The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-02-18
BASEBALL GOSSIP.

A great big globe made in imitation oi baseball, inscribed with the words
 Baseball Today" will in all probability De one of the methods of advertising used by Manager Roth of the Augusta team.
 Ihis ball will be displayed somewhere near the monument, in full view of the public, squares away It will serve use- iui purpose Often the condition of the weather in the early morning is such that hundreds of fans get the idea that there Will be no game. that the grounds are not in condition to play and stay away rom the park. The display of sign at p. m., is common in all the larger cities' to notify patrons that the grounds are all right and that a game will be played.
 The matter was called to the attention or Manager Roth and he hit upon the idea of an immense baseball for a sign. He Will develop the scheme in time for the opening of the season Look for the big ball if you are in doubt as to whether or not game will be played. l. will accurately tell the latest news.
 Charlie Frank is getting his bunch of
 players together by the last of next week,
 hoping to get in some training ahead of the others. In others words he is the
 early bird that is out after the worm,
 and according to the proverb he should
 get one.
 But-sometimes that worm sleeps lit- n Ia I.,ae. l and get caught by the bird. That might
 be the case this time. If the worm hap
 pens to be the weather there is no telling
 when 1t will be ready to come out and
 shine to the satisfaction of the aforesaid Charlie So Charlie may pay salaries
 about two weeks too early and not get the
 weather that he is expecting Secretary E. s. Barnard of the Cleve-
 land Baseball club, which will play in Birmingham early in April, has written Secretary Sheppard that the team was
 praying for the 'sun to hang out when
 the team comes to work under the shadow
 of Old Mount Slag.
 The team will spend week in Atlanta
 and then it comes to Birmingham. Man ager Lajole, the master batsman of the
 national sport will prove the drawing
 card of the team as he Is the most con spicuous figure In baseball today. Secretary Sheppard yesterday sent tickets to Catcher Matthews. who is in Atlanta, and to Pitcher Reagan, who Is in Cherryville, Kan, and they will prob ably be the first men to report. They are apt to turn up in Birmingham most any old day, and when they do the first prac- tice of the season will probably com mence.
 Harry and Reagan formed a battery
 many times last year. and they were about the best that the Southern league | had, and this year the two will be the
 first to arrive. and they will probably commence little preliminary warming up as soon as the weather permits. Matthews has been at Hot Springs day. He went to Atlanta, where he Is a great favorlte, and saw his old friends He is apt to show up in Birmingham about tomorrow or Monday. l Grantland Rice has taken up the Ches- bro writer in the New York World as to when the great spit ball artist learned the
 art of putting that peculiar twist to his
 delivery that proved so effective. The ar
 ticle in the World in part is as follows: l "The much talked of spit-ball was dis covered by Jimmy Stricklett while in | New Orleans the early part of last spring. l Stricklett was at that time with Detroit | but failed to make good and was left
 in New Orleans. New Orleans let him | go but 1t Is understood he will play with
 some team in the American association 1 the coming season.
 l While New York and Detroit were l playing a practice game Stricklett used I the ball, but could not control 1t we'll. l Chesbro saw it, and after observing how | 1t was pitched. began to develop it. He I soon became master of the curve and
 used 1t with great effect throughout the
 season. He can make it curve in or out | with almost perfect accuracy | The Atlanta Journal makes the follow
 ing reply;
 '"The Gotham journals expert is slight l ly out of gear here. Chesbro had t--e | spit ball down pat before he reached Pied | mont park and two full weeks before he
 bumped into Jimmy Stricklett at New | Orleans.
 Just bit before the crack sabman | reached Atlanta, from his Harvard eo- | journ, Clarke Griffith sprang the fol- lowing one starlit night in front of the
 Aragon hotel, while a spring flaming bee was on the wing.
 'Chesbro writes me that he has picked
 up new ball at Harvard and has been working on it in the cage at Cambridge | I'll tell you what l think 1t is. He should have been here five days ago and is working a nice con. to stave me off. He says it is called the ''spit ball." He seems to think 1t will deliver the goods, I however
 "When Happy Jack arrived here this
 new expectoraton delivery was part of --------------------- ..--.----------