The Birmingham age-herald., 1922-04-11
Birmingham Baseball 0f- ficiaIs Predicting a
 Record Crowd "Wednesday
By HENRY VANCE

 noon. Why? The answers easy. At 8 o'clock, or as soon thereafter as Steamboat Johnson can park that chew of plug cut in the lower left hand corner of the jaw for enuncia- tive purposes, the opener between Birmingham and Nashville will get going, and everybody in Birmingham will be there to see it.
 Tt looks like between 12,oo0 and 15.000 fans will see the opening game Wednesday. west.
 Our chances for winning the presi- dents trophy were never better. Col Quack Smith.
 Advanced Sale Big
 And these two baseball officials weren't talking through their hats. either. They had advance sales on which to base their predictions. The biggest line that ever has assembled for box seats and grandstand tickets for an opening game was In evidence Monday morning at Hagan Dun- laps. It was such a big line that they had to come two abreast. And the ticket sales were far greater than they have ever been for an opener be- fore.
 Those are the reasons why the two officials are forecasting such an enor- nous crowd for the opener, anl telling that Birmingham has an excellent op- portunity to cop the cup offered by the league president to the city hav- ing the largest opening-day atten- dance.
 official Half Holiday
 D. E. McLendon, president of the rcity commission, has issued a procla- mation making 1t half holiday, and with the city hall closed tight and about 80 per cent of the business houses bidding their employees attend the ball game, it looks like Birming- ham is going out after that trophy in determined, systematic manner. To beat Atlanta is one of the goals. To Dutstrip New Orleans and Memphis Is another.
 Prexy Martin was good to us in a way. He sent one of the best umpires the league has ever seen here to work in the first game of the season. Umps Harry Johnson, with his uproarious ung power. his scurrying tactics and his pep and snap, will be the umpire in chief when the Vols and Barons start tearing at each others throats Harry will wear the chest protector and mask and will call balls and strikes. This means that he has the speaking parts, while Umps Connie Lewis newcomer in the league will be Steamboat's helper.
 Phil Coming Back
 The joyous news that, Philip Nor rison was coming back was overshad- owed to a great extent by the announcement that Stuffy Stewart might not. Phil will come in mighty handy for hurling assignments, but the fans are going to miss Stuffy, and even though it means more to the popular Baron to remain in the big tops, they were wishing that Pitts burg would send him back to the Ham" At present Stuffy Is being as- signed regularly to the keystone job for the Pirates and Pie Traynor is working at third. This will give Gib- son all the defensive help he needs, as with Pie on third, Maranville on short, Stuffy on second and Grimm on first, there will not be flasher quartet in the majors. The main ques- ton is: Can stuffy solve major league pitching? If not, local fans will see him cavortingt around second base within the next 30 days.
 Stuffy Absent
 But he won't be here for the opener, anyway, and this fact has caused Moley to start off the opening game with an infield made up largely of kids. He has elected to use Johnny Sugar Kane on second in the opener, Johnny (High) Neun on first, Jesse Burkett on short and Taylor on third. As that quartet stands it will prob ably prove the youngest infield in the league. Terrible Tommy Taylor Is the oldest man in the bunch, and Tommy is veteran by no means.
 The Baronial chieftain, Carlton Molesworth, is not worrying bit about his outfield for the present. He has decided to use Stump Clarke in left. Doc Silva in center and Harry Harper in right. If Clarke can ham mer the agate as he has been doing in spring exhibition games, Moley will probably have one of the best out fields in the league. Onion Robert son will do the catching and Bill Stat ham will get the hurling assignment for tomorrow afternoon.
 BaroniaI Lineup
 They will bat as follows:
 Silva, center field.
 Kane second base.
 Clark, left field.
 Harper, right field.
 Taylor, third base.
 Robertson, catcher.
 Neun, first base.
 Burkett, shortstop.
 Statham, pitcher.
 Moley has shattered one of his precedents in arranging the above batting order It h always been his custom to bat the catcher next the pitcher. but Robertson has been show ing such tendency to wallop the daylights out of the ball. and Neun and Burkett have been rather timid with the willow, that he has decided to remove Robby up notch or so.
 Kane at Second
 Johnny (Sugar) Kane has favorably impressed Moley this spring, and ii was by virtue of Johnny's stick work that the Baron boss decided to play him on second in the absence of Stuffy. If new infield talent Is added Kane will still be kept for the utility role, as he's valuable man to have around for emergencies.
 Birmingham officials are pretty well satisfied with the way the Barons stack up. Some of the fans. have questioned whether Neun will hit in this league or not. They haven't been worrying about his fielding, as he's the snappiest first baseman seen al Redwood in many day. He hit S45 in the Blue Ridge league, and local officials will be satisfied even if he drops 100 points in hitting, which is not likely. They point out that Neur and Harper will help the Barons fal more than Pug Allen and Dutch Bernsen.
 Sc, she gets going at 3 o'clock to- morrow afternoon, fans. and the old park promises to play to capacity crowd. All together now, let's gram . trolley amt beat Atlanta for the cup
 There Should Be