Evening star., 1919-12-22
JOHNSON SEES BIG
SEASON FOR SPORT
Expects League Squabble to
Be Adjusted and Looks
for Prosperous Year.
BY DENMAN THOMPSON.

he%t month all of the business con-
I fronting il Ban Johnson's most recent
optimistic uttcranceS ancnt the record
year in prospect for the sport may
well be borne out, but the grist of work
is so heavy that with the menace of
a raft of legal actions involving the
american League executive and its
various club owners considerable
ooubt is felt as to whether Johnson's
cheery attitude is wholly justified.
'iance at the calendar for January
FIRST OF all there is to be a meeting
OF the national commission and then
gathering of the new board of di-
rectorS of the American League. John
son rs to call together all the mag
mates OF his circuit and following this
SueTt VIII he Joint meeting of the
Ndtiohai and American leagues. In
dudltlon the magnates of both the
majors and mi norS will meet to at
Tempt To draw up new national
asrttment. and an important session
OF 'ne rules committee also is listed
rurthermore. the ma ajors must hold
their annual schedule meetings. al
thoush these Will not come until Feb
ruary.
III johnson is at all worried about
the outlook for his organization or
thc sport in general. however, it is not
apparent from what he has to say on
the subject, as the following state
hlcnt issued from his Chicago head
quarters will show:
Expects Successful Year.
January probably will be one OF
she busiest base ball months we have
had in many years." saws Johnson 90
do not know how we are going TO
hoid all the meetings and transact thu
business that is to be discussed but
i presume we will find a way and
before the schedule meetings are held
1.N
arranged for another successful year
the last being one of the greatest ir
the history of the American League
Nv hat we have done and what is
left for us to do clearly indicates
that base ball is not in as bad shape
as some would like to make fans be-
lieve. The American League. in par
ticulaT. was never more prosperous
than it is now, and i believe the
same can be said of the Nationa
League and the smaller organization:
that operated last summer.
II attribute this to the wonderful
manner in which the fans came back
to the game as their chief recreation,
after the trying years of the war
They did not forget, either. what the
ball players and leagues did in the
war You know there was a big per-
centage of ball players in the service
and the ball and bat fund engineered
by Clark Griffith also softened the
minds of the fans for the great
national game.
not have another successful year. Ii
is true the present situation in the
American League is unfortunate. but
i am sure conditions will be adjusted =
Garry Not Out Yet.
One of the most important develop
rnentS of the month"; it comes to
pass-will be the resignation of Garry
tional comm iSsion. He announced at
the recent base ball meetings in New
York that we would step down within
month and that he was in accord
with the general sentiment that no
club owner in either league should
be the head of the governing board
of the sport. But there was string
to his offer to quit. There is some
business pertaining to the world Sc
ries that the commission has to DIS
pose of before any change Is made
in it's personnel and condition Herr
mann imposed was that he would re-
sign if the present alignment OF ten
clubs against five for a new chair
man was unchanged
II is not unlikely that when the
time comes for action one or two or
the club owners now favoring his re-
tiremcnt will he swung over to vote
for his retention III office. in Whlch
ease he undoubtedly would decline 10
quit.
In case the national commission is
rtorganized there is some question
whether ii viii be a one-man AFFAIR
or on on which the minors as We'll
as ma ajorS will have representation
with neutral man occupying the
chair II is possible there VIII be i1ve
members on il instead of three The
minor organizations have been ask
ing for representa- Johnson is
said to favor this. but to what extent
is not known.
Cuban "Fever, Fails to Alarm.
President Manager Griffith was
busy today and expects to be for the
next week or so. arranging the itin-
erarv of the transforming trip the
Nationals are to take with the world
champion Cincinnati Reds next spring
Tho proposed exhibitions include
several to be played at Havana, and
in that connection Griff is not con-
cerued over the reports that the Gu
ban expedition undertaken this fall
by George Burns. Wally Pipp. Jack
Quinn. Whitley Witt and other Ameri-
can Leaguers was q failure owing
10, tn, adverse effect the climate is
said to have had on the health OF
the athletes.
according to gossip which recently
reached Bob Shawkey. the Yankee
hurIer. practically all of the tour
ing plavtrs were stricken with some
sort of a fever. which compelled
them 20 cut short their trip and has
Ten back TO the states. This yarr
has il that Burns was made so seri-
ouSlX i'll he may not he of much rea
use. TO the Nackmen next season.
Little credence will be given thi:
report Thousands of Americans have
gone to the island this winter and
from no other source has there come
any information that the health of the
visitors has been anything excep
improved.