The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-05-24
MAJOR GOSSIP
BY MANHATTAN.

BY MAINFlA | AiAs
 New York, May 23,-The western clubs in the National league have come east and the eastern clubs in the American league have gone west.
 With this first leg in the pennant race drawing to a close 1t is possible now to get line on the various aggrega- tions which Is worth something.
 Tn the National league it seems as though the race would be good deal like 1t was last season--a neck-and-neck fight for first place between Pittsburg, Chi cago and New York. with Philadelphia always a factor which must be reckoned with.
 The situation is further complicated by the fact that not one of the second df- vision teams is easy meat for the leaders.
 At this time Pittsburg Is in better shape than any of the National league teams. Chicago is suffering from the absence of Kling. Moran Is clouting the ball in fine shape, and Is fielding the position acceptably, but he has not the baseball sense that the famous Johnny is possessed of
 While there Is talk of KIing coming hack in the game, Manager Chance was not hopeful of reaching an agreement with the great catcher while the Cubs were playing in this city.
 New York also feels the absence of Donlin Bresnahan and Seymour. Schlei and Myers are not in Bresnahan's class behind the bat. Of course, Roger Is gone for good, and If rumor I heard this week is true the same thing may be said of Donlin. Not that Mike would not like to get back into uniform. but his health is such, according to the story, that he probably never will be able to play ball again.
 Pittsburg certainly does have the luck with young players. Abstein. for ex-
 l. --Ha u4--.- av4r-A base n better style than it has been played for the Pirates in many moons, and young Storke promises to develop into a crackerjack man.
 Boston and St. Louis show the greatest improvement of any of the leagues. Ii is true Bresnahan's team are tail-enders. but they play ball all the time and the big ex-Giant has not only imbued them with his fighting spirit but has taught the Cardinals more baseball in the few months he has had them in charge than the Mound City squad has known in all most ten years. The Robson outfit now plays fast. snappy ball. taking chances on the bases and full of fight all the tirne In another season the Cardinals will be a contending factor in the pen nant fight. l understand that Robson has insured Bresnahan's life for $50,O0O which shows how much he thinks of him.
 Frank Bowerman has also rejQve- hated the Bostons in about the same fashion.
 Brooklyn is playing fast ball and is dangerous. The Brooklyn aggregation always has had some mighty good ball players in it, but they have failed from lack of competent direction. They seem to be playing better as team than for several years.
 In the American league the Detroit team is starting off with a rush, which argues well for Hughey Jennings talk ing the pennant again. The Tigers are hitting the ball and winning games with painful regularity for the other fellows.
 It begins to look as If the Boston Red Sox are somewhat of a ball team. They cut out a merry pace for the eastern teams In the home-and-home series.
 When the invasion of the west by the eastern teams commenced everybody said: Now watch that Boston outfit drop" But they haven't to any great extent that you could notice. Instead they have gone up in the race by virtue of handing two defeats to the Cleve- land club, team that is supposed to entirely outclass the Boston outfit. At any rate, the Boston outfit is safely anchored in second place in the race. and pla ying mighty consistent ball.
 The Tanks did not start out in the west so auspiciously. The way they stal1ings. however is a resourceful man ager. He has good ma teria1 and the Tanks will be heard from.
 The White Sox have not struck their gait yet and the Clevelands are a little late in coming to the front Washing ton and St. Louis are putting up a con sistent fight for tail-end honors.
 Jim Coffroth, the western fight pro- noter, will break into baseball next year out on the coast with an outlaw " league. Jim will come to New York late in the fall and have a talk with some of the lads in the big league. He says that with a nine months season there he can pay exactly what the big league managers pay their men here and declares that he can get away with it.
 near record for bases on balls in g single game was made in a game between Cincinnati and Boston at Boston re- gently. Karger, pitching for Cincinnati passed 12 men to first, but still man aged to win his game easily. Mccarthy and Lindaman, pitching for Boston, gay, free passes to the first station to foul men each. Twenty bases on balls Is some what of a record.
 The hardest knock for the Giants so fal this season appeared in an evening papel recently as follows:
 Mrs Elinor Glynn, in her new bool about her visit to America says tn, America men are like kind aunts ant grandmothers.' Elinor must have beer hanging around the Giants bench at tn, Polo grounds when she got her dope"
 The Eastern league is well represented by players in the big circuit this year. al follows: Highlanders Engle, Knight Ienmit. Crockett. Mcconnell and Nell veen: Boston Red Sox, Mcconnell. Lort aad Wagner: Giants, Devlin and O'HaTa rookyns, Burch and Lennox; Philadel