Leslie Mann Baseball Lantern Slide, No. 185

Item Information

Title:
Leslie Mann Baseball Lantern Slide, No. 185
Description:
Jake Daubert, a first baseman for the Cincinnati Reds, stands at Crosley Field in Cincinnati, Ohio as he stands with the back of his left foot touching the edge of first base. Daubert's other foot is located in front of the base and does not touch it as Daubert gazes forward towards the infield.
Creator:
Mann, Leslie
Creator:
Erker Bros. Optical Co., St. Louis Mo.,
Date:
1920–1925
Format:
Photographs
Location:
Springfield College Archives and Special Collections
Collection (local):
Leslie Mann Baseball Lantern Slide Collection
Subjects:
Baseball
Baseball caps
Baseball fields
Baseballs
Daubert, Jacob Ellsworth
Cincinnati Reds
Fielding--First base
Crosley Field, Cincinnati, Ohio
Link to Item:
https://cdm16122.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/p16122coll10/id/64
Terms of Use:
Rights status not evaluated.
This work is licensed for use under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial Share Alike License (CC BY-NC-SA).
CC BY-NC-SA icon
Publisher:
Springfield College
Language:
English
Notes:
In this lantern slide, Daubert is awaiting a throw from one of his infielders to first base. It is likely the batter has just hit a ball in the infield to either the second baseman, shortstop, third baseman, or pitcher, and Daubert is now awaiting a throw to first base. Daubert's left foot is on the edge of the bag, while his right foot is forward and off the bag. Because of the fact that his left foot is on the bag, Daubert is assuming that the throw he receives will be outward or to his right rather than to his left. This is the proper way for all infielders to throw, as throwing the ball outward allows the first baseman to better avoid the base runner than if the throw was thrown inward. Daubert hasn't quite entered into his full extension, which will occur when he extends his glove out to catch the ball, also extending his right foot out so that he can catch the ball sooner. This is especially important when base runners are fast, as this second difference can decide whether a batter is safe or out. However, Daubert hasn't entered into this full extension yet, which means he still has an opportunity to change his foot position if the infielders throw travels somewhere other than where he previously anticipated. For example, though infielders should try to throw the ball outward, sometimes their throw is wild and may actually be inward. Daubert would still be able to adjust his foot position if he realized the throw from the fielder was going to be wild, something he probably couldn’t do if he had extended fully. Daubert is also in a very comfortable position with his feet spread apart and his foot located on the middle of the bag (middle meaning Daubert's foot is on the edge of the bag but in the middle of the edge of the bag). Though it would be great if every time someone threw a baseball to first it was a perfect throw, this isn't going to happen. Therefore, Daubert needs to be prepared to adjust his body in case a throw is wild so that he can keep his foot on the bag and catch the ball with his glove. Having his feet spread apart like he does in this slide makes it easier for him to accomplish this if needed.
Jacob Ellsworth Daubert was born on April 17, 1884, in Shamokin, Pennsylvania. He started working in the coal mines when he was 11, and was very lucky to have been a talented baseball player because it allowed him to escape from a life of working in these mines, a job that killed one of his brothers. He played semi-professional baseball until 1910, when he was purchased by the Brooklyn Superbas. While playing in Brooklyn, the team experienced three different team names, being the Brooklyn Superbas, the Brooklyn Dodgers, and the Brooklyn Robins. He was traded to the Cincinnati Reds in 1919 over a contract dispute, and remained there until the end of his career. Daubert was an exceptional hitter, as he hit over .300 in 10 seasons, and won 2 batting titles. Daubert also won the MVP Award in 1913, though at the time it was known as the Chalmers Award. Along with his consistent hitting, Daubert was also an exceptional bunter, holding a record for having four sacrifice bunts in a single game. He also led the league twice in triples, and finished his career with 165 of them. Daubert was also one of the best first baseman fielders in his era, as he led the league three times in fielding percentage. Another very interesting fact about Daubert is that he was a very intelligent business man, meaning he didn't need to play baseball to make money, but chose to anyway. In 1924, Daubert was beaned by a pitch, and after the beaning, he experienced headaches and difficulty sleeping. It was eventually discovered that he had a hereditary condition involving his spleen, and Daubert tragically passed away that year at age 40. Though the condition was hereditary, many people believe the beaning may have had an effect on his eventual death. If Daubert had lived today, he probably would have been able to receive proper treatment and medicine and wouldn't have died from his condition. Daubert was not elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, which is surprising because Daubert seemed to be one of the best players in his time period, and he excelled at every element of the game when he played.
Leslie Mann identifies the player in slide 185 as Daubert on page 38 of his manual titled the Fundamentals of Baseball.
Terrible condition;
There are cracks all over the image. The slide must be handled with extreme caution to avoif breaking it.
This digital image is made from two separate digital scans; one scan of the lantern slide (reflective); one scan of the image (transparency); the two image were then combined in Photoshop to create the final image.
Lantern slide from the Leslie Mann baseball instruction course, "The Fundamentals of Baseball"
Sandoval, Jim. "Jake Daubert." Society for American Baseball Research, [ https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/3fca088a ]. Accessed 14 Feb. 2018. ___Internet Archive___. [http://web.archive.org/web/20180214184922/https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/3fca088a].
Identifier:
LANT-BSBL-185-03
185