The Washington times., 1923-05-30

yarQ.
Many great teams have been
who were developed on other tear
that.needed ready cash. In fact,
nowadays composed entirely of 81
The Philadelphia Athletics, now
lean League pennant race, proba'
talent" team than any other comb
the Athletics are native Philade
they were all raised" by Comm
orphans when Mack took them in
The Athletics have arrived rather
suddenly although they did not
gather all their momentum in a
week or a month. Mack has been
eral years. Last season he heard
q few unexpected pops as he
cranked it and this spring the AS
suddenly hit on all cylinders.
St Therefore the venerable Connie is
happy. He reminds us, somehow,
of a hen which has suddenly
Matched out large brood of lively
chickens. He struts and clucks in
q manner of speaking and can't
help showing his pride in his chicks.
Connie has been interviewed
more in the last month than in
the previous seven years. Since
s he broke up his old team of hand
picked champions in 1915 and
1916 the Athletics have been
butt of ridicule. But no more.
It is al strange thing, this
eagerly sought but seldom achieved
triumph of effective coordination
of the units of a young baseball
team.
The Boston Braves found them
selves even more suddenly in 1914,
when they came from last place in
the National League on July and
swept through to worlds cham
pionship. The Braves, however,
harbored several veterans who had
been stars on other clubs.
:. They displayed a remarkable
spirit that carried them through to
a worlds series victory in four
straight games. This same Connie
Mack sustained that defeat and it
crushed his confidence in his cham
pions. He began to break up the
combination the following season.
There have been other teams
built up as slowly and laboriously
as the Athletics OF today, but none
with so little expensive material.
And no manager has ever displayed
the infinite patience and hope that
the paternal4+ Connie showed year
after year.,
~ Mack is sixty years old. He
has been a baseball manager for
thirty. You would think a man
could get enough baseball in that
time. Mack is a rich man, yet
he has continued to sit on p play
ers' bench i'm Philadelphia be-
cause he wanted to prove that
sometimes managers do make
teams. The general theory is that
the team makes the manager
because SO many managers have
failed when they lost star players.
Connie Mack's reputation ten
years ago was equal to that of
John McGraw as maker of cham
pionship teams. Five years ago
Connie was considered a sort of
tramp Managers good old has
been who was lucky. enough once
or twice to get hold of enough
good players to make up good
teams.
Mack never fancied the system
of buying ready-made stars. lie
experimental. An army of young
athletes has paraded before him in
the last few years. He has signed
and released many college players.
At times he had the groundwork
for good teams but always lacked
pitchers. Several times the AS
started with outbursts of speed
only to curl up in the early sum-
mer. The wildness of their pitch
ers was proverbial. And they were
too young.
Mack was finally convinced that
he must season his teams with vet
Grams who could supply the steadi-
ness. Juvenile teams will not do
in the big leagues. They do not
play college ball in the majors.
The sap runs out of a young team
about the time an older combina.
ton is beginning to function
smoothly.
!. There were q few times when
Mack thought he had discovered
the vital, spark needed to revive
tIla Athletics. However, he had
let many good youngsters go be-
fore he could make his club at
tE:actiVe to q recruit. Several men
joe Dugan is the most notable
exa1s1ple-saw no future with the
Athletics and demanded their re-
lease.
To a. temperamental youngster
there is nothing so discouraging rs
playing to, small crowds and being
'razzed" by the. fans. A boy wants
to feel pride in his team. Nobody
was proud Of the Athletics. It was
considered a misfortune TO belong
to them.
Last season the sMackmen played
an improved brand of ball. Some
of the pitchers Mack had been so
patient with began to, show some
thing. From the beginning of the
training season the Athletics have
looked good this year.
Strong batteries are a teams
main defense. Mack has the best
young catcher in the league in
Cy Perkins. Harris and Hasty,
two tall right-handers, are deliver.
ing the pitching goods. They have
been a long time on their way.
NayKor ana Rommel are the other
two first-string pitchers. Romrnel
led the league last season.
Naylor has been an ''in-and-
outer" for. years. Ogden is an
other good right handler He caDoa