Evening journal., 1906-09-08
MANY GERMANS
NOW ON DIAMOND
Up TO the Present Decade
the Irish We're in
the Front

OF baseball players, and IL was remarked
how the Germans were coming to the
front this year especially. This was due
almost entirely to the prominence Of the
Chicago National League team which
has on its roll of fame sucn well-known
names as Reulbach. Pfeister, King
Evers, Tinker, Stelnfeldt, sheckard
Schultz and slagle There may be one or
two more whom / have forgotten, but
here are nine real Smon-pure Germans
on one club and that club the undoubted
winner Of a major league pennant and
very likely the worlds champion team
In fact. with Pfeister or Reulbach IN
the pitchers box and Johnnie King
catching. all the other regular positions
are filled by players with German names
except that held down by Frank Chance
at first base In looking over the roster
Of all the major league clubs there is
scarcely any of them which does not coz
tain one or more Teutonic names. Going
down the line of National League teams
as they stand atp resent. having already
seen what there was at Chicago, we find
the German element very scarce on the
Giants. Manager McGraw never hires any
but an Irlshman if he can get a son of
Erin to fiji the bill, and heretofore in
baseball, it was 90 per cent Irish. with
-..e Giants there is but one German that
I recall namely. Dahlen-an the rest be-
/ ing Irish
on the Pittsburg team there are quite
few, such as Helne, Peitz. LeineId,
Wagner, Clymer and Meier. do not know
] nf nf MI
tonals unless it be Plttlnger it appearing
that Hugh Duffy has as great a horror
OF hiring a German as McGraw has.
In Cincinnati. that city Of beer and
pretzels, one would naturally think the
German element would prcdom nate on its
ball team, but it does not. only four
Teutonc names coming 70 my mind as
write this, viz: Schlei, Weimer, smoot ard
Lobert
In thinking over the Brooklyn team /
find only Bergen Ritter and Appelman,
and on the st. Louis team, run by that
sterling Irishman, John McCloskey. I can
recall at this moment only three Germans.
Beokley, Hoelskoetter and Arndt
1t is remarkable that out of the four
pitchers whom Fred Tenney has on his
Boston Nationals, three are German as
sauerlraut-Pfefer, Dorner and Linda
man, and besides these there is only one
other German on Tenney's tail-end club.
the second baseman. Strobel
Taking it all in all don't think there
are more than 80 real Germans who are
National League ball players and GER
tainly not any more than this, II as many.
In the American League 1 have not taken
the time to closely inquire into the details
but as ] write these names occur to me.
For instance, Comiskey has Hahn and
lsbell on his coming Chicago champions.
and Come Mack has no less than six
Germans on his Athletics, viz: Schreck.
Plank Oldring Armbuster Hartzel and
[ Seybold, which is quite a collection and
giving Connie Mack the Dutch" pre-
mium in the American League.
on the New York team, I recall bu,
kleinow and Hoffman with Clark Grif-
fifth, and the great Lajoie has five that
know Of and may be Lajoie may tie
Connie Mack for that prize.
The five Germans on the Cleveland team
are Buelow, jess. Mess. Rossman and
Flick. AS 1 said before. there may be one
or TWO more. but I do not recall their
names Just now. The Teutonic element is
scarce at ST. Louis and Detroit, Koehier
4. and Hartsel being the only German
/ players of the st. Louis Americans and
schaefer and Schmidt about the only Ger
man names 1 discover in the Detroit di-
rectory.
with Washington we find Falkenberg.
Stahl and Altizer and with Jimmie Col
Inns Boston outfit there are Criger Win
ter and Armbruster. There are hardly
more than 25 players of German name
and abstraction in the American League
and altogether not over so in major league
circles. which would average about four
Germans 10 club. All the other national-
ities-Swedes French, etc, excent the
lrish-would not average two men to a
club. and this would leave about Is irish
men on an average for each major league
baseball team. or a total Of something
like 225 Irish players in the dominant base
BAH bodies. The same proportion will hold
good in all the minor leagues. so that
we can readily see that all this hue and
cry of the German clement preponderat-
ms in baseball major league circles, Is an
rot, and necessarily so.
The foundation stone, superstructure
and even the baseball roof IS as Irish as
Paddy's pis Some Of the wainscoting and
trimmings are German. French and may
hap Swede. and English. but underlying
and accomplishing an the great Irish
Drawn and sinew permeates and sustains
the whole mass, giving il characteristic
form and coiorlng. The finest athletes IN
the world are Irish and 1t is due TO the
predominance OF the Irish in baseball that
the American nations chosen pastme is
the most szillful IN the world.
Take the great names IN baseball-Kelly,
Sweeney, Weloh. OMEN. Glasscock.
Denny. Fogarty, McAleor. O'Conno--and
host Of others and Up 70 the present
decade Il will be nearly an Irish. OF
course. we had the mighty swede. Pop"
Anson. and the great second b=seman