Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1938-03-09
FEW GRID GREATS
STAR ON DIAMOND
Thorpe Curved Out of Biz
leagues-Howe||, Sington
Couldn't Make Grade.
BY JOHN LARDNER,

Couldn't Make Grade.
BY JOHN LARDNER.
NEW YORK, March s.-slingtng
Samuel Baugh has reported to the
st. Louis Cardinals in their camp at
st. Petersburg, Fla, which means that
another high-class football player will
try to make summer, as we'll as au-
tumn, a paying proposition. Natu-
rally, the odds against Samuel's sue
cess are very great.
We will overlook for the moment
the sordid fact that Branch Hickey,
samuel's new summertime employer,
has signed Sam for publicity purposes.
Nothing in Mr.. Baugh's record as q
college baseball player indicates that
he is anything to write your Congress-
man about. He was just another COL
lege infielder. He does not figure to
solve Mr. Rickey's pennant problems.
Mr.. Hickey annexed him because the
name Of Baugh is name which news
papers will print. whatever the bearer
Of same happens to be doing.
But once in while a great football
player does turn out to be "a great
ball player, a great major league ball
player. These cases are about as
numerous as the fingers of your left
hand, to say nothing of your right.
Mickey Cochrane was one. Eddie Col
Inns was another. Frank Frisch was
. third. You could stretch a point
and include Lou Gehrig in this cate
cory, though Gehrig. as a Columbia
Lneman, had little but bull strength
70 recommend his work.
Thorpe Almost Made Good,
Dixie Howell, Fred Sington and a
dozen other college football stars have
failed to come up to major league re-
Quirements. They had a little, but
not enough. Jim Thorpe, perhaps the
greatest football player of all time,
didn't have quite enough, though
James came closer than most.
John J. McGraw signed Thorpe with
the Giants for much the same reason
that Hickey has signed Samuel Baush.
Thorpe. like Baugh, had q great news
paper name. But the Indian figured
to pay better dividends than Samuel.
He was a peerless all-around athlete.
He could run and Jump and throw
and all the rest Of it, and there was
reason to suspect that he could play
baseball, too.
Down In Texas, on his first train
ing trip with the Giants, James made
. gaudy debut. His hitting was long
and fierce. He could powder the ball
from one Texas county to another.
He could field his position we'll enough.
Mr.. McGraw was very happy and he
told James that he would do. The
Sac and Fox received this news calmly.
He had reached the same conclusion
long before McGraw.
Disillusionment overlook the man
ager and his chattel before the Ma
tional League season had progressed
more than . few games. It turned
out that several National League pitch
ers, blind to the principles of sports
manship and calloused by their vulgar
professional work, were throwing q
type Of pitch which did not come
straight over the plate. It curved.
It curved away from the hitter and it
complicated to no small extent the
business Of kissing the ball on the nose.
An Outstanding Whittier.
Mr.. Thorpe was both puzzled and
annoyed. When he took his cut the
ball evaded him. He became an out
standing whittier and an outstanding
crank. Mr.. Rabbit Maranville tells of
one occasion when the Indian did
succeed in gaining first base. He at
tempted to steal second, and the ball
reached Mr. Maranville in plenty Of
time for the tag -out, which the Rab-
bit administered without too much
tenderness.
Mr.. Thorpe howled like q wounded
timber wolf.
why. you little -
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