The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-09-22
STANDING OF THE CLUBS.

The Western league season of 1897
has been one of surprises. The Millers,
while they had suffered severe losses
through the National league draft,
were touted as dangerous competitors
by those who thought that base ball
remnants were won by one man and not
by nine The Kansas City team, too,
locked like winning bunch on paper,
but the season was still young when
Manning's coterie was hopelessly dis
tanced Indianapolis team, openly fos-
tered by Cincnnati's extra players,
was a conceded contestant, but in spite
of the excellent work the men had
done before in harness, most of them
together, the team took a slump soon
after the start and did not reappear
in the pennant race until the middle of
June. The Apostles, with a lot of new
and untried timber, were not especial
ly promising at the start, but they got
into shape quickly and went at the ball
with a whirlWind rapidity. They got a
clear title to first place the first week
in May during the home series, and
held it until the middle of June, in spite
of the hard uphill battle they had TO
play with straight series of twenty
eight games away from home. About
this time, however, the Columbus team,
which had been playing hard ball, but
with little luck, and the HooSiers began
to climb the ladder again, and with
the MilWaukeeans, who had also shown
some marked Improvement and looked
like possible rag-f1yers, came up to-
gether, we'll punched. The Saints then
dropped back into the bunch, and
while they had a show to win out until
within few days of the finish, it was
a very dubious probability, IN the face
of the phenomenal record made by the
Indianapolis team. AS the G o b has
heretofore pointed out, the st. Paul
club has won games enough this year
to win the pennant under ordinary Cir
ctnlstances. and yet two clubs lead it.
The Hoosiers lacked but two OF round
ing out a century OF victories when the
distance flag dropped on them last
night, a record that is unparalleled in
this league, and will no doubt remain
so for some time.
Columbus, too, has played desperate
ball, and fast ball. Lotus kept his
men in the game under very adverse
circumstances, too sometimes, but
they have pulled into a chance to play
1OI Tic y rec IIeSS cup, the gaze re-
ceipts at which games should amount
to a considerable sum. 1t is doubtful
if the league as at present constituted
will continue another year. Grand
Rapids is a point of weakness. The
town has never had a winning team.
The league directors are beginning to
doubt if 1t would support one properly
should it be so blessed. Buffalo, N.
Y, wants to get in. 1t q a long way
East but it is a good town. 1t has
given it's team in the Eastern league
good support, but the fans want fast
er company. They feel that cities like
Syracuse and Toronto are hardly in
their class. The Westerners figure
that the population of Buffalo would
so turn out with a good club there
that the difference in the expense of
transportation for the added distance
would more than make up over the
almost nominal receipts at Grand
Rapids.
The following table shows the COM
plete standing of the clubs for the
wear. with the work done by each
against each of it's rivals: