New-York tribune., 1918-04-17
$4,000 Fans See McGraw'
Men Take Season S First
Game, 6 to 4
By Louis Lee Arms

One exceedingly simple way of be-
ginning an opening days baseball game
is to tell the score, which was to a
in favor of the Giants. Of the pano-
rama of pitching, the kinetoscope of
hitting and fielding and the fulmina-
tions of fanatics, those are secondary
to the surprising fact that Mister Nc
Graw's celebrated and gentlcmanly
Giants got off on the right foot
The Lord put Brooklyn on the wrong
side of the Bridge, but it has remained
for the. New York National Leaguers
to keep it there in the matter of in
Vulnerable baseball scores. From Kings
County to the Borough of Manhattan
came the gray-sutcd warriors of Your
Uncle Wilbert Robinson. From Flat
Dodgcr incurablcs to storm the Polo
Grounds battlements and wrestlc with
the intrcacies Of the new war tax.
In the long twilight that spread over
Brooklyn players and fans returned,
once again with victorious plays un-
played and rotous cheers suppressed
1t must be the very devil to live in
Brooklyn and follow the Flatbush
Fusileers.
Twenty eight thousand fans gath
cred on pluperfect spring day to wit
ness an imperfect spring baseball
game. The leathernecks and dough
boys, in their blue and khaki uniforms,
swung boldly athwart the field and
raised Old Glory on its halyards in the
right field bleacher section, Military
brass and reed played "Thc Star-Span-
gled Banner" and hats were held in
hand as the entire stand and blcachers
came to their feet.
First Straw Hat Smashed
There were $4,000 cheers as an ala
hastcr horsehdc was flung onto the
diamond and rclaycd to the capacious
paws of Charles NJ Tcsrcau, who
started to pitch for the New York
Giants and later chartcd his mind and
began pitching for Brooklyn. An in
corrigible appeared in the left field
stand with a straw hat. Somebody
busted it over his ears, and the season
was on.
II, by the way, yesterdays attend
ance may be taken as an indication Of
baseball's appeal during the period of
world war, those who have main
tanned that the public needs relaxation
and amusement enterprise arc indubi-
tably correct.
Yesterdays game was spectacular, if
SLOW. 1T contained much words and
music that were reminiscent, some that
was positively spurious and here and
there Il dash Of the brilliant and un-
usual. Such dazzling cAtches AS Hi
Myers and Gcorgie Burns turned in
were more than Offset by plays which
contained an unexpected quantity of
fat between the west and the east ears.
Ilelnic Zimmerman came within an
ace Of pulling W. s., 1917 (mcaning
worlds scrics). Pep Young was led
into an incXplcablc throw, Otto Miller
shook hands with 81 foul ball as though
it were All utter stranger, Benny Kauff
gave ground balls the how dc do and
Ivy Olson managed to stick his thumb
through a bristlIng groundcr or two.
Pitchers In n Procession
Pitchers moved in and moved out as
though they were in the habit of dodg-
ing their rent. Rlccardo Marqunrd
broke few dozen piston rods ant
threw all possible tires in the brief
period Of ono third Of an inning, to be
succeeded by the acdYtc and scnntorin'
Larry Cheney.
Larry lasted two innings md two.
thirds ere he and his liquid slants also
were shooed into the clubhouse and