The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1902-04-13
RrTrES FOR THE SUNDAY REPUBLIC.

week after a rapid recovery from an al
most fatal winter. and the ball will open in
ST. Louis Thursday with the Pittsburg Pi-
rates facing the Cardinals. ST. Louis near
iy always gets an opening date. and this
year the weather promises to be favorable
10 an suspicious getaway Last spring the
Frost King didn't leave st. Louis until late
fn April. hut this year the elements have
indeed been good here.
II is Idle speculate ton TO pick a pennant-
winner at this time of the year. though it
does seem tina Pitisburg has the best call
on the flag. II must he remembered that,
while tire Cardinal lineup has been greatly
changed. there = hardly a club on the cir
cunt, excepting Pittsburg, that has not lost
valuable men. Perhaps New York might be
excepted. bu; with the exception Of Chris;y
M~athewson the Giants had hut few raiua-
bic men.
Pat Donovan has lost at least four good
men. and he isn't denying II; but it remains
to be seen whether his loss will be the
American Leagues gain. on the other
hand, the willy Mr.. Donovan must be given
credit for his Judgment in selecting men TO
I'LL the gap.
After taking hold Of the st. Louis team
Donovan Needed not the jeers of the wise
ones and got together an aggregation that
played good bah. Last year he was not
gwen much encouragement for his efforts.
BY his own personal efforts he built up a
AHdN 1Nt NAt BGlliLhiii AN aoNpaV
for months. Then, after IL was practically
torn apart. he kept 1t together with his own
personal magnetism.
Last fall he saw his team so practically
TO pieces and his best men leave him. How
ever, he II just as hopeful this spring as
he was last. ana with n $ faculty for picking
up ana developing good men signed a team
that was the object OF much rldicule before
the mud-siingers ever saw II. Out of his
bunch OF candidates he may. develop a star
or two. Though no advance money was paid
out last winter, the men, with three excep-
lions, stuck to him. They didn't look like
world-beaters. but they are gradually rcui.d-
ing a brave stand. Sir Patrick's only reward
will be a tap on the arm and "Old boy. l
told You So
BY the way, Donovan has been playing
ball long enough to know something about
the tricks of the trade. and 1t won't be long
before he will sit on the bench without
a uniform. Not that he isn't a good. ball
player-there are few steadier men in the
best article and it will be only a question
of time until as a player he win give way
TO younger blood. But he is a good judge
and a good leader of men. and it is safe
10 say that he will continue in the man
agerial game and be n credit to that class
which have been graduated from the ranks
TO the managers berth.
1t is a rather queer coincidence that two
men who played infield positions on the left
last year should be found this season play
ing the infield on St. Louis teams, but In
different leagues. These two are Germany
Hartman and Barry Mccormick. Hartman
was a Comiskeyite last year, while McCor-,
mick shifts from the National to the Ameri-
can.
Roy Brashear Is a youngster who has not
been overlooked by Donovan. The first
few days Brashear seemed to have a wob-
steady and his work in the right garden
has pleased his commander. This young
p man cam I hit 2 fair . clip n4Pzs It It aRp s E that fnr
unless they are ~seven-day wonders, he
ought to divide sprinting hcnors in st. Louis
this season with Davy Jones and Billy Ma
loney.
OF the newcomers Smoot is the only one
opinions. Smoot has made no serious errors
OF commission or omission, but he certainly
e tSu d nave led E the Eastern League with
He Is a husky young giant and has strength
enough to hit the ball. Perhaps he will
season opens, and then. again, he may be
following Donovap's orders; but any way,
he appears to bel after a bunting record.
tional League last year who made bunting
q successful form of stick-work. and Smoot
ns,1 t,ac au Ipg a the heavy Job II he intends to
1t was predicted that Kruger would be a
The little fellow is game and in the exhibi-
tion games has shown more ability as a
shortstop than he ever displayed as a third
Q light man to hold down, but In the short
,Sis a. and Is se !, himself III fcr she stops better
he. is a hard worker and has trained faith
fully for the season.
OF course, Jimmy McAleer's Browns are
more or less Of an unknown quantity. but
the fact that they stepped out of a course
ly shut out the strong Indianapolis team
proves that they can do something. Players
eave TO be seen in action to be appreciated,
Browns until they begin the season. The
Hoosiers defeated Cincinnati twice last
week; but failed to make a respectable
The old saying that figures never lie''
Is true, to a certain extent, but 1t doesn't
f fSu tseY ror a, very much foIa IN, N baseball ;rSis lido dope
could size up the teams at the beginning of
the season.. and by the records tell who is
going to win the pennant. On paper. how
ever. the Cardinals figure as one of the best
batting teams in the National. and the past
lndlvldual performances of the Browns GER
vision OF the American League. Davy Jones
practically led the Three-Eye League last
season, batting .3si in seventy-seven games.
He opened up this seasons performances
with a home-run drive that cleared the
fence at indianapolis. No wonder Jim Hart
wanted to fight for him.
Though no club owner in the American
League Will tell you what team Is going to
finish at the bottom, If YOU press him he
will inform you ION the quiet" that he is
going to finish on top. Seriously speaking.
the race seems TO be between Chicago, st.
Louis and Philadelphia-possibly with De-
troit mixing things up at a lively rate. The
White Sox have the pennant, and c. Angus
tine Comiskey has not spared expense to
retain II. He told me at Detroit that per-
maps $4,000 would cover the expense of his
team this year. hut that it certainly wasn't
much less than that. The st. Louis club has
paid out more than 5000 In advance money
to the players. The new grand stand and
other equipments of the Grand avenue park
viii swell this to a fat sum. Chicago fans
even the players are looking in the mirror
every day. Here Is the way Captain Clark
Griffith sized the situation UP to a Chicago
Chronicle man:
"Our team is a better one than last year.
1t Is not only better. but 1t is better. too,
In comparison with the other clubs. Every
team is better than it was last year. but 1
think that Comiskey has succeeded in max
we outstrip every club in the league in out
fielders. infielders and catchers. There ia
no doubt about our receivers. We have the
finest pair in the whole circuit. There Is
nothing that can beat us in this department.
Then our pitchers-well. we can hold ST.
Louis, Philadelphia, Brooklyn and Boston
about even.
Perhaps day after day we will be able
TO put a better man In the box than any of
them, but it is. / think, not too much to say
that their stars ~outstrip our stars. We have
In 1sbell a man whom j consider to be the
best first haseman in the league. and We
work Daily is just az reliable as is "a Joie.
although the latter Is recognized as the
best ball player in the country. At third
we have Strang. and there are but two