The Washington times., 1937-03-20

Tigers, Indians
Rate Chance.
-:
For FLAG
49,
Ill

Editors Note: Prospects Of.
the champion NelD York Yankees
are reUieUed in the tolIoDinq.
article, SiTth OF a series by In
terndtional NetUS SerUice on
major league te1nS.)
BY MAX KASE
International News Service SpOrtG
Writer
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla, March
20.-InaSmuch as his SluggefS
records, won the pennaTt
by the amazing margin of 1879
games and then took the world
series without too much difficulty,
Manager Joe Mccarthy could be
pardoned if he stepped out boldly
and conceded the 1887 American
League championship to his New
York Yankees.
But Mccarthy is doing no claim.
ing. Predictions give him the
jitters.
Anything can happen during
a season to make you look like
an awful sucker" he explained.
"I'lI say this, however: We are
the club for the rest of the
league to beat before any PEN
nant can be handed out. Also I
think the coming race will be
much closer than that of 1885,"
That seems to be logical sup
position. If the Yankees piled up
a greater margin it wouldn't be
any race at all. Detroit and Cleve-
land, as Mccarthy sees it, will be
the clubs that will make it tight
battle for first place.
Club Well Heeled
Mccarthy will bring his own
club up to the starting line we'll
heeled. He has Lou Gehrig, the
greatest first baseman and slugger
in baseball; Bill Dickey, best
catcher in the league with his 1852
batting average; the most destruc-
tive all-around hitting combination
in the game; the most brilliant
rookie of the last campaign in Joe
DiMaggio and a better-than-fair
pitching staff. .
Monte Pearson, a 19-game winner
last season, and the as yet I'M
signed Red Ruffing, who won 90,
are expected to again head the
hurlers, with Lefty Gomez posi-
bility for one of his greatest years.
After two bad seasons in row
during which he claimed he was
overWeighb-he now is getting
down to 166 pounds, the heft he
carried in 1884 when he won 26
games.
COmmendabie Assistance
The veterans Pat Malone and
Bump Hadley are banked upon for
some commendable assistance such
as they gave last season, and Nc
Carthy hopes to obtain further
help from seven rookie Fingers in
camp-all graduates from Yankee
farms at Newark in the Interna-
tional League and Oakland in the
Pacific Coast circuit.
They include Vito Tamulis. who
won 10 and list with the Yanks
in 1885; Kemp Wickers, like Tamu-
lis, southpaW, who finished with
the YankS last season; Steve Sun
dra, Jack Llrocca, Frank MakoSky,
Jim Tobin and Spurgeon Chandler.
the former Georgia football star
And fighting against these young
sters to retain his job, is 270-pound
Walter Brown.
Cov,no nc 12e iV1aun
Aside from possible changes in
the pitching staff. the Yankees
are expected to line up the same
as they did last season. Lou
Gehrig will hold down first.
neceSsitating release of Babe
Dahlgren, the former Red Sox
hopeful, to Newark; Tony Lag
zeri at least will start at second;
Frankie Crosetti at short and
Bob Rolfe at third. Jack Saltz-
gaver and Don Heffner will con-
tinue as utility infielderS.
From left to right, the outfteld
will read: Jack Powell, Joe Di
Maggie and George Selkirk, with
Myril Hoag, recovered from
head injury, and Roy Johnson as
the utility gardeners.
The catching staff will be
headed by Bill Dickey, with Joe
Glenn and Arndt Jorgens as
underStudieS.