The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1932-03-28
TALKING
ITOvER.
BY JOE WILLIAMS

NEW YORK. March 2o.-HaVlng
~ dismissed the American League
situation for the coming season in
nv enthusiastically scholarly man
ner. / shall now proceed to make an
erudite analysis of the National
League entries in the 1892 gonfalon
chaFe. as I believe it is called.
To begin with, baseball is a very
uncertain game and it is not wise
for the prophet or dopester to be-
come too dogmatic in his conclu-
sions. AS President John Heydler
so sagely remarked some years ago,
you never can tell" Still I think
it Is safe to predict that the race
this year will be earnestly waged.
Because Of my growing stature as an
expert - Will be recalled that picked
the Cardinals TO win the series last fall
I am encouraged TO 90 even further and
predict that It will be an interesting race,
that the young men will be IN there try
ing and that at the end the laurel wreath
viii 20 to the most deserving club.
Note from the boss: snap into your
dance. What do you think We spent
money to send you to the training camps
An right. all right, but can't guy get
whimsical once in whieP I always say
there Is nothing Ike getting whimsical
once In a while Look what St did for
Barrie. and Tunney and Mae West The
trouble with this world is that IT is too
materialistic. The beer could be i'm
WELL, to man up tree, or
w should I say-to yours truly?
it looks like three-horse race in
the National this season. I don't
mean actually that any horse will
be in the league, though a near
sighted person might easily mistake
Hack Wilson and Shanty Hogan for
horses, which would be hattering
the horses at that.
The Cards stll look the part OF good
ball clubs The Giants seem to be improved,
and so do the Cubs. The race, then,
ngures to be between these three clubs.
I don't know how to figure the Brooklyns.
They have what the boys graYcly call,
potentialities. At times they seem 10
have the heebieieebies, too They can
finish htst or sixth with equal facility.
The Cards spread-eagled their field last
season. They beat the Giants home by
thirteen games. That's a pig margin IN
anv brokers' office Conceding that the
Cards are Just about as strong now as
they we're a year ago-and this Is not a
fantastic concession--the Giants, to win.
must improve by at least dozen games.
Applying the same reasoning the Cubs,
which finished third must improve their
playing strength by seventeen games. ana
the Brooklyn. fourth year ago; must m
prove by twenty-one games. Ihat GallS
Tor an extraordinary amount OF ADDED
power. These figures show the CARDS were
in complete command at all times last
season. Apparently they can slump ana
still be very tough.
TNHEY are saying that Cincinnati
Il is the most improved ball club
in the National, and this in spite of
the fact that they gave up two fine
infielders to get the in-and-out Babe
Herman and the heavy-hoofed Lom-
bardi. The main difference seems
to be in team morale. Manager Dan
Howley has his men on their toes,
where as last season they we're on
their backs.
A year ago Cincinnati finished miser-
the league. The Cards for example. beat
them twenty times while losing only two
games. Howiley thinks he Ca drive the he
the race ended last fall he was that far
The development of one Of the door. mat
teams. such as Cincinnati into disturb
ing power. might easily have a dlreGGff
the Reds could have stopped the Cards
at all last. wear 1t would have been
At that the Reds dropped number OF
hard luck games. Silas Johnson lost ten
mere 10 the neSp and 9H P Batting to form
lot of these close ones should go the
other wav this season. So, ,,..
and often does make vital difference
In 1928 the Cubs lost some thirty games
bv one run and with these games, the
Hornsbv on the team the Cubs won most
Of their close ones and CAPTURED the cham
bat in the pinches told the story.
II
INCIDENTALLY, Hornsby's Cubs
i are likely to be much more dan
gerous this season. For one thing,
Grimes will help the pitching.
Hornsby had internal conditions on
the Cubs last season that did
neither him nor the club any good.
With Wilson traded. the opinion is
this conditions has been lessened, if
not eliminated
Hornshy. driving leader and capable
manager is on the spot this season. IL
is more or less up to him to produce or
admit he is not success in Joe NC
Carthy's shoes On two occasions in the
past, once with the Cards and later with
Inc Giants, Hornsby has shown that he
can handle a club with the hest Of them;
Hornsby won a pennant and world
series for the Cards, and ne took the
Giants during McGraws absence and
drove them into a spectacular winning
squirt After both performances Hornsby
was mysteriously dismissed He had per-
sonal differences with the front office in
St. Louis Just what happened to him
here has never been definitely learned.