The Detroit times. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1903-1920, 1909-05-22
CHINESE SEASON
. OF BASEBALL IS
SURELY WITH US
Barring the Tigers Position in the
League Race Everything in Line
of Dope Is Upside
Down.
Wild Bill Starts Like a Wise Old
Marathon Runner; No Sprint in
First Furlong for Him.
BY PAUL n. BRUSkE.

IasepaiI Everything Is upSlue-uOWn-
barring the one fact that the Tigers
are ON top In the American league
race. All signs OF the times should
lie read from left TO right and in an
inverted position.
Just look over the list of anachron
isms
Boston that perennial tail-ender
up in second place and threatening
he lead OF the Tigers.
Cleveland being able to beat nobody
In the whole list but Washington.
Three western clubs In the second
division and three eastern clubs In
the first,
Eddie Summers who always ticks
the Athletics twice batted about In
reckless style.
George Mulin the leagle's leading
pitcher. Addie Joss tagging the rear
Of the procession.
Wild Bill Donovan making his debut
against club that he could nearly
always beat, and being knocked out
Of the box. after taking an amount OF
punishment which would make Bat
Ting Nelson turn green
What are We coming to?
Last Blow a Tough One.
or course. the last blow is the hard
est for Detroit fans to bear up under.
Memory does not recall a season In
all the seven Donovan has tOiled for
Detroit. in which he failed 10 break
loose with "a victory in his starter.
For the last two years In which he
las been making the baseball uni
verse catch its breath with record
breaking performances, Bill has not
only won his first game. but usual
ly his second and so on up 10 eight
OF ten His advent In the box has
always been the office for the open
ing OF the Tiges' first winning sprint.
This year they inserted the sprint
before Wild Bill got going at all. Now,
when he does arrive, he finds the
team In slump and aggravates It's
downward tendency
Hysterical bugs wendell their way
out OF the park confines yesterday
and spread broadcast the news
through Detroit's downtown section
THAT WIFI Bill was aii-tfi.- Men noted
the Tigers recent paucity or victories
and shook their heads. Predictions
that the explosion was on hand were
. freely made.
with such the writer does not agree
In either premise
Bill wasn't Hcaoy.
Bill Donovan is the wise old fox OF
baseball He is In the game TO stay
just as long as he can. He is nus
banding his efforts on the plan or
Marathon runner. He makes up his
mind Just how much his arm will
stand before he enters the box ana
then goes out and pitches right up 10
the program, he has mapped out
tn
sprint his first 100 yards OF a 26-mile
plug. In eleven seconds? Not so.
Neither does Wild Bill start pitching
OH his first appearance as he does In
the closing days OF season with
championship dependent on his ef'
forts.
The trouble yesterday was that Wild
Bills program, as mapped out before
he took the slab, did not include the
stun which the Athletics could not
Lit.
Simple. isn't II
So far as the Tiger slump Is con-
cerned. one need only point to the fact
that there may be some slight excuse
for weeping and wailing when the
team begins to tumble In the percent
ages. Most towns would be content
to see their team in first place, with
out caring for lead of couple or
hundred points.
Casting our eyes over the standings
OF the teams, appearing at length In
another column, we ascertain that the
statistics are still headed by the team
which Is normally found in that posi-
ton. That team is Detroit.
Freak Game Yesterday.
In more ways than one. yesterdays
game was freak. Second only To
Donovans lack of effectiveness was
the manner in which Coombs handled
the Detroit wrecking crew and the
others who make up the supposedly
strong-scoring combination OF the Tig-
ers.
So far as Mcintyre, Bush, Crawford,
Cobb and Rossman were concerned
they might just as well have left their
slap-sticks in the club house, for all
the effect they made with them on
the score Beginning at OLeary.
however the Tigers order saw red
fromstart to finish.
Charlie walloped away three times
out of four attempts and two OF them
| were doubles. Assisted by the fiend-
ish hitting OF Schaefer and Stanage,
Charles scored three OF Detroits four
runs himsef-a performance equalled
during the day only by Murphy of the
Athletics.
On the other hand, Ira Thomas was
simply modern edition OF Home Run
Haggerty, who was also catcher. IL
memory recalls. Ira didn't hit any
homers. but he did tear off four drives
that went safe, out of four attempts
at the plate.
Our hard-hitting frst-sacker who Is
bound TO bust into the fireworks some
| where had an on day with the stick,
along with the stick. along with the
other wreckers, but Holy Smoke! How
| he did throw!
A glimpse at the box score VIII de-
yelop the fact that Claud had no less
than four assists, of which one was TO
| third and two othevi to second base.
Hal Chase, in his palmy days, had
nothing on Claud. The way he heav-
ed out Harry Davis at third, alc/g at
| the finish, was alone well worth the
price of admission In addition Ross
! man went oyer first base on no less
than three occasins and knocked down
drives which would otherwise have
been double or triples. Twice he won