefly to advance run
ners who already are on bases
Bunt and run —The term used to
designate a play much used In the
more finished teams. The batters and
base runners exchange signals as the
pitcher starts to deliver the ball to the
batter, the runner or runners start
for the next base at full speed. The
batter bunts as they go, and It he push
es the ball fair the play obviates the
chance to force the other runners.
The play Is extremely dangerous to
bad hunters, as a double play is al
most certain if they bunt a fly into
the air.
Coacher—A player or manager who,
from the coacher’s boxes back of
first and third bases, endeavors to
guide and advise batters and base
runners, warning them of the move
ments of the enemy and flashing the
manager’s signals to players, as or
ders for certain plays. In the early
days of the game the duties of coach
ers were to play clown, make noise
and strive to excite or anger oppos
ing players. The coacher in the mod
ern game usually Is quiet, studying the
movements of the opposing pitcher
and catcher and assisting base run
ners.
Control —Ability to throw a base
ball where it is directed to be thrown,
IO ■
pvL
John J. McGraw.
and to pitch it over the plate between
the batter's knees and shoulders when
necessary. Control Is the pitcher’s
principal stock in trade, as a pitcher
who can throw the ball near where
he wants it to go needs few curves
and not much speed.
Crab — A crabbed player, a “grouch.”
The verb to crab means to show a
quarrelsome or complaining spirit.
Many of the worst “crabs” in base
ball are the pleasantest and most ge
nial when off the field, their crabbed
ness evidently being the result of the
nervous strain of playing.
Crash —Verb used in baseball, not to
signify a single sound, but a series
of hard hits. A team “starts crash
ing,” when three or four batters in
succession make hits.
Crowd (Verb) —To stand close to
the home plate when batting, the pur
pose being to hamper the pitcher and
sometimes to force him to hit the
batter. The team that “crowds” per
sistently is a hard team to beat, as
in many cases batters will be hit, and
many times pitchers, over anxious
through fear of hitting them, will pitch
outside the plate and give them bases
on balls.
Curve —In professional baseball the
only curve spoken of as such is the
fast breaking ball, pitched overhand,
that darts down and out from a right
handed batter. All other curves are
qualified as sidearm, out, barrel hook,
slow, drop. No one speaks of an In
curve among major leaguers. See
Putting Something on It, and The
Jump.
Dirt (Hit the) Slide —Usually heard
in connection with an order to a play
er. Managers always reprove play
ers who “stop standing up,” and or
der them to “hit the dirt,” partly be
cause standing up is a risky way of go
ing into a base, and partly because
so many players are Injured by not
sliding.
Double —A two base hit, or “two
bagger.”
, Double Play—A play in which two
Tunners are retired or put out, before
the ball ceases to move, or in one
continuous play. The commonest
double play is from the short stop to
the second baseman to the first base
man.
Double Steal —A steal of bases by
two runners simultaneously. The steal
when made with runners on first and
second is seldom called a double
steal, as the runner on second steals
third and the other runner merely
“trails.” The double steal, as meant
by the expression, is made with run
ners on first and third. The runner
starts from first and, as the catcher
throws to catch him, the runner on
third trier to score before the ball
can be returned to the catcher. The
play is used chiefly when two are out
and the chance of scoring in any other
way is small.
Double S?.*al (Dakyed)—With run-
ners on brat and third bases the run
ner on first pretends to start for sec
ond. About 30 feet from first he stops
quickly and turns as if to go back. If
the catcher relaxes from the throw
ing position, he starts for second at
top speed and, as the ball Is thrown,
the runner at third starts for the
plate. The success of the play de
pends upon the element of surprise
and except against experienced and
cool-headed catchers it is likely to be
more effective than the double steal
made in the ordinary manner.
Fadeaway—A slow curve ball that
loses speed suddenly as it approaches
the batter and falls, or "fades” away
at an unnatural angle. The fadeaway
is accomplished by a jerking and hold
ing motion of the fingers upon the
ball at the moment of releasing it
from the hand. Christy Mathewson
developed the “fader” into its high
est state of perfection.
Groove —An imaginary passage from
the pitcher’s hand over the center of
the home plate. When a ball comes
“down the groove” it is pitched at
the natural angle (that is, “without
anything on it") over the plate and
therefore is easy to hit. Grooves also
are the spaces between the fielders and
between the fielders and the foul lines
through which batted balls usually
pass out of the possible reach of the
players.
Hit and Run —One of the most effec
tive styles of attack devised in base
ball. The object is concerted action
on the part of the batter and base
runner, and the runner on the bases
may take two bases Instead of one
on a hit, or reach the next base be
fore he can be forced.
Hold Up—Perhaps the most impor
tant part of the Inside work of the
pitcher, catcher and batsmen is to
“hold up” runners, or prevent them
from “getting a lead” off the bases.
Hole (In the)—ln difficulties; in
dire straits. Either the pitcher or
batter may be “in the hole” as the bat
ter is “in the hole" with one or two
strikes and no balls called, and the
pitcher when he has pitched two or
three wide balls, and has none or one
strike on the batter. The object of
every good batter is to get the pitcher
“in the hole" so that he, in fear of
giving a base on balls, will pitqh a
straight fast ball over the plate, giv
ing the batter much better chance of
making a safe hit.
Hook—A fast overhand curve that
breaks downward and outward at an
unusually sharp angle. The hook
curve is accomplished by a sharp snap
of the wrist at the finish of a wide
swing of the arm, which accentuates
the sharpness of the curve. The hook
curves of Brown and Overall, Joe Cor
bett, Tom Ramsey, Bill Donovan, Bill
Terry, Walter Johnson, and others
have become famous for their width.
Hook Slide—Also called the “Chi
cago slide” —A method of sliding to
bases which was perfected by Mike
Kelly of Anson’s White Stockings, and
taught to all the Chicago players.
Inside —A pitched ball that passes
between the plate and the batter is
“inside” whether the batter is right
or left-handed, but the “out” corner
of the plate is the corner toward first
base, and vice versa, when there is
no batter up.
Knuckle Ball —A slow ball pitcher
with the knuckles of the three middle
fingers turned under and pressed into
the ball, which is gripped with the
thumb and little finger only. The
knuckle ball is extremely deceptive, as
it is delivered with a show of great
speed and comes with extraordinary
slowness. Summers of the Detroit
team, perhaps, is its greatest mas
ter.
Lead —The distance from any base
that a base runner can gain before the
ball is pitched. To. “get a long lead”
is the object of every runner.
Liner —A hard driven ball that is hit
on a straight line to or past the infield
before it touches the ground.
Mound —The pitcher’s foot plate, or
slab. Derived from the fact that on
most grounds the plate is higher than
the rest of the infield, to give the
pitcher an advantage through pitch
ing downward at the batter. The
“mound” is elevated or depressed by
some clubs, high plates being used
for tall overhand pitchers while low
ones are preferred for sidearm or un
derhand pitchers.
Outlaw —The club, league or player
who offends against baseball law is
punished by being “outlawed” or
blacklisted. The alleged benefits of
“protection” are withdrawn as
punishment to offending leagues or
clubs while players are blacklisted.
There are several hundred players on
the blacklist st present who cannot
play in any club belonging to the na
tional agreement until reinstated by
the commission.
Outside—The side of the home plate
opposite to that occupied by the bat
ter. If the term is used without re
gard to the batter the first base side
of the plate is outside.
Pass —A base on balls.
Pltchout — The most effective
method of meeting and breaking up
the hit and run play. The ball is
pitched rather high and on the out
side of the plate, to prevent the bat
ter from hitting it and at the same
time to permit the catcher to re-«
ceive it in perfect position for a
throw. When a signal is detected,
or when the catcher and pitcher sus
pect that either a steal or the hit and
run Is to be attempted, the pitcher
pitches out to balk the play.
Putting Something On It—Manipu
lating the ball so that it will curve,
break, float or revolve in the air, rath
er than throwing it naturally.
Reserve —“Organized baseball” de
pends upon a clause in the players’
contracts whereby the club “reserves"
their services for the following sea
son. The reserve clause really acts
as a perpetual contract and the legal
advisers of players declare the con-
tracts would not hold In law The
reserve clause was placed in cop
tracts to prevent the wrecking of
leagues by competitive bidding for
the services of the best players—
whereby the richest clubs always
could win.
Scout —A supposed judge of ball
players employed by the larger clubs
to watch r ae playing of men in small
leagues, colleges and in independent
clubs to recruit good players.
Slider—An injury to a player
caused by scraping a segment of skin
off the leg or thigh in sliding to
bases. Many players suffer much from
these injuries, often having the skin
torn off their limbs in patches four
or five inches square.
South Paw —A left-handed pitcher.
The term is derived from the fact
that most baseball grounds are laid
out so the pitcher faces west, and
a left-handed pitcher’s arm is to the
south.
Spikes (To Sharpen) —The pretense
of a player to sharpen the triangulai
toe and heel plates he wears on his
shoes, is a threat to “cut his way
around,” or to spike certain antagon
ists if they attempt tc stop or* touch
him. Chiefly a form of braggadocio,
and seldom carried into effect.
Spit Ball (The Spltter)— The most
effective ball In the pitcher’s reper
toire. It is executed by putting
heavy friction on the under side oi
the ball by gripping the thumb into
the seams, while the friction on the
upper part is lessened by the use of
saliva, slippery elm or some such oily
substance. The spit ball Is used most
effectively by Walsh and Ford and its
modern development was due to
Elmer Strlcklett, who reintroduced It
into the major leagues. The discov
ery of the spit ball is a matter of
much argument. Some claim the
honor for Al Orth, who used it in un
derhand pitching twenty years ago.
It is claimed that Tom Bond, the
famous old time pitcher, pitched the
ball in New Bedford in 1876, and used
glycerine, which he carried in his
pocket.
Stuff —The “English,” twist or re
verse which causes the ball to curve
or perform other unnatural move
ments in the air. When a pitcher
“has a lot of stuff" he Is making the
ball curve or break more than he ordi
narily can do.
Swinger.—A batter who strikes at
a ball with a full, long, sweep of the
bat and arms, instead of “choking up”
or shortening his grip and “just meet
ing it.” The “swinger” is a type of.
player not wanted in finished ball
clubs. They usually are long dis
tance hitters, but uncertain and us
ually finish with low averages.
Texas Leaguer—A short, weak fly
that drops safe just over the infielt
and too close In for the outfielders tc
reach it. Usually an accident, but
sometimes accomplished purposely
by good batters who merely tap the
ball and float it safe. The term origi
nated from the fact that Ted Sulli
van, the veteran player-manager
magnate, had a team in the Texas
league that was noted for that kind
of batting.
Triple—A hit which enables the bat
ter to reach third base before the
ball returns to the infield. Also
called Three Bagger.
Triple Play—A play which retires
three runners before the ball ceases
to move, or in one consecutive play.
There are records of eight triple
plays made by one man unassisted, and
about twenty triple plays are made
in each league every season.
Waste —Pitching high or wide to
batters purposely. The pitcher often
■..
Xs A
iWk *
“Rube” Marquard.
will, when he has the advantage of
the batter in the matter of balls’ and
strikes, waste a ball, either trying to
tempt the batter into striking wildly,
or striving to allow the catcher to
make a play to catch a base runner.
Water Bucket (Spiking)—Drawing
away from the plate as the ball is
pitched. Many batters draw- back the
foot an entire step, out of timidity or
through nervous habit, and those who
step far back are said to spike the
water bucket.
Whip—The throwing arm. Also
called Wing and Soup-bone.
lilt
TELEPHONES OF THE WORLD
Very Nearly Three Out of Four of
Them Are Found In America—
Europe Is Backward.
Os 9,500,000 telephones in the world,
7,000,000 are in America, 2,000,000 in
Europe and the other 500,000 are scat
tered over the remainder of the plan
et’s surface. Commenting on these
recent estimates and their probable
correctness, the National Telephone
Journal of London says:
“The reason why Europe cuts so
poor a figure in comparison with Amer
ica is that four or five of the most
civilized and populous countries are
extraordinarily backward in telephon
ic development. France, Austria, Hun
gary, Belgium, Holland and Italy—in
the first four of which the telephone
is entirely In the hands of the govern
ment —may be instanced. In the whole
of France there are less than 200,000
stations, and in Austria and Hungary
combined there are actually fewer
telephones than in the city of Chi
cago.
“Ancient cities of universal renown,
counting 400,000 or 500,000 inhabi
tants, and moreover of greater com
mercial importance, such as Lyons,
Marseilles, Naples, Antwerp and
Prague, are far behind American
towns with 50,000 to 100,000 inhabi
tants, such as Peoria, St. Joseph, Dayr
ton and Norfolk, Va., which few Eu
ropeans have ever heard of; while
Vienna, with a population of nearly 2,-
000,000, has not so many stations as
San Francisco, with 350,000 souls. If
the countries of central and western
Europe were as well developed tele
phonically as even Great Britain and
Germany, to say nothing of Scandina
via, the comparison with America
would be vastly more flattering.”
LIGHT ADJUSTER IS USEFUL
——
Lamp May Be Raised or Lowered to
Suit Convenience of Mechanic
as Illustration Shows.
One way to raise or lower an elec
tric light is to tie a knot in the cord.
Another way is to use a lamp cord
adjuster.
This latter method will be found
more satisfactory, however, than the
former. One of these adjusters is
shown in the illustration.
By the manufacturers this device
is called a two-ball .adjuster. The
z >
k J
Useful Light Adjuster.
name is derived from the two balls
through which pass the lamp cord.
By raising or lowering the lamp by
hand it may be placed in any desired
position. The lower ball is weighted
to a certain extent to take up the
slack cord when the lamp is raised.
This sort of adjuster will be found
most useful in machine shops in such
places as over a lathe. The mechan
ic may raise or lower the light to
the convenience of the work. The
flexible cord also permits the mov
ing of the light to the right or left.
Aid to Meter Reader.
Renovo, a railroad town in Penn
sylvania, has adopted the very con
venient scheme of placing electric
light meters on the back porches of
the houses. This arrangement per
mits the meter reader to read a
great many meters in a day. It is
a common matter to read 300 meters.
Another advantage is that the meter
is placed in a conspicuous place,
where the consumer may read it from
time to time and get better acquaint
ed with it.
Power for Electric Motors.
Internal combustion engines utiliz
ing furnace gases are Increasingly
employed in Europe. A large mining
and metallurgical works in the north
of France has decided to use the gas
from 160 recently built coke furnaces
to obtain power for operating elec
tric motors and lights about the
works in the district.
Discovery of Tungsten.
The rare metal tungsten was dis
covered in 1781. It came into world
wide prominence a few years ago
when the new metal filaments for
electric incandescent lamps were
made of the new metal, producing a
better and a vastly cheaper light.
■ - 1 ... ।
MERCURY TO CLOSE CIRCUIT
Device Is Quite Simple and Is Used
as Indicator in Charging Stor
age Batteries.
This apparatus is very simple; it
utilizes the pressure of the gas which
is disengaged when the charging bf
the storage battery is completed. Into
a glass tube which has been bent
twice a small quantity of mercury is
poured; this mercury is in connection
with the space above the battery,
which is inclosed. When the charg
ing is complete and gas in excessive
quantities begins to be given off, the
pressure pushes the mercury in the
tube until it forms a connection be-
cS
I
BATTERY CHARGING INDICATOR
I L>
tween two wires which form part of
the circuit of an electric bell. A sort
of safety valve is also provided for
the escape of any accidental sudden
pressure, caused for instance by the
pressure of the stopper or by the
sudden expansion of heated gas.
DIFFUSED LIGHT FROM LA^P
Raya of Pronounced Intensity Se
cured, Making It Possible to
Read Without Effort.
An entirely new type of reading
lamp, the reflector of which throws a
diffused light instead of a glare, has
been invented, says the Popular Me
chanics. The electric bulb in this
lamp is so arranged within the re-
<
Lamp Prevents Eye Strain.
flector that the rays from both the
reflector and the bulb are thrown up
ward against another reflector which
throws the light outward and down
ward with a pronounced Intensity
thus making it possible to read print
ing or writing without straining th<
eyes, or subjecting them to the di
rect rays of the bulb.
ELECTRIC PLANTS ON COAST
Huge Generating and Transmissioi
System to Be Undertaken in
Mexico—Power From Water.
A most ambitious electric generat
ing and transmission system is sooi
to be undertaken on the Pacific coas:
of Mexico. Three large hydro-elec
trie plants are to be built, having i
combined capacity of 300,000-hors
power, and according to present plan
1,200 miles of transmission lines Wil
be built, covering most of the Paclfii
coast of Mexico, or a territory abou
seven hundred miles long. One o
these plants will be situated on th
Mayo river, across which a dam 17
feet high and 260 feet long will b
built. This will form a reservoi
with a capacity of 10,000,000,000 cubi
feet of water. Another dam, 223 fee
high and 708 feet long, will be ru
across the Humaya river, forming -
reservoir of 11,000,000,000 cubic fee
while the third dam, 315 feet high an
145 feet long, will be stretched acros
the Santiago river, and will furnish
reservoir of 9,000,000,000 cubic fee
capacity.
Electrical apparatus for permanen ■
ly curling women's hair is a Germa ■
scientist’s invention.
An electrically operated penny-i ■
the-slot machine has been invented
in England for quickly cleansir ■
smokers’ pipes.
An orchestra in an Ohio school I
led by an electric flash light, so co ■
structed that it can be made to be®
any kind of time.
Screens which effectually keep f< I
from entering buildings byway I
electric ventilating fans have be; ■
perfected in England.
Electric heating units by whirl
any coal stove can be converted ini®
an electrical one have been patent®
by a New York inventor.
Telephone connection betwe®
cities on the Atlantic and Paci®
coasts of the United States Is profl
ised before the end of the year. |
The invention of a flame derivfl
from electric energy that will not gifl
off heat is claimed by a Frenfl
scientist, who is keeping the detail
secret.
A wagonload of grain can be loa.i j
ed into a car in ten minutes by t I
use of portable elevators, operated fl
electricity, that an Illinois railro 1
has adopted.
