Evening star., 1912-11-17
BY J. ED GR1LLo.

Washington is given credit Tor naVins
a chance to win the next pennant by the
critics around the American League CIR
cult. The team which was the runner-up
in the race last season was not consld-
cred as having a look-in when the sea-
son opened It's showing after June !
was the surprise of the base ball world
for the very good reason that no one
had a correct line on it's real strength
Griffith was given credit for having a
great pitcher in johnson, a star outfielder
in Milan, a good catching staff and
rather competent shortstop, but further
than this his team could not be consid-
cred anything more than experimental.
Before the race was half over 1t was
evident that there were other players
on the team worthy Of consideration. and
on the whole Griffith had to be given
credit for having a fairly well balanced
ball team.
1t is also to be expected that the teaIh'
even though not a single change is mace
in the lineup, will make a better SHOW
ing next season, but for all that 1t Is
expecting whole lot to claim a pennant
for it. Boston had a rather comfortable
margin when the last race was over. II
is true Of course, that the Red Sox
were lucky to go through the entire cam
paign without falling into a serious
slump, but there is no gansaylns the M
fact that their performance was by lar
the best in the league.
1t was no DOUBT fortunate for Nc
Aleers team that the Athletics Ialled u
show their best form. Had Macks team
gone along as it did the year before there
not only as to the winner OF the race,
but as to the second position in the race.
There is no reason to predict raining
off in the work of the Red Sox next sea
son. The team is apt to do just as Wen
as 1t did last season, though. OF course
it may find the Athletics more trouble
some than they were in the last cam
paign. So far as the Nationals are con-
cerned there Is no getting away from the
fact that it is the first time in the his
tory of base ball in Washington that this
city has been represented by a team
which can be figured as pennant-W VIM
ming possibility. 1t Is sure to be factor
in the race, but it will not be a dlsap-
pointment II it fails to finish at the head
of the list.
thing besides playing strength. The
bl eaks Of the game are absolutely neces-
sary and there is no way to cOntrOl
them. In the average pennant race three
Of four teams have chance, and IT ID
the one which gets the majority OF smiles
from Dame Fortune that lanoS the
honors.
Griffith's team last year did nothing
worthy of praise until he secured the
services of Chick Gandil about June l..
From that time on the team became
contender in the race. 1t is but reason
able to suppose that with Gandil In the
lineup at the outset of the next season
the Nationals chances to be contenders
will be improved, and had this condition
existed last season there would most
| 1,oJx, Iny hoo n d}ffnrnnf
at the finish.
Any time that team finishes as close
to the pennant winners as did the Ma
tionals last season it can be figured to
have chance in the succeeding cam
paign. The addition of single player
might make enough difference in the
strength of the team to overcome the
margin by which it lost the pennant. BOs-
ton finished something like twelve games
ahead of Washington last year. That is
a comfortable margin, to be sure, and yet
the addition of even a little strength
might make that much difference. Let it
be Griffith's luck to develop one more
strong pitcher next season or have things
break so that he will add another three
hundred hitter to his lineup and the diff
ference Of twelve games might be over
come. Last season. for instance, the
locals picked up five players who more
than made good. Foster, Moeller, Gandil,
Shanks and Williams did their share to-
ward making the team winner.
Next year not near the additional
strength is needed to improve conditions,
yet even with this advantage there is no
assurance that the additional material
needed will be secured. That is the luck
of the game
There never has been an instance where
a ball team which could not boast Of one
great pitcher has won a pennant. OF
course, If there are two such twirlers the
task is all the more easy, but there must
be one who Outclasses majority OF the
pitchers in the league. Every pennant
the Giants won, for instance, can be at
tributed to their pitching strength Last
year 1t was Marquard and in former
years it was Mathewson. The Chicago
Cubs can trace their flag winnings back
to Mordecai Brown, while Hughey Jen-
nings did not cop any flags after Wild
Bill Donovan started on the downgrade.
Connie Macks failure this year can be
directly attributed to the fact that Chief
Bender did not work up to his usual
form. and as far back as you can delve
into base ball history 1t will be found that
in every instance a pennant-winning
to the brilliant work of one or more of
it's pitchers.
In this respect Griffith is fortified In
johnson he has one of the greatest, II
not the greatest, pitcher that the game
has ever developed. This year Johnson
had much assistance from Groom, but a
team which does not figure well up in
hitting seems to need more than two
strong pitchers in order to win pennant.
Nearly all the scandal that base ball
has furnished in recent years has come
from the National League. While the
old organization can boast Of having
among its club owners some OF the best
49,