Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-05-02
MACK HUNTING THIRD
Stacker TO FILL HOLE
LEFT BY BAKER
wanted to jump back to organized base
ball"

Manager Griffith like most of those
who have been following the Nationals
this spring, is convinced that his team
is not hitting hard enough to be any
more prominent in the race than 1t Is
today. But he is confident that the time
is not far off when there will be ma
terial improvement in this respect.
about the only two consistent hit
tiers on the team SO far have been
Moeller and Foster. and, of course,
these two are not enough to carry the
team along" said Manager Griffith.
"Gandil has found his stride. but has
been in bad luck for week or so,
hitting the ball hard but getting 1T
safe only occa sionally. Rondeau. too.
has not hit up to his standard yet. but
they are all sure to improve, and when
they do, victories Will come more often.
and we will be up there fighting with
the leaders.
'Defensively, there is no team our
superior. We have the best fielding
team now we have ever had. and that
is saying great deal. FOR we nave az
ways been strong fielders. Morgan is
showing to better advantage at sec
ond base now than ever before, and II
| is his improvement which mas pene-
| flied the entire defensive work of the
| team We will start hitting up to our
| standard one of these days. and then
| we will have nothing to fear from any
/ of our rivals.
Organized base ball men seem to be
! standing pat on the proposition that
| players who jumped to the Federai
! League and played in that organization
should never be reinStated into tne
| ranks of organized base ball. regard
| less of what their value to team may
1 be The violation of their obligations
| makes them unfit to continue IN .fe
| game, and for that reason 1t Is sale
! to predict that Benny kanh VIII pe
| returned to the Brooklyn FEDS with
| a very short time. for the New YORK
| club will fail to get permission TO use
! this player.
President Hampstead does NOT
| strengthen his case in the least by
comparing the cases of Johnson. caio
wel Wingo and others VINO sis
with the Feds and then returned 10 ,le
fold for the very good reason 'ii''
none of these players ever dohnea Il
Federal League uniform. while Benny
EautY played a full year with the SO,
called outlaws. to which he jumped
from 4 club in organized pase pan:
TO let down the barrier at TINS time
uoufd merely be to stimulate sentl-
,,ent in favor of the opposition me
Federal League has taken n stano' anu
If must be allowed to sink or SWIM
alone The players who deserted took
tbeir chances They were responsible
for the disaster which came TO base
hall because of this movement. ana 'hey
,nnsr stand the consequences.
Ira Thomas is not at all surprised
that Eddie Collins is not batting up 10
his standard on the Chicago grounds
"ue never could bat there when ne WAS
with us. and he does not seem to be
any better now" said Ira. There are
always some grounds on which certain
players do not hit, and Chicago mas
alvvays been that way for Collins dur
ing the years he played with us. and
the link seems still to be on him But
I look for him to cut loose when ne
gets away from there, for there Is nov
tne slightest doubt about his having
natural ability to hit
OFF DAYS at this season of the year
are never welcomed by the players
Later on in the season. when the STRAIN