Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-06-11
NATIONALS CAN WIN
Locals Chances for Pennant
Good, Says Sporting News.
NOT TOO WEAK WITH BAT
Grifmen Have Great Pitching staff,
(Which Is Bound to
~ Improve"
From Sporting News.


dams are quoted as saying that the team
they figure they will have to beat is
Washington. and that the Griffmen are
bound to be less dangerous as the season
progresses. because in the first six
weeks Of the season they have been play
ing out of their heads, particularly as re-
CARDS the batting they have been doing.
1t Is not in the nature of things, 1t is
said, for a Washington ball club to hit
as the Grifmen have been doing, and
when they get down to their natural bat
ting stride even great pitching is not
going to hold them up
II this be the opinion of the Cleye
ianders. then it may be well for them to
revise their dope as regards Washington.
The Griffmen are hitting harder than is
their wont, that is true, but it will be
well for their opponents to 20 more into
the, details Of their batting before voting
1t above form.
In forecast of the maj or league races
printed in the Sporting News last April
1t was suggested that Washington wo,,4d-
be dangerous pennant contender il IT
got the hitting that Manager Griffith
promised himself Griffith at that time
inquired he had the best pitching sta n that
ever had carried the Washington colors.
ne based his pennant hopes on that
along with the expectation that two NJ
MS new men. Jameson and Judge. would
De .aoo hitters or thereabouts. that Nor
gan would come back. and perhaps
Shanks, also "p'
Griffith made SO bold as to sav that
mis- team as a whole would hit better he
cause 1t had not hit up to its real form
loI couple OF years. and because OF the
az aoo,uon OF new strength, and we incline
70 the opinion that Griffith was rieht
wnen he said his regulars should he bet
yer nltters than they had been for a con-.
pie OF seasons. and we believe thew are
ony resaining their form in their pres
look on as out of their heads.'
washington for time led the whole
i a1ast league in hitting. According to
troit, and the mark of the T:rirrrn.n 70
team is .253. iiheh as a
LAST year. with several of its heavier
"a, ra.'els Ialhng down badly. it hit PA. In
only 1 .2ss. the Grifrmen batted as team
% iar tnls season the leading hitter
0 OH .h :. Washington team is Jameson.
Raid sn a-ttins .SZS. The same player
las. year, his first. practically. as q
professional. Granting that he b,s
MADE natural progress, he should cnns
n ranue q 900 hitter all year. Ranking
,sI'' and Milan is an ordinary 300 hit.
Ter, or close to 1t, as the records ~
past years will show.
me next batter In the Washington
hst is a fellow named johnson. who is
batting 1908. Naturally this plaver viii
not continue to hit 800, for as the
burden of pitching bears down on him
ne Will fall Off with the stick. And vet
ne Will be recalled as always a danger
Gus batter.
are batting harder now than is to he
expected OF them the season through
but to counterbalance this Is the fail,
ure 10 iar or Judge, Rondeau and Fos-
TER to. hit up to their real mark
III the Washington team could in the
past two seasons hit above .24O. then
with its added strength ii should hit
200 this year. SO the Clevelanders must
not bank too strongly on a slump with
the bat to put Washington out OF the
race.
Harken to another reason for Wash
ington hitting better than in past years.
The pitching in the American League is
past. II you don't believe it run
through the list OF boxmen and study
what they are doing. Not that the
Washington staff SO far is showing any
octtSi the TSSl, out Wnen all are
going poorly one team at bat has about
as good chance as the next one.
Still another reason why Washington
as a weak batting team Of the past is
not to be doped SO this year may be ad-
vanced. There are no great batting
machines this year in the American
League. Sam Crawford has gone from
the Tigers and Ty Cobb is not having
a wonderful year.. iris Speakers punch
has been taken from the Red Sox, and
Eddie Collins and those other Chicago
sluggers have yet to show. while the
old SEQ hitting machine of the Ath-
letics II no more.
Therefore $50 hitting team in the
american League IL likely to be just
as strong on the offense as any of it's
opponents. and the Washington Griff-
men are a $50 hitting team. backed by
great pitching (Which is bound to i'm
prove), reinforced by a lot of speed,
some great fielding, and directed by a
wise Old Fox.
! Cleveland may beat out Washington,
or Washington may be the team Cleve-
land has to beat out for a pennant, but
II the Indians are figuring on admin
istering that beating because the Grin.
men are going to fall OF much in hit
ting. It will be well for them to revise
their calculations.
II there 10 any one striking case of
hitting out Of their heads" 1t is In the
Cleveland team itself, where the main
punch of that team is batting $40 ac-
cordinE to last accounts. The only
other 800 hitter on the Indians 10 Ell
= 6ual -t1 - Y - xA ~. ~