The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1897-03-12
LEAGUE.

LEAGUE.
meantime the friends of each club will
marvel at the reports from the training
grounds and express their inability to fig.
ure out how their pets can lose.
The southern experiment in training
will not have so many friends this year.
Five of the i2 clubs-namely, the New
Yorks, Clevelands, Washingtons, Louis.
villes and st. Louis BROWNSVILLE remain
north and try the efficacy of native air and
temperature. The result will be watched
with general interest, and If the home ex.
pertinent turns out well with any one OF
more of these five teams there will proba.
bly, be general stay at home policy adopt.
cd next year The southern training jaunts
are expensive, and few clubs have come
back without a cost of from 81, 900 to
$4,000.
There were not many changes made in
the rules this year, but some of the few are
In the nature of revolution. The magnates
believe they have crushed out noisy, irrel.
evant coaching and effectually squelched
the kickers, thereby making the life Of an
umpire less like the penance of lost soul
In purgatory. w shall see after the new
rules are worked awhile. Perhaps the
problem Is solved. 1 said perhaps.
Only one man is allowed To coach when
a single runner is on base. When two run.
ners get into position, another coacher may
go into service. Otherwise and at other
times every member of the team at bat
must sit on the bench awaiting his turn at
the plate or Mt base running. Past expert
ence has shown IL To be almost as difficult
to keep players on the bench while waiting
their respective turns as IL is to drill
drove of hogs To carry that part of the
rule into effect the League will have to
arm each umpire with double barreled
shotgun and give him plenary powers.
Another rule prohibits any member of a
nine but the captain from disputing a de
cision of the umpire. And the captain
must raise his Ebenezer only from his
position while I'm the field, and If his side
be at the bat he dares not come nearer
than 60 feet of the umpire to deliver his
exhortation or anatbemas. At least that
Is what the rule says, and IL provides an
extra chalk line TO prescribe the captains
approach to the umpire---a sort of ne plus
ultra in white. Very beautiful is that
chalk line trocha in theory. In practice
fear it will have TO be changed to Weyler's
system of barbed wire and ditch. just
imagine If anybody can, Tebeau, Anson,
Joyce or Ewing looking for that chalk line
when they start in TO convince the umpire
that he is either in error or is no better
than he should bel That's all we can do
Imagine it.
The object Of this lineal barrier Is 10
keep the two mon, the umpire and the
dissenting captain, at such distance
apart while rsey are exchanging their dis
tinguished considerations, that the anxious
rooters in the stands may hear the aruu
ments, dcmurrers and final verdict from
both sides. 1t may he edifying, but AT
times closer communion 'twixt the two
might DC desirable.
To enforce these rules the umpire IA
given unlimited power to yank an offender
out of the game and run him off the
ground. The magnates accompanied THEN
new rules with hunk of good advice to
the umpires. 1t Is epigrammatic and sup
plies what few things old Polonius forgot
when he charged Laertes on the latter's de
parture for Paris. IL the umpires follow
these new rules and their footnotes of ad.
vice, men like Anson, Joyce, Duffy, Mo
Graw and Tebeau will not play more than
one inning to game on an average
Every magnate signed these rules and
this heroic bunch of advice 90 the umpires,
and 10 of the IL will be crying for the offi.
cial blood Of the umpircs who read it liter.
ally before the May pole blossoms. IL isa
beautiful theory as long as all the other
fellows oxeu are gorcd But one lab Of
tho umpire's horn into the hide Of home
taurus will raise a below which will be
heard around the circuit.
And what IL the poor umpire 90 dor Id
rather be in Mckinlcy's shoes today than
be one of the National league umpires.
Next To the adoption Of those millennium
rules the most important event Of the Bal.
timore meeting was the all but unanimous