The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1904-09-11
sLAoPILE SETTINGS.

The Barons nave returned from their
jaunt to Montgomery and will begin a
series of games tomorrow which will
wind up the Southern league season of
1901. Birmingham will probably play ff-
teen more games. They have twelve
scheduled and two postponed with Shreve-
port and one with Little Rock. II they
win a good majority of these games
there will be no question about finish
ing in the first division as Nashville has
to meet the same clubs.
The first one of the western invaders
will be New Orleans. Charlie Franks
pennant winning club comes tomorrow
and here the Barons will have hard
fight. So far these clubs are about on an
even footing. Vaughan should stand
good chance of getting two out of the
three.
Next after New Orleans comes Shreve-
port and that will end the first week of
the final home engagement. The next
week Little Rock and Memphis will hold
the boards and then the show Is over
and the fans will go to work figuring on
the prospects for next season.
Since Vaughan took charge of the
Barons the Birmingham team has made
q wonderful showing. The first week I'M
der his management was disastrous but
the men soon got together and had they
played the same ball all the season as
they have played since that time there
would be no doubt as to where the flag
should fly after the race is over.
Towards the end of the season Bir-
mingham has been indeed fortunate In
having good pitchers. Durham leads the
flock with a record of nine victories and
one defeat. Reagan has lost but one
game but he has not pitched so many
games as Durham. Clark, STREET and Ply
liant have all done wonderfully well and
Birmingham will have some excellent ma
terial for beginning the season next year.
Beginning with tomorrows contest the
games will be called at $3.50 o'clock. Other
wise an extra inning game could not be
played. At $50 O'clock 1t is now almost
too dark to play, and 1t is a fast game
that is finished in an hour and thirty
minutes. This change of time will be well
coined by fans as well as players.
For some reason Arlie Latham seems to
have 1t in for the Birmingham team. The
players say he never fails to show his
feeling when they are on the road. At
Montgomery he put Vaughan and Lynch
both out of the park. 1t Is true this might
have been the proper thing TO do, but
1t Is rather singular that the same thing
occurred In Nashville when Vaughan was
put out.
During the past week the Coal Barons'
batting average has gotten so thin that II
will hardly make a shadow. 1t is said
| that not man on the team now except
Piggle Ward 10 hitting 300 Vaughan has
| fallen down to .297 but 1t Is believed he
Will pull 1t over the 300 mark before the
season has ended.
One year ago today Birmingham had a
percentage Of 800 That was just after
losing three straights to Little Rock, all
| OF which were shut outs. Nashville at thai
| time was close behind us with per-
| centage of .487. This year 1t Is very much
the same, though nobody expects Nash
vile to beat us out again. Birmingham s
chances for the first division look n be
almost a certainty
Columbus, Ga, September 10.-(Special)
Cliff Blankenship of Columbus, who has
been playing on the Seattle Wash, base
| ball team, in the Pacific league during
| the past season, where he has made a
| brilliant record, has been purchased by
the Cincinnati National league baseball
team. At meeting of the National Base
ball commission held in Cincinnati a day
or two ago the purchase of BlankenshT
was approved, and so next season this
popular Georgia player will be a stal
member of the Cincinnati team, one OF
4 the strongest in the United States.
Blankenship is a Georgia boy who Il
rapidly advancing to the front as base
ball player of national reputation. In 190
he was one of the leading members of the
Toledo, o., team. He has played with
Seattle this year and while he is ar
al-round baseball player and has done
well wherever stationed his most bril-
liant work has been at the bat, his bat.
ting average being one Of the highest Il
not the highest among the members Of
! the Pacific Coast league.