Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 288, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 10 December 1918 — ST. LOUIS PLAYERS ARE PROMINENT IN BIG GAMES BUT WEAR ALIEN UNIFORMS [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

ST. LOUIS PLAYERS ARE PROMINENT IN BIG GAMES BUT WEAR ALIEN UNIFORMS

Thirty years is a long time to wait for a gt. Louis club to break into a world championship series. And St. Louis fans are still waiting. Most of the fans who saw the Browns of 1888 compete in the last of their four-time championship series are now wearing long whiskers. It is strangely peculiar, however, that while St. Louis has been unable to produce a pennant-winning club, the talent from which champions are made bobs up a-plenty In this neighborhood, writes Clarence Lloyd in St. Louis Star. Hollocher From St. Louis. For instance, Charley Hollocher, a twenty-one-year-old kid who was the bright, shining light of the Chicago Cubs in the 1918 season, is a native of the Mound City. Save in 1914, when the Braves sprung one of the biggest surprises in baseball history by beating- the Athletics in four straight games, St. Louis has had one or more boys on the championship contending teams. For instance, Walter Holke, the first sacker of the Giants, was the foremost St. Louisan in the 1917 series. St Louis also lays claim to Art Fletcher, the Giants’ shortstop, who although a native of Collinsville, Hl., close by, learned his baseball A B C’s, in the old St Lpuis Trolfty league. Ollie O’Mara, a product of Cass ave-

nue, was a member of the Brooklyn club that was beaten in the 1916 series by the Red Sox. And one of the Red Sox, who pulled down a winner’s share that season was Sam Agnew, the catcher, who was raised in St Louis and claims this as his early home. Sam wasn’t the first string catcher that season, but did the bulk of the backstop work for the Red Sox in the past series. The Braves and Athletics of 1914 boasted of no St. Louisans, ft fact which is somewhat unusual. In 1912, when the Red Sox flayed the Giants, Chet Thomas, a catcher with the Red Sox, was the St. Louisan on the winning club, while Fletcher played with the Giants. Fletcher was also in the New York lineup in 1911, when the Giants were beaten by the Athletics. 1 ' / TSt. Louis Boys Aid Cubs. j of 1910 were aided in their National league victory by St Louisans. The Mound City boys with that team were Ed Reulbach and “Circus Solly” Hofman, both former Smith academy boys, by the way. As far back as 1909, Bobby Byrne won fame and renown for St. Louis. He was the Pirates’ third baseman in the series when the Corsairs defeated the Detroit Tigers for the world championship.

Mound City Boys on Championship Teams.