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Show EVERS HOPES 10 Wli 1814 iffllL FLAG Cubs' Manager Has Well Balanced Team for Coming Com-ing Campaign. Manager John "Dvera of tho Ouba is feeling very optimistic this winter about tho chances of his 'ball team for next summer. The littlo leader is figuring figur-ing on a pitching staff! that will be at least 25 per cent stronger than it was last season. Tho big drawback to winning a Hag last year was tho hurl-ers. hurl-ers. Evcrs is starting off the coming season sea-son with a staff of pitchers who are young enough, aieopt two, to improve in thoir work over last year. Ed Jleul-bach Jleul-bach and Lou Richio of last year's staff have been cut adrift, so ho will not have to count on any dead ones. Earl Moore and Charlio Smith arc not in tho youngster class, but . they are able to giro a good account of themselves them-selves when it comes to dolivoring the goods, 'Moore had a bad year last yenr, but he did not get a good start aud he is a pitchor who needs careful nursing in the spring to get tho best out or him. Smith worked well until he vis ovorcome by tho heat on tho second trip through tho east, but ho has recovered re-covered sinco thou and is as strong as over, he reports. Humphries, Vaughan and Pierce should bo the heavy men this year, in addition to Larry 01101103', tho wost-6ide moose. These four men can be counted on to deliver tho class of baseball which will win throo out of four games, provided pro-vided thc support is what it should bo. In addition to tho big quartotto, Evors has Ave other mon who will bo able to fill in from timo to time and porhaps .lump into tho thick of the battle at times and do cvou bettor work than tho four above mentioned. Lavonder should bo much hotter than ho was last year. Ho showed signs of returning to his 1911 form toward tho close of last summer. Stack is likely like-ly to have a good year because he is where he has wanted to plaj' over since he started in the game. Znbol, the youngster socurcd last fall from tho Winnipeg club, is a sure comer, and will be able to pitch many a good game tho coming sensou if ho shows up iu auj'thing like tho form ho was in last fall. Ever."? fools ho has learned a lot about handling players after his oxperionce last summer. Tho famous second baseman base-man will start out this year whoro he left off last fall, and this will bo a big advantage over Irmt year's start. Jla had his men working at top spood last fall nftor striving hard during the early months of tho season to got up a little speed. Tho mon showed a disposition to work for tho Trojan aftor they had satisfied themselves that ho did not require re-quire more of them than ho was willing to do himself. Tho ono placo on tho team which will bo a puzzlo until after tho season is well under way will be shortstop. While Al Bridwell la as heady a player as any manager could want, ho is weak as a hitter and is slowing up on the bases, bo ho is not able to cover tho distnnco fast enough to koep up thc average snood of tho team, Evcrs has two wonderful youngsters to try out for Bridwoll's place, howovor. In Cor-rldcn Cor-rldcn and Keating tho Cubs have two of the host young players in tho National Na-tional league. Gorridon had had a wholo year s experience to help him out, but Keating is new to tho way of the biir league. Keating eamo from tho Columbus, fR,, team last fall, and in some of the games ho played 011 the west sido he j surprised overyone who had a chance to watch him. Ho is as fast on the bases and can cover almost as much ground as Maranvillo of tho Braves. Hisi size is somewhat against him, but ho is still young enough to gTow and to improve in that respect. Phclan is another young player upon whom Evers can count to try for a regular berth at shortstop. Artio is a better, hitter than the two other youngsters, but he is more natural on the other sido of tho diamond. The Cubs are being picked by the wiso judges for a pennant-winning combination, combina-tion, and their chances do look a lot 1 better than they did last year. |