The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-04-09
SEASONS OPENING
DURRET1"s BUNCH IN CONDITION
 FOR FRAY.
Climbers Leave Tomorrow for Atlants to Open Play With Billy smiths Fire Crackers-Sixe Up
 of Club.

In just two more days the barrier will be raised and the Southern League race will be on for 1906. Montgomery opens in Atlanta and Nashville in Birmingham Wednesday. each team playing sour games.
 On Thursday, Shreveport. opens in Memphis and Little Rock 'n New Or leans, each team playing, Thursday. Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The re- suit of the games in Atlanta will be est as it will give the first accurate line on the 1906 Climbers. Jack Hig- gins, the veteran baseball telegrapher, will. for the seventeenth year. play the game over the ticker. His emporium" is more complete this year than ever and every fan in Montgomery knows the enjoyment to be gotten out of his famous 'Ki-Ki."
 The Climbers are in excellent shape to begin the season. having had possi- bly more good, bruising workouts than any. southern League Club, as Connie come South and the Climbers had sev- eral weeks hard practice with them before the bad weather set in towards the latter part of March.
 The Climbers that finished the season last year was one of the swiftest aggre- gation ever in the South. That is, the inf1eld was lightning fast and the pitch minor league. The outfield and catch ing department were both below par, however With Mullaney, Schwartz, ' 1tIIy anu EllleY, the 1nIclu S"d- son seems to be every bit as fast as the grand one of last year.
 While it is too early to judge of this years pitchers. still Malarky. Hale: Nc Crane and May look good. McMakin belongs to Montgomery, but is not or dered to report until the first of May. as he is coaching the Clemson College team. Maxwell is the latest acquisi- in Arkansas and won't be in Montgom- cry until Wednesday. It will take Jim several days to. get in shape, but he games, of which there are eight, be- ginning. on the 18th. With Malarky. Hale. McCrane and one other fast st should be as fast as Mccoy, starkell. Hale, McMakin and Lee of last year. The outfieid this year with Durrett. Ap- perious and Houtz is 90 per cent stronger than last year, even after Woody Thornton stopped big hole in it. Houtz will reach Montgomery Tues day. .McAleese and Hausen are so much superior to Pat Millerick and Yeager that it is futile to try and compare them. So it will be seen that Durrett's team this year is a well-balanced ma stops, and. taken as a whole, the 19o6 team looks even faster than the -905 article. and that was good enough to hold lot of them. The Soutnern in Atlanta, has the following anent the opening:
 On next Wednesday, April l., the combat in the Southern League will be opened in the east with much merrv- making. The western contingent will rest on their guns until the following Saturday Billy smith will entertain Ike Durrett and his band of Indians from Montgomery in four gruel!ng "twists' at Piedmont Park. The Mont gomery outfit is strong in all depart ments and if they don't. butt into bum luck in the opening chapter. there'1l be something doing, and you'll have to hurry if you want to see the fire works. Durrett is a fine ball player and a scrapper for your life. He ham dled his team last season with signal ability and played the outfield like Climbers" for they know the game and play 1t to the limit.
 "The attendance at the opening game is sure to be a record-breaker even for Atlanta. The enthusiasm of the fans is now at the boiling point and blow
 Billy Smith and his hustling pals are coming around in great shape and when they lock horns with Durrets' people a few battered athletes will be whiffied to the log train with neatness and despatch. We may be the unfor- for baseball is quite an uncertain pas time, but Billy's gang is a tough prop osition all around and through and through. If Durrett's aggregation should pass Is to the sausage factory he will have to cop cut an article of est to turn the trick. The Atlanta war riors are saturated with confidence and the courage of a sparrow hawk. That's combination that will stand for q kick from Maud before taking the count. Sure, Mike"