Omaha daily bee., 1915-04-04

Flavor of some sent out from
Reno, Just before the mall
odorous proceedings that desc
Grated a Fourth of July out in Nevada.
that one is caused to wonder if the suck
ers ever learn anything. For days be-
fore the meeting between Jeffries and
johnson. the public was told time after
time that Jeffries was certain to win;
that tho fight would last only as long
as he wanted it TO, and that the black
had no chance at all. Betting odds were
at 10 to on Jeffries, and millions were
wagered at that rate. And all the time
the sporting writer's who were at Reno
knew the truth was lust the opposite to
what they were sending out for public
Information. They knew that Jeffries
was unfit to so into fight. and that
he hadn't Chinaman's chance of whip
ping the negro. Not a man had the
courage to tell the truth, and all Of
them are equally, guilty of the deception
that cost lot of confiding bettors the
money they wagered. Now from Havana
come tales that comparative novice in
ring matters is very likely to defeat an
acknowledged master of the fighting
game. This can have no other purpose
than to stimulate the speculative inter
est OF the men who are willing TO take
a chance" and induce them to wager on
the outcome of the contest. 1t doesn't
matter which way the fight goes; the
purpose 10 so plain, and the tactics used
are so flagrant,e that the promoters ought
TO be ostracized. No sympathy will be
received by any man who gets stung
on this affair.
Another trainer is openly in favor OF
making the pitchers work a little harder.
citing to support his theory the work that
was done by the pitchers In the earlier
days of base ball. Modern practice in
dealing with the pitcher has reduced
luxury to an absnrdity. No team of any
pretensions nowadays carries fewer than
six, and some OF them run up to as many
as a dozen pitchers, and among the lot
usually two or three do all the work,
and the others are purely ornamental. 1t
isn't necessary to go back into the very
, dim past for local examples. In 1889
Frank selee won for Omaha the pennaht
in the Western league with kid" Mich
OILS and Dad" Clark doing almost all
the pitching for Omaha. He carried some
others. but they were of so little service
alternated in the box. and after the sea-
son here ended, Clark went to San Fran
cisco and pitched the team there into
the championship OF the coast league.
Other examples may be quoted, but they
will readily occur to the followers Of the
game. AS to taking a pitcher out when
he shows a little sign OF weakness. it may
be good tactics, but the other method has
q r.
in 1891. Kansas City scored four runs in
the first half of the first inning, hitting
Dad Clark with the utmost freedom In
modern practice, Dad would have been
jerked from the box about the time the
second run was scored, but Danny Shan
non left him in, and Kansas City didn't
get another run during the game The con-
clusion is almost irresistible that II
pitchers were pampered less, and had to
rough It a little more, the game would
be improved, and many OF the owner ;
problems would be solved.
Pa Rourke insists that hts team looks
good. and not even the home roaster is
inclined to question this He feels pretty
well satisfied with the material he has
here, and is confident that Omaha will
be up in the fighting all the way from
opening 70 CloSinB DAY.
Spring training trips have pretty well
lost their SAVIOR among the team owners,
and substitute for the same is now be-
ing sought Once, when the practice was
in its infancy, the novelty of the thing
made ii serviceable as an advertisement,
while the exhibition games were .gener-
ally q source of profit. All this has
changed. though, and the spring training
trip has come to be something of an ex-
pense. II is estimated that the major
leagues with be out from 5000 to $1,000
team on the present seasons expert
enee. and it is this fact that causes the
magnate to wonder if something else
can not be substituted for the costly visit
10 southern health resorts in February
and March.
Charley Somers is talking of sending
the American association team he owns
back to Toledo. Which serves 10 remind
us that Charley is something of COM
bination himself. having teams in Cleve-
land. Toledo, Jersey city and New Or
leans. and two in Portland. If he can
annex one in the National and one in
the Federal, he will have a nice little
league all of his own.
Lincoln will entertain the steeher-
Westergaard party and omaha's eau
tious authorities may obtain thereby evil
dence, II they need IL, 10 support or lie
| stroy their suspicion es TO. the integrity
Of the match. At any rate, they are on
the safe side.
II a base ball manager or team owner
were TO be guilty of any one stunt like
the Rem or Las Vegas fights or the