Evening star., 1924-03-21


With his team Of precious jewels. he
is much moro fearsome than he was
when he was trying to teach a bunch
of rockies how to be heroes. Then he
broke in ball players. Now he fears
that the ball players will break them
selves. The players are urged not to
be over active, but to be very careful
where they put their feet
An added year has made all OF the
Yankees just 365 days more brittle
Il than s ssy None Of ba shfm
were less petted and more cussed
these days, they would be less brittle.
The worrying health officer. with his
red flag, has put so many restrictions
around athletes that the ball players
imagine themselves outdoor bric-a-
brac. to be handled with chamois
gloves and feather duster.
OF the veterans, Ruth, Meusel and
Witt look well and 1T Happy: too;
is as smiling as ever. and better for
base ball than he was last year. AS
for Deacon Scott-time does not age
him in manner. appearance or De
inability to get about as fast as he
once did, but Scott says Tets see
anybody get me out. that's ALL"
Du<an Has Trick Knee.
Duean is the only infielder who may
have a treacherous member OF hls
hody. His knee will slip its socket
now and then, like the knee OF a trick
stage where he is to be looked upon
Catchers and pitchers manifest no
1928.
Exactly the same team that won
tha world championship in 1873 Is
itself as if the pages Of history mao
been turned back and the team were
beginning last season. That's all
there is to it. Dope, fear, arraisn-
ment and praise-all may be scat
tered to the winds Tho Yanks are
ton Of days, and they are likely. to
repeat last years performances as they
were at the beginning of 1928.
There also is the chance that was
present last year that some one chap
may become upset, the team become
nervous and fearful. and slip its cable
and go crashing on the reefs. Any base
ball team is likely to have that hap
pen, especially when the team is one
that has attained its chief purpose in
life and knows that from April Is
to September 80 every mans hand
will be raised against it
But just now there is not one ieta
of evidence to show that the Yanis
are unable to make the fight for ~
championship. It's simply up to them
TO 90 IT. IL tuoy put Tie pTOpcT eli
ergy into their game they are ready
to go. If they think THAT because
they have won the American League
champion ship for the third time in
succession and a world series once
they are going to have an easy time
winning again-then they are likely
to wake up some fine day with a
nightmare.
Where the Yankees finish in 1924 is
their fight and not their excuse. They
haven't a preseason apology to offer.
They are themselves as a ball team,
and they are better fortified with the
light kind of young material than
any American League team that has
started a season in the last five years.
There is no speculation about the
team. It's there like an 18-carat
diamond on the third finger. The sole
question that remains for the jury of
fans is what the team will do. 1t
can't lord it through the American
League. No monocle-in-the-eye. high
topper superciliousness is going to
leave the American League submis-
sively weak as a whole. The Yanks
have got to- put on their blue overalls
and dig.
If they do, the chances are that at
the end of 1924 they may feel again
as if they have a right to demand one
more raise in the Quid pro quo be-
tween them and their boss before
they enter upon that stage Of disin-
tegration that has hit the finest lumi-
naries of base ball since Cap Anson
had to quit through sheer force of
accumulating feet after twenty-five