Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-06-03
BY J. ED GRILLO.
ecial Dispatch to The Star.

Special Dispatch to The Star
CLEVELAND. Ohio. June John
Henry. the Amherst college catcher
who is TO join the Nationals July l.
has not signed contract with the
Washington club. lie has agreed 10
come to the capital team and has af-
nNcd his signature to a tentative agree
uent not to play professional ball any
where but with Washington: but the
formaIity of signing regular con-
tract will not take place until he joins
the team.
Henry. it must be understood, Is mere
" an experiment. Mike kahoe saw him
catch several games while he was look
ing over Mcclure. the pitcher of the
Amherst team. and he was very much
impressed with HenryS work lie found
Mcclure much too light for major
league company. so passed him up ana
opened negotiations with Henry. win
the result that. after a conference with
the young man in New York Monday.
he came 10 terms with him. kanoe
saws that Henry has the making of a
great catcher. but he does not consider
him ready yet for fast company. He
has much to learn, and in securing him
il was with the idea of developing him
into a strong assistant for street.
Henry is Il boy of twenty-one. of good
build. with an iron arm. Ihat is ABOUT
the only recommendation that kahOe
gives him.
To date this has been rather disas-
irons trip for the Nationals To lose three
ont of four games in New York was bad
enough but to have two games canceied
.tre in succession on account of rain was
still a harder blow, for. if the players are
% ne believed the Maps are the easiest
l-irI Of nicking for McAleer's men-in
fact have always been. but particularly
so now that the team is in bad way.
About the only consolation that is to be
found in the pOStpOnement OF the games
here is that it gives the Nationals a
chance to work their two most effective
pitchers, Groom and Johnson. in the next
two battles. Groom is to be worked to-
day and Johnson in the final game of the
series, tomorrow.
The team had just reached the grounds
yesterday afternoon when Il began to
pour and OF course the already soaked
grounds were not in condition to stand
any more rain, the game was 1mme-
diately called off.
There is to be another shift in the batting
order when the Nationals line up today.
Milan and Browne will be kept at the
top, but Gessler will be the third batter,
Unglaub will follow him. and then VIII
Aleer realizes that it was mistake TO
place Killifer so high up in the list right
while he is laboring under batting
slump. Sorrel top will have to show
marked Improvement in his stick work
before he will again occupy position
among the leaders in. the batting.
speaking. of killifer, 1T is decidedly
doubtful if he is yet ready to hold his
own at second. He is to have a thorough
trial there. but the team cannot afford
to present a weak front for the sake of
developing him at this time. when it
has a seasoned and finished second base
man on the bench. 1t is therefore not at
all unlikely that Schaefer will break back
into the lineup before long. Schaefer
was taken out of the game because he
did not hit as he should, but kiiiifer
has done but little better of late. and
Schaefer blames his batting slump to
the fact that he followed the advise of
others and changed his style at the plate,
turning from left to right hand.
Il batted over three hundred last sea-
son left-handed. but this spring l was
told to turn around and / did with the
result that ] lost nay stride. When j
break back into the game it Will be as a
left-handed hitter. 1 know that ! can do
much better that way, and, what is more,
will be on the bags oftener because I'm
fast enough to beat u lot of slow bound-
ing grounderS. Those who figure that my
major league career Is dt All emu nave
made a serious mistake. I'll admit that
I went poorly during the last week or so
that I was in there. but that will happen
20 any player, SO why not To me.
Though there have been persistent ru-
Inors in the papers that McAleer intended
To dispose OF Schdefer, the Nationals
manager denied most emphatically that
he had any such intentions.
II would be foolish to let Schaefer out.
] am far from satisfied that killifer can
fill the position satisfactorily, and it
would be n grave mistake to let Schaefer
20 10 some other team. l am satisfied
that there is still lot of base ball in
Schaefer, and we will get the benefit of
it if any club does.
Walter Johnson is a great attraction
on the road. Ii is hard to believe that a
pitcher who has yet TO win more games
in a season in the American League than
he loses, would have so great "A reputa-
ton. But here in Cleveland Johnson is
as big Il card as MatheWson is in the
National League. johnson is pointed out
wherever ne goes as the pitcher who beat
the Maps out of the pennant year before
last. 1t IS not eSaggeration that one
is approached in the lobby of the hotel
twenty times a day, and asked to point
get a look at the Natinals' star in street
attire. In New York. too. Johnson and
Street were two drawing cards. The fact
that the New York club was reported to
have offered $4,000 for this battery has
attracted the attention of the hgure-loving
public of Gotham. and Johnson and