The Detroit times. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1903-1920, 1911-09-21
ALL CUBANS ARE FANS
WHEN CUBAN REDS PLAY
Marsans and AIemslda Of the Island
Are Watched With Interest BY
the Dark-Skinaed Buns.

the Dark-skiaeed Buas.
II being a baseball fan makes a
man an American there are no Gu
bans in Cuba They are all Ameri.
cans.
You probably know that Marsans.
the outfielder, and Alemeida, the In.
fielder OF the Cincinnati Reds. are
Cubans. II does not happen to make
any difference that the former is a
Spaniard. while the infielder Is q
Portuguese. They hail from Cuba, and
since this is baseball story and not a
biographical sketch the other facts
make no difference.
Well, when the two Cubans signed
contracts with the Reds there was
considerable amusement, and then
everybody forgot about IL In watching
this National league race.
But not the fans down In Cuba.
When Marsans and Aemeida sign
ed Cuba became O first-class power
that IL, In the estimation OF the Cuban
rooters. Were there not two Cubans
IN the big Lacquer Sure. Therefore
Cuba had taken It's place among the
nations Of the world.
Those newspapers down In Cuba are
wide-awake. The first thing that two
OF the newspapers published In Ha-
vana did was to send stan men to
follow the Reds. To tell what the
bunch OF Clarke Griffith was doingy
Not by a whole lot. What the Reds
did was OF the smallest moment to the
Cubans. But what the two Cuban big
leaguers did was matter to be chron-
icled on the first page OF the sporting
extras.
These travelling correspondents
came on. They followed the Reds
through the east and through the Vest.
When neither Marsans nor Alemeida
was I'm the game IL was dull day for
them.
Then they cabled "the Cincinnati
team of the National league, the team
of which Marsans or Alemeida are
members, won or lost" as the case
might be. II they happened to think
OF It they inserted the score; that was
all.
But when Marsans or Alemeida was
I'm the game Il was a different story.
II Alemeida, who IL feet OF foot, ran
! for somebody II was worth half a
column. The fact that he took his
L
made no difference. Those fans down
in Cuba were wild for news OF the two
| fellow-countrymen who were In one
Of the two major leagues. The game
Immediately took on new interest NOT
because the Reds were winning or los
ing, but because Clarke Grifith nad
thought 90 well OF q Cuban az TO allow
him TO run for some slow-footed Amer
lean.
II was q great victory Cor Cuba
And when Marsans broke into the
game for full nine innings the cables
were laden with the great news. the
people in this country might be eager
10 know what had been discovered IN
the raising of the Maine. Nothing DO
ing. Those baseball fans must know
what Marsans was doing. So they got
ND a regular little box score for Mar
sans. Those Cuban stan correspond
ents told how many strikes and Dalls
| he had when he hit or didn't hit ii
there was any question about the oe-
cision of the umpire then these Amer
team arbitrators caught II right. They
were described AZ men who were de-
termined 10 give the best OF II to their
fellow-countrymen while Cuban had
no chance.
n the Cuban was fortunate enough
10 hit the ball there was more descrip-
ton. AT the end Of the game the
Cuban fan knew exactly how many
balls the Cubans had swung at ana
how many balls and strikes had been
called. n the Cuban hit, the direction
the ball took was described. Also
whether he had been robbed by the
aeetness OF foot OF some American or
whether the ball was one easily
caught. The number OF his putouts
was set forth with a description OF
every ball handled.
we claim to be fans In this coun-
try. But you have to lift your hats 20
the Cubans. For the fans down there
were 40 interested In the game OF two
PLAYERS that the newspapers sen.
starr correspondents to travei ana
paid cable tolls. Mind you they were
not interested in the pennant race.
Their LOYALTY to one team did not
arouse or sustain their interest. ~
was iust what two Individual Dali
players did which kept the ISLAND IN
\ high pitch of excitement.
This continued for months. After
awhile those correspondents taueh.
some American newspaper men
enoueh, of Spanish TO send the cable
---- IN .n~~annOndoufa had zone