The Washington times., 1929-02-25
CAMP
IS ALIVE.
TO-DAY
By R. D. Thomas

By r. D. Thomas
TAMPA, Fla, Feb. 25.-
Plant Field, the winter train
ing grounds of the Washington
Griffmen, was alive today with
the activities of a half-score
young ball players who will
strive for the next six weeks
to become fixtures with the
team which will try to present
Walter johnson with pen
nant in this, his first year as
a major league manager.
Trainer Mike Martin, who has
been here for the better part OF q
month getting the training equip,
ment in readiness. had two-a-day
program laid out for the pitchers
and catchers who constitute the
early arrivals and, to use the genial
Mikes own expression. They Will
have their tongues hanging out
of their mouths by the time Satur-
day night has come. ...
jogging around the track and
other Iimbering-up exercise Of
a lighter nature constituted this
mOrnil g's drill, and there wasn't
a sign Of q baseball to be seen
outside of the clubhouse where
hundreds are In store Tor later
use.
This afternoon Martin tossed out
three or four medicine balls and
had the boys grunting and perspir-
ing before he called a halt and
ordered them all under the showers.
One catcher and eight pitchers
were in the group which reported
on time, but there are two or three
others who are expected in any
moment. a--
Pitchers Lloyd Brown and Bob
Burke, lefthanders; and Archie
Campbell, Guy Cantrell, Paul Hop
kins, Adolph Liska, Jim Weaver
and Irving Bump Hadley We're in
uniform as were Catcher Al Bool,
Coach Ed Charity and Manager
| Walter Johnson. @ s
johnson was pleasantly surprised
with the condition of Bump Hadley,
| a IIGH1DSE UL tIlC IUS hAdI fkAs~AhAS
staff. Hadley heretofore has reported
uncommonly overweight.
| An appendicitis operation S
spring gave him and his mates much
concern. Gymnasium work has kept
him in shape this winter and he has
| felt no after effects of the Illness of
a year ago.
"I'lI give Walter Johnson the
players and what he does with them
will be strictly up to him.
| There you have Clark Griffith's
way of saying that more than
public sentiment prompted him TO
select for manager the most
/ famous of all ball players who have
worn the washington uniform. He
believes in Johnson as ball
player. as a human being and as
| a leader of his kind. he said SO
today.
/ The Old Fox denies with emphasis
that he is attempting to capitalize
unduly Johnson's personal popu-
larity. He says nothing, however,
about the transfer ito Detroit Of
Rucky Harris, who many regard as
the shrewdest of baseball COM
manders. 44
In the appointment of John
/ son, Griffith has the earnest
backing of the men who will
follow the Big Train, accord
ing to some supposedly in the
know.
Unlike many baseball fans they
don't regard him as a big, unim-
| aginative fellow. who for more than
20 years has been a marked success,
merely because of a nature-give
smokeball and talent for pitch
ing mechanics.
| Ingenuity, they say, has gov
erned every pitch that Walter has
made for a number of year. He
has studied batsmen. Has observed
everything about him, say they, in
cluding human beings.
i Walter" says Griffith, 'learned
a thing or two about handling bail
players last season when he was
manager Of the Newark club. He
got away to a slow start, of
course. because he was sick It'll
mid-season. If you know Walter
you know that half a season was
enough to show him what was
what in the business of running a
ball club"
Regarding Bucky Harris, johnson
Is almost non-commital. His at.
tention was called to the razzins
that Harris weathered in Wash.
ington last season.
Said Walter: II don't see how
people up I'm the stands can
really mean what they yell to the
boys ON the field sometimes"
4 feel this way about it--that if
the fellow in the stand would look
over his own errors in his own job
he would think twice before he be-
came a razzer of ballplayers. They're
always doing the best they can
Births, engagements. MARRIAGE
Deaths and In MemOFIam appear daily
ON the last inside page, last tive columns.
.lorL QOTHnoI