The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-05-05
BASEBALL GOSSIP.

ROurke, the owner OF the Omaha team,
! gave me some inside done the other
i tanning bee. He said: ''Do you know
! that was responsible for '"Three-Fin-
| gered" Brown going to Chicago. You
| know I had him in Omaha and re-
was sitting in Jim Harris Office in Chi
cago, and the club was trying to buy
Catcher O'Neil. They never gave
Brown thought. 1t was O'Neil that
| Chicago was after. I saw the teIe-
grams that passed between Hart and
| Stanley Robson, and I said to Hart:
why don't you try to get that fellow
Brown? He is the best young pitcher
ever saw. and worth more than Tay-
| lor is right now Hart laughed. and
fails to make good I will buy you the
best suit of clothes in Chicago That
night the club secured Brown. and 1t
wasn't a month afterward that Hart
sent for me and gave me an order for
the suit of clothes. That's how Chi
cago came to go after Brown"
E c. Day in Denver Times: The
Western league teams have passed
through the first week of their 1910
playing seaso;. and although all OF the
teams have not met each other, enough
of them have clashed to get a fair idea
of their respective strengths. The be-
ginning of the third series of games
finds Denver heading the standing of
clubs and consequently must be said
to have made the best showing. St.
Joseph is next in order, with Wichita
and Sioux City in third and fourth
places. respectively. Topeka heads the
second division and Lincoln, Omaha
and Des Moines follow in the order
named. Denver's showing is nothing
short of marvellous when it is consid-
cred that practically all of her pitch
ers are out of condition and an acct
game of the Lincoln series The win
ming of four straight from Omaha after
the Rourke'S broke even with Wichita
should class the locals superior to
Isbells bunch, which threatens to be
strong contender for the flag. Looking
from another angle, however. Wichita
took three out of four from the Ante
lopes, or one better than we could do.
st. Joseph has showed unexpected
strength, although Hollands team in
its first series was opposed to Des
Moines, which appears to be the weak
est club in rhe league. Davis has
good team in general. but as 1 predict
ed a week ago it is woefully weak in
the box. His men are batting we'll and
running up big scores but his twirlers
are of such poor caliter that the OPP
posing teams always get enough tallies
to win. The weakness of Des MoineS
is shown by the fact that Topeka took
three out Of four from them after
their series. The Soos lost two of the
three games played at st. Joseph. SO
on the showing to date it appears that
Denver and ST. Joseph are the strong
which is scheduled to begin in Denver
today, should give us good line on
their comparative strength. However,
the season is still very young and an
other week o" month may completely
change the situation. Last year Den
yer was leading the league during the
fore part of the season and Sioux City
was last. A few weeks later they had
changed places.
Is this "our'' Rip or Chicago's 81.
r. or who is it of whom the Denver
Times speaks thusly: Denver will fight
any effort which the Grand Rapids,
Mich, club of the Central league may
make to secure Pitcher Casey Hager-
man, who is now under contract to
play with the Grizzlies. Word was re-
ceived yesterday that the Michigan
team is alleging that Denver stole
Hagerman and has protested to Sec
rotary Farrell of the National Associa-
ton of Professional Baseball clubs.
Hagerman did not want to play with
Grand Rapids this year and about
three weeks ago received a letter from
the mana gement offering him uncondl-
tional release upon the payment of $500.
Hagerman wired to Denver and Presi-
$500. The money and a copy of the let
ter We're sent to Secretary Farrell and
a few days later Farrell wired McGill
to the effect that Hagerman was a free
agent and at liberty to sign with Den
Yer or any other team. A contract was
forwarded to Hagerman and he re-
turned it with his signature attached
McGiu and Manager Hendricks are
puzzled to know just what has caused
Farrell to reopen the transaction, mas
much as he was familiar with the
whole matter and had given his sane
ton.
Omaha Bee: Indications point to a
record breaking crowd at the opening
of the baseball season in Omaha, May
10. Already more than half of the
boxes in the grandstand have been re-
served and it is expected that all will
be sold before the end of the week.
Mayor Dahlman will pitch the first bail
and is reported to be lin1bering up his
throwing wind in preparation for the
event. Lincoln, Des Moines and Sioux
City are making great preparations for
the home opening day and the four
cities are striving to Guido the others
in making the occasion a gala affair.
St. Joseph News-Press: Guess the
Cooleysox are playing bum ball, Ell?
Two straight from the Rourkes didn't
look bad. And think of it, they very
often play to corporaPs guard. Too
bad, for a fact. When Sioux City
played there, Manager Towne had TO