Evening star., 1932-03-12
BY ALAN GOULD.
Associated Press Sports Editor.

Associated Press Sports Editor.
OF. PETERSBURG, Fla. March
- l2.-Even If the best they
~ may even hope for Is a
fourth or fifth place this
year, the Boston Braves will 70
back on the warpath with q faster,
stronger club. The power Of their
pitching stan alone figures to
make 1t extremely unpleasant for
any Of the National League out
flts listening intently to the buzz
Of the pennant bee.
Manager Bill McKechnie has real
hopes Of getting more batting punch,
! lack Of which cost the club many .
well-pitched ball game last season. It's
quite another story when It comes 10
fortifying the clubs one real weak spot
behind the bat.
With q Mickey Cochrane or Jimmy
Wilson on the receiving end or II It
were possible TO turn back the pages
OF time for the grand old veteran, Hank
Gowdy, now head coach, the Braves
would be Sure-nre pennant contenders
Catching stan WobbIy.
The catching stan now consists Of
Al Spohrer. former knockout victim
and now the roommate Of Art Shires,
and Red Hargrave, veteran obtained
from Baltimore. Spohrer is the better
receiver, Hargrace, the harder hitter, but
what McKechnie needs Ia o comnina-
ton Of the best features Of each. The
only recruit prospect Is John Bensono,
from Binghamton, N. Y, and the novel
experiment of trying Randy Moore, an
outfielder, behind the bat has not ap-
peared to solve the problem.
McKechnie has one of the best
southpaws in the league in Ed Brandt,
who won 18 and lost IL with o sixth
place club in 1891. He has another
reliable southpaw in old Tom Zachary,
soned right handlers in Ben Cantwell.
Bruce Cunningham, Fred Farmhouse,
and Harry (Socks) Seibold.
The best-looking additions to the
curving corps are Leo Mangum, who
pitched good ball for the Newark Bears
last year, and walter Belts, who won
"a games for the championship St. Paul
club Of the American Association. Both
are right handlers. McKechnie plans to
keep III pltcnerS.
The Braves inheld will show at least
two new figures, Fritz Knothe at third
and Art Shires at first, and probably a
third, Bill Akers, at second base. Nc
Kechnie has been working these play
ers, with Bill Urbanski at shortstop, as
his f1rst-string combination. It packs
q batting wallop besides looking good on
the defense.
Knothe May Aid at Third.
Knothe. purchased from Seattle. I
expected to plug long-standing we.E
spot. ShireS was bought from MilwaC-
kee ON the theory he will behave him
self and allow no wise-cracking to in
terfere with his usefulness. He shows
every indication Of coming through
handsomely. Akers was discarded as o
shortstop by Detroit, drafted by the
Braves from Kansas City and apparent
ly satisfied McKechnie he can produce
In reserve there Is Rabbit Maranville
SO years old, but still aggressive. and
Bill Walters, 81, and rising star.
Wally Berger, the rangy slugger who
came UP two years ago from the Pacific
Coast League, furnishes the biz punch
Of the outfield. McKechnie win be
much disappointed II Yves Schulmerich
and Red Worthington fall 70 deliver
more base hits than they did In 1891.
Both have looked better In camp than
they did O year ago. Meanwhile Oscar
Eckhardt, q fast slugger who hit .366
last year for the San Francisco Mis-
sions. Is being given every chance TO
develop