Evening star., 1939-03-09
Tourist Fans Flock
To Yanks on Other
Side Of ST. PETE
Martin, Named Coptoin
To Pep Team, Not in
Trim to PIoy Much
BY GAYLE TALBOT,

Associated Press Sports Writer.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla, March 8.
Apparently disappeared from the
face of the earth, like the hobble
skirt and the passenger pigeon, is
the remarkable fighting spirit and
player reserve that only few years
ago made the St. Louis Cardinals
the most feared and respected an
tagonists in baseball.
Now there almost Is a somnolent
atmosphere as you motor up to
Waterfront Park here, browsing in
the sun like ghost town. 1t is the
same old spring training ground of
the Red Birds. but the glamous has
gone, and most of the residents and
tourists are over on the other side
of town squirting at the Yankees.
Dizzy Dean, of course, has been
gone nearly year now, and frankie
Frisch. who piloted and controlled
as best he could those terrors of
another day, has been replaced by
Ray Blades, a pleasant fellow and a
successful manager these past sew
eral seasons at Rochester.
Ray. dangling his bare legs off
the dressing room table, declined to
predict that his team would finish
any higher in the approaching Ma
tional League race than their sloppy
sixth of 1898. He's new around here,
and he's looking for an infield.
Martins Legs in Bad Shape.
In an effort to recover little of
the old Gas House Gang" spirit,
Blades has appointed the once
great Pepper Martin field captain,
even though it is doubtful that Pep
per'S halting legs will carry him
through more than a couple dozen
games in the outfield. The Cards
hadn't even had field leader
since Lou Durocher went to Brook
lyn year before last.
1t isn't too difficulty to trace the
gradual disappearance of that
rough-and-ready. devil may care
trade mark the Cards bore at the
height of their fame. It was Just
happy accident that such a band of
talented and eccentric cut-throats
chanced to be brought together.
Now many of that dauntless crew
have been sold or traded, or
simply have grown older.
The real mystery lies in the COL
lapse of the great farm" system
Branch Hickey perfected, which
once supplied the Cards with an ap-
parently endless source of starring
material. I know I can remember
when the other managers and
owners were bowling about the
Cardinal system just as loud as
they're yelling about the Yankees
today
Change Difficult to Explain.
Well, the system seems to have
gone bust. Why, it's hard to say,
but the Cards spring camp no
longer is overhowing with ham,
handed young outfielders who hit
$3.50 for Houston the year before, or
with sensational kid infielders with
throwing arms Of forged steel. Par
ticularly, there are no infielders to
speak Of.
1t has been suggested that Branch
Hickey became angered at a series
OF adverse decisions by Commits
sloner Lands, which deprived the
Cards of lot of promising players,
and decided to let the farm system
ne had built so lovingly go to pot.
That hardly seems likely, because
hickey doesn't look like a man who
would slice his own throat.
Much more sane is the theory that
the other clubs, though slow to get
started, finally have caught up with
the Cardinals in the important mat
ter of raw material.
Medwick, Mize Big Assets.
The cards still have their million
dollar backbone-Ducky Medwick
and Johnny Mize. No other National
League club boasts such a one-two
punch, and either of them could be
sold for at least 100000. But If the
Cards should sell either of them they
might just as we'll throw their fran
chise in the river.
They have a substantial pitching
staff, headed by Lon Warneke, Bob
Welland and Curt Davis. They
might have a fine curving corps If
Paul Dean makes his threatened
comeback. They even have a satis-
factory outfield in Medwick, Enos
Slaughter and Terry Moore.