Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1922-03-09

gaines between his regulars and yam
test. The pitchers will not begin tiI
days yet.
All of the hurlers except Zachary.
johnson and Erickson saw service on
the. mound in batting practice yes
terday, even hlogridge taking his
turn. The Rochester southpaw has
had one day less of work than the
otier regulars, having gotten out for
tie first time Tuesday. but as usua
is far more advanced in condition
than his veteran mates.
johnson Is Very Careful.
Weathcr unusually cool for Tampa
prevailed with high wind follow
ing the heavy rainstorm of the even
Ing before. and the athletes were
clothed accordingly. johnson. particu-
laray was careful. Bundled in sweater
ard coat. he tossed 4 bit. fielded Il
few bunts and hiked for the Stub
house as S0on as he got up a sweat
Tho stiff breeze naturally DID not
aid the control Of the pitchers who
are still shy III this respect anEhow.
and the result was that the regulars
were kept busy duckinS while at
bat. Harris got a good thuinp III inc
back from a Wild enc heaved by Glea-
SON aud Rice received 4 nasty crack
on the leg when fast bali got away
from tho elongated McGrew. Their
injuries were painful but not serious.
NcGrew. Rriilheart and Miller w s
ing their Tenure on the MOUND snd .
when questioned b.. Manager Milan
Admitted tire work involved more or
less pain Tor them. Briliheart anu
is troubled b. tendon in his shoui-
der They have been instructed 70
take things easy. until the soreness
works out I
Appears to ne Real Find- ,,
I. is becoming more apparent with
each succeeding drill Of the GrlHmen
that they have in Ossie Bluege I
vounSster of more than ordinary
promise as ball player. well
lcosened up BY the first two sessions
Biuege yesterday went into hish ,
and gave an exhibition in the infield /
practices that ELECTED words of praise
from both President Griffith ana /
Manager Milan and provided some
thrills for the constantly GROWING
contingent of railbirds who turn out
each day to see the Nationals IN ac-
ton at Plant Field.
Eluege, who had the-front names OF j
Oswald Louis wished on him when ne
first saw the light OF day twenty one !
athlete of five feet: ten and one,ha!t
inches. weighing 152 pounds. He IS |
an excellent judge of Gronnder. !,
never fights" the ball. and possesses
the speed to range over generous |
amount of territory. The most sig
nificant thing about him. however: IS
that he has the knack Of always be- !
Ing in position to get the ball away i
and has snap style OF throwing
similar to that. employed by Harris
and without which no infielder ever !
became truly great.
Covers Acres of Ground.
Stationed at short in the intleld
drill that. wound up yesterdays prac- !
tice, Bluege demonstrated that he
COULD go to his right or LETT with
guilty of fun BILE, despite the fact
that AItrock. who was welding the
bat. purposeiy. made his chances as
difficult as possible.
Bluege's work. with Peoria of the
-Three-Eye League last season. the
first he bad spent in professional
base ball, was of such a nature that
he attracted the attention of several
big league ivory hunters. One OF
them, Tom Turner, who was scouting
for the Athletics was SO impressed
BY brief inspection that he urged |
Connie Mack to sign him The tau
taotician forthwith sent Danny
Murphy to Peoria. but the coach of
the AS reported negatively and the
purchase tentatively arranged by
Turner was Cancelled.
: After the close of the season, when
TIE Mercedes disposed Of their hold
tl.s in the Portland club of the Pacific
Coast League. Turner was made man
ager at Portland by its new owners. and
his first act was 70 seek to buy Bluege
from Washington, which had obtained
him when Philadelphia passed him UP.
Grit today said he was offered $4,000
fer Bluege by President Keeper of Port
land. but turned it down. and is con-
graduating himself now that he did.
Not Impressive mt Plate.
As has already been set forth in this
column, Bluese does not make an i'm
pressive appearance at the plate. being
- kt,o eli, h; f,,,f 4tarn
many players in the majors who use
THIS style effectively. and the fact that
he was able to chalk up batting per-
centaSe of .S94 for 100 games in the
TlreeEye League last season would m
dictate he is no weakiing with the stick. |
Minor league averages cannot safely be
used as a guide in estimating VIVA Il |
player may accomplish in the majors. |
where he IS called on to face hurlers OF
far greater skill but Griffith is firm |
believer in the theory that an athlete |
can be taught TO bat il he possesses the i
other attributes for success.
- player can learn 10 hit" is the |
way the boss of the Nationals puts It. |
"but not to field. throw or rum. He |
must be able to do these things nat
urally. although experience is needed
to afford polish. Bluege gets oversthe
ground well, has a fine pair OF hands
and that invaluable knack OF seem
ingiy starting his throws before he
actually gets the ball. We can't tell
vet how he will shape up as a hitter.
but if he shows half as much, prom
Use in that respect as he doesin other
departments we'll have a5'real ball
player for the fans to look over.
Blueze is an intelligent; fellow and
only d kid, last year being, the first
he put in as q professional. having
gone to Peoria from the sand lots on
the west side in Chicago Unless 1
am greatly mistaken, he has a bright
future in base BALL"
Inaeld Has a Workout.
The veteran players all displayed |
interest in Bluegc's work. and one of
the regulars was SO impressed he !
made a wager that Eluege would be !
with the Nationals all season. In ad-
dition to Blueze, the inner.cordon dur !
ing the fielding session included La
motto at third, Harris at second and |
Brewer at first 1t was the latter's |
frst day in uniform. but he went |
about his work as though he had been |
practicinG for weeks. !
Turkey is not carrying an ounce of !
ereund in. y way that made some of |
the side-line critics raise their eye |
brows. He even pitched to the bat |
tiers for. a brief spell. Predictions |
were made chat as a result he aould |
have sore arm today, but the Vir- |
xinian. who is as strong as bull. |
gays his wing never felt better.
Another acquisition for the squad I
yesterday was Bob Lightfoot. an in
AeIder. who last year managed a
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