Omaha daily bee., 1910-02-13
BIG SQUAD HEADS
TOWARD DIAMOND
Coach Carroll Will Have Plenty Of
Material to Whip Into
Shape.
SEVERAL VETS ARE MISSING
Important Places Are Omen to New
Candidates.
NEW FIELD FOR PRACTICE
Athletic Grounds Near University Big
Inducement to Candidates.
WEAKNESS OF PITCHING STAFF
Only Two Old TvirIers Back, and
They Are Not Considered strOnE
-BiE Meet for Charter
Day.
VETS ARE MISSING
Important Places Are Omen to New
Candidates.
Ew FIELD FOR PRACTICE
Athletic Grounds Near University Big
Inducement to Candidates.
WEAKNESS OF PITCHING STAFF

LINCOLN, Feb. 12,-(Special with pros
poets for the largest squad In the history
of the university. the C~ornhusker base ball
candidates will start practice in the cage
Of the gymnasium next Wednesday after
noon under the personal instruction Of
Coach Bobby" Carroll. The official call
for candidates was issued by the Nebraska
diamond instructor this afternoon.
Special wire and netting have been Sc
cured 10 accommodate the extraordinary
number OF players who are expected to an
swer the appeal for base ball men. Last
season the roll of candidates for winter
practice numbered over seventy, but the
chances are that this total will be aug
mented to l6 men before the second week
of training.
Several vacancies on the team and a new
field on the campus have served to incite
an amazing amount Of interest in the
Cornhusker nine for this season. Most of
the places on the nine were filled by veter-
ans last spring, and the new men felt that
1t was a waste of time to try out for posi-
lions. This feeling among the promising
players Of the school kept many good men
from getting out and reduced the size OF
the early season squad materially.
Other players who wished to train with
the squad were kept from GLOWING out
their desire by the failure of the Board of
Regents of the university to acquire an
athletic field before the opening of the
base ball season. All outdoor practice had
to take place at Antelope park, which is
situated several blocks from the university
campus. To train there each day meant
that students had to sacrifice much of the
time that they should have devoted to their,
! k..aG Ul.ao -1.,- 49, a~t-t,- an
who thought the sacrifice was too much
abandoned the base ball crew and remained.
In civilian toys.
New Field IA StimuInnt.
For this spring the Cornhuskers are to
have a sod diamond on the new athletic
field, located just a block from the gym
nGsium. This is just the gift the men have
been hoping would be granted them, and
now that it has been presented they are
showing their loyalty to the scarlet and
cream by announcing their intention to
turn out the largest training aggregation
that has graced the local campus IN the
many years that the Cornhuskers have
been playing the diamond sport.
The call for candidates today started a
buzz OF gossip about the men who will re-
port at once for the cage" work. Since
the opening of the second semester several
new players have returned to the univers-
ity, causing Cornhusker stock TO a?iate,
Coach Carroll this afternoon said the first
day of practice next week would see at
least five men as candidates for each Of
the Jobs on the nine. a list Of the best
prospective players in school has been
handed to him.. and it shows that there il
plenty of good material In the university
to give the Cornhuskers a winning team,
40 kba nandfInfa1 nil ur.rlr harI un1 IA
velop as they should during the next two
months.
Wen Supplied with Catchers.
Competent catchers for the nine will not
be lacking. -Four of the men who aspire
to do work behind the stick appear to be
varsity caliber, Captain Greensllt himself
will be the regular backstop unless some
other man proves capable Of holding that
job with the same amount Of efficiency as
the Nebraska leader displays, ''Greeny' is
an old reliable for backstop, and it will
take a mighty sklllful lad to displace him.
AS the season comes on, though, 1t may be
found advisable to let some other player do
the glove feat at the home platter and shift
the captain to second base. He filled hat
position most OF last season, but did not
have the form for COVERING thelsecOnd sack
that ne. assumed behind the breast-pro-
tector and mask.
Radcliffe Patterson and Hyde are worthy
aspirants for feature work in catching be.
hind the bat. Radchff attracted attention
with his exhibition last spring. He Is a
fairly good pegger and is a perfect clinch
artist. With the bat he is much better than
the average college ball player.
AS a pupil OF the defensive details Of the
game Patterson has no superior In the
- 81 - a. 49,
but is slightly weak in his pegging to sec
ond He is acquiring a batting eye and
ought to show good form with the stick
by midsummer.
Hyde played considerable ball with the
City league and other Lincoln teams last
season and the year before. He has a
strong wing and his pegging to second is
admirable. His batting is only fair.
Same Tale About Pitchers.
Each spring for eight years the chiei
worry OF the Nebraska base ball coach has
been occasioned by the scarcity OF pitching
material, and the present season is to
prove no exception. Only two OF last years
twirlers are in school. They never were
considered to be very strong. although they
were the best the nine had. Besides these
two veterans OF last spring there will be
several other men seeking to get places
on the twirler staff. olmstead and Math-
= ers are the veterans. Adams. Rodman,
Frank, Halligan and Schmidt are among
the new men.
olmstead had considerable speed and
/ coed curves. but his head work was shock
Ing. During the latter part of the season
he could steam up ana twist the ball
into such gyrations that most OF the col
lege batsmen could hardly touch his
throws. When II came to fielding his po.
sition and TO guarding the runners on