Evening star., 1934-01-14
BOASTS
.379BATT|NG MARK
Only Player Now in Line to
Succeed Rice Not Rated
Highly as Fielder.
BY JOHN b. KELLER.


)ASTING about for a sue
II cessor to the experienced
~ and efficient Sam Rice
on the American League
champions outfield squad, Presi-
dent Clark Griffith thus far has
given consideration only to the
rawest kind Of base ball rookie
one Augustin Dugas of the Albany
club in the International League.
The Washington ball club ex-
ecutive hopes to corral more tall
ent for trial at the Biloxi train
ing camp, but admits Dugas is
all he has in line at present.
This Dugas looks a pretty good hit
ter to me-" says Griffith, but as far as
I know his outfielding isn't worth
whoop in Waxahatchie, or any other
place for that matter. My friend Joe
Cambria, who runs the Albany club.
tells me the boy ought to go places,
though, and I'm willing to try him
Right after letting out Rice, the boss
of the Capital club limited he would
consider nothing but a right-hand
swinger as successor to the veteran in
the champions garden detail. This
Dugas, however, is left-handed all the
way. He throws from the portside,
bats from it.
And Dugas has been in fast organ
lied company only one season.
Whacks Leather for 1873.
~ RIFFITH saw him in action last
Summer, but only briefly. 1t may
be, though, that the .379 batting
average Dugas hung up for 80 games
with Albany the past season made
Griffith change his mind about hiring
a right-hand hitter only. That .S79
got Dugas second place among the In
ternatio League batters participat-
ing in less than 100 engagements.
Young Augustin In his few appear
ances collected so hits, among them Q
doubles. 3 triples and 2 home runs.
And he batted in 10 runs. Not bad,
that last, for a young fellow, Griffith
points out.
As an outfielder, Dugas stepped
along to an average of 969. He had
| "a chances and kicked of them. But
it seems that Griffith has learned that
| Dugas might have had many more
chances had he been able to do more
hustling about the greensward.
This raw youngster. a .379 minor
| league batter and .969 fielder. is all
Griffith was able to get a line on in
the effort to replace the summarily
a unta nf naF
paigns who wound up his last season
with the Nationals with 294 big
league batting mark and fielding fig
ure of 1000.
Prim Emits First Squawk.
IRON Raymond Prim, beetle -browed
n rockie left-hand pitcher, Grifith
gets the first kick about salaries
offered the Nationals for 1894. Down
! in his home in Salitpa, Ala, the other
| day, Prim tore from an envelope q
contract profered by the Washington
club, took one quick glance at the fig
ures thereon, let out yelp of disap-
! pointment and forthwith mailed the
paper back to Griffith.
There was no letter from the young
pitcher with the returned contract re-
ceived at the Washington club head
HboA sNlo gCctSAddy. bdI lIlC OOco CApCIIS
some word from Prim before long.
According to Griffith, Prim must
have been thinking more of the work
he did for the Albany club than of his
brief period of service. with the Ma
tionals last September, when he Spurned
the contract. The left-hander did
right we'll in the International League
to rank sixth among its pitchers on
an earned-run-yield basis. For the
ha 1al A
innings in two games and lost in the
lone tilt he went to a decision.
At that. Prim was somewhat glorious
| IN defeat. He started and went into
the eleventh inning against the Ath-
letlcS IN the last game of the season
before he was reached for a score.
More Kicks Anticipated.
DRMS gesture of disdain is but the
first Of a likely series. declares
Gr1mth. Contracts mailed to the
Nationals last week conveyed good news
IN the form Of promotions only to a
select few. In many instances cuts
were in order, Grifith says. Although
the Nationals won the league cham
pionship last year. they did not enrich
the Washington clubs Golfers.
Grif1th rarely reveals sums concerned
IN salary TRANSACTIONS with the WASH
1ngton players, and this time Is telling
nothing. However, there is reason to
believe that Ossie Bluege, veteran third
baseman, who came to terms with the
club yesterday. is among those suffer-
ing pay slice. Several pitchers who
have been with the club some time also
have had contract figures reduced,
quasi-official sources intimate.
Among the few getting raises are be-
lieved to be Joe Kuhel and Jack Russell
Playing his first full season as q major
league first baseman, Kuhel improved
by bounds and became q highly valu-
able played to his club. Russell, worked
in q relief role, developed into the sur
prise pitcher Of the circuit and was a
prime factor Of the Nationals success.
There1l be squawks from many play.
ers. though, says Grifith. "sThey over.
look business conditions when they con-
slider their contracts" the Washington
boss explains And they forget thai
extra money they got out Of the world