New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1916-02-29
ROBINSON IS
ROLLING DOWN
TO THE SOUTH
Manager of the Brooklyn
Team Is First to Head
for DaytOna.
By LEE ARMS.

II it is a physical possibility for an
almost entirely round object to point
anywhere, II might be casually re-
marked this morning that Wilbert Rob
inson. manager of last seasons pennant
dodgers from Brooklyn, is pointing
toward Daytona, Fla.
That is where they are 10 train-not
Wilbert Robinson, y understand but
the pennant dodgers. There is nothing
in Manager Robinson's contract causing
him to train. Indeed, If he made up
his mind TO run down TO first base he
might not recover from the shock Of it
for the remainder of his days, and
neither is there any guarantee that
they wouldn't have TO postpone the
National League opening while waiting
for HIM TO get there
Mr. Robinson will stick to his fungo
hitting and his artistic back stopping
in the bull pen. He will let his ball
players train. he will.
Manager Robinson was supposed 10
have taken Outfelder Hickman, of the
Baltimore Federal League, South with
him. Hickman may have been with
Robinson, but if he was he was on the
other side Of him at train time and
entirely obscured from view. Hickman
is twenty-five years of age, feet IA
inches in height, weighs ITO pounds,
hits .2l0 and fields .9Sl, according TO
the Federal League averages. Manager
Robinson says he thinks he is conner.
That 2l0 batting average suggests that
he has plenty of room.
Just before leaving for the South
Manager Robinson received letter
from Umpire Charlie Rigler. II seems
that Charlie Herzog's little pal has
been acting as the chief horticulturist
at the Ebbets Field of Daytona.
Mr. Rigler has been executing Trodi-
gies of ground keeping. as he writes
it. Ii seems, in truth. that instead OF
klaxon-voiced arbitrator Mr. Rigler
at heart is really a construction en-.
gineer, a sort of Colonel Goethals Of
the diamond, as it were. He writes:
"The plumbing on engine and tank
was all put in wrong. | run another
pipe from Engine or Pump up over the
top of tank and we have the tank filed
with water all the time"
Murder and genius will out in the
end!
Umpire Rigier pauses every few
paragraphs to pray for rain. Rain
must be a contributing factor 10 the
success of his ground keeping plan. A
he boarded the train Robinson was in
doubt whether Rigler expected it to
rain a baseball diamond or if there
would be one t'ere anyhow when he
arrived.
Last season the sand was very bad
at Daytona. In addition to almost
running the mashed potatoes and other
edibles of the training table, il was
hard to run on. According 20 Ollie
O'Mara a man might be offensivel,
chasing a fly ball in the Quilted and
sink down so far in the sand ,hat it
took the city fire departmenAand the
bath house guards to get him out.
This soft sand was bad thing for
the tendons and cartilages of the ath-
letes pedal gear II took The Dodgers
a full month after they returned North
TO learn how TO walk on a concrete side
walk. The pulled tendon was the rule
rather than theexception. The well
known quadruped, Charlie Horse, had
one of the biggest seasons Of his career
with the Dodgers in 1915.
Hub Perdue. who was sold 20 the San