Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-01-06
FEARS MACK'S TEAM
Clyde Milan Says Nationals
Will Have Athletics to Beat.
THINKS LOCALS STRONGER
Praises Grifith's System of Handling
Players-Gives Cobb
Boost.
THINKS LOCALS STRONGER

| Special Dispatch to The Star.
| NASHVILLE, Tenn. January 8-Clydt
Milan, the leading citizen of Linden
/ Tenn, who made the much-touted T,
Cobb look like a selling platter by hi.
work on the paths last season. and. incl
| dentally shattered the American League
| mark for pilfered sacks, believes tina
| Washington will be stronger in 1918 thar
! last season, under the able direction Of
| Clark Griffith, and that 1t will come
| mighty near carrying off the rag In Bar
Johnson's circuit.
| The above tip was dropped by the Ma
| tionals' famous outfielder and speed artist
Wednesday, as he passed through Nash.
willie, Tenn, on his way home. after hav.
ing placed one of his younger brothers
in the Battle Ground Academy, near thi.
city.
Registered at the Hotel Hermitage
Clyde gave warm welcome to severa
local fans who called upon him.
Asked what he thought OF the chances
of Griffith's clan next season Milan said
We'll, we should be much stronger than
1ast year, and You know what kind of a
fight we put UP then. Clark Griffith is
great manager. popular with his men
and yet good disciplinarian, and he has
gotten the best results from the team
] believe the Nationals will be in the
fighting right off the reel, and the team
that beats us will have to hustle.
Likes Athletics.
Our strongest competitor, right now
seems to be the Athletics, who, 1 be-
lieve, will come back strong next year
Connie Mack has great team and
two wonderful pitchers in Plank and
Coombs. 1t doesn't seem possible that
they will go on pitching winning bal
forever, but Plank looked better every
game he pitched last year. He is undotlbt
eddy the best left-hander in the league
CoOmbs should also be a steady winner
and Bender, I hear, will be back in shape
Now isn't that hard trio to beat. Las
season Comics men would have coppeC
but for overconfidence, in my opinion
The Red Sox, l think, shot their boil
last season.
washington has a strong team in
in nearly every way right now, and Griff
will make several changes which will
strengthen the club good deal before
spring practice begins.
"One great advantage we have is the
fact that We possess the greatest pitcher
in the world. OF course, it's Walter John
son. This big fellow Is the greatest natu.
raj hurler 1 have ever seen. He never
tires, and the club always hits better be-
hind him.
I'VE would probably not have stopped
at seventeen Straights on our winning
streak last year II Walter had been able
to pitch in his turn. 1t was his time to
pitch when We faced the Athletics, but he
, was i'll and Hughes went in. Now Hughes
pitched a great game, and would have
won had not Jack Henry missed a DOE
fly of Bakers bat in the ninth with two
! down and two strikes called. Even after
Baker laid the ball away We might have
Won had not Egan called Jack Barry safe
in the tenth when he was out at least
ten feet or course, we kicked and Egau
was SO excited that he put Jack Henry
and several others out OF the game when
the game was over when he called Barry
safe
Milan thinks that his younger brother
Horace, who was given a try-out by
Nashville. in the Southern League, last
season and later released. has bright
future in the game. He is owned by
Washington and will be farmed out by
"the Fox for ripening
Modesty is one of Milan's strong points
and he carefully avoided any reference
to his baSe-stealing record last year
The fact that he swiped SO sacks. topping
Cobb by % and Eddie Collins by 20
seems to impress him as nothing extraor-
binary.
Speed. he stated, would be the thing
demanded by Clark Griffith next season.
and he believes that Washington has a
number of budding stars, who will be
fieetness
WHO is the fastest man in the Ameri-
can Lacquer" he was asked
This might have been an embarrassing
question, but Clyde was not thinking OF
himself.