The St. Louis Republic., 1903-03-25
HEDGES ON HIS BALL TEAM.
Owner of American Team Thinks He
Can Beat Pittsburg.

| Robert Lee Hedges, the Cincinnati man
who owns the st. Louis American League
baseball team, yesterday arrived in the city
his hist team M taxes taxes its ST name Mr.. Hedges feels
very well about his club even II It has had
bad training weather. He already shares
with that other Ohioans St. Louis team
goes-Mr. Robson is a Cleyelander-he has
them won now. He goes further and says
the Pittsburg National League club, an
other feeling which shrewd judges generally
share.
! League Club got so bold through beat
ing the minor league teams which he
! met in the National League last season that
against a picked team team from the American
League. On mere muscle batting. fielding
and running. every one admits that last
years Pittsburg team was uneQuaed. But
Of possessing brains and ability to play
"ball' no one ever accused Mr.. Dreyfus' q
club Of being guilty.
Hedges's team can pay the game of base
ball all around the Pirates: Last season
Se from to hep the tse s@okS Su City NoW
Fred % Clarke, T peerless hitter. fielder and
base-runner, to tell every man of them to
ea es Sy msn II
from mere leather larrupers. ny eatShers
Padden. Burkett and Mccormick, st. Louis
would run away with the Pirates.
Washington and New York clubs. who
Ted Sullivan says possessed the model poses
of all aggressive natters. is a great ad-
physical condition. Bill had the most bril-
liant prospects q baseball manager ever had
when he managed New York in 1897. To
Lakewood, Andrew Freedman Of the New
York club sent his team to Lakewood for
training. The weather was bad and the
posed Of seasoned men like Rusie, Meekin,
Davis. Gleason, Van Haltren, Joyce and
Tiernan. fellows who had to have sun.
work and warm weather. 1t met the clubs
which had been sent for South and which
Result. the New Yorks could not win.
Freedman got mad at Rusie and Meekin
because they could not pitch. Joyce took
the part Of the men and incurred Freed
mans stern displeasure. The brilliant pros
poets all vanished Just because freedman
would help a friend.
Joyce places a high value on condition.
He thinks that McAleer's men should win,
but as Donovan'S club has had the good
weather and the work, while the others
have had rain and cold, Joyce does not
know what to say.
Stanley Robson is telling people how he
would prefer Lively yonngstss, stsrsn who ts Is
Jimmie Burke, who is disobedient." Burke
is "a years old and has had one years Ma
tionai League experience. and part Of an.
other years. II he is veteran. sudhoh
must be what some people call ian old
veteran" Mr.. Robson had crowd Of
lively and obedient youngsters last year.
To use a slang phrase. they made his
kean, Tebeau. Childs. McAleer. Young
stamp that won him gar1es II memory
serves one Alright. Baseball magnates have
short memories.
Reports from the spring training camp say
that Dave Brain is great third baseman.
If he is a better tiird-sacker than Jimmie
Burke Mr.. Donovan might as well give
Burke his congo now. Burke meyer will be
Donovan. II he is as good Judge Of such
things as he Is reckoned by his enamored
constituents in St. Louis. Brains absolute
class can be better estimated about June !
than April /. Pat Dillard was the best
spring third baseman the game ever saw.
As the writer takes It. there f. no Delehanty
Burkett to lay them down for him. BY all
means encourage youth: but q swell show
ing on fungoes does not mean that man
is a star stopping cannon shots.