Clipping:Pitching vs. throwing; Cummings curved line delivery
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| Date | Saturday, February 17, 1872 |
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| Text | The time has arrived when the code of rules in base ball should no longer be burdened with any dead letter laws, and one of the principal of this class which has been longer on the statute books than any other, is that which required the pitcher to confine himself to the simple act of tossing, known as “pitching.” In the early days of the game, before the advent of Creighton, the ball was generally delivered by a square pitch, the pitchers of that day depending more upon strategic skill for success than upon anything else in their style of delivery. But when Creighton came upon the scene, and inaugurated the style of delivery which by courtesy has been called “swift pitching,” the old style was not long in becoming defunct, and since then speed has been regarded as the great desideratum. In 1858, during the visit of the English cricketers to this country, Creighton was one day bowling in a little practice game of cricket while John Lillywhite was looking on. Creighton at the time was noted as the great swift “pitcher” of the day, and was bowling just as he pitched in base ball. While watching him Lillywhite quietly remarked, “why, that man is not bowling, he is throwing under-hand.” On watching closer, however, he qualified his remark by saying that “it is the best disguised under-hand throwing I ever saw, and might readily be mistaken for a fair delivery.” But two or three persons heard the comments of the noted cricketer, and as there was nothing ever said further about its legitimacy, Creighton’s delivery was never questioned in the base ball fraternity, at least to an extent that at all prevented him from playing in this position, and the result was that he became the model player in that swift style of delivery which has ever since been erroneously styled “swift pitching.” The different between a pitched ball and an underhand throw, as far as the style of delivery is concerned, is, that a pitched ball is sent in with a straight arm, swinging perpendicularly to the side of the body, while an under-hand throw is made by the same swinging motion, but with the addition of bending the arm and wrist with a motion similar to that made when snapping a whip. Some men can disguise an underhand throw so as to make it difficult to tell whether the throwing motion is made or not; but the speed tells the story, it being impossible to send in a ball with the speed McBride, Zettlein, or any of the so called pitchers of the day do by a really square pitch. The curved line delivery such as that which marks Cummings’ style, is also impossible, except by means of an underhand throw. In fact, if the matter were thoroughly investigated by old and experienced judges, there is no a so-called swift pitcher in the country who would not be convicted of sending in “lightning balls” by means of a well disguised underhand throw. The question naturally arises, therefore, if there has been little else than throwing for the past ten years, while such a style of delivery has been year by year prohibited by the rules, why is it that it has not been shown up before this? Because just such experience as this style of delivery introduced was necessary to a full development of th game, and hence has it been winked at, if not countenanced. As we said before, however, the time has arrived when the rules should be cleared of this prohibition of throwing the ball to the bat, at least to the extent of allowing any delivery except that of an overhand or raised arm throw. |
| Source | New York Clipper |
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| Submitted by | Richard Hershberger |
| Origin | Initial Hershberger Clippings |
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