The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-02-10
Cooley Gets a Grip ON Tom Mil
Ter of Newton.
Led Kansas League in Batting
Last Year.
AFTER A NEW CATCHER
King Recommended One Who
Is in the Brush.
Jackson Refuses to Accept To-
peka Terms.

Tom Miller. the Newton man who led
the Kansas State league in hitting last
year and who finished the season with
$50 per cent as an average, has been
purchased by Cooley. The local man
ager will send him contract within
a few days Miller is one of the best
men in the State league last year and
q number of apparently good men have
been picked from that organization.
Miller is an outfielder, a natural hitter
who swings from either side of the JOY
pan. He played all over the Newton
grounds and did not make good show
ing in his fielding because he was forced
to play second, third and short field and
knew nothing of these positions. He is
declared to choose only good ones and
IL is alleged he pickles all of 'em.
Men who know ball players have
been urging Cooley to go after Miller
since early last summer and the local
manager feels that he has made a good
strike in landing him. Miller is a 40
FOUNDER who plays hard and takes good
care of himself.
Bakule, the husky southpaw pitcher
who has sent his contract to Cooley, de-
clares he will do everything to get into
shape by the time he reports. He will
not come until about April l. Bakule
tells of an offer from Izzy at Wichita
but because of his acquaintance here
prefers Topeka Cooley has hopes that
the big fellow will make a good port
wheeler for the local team. Nothing
but good reports have been heard of
him and since it was known that the
management here was figuring with
him these reports have been more
numerous.
While Cooley was in Kansas City
Johnny King recommended a new
catcher for whom Richard is sending
out search warrants by telegraph.
Killing says he is the greatest natural
hitter he ever saw and that he has the
making of a phenomenal catcher. Ac-
cording to the story of the ex-Cub the
paenom hits all sorts and conditions of
Iitchers and bangs the ball to all cor
ners of the lot. King, who played
against him last year. says the first
time up the youngSter knocked the ball
into a corn field over the right fence.
The next time he hit it into a meadow
On the other side of the grounds. The
third time up Killing says he knocked
the ball across the main street of the
little town in which they played,
through the window and behind the
prescription case of a drug store.
Jackson has returned his contract to
Cooley asking for more money. Jack
son lives in Pueblo and explains that it
Cooley thinks the bg fellow will come
through all right and be one of the
good pitchers of the league this year.
Farmer Fury, who was reserved by
Cooley once back in the days before
Topeka went dry has written asking for
his unconditional release and will likely
get it. Cooley thinks he will be unable
to use the felt boot ball player.
Jack Holland is keeping his own
counsel these days and ignoring the
newspaper stories around the circuit to
the effect that he will not be able to re-
claim Pitchers Fitzgerald and Reuter-,
and that some of his best men are
likely to fight the proposition to play in
st. Joseph. Holland says that general
lnisapprehension exists concerning the
two pitchers. says the st. Joe News
Press. Unless the powers that be in
baseball reverse their decree that all
players who Joined the California out
laws a year ago must go back this sea-
son to that league, which is now in the
organized fold, somebody in the West
ern league is doomed to disappointment
Holland admits, but the head of the
Drummers says that he is safe. F'itZ-
gerald and Reuter- got into organized
ball before the decree was made, and
they are not affected by it. according to
Holland. Reports that Roy Corhan
Pitcher Galgano and McChesney, the