Evening star., 1938-07-04
Antag0n Beteen Leagues Threatens AStar Future
LOSS OF PRESTIGE
BYN.L. DAMAGING
Senior Loop Feels 1t Was
Deceived When American
Went Out to Win.
BY GAYLE TALBOT.

L
NEW YORK, July 4.-The annual
midseason battle between picked stars
Of the National and American Leagues
Wednesday afternoon at Crosley Field
In Cincinnati promises to bear slight
resemblance to the original dream
game" played so light-heartedly six
years ago
What started as a frolic for charity
has developed into something dead
serious, There is talk that the con-
test might be abolished after next
season, and it probably will be if the
National Leaguers don't start winning.
There will be hard playing on the
feld Wednesday. The two circuits
are antagonistic actively these days.
They fell out at their joint winter
meeting over the type of baseball to
be used, and they pulled still further
apart last spring over that scan
dalous magazine piece, The New
Minor League-the National"
National League Still Angry.
The Nationals were. and still are.
burned about that article. They hon.
estly consider themselves a stronger
largely blame the all-star game for
having cast them in poor light
Their only victory in the five games
played was in 1886.
The point is, claim the Nationals
that they have regarded the contest as
a sporting proposition, whereas the
crafty Americans deliberately went
into the thing to win. Now, at least,
they can't say they haven't had plenty
of warning in advance of Wednesdays
game
Originally, the Nations fans were
supposed to select the two clubs, but
that didn't work. The managers of
the two teams quickly perceived that
the customers were too sentimental
They were too prone to choose the il
1ustrious old-timers who had lost the
whip from their arms.
Dream Game" No Longer.
So the managers began slipping in
come ringers. And the American
League in particular iammed all the
power it could find into it's lineup In
1884, for instance. the American
1eaguers used Pitchers Mel Harder,
who hadn't been elected, and he gave
a brilliant exhibition to win.
That was the same game. incident
ally, in which Carlos Hubbell per-
formed the amazing feat of tanning
Ruth, Gehrig. Foxx, Simmons and
Cronln in succession, yet was on the
losing side You may begin to under
stand why the Nationals have become
disgruntled
Last year they dropped all pretense
Of having dream game" told the
fans to mind their own business, and
went at the thing in earnest. Joe
Mccarthy Of the Americans and Bill
Terry Of the Nationals were permitted
to pick their teams, more or less, after
they had received recommendations
from the seven other pilots in each
circuit.
Mccarthy Disregards Records.
Joe and Bill have made their picks
again, and each will field what he
considers his strongest team on
Wednesday, They are limited in their
strategy only by the fact that pitcher
may not work more than three inn
ings
The national all-stars appear to
have been selected on their records
That Is, the leading hitters and pitch
ers will be in there. On the other
hand, only three of the five leading
clouters of the American League are
on McCarthy's roster
Where possible. Mccarthy has stuck
with veterans of previous all-star
clashes. He has IA of them. including
three pitchers. Lefty Gomez, losing
pitcher this year, was chosen over the
phenomenal Lyn Nelson of the Ath-
letics because Gomez had won three
previous all-star games.
The Nationals will have 13 new
eomerS to the classic including four
members of the Cincinnati Reds.