- Star Spitballer Is Not Quite Ready to Assume Full Share of Hurling Burden.
April 10, 1922 Age 31
The St Louis Star and Times
DID LITTLE WORK IN SOUTH
Made Only Two Appearances in Exhibition Games and Then for Only Few Frames.
The appearance of Bill Doak in yesterday’s game against Phil Ball’s Bearcats was a surprise, but his showing was not. Doak is not ready and never is at this time of the year. Everybody wants to see him on the mound at the earliest possible moment and as Bill wishes the same thing that makes it unanimous, but none of us in this life get what we want when we want it.
While it will be sad news to the followers of the Cardinals, it can be set down as truth that Doak will not do much work in the early games of the regular season.
Doak worked last year with a sore arm but, despite this handicap, had an “earned-run-per-game” average of 2.58, his name like Abou Ben Adhem’s {poem from 1834}, leading all the rest. A visit to Bonesetter Reese, this winter, showed Bill what the trouble was. His “umslopagas” or something was out of joint so, when the blond one trekked south, he took things easy.
His First Appearance.
Bill just ran around the park and fielded bunts for most of the time down at Orange and Rickey had decided that he would leave Bill there when the club started its trip north. Doak, however, was not keen for the idea and told the Cardinal leader that he believed he could do some pitching on the way home that would help.
Doak is as dependable as the Rock of Gibraltar and anything he says can be tied to. So, it was not surprising when Doak mounted the hill in the last part of the game against the Athletics, the last of the five-game series, at Baton Rouge. La., March 31, for his first real pitching work. Bill worked two innings against the Mackmen and was not scored on. Just what he did might be interesting to the fans who are hoping for his quick entry into the season’s arena of action.
He made the first man send an easy fly to McHenry, but the next batter tripled to left center. This bothered Bill not at all for he promptly fanned the next aspirant and made the next roll out, short to first. In the next Inning, the first Athletic singled and the next hit into a double-play. The third one hit safely to left and Welch, the clean-up man of the A’s, swung thrice and missed. That wasn’t bad work though Bill, perhaps, is prouder of his hitting than of his pitching in that game. He was only up once, but slapped out a double on his only opportunity. Starts Against Milwaukee.
In the last game on the road, the Cards played the Milwaukee Brewers at Caruthersville, Mo., and were beaten, 5-2. But that was none of Doak’s fault. Bill worked the first three innings and the Brewers collected just one safe hit, that an infield blow which Hornsby almost nailed. Only nine Milwaukee players faced Bill for the man who singled tried to steal and was nailed. So, Doak’s 1922 record is still unsullied by an alien run.
All this would seem to indicate that Doak is ready for regular work, but Bill admits he isn’t. Doak is a queer chap. He knows when he is right and when he isn’t and Rickey has come to let Bill almost choose his own days for pitching, knowing that if Doak says O. K., he’ll get a well-pitched game. On the basis that a player ought to know his own readiness or lack of it best and considering that Doak is one of the most earnest and hard-working players, the Cardinal pilot feels perfectly safe in allowing Bill this privilege knowing that it will never be abused.
Boils were a big deal in 1922. Hornsby had constant problems with them, keeping him off the field at times.
