Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1911-11-03
NEW MANAGER Of
WASHINGTON TEAM
Interesting View of Failures of Ma
tionals as Seen by Our Sporting
Editor.

Now comes clark Grlntn DIS Aan
ager OF the Washington Base Bali
Club. Let it be hoped that he may
have greater success than any one
of the many who have preceded him.
No one doubts his experience, know
ledge OF the game, or hustling quail
ties. Furthermore, he has always
managed to keep his team fighting tor
the advantage. In Chicago he won
pennant. Two seasons his New
York team was contender all the
way. For his apparent failure IN
Cincinnati he is probably not to
blame. At any rate, his work there
was productive of greater results
than that Of Hanlon and Kelly. so
we may congratulate the Washington
Club on the fact that Ban Johnson
selected Griffith to manage this team
in place Of McAleer, who had only
long line of failures as a recommends
ton.
Griffith will be the eighth man to
manage The Washington Club IN It's
short life Of twelve years. When
the American League expanded IN
1901, Washington took the place OF
Kansas City in the larger organlza-
ton. Jimmy Manning was manager
of the latter team and brought his
players TO Washington. There was
but little inherent strength in the
club. In fact, it looked weak on pa
per. Yet Manning had his team in
the first division for nearly half the
season and finally landed in sixth
place. In 1902 Manning was succeed
ed, for some reason, by Tom Lotus
With the addition of Delehanty, VOL
verton, Townsend, and Ortiz, TINS
club was strong enough for first d.
vision berth. Lotus failed to get
the best out Of his material and there
was no change in the final standing.
| The year following only further
! proved the failure OF Lotus, as q
manager, and the team finished last.
| .iittredge was at the helm the next
spring and after losing sixteen out
of the first seventeen games made
way for Pat Donovan. Eighth place
was again occupied. Jake Stahl fol-
| lowed Donovan and in 1904 be start
ed the race and startled the nation
by keeping his team in first place
for several days until the season was
about Two weeks old. Washington
was wild and without reason. The
team was joke and finally found
its proper abiding place in seventh
position. In 1906, the club, under
Stahl, repeated in every particular.
From time to time we read in some
papers OF the wonderful success at
tending Stahls journey through the
West. The fact is that the team
made its brilliant record, in each case,
on short eastern trip in early spring
and had dropped to second division
stride long before the west was in
raded.
| Cantillon was appointed manager
in 1907. Evidently the consent OF
Ban Johnson was not secured in this
case, for he compelled the club to
sell Stahl TO Chicago and made Can
tillcn the target for abuse for three
years There is little doubt that but
for the antagonism of Johnson, the
three years under Cantillon would
| have shown better results. AS IL
was the scrappy leader brought TO
| Washington the few real stars now
on the pay roll. Eighth III 1907,
seventh in 1905 and again tail end
| club in 1909 is the history OF the
club during the time. In the latter
half OF 1905 the club PLACED brilliant
Is and promised much for the fu-
turc, but the collapse followed the
next season. The reign OF McAlecr
the unintercsting, is fresh in the
minds OF all. He neither added to
nor subtractcd from. He simply
managed, lazily, foolishly, sentiment
tally, and without apparent purpose.
True, for a part of 1910, Washing
ton was fighting for fifth place. Yet
this brace must be now looked upon
as taking place in spite Of McAleer.
Then, the worm will turn sometimes,
as witness the work Of the st. Louis
Browns in the city series this fall.
II Johnson will allow Griffith to
have his own way wc may look for
interesting developments. He will
hustle and the men who fail to fol-
low his example will work for some
one else Trades may be looked for
al any time Of day or night. Old
men and youngsters will come, stay
day or two, and hurriedly depart.
"Griff' will work hard, scrap a little,
be banished from the grounds, sus-