Evening star., 1937-12-12
TRAVIS, .344, TOPS;
STONE, LEWIS NEXT
Washington Is Seventh in
Team Hitting-Gehringer,
Gehrig Years Stars.
By FRANCIS E. STAN.


L were the big guns of Wash
ington ball club which, as a whole,
failed to live up to slugging expecta-
tions in 1887.
Offlcial American League batting
averages, released today, reveal that
Washington's hitters, as a team, out
batted only the lowly Athletics. The
Nationals, who finished sixth in team
standing, were seventh in biting with
puny .279 average.
Travis, the long, drawing boy from
Georgia, put on his best year to top
the Washington club with .344 aver
age for 135 games. Stone, the veteran
from Tennessee, who led the Mats in
swatting in 1896, fell back a trifle,
but still wound up with $3.50 average.
Lewis, the 21-year-ol7 third baseman
from North Carolina, duplicated
"Roonie" Travis feat and also en-
joyed his best season. Lewis batted
.3l4 in his sophomore year in the
majors, playing l56 games.
Buddy, in most respects, was the
standout player on the club He
played in most games, 1856; scored
most runs, 107; made most hits, 2lO;
drove for the most bases, 284, and hit
the most home runs, TO-
Almadas Hitting Is Surprise,
SECOND BASEMAN BUDDY MYER,
closing with rush, finished with
a surprisingly good average of .293
for 125 games. Washington's fourth
ranking hitter, however, was not Myer,
but Outfielder Melo Almada. The 23-
year-old Mexican lad. who came in
trade last June from the Red Sox, hit
only .236 for Boston. But as a Ma
tlonal, the young man came into his
own at the plate, batting .3O9 In 100
games to finish with q .295 pace for
the campaigning with both teams.
FIRST Baseman Joey Kuhel, who had
1928 average in 1886 and enjoyed
his best season, slumped to .283. AL
summons, not the great hitter of old,
oatted .279 and Catcher Rick Ferrell
could not hit his stride once he had
pulled on Washington uniform. Rick.
who was hitting 1903 with Boston when
ne came in the same trade with Al
mada, hit only .229 for the Mats and
finished the year with .244,
Inc Nationals did not figure impor-
tantly in record making. Almada had
Dig DAY In st. Louis on July 25, when
ne scored nine runs during a double
header with the Browns. When he
crossed the plate fi-'e times in the first
game ne tied the season mark with
Faolan Gaffke of Boston, who also did
ms stun against the Browns. On Nav
10 kuhel tied the league record for
tMee-oaggers in one game when he hit
three In row against the White Soy
in Chicago.
Gehringer. Gehrig Top GUYS,
HE American Leagues big guns
were Charley Gehringer of the
dlgers and Lou Gehrig of the Yankees,
win a mark of .371 the smooth De-
trolt second baseman became the sixth
successive 1nflelder to win the battino
championship in his league. Gehrineer
carried on where Dale Alexander De-
uolt; Jimmy Foxx, Philadelphia; Geh-
flg' New York: Buddy Myer, WASH
ington, and Luke Appling, Chicago
left Off. eo'
6y winding up with 2Oo hits, includ-
ing ~ doubles, triple and IA honers
Ienrlnger made it five straight wears
IN which he has notched more than
200 hits. 'A'"11
IN addition to Gehringer's fine work
otner Tigers contributed noblv tn olive
Detroit the top team average which
was .2s2. Rudy York set a record
VIII, WIN 10 nomers In August and Gerald
walker had the longest hitting streak
OF ~ games at the very start of the
season. Buck Newsom. then With
washington, finally ended his .treak
on May %. AEON
Hank Greenberg. another Tiger, hit
i,one runs to trail only the Yam
KEGS Joe Di Maggie, who had 46
Lou Breaks Many Records.
EHRlG ran second in hitting to
1enr1nger. with .351, and bv
playing out the full quota of 157
games he made it II seasons Of in
OF more games, supplanting Eddie
Coil1ns record Of 10 seasons Gehrip
now has played 1855 straight Amer.
!can League games without a vaca.
tion.
hy driving in 159 runs. Lou made
IL the seventh season in which ha
aae or!Ven IN $50 or more scores
ufpaSslng Babe Ruths list of six
seasons. 1t also was the twelfth
season In which Gehrig has hc tted ",
loo or more runs, breaking a tic With
summons and Goose Goslin.
he did more, too, this thick-lepped
iron man. He made an even 200 hits
!or ms eighth season in that fea-
lure, leaving him only one behind
iy Cobb's all-time record of nina
seasons. Gehrig also scored 1913 rms
70 give him mark of 100 or more
runs Tor IL consecutive seasons. which
equals Ruth's record.
In registering all of these rims
Gehrig drew 127 passes, to run his
Lifetime total of 1893. making II the
tentn year in which he has accented
ioo or more bases on balls. With ass
total bass for the year, Gehrig also
oroke the record he had shared with
Ruth by achieving 300 or more total
bases for the q seasons.
More H0mers, Less Runs,
HE Tigers team mark of .292 was
lower than their 800 average of
1885, indicating the terrific swatting
has fallen off slightly. The prize
winning average of last season would
have made Detroit only fourth among
the hitting teams in 1896. Gehrin-
gers .37l individual average also was
decline from the 1888 mark with
which Appling topped the swatsmiths
In 1896.
But while the hitting was of slipht-
~ in the league, more homers were
hit with record total of 806 for the
circuit.
It's hard to figure it all out, but
while there were more honers RIM