The Washington times., 1926-04-13
JOHNSON READY
FOR OPENER

Continued from First Page.)
for the honors, but only the Mack
men are expected to make the
season-long fight for the Ameri-
can League title of 1926
johnson to Pitch
Vice President Dawes, in the Gu
forced absence Of the President,
is to toss out the first ball. Wal
ter Johnson, starting his twentieth
season, will take that ball and
hurl it with all his strength and
all his cunning against the heaviest
hitters of the Mackmen.
A wellnigh perfect diamond is
offered the athletes, curried and
groomed by Emil Haisman. the
brand new groundkeeper, Fresh
paint has been literally applied to
the fences, Frightening the scenery.
And far away in centerfield, from
the tall flag staff will flaunt a
new national banner, the Stars and
Stripes of everlasting victory over
all the world, Fit emblem of base
ball and of the fighting Griffmen.
Ancient customs will be observed
today. The air will be shattered
with the shouts and cries of the
peanut boys, the scorecard mer-
chants, the cigar sellers. Old gray
boards will be on hand early TO
watch tho preliminary batting drtIl
OF the hhrne team, beginning at .
o'clock. They will slowly wag
their heads, too, at thoughts of
Keeler and Rugie. Of old King
Kelly and Pop Arson, of Win Mer-
Ger and Husk Chance. TO those
old boys the modern player can
never equal the heroes OF their
youth.
A cold, cloudy day was provided
here for the opening Of the season.
1t was the kind of a day Walter
Johnson, with his fast ball, used to
like.
There will be music for the early
Corners. gay, snappy jazz tunes,
rollicking popular airs, stirring
marches. Uncle Nick Altrock and
his partner in comic crime, Albert
Aloysius Schacht, will entertain
old and young with their amusing
antics just as long as the demand
exists.
Just before the ferocious umpire
calls for some real work from
the athletes, both teams will march
behind the band to center field
where the Stars and Stripes win
be raised before a bare-headed
throng of some $4,000 fans.
BY nightfall Washington will
be either in first place or last.
Victory will give them top rank
ing in every Washington paper.
Defeat will bring gloom and a
lowly position for a team SO deter
mined to prove its right to a third
pennant triumph.
Both teams Fit
For weeks the players have been
training in Florida that they may
be ready for today's festivities. The
champions prepared at Tampa, their
rivals at Fort Myers. Neither team
has seen the other since last Sep
TENDER, but each knows the other
to be a foe worthy Of its steel.
Bucky Harris offers his veteran
team as the best Obtainable, with
JUICE and Peck and Bluege helping
him in the infield, Goslin, Rice and
Joe Harris ambling AROUND in the
garden. Muddy Ruel chirping behind
the bat and O. flock of ancient
hurlers, crafty in their wisdom.
Connie Mack, with Billy Gleason
as his loud-talking assistant, has
pretty much the same team that
battled the Griffs so hard and
so long last year, until. finally the
strain became too great and they
cracked ingloriously just when vic
tory seemed in their grasp.
One change is expected. Walter
French. a brilliant football and
baseball player at Rutgers College
and later at West Point, may play
right field in place of the popular
Bing Miller. French is faster than
Miller and has been hitting the
bail hard all spring. But he is the
only newcomer to succeed in max
ing a place for himself in the line
up of the contenders.
Walter Johnson Is due to start his
twentieth big league season today.
Barney has been around the league
a long, long time, but he has never
looked better than right now. Upon
his broad shoulders will rest much
of the responsibility of stopping the
Mackmen in the opening game Of
the year and sending the champions
off to a good lead.
Bryan Harriss, basebalIs Leaning
Tower of Pisa, is expected to be
Connie Mack's pitching selection to
oppose johnson. Many a time and
oft have they engaged in bitter COM
bat There is no reason for think
ing today's tussle will be one-sided.
Connie Mack has a speedy infield
with which to start the season. Joe
Hauser. out all last year with a
cracked kneecap. is back on first
base. Max Bishop has outplayed
the veteran Bill Wamby for the sec
Ond base task Chick Galloway and
Jimmy Dykes will plug up the left
side of the infield.
In the outfield are the smuggling
Bill Lamar, from Rockville; Al Sim
mons, whose 1872 hits in 1925 was