The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1920-04-02

National.
New York ------.-.--..---.--.--...--...-- 1881
PittsDurg ---------.-..----.-.------.-- 3459
Cincinnati -------.------.-----.-.--.- 3l03
y LoulS 1898
~ AigH ----------.------------------ o3U9
N.AiCeSo ------------------------------- 300
Phila delphia --...-.-.........-- 1924
bOSCoH 81 Is
No use talking, boys, we will be
compelled to watch those Pirates and
Cardinals in the National League this
coming season. On top of showing I'M
suspected latent strength in the infield
these two teams come along in the
outfield and rank up so close to the top
that few accidents Or sun hits would
make them the equals OF the Giants,
who are the leaders
The Giants, beyond doubt have the
most consistent outfield in the Nation
al, the most punch, the most speed, and
in spite of the slump of Kauff, show
that they are the class. The Worlds
Champion Reds rank down in third
place, due to the uncertainty of the
left field development, and the rather
ragged work of Neale at times, which
detracts from his otherwise great abil-
ity.
Brooklyn has pushed along toward
the top, gaining steadily in outfieid
strength and, with the discovery of
Nels, with competent subs for the out
field, and a lot of hitting power scat
tered around, are in position to make
trouble.
Chicago shows woeful lack Of punch,
and clearly Mitchell cannot rely upon
outfield hitting strength to carry his
team to a pennant. He will need at
least seven per cent better pitching
fhaV fh,o xiv al, 1l,1
against him to offset the lack of attack
ing power in his outfield
In the American League, Detroit
and Cleveland. of course, lead the field,
chiefly because Of the super ability of
Cobb and Speaker. The two stars raise
the outfield values Of their clubs high
but Detroit shows more power in the
other positions, and holds the lead
1t will be a considerable surprise to
discover that the lowly Washington
team achieves third rank rather handi-
ly in the dope figures, and the more
closely one analyses the Griffith out
field the better it looks. Rice, Roth.
Menoskey and Milan afford Griffith
great chance to make switches at criti-
cal times and cover the weaknesses of
individuals. The Old Fox is a wonder
at making such quick changes. when
he has the material to work with, and
he certainly has plenty of 1t in his cut
field array.
TWO of the American League teams
have me all in the air because OF their
delay in announcing the candidates
who will be chosen as regulars. These
are the New York Yankees and the
Athletics. have been compelled to
average values of all the candidates in
practically every outfield position, and
-
or three players is less than the value
OF either one.
That Is, we cannot say that two men
--one weak in hitting, another in field
ing-are as good as their strongest
point If the regular teams are chosen
i'm time I will refigure the values bas-
ing the figures upon the probable
number of games the regular will be
in, and the probable number his sub
stitutes will play, and thus get much
closer to the real position value of the
few men, such as Flagstead, Gleich,
teams.
The fact remains that the outfields.
as they stack up at this stage Of the
game, do not average up to the Major
League standard. The discovery of
Heathcote and STATE, and some of the
others, tends to raise the hope that the
standard or the Major Leagues will be
restored to its old heighth before long
We did not expect many such develop
ments this spring. but reports from the
training camp indicate that the pros
poets are better than the scouts be-
lieved.
The Chicago White Sox' outfield
prospect is far from being encouraging.
The team has been lamentably weak
in right for some years. There was
plenty of material. but it could not all
be used at once. and there are undoubt-
ed signs of slump.
Now that we have considered the
seven regular positions we can assem-
BILE the regular teams and discover Just
how strong the clubs are before start
ing the study of pitchers and catchers.
You understand. of course, that the
pitcher and catcher count more in de-
fensive strength than the others COM
bined. but the study of the regular
teams reveals the offensive power al
most completely. In the next article
we will compile the teams. and see
how much of a handicap the battery
men must overcome if they are to win
for their clubs.
Copyright 1920. by the Bell Syndi-