140
The University Courier.
ATHLETIGS.
By the way, Taylor, Marmaduke's half back is the same man who played with Baker last fall. He is attending school at Marmaduke.
Leland Stanford, Jr.'s University base ball nine played its first game on Washington's birthday. They are rather ahead of us in the way of climate.
The base ball management of Doane College at Crete, Neb., is anxious to secure a match game with our University nine. They contemplate making a trip into Kansas this spring and are trying to arrange games with Kansas colleges.
The cinder running track in the McCook field is nearing completion and may be in condition to run on in a week or so. This will fill a long felt want as at present candidates for field day exercises are without a place on which to train.
Baker is anxious that more games of base ball should be arranged in the triangular league. There is no reason why this should not be done as six games are none too many to test the superiority of the teams. Our committee on base ball will very probably take the matter in hand.
Hal W. Reed, well known in inter-state collegiate foot ball circles and always a welcome guest at K. U., has transferred his headquarters to Chicago. As Mr. Reed is a warm friend of the University his move means much. Mr. Reed proposes joining the Chicago Athletic Association, and K. U. may expect an invitation to play foot ball with the C.A.A.
Eastern papers report Yale seniors to be reveling in sports outside of base ball this spring, namely: top spinning and hoop rolling. This is confined to seniors alone and bids fair to become more than a passing fancy with the sportive seniors. The Topeka Capital says that if the fad continues we may yet hear of a top spinning contest between Yale and Vassar, or the University of Kansas and Bethany College at Topeka.
There is scarcely a newspaper, whether it be a mighty city daily or an insignificant country weekly, but what is at this time of year giving its readers its opinion on base ball. Especially have the "new rules" furnished copy for many three or four paragraph articles and in some instances the wise sage has been given an entire column. Few authorities on the game agree as to what will be the consequence resulting from the change in rules. But as a whole the change must be but small. The much talked of spring meeting of the National League which was held in New York city the 7th and 8th of March, accomplished but little, and now every base ball crank in the country is expressing his opinion regarding the change.
Now in reality the results of that meeting were very meagre indeed, the only changes worth mentioning being the following:
"The bat must be made wholly of hard wood, must be round, and not exceed two and onehalf inches in diameter at the thickest part or forty-two inches in length."
"The pitcher's dromedary shall be marked by a white rubber plate 12 inches wide, so fixed to the ground as to be even with the surface, at the distance of 60 feet 6 inches from the outer corner of the home plate, so that a line drawn from the center of the home plate to the center of second base will give 6 inches upon either side."
The pitchers distance has been increased sufficient to ensure the batting percentage to be raised somewhat but not enough to warrant the much talked of newspaper slugging game. By moving the pitcher back to within 3 feet of the center of the diamond, quite naturally gives him a better opportunity to watch runners on first and second base thereby diminishing base running. Withal the changes will be slight, and, even if batting is increased, the public will be the better pleased, for the average base ball devotee above all things likes life in a game.
The base ball diamond on the McCook field has been leveled and rolled and is now in excellent condition.