The morning news., 1889-04-09
MILLIONS IN BASE BALL.
Talk ON THE SEASON NOW
ABOUT TO OPEN.

Manager Mutrie is Great Believer in
the Giants, But He Is a Man of Sense
ord Knows Good Player When He
coes Him-Ihe New Rules VIII Work
Well.
Nrw YORK, April 6.-This is to be
Great baseball year!
Tba season will not open until the latter
oart of April. just about the time when
Now York is celebrating the centennial of
of the Inauguration of George Washington
os President of the United States. If the
father of his country could come back and
saa the New York club meet another of its
class on the diamond, he would fully under
stand what progress has been made since
+be April day when he took the oath of Of
Ace in the gallery of the old city hall in
Wall street.
However, New York is getting warmed
m and ere long nothing but base ball will
he talked of. Spalding's braves having
made the round of the globe. having slug
oed the ball, so to speak, at the Antipodes,
Under the fro wing brow of the Sphinx, on
the burning sands of Egypt, before kings,
nriaces lords, and lesser lights, are about
70 open up shop again here IN the land of
the free and the home of the brave, where
the people know good thing and know
how to pay for it. In short time New
York win be full of base ball men, as it
always is of base ball lovers.
If there is any one who can explain salts
factorily the cause of the surprising popu-
larity of base ball he ought to come forth
and do it. 1t is but repeating an oft told
tale to say that its popularity is constantly
on the il crease, yet it is so, and is worthy
of repetition. Men like James Mutrie, the
manager of the New York Giants" the
pennant winners of the National League
for 1888, estimate that more than $3, 900 900
are directly interested in base ball at the
present time, and that something like S15,-
100000 are invested and exchanged upon
the national game in the course OF the year.
OF course, more money than this is in
vested in horse racing. But horse racing
cannot, after all, be ranked as being as
popular sport as base ball.
The integrity Of the game is yet intact.
There may De pulling aud drugging OF
horses and charges of both are frequent,
but as vet no charges of dishonesty have
been preferred against any of our reputable
base ball clubs.
Gov. Hill, Of New York, has another
reason for the supremacy of the game.
Base ball he says, has, like the aver
age American, more dash, more enterprise,
more aim, more git up and git to it in
minute than anything else OF its kind in
any other nation on earth ever attained in
n life time. That's the secret of the ma
tional games success in the United States,
and in every other enterprising country In
which it has been introduced"
At any rate the game is q success, and no
one will quarrel over the cause.
There is probably 40 base ball man in the
country be ter known than james Mutrie,
the ma ager of the New York base bali
club, sometimes known as "Tru hful
James," other times termed "Smiling
H. IIal Ia,
"Jlm" Among the fraternity he alks
with such men as zap Soalding, Harry
Wright, Capt. Anson and other veterans
Mr.. Mutrie has been for a number of
years with the New York base ball club,
and every year until last year he we It in
for that championship pennant and didn't
get 1t. And every year James would start
in new and vow to get there Last year he
di get there And this year James is hust-
ling for the pennant again. vR
The big manager sat in his Office the
other day busily engaged with good cigar
and a schedu e of 1899 games.
This is to be great year for base ball"
he said.
Better than last year?" inquired.
81 think it will be much better" the ge-
nial manager replied. THE outlook is good
all around. The trip that Spaldi1g's men
have taken will give boom to the game
but for that matter it was growing in q
healthy manner before. Then, again, the
teams re all good ones every one Of them,
and people will always pay TO see a gooi
game of ball. There Is a good deal of ri
valry amoag the teams, too. Now York
holds the pennant Well, the other mines
will do their best to take it away, and |
promise you New York will d her best to
keep 1t. In consequence you will see hot
fight, and the people who know a good
thing will want to see it."
And what win the result of that fight
be-
''Well, think with any sort of luck and
barring accidents New York will hold the
pennant | believe our team can hold their
own. But it must be said that Boston has
strong team. don't think they are pea
nant winners, but they are good ones.
Chicago also has a strong nine"
But cannot strong team prevail
against luck !'' | asked.
The vete an manager Law back in his
char, and took another long puff at MS
cigar. Gazing through the smoke he seemed
10 see maScots, hoodoes, fortu 10 tell9rs and
a variety OF other things. 1t was plain
mat he, like pretty nearly every other base
ball man, was more or less superstltious.
My friend" he said, "there's good deal
IN luck. III give you an instance Of that
TOOK the New York team to Boston season
ueIore last when we were S anding first
raIe. Every man in the team was in the
plnA OF condition and fit to play for mans
me we beat the Boston boys two games
nicely. AS we were coming from Boston on
the tram Mickey Welch came to me and
SAID; We have got the pennant this time,
sure, jim Well, thought So too. We
went on to Philadelphia and felt sure of pull
ing on the best Oft. Well, we had just got the
game started when r ger Connor, our first
oaSeman, was taken sick, and l had to
oeilu hlm home in a cab. 1t was but few
minutes later when "Tim" Keefe, who
was pitching, fell and hurt his side so that
ne had TO stop l had to go to the gate
auu 2 get Welch to go in the box, and seeing
living there | said to him: Il think you
nsd ,1 better go in and catch the game out
mat Is Just whay was going to propose
ne replied, and he went into the box right
away. We'll, almost the first bail Welch
p'Icueu smashed one Of Ewing's fl gers so
Tv at ne coulda't go on with the game.
wen, there we we're. We went into the
saIhe with every man all right, and in less
siIne than 1t takes to tell it three Of my
oesG men were crippled That was luck,
ana tell you luck wins games sometimes"
Is there much money invested in the
saheF The manager took his cigar from
ms .HIy mouth as he repeated this question.
wen l should say there was. There
- Dig amount of money invested in
n' lhiee millionsi Well, yes, | should
say more. OF course il is hard to get at