May 1, 1911 – by Ronald Schmidt
Philadelphia is worried. Things are not going according to plan. The self-declared goal at the beginning of the season was to rebuild and strengthen efforts to lower the average age of the organization. The Philadelphia Brewers are now fighting for a qualifying spot in the postseason.
Just before the season started, the Brewers bid farewell to two Brewer veterans: Frank Stilgoe and Stephen Millington. The 38-year-old Stilgoe was the backup catcher and played a significant role in the clubhouse. But the plan was to allow prospects to move up. Joseph Vennard moved up from Langhorn. In the upcoming seasons, Chester Walker and Henry Shackleford will compete for either Charles Ayscue’s role or Vennard’s backup position. Stilgoe won the Legacy Cup in 1904 and 1905 and is .276/.316 in 468 games for Philadelphia.
A tough decision was the release of Stephen Millington. He and Leo McKenzie were the last two players of the 1895 Brewers. Millington was just 21 in the inaugural season and started in 468 regular season and 28 postseason games. He had only to win one more game to reach the 250-win milestone. During spring training, Millington had 11 relief appearances, which were unsatisfying for the management. He lost his spot to Duerden but had the chance to return, especially should Duerden struggle. Millington refused the minor league assignment, and the Brewers released him.
The season began with a four-game sweep of the Boston Banshees. Two wins followed in a three-game series against the New York Kings before the first series away against the best Eastern League team in recent years: the Brooklyn Whales. For the Brewers, the main rivalry is towards Richmond, but tensions flared up after the Whales’ management promised to slaughter the Brewers. Duerden and Clark handed the Whales their first two season losses. Duerden’s second major league win came along with his first home run as a hitter.
After Brooklyn avoided the sweep by beating Philadelphia in extra-innings, the two teams were even up at 8-2. The exciting race seemed to have ended when the Brewers only collected a win in each of the following three series. However, Brooklyn failed to make use of the struggle. After sweeping Baltimore, the Brewers finished their first month with 14 wins and eight losses – just one game behind the Whales.
“I’m not complaining,” Troy Bujak chuckled after being asked about the good start and if the postseason is a realistic goal. “We’re doing better than expected, but we’re here to annoy other teams and shut their mouths.”
Also, Bujak praised his offense. “We lost too many games last season because we failed to score. This ballclub was well-known for its strong offense, and we’re working tirelessly to bring back our prime quality.”
Player of the Month: Milan Featherstone
The 25-year-old excelled in April. He hit 39-for-89 with 22 runs-batted-in. In 1910, he brought in 51 runs in total. He also handled the big teams well. Against the reigning champion, he produced six hits in fourteen at-bats with three RBI. Against the butcher apprentices, he was 6-for-10 and brought in three runs as well.
His dominance should get him his first Eastern League Batter of the Month Trophy.