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16
GEORGIA GAVE TO BASEBALL ITS GREATEST PERFORMER
Tyrus Cobb Without an Equal in National Game
Born and Trained in Empire State of the South
By Percy 11. Whiting.
J UDGE HOWELL COBB, a very
distinguished Georgian, had
just died. Two Atlanta law
yers on a New York train were
reading papers.
"I see Cobb is dead." said one to
the other.
A drummer, seated next them,
pricked up his ears, groaned and
then wailed:
"Well, that ruins Detroit’s
chance for the pennant."
• ♦ ♦
'PHIS historic joke must serve
' os an introduction to this story
Ty Cobb not because it is par
ticular.> funny, hut because we
have to start some way.
Writing about Ty Cobb, in the
limit.- of an ordinary newspaper
article, is like trying to narrate the
’if. and crimes of N. Bonaparte on
the back of a postage stamp. One
doesn’t know where to begin, and
even less where to leave off.
• * *
r T is tolerably remarkable that
* tin re should be a "Best Ball
Flavor in the World." There wasn't
one before Ty Cobb's day. Critics
agreed thai Wagner was best of
the shortstop?, that Ltjole was □
thundering good second baseman,
1! it :i gent named Collins was onto
s m< of tl. - insidi points of playing
tiiirt*. ;.nti tout ‘'. Mathewson was
p;ek of all pitcher-. But there
wasn't any "Ono Best Bet"—until
< ’ebb.
It is even mot ■ remarkable that,
out of the many places of birth
that Cobb might have picked, he
selected- or had selected for him —
a little cottage, h.-trdlv more than a
cabin, located in Banks county,
Georgia.
But so il happened. And so it
fill to the lot of Georgia to present
to the world the only player of all
time upon whom all men could
agree in conferring the title of the
"Greatest Ball Player in the World.”
♦ * •
'T'YRUS RAYMOND COBB was
born on December 18, 1886. His
father was Wiliiam H. Cobb, edi
tor, school teacher and state sena
tor a man of much education and
less money.
Many fine young incidents have
been dug up about Cobb’s boyhood
career — mostly fictitious. About all
that anybody knows of his early
days is that he was a skinny, light -
haired lad. with a leaning toward
baseball—a good, lively, smart, two
fisted kid. When he was a bit of
a lad in short pants, his family
moved to Carnesville. Ga.. and
there Ty played his first baseball,
in the games between the East Sitt
ers and the Vest Sider? of that
burg.
A bit later Cobb’s family, with Ty
trailing, moved to Royston and set
tled there. By this time Ty had
grown large enough to play with
the Royston second team, an organ
ization of kidj and scrubs, against
which the regulars worked out. So
long as playing with this team did
not Interfere with Ty’s studies or
his farm work, the elder Cobb of
fered no objections. At length,
however, the Royston team had a
game scheduled with Elberton. The
tegular center fielder was away.
Cobb was the most likely substi
tute available. Robert McCreary
managed the Royston nine in those
days, and it took a stiff line of talk
to persuade Senator Cobb to let his
son go on the trip. This game
was Cobb’s first appearance "on the
road." and he proved a wonder.
The opposition of “Father" Cobb
continued strong, and finally, in an
effort to overcome it. Senator Cobb
was lured out to a game between
Royston and Commerce. Cobb
played good ball from the start,
but nothing senational until the
eighth. Then, with the bases full
and two down, a Commerce batter
ripped off an awful wallop. Cobb
played a hunch that the left fielder
would miss It. and started on a
run to back him up. True to his
suspicions, the left fielder just got
his finger tips on it. and it fell to
Cobb’s lot to make a running dive,
scoop the ball up with one hand
and retire the side. When he re
turned to the bench, he was show
ered with money—but what was
more to the point, he found that
his marvelous playing had made a
fan out of Senator Cobb and had
swept away all objections that
were raised to Ty’s playing base
ball. In a flush his threatened "ca
reer” at the University of Georgia
and the medical education for which
Ty had always hankered were
swept away and "The Greatest Ball
Player in the World" was started
on his glorious carter.
ft • •
'J'HERE is a story that the jealous
members of the Royston team
kidded Cobb into going into profes
sional baseball. Knowing Ty’s im
pulsive nature and his restiveness
under criticism, it is believable that
the constant taunts of his fellow
players, that he was "too fresh"
and that he couldn’t make good in
real baseball, might haw driven
him to try the professional game.
At any rate, in 1904 Cobb packed
a grip, secured letters from his
minister and his manager and head
ed for Augusta, where he present
ed his credentials to t’on Strouth
•i th. n manager of the Augusta
team.
Btrouth- , )( ;aee-’ovlng soul,
Cobb*s Fielding and Batting Figures in Big League
Year. G. AB. R. H. PC. P.O. A. E. P.C. SB.
1912 85 347 146 .421
1911 146 591 147 248 .420 376 24 18 .957 83
1910 140 509 106 196 .385 305 18 14 .958 65
1909 156 573 116 216 .377 222 24 14 .946 76
1908 150 581 88 188 .324 212 23 14 .944 39
1907 150 605 97 212 .350 238 30 11 .961 49
1906 9 7 350 44 112 .320 107 14 9 .931 23
1905.. 103 411 60 134 .326 149 15 13 .927 40
1904 37 135 14 32 .237 62 9 4 .946 4
♦Totals 979 3755 672 1338 .356 1671 157 97 .949 379
“Exclusive of thia year.
Here is another one of Percy
H. Whiting’s sparkling stories
on Georgia hoys who art* mak
nitr troml in baseball. !]<■ will
li.-iv'.- others in the neiir future
JII'-I as illl "rcsl inw. You don’t
v a" 1 In mi-s <)’.>(■ (! f’ ’em. '
- XX
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WKS 111 HIS “FIGHTING” FACE.
SPEARING A LOW LINER.
found Cobb a problem. He could
field and he could hit, but he was
awkward and hard to control.
Finally one day, when Cobb was
ordered to bunt, he hit a home run
instead. This wasn’t Strouthers'
notion of baseball, and It was too
impetuous for staid Augusta. Cobb
was, therefore, incontinently
canned. Strouthers tried to get SSO
for the coming wonder from the
Charleston club, but failed. Then
Ty was sent to Anniston, Ala., to
play on a semi-professional team
there.
They tell big stories of what
Cobb did in Anniston. At any rate,
he was not long in proving that he
was too good for that burg. So he
was recalled to Augusta, where he
stuck until Detroit bought him for
S7OO. Today he is worth far in ad
vance of a hundred times that sum.
and the deal that sent Ty to De
troit will go down in the history
books as the one big "buy” of base
ball.
• • ♦
career in the big leagues
is worth a couple of pages. So
what can a man hit on who lias
less than a half column more of
space available'.’
Cobb joined the Detroit team a
raw, country lad; with an impetu
ous spirit, small knowledge of
baseball, but marvelous natural
ability. Fortunately for him, his
lot was east with that master of
men and baseball—Hughie Jen
nings. It took Jennings but a few
days to see that Cobb was to be
come a star. Thereafter he worked
with him until he perfected Ty in
tlie art of playing bnseball.
Cobb’s early days were tempes
tuous. The free language of the
ball players was new to him. One
term in particular, used among
them often as a term of deepest
friendship, was ' fighting talk" with
him. The players, on their side,
considered him a "fresh kid,” and.
as he developed quickly Into a mar
velous performer, they became not
a little jealous of the young Geor
gian.
Now. all his life long Cobb has
fought whenever there seemed neqd
of fighting. And it wasn't long be
fo ■ he begun sulllng into th. De-
THE ATLANTA GEORGIAN AND NEWS. SATURDAY. JULY 27, 1912.
A FEIVASSORTEDFACTS ABOUTCOBB
He is six feet tall, weighs about 175 pounds when in training.
He bats left-handed, but throws right-handed.
He is an all-wool Democrat, of course, and hopes to vote for Wilson.
Cobb is a crack shot with a rille and gun, drives an automobile well and has but one regret—
that he didn’t have a chance at football.
In a game at Cleveland once he singled, stole second, third and home without even breaking
his stride.
He invented the art of scoring from first on a single.
lie admits that his own position in the outfield is easy to play and says that the catcher has the
hardest position.
He likes best to play in Detroit—next to that Boston.
The pitchers who trouble him most are Ed Walsh and Walter Johnson. When Joss was alive
he had Ty’s goat.
The style of pitchers who worry him most are those with a side arm delivery or those who turn
their back before they pitch.
He admits that a spit ball, especially a low one, is the most difficult thing for him to hit.
Cobb’s early ambition was to be a surgeon. He has tried his hand at selling automobiles and at
acting and doesn't like either.
He is investing his money in bank stock, farm lands, baseball clubs and sporting goods stores.
He will probably go into the sporting goods business when he retires.
He has been a chronic scrapper since a boy but is as quick to forgive an injury as he is to fight.
Ty learned to plow when he was a boy and can drive a mule with the best of ‘em.
Cobb is a man of moderate habits, drinks little and smokes little.
Cobb stirred up a lot of rough, talk by spiking various basemen but fair-minded men, even
among his enemies admitted that the spiking was always accidental.
This spring the Detroit team went on a strike when Cobb was suspended for dashing into the
stands at New York and beating a spectator who had been rough in criticising him.
When Cobb first joined the Tigers his chief warfare was with Catcjier Schmidt. Cobb has stuck
it out to see this big boob go back to the bushes.
Cobb is the only man who has batted as high as .420 since the foul-strike rule ivas adopted.
Only live men in the last 20 years (Duffy. Boston, .438; Turner, Philadelphia, .423; Burch. Brooklyn,
.423; Burkett, Cleveland, .433; Lajoie Philadelphia.. 422), have beaten Cobb’s 1911 mark.
He has gone as many as 40 consecutive games without failing to get a hit.
troit papers. Younger, lighter and
less versed in the arts of pugilism
than many of his teammates, he
not infrequently got the worst of it.
But gradually, by fighting and by
playing, he won their respect, if
tiot their friendship.
Almost from the first Ty Uobb
was a marvel. In fielding he could
cover u little more ground and
make a trifle more difficult catches
than any other outfielder. At bat
ting he was and is unequaled. Year
after year he has led the American
league-- usually in batting. in
hitting two and three baggers,
in scoring runs and in base steal
ing.
As a ball player Ty Uobb lias no
equal. Batting, fielding, running,
thinking -at all of them he is with
out peer.
• * •
( \N I. queMioi; all ■:!' Ty < ’obb folks
ai<- asking themselves: "How
long will he last?" According to
"here HE DSi
KING OF ALL
SMASHING OUT A HOMER.
" iK .
W ' i ■ x *
the statistics. Cobb lacks several
months of being 26 years old. He
has been playing baseball about
eight years.
Folks said, at the first of this
season, that Cobb was skidding. He
foolishly went on the stage last
winter, and unquestionably he did
not start the season in as good
trim as in the past. At that he
has managed to build his batting
average up mighty close to the
.425 mark—which may be “skid
ding," but it. at least, isn’t upset
ting.
Cobb's speed may last him until
he is 30. It would not be surpris
ing if hie batting ability stuck by
him until he is 35.
There isn't a manager in base
ball today who could get Ty Cobb's
services for the next ten years who
wouldn't willingly plunk down
sloo.ooo cash for it. And that
would be cheap enough for The
Greatest Ball Flayer tn the World.
City Clerk Selects An All-Star Baseball Team
+••{. -f«a .......
Walter Taylor's Combination Is a Peacherino
By Walter Taylor.
(City Clerk of Atlanta, formerly
dean of Southern Sporting Writers)
PICKING an all-star ball club
is an easy thing in some of the
positions and a hard one when
■ < *■ ,
/
The Big Race
1
Hers Is how the “Big Five” In the Amer
jc a n_le ague ere hitting right up to date:
__PL«yer^ ________ A.“b. H. Ayer.
Cobb 347~ 146 421~ .
Speaker 361 l 141 .391
Jackson 354 128 362
Collins ' 325 ! 109 .335
Lajoie . . . . 216 72 .333
No games were played In the American
league yesterday.
BURNS AND WHITE SIGN.
SAN FRANCISCO, July 27.—Frankie
Burns and Jack White, the Chicago
lightweight, have been signed for a
ten-round bout in Oakland. August 7. '
Burns' friends declare that recently he '
is fighting In hfs old-time work.
CAIRO BEATS QUITMAN.
QI’IT?«fAN. GA.. July 27.—Cairo won ]
the second game of the series with
Quitman, 11 to 10. The Quitman team -
is to be materially strengthened today, i
The features of yesterday's game were
the playing of Davis, of Quitman. and
Roduenbery, of Cairo. ,
Here's Walter Taylor's All-Star Team
Cobb, center field; Jackson, right field; Speaker, left field; Chase fir<t
base; Collins, second base; Baker, third base; Wagner, shortstop; B r . s
nahan and Thomas, catchers; Johnson and Rucker, pitchers; Connie Mart
manager. -■
it comes to some of the others. Os
course, it is very simple to put the
name of Cobb down for center
field. And again it is simple to
place the name of Wagner on the
list for shortstop. It is also equal
ly a? simple to say that Hal Chase
is the best first baseman. Then aft
er that It becomes to some extent a
question of personal likes and dis
likes of some man’s special style.
Jackson has proven the wonder
of present , day. baseball, because
he made his leap into fame from a
cotton factory and had little if any
experience before he began to at
tract attention. I heard of Jackson
through a friend who happened to
be in a little South Carolina town
and saw him play two years before
his name appeared among the pro
fessionals. He had no education
and had never, I was told, been
outside of the little place where he
was born.
Speaker a Natural Batter.
Speaker is a natural hitter. He
swings his bat almost entirely with
the wrist motion and does not lose
either time or sight of the ball as
some players do who use their
shoulders when batting.
Collins is entitled to the choice
of second basemen because of his
FODDER FOR FANS
■Tosh Devore, of the Giants, has acci
dentally developed a new bunt. It is
really nothing but a "cut" similar to
that used by tennis players. The beauty
of it is that the man who fields it doesn't
know how it will bound.
* • •
Hal Chase seems to have made up his
mind to play real baseball for the rest of
this season, whether the Yanks do any
thing or not. Maybe he's afraid Wolver
ton will sell him to the Browns.
The American league has purchased
Umpire Joe O'Brien from the Ohio State
league. Wonder if Ban Johnson knows
about Dan I’fenninger?
* •
Ed Sweeney pulled a grand play the
other day. He was caught flat-footed off
second, but the throws were messed up.
Martin, who had been on third, scored and
in the excitement Ed got over to third
safely, for a stolen base.
• ft •
A few more disbanded leagues: Wash
ington State and Mountain State.
* « *
"Doc” Gordon, of the Norfolk team, re
cently struck out 15 Petersburg hatters
in one game—the season’s record in .the
Virginia league.
• • •
Merely because Hugh Jennings «aid he
didn't want a "lot of handshakers" on his
club a St. Louis baseball writer called him
a "poor, paleolithic throw-back.”
• • •
Wise sayings of baseball: “All scouts
are bad, but seme are worse than others."
• • •
Bill Killefer says that St. Louis teams
will never win a pennant. It looks like
it, at that.. But Bill has an alibi. He
says that on account of the heat, humid
ity and general cussedness of the weather
the players have no "pep.”
• * •
Anent Jimmy Lavender's allegation that
he "can't see the Giants" we have only
to say that it’s lucky there are plenty of
good oculists in “old Chi.”
* • *
July 31 has been set aside for “boosters
day" at the Nashville park. At that time
they'll make a heroic effort to raise
enough money to last out the season.
All of which makes Atlantans thankful
that their ball club is owned by a “soul
less corporation” which takes Its losses
when it has them without passing the hat.
• * ♦
If Nashville sells its franchise in the
Southern it might get one In the Kitty
league. The salary limit is lower there.
• • •
Wilson Collins, of the Vanderbilt foot
ball team, has decided to retain his ama
teur standing intact, despite offers to
play baseball with Washington, and will
be back with the Commodore machine
next fall.
• * •
A Nashville paper says the funny thing
about Al Demaree is that he looks like a
pitcher. To us the real humor of the
NEWS FROM RINGSIDE
Jess Willard, Charlie Cutler's “hope,”
will get into action Monday night, when
he is scheduled to meet Arthur Pelky, of
Chicopee, Mass. The bout will be staged
In Gotham.
Lee Barrett and lack Dorman make up
the main card at the Fairmont A. C., in
New York, tonight.
Nat Lewis says he is willing to bet
{I.OOO Charley White can defeat Johnny
Kilbane. White is anxious for a match
with the champion at 126 pounds.
• • a
Frank McFarland, a nineteen-year-old
brother of the famous Packey, was
drowned at Chippewa Falls recently,
where he was spending his vacation.
Temple will appear in Memphis
again on Monday w-hen he meets Joe
Sherman in a ten-round fight. Temple
finds fighting in the South a tough propo
sition. as the heat affects him to such a
degree that ho fainted twice while train
ing for his recent bout at New Orleans.
Joe Mandot will arrive in Memphis to
morrow and will leave Tuesday or Wed
nesday for Los Angeles to start training
for his 20-round bout Labor day with
Mexicart Joe Rivers.
• • •
Jem Maloney, manager of Bombardier
Wells, says Mike Gibbons is the best
midtileweight In the present ranks. Ac
cording to Maloney's views should Mike
ever visit Great Britain he would make
a tremendous hit.
a • •
Abe At tell has at last come to himself
and has decided to carry through his
fight with Tommy Murphy rclieduled for
August 3. However, it is ilkely the date
will be moved back a few days in order
to give the boys more time to train.
• * *
Attell has agreed to meet Young Shur
grue in New York th" first of next month
great ability and his youth. Rut r
is a hard matter to set Nap Lajoie
aside for any man in the game
Baker is the man for third.
In my opinion there is no cham p
for an argument when it conies io
shortstop. Hans Wagner, accord
ing to my judgment, is entirely in a
class by himself when it comes to
the short field.
As to catchers, I would tak«
Bresnahan and Ira Thomas. The
latter nas demonstrated his ability
under the most trying circum
stances and that, too. after having
been turned away by two big
league managers before Connie
Mack took him up. Bresnahan has
shown his worth, both as a player
and manager.
Picks Johnson and Rucker.
As to pitchers, Johnson and
Rucker look mighty good to me. If
the Georgia Peach was with a :e*i
ball club he would be the greatest
slabman, in my judgment, this
country has seen in many a day.
Connie Mack is my choice for
manager. He has the gift of
handling men, knows a ball player
and has kept himself and his dub
always up to the highest personal
standard. I think his ability as a
manager and his personal integrity
entitle him to first, choice.
thing seemed to be that he didn't look
like a pitcher.
* * *
peveral post-season series will be placed
next fall. There will be the Giants-Red
Sox affray (maybe), not to mention games
between the two Philadelphia teams and
between the two St. Louis teams.
ft ft *
The Carolina league is alive—but that'*
all. Anderson has had enough and has
quit with the team right up in the race.
♦ • •
To the question: “What's the matter
with the ball club?” Indianapolis fans
answered as follows:
"Buy 'em bigger bats.”
"Try the needle."
"Hop their salaries.”
"Put a dictograph in the dugout."
"Build a fire under ’em."
"Send for Detective Burns."
» • •
O’Leary has had plenty as manager of
the Indianapolis club and there is talk of
letting him go.
• • «
If Doc Johnston "goes up" this fall
Dave Bunting may play first for the Peli
cans next year.
The Pirates have grabbed Ralph Ca
pron, speed specialist.
* • ♦
Up in Cincinnati they maintain that
J. McGraw is a real sportsman. They al
lege that he could dress a Chinaman up
in uniform, label him Mathewson and wh.
every game with him. But in spite of
that “Muggsy" insists on sending In a
different pitcher every day against the
Reds.
* * *
Up in the big leagues, where the> sell
“eats” at the ball parks, a New York ca
terer has invented a dogless sandwich
that he claims will last fifteen games,
with any ordinary care.
• • *
Tesreau is the biggest man in the big
leagues. He weighs 241 pounds. He is
wild, but not savage.
* ♦ »
Tom Downey, former Southern leaguer,
has been grabbed by the Cubs from the
Phillies, who were trying to pass him out
over the Waiver Short line.
» » «
The Clarksville team has two Jollys—
Abe and Bus. They aren’t related—but
both are grouches.
ft ft ft
Cy Barger has won one game and lost
eight this year for Brooklyn.
ft ft ft
They've been breaking bad for I’m?
Bodie lately, as follows;
1. Fountain pen ran amuck and ruined
a white vest.
2. Left Chicago in a hurry, bringing
three right-foot shoes.
3. Struck oi.t five times in succession
in Boston.
4. Got to New York and ordered can
taloupe five minutes after the last portion
was served.
5. Then went out to the ball park and
fielded the first ball hit with his hare
head.
but the Hebrew' can easily have the th
postponed.
ft ft ft
Billy Papke has accepted terms to HS I ;
ten rounds with Eddie McGoorty m
Kenosha Labor day. McGoorty has no>
signed the contract yet.
The board of fire and police commis-ion
ers have put the lid on boxing at l’; l ‘ lu '
cah, Ky., where boxing matches na'<
been staged for some two or three montns
Luther McCarthy has at last secured «
match. The big pug has signed arin’ie.
for a ten-round scrap with Jim Ste" a ■
in New York August 3.
• * »
Although Jack Johnson has only " e (
in the saloon business little more than*
week, John McWeeny, chief of l, 10l, ‘
Chicago, has started a suit again.-' •
negro pugilist for keeping his place > • ' 1
In violation of the 1 o'clock closing ■ '
nance.
• « •
Young Ketchel and Chuck Larson v*
scheduled to go ten rounds at ! "
Haute, Ind.. Monday night.
KITSON STOPS WALSH n
IN THE FOURTH ROUND
NASHVILLE, TENN.. July 27. ! °
George Kitson-Eddie Waish mi
to an abrupt end in the fourth t‘
last night when Walsh went to ' e
floor for the county with a stiff ' -
to the jaw. It was one of the
one-sided affairs ever seen in
ville, Kitson having everything
way.
In an eight-round botil ' t
Schwart and Leslie Winters tire"