The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-09-03
PITCHING MARVELS OF PRESENT SEASON Two Young "Phen0ms" of
 Big Leagues MARVELLOUS RECORDS Some Real Sensations Have Been Witnessed On the Diamond.
 Many Old Faces Are
 Missing
MARVELLOUS RECORDS
From the New York Telegraph.

American game have the fans been treat ed to the surprising kind of ball that is being served by the pitchers in the big leagues this season. The peculiarity about the season which has most impressed the unprejudiced fan Is the rise from obscuri- ty of pair of young pitchers barely out of their teens, who have set both the American and National leagues on fire with their brilliant work, and who bid fair to break all records for newcomers before the season has ended.
 The fan of a few years ago picks I'D q paper nowadays and looks in vain in the headlines for the deeds of Miner Brown, "Cy" Young, Chief Bender and others of note who were at their best several sea- sons ago. Instead, names like Alexander. Vean Gregg, Harmon. Marquard and oth- CTS catch his eye and he is lucky to find the old favorites mentioned
 The real surprises the current season is entitled to the top of the first division as the sensations 1t has produced and the closeness of the race for the flag in both the big leagues.
 
 the big show, two men stand head and shoulders above the others in their crgan- nations. Grover Cleveland Alexander of the Philadelphia Nationals, known far and wide as Alexander the Great" who barely escaped going to the minors in the spring, has the distinction of being tlrst pitcher in the older organization 10 win I20 games this season, and has worked in and won .more contests than any other ttxxr,,. tt7t the league, with the exception of Russell Ford of New York, has approached this record. Ford won 26 games last season. but Alexander bids fair to surpass that figure by many games before the season Is over.
 Tn the American league Vean Gregg, a youngster secured by Cleveland from the Pacific coast, who had a fair reputation when he came east, has proved invncible, and has the remarkable record of 14 yic- tories out of the first 16 games in which he worked this season. Unlike Alexander, however, great things were expected of him when he came to Cleveland, but fin their fondest dreams the Forest City club owners never thought that the coast play CT would deliver the goods as he has done against virtually all of the clubs which
 faced him. All batters look alike to him Tt makes no difference whether the team is the Athletics or the St. Louis Browus His work is of the same superior otder,
 and he is nearly always at the long ond | of the score
 | Alexander of the Phillies, came to the team unheralded. an outcast of two major league clubs, and narrowly escaped going | to the minors In the spring when the weeding-out process started Manager Charlie Dooin had about determined to sell the youngster, whom he had secured from the Syracuse club of the New York State league for the paltry sum of s45O when the latter asked for a chance to pitch against
 the Athletics in the annual spring series between the National and American league teams of Philadelphia.
 | Doon, who was loath to let any of his men go without a fair chance to show, gave him the opportunity. and after Alex ander had held the worlds champions to two hits, Doon decided that he would
 keep the state leaguer for at least an | other month
 Dooin's decision to hold the pitcher has kept the team in the race for the National league flag, for Alexander has won more
 than one-third of the contests for the team and is such strong worker that he has asked to work every other day He Is after the record made by Jack Coomos Of the Athletics last year, when the latter won 31 games and lost g. and hopes to ever better this mark It is a noteworthy fact that this same pitcher, who is the sensation of the National league, was turned down by Connie Mack, a manager whose mistakes can be counted on the fingers of one hand. He would come in handy now, with the Athletics battling desperately as they are to win the Amer | ican league pennant again.
 Philadelphia is not the only National league team that can boast of new star
 The New York fans have waxed enthu- siastic over "Rube" Marquard, who Las at last delivered the goods after three | years trial. The man who for two years had to stand the jeers and wittcsms Of
 the fans of the whole circuit has at last shown his form, and his work has out shone even that of the great Mathewson The "lemon" has become a ripe juicy melon, and Manager McGraw's judgment in paying $l1, coo has been vindicated With the "Rube" going along in his present form New York fans are looking for a peTnant and possible worlds champion ship
 While New York fans are enthusing over Marquard they have not lost sight of the factor, for that matter, has any other city in the league-that Nap Rucker lis pitching the greatest ball of his career for Brooklyn, and that he holds the rec ord of F consecutive wins to his credk The work of the pitcher is the more cred itable in that he is with a second division club, and therefore has to pitch remark able ball to win his games
 Last month he was robbed of the credit Iof pitching a no-hit game by Bob Bescher lof Cincinnati, who made hit fin the last inning of the contest at Brooklyn when two men were out. thus beating him out of another record performance He is rap idly amassing great strike-out record this season, leading the National league in that respect to date, and bids fair to make more records before the players put away their bats for the winter.
 Lew Richie, the genial pitcher of the Cubs, is holding his team in the race by his great work, and Earl Moore, q Phil adelphia man, is at his best this season and has been quite a surprise to the fans of the old league. He has been especially effective against the Giants, whtle his work against the other teams has been of the first-class order.
 In Pittsburg Babe Adams is again working in great form this season. doing the bulk of the work for the Pirates. Adams is another youngster who spran-, into fame in year by his great work in the worlds series against the Detroit team in 1900, when he won the worlds championship for the Pittsburg team. While his work this season has not heeu as spectacular as that of some of the other pitchers in the league, it is manly due to his good pitching that the Pirates are fighting for berth in the first di- vision.
 Tn. fans of St. Louis have discovered this season that the Cardinals are hat- clil.r three of the best pitchers wno eva,-