Identifier: howtoplaybasebal01murn (find matches)
Title: How to play base ball
Year: 1903 (1900s)
Authors: Murnane, T. H. (Timothy Hayes), 1852-1917
Subjects: Baseball
Publisher: New York, American Sports Publishing Co.
Contributing Library: The Library of Congress
Digitizing Sponsor: Sloan Foundation

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ainst right handed batsmen; I hold the ball thesame for every ball I pitch, but allow the drop ball to leave from,the top of the second finger after bringing the hand down fromthe highest position I can get in a long swing and, by an extramove to effect the curve, get the drop curve, which I think is themost trying ball a pitcher can deliver. The drop, itself, is not sodifficult, but the combination of drop curve requires a long reachand the gift of being competent to work all the curves andshoots. Cy Young says: The jump ball can be produced only by greatspeed. The ball is thrown with a full arm swing right from theshoulder, and out from under the fingers, which are straightenedout as the ball leaves for the bat. The idea is to get a jump onthe ball just as it comes to the plate, nearly shoulder high. Charley Nichols says: It takes great speed to get a jump ona ball. It must be thrown perfectly straight with an overhandswing, allowing the ball to slip out from under the fingers as if
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How to Play Base Ball. 59 they were greased, I have found the real jump ball the most effec-tive against both right and left handed batsmen. The raise ball is purely a curve and first introduced by RobertMathews over 30 years ago. Rhines and McGinnity later on didphenomenal work with a natural raise. The raise ball is pro-duced, says Rhines, by snapping the wrist as in a curve, keep-ing the arm close to the side, stepping well in and turning thepalm of the hand up. The inshoot is the ordinary straight ball thrown with speed,says Jimmie Callahan, allowing the ball to go from under thefingers, as in a jump ball, with plenty of speed. The late Charles Radbourn said: I get the inshoot by hold-ing the ball in the palm of the hand and letting it go over thefirst finger, while keeping the elbow close to the side, and a turn-ing up the palm of the hand. Some pitchers will put their fingers across the seam of the ballwhile others are particular to rub a place smooth for the fingerson the wides

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