The Washington times., 1935-03-16

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s$>5<< *:.:<> .'&2&. nant again,
Mickey Cochrane this time even
more easily. I said it wouldn't t
and couldn't and won't. I still
say it.
"How can we lose when
there's seven other clubs that
can't win?" said he a trifle
truculently. Everybody seems
to think we were lucky last
year. But what's lucky about
the fact that "SchOOlbOy" Rowe
only pitched a few innings
and most of them bad innings
up to June l. He won "a
games after that. He'll win even
more this year. That's one
quarter of the pennant right
there. Another quarter is fur
niShed by Tom Bridges, who
won 22 for me and can't miss
repeating. Our hitting and de-
tense will do the rest
It occurred to me to mention
the fact that the last time I OBJ
served the hitting it was getting
exactly no runs against MIR. De-
lirium Dean, Of st. Louis, while
the defense was yielding 10 or II.
But the gentleman brushed that
one off like a crumb on the vest.
"We won last year before we
came to our BEST" he said a
little impatiently. eve were a
year away then and the Car.
dinals were a veteran club. The
difference to men like Hank
Greenberg, Marvin Owen, JOY
ner, White, Fox, Rowe and EldOn
Auker will be so marked this
year that it won't even be funny,
particularly to the Yankees,
Cleveland and few other clubs
that think they're going to win
the pennant."
In other words, this is to be a
strictly standpat ball club. Outside
OF a few young pitchers like Clyde
Halter, left-hander from Louis
vile; Joe Sullivan, left-hander
from Hollywood, and Steve Larkin,
r1ght-hander from Beaumont, there
Is nothing new in camp.
COchrane to Catch
The pitching is to be handled
by Rowe, Auker, Alvin Crowder
and Bridges. Cochrane himself
will do most of the catching, with
Ray Hayworth and Frank Reiber,
up from Montreal, as accessories.
Outside of the fact that Reiber
has a notoriously bad throwing
arm and didn't hit for Montreal,
he's bound to be big help around
here.
The infield is to be Greenberg,
Charley Gehringer, the best Sec
ond baseman in baseball; Bill
Rogell and Owen. The outfield
will be Mr.. Leon A. Goslin, who
is rapidly getting finished with
his career; White. one of the ar
irving stars of the league; Fox, a
good, steady ball player, and a
gent by the name Of Chester Nor.
gan, who hit .342 for Beaumont
and San Antonio.
This doesn't take into account
that very strange young man
known as Gerald Walker or Bob
Seeds, picked up from the Cleve-
land Club. I have an idea that
Mr.. Cochrane doesn't greatly
fancy either of these gentlemen.
Seeds doesn't hit and Mr.. Walker
seems to run the bases largely by
ear.
However, it isn't in the out.
field where the pennant is to be
lost. That will be attended to
by an infield that is neither
sound defensively nor protected
by reserves. Greenberg can
powder the ball but, as a de,
fersive first baseman, he ought
to be checked at the pass gate,
Rogell had a miracle year but
never before that was he a
major league shortstop. He still
isn't. Owen is a routine thiro
baseman.
All Had Big Year
The reason the Tigers wor
last year is that everybody ir
the infield had a big year stimuli
taneously and all went through
without injury, which was ar
excellent idea. One of the extra
infielders, for instance, was Her
man Clifton who hit exactly .06;
in the American League, another
was and is Heine Soluble who
has been trying to play major
league baseball for upward o1
seven or eight years without the
slightest success.
The inevitable Harry Davis. eX
ira first baseman, is here. I
seems to me he's always here
but I notice he usually winds ul