Locke uttered a smothered exclamation of incredulity. "Do you mean to tell me that Charles Collier was handing old Jack Kennedy a deal as deceitfully crooked as that?" he cried. "I can't believe it. Kennedy has been a faithful and loyal manager. Three years ago, when Collier secured the controlling interest in the club, his bad judgment led him to drop Kennedy and fill his place with Al Carson. You know what happened. Carson made a mess of it, and old Jack was called back at the last moment to save the day. He did it and won the championship for the Blue Stockings by a single game. Since then--" "Come now!" chuckled Weegman, snapping his fingers again. "You know you were the man who really won that championship by your air-tight pitching. Why do you want to give somebody else the credit? Kennedy merely went in as a pinch hitter--" "And pounded the only run of the game across the rubber. No matter how air-tight a pitcher's work may be, to win games the team behind him has got to hit. Kennedy was there with the goods." "That's ancient history now. What has he done since then? As a player, he's a has-been. He's lost his eyes so that he can't even bat in the pinches now. His sun has set, and he may as well retire to his farm and settle down for old age." "He hasn't lost his brains," asserted Locke warmly. "Playing or pinch hitting is a small part of a manager's business. Once since then he's copped the bunting for us, and last year it was hard luck and injury to players that dropped us into third position." "I don't blame you," said Weegman good naturedly. "You ought to stand up for him. It shows the right spirit. He gave you your chance--practically plucked you from the brambles. But," he supplemented disparagingly, "he was desperately hard up for twirlers that season. You were sort of a lucky guess on his part. Save for the fact that he's never been able to win a world's championship, old Jack's been picking four-leaf clovers all his life. He's too soft and easy-going for a manager; not enough drive to him."