Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-12-09
.GR|FF MAY LOSE
FIELDER GIDEON
California Youngster Drafted
Last Fall Is Down With
Typhoid Fever.
MAY MAKE HIM USELESS
FOR MORE THAN A YEAR
Few ch-Touted Recruits
Make Good When They
Reach Big Leagues.
BY J.. ED GRILLO.

One of the outfield recruits on whom
Manager Griffith was figuring to give a
trial next spring may not be able to re-
port. He is Gedeon secured from the
san francisco club, who according to
WORD received from the coast has been
Ill with typhoid fever for the past month
or more. GedeOn passed through the
Crisis OF the disease some weeks ago, but
Ii is doubtful if he will have sufficiently
recovered by spring to allow him to come
east. Typhoid as rule puts player
out OF 1T Tor year SO. so that Griffith
has about given up all hope of having a
look at this youngster at Charlottesville.
Gedeon is not out Of his teens, but
comes highly recommended Frank Dill
lon, manager of the Los Angeles club, a
cousin of Griffith, is responsible for
Gedeon being picked up by Griffith. Dillon
thinks him the best looking youngster he
has ever seen on the coast and he pre-
diets a bright future for him. 1t was in
a letter from Dillon that Griffith heard of
Gedeon's illness.
Eddie Ainsmith is we'll man again. In
a letter to Manager Griffith, received this
morning from San Antonio, Tex, Ain
smith says that life on the ranch is agree
ing with him. He has picked up about
fifteen pounds and claims to be in per-
feet condition. Besides hunting and rid
ing, Eddie says that he is doing a lot of
blowing and that he will be fit to catch
every game next season if necessary.
1t takes more than a press notice to
carry a minor league star through his
first year Of big league base ball Press
notices are all right. They help some,
but a youngster must have something
back of him besides complimentary effu-
sions II he wishes to attain the real
heights in the big show Noy and then
a yOungster will break in who is touted
as an annihilatOr OF pitchers, batter
who will make the old-time fans forget
all about rBowning, Arson and Delehanty
and a fielder who combines the grace OF a
Lajoie with the ability of Collins and
the headwork Of McGraw. Some of them
make good. Others fail, says Henry Ed
wards in the Cleveland Plain Dealer.
To the latter class belongs Otis john
son. Portland had him few Years ago.
He acquired the reputation of being ter
rife hitter. He scorned the manufacture
of singles Even doubles were looked
down upon. Any day that he did not
make either triple or home run was
considered day wasted. Cleveland was
then more or less affiliated with Portland
and Clevelanders wondered why Charley
Somers did not grab him.
Somers, however. passed up the home
run accumulation and grabbed Ole Olson.
favOrably with that owned by Johnson
in the minors. Ole is still with Cleveland
not as a regular-but as a utility in
fielder whose value to the club is esti-
mated at a high figure. What had be-
come Of Johnson? The weekly bulletin,
issued by Secretary Farrell of the Ma
tional Association. contained the news a
few days ago that Rochester had re-
leased Otis Johnson to Binghamton OF the
New York State League. Same man
that New York was touting as its king
of third sackers three years ago.
Ping Bodie came across the Rockies
the same year as Olson. Bodie took
down a record of thirty home runs for
San Francisco. He got four his first
season with the White Sox and batted
.2ss. This year he did not do so well
will do utility duty for Chicago next sea-
son.
Big Hank Perry is the third of the trio
20 come into the American League with
"a fanfare of trumpets and press notices.
He batted .343 in the International
League in 1911. Detroit took him when
it bought the Providence club. On the
Tiger training trip. he was featured in
the headlines every day and Detroit
writer's declared him to be a regular
bear cat with the bat He was when he
hit the ball. which proved to be but sell
dom after the pitchers began to use a
few curves Detroit sent him back to
Providence and now Bill Donovan. man.
ager of that club, reports that the al
legged batting demon is not good enough
for class A.
He seems to have lost his confidence
during his brief stay in the majors and
cuStomed surroundings.