Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-05-07


Western sector and the Nationals
expect a deal of hard fighting be-
fore they see the East again.
Their first tusSling out this way
will be with the Tigers in four
game series scheduled to get un-
der way tomorrow.
Judging by the pace they have
travelled against their Western foes the
.. Tigers are right evenly matched with
the Nationals. which means the latter
must put forth the best they have to
get good start in their first invasion
of the West this season.
Manager johnson plans to send
against the Tigers tomorrow the best
he has In q pitching way, His pick for
the series opener is the left-handed
Lloyd Brown, who has done excellent
work on the hill thus far, only to get
an even break so far as wins and losses
are concerned. The choice sticks, says
johnson, although Brown was In action
yesterday. It seems that with Brown
on the hill the Nationals find it difficult
to get their bats swinging properly.
However. their attack has been some-
what stronger lately, so 1t may be
Of his hurting.
Outside its pitching corps the WASH
angton club Is regarded by its manager
as In good trim for the start Of the
campaign in the West. With Heine
Manush and Ossie Bluege, who welN
given q few days Of rest, In harness
once more and the old batting order
restored the Nationals are expected to
function more smoothly than they did
IN fo fret 1nf
The pitching still Is doubtful, though.
Too much is left to few hurlers. Only
time, perhaps, viii remedy this defect
in the club.
Offers Test for Grins.
THIS first western invasion should
i give the followers Of the Washing
ton club q good idea of how their
favorite aggregation will fare in this
years struggle Tor the championship.
Three Of the outfits in this sector APP
pear much sturdier this year than last.
Getting by the competition likely TO be
offered by the Indians. Tigers and White
Sox perhaps will be no easy task. II
the Nationals bag these series they may
be accounted real flag contenders.
Like the eastern sector. the western
has its one weakling, the Browns of st.
Louis. Bill Killefer's crew Is as far
outclassed out this way as are the Red
Sox along the Atlantic seaboard. They
may not be by the Nationals, however,
as st. Louis ever has been q tough town
for the wearers Of the Washington uni
form.
Be that as it may, the Indians, Tigers
and White Sox have been slaslling away
ut one another Just as the Nationals,
Yankees and Athletics have done. AS q
result the first three weeks Of battling
IN the league has six clubs well clus-
tered. Any Of the sextet could hop to
the front with few consecutive sue
cesSes.
On past performances It looks as
though this impending scrap between
the Eastern and Western forces will be
bitterly contested one. Even the tuS-
sling between the Browns and the Red
6ox ought to be case Of dog eat dog.
II the Nationals go through the West
in good fashion this time. look for them
to be dangerous to the finish. II they
fare as poorly as they did in the West
all last season, well--it might be better
10 wait and learn what the West can
do in the East next month before writ
ing any tickets.
In their FIRST round tussling with
Eastern rivals the Nationals did nothing
hfho brAg about. They were outstepped
bv the Athletics and held to an even
break by the lowIy Red Sox. Only their
overpowering of New York kept them
bp in the running.
OF II games played on Eastern fields
the washington club captured 10, lost
es many - 10 and played one to IA
inning tie. No championship stride
there.
YOUNG Bryant Turner. who has
l. been serving as q batting practice
Ns4xh he
been returned to Hagerstown, from
which he was borrowed. He left the
club yesterday before 1t headed for
Detroit.
This leaves Milton Pradat, the
youngSter picked up in Biloxi, as the
only batting drill hurler around. And
Pradat has a sore hand. This may
duty In the hurting to batters some
OF his regulars, particularly Irving
Hadley and Al Crowder. They seem to
need plenty OF work and now they have
fine chance to get 1t without harming
the Washington cause.
1t has been Johnson's practice to
use only himself and the Youngsters
in the wand drills. Only when they
volunteered were starters employed in
practice. But johnson can't do It all
and there1l be no call for volunteers.
The boys are to be drafted for the task
with only those starters who have re-
vealed some worth in games to be ex-
empted.
Yanks Take Odd Game.
VITHACKING each OF the three pitch
w ers sent against them the Yankees
yesterday made it two out Of
three in the New York series by beat
ing the Nationals in the final. 10 to 7.
Fischer was withdrawn after twirling
I'VE innings, Msrberry worked two and
Brown one. The Yanks garnered II
hits. two OF them homers by Ruth and
Larry.
The Nationals also did some hitting
and chased two Yanks pitchers, John
son and Weinert. Sherid finished. The
washington side picked up Is Safeties.
among them horners by Cronin and
Bluege. Each was made with q runner
on the paths. The Nationals gave the
went down with the tying tally at
the plate in the ninth.
Evidently the Nationals like this
business Of scoring after two are out.
That's how they got their runs IN the
first inning. Manush, after cutting at
two poor pitches, drew a pass, then
Cronfn parked the ball in the left field
stand for his third homer Of the sea-
son.
This counting was shaded by the
Yanl1s In the second. With two on and
one out, Dickey doubled one run across,
then johnson socked q two-bagger to
tally two more.
Ruth's Fourth Homer.
THREE more Yankee runs in the
II nth. Ruth's fourth homer of the
season following Reese's double
meant two. The third crossed only be-
bause Blueee very poor In handling