The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1905-04-10
NEARLY 4 JOKE.
Sundays Ball Game Much Like
a Farce.
Kansas City Amateurs Had To-
peka Guessing.
ERRORS PLENTIFUL.
The Locals Had Six to Their
Credit.
Letheby Had Hard Time on the
Slab.
ERRORS PLENTIFUL.

Before a crowd of 800 people. at a
preliminary season practice game, a
fact conspicuous in itself to show what
good thing the baseball franchise in
Topeka viii be this summer. the local
professionals of the Western association
got a case of swelIed noggin with a
good lead in the opening innings, and
| as a consequence had all they could do
to beat the Kansas City Schmelzers in
a nine inning finish by a score of Is to
| Il at Association park on Sunday at
ternOon.
A little squirrel-toothed lad by the
name of Williams, who has some Won
derful arrangement up his left arm to
put handles on his productions, caused
Abbotts hirelings a mountain of worry
in fact he had them so completely
hamboozled during the five innings he
stayed in the box, that they We're al
ways busy looking for a. place to light
But five hits were gathered off his
southland benderinos, and they hashed
down into a heap, netted but two runs
He put wings on his curves that made
him a favorite with the crowd and
started up that time-Worn yell; Sign
him, sign him." After the conflict, Mr.
Spencer Arthur Abbott was called aside
and asked on the Q. T. why it wouldn't
! be a good idea to sign Williams. Sign
him?'' snorted Abbott in answer, sign
him? What for?'' HE had you going, =
was volunteered. "Going, do you call
! it." he hoWled. why. our boys have
not batted a curved ball this year." He
patched up the cracks to this statement
with a few vigorous encroaehments on
the Queens English.
Three Topeka pitchers were worked
| HOWE, Alderman and Lsetheby. HOWE
did good work, giving the visitors three
runs in the three innings he was Gin, -
off three hits, base on balls and four
errors by his support. Curly Alderman
was his successor. The main trouble
with the pitching which the ex-Notre
Dame star has done here this year, is
| that his packages have no ballast They
are apt to light most anywhere. He did
business two innings, the fifth and
sixth. During that time he gave seven
| passes, but got away lucky, but two
/ runs being made. The firearms people
! got three safe ones out OF the stuff
which he dished up to them. The fifth
I inning is not duplicated more than once
/ in a hundred years. Alderman gave
| four successive bases on balls and no
run was made. This came about be-
cause the third man to draw free trans
! portatlOn was caught mapping off first
I by throw from Jack Henry. Letheby
| followed Alderman and he got his good
| and plenty. The big fellow didn't let
out very much and then but few curves.
! The SchmelzerS found him six times
for fair and knocked kinks into the pan
/ seven times as a result thereof.
The finish was rather interesting.
With a score Of 9 to II against them,
the Schnelzers came to the rubber in
the ninth inning. and by making success
sive safe hits and getting a pass for one
man, sent three runners over the chalk
mark and tied the score. Topeka came
back hard however in its share of the
last round. Henry got to the initial
sack on a bauble at short, stole second,
was hit to third by Quigley, and then
beat the throw-in of Coles deep fly to
| center. The crowd stayed it out, and
rooted Justify for-for the visitors.
Taken all in all, it was about as rag
ged a piece of ballplaying as might be
served piping hot. But then the fans
were charitable-they remembered that
| the team has only been together four
days. The pitchers have not yet cotton
| down to business, and most of the men
are still limp and sore from their I'M
! limbering process. Phil Mayer umpired
/ to the satisfaction of the crowd
The score.