The Bridgeport times and evening farmer. (Bridgeport, Conn.) 1918-1924, 1918-08-14
Our Boys In France
''SOre" On Ball Players
Lieut. Harry Mccormick,
Former Giant Player, Has
Returned From Front and
Says That Soldiers on
Other Side Call Ball Play
ers "Slackers"- Here on
Special Business.

New York, Aug. LIT may surprise
the professional ball players Of the
United States to know that the Amer
lean soldiers now fighting in France
do not hold them in high esteem; that
they do not scramble for news of how
the big league races are going, and
that they do not care whether Cobb
and Speaker and Baker are hitting
300 or 5000.
The fact that the ball players are
not hitting in the big, big game across
the water is the reason for this feel
ing according to Lieut.. Harry Nc
Cormick, once big Lacquer, but now
a fighter, who has just returned from
the shell-swept front. Two weeks
ago Monday Lieut.. Mccormick was in
action somewhere in France in a
town mentioned in the big headlines
every day. He is here under Or
ders, the nature of which is secret,
but he hopes and expects to go back
to the front as soon as his duty on
this side of the ocean is finished. The
lieutenant was at the Polo Grounds
yesterday, looking husky and fit. Har-
ry always looked well in a baseball
suit, but he looks ten times better
than that in his officers uniform. He
says he has gained twelve pounds
since leaving the front line trenches.
1.-THE feeling among the boys over
there seems generally to be that the
ball players haven't acted on the
level" said the lieutenant. THE
soldiers feel that there has been too
much evasion, too much hanging
back, too much sidestepping by the
ball players when other men, just as
good, have given sup paying places
and gone into the big game. That
scenes to them the ONLY thing for
real men just now.
THE boys are generally incensed
over the statements they read to the
effect that ball players have sought
work in munition plants and ship
yards where they can still keep on
playing ball. They regard that as
| ducking, as a sort Of lodging of the
| issue.
why, the feeling Is SO intense
| over there that the Stars and Stripes
| the soldiers paper, has stopped print
| ing the big league scores and stand
! ings. That, it seems to me, ought
to make the baseball men, both play
ers and owners, wake up.
1.-THE talk of the soldiers is that the
ball players should have volunteered
in a body and made up one big or
ganization and gone into the coun-
try's service to fight right at the star.
That would have been a great thing
to do.
THE soldiers like to play ball. They
are interested in baseball, but it's ir
their own organization. You cam
get enough baseballs to go around
over there. Gov. Tener sent me twt
every week, and they were worth
their weight in gold. The soldier:
get plenty Of chance to play, but the!
want to play 1t themselves. The!
don't take any interest in men play
ing it here any more"
Lieut.. Mccormick met Col. 7. L
Huston, part owner of the New Yorl
Yankees, many times in France. H
also has seen Hank Gowdy the IA
nous catcher of the Braves, who wa
one of the first ball players to volun
teer.
"Co1. Huston gave the baseball clu1
owners some good advice in his let
ter last March about getting into tn,
war, but they wouldn't take It," sail
the lieutenant, NOW the feelinl
against the men in the game anon.
: the fighters Is very bitter"
, Lieut.. Mccormick was trained a
Plattsburg and has been>in Franc,
nearly eight months. He has beel
in action several times