Evening star., 1936-05-13
YOUTH SURPRISES
EVENOWNLEAD
Giants Could Have Landed
Him for Cost of Two
Years at College.
BY FRANCIS E. STAN,
Stan Correspondent of The Star.

ctdu Correspondent ol Inc
~HICAGO, May 13.-There is a
sneaking suspicion harbored
within the ranks of the Wash
~ ington ball club that. in addi-
ton to the Nationals comprising the
unluckiest bunch of players in the
game. Bill Terry is not so hot as a
judge of fine base ball flesh
What has Terry to do with the Ma
tionais. you ask Well, actually the
Giants boss has left the Griffith A. c.
pretty much alone since 1888. but in
directly 1t was Memphis Willie who
tossed the Capital youngster who is
making more and more talk every day.
Terry. you see, didn't like Buddy
Lewis, and Buddy is the fair-haired
boy on Bucky Harris transforming
Nationals.
If none of Bucky's other worries
have vanished so far this season, Lewis
definitely has proved, to the satisfac-
ton of all, that he not only is big
league third baSeman. but is just about
the best young Unfolding prospect to
crash the American League since Cecil
Travis, and there are many who, with
a bow TO Travis, believe Buddy will
develop into the better all-around
player
The widespread estimate Of Lewis
scared again yesterday when Buddy
banged out couple of base hits that
won't find their way into the official
batting averages, because rain and fast
Iii 81 Tl,;&
deprived the Griffs of an almost cer-
tain victory Had it been an official
game. it would have marked the four
teenth consecutive game in which 19-
year-old Buddy smacked out at least
one base hit. Win or lose, Lewis seems
to carry on without breaking his stride
Wanted College Tuition.
IF FOR no other reason than to
throw a bouquet where bouquet
Is deserved, take a gander at the feats
of Uncle Clark Griffith's prodigy, who
would have signed with the Giants
two years ago if Terry had only agreed
TO finance him through couple more
years at Wake Forest College. Held
out of the first few games by an ap-
preciative and understanding pilot.
who foresaw great things to come in
the kid if he was brought along slow
ly and carefully, Lewis has been a
positive sensation.
AS the Nationals prepare again to
inaugurate officially the start of their
first Western tour today, Lewis is bat
ting at 1866 clip for % games. Were
it not for the freak cancellation of
yesterdays tilt it would have been
higher, but 1866 is showing enough.
The only flaws to be found in Lewis
at the outset were twofold and to-wit:
A peculiar throwing arm and left
handed stance that meant another
southpaw-swinging batter in line
up already overloaded with such.
Both flaws. it becomes happy to report,
seem to have been overrated. Buddy
may not be the best-throWing inflelder
in base ball, but he's been good enough
to surprise Harris, for one, with not
only his pegging to the bases, but his
general defensive playing. AS for his
southpaw stance that is supposed to
represent a distinct handicap against
portside pitching, it seems that you
can forget that, too.
Only Gomez Stops Him.
TN COMPILING his nifty average
Buddy has not been spared from
left-handers since the first day of
play. He's faced Grove and Gomez
and Ostermueller and Lee and Lloyd
Brown. And, with the exception Of
Gomez, he's hit em all. Against right
handlers Lewis has been positive SEN
sation, having walked to the plate 81
times and banged out 20 hits for a
$40 average. But against left-handers
he has been little less sensational, un-
less you want to hold 10 percentage
points against him. Portsiders have
pitched to Buddy SO official times and
Lewis has nicked them for IA hits,
which is an average of 800.
Not only Buddy, but everybody on
the club, seems to suffer from that
rained-out affair yesterday except
Cliff Bolton and Buddy Myer. They
are the only Nationals who failed to
hit their old Nemesis, Ted Lyons,
during the three and two-thirds in
nings of play.