Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-04-25
Dixie Walker or Tom Hughes to Lead Nationals Against Boston Tod
NATIONALS, TWO VICTORIES
OVER BOSTON A SAD BLOW
Speed Boys Have Pennant Aspirations, and
They Are Dumfounded by Playing
of Griffith's Youngsters.

was with the team at Charlottesville dur
ing the training season. and who has
charge of the Virginia College team. will
| IN all probability return to Griffith when
J, his duties with Virginia end. Grtmth
| wants Ryan to develop his young pitch
ers. He has not the time to develop
| them that they need and his young catch
ers are hardly experienced enough to help
the young pitchers and, furthermore, need
q lot of instruction themselves. He wants
| Ryan to take pitchers like Cashion and
| Engel in charge and teach them the art
! of pitching major league ball. Griffith
wrote Ryan last night making him an
/ offer to return to the team, and 1t Is not
likely that he will turn 1t down.
| President McAleer called on the Wash
| ington players this morning, congratulate
| ing them on their good showing. Natu-
rally he had to have a tanning bee with
| Schaefer, during which Germany made
the assertion that there would not be
| five players in the American League this
season who would reach first base as
often as he. A hat was wagered with
| McAleer that he would make good his
assertion. Schaefer is doing splendid
| work at the bat. He is kidding the op-
| posing pitchers, and when he is not get
! ting on as result Of hits he is walking
| With only two weeks of the champion
| ship season over, the standing OF the
teams in the American League shows an
unusual lot of upsets. Teams which We're
expected to be contesting for the lead are
down in the race, while others, which are
| not figured as having more than an out
side chance to be in the first division, are
| looking up as the real contenders.
There will, of course, be many changes
during the next month or so. Some OF
the teams are going far ahead of their
stride while others are apparently slow
playing as good ball as any team in the
league. and with it's pitchers holding out
as they are now going there is no danger
of slump being near.
| If MoeIler ever gets to hitting better
| than he has he will prove himself one Of
| the most valuable men in the league. AS
| a fielder he has few equals. and it is at
this feature of the game that he is prov
ing his worth to the team. He made a
circus catch in yesterdays game when in
the eighth inning he went to the en-
banknent in left field and pulled down
markable lot of ground on the hit and
seemed to know just where to turn to
make the catch possible. While he is
not hitting as he Will later. he is giving
| opposing pitchers lot of trouble by dis
playing a good eye and waiting them
out.
One thing which Griffith has taught his
| players and which is standing them In
good stead is that when they are up
/ to sacrifice it is not necessary to go
after balls which are not over the plate
1t was Fosters precaution in this matter
| which really gave the Nationals their
start in yesterdays game. After Moeller
/ had singled in the opener Foster was. OF
course, expected to move him up with
| sacrifice. He waited out Cicotte, who
pitched ball. with the result that he
walked, and right there and then the
game was won, for, with two on, the
situation bothered Cicotte and a passed
!, ball and a wild pitch did the work.
| Walter johnson hit the ball hard three
| Of the four times that he was up yester-
day. His first effort resulted in three
Speaker and Lewis long chances to pull
down flies which he had labeled for big
drives.
game to begin yesterday than the Ma
tionals had two runs over the plate
Moeller opened the game with a single
| which Wagner barely knocked down. Fos-
| ter worked Cicotte for a pass, and a
| passed ball moved both men up. Milan's
grounder to Cicotte resulted in Moeller
being caught between third and home, but
Foster got around to third and Milan to
second before the play could be made.
At this juncture Cicotte wild-pitched and
| both runs came home. But they would
! probably have scored anyway, for
| Schaefer singled moment later. though
he was in turn forced by flynn, while
knight filed out.
| Lewis got hit with two down in the
| second, but never advanced, and in the
third the Sox really threatened for an
| instant for Carrigan, the first man UP,
drew a walk. But Johnson settled down,
| struck out Cicotte. caused Hooper to foul
out and then famed Yerkes.
| In the third the Nationals again got
| busy. Foster drove the ball past Speaker
| for two bases, when on dry field he
| would have had a home run.
Milan flied out, but Schaefer brought
| Foster home with a clean-cut single
In every inning but the ninth the Ma
| tiona1s had men on the bases, but OBriens
who had taken Cicottes place, refused
| to yield the hit which meant more runs.
| He was successful in this in all innings
| but the fifth. when the visitors got their
| last brace of runs. This round was start
| ed by Foster walking. He stole second
and after Milan was out Schaefer walked.
Flynn also was an easy out and the bases
were filled when Knight was hit by
pitched ball. At this stage little Ray
| Morgan came through with base hit,
| which scored Foster and Schaefer, but
Ainsmith famed.
sixth. They did not get on the bases in
this inning until two were out Then
! Speaker got hit, and was followed by
Bradley. who played in Stahrs place, with
! another, which Moeller fumbled long
enough to let him reach second. He and
| Speaker scored ON Gardner's hit to CEN
| ter, but Lewis forced Gardner and the
danger was over. The score:
WASHINGTON AR p M mn On en- M =