Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-02-10
|RUEL ONLY SEEMS
CERTAIN OF BERTH
BooI Held Likely Regular Re-
ceiver-Five to- Seek
Three Jobs Open.
BY JOHN B. KELLER.

~ Tampa is the reorganization of
his catching staff. In recent
seasons, the club has not been particu-
larly we'll balanced in the receiving de-
partment and this defect the new pilot
aims to remedy.
johnson will start the task of reorgan-
ization in the South with five catchers
at hand. Muddy Ruel, veteran, and
AL Bool and Cliff Bolton, recruits, are
players that will begin drilling on Plant
Field February Is. Benny Tate and Ed
Kenna are to start practice week later.
From then on, with the possible excep-
ton of Ruel, 1t will be every man for
himself. For johnson has let 1t be
known that no one really has a berth
in the catching staff clinched.
It Is practically settled the Nationals
will enter the 1929 American League
championship campaign with staff Of
three catchers. but it is by no means
certain that these three will be the
same trio that worked through the
greater part of last season with the
club-Ruel, Tate and Kenna.
Right now it appears that the veteran
Ruol will retain his place as premier
member of the staff. In recent years
Muddy has revealed that he is slipping
some from the form that earned him
ranking as one of the best catchers in
the majors back In 1924 when the
Nationals were winning their first league
pennant and their world championship.
But last season he still was much better
than the average run of catchers to be
found in the majors, despite his slug
gish underpinning and throwing arm
that lacked strength until the campaign
was well under way.
Rueps 1928 Record Good.
All told, Muddy's record for the 1928
argument in the Barnard circuit Is i'm
pressive. He participated in 1o1 games
behind the bat-only Mickey Cochrane
of the Athletics and Luke Sewell Of the
Indians were in more as catcherS--and
finished fourth In fielding with per-
centage Of .989. Muddy hit only for
.257, but he drove over IS runs and got
A passes. Less bases were stolen at the
expense Of the Washington catchers
than against any other catching group
in the circuit. AS Muddy caught by far
more games than any other of the
Nationals staff, his arm could not have
been SO poor.
Heretofore. Muddy has been among
the last of the Nationals TO report at
training camp. Generally he did little
throwing during the conditioning cam
paign and the championship season
was well under way before his wing
looSened. This year Ruel hopes to be
in prime condition at the outset of the
flag race. Upon his request he has
been assigned to the first squad report
ing. so he will have at. least seven
weeks In which to renew the snap In
his whip. This should help nightly. .
It would not be surprising IL AL Bool
became one of the Nationals catching
trio. This chap. bought from Nash
Vile Of the Southern Association for
vantage in the brief trial with the big
league club. He is of the build thought
by many base ball men ideal for q
catcher, tall and husky. Bool Is Just
trifie above s feet in height and
weighs close to 100 pounds Something
for a runner to- hit when coming into
the plate.
Bool Knows His Work.
Al is &c years old and just about
ready for thorough trial with major
organization. He has had much expe-
rience IN the professional game, having
besn in 1t for a matter of seven years,
and seems to know what all Of 1t Is
about. His throwing while with the
Nationals last season was particularly
pleasing. In fact. he showed as DOW
erful a whip as had been seen with the
Nationals in many a day. And his
action at bat during hitting drills In
dicated he might be swatter, too. It
Is quite certain Bool will be looked over
carefully while at Tampa.
Tate and Kenna have got to fight
Tor their jobs and fight vigorously, too.
The former has been up with the
washington Club some time now-he
joined 1t m 1924-and has yet to show
himself to be real big league per-
former. Tate IS mechanically good,
tbs true, but he frequently has been
guilty of errors of omission that have
proved costly. Benny has been a fair
batter, but his throwing arm has been
none TOO accurate. He is hard work.
er, which Is always In any players
Iavor, bue he seemed no better as a
catcher last year than when he first
came to the Nationals youngster.
Kenna. bought from Minneapolis In
the first half of last season, came to
the club with the reputation of being
the most likely looking catcher In the
minors. And in his first few engage
ments with the Nationals, all played
IN the West, he acted the part. His
$50 1853 S"AOA6 0AAA thuACly HIS
throwing excellent. Also he showed
good judgment in the handling of his
pitchers. But as soon as he got on
his clubs home field all these fine
qualities disappeared. 1t might have
been stage fright that caused Kenna
to slump when he first played before
Washington crowd If it was, he
never recovered his pcis. t,.c remainder
OF the season.
Bolton Hit Last Year.
Bolton is youngster, not quite %
years old, who has had less than two
years Of experience in professional
ranks. He was picked up by the Wash
ington ownership mainly because Of
his good batting with the High Poias
Club of the Piedmont League last sea-
son. He hit .403 to become runner
up to the circuit champion. Bolton is
not much taller than Tate, being S
feet 8 inches in height. and weighs
around $50 pounds. He is a right
hand thrower, Of course, but bats from
the port side.
Little Is known of Bolton here, but
from what has been heard of him the
Nationals manager considers thorough
trial may 20 well worth while. Bolton
viii get this thorough trial at Tampa.