Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1916-06-01
CONNIE MACK HAS
HOPELESS TASK
Athletics Look TO Finish No
Better Than Eighth.
PICKED FOR CELLAR
General Opinion Among Experts is
That Corsairs Will Keep Philadelphia
Boys Company In Misery-McInnis
and Strunk Only Athletic Stars.

tt1 Wi S0iI VtbI iNSSP .
Boys Company In Misery-McInnis
and Strunk Only Athletic Stars.
Not very long ago Il Philadelphia
humorist penned one of the most clev-
cr lines he has written. He wrote,
"On March 10 the Athletic team will
leave Gloucester, Mass, for its spring
training"
Unless you know that Gloucester has
the privilege of housing Stuffy Mcln-
mis-, first baseman extraordinary of the
Philadelphia Americans, the humor Of
this clever bit is lost. Stuffy is most
Of the Athletic team.
Like a Hope diamond among a lot
Of glass trinkets, Stuffy stands out
among the remains of the once famous
Athletics. However, it will take more
than Jack McInnis to keep Connie
Mack from starving in the cellar dur
ing the coming season, and nearly
every baseball expert awards Phila-
delphia last place in the American
league, with no close competitors.
In the National league it is predicted
that Barney Dreyfuss and Jimmy Cal
lahan, owner ard manager respective
" of the Pirates, will be housed in
the last trench III the National league
by October. If any one cares to pic
ture Barney having a good time just
think Of him in last place!
McInniS is not quite the Athletic
team. as the club still retains two other
of it's brilliant lights Of former years,
Catcher Waly Schang and CenterField-
| or Amos Strunk. Schang, of course, is
one Of the games leading catchers,
ranking With Schalk and Snyder. while
| Strunk may be classed with the top
notch outficlders.
The lineup of Mack's team is likely
to be changed considerably during the
season. as the Athletic boss has several
star %colleSianS who will report to him
in June.
At present it looks as though the club
will for the early part of the season
! start With Oldring, Strunk and Walsh
in the outticld and IN inficld comprised
of McInnis, first base; Lajoic, second
base; Crane. shortstop, and Pick, third
base. Crane was farmed out to Rich
mond last year, while Pick, who for
merly belonged to Washington, also
worked under Jack Dunn in the Viz
| ginia capital. With Schang behind the
bat this would not be such q bad club
We're it not for the pitching.
1t was the pitching which made the
Athletics a joke club last year. Three
pitchers who are nothing but kids them
selves-Bush. Wyckoff and Bressler-
are the veterans of the staff.
Bullet Ball Joe Bush at certain times
has looked good, but %oftener he looked
very bad, and. though Mack still in
sists he will be a pitching wonder,
there are many who doubt it. Wyckoff.
who, like Mathevson, won his pitching
spurs at Buckncll. looks like a find and
the only real pitcher Mack has. Bress-
Ter looked like a in 1914 and was
called Il second Plank. but he fizzled
sadly last season.
The rest of the Mack pitching staff is
as green as grass, though most of Con
MES pitching awkwards saw service
last year. when they hung up a base on
balls record which should live forever.
The most promising one is said to be
Myers. Il tall right handler from the
Raleigh team, who struck out eleven
Senators when he made his American
league debut last fall.
Pittsburgh does not look as hopeless
as the Athletics. and the Pirates may
piTa ST nniS q 1uh for cnvnrth 11ooo
but the majority of experts cannot fig
ure them in a class with the other six
clubs OF Tener's league.
Jimmy Callahan has taken over a
club which, though not particularly
weak in any spot, does not size up as
a first class team. The only strength
ening the club has received has been in
the acquisition of a couple of Federal
leagucrs. Arthur Wilson, the former
Giant, should help Pittsburgh behind
the bat. but the ability of Harry Moran,
the former Newark left handler, is still
to be determined.
There probably will be few other
which finished Fred Clarke's admins
tration IL Pittsburgh last fall.
Callahan may have picked up a few
pitching recruits, though the club has
a pretty fair pitching staff, MamauX
being a young marvel. This boy is all
that saved Pittsburgh from the cellar
last season. Adams, Harmon, Cooper
and Moran round out a fair corps of
twirlers.