The Washington times., 1916-08-13
Nationals Manager Thinks
Race In A. l. viii Be Gamble
Up to Final Game.
By CLARK GRIFFITH,
Manager Of the Washington Ameri-

win the American League pennant That
10 to walt until the race is over. The
night all the way has been the most
even l ever saw. and have figured In
some pretty tight ones. too. In the
american League. only oiie thing 10 sure.
Connie Mack Is mathematically out Of
II.
Through the last ten years Connie
Mack has had moro than q customary
share OF saying something positive about
the American League pennant. It 10 4
crying shame that his team this time
six clubs have won more than 20 per
cent. The last two months tho Athletics
have been an easy mark for their rivals.
The team lucky enough to draw them
could Just about count on as many
Sa%s' s,rs obSusS In ~
series. 1t does not follow that this
ridiculous case will continue through to
October.
In fact II would not surprise me q
bit II the disorganized and mi.ft crew
from Philadelphia might have the salts
faction of deciding the pennant. The
most dangerous team 10 one that doesn't
figure to win. The Athletics possess q
few high class ball players: among them
Strunk. McInnis, Walsh and La1oie. not
notably Myers and Bush. A team
possessed Of such strength no matter
how badly disorganized does not figure
to lose twenty-obd games In row. The
worm always turns. And. when tho Ath-
letics DO come out Of their trance. they
strong contender like the Red Sox. the
White Sox or Cleveland a. they are TO
stop Detroit or st. Louis.
Lost on Technicality.
In the old days. when managed the
rln IN mt n
without landing as any manager Of the
game. barring possibly John McGraw
In 1906 when It took post-season battle
with the Cubs to beat him out OF a
well-earned, pennant because Of a tech;
nicality. / have yet to meet a baseball
man who does not feel that the Giants
were robbed Of the pennant that year
by the board Of directors of the Ma
tional League. I guess the baseball
public remembers the American League
finish Of Just ten years ago.
That year Fielder Jones came from
no here during the closing weeks Of
the campaign and landed on top with
won nineteen consecutive games. This
was. by all odds. . far more sensa-
tional squirt than he made recently with
his Browns. Well. that year It looked
like q cinch for my Now York club.
We were we'll In the lead on our last
day when we hit Detroit. II I can re-
member rightly. We had gone to the
front at CHICAGO where we gave the
White Sox a sound drubbips. We hfe
Detroit. which at that timf was about
as sorry an outfit as the present Ath-
money. We expected to breeze in.
Detroit was in just such slump as
the Athletics have been for two months.
But every break Of the game went to
Bill Armours CLUB. Chesbro, orth.
Hogg, Tannehill and all my other good
this bushy OUTFIT. We couldn't get a
pinch hit OF Detroit's punk pitching. In
several Of the games. we loaded the
bases. but couldn't get man over. De-
troit pasted us SO badly that we never
did get back our confidence until II was
pitcher named John Eubanks. who didn't
last any time. Well. even he beat us.
Outlucked by Boston.
That massacre We suffered at the
hands of the misft Detroits was Gar
tirely unexpected-than our experience
OF being ouuucked by Boston on the
very last day OF the season two years
earlier. Everybody remembers how
Jack Chesbro wild-pitched away the
the game, for Boston had q strong club.
the equal of our own. Detroit Of 1906
didn't figure to beat any FIRST class team.
Seven teams In the American League
today have excellent chances to inquire
I believe the prospects Of the White sox
and Red Sox most bright. Cleveland
and New York are far from being out
Of It. The sensational spdrt OF the
Browns fell short Of the first division
and that. think. will take something
ntff nf n Uh do
ton for the season was the squirt In
question. Detroit has been much Of an
in-and-out proposition all the way. Jen-
ninss. to my mind. has not the pitchers
who can be depended upon in the Anal
say right to the finish. But so far my
pitching. outside Of Walter johnson. has
no, not been been all that II should: Besides cal.
inf,slG when hem Joe Judge failed US;
the American League came to the clos
ing week all in a bunch. Detroit out
tucked the others in the last few games.
History Is likely to repeat itself this
ern and two Western clubs should fig-
ure in the climax; Boston and New
York as opposed to Chicago and cleve-
l cannot see where any of the four
the next two weeks the East win be
favored in that the Western clubs will
VISIT them. It behooves the East to I'M
prove this opportunity because. after
that. the advantage will rest with the
West. The Western clubs are counting
on a breathing spot with the Athletics.
both in Philadelphia and back home.
But this is a break that will even up as
the Eastern clubs still have their bright
spots with Connie Mack as a medium of
plunder. No. this pennant is quite like
~ to be decided purely on merit.
To my way of thinking. New York
had the strongest club in the American