Evening star., 1938-05-11
MARGINS NARROW
IN SIX CONTESTS
Get All Runs With Two Out to
Beat Browns, 8 to 6, and
Rout NeWsom.
BY FRANCIS E. STAN.

~DSN"ANohy
laid out the first diamond the mark
OF successful ball club has been an
unexplainable penchant for getting
the breaks and making the most Of
them. AS they survey the American
League from the giddy heights of first
place by a full game the Senators
today found themselves so marked.
With seven consecutive victories be-
hind them the Senators moved con-
fldently into a new series at Griffith
Stadium this afternOon-a two-game
series with the Detroit Tigers. Six
weeks ago a Griffman would have
jumped foot if you yelled Tiger"
In spring training the Detroits mas
sacred the Washington firm in four
games.
But spring training is dim, dis
tant memory. Ever since the chips
have been on the table the Griffs
have been playing good ball-even
lucky ball. Everything they are do
ing is right. They have won seven
games in a row, as of today, and
three have been grabbed by one-run
margins and three by tWo-run mar
gins. This calls for certain amount
of good fortune as well as ability.
Bonura's Blow Beats Browns.
Briefly reconstructing that game Of
yesterday, when the Senators swept
the three-game series from the
Browns with an 8-to-6 win. it is in
teresting to note that Washington
scored all of its runs after two were
out. This is winning the hard way.
After the Browns had taken 40
lead, Buddy Lewis hit a home run
with two out in the third inning In
the fourth the Mats cut the count to
4-3 when Cecil Travis and Buddy
Myer got on base with two out and
Rick Ferrell tripled them across.
After the Browns had scored two
more runs, boosting their lead to 6-3,
the Griffs continued to peck away at
Buck Newsom and, later, Vito Tamu-
lis. With two down in the sixth Fer.
rell doubled, driving across two more
runs, and in the eighth the Washing
tons won the game when, with two
out, they loaded the bases and left the
issue to Zeke Bonura.
Mrs. Bonura's big boy wasn't BASH
full about the matter He bopped a
single, scoring two runs and putting
the local firm ahead. Then Johnny
Stone singled and another run scored,
making it 8-6. That is what might be
called hitting in the clutch, or How
to Win Games and Influence Custo-
mers With Two Out"
Take 13 Of Il in Stadium.
An interesting mental metamorpho
sis is taking place in the Washington
dressing room these days. The Mats,
you see, are beginning to take them
selves seriously as pennant contenders.
They opened the championship season
with minimum of confidence, for
they had been kicked around in the
South. But after sweeping their first
series, with the AS, they began to be-
come aware of their own strength.
So far the Mats have proved to be
an amazing group of opportunists.
They have not played fine, consistent
ball yet, as individuals. But on the
day that Bonura or Lewis or Stone
fails to hit. Almada, Ferrell and Myer
deliver. If the Mats are stopped by
an enemy pitcher they invariably have
been given a great slab performance
by one of their own hurlers and won
out. And If their pitching is sour, as
was the case yesterday. they invaria-
bly, have come to life and outslugged
the opposition.
Tomorrow the Mats will wind up
their first long home stand of the
year and embark on their first swing
of the West, with stop in Boston. So
far they have performed remarkably
well at home, winning l3 out of II
games. This is hard to beat.
What will happen on the road Is
another item.
Rick Keeps Mats in Game.
1t was with special delight that our
side hung up its seventh straight win.
In the first place it was the longest
winning of Washington team since
1888, when the Mats won the pennant.
Secondly, the Senators beat an old
teammate in Blushing Buck Newsom.
who was h-l-bent on giving them
going over, as the boys say.
NeWsom had has chance. Chief
Hogsett wasn't much of puzzle to
the strong right-handed batting punch
of the Browns and Buck had 40 lead
in three innings. But he couldn't hold
it.
Rick Ferrell kept getting in New
SONS hair. Rick, alone, kept the Sen
ators in the game by driving across
four of their first five runs and set
ting the stage for Bonura to crack his
winning single in the eighth In
ming.