March 8, 1924 Lincoln Journal Star (Lincoln, Nebraska) - Kid Elberfeld Story Clarksville
THE LINCOLN STATE JOURNAL,
SATURDAY, MARCH 8. 1924.
WHAT MADE GREAT BALL PLAYERS GREAT
BY BOZEMAN BULGER
No. 13.-- Kid Elberfeld.
Elberfeld's Claim to Real Greatness Was His Aggressiveness on the Bases—Could Catch as Well as Play Infield.
The first firecracker of baseball, the original of all the many Tobasco Kids, began at the age of seventeen thus:
The manager of a bush league club down at Clarksville, Ky., had many rumors of a remarkable youth at Mason City, W. VA. He not ascertain whether the boy was a catcher, an infielder or an outfielder, but the rumors growing
stronger, he decided to gamble.
One night he sent a telegram and a ticket telling the boy to come on.
Two mornings later a bedraggled youth, dirty of face and all mussed up as to linen, reported. To the amazement of the manager the boy wore knee pants. There had been a train wreck, nothing to eat, no place to sleep and the kid had no money. Only a boy of seventeen could grow so unkempt in one night.
"You are the manager, I reckon," he said, with no show of timidity or embarrassment. "Well, I'm Norman Elberfeld, your new player. I got your telegram."
The manager laughed and turned the other players. "I'm stung," he admitted. "That half-pint of cider will never do as a player for this club.
Still, he gave the kid a chance that very day. With some remarkable fielding and a two base hit they won the game for Clarksville, but not until after he bad got into argument with the umpire.
"I guess you are a ballplayer, all right," the manager admitted to Elberfeld that night. "But, if you stick with this club got to get some long pants. all there is to that"
"All right, Boss," said the Kid, "I'll wear 'em, all right, but you got buy me a pair. I haven't got a nickel - couldn't even buy a shoe. The Kid's wardrobe consisted one cap and a pair of baseball shoes.
That was the beginning of Norman Elberfeld, the Tobasco Kid, who was and still is, a firebrand of baseball. He could catch, play third and and run bases better than any man on any team he ever played with. Always he could hit with the champions. He knew the A B C's baseball as well as the scientific problems of maturer minds. Elberfeld as a player was a genius. As manager he still goes on and on.
When McGraw came to New York manage the Giants the first man he thought of was the firebrand Elberfeld. In the peace agreement, tho, the Kid went to the New York Yankees.
Tho the Kid grew sturdier andmore experienced he never grew on much larger. On account of his picturesque career fans are apt to think of Elberfeld as an old man. As a matter of fact he is only but forty-five now. He will be forty-six on April 13 this year. He began, you see, at seventeen.
Elberfeld was a marvel at fielding and throwing, but his claim to real greatness was his aggressiveness on the bases. No man could work the hit and run play better. Nobody could so inspire a team to keep on trying even in the face of defeat.
To this day Elberfeld is just as rabid in his enmity to umpires as when he fought them in the big leagues. He got into several difficulties last year. The writer happened to be present when he and John McGraw were discussiug umpires. "Kid," said the Giant manager. "it took me a long time, but I've learned that nobody can get anything by continually fighting those umpires. Why don't you lay off them, its the only way.' .
"Maybe it is," said the kid with finality. "But, Mc, I intend to fight 'em as long as I live."
And the Tobasco Kid, down there at Little Rock, goes right on fighting 'em. In his minor league days the kid has tipped the big league managers off to many a star. Among those are Aaron Ward of the Yanks, Rogers Hornsby and some new ones this year.
Elberfeld is an ingenious fellow. One day down at Atlanta the Yanks were trying out a youngster who was a marvelous fielder. While at the bat, tho, he had a bad habit of pulling away from the plate, and couldn't correct it. The kid, always with the interest of his team at heart, thought this over and decided he had discovered the remedy. The next morning he appeared with a long rope, on end of which he tied around the batter's forward foot. He sat on the bench. holding the other end. Just as, the player would start to pull back his forward foot the kid would jerk his end of the rope and stop it. Theoretically, this idea was sound. Unfortunately, tho, the Yanks had a wild pitcher in the box. The kid yanked the batter right into the ball. After that the timid batter was more scared of the rope than of the ball. He never made good.
Whether a manager or a player. Elberfeld was always the leading spirit of a ball team. The game was his life. His only slogan was to win —and he usually did. The personality of the managers made no diiference to the kid. If the boss was weak kneed the Tobasco Kid simply took the helm and went right on. Baseball will not often see the likes of Kid Elberfeld. His end will mean the passing of another genius.
Tomorrow: Arthur Irwin.
(Copyright, 1924.)
SATURDAY, MARCH 8. 1924.
WHAT MADE GREAT BALL PLAYERS GREAT
BY BOZEMAN BULGER
No. 13.-- Kid Elberfeld.
Elberfeld's Claim to Real Greatness Was His Aggressiveness on the Bases—Could Catch as Well as Play Infield.
The first firecracker of baseball, the original of all the many Tobasco Kids, began at the age of seventeen thus:
The manager of a bush league club down at Clarksville, Ky., had many rumors of a remarkable youth at Mason City, W. VA. He not ascertain whether the boy was a catcher, an infielder or an outfielder, but the rumors growing
stronger, he decided to gamble.
One night he sent a telegram and a ticket telling the boy to come on.
Two mornings later a bedraggled youth, dirty of face and all mussed up as to linen, reported. To the amazement of the manager the boy wore knee pants. There had been a train wreck, nothing to eat, no place to sleep and the kid had no money. Only a boy of seventeen could grow so unkempt in one night.
"You are the manager, I reckon," he said, with no show of timidity or embarrassment. "Well, I'm Norman Elberfeld, your new player. I got your telegram."
The manager laughed and turned the other players. "I'm stung," he admitted. "That half-pint of cider will never do as a player for this club.
Still, he gave the kid a chance that very day. With some remarkable fielding and a two base hit they won the game for Clarksville, but not until after he bad got into argument with the umpire.
"I guess you are a ballplayer, all right," the manager admitted to Elberfeld that night. "But, if you stick with this club got to get some long pants. all there is to that"
"All right, Boss," said the Kid, "I'll wear 'em, all right, but you got buy me a pair. I haven't got a nickel - couldn't even buy a shoe. The Kid's wardrobe consisted one cap and a pair of baseball shoes.
That was the beginning of Norman Elberfeld, the Tobasco Kid, who was and still is, a firebrand of baseball. He could catch, play third and and run bases better than any man on any team he ever played with. Always he could hit with the champions. He knew the A B C's baseball as well as the scientific problems of maturer minds. Elberfeld as a player was a genius. As manager he still goes on and on.
When McGraw came to New York manage the Giants the first man he thought of was the firebrand Elberfeld. In the peace agreement, tho, the Kid went to the New York Yankees.
Tho the Kid grew sturdier andmore experienced he never grew on much larger. On account of his picturesque career fans are apt to think of Elberfeld as an old man. As a matter of fact he is only but forty-five now. He will be forty-six on April 13 this year. He began, you see, at seventeen.
Elberfeld was a marvel at fielding and throwing, but his claim to real greatness was his aggressiveness on the bases. No man could work the hit and run play better. Nobody could so inspire a team to keep on trying even in the face of defeat.
To this day Elberfeld is just as rabid in his enmity to umpires as when he fought them in the big leagues. He got into several difficulties last year. The writer happened to be present when he and John McGraw were discussiug umpires. "Kid," said the Giant manager. "it took me a long time, but I've learned that nobody can get anything by continually fighting those umpires. Why don't you lay off them, its the only way.' .
"Maybe it is," said the kid with finality. "But, Mc, I intend to fight 'em as long as I live."
And the Tobasco Kid, down there at Little Rock, goes right on fighting 'em. In his minor league days the kid has tipped the big league managers off to many a star. Among those are Aaron Ward of the Yanks, Rogers Hornsby and some new ones this year.
Elberfeld is an ingenious fellow. One day down at Atlanta the Yanks were trying out a youngster who was a marvelous fielder. While at the bat, tho, he had a bad habit of pulling away from the plate, and couldn't correct it. The kid, always with the interest of his team at heart, thought this over and decided he had discovered the remedy. The next morning he appeared with a long rope, on end of which he tied around the batter's forward foot. He sat on the bench. holding the other end. Just as, the player would start to pull back his forward foot the kid would jerk his end of the rope and stop it. Theoretically, this idea was sound. Unfortunately, tho, the Yanks had a wild pitcher in the box. The kid yanked the batter right into the ball. After that the timid batter was more scared of the rope than of the ball. He never made good.
Whether a manager or a player. Elberfeld was always the leading spirit of a ball team. The game was his life. His only slogan was to win —and he usually did. The personality of the managers made no diiference to the kid. If the boss was weak kneed the Tobasco Kid simply took the helm and went right on. Baseball will not often see the likes of Kid Elberfeld. His end will mean the passing of another genius.
Tomorrow: Arthur Irwin.
(Copyright, 1924.)
