Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-06-19
LACK Of BATTING
CAUSE OF SLUMP
Other Explanations May Be
Offered, But That Is Nation
ais Primary Trouble.
TEAM HAS LOST OUT
OF IL GAMES IN WEST
Griffith May Use Recruit Pitcher To-
day in an Attempt to
Turn the Tide.
BY J. ED GRuLo.

By j. ED dk1ALO.
| DETROIT, Mich, June 19.-While
there may be various explanations Of
| fered for the present slump OF the
| Nationals, the trouble primarily is with
the hitting. While the team continues
| to get fair allotment of base hits in
most of its games, 1t is not getting
them when they would produce runs.
! Most of its hits come at times when
| they are virtually of no service, unless
1t is 20 start something, and the way
| things have been going no one Is able
to put on the necessary finish. When
| TWO players who are natural hltters
suddt MY fall off in their stick work, II
| usually leaves a team in a bad way, I'M
less it so happens that some of the
other players make up for their failure.
| Right now Milan and Gandil, perhaps
the best hitters on the team, are slump
! ing. Neither is getting drives at the
| right time, and luck. too, is against
them, for when they happen to hit the
ball well in a pinch it is usually right
at one of the opposing fielders.
1t is hard to check a team when 1t
gets on a winning streak. but it Is
once it gets into the habit. Manager
Griffith is undoubtedly more anxious to
get the team back in its stride than
amy one connected with it. He has fig
is at his wits end. He admits he does
not know what to do to better condi-
tons. and it looks very much as II the
team will simply have to go along and
wear its slump out before it will re-
turn to form.
That the miserable showing Of the
team, which has lost nine of the twelve
pa in 10
it hoped to prosper, has not had ma
terial effect on Manager Griffith is sur
prising. Griff1th's conduct toward his
players is just the same today as it was
when things We're coming easy and the
team was winning. So far as the play
ers are concerned Griffith is the same.
winning or losing. but there Is a great
difference in his appetite, and he is not
getting the rest at night that he really
needs Griffith is figuring on how he
can bring his team back to form. He
has gone over the subject time and time
again, and frankly admits that he is
stumped. Nothing has suggested itself
that makes the future look brighter, aud
he has come to the conclusion that the
present slump must take its own course
With the regular pitchers being de-
| feated as regularly as they are used it
would not be at ali surprising if Manager
Griffith diverted from the regular routine
and used one of his young pitchers in
the game against Detroit today. This
| morning he was thinking seriously of
sending in Harry Harper on the theets
/, that one of the youngsters might be ale
! to break the losing streak. Harper has
!. been showing splendid form in practice.
, and Griff figures him to have chance
| to make a really great pitcher. If he
does not change his mind he will give
| the Hackensack youngster chance to-
day, and if it isn't Harper it will I'M
doubtedly be Joe Boehling. who, like
t., ~ vfvNnv Svs1
getting marks on the winning side of his
record g.
| johnson has now lost three games in
himself than at any time this season.
He had terrific speed. worked easily and
was absolutely master of the situation
I up to the fourth inning, when he was
compelled to pitch in a drenchlng rain.
Then his support went to pieces, and be-
| fore one realized what had happened
i three runs were over the plate. and the
. game was as good as gone. Despite the
| fact that rain continued to fall until the
closing inning. Johnson continued to pitch
| splendid ball and deserved to shut out
| the Tigers in the remaining innings.
Just why Umpire Chill did not call the
game at the end of the third inning.
when the rain started. is not clear. It
] was raining plenty hard enough to war
| started the fourth and. Of course after
the Tigers had scored three runs there
was nothing to do but go through with
it. It is questionable whether there is
game was played in such a rain. From
the third inning up to about the time
that the Nationals took their last turn at
bat 1t never ceased raining. The helders
had hard time handling the ball. and
the batters We're kent busy driving their
hands so that they could hold their bats.
Chill and Sheridan. the two umpires, were
drenched to the skin when they left the
field after the game.
Ray Morgan appears to be in better
hitting form than he has been at any
time this season. He has finally become
consistent performer with the bat. and
would be of great value to his team now
il some Of the other supposedly good hit
tiers were doing anything worth while
With two out In tho ninth, the Ma
tionals made bid at least to tie the
when he dropped single into left. He
stole second and Mcbride brought him
home with a double to left. Then Will
liams was walked. and. knowing Walter
fith let him face Dubuc. Dubuc got him.
self in hole OH Walter by pitching the
first two wide Of the plate. It seemed
that the play would be for johnson to
set himself ana take chance on hitting
the next ball pitched Dubuc laid II
straight over the plate. but johnson did
not offer at it. and followed this by foul
ing one off. and then sending fly to
Crawford in right, which ended the game.
The first time up johnson struck out
Ty Cobb. much to the delight Of the
local fans. who consider this a great
| pitching feat. Cobb did not get hit of
Walter. but he walked once and on
another occasion reached first when Fos-
| ter slipped in the mud and fumbled his
| grounder. 1t was Immediately after this
| that Cobb tried to steal. but Williams
| threw him out. thanks to the remarka bic