The Minneapolis journal., 1902-05-17
WEAK IN BATTING
Millers Need Strengthening in Sey-
eral Departments Of the Game.
MORE SLAB ARTISTS WANTED
Other Teams In American Assocta-
tion Are Putting Up Fast
r~.r' Article of Ball. .t

Although the Minneapolis team has
made an extremely poor getaway In the
American association race, the majority
Of the fans have confidence that Wilmot
will pull his men together and give an ex-
hibition of real ball playing.
AS a matter of fact the team has played
q frst-class fielding game since it's return
home, and the players have done good
work on the bases. There has been none
of the thick headed work on the sacks,
and none Of the sleepy, Indifferent field
work which disgust ed the fans last year.
Zalusky has been doing fair work be-
hind the bat. His throwing, taken as
whole, is better than has been seen here
since the days of old Bill Schriver.
Werden's first base play needless to say,
Is fully. up to the standard, and little
Willie Phyle, in spite of occasional er-
rors, is putting up an exceptionally fast.
at times brilliant, game at third.
The rest of the inheld is not above
criticism. Cassaboine and Morrissey at
second and short, are fair. felders, but by
no means as fast as they should be for
this league. Quillen is a fairly good man.
In the outfeld Wilmot and Lynch could
hardly be spared. The Chicago mans
work has been revelation. Up to date
he has shown himself quite as sure as
Nance, which is saying a good deal, and
even faster. Wilmot puts up the same
fast game as Of yore. McFarlan might be
improved upon, especially in his batting.
Inasmuch as Chicago appears likely to let
go of Congalton, it seems as If Wilmot
might use the hardhitting southwing to
advantage, could he land him.
Luther and Sporer have been doing fair
work in the box, but~the record of the
other. twiF1ers is by no means beyond re-
proach. The n1if1ers could make good use
of almost any number of slab artists As
matter of fact sporer and Luther ought
to be second- strings, rather than the
main dependence of the team.
The batting is another department
which apepars to have been neglected.
Phyle, Werden, Wilmot and Lynch are
pretty reliable hitters, but that ends the
list. McFarlan. Cassaboine and Zalusky,
especially, have shown tendency to fail
down when hits we're NEEDED to negotiate
runs. -Gr
Other Teams Are Strong.
Taking the American association! teams
as whole. they seem a pretty fast lot,
quite as good as the Western league OF
three years ago. That Is comparatively
strong statement. when the strength OF
the aggregations which represented Min
neapolis, Indianapolis, and Columbus IN
1899 is considered but so far the showing
of the American association teams this
season justiies the comparison. CERTAIN
1y the league is fully a. hundred per- cent
faster tnans the, western ledsue VI i
year. ---.
Minneapolis and Toledo, Judging from
the percentage column, are in class oy
themselves The other teams are all
good Minneapolis, as has been said oe-
fore, is playing fair ball, but needs con
siderable strengthening in several de-
partments 8 to hold her own in the company
she is in. & - H., - ..e.
The Two Big Leagues.
n.
Eliminate Pittsburg from consideration
and the American League teams are put
ting up much better article of ball thar
the National. Brooklyn, Boston, Phil
adelphia, and St. Louis in the National
have been badly gutted by the American
league teams. In the last two years
Brooklyn has lost the mighty McGinnity
the mainstay Of the pitching staff, be
sides Daily and Lave. Cross and Jen
nings from the infield, MCGUIRE and Far.
reIl, the veteran catchers, and Jones from
the outfield; in short practically ever.
man save Keeler and Kelley, who made
the grand teams of 1899 and 1900 wha
they were. st. Louis has suffered, ever
more in the loss of Heidrick, Burkett
Wallace, Donlin, Harper and Powell, no
: to mention men of lesser ability. Bos
ton has been robbed of Lowe, Collins
Duffy, Stahl and Dineen. Philadelphi;
has lost towers of strength in Lajoie
Monte Cross, Douglass, Mcfarland AM
Delehanty. 5,t,,-
The other teams did not suffer so much
but they had little to lose. Pittsbur,
alone OF the really strong clubs, has sue
ceeded in keeping her team intact, and !
certainly is one of the choicest collec
tions of real ball players ever gotten to
gether on a diamond. The Chicago
Whitesox, which on paper look to be tn
best team in the American, are consid
erably inferior to the pirates. Tannehill
H<rr~ ETOl-.1 = n -
wonderfully strong lot Of pitchers, an
when backed up by such hitters as tn
Wagner Davis, Beaumont, and Clarke
are well nigh invincible.- The pirates
as a rule, are men just reaching thei
prime. They have played together 70
two years, and are fast, we'll balanced
and strong in every department of tn
game.
whitesox Disappointment.
The feature OF the American leagu
race up to date has been the poor shown
miskey appeared to have an all-sta
team He had strengthened his INTEL
by the addition of Davis, Daily and Strong
and added Green to the outfeld. Wit
Sullivan and Mcfarland behind the bat
and such q corps of pitchers as Griffith
Callahan, Patterson and Katoll, It locke
like another runaway race for the pen
nant, even making allowance for the in
creased strength Of the other teams !
the league. $50
up to date. however, the Whitesox hav
been merely holding their own IN fit
place.
Chicago and New York have been play
Ing we'll up in the national The Chica
20 team has been strengthened consider
ably, and is profting by the loss of ma
teria1 on the part of the other clubs.
sheckard No, Longer Champion.
Sheckard is no longer the chanpio
s.s..hhAr Lag" OF the baseball work