The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-10-30

New York, Oct 30-Radical changes in spring training will mark the major league preparations fon the 1917 campaigns. So much benefit was experienced from inter-league exhibition games in the Southland last spring that a new policy just na- turally originated of itself, By a strange coincidence the two local teams-Giants- and Yankees-hit on the idea simultaneously. The appar- ient wisdom of the scheme has ap- pealed to other managers. so that it would not be at all surprising of the new practice became general at once. The Giant management stole some of it's rivals thunder by announcing its training plans first. The Giants will go to Marlin, Tex, about the uslfal tipe-March 1. It is expected that within a month McGraw will have his club ready for real hostil- ity. Meanwhile the8 Detroit Tigers, under Hughie Jennings, will be drill ing at Waxahaehie, Tex. The two forces will join iabout April 1 at Dal- las,. Tex, for the first of a series of exhibition games arranged along a route that will carry the clubs in company back to Kansas City.
 A similar arrangement has been eff fected between the Boston Braves. who train at Miami, Fla, and the New York Yankees, whoses bring camp is located at Macon, Ga By the time George Stallings's clan is ready to move north junction will be made with Bill Donovan's yhopefuls. The team will tour the most thickly pop ulated ctntres of the South and the best cities of the Atlantic seaboard on the way north.
 Now comes word from Philadelphia that Connie Mack was trying to ar- range with the champion Brooklyns for a similar transforming junket. These two teams instituted athletic relations last spring in series of five games. The tail-enders of the Amer ican League began to show major league promise toward the end of last season. It would not be at all sur prisfng if Connie Mack came up with a club next spring capable of giving the best a run for it's money.
 There are any number of virtues to recommend the new training sys- tems adopted by the New York clubs, and no drawbacks discernible at this distance. MOSL important IS the eX- pected benefit toward the perfection of play for the championship seasons It is a we'll known fact that major league players cannot look seriously upon the games booked with minor league opposition in the springtime.
 For one thing, down in the sticks players are not so well prepared as their big major brothers before the real fights start. About the time the elect are leaving the South the bush CTS report for practice. Consequent ly the little fellows are in no shape physically to furnish even the conp- petition of which they would be ca pablo at the end of the season. Nat urally, too, the minor teams are al their very worst for all the best of the year before have graduated tc some faster company. Even games between the first and second aggrega- tions of the same club get better re- suits than the so-called exhibitions with brush talent.
 There is another consideration, too and a big one, for it involves the f. nancial side of the proposition. Re- peated visits of major teams to the South have taught the inhabitants not to expect much from the major clubs opposed to weaker foes. No.