Evening star., 1935-06-03
HENRY IS BUCKYS
FINAL SLAB HOPE
Likely to Face Red Sox
Here Wednesday-Nats
Drop Seven in Row.
RY FRANCIS r. STAN.

7 TENRY coPPoLA' a kid who
- risked his arm. but won
Job by pouring flreballs into
Sandlotters catching mltt
while patches of snow dotted desolate
Griffith Stadium last Winter, finally
will realize a lifelong ambition The
boy who went to Spring training camp
with two strikes on him. but who
needed only one to mt. is going to
start big league ball game.
Like drowning man Clutching AT
straw. Bucky Harris today named
the Youngest and raWeSt of the Ma
tionals' throwing corps as tentative
starter when Joe CronIn herds his Red
SoX into town tomorrow with lnten-
tions of kicking the PROSTATE, defeat
soaked Griffmen in the Stats.
And why not?" Bucky wanted TO
know. We can't do any worse.
Every other pitcher on the squad has
had his chance and look at us-one
game out of seventh place and losers
OF seven in a row We've got to dig
up some pitching somewhere and
Coppola is the only package We haven't
opened yet"
Bump Hadley will open the three
game Boston series. Then Coppola.
the unknown. who impressed PreSi-
dent Clark Griffith last Winter and
who won Harris esteem last Spring.
probably will get his chance in the
second tilt.
oh NJ
make his mark, but also to vlndicate
the Judgment of his pilot. who leaned
so strongly toward him that 1t was
Monte Weaver instead Of the kid from
the Northeastern League who was sent
back 10 the minors when it was neces-
ssry to cut the squad 10 days ago.
Pitching Problem Grave.
\OU can find a dozen Sandlotters
every day on the EllipSe with
more experience than Coppola. but,
as Harris puts it. Henry hardly could
do worse than some of the more eX-
perienced gents who are collecting
paw from Griffith. Buck NeWSom still
talks great game but he cannot
pitch on one leg. and this leaves only
Hsdley and Earl Whitehill as good
game-Winning bets.
Jack Russell seems strictly relief
hurler. Ed Linke is an in-and-outer
this season. Bob Burke hasn't shown
the stuff and all Belve Bean has
done so far is to make the Nationals
followers wish they still had Walter
Stewart
Just how grave the pitching Situa-
tion is may be cleaned from review
of the runs and hits totals of rival
clubs in the last 10 games. Four
teamS-Chicago, Cleveland, New York
and Philadelphia-have faced the
Harrismen within this period and
have compiled So runs and lis hits.
This is more than runs per game
and more than II hits tilt.
The Washington attack has not
yet performed up TO expectations. but.
even so. it would require lot of ball
pounding to offset this sort of hurting.
The best the National batSmen have
been able to do was 10 average less
than runs and approximately 9
hits. so it is little wonder that Wash
ington has dropped 3 of the 10 tits
and in row.
Bean Not Justifying Trade.
OF COURSE. more than three-quar-
~ ters of the season has yet to be
played. and Bean may yet justify the
trade, but right now it looks as though
Cleveland got the best of that recent
swap involving Stewart. The former
Indian right -hander had his chance
to win the everlasting gratitude of the
now-desperate Harris yesterday. as
the Nationals wound up a dismal
threegame series with the Athletics
in Philadelphia. but he just wasn't up
to the task. although Lefty Leon Pet
tit ultimately was charged with the
2-to-7 defeat
The AS got 10 Bean for three runs
In the first inning and. after the Ma
tionaIS had countered with single
tally in their half of the frame Con-
ME Mack's crew ran the lead TO 4 to l
in the second. The Griffs bounced
back with two runs in the third, thanks
to singles by Myer and Manush and
double by Powell, but the Mackmen
drew away again in the fifth when
Bean walked across two runs.
Linke. who replaced Belve after
that, was better, giving up only one
run in his threerinning term. but the
Nationals appeared licked until the
ninth.
Powell had doubled across a run in
the inni~7 previous. making it to 4.
but in the final frame the Griffs gave
the 5000 customers a run for their
money--three runs to be exact. tying
the score. After Bluege. batting for
Linke, went out, Myer singled, Manush
walked Stone singled Buddy across
Travis did the same for Heinie. Kuhel
walked and Powell drove in Stone with
a single that was Scooped up by Bob
johnson and hurled perfectly to the
plate to nab Travis. trying to score
from second with the run that would
have put the Griffs ahead, to 7.
Then Petit went out to hurl the last
inning. Lefty faced only three bat
ters-Johnson. who singled through
Lary's legs: Foxx, who walked after
his predecessor took second on a wild
pitch, and Pinkie Higgins. who broke
up the game with one -baser, count
ing, johnson.