Baseball Joe, Captain of the Team; or, Bitter Struggles on the Diamond

sigh of relief, Jim pulled off his glove and went in to the bench, while a sheepish and disgruntled lot of Giants followed

ur salaries on false pretenses. Letting those fellows get four runs in a single inning without making a real hit. What do you want the pitcher to do-strike out every man that comes to the bat, while

ue lashing of their irate manager, the

t first as though he might stretch it to a double, but it was so smartly

e and he refused to bite. The next one, however, he caught right o

ere he should have been retained, for Burton, who was renowned for his throwing arm, had by this time got the ball and was setting himself for the throw. Irede

im on. Had two men been out there might have been some excuse for taking the chance. But with none out, it was almost c

e under side and it went up in a high fly that

enzy of eagerness to redeem himself, as it was his inglorious muff

d. Curry looked them over carefully and let the bad ones go by. A c

e hole." Axander had to put the next one over under penalty of passin

for the plate. Curry caught it full and

t he kept on, and just as the ball was going over his head he made a tremendous leap and caught it with one hand. He was off balance and turned a co

diamond to surround and applaud their favorites, who had plucked victory from the very jaws of defeat,

the "jinx," but the more intelligent knew that their own errors and those of some of their comrades had alone brought about their downfall. The defeat was all the more exasperating, becau

came in and made ready for the showers. "You pitched a dandy game.

rfulness that he was far from feeling. "But you're t

eplied Joe. "He's rubbed most of the soreness out

out of the game for a long time it would be all up

o great a team to be dependent on any one m

bbly machine this aftern

off this slump, and then they'll begin to climb. Remember that time when we won twenty-six straight? What we've done once,

a pitcher," replied Jim, grinning. He was

e fell over the occupants of the clubhouse, for they knew the danger signa

ainst a gang of bushers, and they'd laugh themselves to death. Any high school nine would make you look foolish. Giants? Dwarfs, pigmies, runts! Easy meat for any team you come across! Champions of the world? Cellar ch

ustified in his anger and partly because no one cared to play the part of light

d around and singled out Curry. That hapless individual evad

f errors in the eighth inning," McRae sho

"any one can make a

nship one year in Boston when Rodgrass made that muff in centerfield. I never said a word to him about it, and in the next year's contract I raised his salary. What

ep enough at night that you have to go to sleep on first? And those wild throws, one over Renton's head and the other over Mylert's. Oh, what's the use," he continued, th

mself out, they were greatly m

," he said, "I want to

house, he turned a gr

cipline of the team-that is, if there's any discipline left in the club. But I want to tell you that if your wo

mean," muttered Iredell, an

about that ball that fell to the ground between Larry and Bu

ed silent, fin

the ball, and when each said he could get it each left it to the other. All you had to do was to call out t

and that he'd probably get him. With nobody out, it was a cinch that one of the next three batsmen would have brought Larry in. And with him dancing around third, he might have got

ellow can't always think of everything. If Larry had

en I had ordered him to bunt. That he came across with a home run didn't change the fact that at that point in the game a bunt was the proper thing, and

these days, no matter what I

re quick in the head as well as the feet. Give me the choice between a fast thinker and a fast runner, and I'll take the fast thinker every time. Look at Joe Matson, the way he shot that ball over on Burton to-day before he knew where he was at. He'

salary to play shortstop. There, you're delivering the goods. But I've tacked a couple of thousands onto your salary to act as ca