“That’s the right spirit to tackle the job with,” he replied, “but don’t let the idea run away with you that it’s going to be an easy thing to do. It isn’t. Those American Leaguers are tough birds, and any one who beats them will know he’s been in a fight.
“There used to be a time,” he went on, “when the bulk of the talent was in the National League. But it isn’t so any longer. They have just as good batting, just as good pitching and just as good fielding as we have.
“Of course, we don’t know yet just which team we’ll have to face, but we may know before night. If the Bostons win to-day that will settle it. Even if they lose, provided the Athletics lose, too, the Red Sox will be the champions. Of course, there’s nothing sure in baseball, but all the chances are in favor of the Bostons.
“In any case, it will be an Eastern club, and that cuts out the matter of the long jumps. But whichever one it happens to be, it’ll prove a hard nut to crack.”
“Nut-crackers is our middle name,” murmured Denton.
“You proved that yesterday,” laughed McRae, “and you’re going to have a good chance to prove it again.
“Just as soon as the American race is decided,” he continued, “and it’s known in what city we are to play, the National Commission will have a meeting to fix all the details of the World Series. If they follow precedent, as they probably will, the first game will be appointed for a week from this Friday. They’ll toss a coin to see whether it shall be here or in the other city. I’m rooting for it to be here. It’ll give us a better chance to win the first game if we play it on the home grounds, and you know what it means to get the jump on the other fellows.”
“You bet we do!” went up in a chorus.
“Just as soon as it is decided who our opponents are to be,” the manager resumed, “I’m going to send some of you fellows out as scouts to see some of the practice games of the other fellows and get a line on their style of play. You can pick up a lot of useful information that way, and we’ve got so much at stake that we can’t afford to overlook a single point of the game.”