Evening star., 1927-10-07
GRANTHAM is WEAK SPOT
In PITTSBURGH DEFENSE
Joe Harris Playing Only His Nerve-Waner
Brothers Prove to Be Whole National League
Team-Ruth Big Disappointment.

! hurgh team is at second base. Tha
| fact cannot be disguised. Granthan
! has PLAYED his best and does play hi
| best, but he is not fast enough as {
| second baseman to enter WOrlt
series against such hard Smashers a:
| these Yankees. To curb batters like
| the Yanks there must be f1aShy play
ers on the iniield. The outtield of the
| Pirates will do. although an awkward
error by Lloyd Waner was costly il
the second game.
The right side of the Pittsburgh in
field is not helping the team one soup
con, Joe Harris. who plays first base
mas been playing on his nerve and he
has as much courage as any mar
, playing base ball. If he did not have
he would not he in the game. Gran
than is not fast enough to shut dowr
on the Yanks when they are hitting
between first and second bases to
ward right field. Grantham can play
first base we'll and it would appear
that under these circumstances 1t
would be better to move Grantham
back to first base and put Rhyme or
young Joe CrOnin at second. There is
nothing much left to lose by such a
move and an abundance to gain. The
fragrant gap in the Pirate infield be-
tween first and second must be choked
up in some way if this Pittsburgh
team is to take a single game from
the Yankees.
The Pittsburgh pitching has been
bad. Aldridge threw the ball we'll at
the start of yesterdays game. His
first two innings We're beauties. In
the third the Yanks had exactly the
same opportunity that they had in the
first game and the result was almost
identical with that of the opening
game, even to the three runs that
We're made in the third inning of each
game. Once it was the fourth inning
in base ball that was the Jonah inning
to world series teams. For the Pitts
burgh team it has been the third
inning.
l.. Waner's Great Play.
Much the best outfield play Of the
series so far was made in the second
game by Lloyd Waner who raced back
to the center field fence and incon-
siderately removed an impending
three-bagger from the record of Earl
Combs. If that catch had not been
made, maybe the New Workers would
haveswon by about 10 to or some
thing worse.
Each Of the teams in the second
game made five assists. Imagine
such base ball as that! 1t equals the
record for the fewest assists in
world series game since 1921, when
the Yankees made only five assists in
playing against the Giants. Until the
seventh inning of the second game,
the Pirates made but one assist.
There were only four strike-outs
against the New York team. The
Yanks We're dying like brave soldiers
on long drives.
Babe Ruth went out Of Pittsburgh
without slamming a home run. The
crowd rooted for one in the eighth
inning of the second game when,
with the bases full Ruth had one of
those times that come to the life of
all home-run hitters-but the Babe
merely forced a man at second base.
Lou Gehrig did not bat. home run
bither. Somehow Pittsburgh feels as
if it had been cheated Of something
In world series base ball. That's what
they get for playing this home run
business to the skies.
Anyhow there is one copsolation for
the magnificent West. Oklahoma is
holding up beautifully. Were it not
for Oklahoma, the field of battles
would be strewn with more bodies of
dead and dying Pirates than it is.
The Waner brothers are the whole
club from heels up and
top-piece down. But the Waner
family isn't quite large enough to
make up a nine-man ball team.