The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1909-08-26
Des MOines Had No Difficulty in
Winning Opening Game.
Local Team Piled Up a Total Of
Seven Rank Misplays.
SOME HARD LUCK TOO
Locals Lost Four Good Chances
to Score, Though Outhitting.
Clark's Decision on Peculiar
Play Lost Two Scores.

The opening game of the series
went to Des Moines by a score of 5
to 5, after Topeka had fritted away
chance after chance to bring home
the money. It was one of the hardest
games of the season to lose, for the
locals outhit the league leaders and
had things worked just a trifIe diff
ferently the home team might today
be nesting closer to that 500 mark
instead of drawing back to the place
they hold today. For in four differ
ent innings in which they didn't score
the locals had two men perched on
the bags within striking distance of
the plate at any time the delivery
of Mr.. Biersdorfer could be punctur
ed for the necessary hit.
Viewing the game from another
angle the locals lost it on errors. Dur
ing the course of the nine innings the
locals misplaced seven chances. Even
the reliable Henry dropped an easy
fly ball. Des Moines gathered five
runs but not one came unassisted by
an error.
Still looking at it from another
viewpoint the locals might have won
things differently. In the eighth in
ming Biersdorfer had thrown two
balls to kerns who was batting for
Kaufman. The third one pitched
looked like a ball. 1t sped past Nc
Manus and hit the grandstand. Two
men were on bases and both passed
the plate while McManus took his time
in recovering. The Topeka caStoff in
sisted that it was a foul ball. The
Topeka PLAYERS insisted that McManuS
had been crossed and missed catch
ing. But Clark ruled that it was a
foul Only those that reach the bright
and golden hereafter will know de-
finitely which 1t was. Incidentally
hi oh IA nr7Ix Of
dispute in which the new umpire fig
ured. He is big and handsome and with
his military pose he is delightful to
look upon. Whether he is a good UNI
pire or not time will tell.
DeS Moines bagged two runs in the
first inning Niehoff, a German who
wears green suit. led off with
single in the direction of Cyrus Land
reth. Kerner drew walk. Bolivar
Kaufman, who pitched a pretty good
game despite the defeat, essayed to
catch Niehoff off second and heaved
the ball away, both runners advancing
a base. McManus grounded to Reilly
but the ball was too slow to catch
over Henry's head with Kerner on
third and Jack dropped If. Never in
the history of the game in Topeka has
such an event occurred before.
This made two. In the fourth
another came along. Kerner doubled
and took third on ReilIy's second boot
of the game. Biersdorfer scored him
with q single.
A liner over the infield by Sir Cyrus
Landreth and another by Col. Spencer
Arthur Abbott, who seems to be the
best hitter on the club right now,
scored one for Topeka in the fourth.
The Boosters came back with an
other in the fifth Reillys error gave
Dwyer a life, and incidentally a pass
to second base. Niehoff hit line
drive which Landreth caught on the
first bound, but for some reason
known wholly unto himself, made no
play for the plate and Dwyer scored.
Abbott led off with a walk in the
sixth and stole second notwithstand-
ing that the great McManus was
catching for the opposition. Henry
hit one to Cooligan and the latter
heaved 1t into the grandstand, two
runs scoring on the play and making
Topeka's total for the game.
The final of the visitors came in
the seventh when Cooligan singled
went to second on a sacrifice, third
on Henry'S poor throw to second and
scored on Dryers sacrifice fly to
Landreth.
This same team will be here for
three more days and better things are
expected. In fact all the errors were
worn out of Topeka's system yester-
day and sharp fielding is bound to
he the rule for the remainder of the
series.
The score: