New-York tribune., 1912-04-18
Teams in international League
Start Pennant Race To-day.
KEEN STRUGGLE PROMISED
The Mayors of Newark and Jer-
sey City to Throw Out Balls
for Opening Games.

What promises to be one of the best
struggles in minor league baseball will
begin with the opening Of the lnterna-
tonal League season to-day. with 'he
graduation Of the league into Glass AA
and with the shaking off Of its swaddling
clothes which It wore for twenty years as
the Eastern League. It has blossomed forth
with q high sounding name and has be-
come practically a third big league IN
the East.
There will be big time over In Ne"arN
for the opening to-day. stallings once
manager Of the Indians. will be on manu-
with his Buffalo team. All the reserved
seats have been sold. There will be street
parade. with automobiles, and ceremonies
AT the grounds which will incluoe the
pitching out Of the first ball by Mayo.
Jacob Haussling. Jersey City won't put
on any extra frills welcoming Toronto, out
Mayor Wittpenn will throw out the Ni''
ball -
Both Newark and Jersey City have peen
greatly strengthened over last year anu d.
likely TO be keen contenders for the mas
This has been shown by the exIioi'ioh
games with National and American League
clubs. Both lost to the Giants. but poth
played tie games with the worlds chafl-
MONS. and as finishing touch Ne"arA
last Sunday defeated Brooklyn by score
of 6 TO 1. right after the Superbas had won
two out of the three-game series i'oii '"e
Giants.
Neyark has a strong hitting team anu
this means much. Starting with o"aci'io'
the former Pittsburgh man, at hrst' II ma
s,ugoers all the way around the diamond
swacina "a a new man who promises We'll
On second Bob Fisher, the sensation Ok '"o
Eastern League last season, ana the niai'
for whom Frank Chance, OF the 'hicaeo
Cubs. offered 5000 In cold cash, VIII hoio
forth He is a. 800 hitter, a clever neloer
and fine base runner. Next 10 MN a.
short "a Enos Kirkpatrick. a youngster VINO
can WELD the bat and play the postum
and who will probably get the can o'e,
Bobby Vaughn. Moving TO third Is louiiu
Eddie Zimmerman, with Brooklyn last sea
son and one Of the most pollshed thiu
basemen in the country. lie is not Dig
league hitter, but should hold up MS ei'u
against minor league pitching. Ii 'he ou
feld are tho veteran Cy Seymour gooo ioi
,bree-haRger any day; Doc bernaFo'
rbo can hit. field and use his head, some
thing which is always an asset ana DllAS
zimmerman, a player who TWO yeaie aeo
With Troy, Of the state League, leu the
country I'm stolen bases, with H0 u mo
credit. Bobby Coulson, with BROOKLYN ias'
wear. may crowd out one OF the otheis' 90
he Is q valuable player.
Remind the bat the Indians are well 1or-
titled with the veterans Harry eml'h anu
nm Rersen. the old Brooklyn standby
The nitchIng department is causing tue
o,Iy worry Iron Man" Joe McGinnlty
"a an uncertainty. but he may have Dig
wear. Last spring only four weeks peIore
tho season opened ne broke his pitching
arm cranking an automobile. He didn't
get into the game until Memorial bay
and his arm was weak all the year IL
looks now as II he were himself again.
He let Rrooklyn down with four hits on
Sunday and had everything Holmes
and Lee are the other regulars, while Gas
kell and McAdams may prove valuable
Jersey city has gone through a re1u-
yenation similar TO Newarks. Hugh NC
Breen. Of tho Boston Red Sox, who owns
40 per cent OF the stock. makes gooo
runninR mate for James J. Lillis the Jer-
sew CITY lawyer. who owns 81 per cent
and is n dyed-in- the-wool fan besides
being n clever baseball student. Lillis
t,. tV,y
schlafiy as manager and putting through
n deal with the Boston Americans where
bv he has first call on the services or
their surplus men. One Of these, jan
yrin. the Boston schoolboy. has proved a
big "and" Then Schlahy put through a
deal whereby Joe Agler. the fast heldins
first baseman, was secured from the Chi-
cago Cubs This was a ten strike. koach'
with the Yankees last season. Will be at
second, and Purtell, another star. at short
Bowers. Deininger. Wheeler and Callahan
are the outfelders, but they don't look
lust right to Schlahy. and he may get
counIs Of others. Bemis. the former
Cleveland man, will do the bulk OF the
catching, while Mains and McHale should
prove the nucleus OF strong pitching
staff.
Jersey city won the Eastern League
pennant in 1903 and set record Tor the
league Of twenty-five straight victories.
Rochester. which won the pennant last
year. looks less formidable than usual
In fact, John Camel, the manager ap-
pears to he thoroughly disguised, Judging
by a prediction he made In Rochester
paper. I'm which he is quoted as saying:
II have not succeeded yet In finding
any new men who know bat from hoe
handle. and with Charley Chaplin sitting
on the bag like a miser on a nickel that's
nailed TO the sidewalk | can't see how 1
am going to get any. If We win another
remnant II will be a pure miracle, and L
will he surprised If we don't get thrown
out of the league"
Rochester lost three stars in Moran,
the Brooklyn outfelder; Mcconnell. the
pitcher, and Simmons. the infelder, now
with.the Yankees
Baltimore looks about as strong as
when II finished second last year.
Nh AGE INIT I'M COL