Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-04-04
Hopkins and Harris to Be
Kept at Least Until After !.
Season Opens.
BY JOHN B. KELLER.

pitch. To make it worse, the athletes
usually left with a flock of colds scat
tered among them.
It ought to be different this time,
however. The Nationals are going into
Birmingham tomorrow in better form
in playing way and better trim physi-
cally than they have in years. So per-
haps the jinx, after seeing what splen-
did shape they are in, will stick his tail
between his legs, stink away from Rick
wood Park and take a long, flying Jump
into the Warrior that flows nearby.
Four games are to be played in and
near Birmingham while the Nationals
make the town their base. Tomorrow
and Saturday they will stack up against
the minor league outfit with which
they long have been associated in a
business as well as playing way, the
Barons of the Southern Association.
To Face Giants Monday.
Through with Johnny Dobbs' aggre-
CATION, Johnsons charges will shit to
Montgomery Sunday afternoon for
tussle with the Southeastern Leaguers
of that town. Monday will find them
back in Birmingham to begin their an
nual Spring series with the Giants,
which this year will consist of seven en-
gagenfents.
Despite the old jinx, there's some
thing to, be said in favor OF Birmingham
as a stop-over point for ball club. 1t
has the finest base ball plant the Ma
tionals will use before they reach their
home lot, a week from today. The in
field is we'll graded and free from peb-
bles. The outfield is springy, but not
too soft, and the entire playing ground
is free from the mounds that so often
a fPaiV4if10 fiAtA
hazardous.
The stay in Birmingham will b.
something of a Homecoming" for many
of the Nationals. No less than six of
the Washington squad have seen service
with the BaronS and two of the six
spend much of their time in the Ala
bama city between playing seasons.
Red Barnes, regular outfielder, and
Jack Hayes, who has been given the
second-basing job. are native Alabanl-
ans. Barnes, in the Winter, divides his
time between Suggsville and Birming-
ham, while Hayes home Is so near the
city that he expects to stay in Clanton
while the club is in the big town and
commute for the games there and in
Montgomery.
Barnes saw considerable service with
the Birmingham club, but Hayes was
in only one game with the Barons be-
fore he moved up, to the big show.
Stuffy Stewart formerly managed the
Barons. Sam West starred in the out
field for them and Irving Hadley got
most of his schooling in professional
pitching with the same club.
Bob Burke bases his claim to being
Birmingham alumnus upon his midsea-
son turn with the club last year. Looks
as though there'n be some friendly enc
mics or the field at Redwood Park.
Ali Hands to Be Ready.
Manager johnson will have all his
athletes In the games with the BaronS
and the Montgomery club. The boil
that bothered Lloyd Brown is healing SO
rapidly that the promising left-hander
probably could step through four or
i've innings without suffering any an
noyance, while Hadley has fully recov-
cred from the slight stomach indispo-
sition that affected his hurting when he
faced the Tampa Smokers Tuesday.
Others of the rather meager pitching
squad of nine are in excellent physical
condition, as they have been since the
first two weeks of the training season.
It looks as though Manager Walter
johnson has pruned his squad as much
as he will until after the championship
season gets under way. He had con-
sidered carrying only eight pitchers and
four outfielders into the flag race, but
now he plans to hold Paul Hopkins,
young hurler up for trial with the Ma
tionals for the second time, and Spen-
Ger Harris, outflelder, bought from
Minneapolis.
It is unfortunate that Hopkins hasn't
more stuff" on the ball, for he is a
heady pitcher and makes few mistakes.
However, he doesn't seem to have SUI
ficient natural ability to make him a
big league moundsman. But johnson
now thinks he will need ninth pitcher
around to employ in batting drills once
the season is under way. Hadley, Liska,
Jones, Braxton and Brown are billed
as starting hurlers, so Marberry, Comp
bell and Burke will have to be held IN
reserve for relief work instead OF de-
voting any great amount OF time TO the
wand practice.
nothing to do with any uncertainty as
to Goose Goslin's ability to throw: The
Goose already has demonstrated that
again there should be plenty OF power
in the wing that was ailing throughout
last season. Instead, johnson now
holds that Harris might make good
emergency batter for his club and
wants to keep him on the roster even
though retaining the outielder means
the payment of $4,000 to the Millers.
Tampa Row Still On.
Before he left Tampa for Washing
ton Yesterday, President Clark Griffith
conferred with the owners OF the
Smokers. hoping to smooth the way to-
ward making the big city Of the Florida
west coast the Nationals training base
again next year.
No agreement was reached, but the
Washington prexy left hoping to have
his club at Tampa once more. SO lar
as conditioning the players Is con-
cerned, Tampa is an ideal training site
and Grifith is loath to abandon IT.
But he'll do so If the Tampa ciun
owners insist upon being given q sub
stantiaI sum before they viii waive the
Territorial right to the locality they
hold under the laws of organized base
ball.
ing and prefers Tampa to any other
Mace in Florida, but he left there
Yesterday declaring he would not SUD-
NIT to the demands Of the Tampa
club owners. Somebody must change
his mind II the Nationals are to re-
turn to the training base they have
used since 1919. As the situation now
stands, the Nationals win move their
training camp from Tampa, perhaps %
Miami.
It is understood Grifhth has had an
attractive offer from the great Winter
resort far down the east coast. There
OUGHT to be money In Miami for q base
bali club, despite the presence OF horse
racing and dog racing during the train
ing season. And the base ball owner
doesn't like to pass up the cash. II
costs big money to train q big league
team.
Billy Smith, acting business man
arer Of the Nationals, has announced
that 7,747 people paid $S,s29.l5 to see
the exhibition games played with DIG
league clubs in Tampa this Spring
And there were nine games played