The Waterbury Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1917-1946, 1932-05-13
To.day's Sport
Parade
BY HENRY McLEMORE


united Press STAFF Correspondent
New York, May 10. (UP)--
Among the 3s9,441 things this
writer never has been able to
figure out In the tendency among
baseball people to underestimate
the Importance Of games won In
those months between April ana
July.
10 this unframed eye (and when
I say unframed I'm only spoofing)
a. baseball game In May, shy, IL
lust the same as one In late August
or September and counts every bit
as heavily In tho final reckoning. 1t
IL true, isn't 1t, that May games,
like their brothers In September,
boast nine innings, nine men to
side, umplres at the plate. at iirst
and ut third, and admission at the
gate? u.
Why, thon, tho general beiief
that to-day's standings In the
American and National soon VIII
be righted, with the mighty men
of McGraw and Street and McGil-
licuddy blasting back to their ac-
customed places In the sun? DO
they own the places In the sun?
Is there any law making 1t COM
pulsory for washington and Cin-
cinnati and Chicago to fold up ike
a 1918 accordion?
Granted that rated strictly OH
their 1881 performances the Car
dinaIs and Athletics are due Tor
better things. But ] don't see why
there Improvement Is u certainty,
any more than the collapse OF the
current leaders is certainty. The
race in the National would seem
to be u free for-all with any one
OF three or four clubs standing an
elegant chance to cop.
Picks the Cubs
| And IL l had to make a bet right
now on the winner I'd take Chi
cago, for the simple reason that
the Chicagos have won more ana
lost less than any club In the
league. I'd much rather run the
risk of n leader collapsing than or
n trailer reviving. A team that can
win in May Is n pretty good bet
to win in August, and vice versa.
Folks will tell you that Hornsby
lust can't keep on getting the
pitching he has had to date. Ana
in the next breath the same folks
will tell you that the Giants just
can't keep on playing so poorly;
that Leonard Koenecke Is bound to
improve. From what I've seen or
Koenecke, his chances of improv-
ing are not so good as those OF
Hornsby to continue getting sweet
pitching. This Koenecke could i'm
proye 100 per cent and still be just
another left-felder with a glove
on.
And why should the Cincinnatfs
collapse? Are they any statistics to
show that such players as Herman,
Douthit, Hafey, Lucas and Kolp
can't deliver in September as they
did in May? And why should the
Cardinals be such O ball OF fire?
The passing of time Is likely to
serve to show Just how nicely the
cards kicked the championship out
the window by Kidding themselves
of Hafey and Grimes.
Sens Won't Buckle
To hear Philadelphia followers
tell Il, 1t Is only a matter OF time
until washington and New York
buckle at the knees to form a nice
stepping stone for the Athletics
Don't you believe 1t. All that 1881
washington club needed to be a
powerhouse was hitting out.
fielder and a pitching pitcher. And
they got Reynolds and Weaver.
The Yankees have enough sheer
power to keep them In the rum
ming all the way.
Naturally, no one expects the
AS to hang around In sixth place
all year. But such a thing IL moi
at all impossible. They're doing
just that thing right now, and los
| ing ball games isn't calculated to
lift them out of the ruck. At least,
I've never heard of n team winning
by losing. Have you?