DOORS ARE TO OPEN AT 2.
Details of Contest to Be Shown in First Regiment Armory and Auditorium.
The “first come, first served” system will be adopted by THE TRIBUNE in seating the 5,000 baseball enthusiasts who avail themselves of the opportunity of following the progress of the game in the world’s championship series at the First Regiment armory as guests of THE TRIBUNE.
The doors of the armory will be thrown open to the readers of THE TRIBUNE at 2 o’clock tomorrow afternoon and at the same hour on every succeeding day until he world’s baseball championship has been won and lost. A great demand for the seats is anticipated and the fans who are on hand when the doors are opened will get the best seats.
For the 4,000 seats in the Auditorium general admission tickets will be distributed by THE TRIBUNE. These tickets will not entitle the holders to any particular seat. At the Auditorium, as at the First Regiment armory, the prompt arrivals will have the choice of accommodations. Practically, however, there will be no choice of seats at either of the big halls.
Details of Game to Be Shown.
THE TRIBUNE’s plan for reproducing the championship games between the Cubs and the Sox has been worked out with such care that the occupants of the front seats in the halls will have no advantage over the holders of rear seats. From every corner of the big halls the readers of THE TRIBUEN who have been unable to secure seats to the ball parks will be enabled to witness every step in the progress of the great contests. They will be able to follow every play and the performances of every individual player. At every stage in the games they will know not only what player is at the bat but also what men are on the bases, the number of balls that have been pitched, the number of strikes, the number of outs—everything that a real fan wants to know about a ball game.
It is expected that not only thousands who have been unable to secure good seats at the ball parks will avail themselves of the opportunity of following the plays offered by THE TRIBUNE to its readers but also that hundreds will prefer to see the games “reproducing” at the Auditorium and at the First Regiment armory rather than endure the discomfort of standing for hours on the bleachers or in the field at the parks.
Plays Flashed by Telegraph.
The plan of THE TRIBUNE is to reproduce the games, play by play, with that remarkable accuracy which ingenuity has made possible. A moment after a play has been made at the ball park it will be flashed over private telegraph wires to the Auditorium and the armory and reproduced on great boards that will be erected on the stages of the two halls.
The score board will be twenty feet square. On it a baseball diamond will be marked out, each base being indicated by a glass window a foot in diameter. A telegraph instrument will be installed directly behind the great board. The operator at the grounds, hwo is familiar with every department of the game, will flash over every play over the wires to the operator at the score board. An experienced “baseball man” will operate the board. The exact batting order will be telegraphed from the ball grounds the instant it is announced. On either side of the diamond are nine spaces, numbered form 1 to 9.
Batting Order Is Displayed.
As soon as the batting order is flashed over the wires the name of the man who is to go to the bat first will be inserted in space 1. The name of the second batter will be inserted in space 2, etc. The names will be of big enough type to be read from all pats of the hall. On one side of the board will be the batting order of the Cubs, on the other side the batting order of the Sox. Down the center of the diamond are windows in which will be indicated the half inning, the inning, the runs, the outs, the strikes, and the balls.
When Smith, No. 1, goes to the bat, his number, 1, will appear on the window indicating the home plate. If Smith makes a base hit his number will next appear on first base and number 2 will appear at the bat. In this way the position of every player will be known at every stage of the game. By comparing the numbers appearing in the windows with the names of the players shown at the side of the board, the spectators will be able to tell at all times what players are on bases and what player is at the bat.
The progress of each player from the moment he goes to the bat until he is put out or makes a run will be shown. A megaphone will be used to supplement the work of the board. The method is so simple that it will be easy for even a “near fan” to follow the play.
