Clipping:Experimental games: square bat a cork ball
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| Date | Friday, October 1, 1880 |
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| Text | Some interesting experiments are to be made to-day and to-morrow in exhibition games between the Chicago and Buffalo teams. In to-day's game two radical new departures will be made,--first in the use of a square bat, which is Harry Wright's pet notion of the best way to improve batting; and second, by the introduction of a new style of ball, the peculiarity of which is the presence in the centre of a small globe of cork would round with string, rubber and yarn. It will be interesting to note the effect of these two innovations, especially the use of the square bat, and the game to-day bids fair to be both entertaining and instructive. Chicago Tribune October 1, 1880 [Buffalo vs. Chicago 10/1/1880] An experiment was made with the square bat, and it proved a total failure as a substitute for the present style of stick. So far from improving the hitting, it served to diminish the force with which the ball was struck, for the very plain reason that whenever the ball struck the bat on either side of the exact centre of the flat surface it turned the bat in the player's hands, causing a disagreeable sting in the palms, and for the same cause the hitting was weak and unsteady. The players pronounced the flat bat a flat failure, and only with much arguing could be induced to use it after one trial. Finally, they abandoned it altogether as worthless and unsatisfactory, and played the rest of the game with the regular round bats. Experiments were also made with a new ball of livelier qualities than the present League ball. Here again the innovation was not successful. The ball didn't sound natural when hit by the bat, and though it went very swift and far when fairly hit, it behaved awkwardly when batted on the ground to the infielders, and they soon made up their minds that they couldn't handle it as well as they could the regular Spalding League ball. It was the verdict of Presidents Hulbert and Sage, of the Chicago and Buffalo clubs, who watched the play with close interest, that the square bat is of no earthly account, and that the present League ball is not only a better ball than any other in existence, when uniformly made, but that the players are all accustomed to it and its ways, and that it would be extremely unwise to make a change. The players are very decidedly of this opinion, and will earnestly oppose the adoption of any other ball than the one now used by the League. Chicago Tribune October 2, 1880 |
| Source | Chicago Tribune |
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| Submitted by | Richard Hershberger |
| Origin | Initial Hershberger Clippings |
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