Omaha daily bee., 1916-09-10
Judgments
IS: ;; :; ; e: ! ;;:;: 81 !; :; IS; ;

~" perplexfng major league
Wv and minor league magnates
alike OF late So manifestly
has bleacher attendance been falling
OFT in recent years that most of the
plants of the country have been so
remodeled that the space devoted to
bleachers has been lessened to make
room for more grandstand. But the
bleacher problem shouldn't be SO per-
picking. The bleacherite is a bug OF
inexplicable tendencies who likes to
watch base ball play. He doesn't care
whether he is comfortable or not. He
doesn't care what kind of ball game
he sees, good, bad or indifferent. He
only wants to see his team win. The
bleacher fan has taken to the amateur
game. He doesn't have to pay to see
it and he's just as satisfied to see an
amateur team as professional. Su-
perior play hasn't any attractions for
him. Neither does he demand a
shady grandstand and comfortable
seat There are still some bleacher
fans. But they are of a different
brand. They consist OF fans who
haven't the means to purchase grand
stand seats. They take bleacher seats
because they can't afford the better
ones, not from choice. But they are
the same kind of fans who inhabit the
grandstand, not the bleacher bugs of
old. The latter have disappeared just
like the gallery gods have at the
theater. And that's one reason why
throwing of pop bottles is largely
confined to St. Louis, which is still
pretty good bleacher town and is the
one city in the big leagues where
grandstand and bleachers are of equal
seating capacity.
Harry Pollok, who made cham
pion of Freddie Welsh, is now angling
to line up another meal ticket in the
person of one Charley Weinert. Pol
lok declared Willard, Moran, Coffey,
Morris, Fulton and all the rest OF
them are afraid to meet Weinert. Pol
lok intimates the heavyweight crop in
this country consists exclusively OF
lemons. Harken to his description OF
Fred Fulton: "Of all the glass-case
preserved, gently nursed, self-styled
fighters, the elongated Frederick
takes the blue ribbon" Not doubt
ing the truth of Mr.. Pollok's asser-
tions regarding the superabundance
OF incompetency in the heavyweight
ranks whatever-we believe he has
the dope-but who, pray, is Mr..
Weinert and what did he ever do? If
we remember correctly, one Jack Dill
Ion slipped Mr.. Weinert a severe
spanking sometime last winter. Out
side of that we can't remember any,
thing he did. However, that doesn't
matter much; let's put him on with
Willard at ten rounds in New York;
they grow 'em back there.
President Zehrung of the Western
league came in for some more criti-
cism last week as a result of the
Wichita muddle. Frank Isbell was
the disapproving party this time.
There are number of persons who
would like to see Zehrung removed
from the Western league chair and
the dope sheet reads that the prexie
is going to encounter some opposi-
tion. The opposition at present, how
ever, is limited toa disgruntled few
and hasn't become very serious and
won't unless nigger in the wood pile
bobs up, which, it might be said, is a
very frequent event in base ball poll
tics.
Just how much faster is the Ameri-
can league than the Nationall One
wonders. Worlds series results in
the last few years have been pretty
good evidence that the junior organi-
zation has little something on the
senior. But this year it was thought
the National might parallel the Amer
ican in the prowess of it's talent
through the flood Of new talent. But
the dope sheet doesn't show it. When
42-year-olds like Wagner and Hinch-
man come close to leading the league
in hitting you have got to pass the
honors to the other circuit.
Last winter at the National league
meeting Charley Ebbets of the Brook
lyn club introduced new drafting
rule which was accepted by his col-
leagues. The new rule provides that
the weaker clubs shall have first
choice in the draft lottery. Now Mr..
Ebbets' club is one of the top-notch-
ers in the National league race and
he'll be one of the last to get a chance
to pick up promising players via the
draft route. Thus is Mr.. Ebbets a
victim of his own new rule, which is
as it should be in such cases.
Christy Mathewson and Mordecai
Brown were pitted against each other
at Cub park Labor day. The score
wasl 10 to 8. Cincinnati made nine.
teen Nhits off of Brown and Mathew
son was nicked for fifteen safeties BY
the Cubs. And therein is told another
one of those sad tragedies of base
ball.
This truely seems to BE- year for
youngsters with Eddie Plank, Hans
Wagner, Pop Geers and tie rest of
the chickens cutting up in top-notch
style.