Evening star., 1933-04-12
IS Of "A IN SQUAD
PUT ON SINCE 1929
Rice, BIuege, GosIin Only
Surviving Members of
First Flag Team.
BY JOHN b. KELLER.

w YASHINGTON'S ball club,
\N/ entering the thirty third
Y Y championship campaign
of the American League
highly hopeful of success, is truly
new deal" for the National
Capital.
For seven of its players this is
the first season in the Griffith
livery, and just eight of the re-
mainder wore it prior to 1880.
Among the two dozen on the
roster there are but three who
bark back to the halcyon days of
1924 when the Nationals brought
Washington its first pennant.
Ball clubs that finish well back in the
flag race always make sweeping changes
in personnel, but it is unusual for a
high-rating club as Washington has
been for some years to be altered so
materially within the span of three
years.
Making over a well-worn base ball
machine with 16 new parts gathered
from widely scattered localities in such
q short time is remarkable achieve
ment even for such a master mechanic
of the game as Clark Grifith, president
of the Washington club.
NEWEST of the Nationals are Walter
IN Stewart, Earl Whitehill, Jack Rus
sell, Luke Sewell, Fred Schultz. Ed
Linke and Bob Boken, but, excepting
Linke and Boken, they are not SO new
to the professional game
Stewart got his start with Bradenton
of the Florida State League back in
1919, while Whitehill broke in with
Birmingham of the Southern ASsocia-
ton year later. Sewell stepped right
up from the University of Alabama to
Cleveland in 1921. Schultz made his
debut with Waterloo of the Mississippi
Valley League in 1924 and Russell began
with Paris of the East Texas League in
1925.
They served hard apprenticeships be-
fore making the big league clubs from
which Griffith got them in trades the
past Winter, Stewart and Schultz from
the st. Louis Browns, Whitehill from
the Tigers and Sewell and Russell from
the Indians.
Linke, purchased from Davenport of
the Mississippi MAev League, Il and
Boken, Bought from Kansas City Of the
American Association, have not been In
the game long, but have made much
progress.
1--WE of the present crop of Nationals
J. came up to the club for the first
time last season, Alphonse Thomas,
Moe Berg, Johnny Kerr, Bill McAfee
and Luther Thomas.
AL Thomas was bought from the
Chicago White Sox In June. He had
been with them a little more than six
seasons, but he rst entered professional
base ball in 1918 with Buffalo OF the
International League. McAfee came
out of the University of Michigan to
Join the Chicago Cubs in 1880 and the
Nationals finally picked him up from
Montreal of the Ints. Kerr, West
Coast product, got with Washington in
q trade with the White Sox. Berg,
Princeton grad, saw service with the
White Sox and Indians before joining
the Nationals at the Biloxi, MISS,
training camp Luther Thomas joined
the club after finishing his season
with Youngstown of the Central
League. He had pitched much sandlot
ball in and around Washington before
turning pro.
MONTE WEAVER, the distinguished
lNl professor of mathematics. is the
only player on the roster to have
come up to the Nationals in 1881. He
lust made that season by the skin OF
his teeth, for Washington yanked MIN
from the Baltimore club shortly before
the season closed and he found time
to pitch game against the White Sox
and win it. He began his professional
career with Durham OF the PIEDMONT
League in 1928.
It was in 1880 that Joe Kuhel, Heinie
Manush and Dave Harris first put on
the washington uniform. Kuhel, who
started with Flint of the Michigan
Ontario League back in 1924, was
bought from Kansas City and got in l8
games in his first season in the big
league Manush came along with Al
Crowder from the Browns In June IN
the trade for Goose Goslin. Heirie has
been around the pro game since 1871,
when he began with Edmonton OF the
Western Canada League. Harris came
from the White Sox in trade In June
He had played with the Boston Braves
before.
In 1929 Cliff Bolton first joined the
Nationals. a purchase from Ralelgn OF
the Piedmont League. He was shipped
early, and this is his third time back
with the club.
TT was in July, 1928, that Joe Cronin,
i now manager, first donned Wash
ington uniform. He was bought from
Kansas City, but journeyed around the
country for a week with Scout Joe Engel
before reporting here. Joe was afraid
that Grifith wouldn't think well OF the
purchase.
Bob Burke's first year with the Ma
tions was 1927. He was drafted from
Little Rock of the Southern Association.
Crowder was found by the Nationals
In Birmingham in 1925. but he had
started with San Francisco in 1922. The
General was shipped to the Browns In
1927. to come back in 1880.
Buddy Myer came up from New Or
leans in 1925, and managed to crash the
world series the Nationals lost to the
Pirates that year. Buddy started the
year with Cleveland, only to be turned
over to the Pelicans. He was moved 70
the Boston Red Sox in 1927, but came
back two years later.
0F the 1924 championship team only
~ Sam Rice. Ossie Bluege and Goose
Goslin are here Sans been around
since 1915, when he was bought from
Petersburg of the old Virginia League
Bluepe moved in in 1922 from Peoria
and Goslin in 1921 from Columbia o1
the South Atlantic League. The Goose
was shifted to the Browns in 1880, but
he was glad to get back this year.
Exhibition Rase Ball