Evening star., 1938-03-20
TRAVIS 'FLUKE HIT
GETSGAME |N8TH
Phebus, Wild, Helps Blues
After Griff Ace Leaves.
Simmons Hits Again.
BY FRANCIS f. STAN,
STAFF Correspondent Of The Star.

STAFF Correspondent Of The Star.
HAINES CITY, Fla, March 49,
Wesley Ferrell's annual unveiling took
place here today and the handsome
blond Highlander, who ranks as the
| Mats slab ace and key man, strobe
closer to the coveted opening game as
signment.
AS the Washington firm won its Sec
ond straight victory in the Grapefruit
League, to 5, Wes displayed his
blistering fast ball of old and spun off
| the old Ferrell curve in three inning
stretch. The Kansas City Blues. who
were the victims of the day, Couldn' :
bother Wesley very much.
1t was the removal of Ferrell and the
| insertion of Ray Phebus in the fourt n
| inning that put Kansas City back in
the ball game after the GriTs had
| built up a 2-to-0 lead Phebus, al
though the winning pitcher, had his
difficulties as the Blues hoped on HIM
for four Of their five runs in the fifth
and sixth innings
! Rookie Joe Kohlman. who won %
straight games for Salisbury in the
| Eastern Shore League last year, fir
| ished the game and reeled off three
| creditable frames. Joe rapidly is b.
coming more than minor figure in
| the WASHINGTON box planS
Travis Fancy Single Decides.
What proved to be the winning runs
came in the eighth inning and brought
| a blush Of shame to the faces OF the
Mats. They were earned, all right, but
not the hard way.
With Taft Wright camping on sec
ond base and Johnny Mihalic resting
on third base, our Cecil iCountry
Folks Travis banged out fancy sin
gle. He drove a ball hard into the
ground in front Of the plate. watched
it bounce, then ran to first base.
The ball bounced so high, directlv
over the pitchers box, that Second
Baseman Jack Saltzgaver and Short
stop Eddie Miller of the Blues got the
filters waiting for it to come down.
When it finally descended, Messrs.
Saltzgaver and Miller couldn't decide
which should field the chance. In
the end neither made a move and
the ball slithered off while Mihalic
and Wright scored. Rookie Wright
displayed so much speed in scoring
from second base that he spraineC
his right ankle and was cooling the
joint with ice packs tonight
Simmons Real Batting Hero.
Mr.. Travis drove across three rurz
during the course of today's pastlmirc.
but the real batting hero of our sido
was Mr.. Al Simmons, the old gentle
man who plays left field. Al put IN
six innings. walking to the plate thrco
times and Whanging two whistling
! doubles. His Grapefruit League aver
age for two games is something t0
note Six hits in eight times at bat.
1t was Simmons who touched off
q two-rlln uprising in the first inning.
Al PiechOta, veteran Iight-hander,
opened for the Blues in the box.
Melo Almada promptly walked, moved
up on single by Buddy Lewis. and
advanced with Buddy when Charley
Myer grounded out.
This put the issue up to Simmons,
who promptly doubled Almada across
and nudged Lewis to third base, from
where he scored on Johnny Stone S
outfield fly.
Ferrell displayed more speed today
than in any training game since he
was known as a fast ball pitcher with
the Indians. He protected that 20
lead during his three innings. In
the first round he put down the
Blues in 1-2-3 order. In the second
round, with one out. Ralph BOYLE
made hit and stretched it to two
bases when Almada loafed. But Boyle
couldn't move off the middle bag.
In the third inning First Baseman
John Sturm got the sCratchiest kin
of single when his roller took bad
hop and hit Myer in the chest. Sturm
was wiped out in double play, which
was Just as WELL for Third Baseman
Eddie Joost doubled before the in
ming was over.
Wildness Hurts Ray Phebus.
Phebus took over the Washington
pitching and did we'll on the first hit
ter. He struck Satzgaver out. but the
second batter. Walter Judnich. tagged
him for a home run and cut the score
to 81.
In the fifth Phebus lost control.
He walked Sturm and. after Pitcher
Crutchfield had forced him, Ray also
walked Joost and Jack Glynn, filling
the bases. This again brought up
Saltzgaver who obligingly popped out,
but Nemesis Judnich followed the ex-
Yankee infielder and blasted a triple.
This blow cleaned the bases and gave
Kansas City AZ lead.
Phebus' mates came to the rescue
| Of Ray in the sixth and made it less
! embarrassing by giving him 5-4 lead.
Again Mr.. Simmons was the man Of
the hour. Ossie Bluege walked and
Myer singled. This brought up Aloysius.
who doubled for the second time, scor-
| ing both. On Travis fly, Simmons
also scored. Thus Phebus left the game
with lead that never was lost.
Kohlman finished the game. In his
| first inning Joe was nicked for a run
when Pitcher Yoke, first up. hit a
triple and scored on single by Joe
| Gallagher, who had replaced Glynr1,
This tied the score. but only tempo
rarily. In the eighth Mihalic drew q
base on balls and wright doubled him
| to third.
| This brought up. Travis, who
bounced off that hard, high one-from
the ground.