The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-05-07

Should the weather to-day turn out
to be in any wise fitted for baseball
playing, the day will bring out the ball
tossers all over the state in their first
real practice. In Anaconda a practice
game has been arranged between the
Anaconda club and a Junior team whose
banner bears the name "Alerts.' There
will be such a division of battery
strength as will make the contest an
interesting one. The match viii take
place at Athletic park and will have
the effect of showing what the Copper
City boys can do after a long winter of
alternating.
The two accidents which recently took
place in Butte, fatal in one case and
serious in the other, are matters of
deepest regret, and baseball men all
over Montana will pray that no more
unfortunate mishaps of this kind will
occur to mar the pleasure of the sport
Eastern critics insist that before the
history of the big league is written to
July the circuit of this big orsani-
cation will be cut down to 10 clubs at
the most, and that it is within the range
of possibility that but eight clubs will
respond to the roll call. Cleveland and
Washington are named as the clubs
that will be the first to go, and II re-
duction is made to eight functions Bal
timore and Louisville are slated to keep
this pair company. This is but rope
tition of rumOrS of reduction in the
league circuit that We're made before
the season opened. but there appears
to be more foundation for them at the
present time. For example, there is no
questioning the fact that Washington
is weakening. This is fully shown by
I the manner in which the Wagners are
7 dsposing of the good material that they
y possessed al or before the opening of
the season. The Capital City outfit is
at present composed of bunch of
skates who would be numbered among
1.-THE also rams in the Western associa
ton race. Cleveland is pretty nearly as
bad off, but has nothing to dispose of,
Patsy Tebeau having picked the best
fruit out of the former Browns. The
Forest Citys have not played an en-
gagement at home yet, but their recep-
ton will undoubtedly be even more
frosty than that which confronted the
team of stars that called Cleveland
their home last season Only mere
llandfuls of people are turning out 10
witness the games at Baltimore, while
the situation at Bourbonville is but lit.
tie better. In the meanwhile the season
in the big league is on in earnest ana
undoubtedly end have already been
formed. There is every prospect. hn"'-
y ever that the fight among the upper
\ sextet will be one of the hottest in the
history of the league, judging from thu
Y opening work. St Louis has a bit of a
lead, hut ST. Louis Chicago Phiadal-
phia, Boston and Brooklyn have all
& started with rush that makes it very
questionable which is the hest of the
quintet.
The baseball writers who claim that
the first month of a championship race
does not furnish a true criterion of the
relative strength of the teams are re
ferred to National League record OF
1898. On April 80. 1898, the first diVis-
s ion clubs were Cincinnati, Baltimore.
e Chicago, Cleveland, Philadelphia and
Boston. The finish was Boston. Balti-
more, Cincinnati, Chicago. Cleveland
Philadelphia. It will be observed hat
with the exception of Boston and Gin
cinnati there was but a slight change
in the standing of the first seXtettc on
April 30 and Oct. Is. but it must be ad-
1nitted there was considerable switch
ing during the progress of the race.
The second division clubs closed tn"
season as follows: New York, Pitts
bl1rs. Louisville. Brooklyn. Washing
order was Pittsbur" Brooklyn, New
York, Washington, Louisville and st.
Jo1lis While it is true that conditions
may handicap class in the carly stages
of a race the record of 1898 shows that
good line can be had on the teams by
May i.
The West has a splendid chance TO
Nrest the National League pennant