Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1912-04-14
FANS ANXIOUSLY
AWAIT OPENING
But Five More Days and the Omaha
Bugs VIII Sound the
Battle Cry.
RoURKES ARE IN GOOD SHAPE
Manager Arbogast Pleased with 0ut-
look for This Season.
Ryan AND HEARN SHOW WELL
New Twirlers Are to Stick and
Deliver the Goods.
HUGE CROWD TO ATTEND GAME
Advance sale Indicates that the
OPENING Crowd win Exceed that
of Any Previous One I'm
Omaha League Ball.
RoURKEs ARE IN GOOD sHAl
Manager Arbogast Pleased with 0ut-
look for This Season.
RYAN AND HEARN SHOW WELL
New Twirlers Are to Stick and
Deliver the Goods.
HUGE CROWD TO ATTEND GAM

With the accompaniment of ragtine
music, tin horn and cowbell rhapsodies
the Western league base ball season will
open at Rourke park Friday afternoon.
and the old familiar rallying cry and the
lblissful tread OF feet viii be welcomed
by the largest crowd that ever witnessed
an opening game In Omaha.
The sweet-sounding crack OF bat against
ball and the mournful drone Of the
Jumps will be sweet music 10 the ever
loving bug, who sits now on the front
porch watching the glorious setting Of the
sun on another day. bringing him ever
closer to that paradise OF paradises, the
lgrandstand. With pop bottle in one
hand, . cigar In the other and a score
card IDLY lying in the seat beside him
the fan is sure he has arrived in the
lpromised land.
Friday Il the Day.
A jaunt to Lincoln for two days, a
flying trip home and a day Of rest, and
then a half holiday and the ball park.
Charlie Arbogast will trot out on the
field amid the wild and crazy yells Of
the multitude of fans. The opening game
lis safely tucked away according to the
home fans. and he who bets against the
lhoms team Friday afternoon deserves
mot to have hls mama placed on the list
lof real bugs. Pa Rourke has his boys
iprimed for the greatest day Of every
year. He promises the Omaha fans a
ball team this year which will romp
around the field like a bunch Of colts.
ever alert for that ball which whizses
up to him and safely snuggles itself into
his NIT.
The entire squad looks 1T as pumpkins
md the little iaunt south seems to have
done the boys world Of good. and Pa
says II Is the first year In twelve that
his men have been IN shape for the open
ing Of the season.
Manager 10 Hopeful.
Charlie Arbogast 10 highly pleased with
the outlook. He said the team Is In
great shape and the pitchers are all 60
ing so good that 1t will be hard task
to pick out the regular staff. Wild Jack
Ryan. the new pitcher Pa has secured.
gives promise of being the best lp the
league this year. Bunny Hearn, the
southerner who is also a side wheeler,
gives promise Of delivering the goods
from the word CO.. He is husky chap
and has had the experience.
At short Justice looks like whirlwind
and Il 10 predicted that he will burn up
thu Western league this year. In the
outfield Thomason and Coyie are sure
fixtures and are now In midseason form.
sours. who will probably be retained as
q right fielder is hitting the bali like
fiend, but he has not shown any great
work In the fielding position yet. How
ever. Arbosast says this will be fixed up
before the season starts.
wanner shows strong.
At second base wsnner is showing up
well, but Freddie Moore will be retained
to hold down the position also. Moore
10 an old head at the game and has the
real stuff. He played the last Of the isii-
season with the Rourkes and delivered
the goods and his knowledge Of the game
a we'll worth while. When 1t comes to
a difficult play Moore is there and over.
wsnner 10 good hitter but needs more
experience at the second sack. However.
he viii be kept this season to get the
experiences he could not set In another
league.
Jimmy Kane IS playing the game this
year better than he ever did before and
Manager Arbogast is OF the belief that
he viii not be with the Rourkes next
season as he viii probably move into
faster company. He started the season
AZ the Jump, with the greatest Of speed
and II hitting the ball better than he did
last year, which is going some when 1t
A taken into consideration that he fin
tsbed third in the batting list Of the
whole league. He is fielding the ground
srs with the greatest Of ease. Last year
tina ground balls were the ones which
troubled Jim the most. Arby says he ~
ina res, stuff this year and he Is going
10 lead the league In batting and field
ing at first
Three Good cstchers.
Tn the catching line the Rourkes win
h.v. thrs good ones. campfield. the
is~-Ksn~as state Lacquer. is delivering
"a xoods and is showing fine class and
awe. He Is q good hitter and can whip
ne ON 70 second with all kinda OF ac-
curacy. Gonding. the dean OF Western
Isarus cstchers. will be kept by Pa this
s~sson as he is among the top notchers
In the league today, and he will go q
rreat ways to delivering the pitchers and
making them come across with the stuff
Arboxsst viii probably not do much o.
the receiving this year as he win DC
ths coaching from the bench. He knows
tha rame and should make one OF the
greatest managers in the league this
season. Taking the team as whole and
individually Arbogast thinks that the res
~ The teams In the league will have to
sient 10 get ahead Of the Rourkes.
In regards to the opening, everythins
~ in readiness ard the greatest opeoin7
ioraha has ever seen Is prealsseai
parsas from the city hasi 10 IL 49,
VII be peach. At present II Is though
that about eighty automobiles viii be II
Isns. At the park great surprise vii
await the fans. but just what that sur
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