The Washington times., 1914-01-30

me contract of Merito Acosta is on
the way to Washington baseball head
quarters.
Joe Massaguar, in whose care the con-
tract was sent by Mr.. Griffith, writes
that the terms were satisfactory, the
papers have been signed, sealed and
mailed. It seems that certain represen-
tatives of the Federal League made an
endeaVor to land the Cuban, but he
proved sufficiently shrewd to refuse
their offers, and he will again be on the
pay roll of the Nationals at substan-
tiaI increase in his bi-monthly stipend.
While Acosta is still a rather crude
article as a ball player, his chief thinks
that he possesses the necessary quail
ties, and, with a little refinement, be-
lieves he will develop into a most valu-
able asset to the Washington club.
There were no actual arrivals of con-
tracts at the Southern building today,
SO Mr.. Griffith spent most of the day
admiring a recent photograph OF himself
and interloping pannlng OF the efforts
of the Federals TO sign men who are
reserved by the various ball clubs.
In furthering his policy of making the
best possible play for local support by
appealing to Washington people. Clark
Griffith has arranged two more games
with Capital teams. On April the
Nationals will stage a doubleheader
with the Catholic University and Gal
laudet as rivals.
While neither of these teams is ex-
pected to prove thoroughly formidable
still the brace of games will AFFORD
the professional manager an opportun-
ity TO experiment with all of the mate
rial which he has allowed to survive
the cuts after the training period at
Charlottesville.
The booking of the two collegiate COM
binations probably means the total
elimination of the New York Giants
from the schedule, as April was a
date that was being reserved in the
hope OF obtaining games with the team
that tickled the metropolis through
coping the pennant in the National
League, but disappointed about 1000, 900
Americans by dropping before the
terrific fire Of Mr.. Frank Baker & Co.
later in the fall.
As was forecast in these columns,
Bob Murphy, local product, has signed
with the Oakland club. Arthur Devlin,
who is to manage the Californians, is
succeeded in purchasing the release of
Murphy from Norfolk.
From Cleveland comes a report that
in wrecking Cleveland's pitching staf1
the Feds spent $5S,500 OF this Falken-
berg is said to get 81. 900, Blanding
iI,e0e. and Kxhler $1,000 for their serv-
ices during the next three years. And
then there are some who are so foolish
as to ask why some players are forsak-
ing organized baseball.
The first action on the part Of other
clubs in responding to the IS, o. s.
from teams that are being riddled by
the Feds has come from the Boston Red
SoX to the New York Yankees. The
outlaws claim to have obtained Zeider,
Cole. and Ford from the Chancemen,
and are now flirting with Ed Sweeney
and Birdie" Cree.
The claim that the Feds are not at
tempting to make inroads into the
rosters of the Giants or the Athletics
may be true, but now the New Workers
are confronted with a kick from Bob
Bescher, who refused to sign at the
figures submitted. Fred Lieb in the
New York Press has the following on
the matter:
''Bobbie Bescher. the former Redland