The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1917-07-17
FAvORS
 GIANTS JUST NOW
 IN PENNANT RACE

New York. July 17--Any imme-l | diAtp danger to the Giants from the i PhfIlies and the Cincinnati Reds has. been tempered to a great extent by 1 break in the schedule for the next 1. few days. In the current series at the Polo Bounds the Giants have the ] Chicago Cubs to entertain, and the Cube have not been raising any suffo- eating cloud of dust along the Ma tional League trail recently.
 While the locals are thus engaged the Cincinnati Reds, who, have assum- ed more or less threatening propor- ;tions in the last few weeks, will be en- Enited in hand to hand tilt with Pat Moran's. ambitious Philies. The Phil ] lies have proven themselves to be the second strongest team in the National ] League jamboree to date, and the grapple with the Reds should prove Of smater1al; beneits to the hGiantseyif the latter can ripea their percentage Fat the expense of the Cubs.
 I The Reds appear to- be strong i enough to make all kinds of trouble I for the Phils. With the Reds ap- proxtmately eight full games behind the New Yorks a few consecutive vic tories for them woul9 relieve any pressure that might otherwise be 1AgAS1A% SO OCoA aPOAA I<AO dA0aA eo Dy the Quakers.
 All of which means that the Giants l should be able to make ready for their next invasion of the West with a fairly comfortable lead slowed away in tfs8r 5ats bags.8 ss..
 Ehe Cubsa have done nothing in itheir recent conflicts, with the excep- ton of the two rather strong games they showed against the Phillies on Saturday, to cause any quantity of iuneasiness to lodge in the shadows of Coogan's Bluff. Of course the Cubs are likely to give the Giants a battle. They always manage to do that, but when the relative strength of the two teams is weighed in the 1 balance there doesn't appear to be any reason why the Giants should not be able to handle the Chicago
 onslaught comparatively easily and without causing any real worry to sprout in the collective heart of New York fandom.
 ,l Fred Mitchell, serving his first sea- ' son as manager of the Chicago outfit, has been exerting every energy to whip the Cubs into winning mood, but the material with which he has had to work is not up to the standard
 of Chicago teams of other years. But six of all the players on the Chicago roster are hitting better than .25U
 and not one of the regular members
 of the team Min the 300 class.
 Coupled with the more or less mediocre pitching the Chicago team
 has been afforded the batting of the club is getting weaker and weaker
 A club generally counts upon it's out ;heid to furnish the major portion o1 the heavy stickwork. In this respect the Cub outfield has been a big dis appointment to the. Windy City sup- porters. Leslie Mann alone has been
 doing good work at bat. He is bat. 5ting about .284, while both Flack and
 Williams, the other out1e1ders, are doing less than .250 with their wal clubs. That is far from being firs division nourishment to feed club 1 on.
 i Among the infelders Fred Merkle and Larry Doyle are the only ones
 batting at better than .250. Deal and
 Wortman are both below that mark ! With this sort of work on the offence
 it is difficult to figure how the Cub
 have managed to remain as far ou
 of the r1lck as they have succeeded in doing. seaton, Douglas and Prendergas
 have been able to pitch well enougl ! to get an even break in victories ant defeats. Jim Vaughn, the big south paw pitcher, who at one time per
 formed for the Yankees, has been tn, | only really consistent performer or / the staff. Jim has won more thar
 twice as many games as he has lost
 But Jim has yet to get a decision
 over the Giants this year.