MAJOR MATTERS
The Washington Senators, despite the loss of Harlan Holladay to injury and with Harvey Cart enduring a month-long slump in which he hit just 9-for-82 in May, finished the month with a 33-14 record and a 3.5 game lead over Boston in their quest for a fourth straight American League pennant. Their success is probably attributable in large part to the .355 average of shortstop Ransom Miller and the steady pitching of Wes Luttier (8-3, 1.43 ERA), Pat Krieger (8-4, 2.06) and Silas Songer (9-2, 2.08 ERA).
The Boston Americans (or Pilgrims as they've come to be known) feature a pitcher who is 11-0 with a 1.83 ERA (Gus Merritt) and several hitters with high averages (Frank Dorsey - .369, Michael Swallow - .352, and Sean McGonigle - .331) but must feel snakebitten to still be 3.5 games off the pace set by Washington.
Over in the National League, the 29-14 New York Giants have claimed the top spot again - and much earlier than usual. That's not good news for this year's batch of challengers for the Gotham nine's throne. Chasing the Giants are the St. Louis Cardinals (4.5 back), the surprising Chicago Cubs (5 back) and Brooklyn (5.5 back). Those Cardinals currently feature the top hitter in the league in Hugh "The Little Giant" Harris, whose .374 not only tops the National League but is better than the best in the American (Dorsey's .369) as well. The Cardinals also have the top pitcher in Al Jones who has a 0.88 ERA but just a 6-5 won-loss record.
BEATING THE BUSHES
EASTERN LEAGUE: Buffalo, Baltimore and Newark have a tight three-way race going for the Eastern League pennant. Buffalo is on top, with Baltimore 1 back and Newark 2 behind. "The Rushin' Prussian" Hans Schaefer is continuing the career resuscitation he began a few years ago after losing his spot with the Cardinals. Schaefer, generally considered the fastest man in all of baseball, Schaefer has hit .331 in the Pacific Coast League with Tacoma (with 90 steals) in 1905 and now is hitting .361 for Baltimore in the Eastern League and has swiped 26 bases in 35 games.
AMERICAN ASSOCIATION: In the Association, the Indianapolis club has a 5-game edge on Toledo in the pennant race. The big news in the circuit is the emergence of 21-year-old Steve Kamp. The Columbus left fielder is leading the loop in batting with a .357 average - a very large improvement over his .221 average of a year ago. Kamp is from Novi, Michigan and has expressed a desire to play for Detroit (but we'd wager he'd accept a job with any of the other 15 teams at the game's top level).
PACIFIC COAST LEAGUE: Oakland retains a 3-game league over Portland with Los Angeles sitting six back. Will Benson of the Angels continues to lead the loop in hitting with a .355 average. Dave Drone is second in the league in hitting (.339) as he continues to try to make his way back to the top, playing for San Francisco.
Steve Kamp, Columbus