Cancer Crusade Program 52xxxx xxx Can Baseball Be Made An Even Better Game

Summary

Podcast Summary: "Can Baseball Be Made An Even Better Game?"

Podcast Information

• Title: Harold's Old Time Radio
• Episode: Cancer Crusade Program 52xxxx xxx Can Baseball Be Made An Even Better Game
• Release Date: February 12, 2025
• Host: Bill Rogers
• Description: Showcasing radio programs from the Golden Age of Radio, featuring beloved classics like The Shadow, Abbott & Costello, Amos & Andy, Dragnet, and more.

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Introduction of the Panel

In this engaging episode, host Bill Rogers brings together a diverse panel of experts to discuss the provocative question: "Can baseball be made an even better game?" The panel comprises:

• Senator Ed Ford: A veteran comedian and lifelong baseball enthusiast.
• Jimmy Cannon: An esteemed sports columnist for the New York Post.
• Dolly Stark: A former umpire renowned for his fair calls.
• Sid Gordon: A popular comedian and current player for the Boston Braves.

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Exploring the "Rabbit Ball" Theory

Rabbit Ball Debate

The discussion opens with Senator Ed Ford proposing the intriguing concept of the "rabbit ball":

[00:55] Senator Ed Ford: "I think that some of the rabbits should be taken out of the ball so that there would be more science in the game..."

This metaphorical idea suggests infusing more unpredictability and variety into the game, reminiscent of the early days of baseball. Sid Gordon humorously questions the literal existence of a "rabbit in the ball":

[01:24] Sid Gordon: "When you say rabbit ball, you mean that the ball is really alive?"

Dolly Stark weighs in, challenging the notion by highlighting inconsistencies in player performances:

[03:55] Dolly Stark: "...only one fellow Stan Muse will hit .355 or .356, and the rest of the great sluggers are way below that."

This exchange underscores the debate over whether external factors (symbolized by the "rabbit") influence the game's outcomes or if it's purely skill-based.

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Types of Pitchers and Their Impact

Pitcher Strategies

Sid Gordon elaborates on the different pitching styles and their effects on the game:

[02:32] Sid Gordon: "...pitchers like Preacher Rowe and Eddie Lopat who throw up an assortment of stuff... try to get ahead of you, get a strike on you and make you bite at a bad ball."

This highlights the strategic diversity in pitching, balancing between overpowering speed pitchers and crafty ones who rely on deception.

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Scoring and Rules Uniformity in Baseball

Uniformity in Scoring Rules

The conversation shifts to the uniformity of scoring rules across major leagues. Dolly Stark raises a critical point:

[03:55] Dolly Stark: "I'd like to see the uniformity of the rules in the major leagues in regards to rained out games and Sundays, twilight games and so forth."

Jimmy Cannon supports the need for standardization to ensure fairness:

[04:23] Jimmy Cannon: "I think a baseball game should go nine innings... they should make a rule in baseball demolishing those curfew gags."

This segment emphasizes the importance of consistent rules to maintain the integrity and continuity of the game.

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Improving the Scoring System

Challenges in Scoring

Jimmy Cannon criticizes the current scoring system, suggesting that it requires reform:

[07:29] Jimmy Cannon: "I believe that the greatest weakness in big league baseball is scoring."

He proposes that scorers dedicated solely to the task, without distractions, would improve accuracy and reliability.

Sid Gordon concurs, offering a solution:

[08:31] Sid Gordon: "...he should be seated directly on the field, more or less as the 10th player for both sides."

By positioning scorers on the field, they can better track plays and reduce errors, enhancing the overall quality of game records.

Dolly Stark adds to the complexity of scoring:

[10:25] Dolly Stark: "The position of players, the kind of a ball that was hit... the concentration is just as great as umpiring or playing a game of baseball."

This underscores the multifaceted nature of scoring, requiring deep knowledge and unwavering focus.

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The Role of Umpires and Scorers

Umpires' Influence on Scoring

Jimmy Cannon challenges the competence of umpires in maintaining accurate game calls:

[11:16] Dolly Stark: "And incidentally, I never scored in my life. And I honestly don't think I'm competent enough to score from a press box."

Alongside, Dolly Stark criticizes the potential biases and errors made by umpires and scorers:

[10:54] Dolly Stark: "...there's always some trickster on a ball club for some reason or another."

Senator Ed Ford provides anecdotal evidence of favoritism impacting scoring:

[09:46] Senator Ed Ford: "...a scorer admitted that he liked a certain Brooklyn ball player and gave him three hits on obvious errors by the infielders."

This segment highlights the need for impartiality and enhanced training among those responsible for scoring.

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Conclusions and Final Thoughts

Enhancing the Game

The panel collectively advocates for:

• Standardizing Rules: Ensuring uniformity across all major leagues to maintain fairness.
• Improving Scoring Accuracy: Positioning dedicated scorers on the field to minimize errors and biases.
• Balancing Pitcher Strategies: Encouraging a mix of pitching styles to keep the game dynamic and competitive.

Closing Remarks

Host Bill Rogers concludes by thanking the panelists for their insightful contributions, emphasizing the shared commitment to evolving baseball into an even better game.

[12:19] Bill Rogers: "Thanks to you, Sid Gordon, Dolly Stark, Jimmy Cannon and Senator Ford."

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Notable Quotes

• Senator Ed Ford:

  "[00:55] ...some of the rabbits should be taken out of the ball so that there would be more science in the game..."

• Sid Gordon:

  "[01:24] ...there seems to be a difference of opinion as to whether there is a rabbit in the ball."

• Jimmy Cannon:

  "[07:29] ...the greatest weakness in big league baseball is scoring."

• Dolly Stark:

  "[03:55] ...only one fellow Stan Muse will hit .355 or .356, and the rest of the great sluggers are way below that."

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Final Thoughts

This episode of Harold's Old Time Radio masterfully blends nostalgia with critical analysis, featuring a panel that delves deep into the mechanics and nuances of baseball. From the whimsical "rabbit ball" metaphor to serious discussions about scoring integrity, the panelists provide a comprehensive exploration of how baseball can evolve while preserving its cherished traditions.

Whether you're a seasoned baseball aficionado or a casual listener, this episode offers valuable insights into the beloved game's past, present, and potential future.

Transcript

[Bill Rogers]

Can baseball be made an even better game? In conjunction with the 1952 cancer crusade, the American Cancer Society takes pleasure in presenting a panel of experts who will bat this question around. Representing four different points of view. And sitting around our figurative cracker barrel are the veteran comedian who was peeking over Abner Doubleday's shoulder when he invented baseball and who's been an avid fan ever since. Senator Ed Ford.

[Senator Ed Ford]

Glad to be here.

[Bill Rogers]

And we have one of America's outstanding sports writers, Jimmy Cannon, sports columnist for the New York Post and magazine contributor.

[Sid Gordon]

Hello.

[Bill Rogers]

A former umpire and one of the greatest men who ever called balls and strikes, Dolly Stark.

[Dolly Stark]

It's a pleasure to be here for a great cause.

[Bill Rogers]

And popular Sid Gordon, still the darling of the Giant fans, now starring for the Boston Braves.

[Sid Gordon]

Hello, everybody.

[Bill Rogers]

Senator Ford, you've seen baseball develop throughout the years. In your opinion, can it be made an even better game?

[Senator Ed Ford]

Yes. Well, in my opinion, and I could be wrong, I think that some of the rabbits should be taken out of the ball so that there would be more science in the game as they used to be when they threw oranges and all the freak deliveries. Maybe we should bring that back, too. Now, Sid, as a ball player, I know this wouldn't affect you because I think you're too good a ball player and too smart a ballplayer to have it do much to your batting average. I think that. What do you say about the rabbit ball, you being in there every day?

[Sid Gordon]

Well, Senator, there seems to be a difference of opinion as to whether there is a rabbit in the ball. When you say rabbit ball, you mean that the ball is really alive?

[Dolly Stark]

That's right.

[Sid Gordon]

Now, there are quite a few hitters in the league who have hit.230 and.240 and.250 who feel they should have done a lot better. And they'll tell you that there is no rabbit in the ball. And then you'll come across the pitcher who thinks he should win 20 games and winds up winning about eight or nine and loses 15. And he'll say, well, there's plenty of rabbit in that ball.

[Senator Ed Ford]

Well, Sid, may I. I'll argue against myself for just a moment. I know there are a lot of low score and low hit ball games pitched by the good pitchers. And they would be good anytime anyway.

[Sid Gordon]

Well, you've got two different type of pitchers. You've got pitchers that throw hard. And you've got pitchers like Preacher Rowe and Eddie Lopat who throw up an assortment of stuff, as we call it. And the pitchers who throw hard, well, they feel they can overpower you, while the pitchers who throw that slow stuff feel that they, they can get you out with their cleverness. In other words, try to get ahead of you. Get those, get a strike on you and make them, make you bite at a bad ball.

[Jimmy Cannon]

Well, speaking as a newspaper guy who looks down at baseball from the press box, I think there's a little turtle in the ball. And the reason I say this is because if this ball was as live as they say it would be, why Gordon would hit.400 every year. And I don't think they would get Stan Musil out. And if this ball is alive, the distances are still from the plate. The same from the plate, the defenses in both leagues, except in places like Pittsburgh where they have Greenberg Gardens and other gags like that. But it seems to me that the slider has nullified any edge the hitter has on the live ball. It's an extra pitch that all pitchers came up with.

[Dolly Stark]

Jim, can I interrupt for just a minute? It seems to me the answer to this whole question as we've had it presented here is this, that only one fellow stan Muse, will hit.355 or.356, and the rest of the great sluggers are way below that. So I don't think we have the rabbit ball as we had from 1921 on till about 1935. Well, I've got a question here, fellas, and I'd really like to put it in front of this fine panel. I'd like to see the uniformity of the rules in the major leagues in regards to rained out games and Sundays, twilight games and so forth. That is for both leagues to have the same rules. What do you think about that, Jim?

[Jimmy Cannon]

Well, I think a baseball game should go nine innings and I don't care whether it's on the, the butt end of a double header or the first game. I think the rule is all right that rain should stop again at five innings, but they should make a rule in baseball demolishing those curfew gags. In some towns where you get to a certain time and the ball game automatically ends, I think the ball game.

[Dolly Stark]

Should be played off at some later date, Jim.

[Sid Gordon]

Yeah, well, I'm going to go along with you, Jim. I think that when we ball players do play a game, we hate to have a game called, say in Pittsburgh now at 7 o'clock there's a curfew law there and we have a game call and say, well, the score is tied now we have to play this game all over again. Which is what has been happening. I think if you took a consensus of the opinion of the ball players themselves, I know I can speak freely for all of them. That they would want, once they start the game, to finish it and let it go like it has been going. Now, put the lights on if they have to, but get the ball game over and let one team win. With the exception of rain, of course.

[Jimmy Cannon]

Especially hitters. Anytime you deprive a hitter of a hit, it's like kidnapping one of his children. I really believe that hitters like hits more than they do their children.

[Dolly Stark]

Well, Jimmy, let's take that rained out ball game at the stadium here this past season, which created quite a rule, Bob. The Yanks were leading three to one. And then the Chicago White Sox came up and scored three runs. And those hits and runs and everything else was washed out due to the stalling tactics by both sides, more or less. And I think that kind of a ball game should be played at some later date to do away with all these rhubarbs and stalling.

[Jimmy Cannon]

Well, Dolly, old boy, you're kind of indicting your own profession being an umpire. That's up to the umpire to stop those stalling.

[Dolly Stark]

Well, you can't. They've tried it for about 75 years. Since the days of Doubleday and all the rest of that motley crew.

[Jimmy Cannon]

You mean to say that there's something wrong with umpires?

[Dolly Stark]

There's always some trickster on a ball club for some reason or another.

[Jimmy Cannon]

I'd like to get serious. A momo. We've been talking about how baseball can be made a better game. I'd like to tell you how we can improve our life. Some of the biggest names in baseball have been struck down by cancer. And that goes for all the other businesses, too, in the professions and the arts. Cancer strikes people big and small in all walks of life. The American Cancer Society says one person in every five will be hit by cancer in their lifetime. If we could conquer it, we would remove a terrible menace. There's one way we can help it. Join the 1952 Cancer Crusade of the American Cancer Society. The money we give goes to scientific research. It goes for cancer education, which saves thousands of lives every year. It goes for services to the cancer patient. Folks, dig down deep. Get to the bottom of your pocket. This is important. I think the most important cause of all today. Before you forget it, mail your contribution to cancer care of your local post office. I'll repeat the address. Cancer care of your local post office. That's all, Jimmy.

[Senator Ed Ford]

Before this session started, you said something about scoring these days, sitting in the press box. You should know a lot about that.

[Jimmy Cannon]

Well, I'm an authority on nothing, I suppose, especially baseball. I approach baseball with a fierce, dedicated ignorance. But I know enough that a guy sitting in a press box can't score a ball game and file a running story at the same time. They're not close enough to the field and their concentration is not enough. When a guy has to worry about filing a running story for a morning paper, even in the stale cliches we use this, the cheapest of all literature, which is the running story out of anything, he hasn't the time to clearly see what's going on in a ball field. And I believe that the greatest weakness in big league baseball is scoring. And I think that guys, either old ball players, all newspaper men, all umpires, or all anything else should be hired to do this important job.

[Sid Gordon]

Jimmy, I. I'd like to interrupt and add a few more things to what you say. I'm speaking as a ball player who has, at some time or another kicked about the scorekeepers due to an error that they might have given me or in reference to a base hit that I was supposed to have gotten. Now, my opinion in scoring a ball game is this. I think that anybody who is going to score this game, whether it be an old, an ex ball player or an ex rider or somebody who's really, really knows the game, the ins and outs of the game, he should be seated directly on the field, more or less as the 10th player for both sides. He'd be off at a certain position all by himself with nobody prompting him in any way, letting him use his own judgment and situated in a place where he could possibly see every play, every ball that's hit and who's going to field it and how it's fielding. Many times a ball is hit that takes a bad hop in front of a shortstop or a second base or the other infielders and it'll hit a pebble and hit him in the shoulder. Well, the scorer who's sitting up in the box is going to give him an error, but ordinarily he's going to get. He should have gotten a base hit.

[Senator Ed Ford]

Well, Sid, I agree with you on all of that. I saw I know of an instance where a scorer admitted that he liked a certain Brooklyn ball player and gave him three hits on obvious errors by the infielders.

[Dolly Stark]

Well, in going over this thing, Senator Ford, I wish to say, in accordance with Jim, that there's a great Art, a fellow should know practically everything that goes with baseball. A position of players, the kind of a ball that was hit, whether it was slow. There's 100,000 different kind of grounders or fly balls. Where was that man? And then the concentration is just as great as umpiring or playing a game of baseball.

[Jimmy Cannon]

Well, I believe in many instances, and I'm sure Sid will hate me for the rest of his life. But anytime a big league ball player, an infielder especially, gets two hands on a baseball, he should get an error. And Sid is a third baseman and outfielder. And third basemen are really the pets of scorers. A ball is hit directly at a third baseman. He should field it unless it takes a bad hop or slants off a pebble or something.

[Dolly Stark]

Well, sometimes, Jimmy, those balls hit like a shot out of a cannon. And the fellow can't move a step. And he may just even fling himself, you know, or go after that ball on the ground. And Karen's off, is risen out into the outfield.

[Jimmy Cannon]

I'm not talking about fling himself. You're talking about acrobats. You're thinking of the Jacoby Troop.

[Dolly Stark]

Even one right at them. They're hit like a shot out of a can.

[Jimmy Cannon]

They're hit right at them. They're big league third baseman and they should come up with it.

[Dolly Stark]

Well, that's the judgment that must be exercised by a scorer, Jim, because that's a great odds.

[Jimmy Cannon]

And incidentally, I never scored in my life. And I honestly don't think I'm competent enough to score from a press box. And I've seen umpires, present company accepted, miss a play. So how can a guy sit in a press box and call everyone even with a trivial accuracy?

[Dolly Stark]

See, the great odd of that, Jimmy, is being at the proper angle at all times too. And really concentrating for the whole nine innings. You know, fellas, I'd like to flash a reminder as to why we're here. And that is to help in the 1952 cancer crusade to strike back at the disease which will strike one American in every five. Folks, nobody can relax while cancer continues to take lives at the rate of more than 200,000 a year. Don't sit back. Strike back. Give generously to your unit of the American Cancer Society. Mail your contribution to cancer care of your local post office.

[Bill Rogers]

Remember, friends, as Dolly Stark has said, mail your contribution to cancer care of your local post office. Don't forget, cancer strikes one in five. It is no respecter of persons. Anyone man, woman or child can develop it. Protect yourself by knowing cancer's seven danger signals and join in the fight against it. Strike back. Give generously to conquer this disease. And now, fellows, may I offer the thanks of the American Cancer Society for your appearance here to discuss the question, can baseball be made an even better game? Thanks to you, Sid Gordon, Dolly Stark, Jimmy Cannon and Senator Ford. This is Bill Rogers speaking.