The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1913-10-11
IS UP TO MATTY
Chief Meyers Pins His Faith
to Old Master.
We Had Bad Luck at Philadel-
phia Yesterday.
(By John (Chief) Meyers,)


Philadelphia, Oct. 11.-Our case rests
with Christy Mathewson. The old
master must stop the Athletics this
afternoon. The man who has carried
the New York Giants on his broad and
willing shoulders for the past dozen
years stands alone between the slug
ging Athletics and our fond aspira-
tons
am sure the grand big fellow will
put us in the fight again. He will not
have it so hard as in Philadelphia.
Bender is out of the way and Plank
cannot possibly be fit for such Cruel
ling duel as that ten inning battle of
Wednesday. One of Connie Mack s
colt twirlers will have to fight our best
pitcher. That gives Big Six a
marked advantage and he will have
the sympathy of the crowd which he
lacked in the Quaker city.
1t is shame that We did not win in
Philadelphia yesterday. We lost out
by one run. We may as well call this
one the first which came in the second
inning. That was a gift to the White
Elephants because of the cripples in
our array. SnodgrasS when we'll would
have been camped under McInnis'
Texas Lacquer. Merkle failed to get
under Barrys high foul properly be
setting himself for the ball
SnOdgraSS should never have started.
He could hardly limp, let alone run.
We all thought he was ready to go
back. He assured McGraw that he be-
lieved his leg was sound enough again
and that he would strengthen the club.
He even went so far as to run out
few hits in batting practice. To all of
us his stride seemed fine. In the third
inning he laid down perfect bunt but
didn't even make the play close. For
the first thirty or forty feet he legged
it as fast as ever in his life. But the
leg simply wouldn't stand the strain.
Al Demaree seemed to have every
thing but I think he used his speed too
much The Athletics can hit a fast
ball. Marquard showed all his usual
brilliancy in the last three innings he
toiled. He had not properly warmed
up when they nicked him for the two
in the fifth
We had enough tough breaks in
this game to last a club through a
whole series. Half a dozen times at
least after Bender began to tire he
was saved by some unexpected turn
of fortune. Oldring took an extra
base knock off Mccormick in the
fifth that smothered several counts.
Two men were on bases at the time
and if the ball had got through Rube
1t would have come mighty close to
being a triple anyhow. 1t strikes me
that that play was the turning point
of the fray. 1t was a remarkable
shoe-string catch, but Bender de-
served more credit for it than did
Oldring. few seconds before he
had called Oldring in fifteen or TWEEN
ty feet. But for this the play would
have been impossible and the score
would have been tied at least.
Bender had hOrseshoes in that
eighth inning. Collins saved his bacon
with that wonderful stop on Doyle.
Eddie STUN bled and fell in fielding
the ball. He could never have re-
covered in time to retire Larry, but
he was in a position for throw to
second and Herzog was forced.
Fletcher followed with the most ter
rife blow of the game. 1t came so
fast that Chief" had no time to duck.
1t happened to hit the glove instead
of the bare hand or Mack would
have been without the services of his
great star. Had either Doyle or
Fletcher singled, as by every baseball
right they were entitled to do, after
the manner in which they connected
with the ball, there would have been
a different story