Evening star., 1939-08-05
Squawks Of 1y Cobb
And Cy Young Show
Regard for Marks
Armstrong; Integrity
In Go With Ambers
Proved by Past
BY GRANTLAND RICE,

A>b" Ao1e1A, AuS' y IMAM AL
A young man, meeting Cy Young for
the first time recently, was talking
to him about his record of more
than % years in the major leagues
and remarked that it was amazing
Cy had won total of 5l1 ball games.
Five hundred and twelve" Young
said. Il know it says 5l1 in the
book, but it should be 512. They
took one victory that I really earned
away from me and gave it to some
body else
When. in 1884, Schoolboy Rowe
looked as though he might hang up
new mark for consecutive VIC
tories, it was pointed out that the
record was 10, held jointly by Rube
Marquard and Tim Keefe.
Il really won 90" the Rube said
Its too late to complain about it
now-I complained about it at the
time and it didn't do me any good
then-but I'd like to see 20 in that
book instead of 49,"
And one night, year or so ago, I
saw Ty Cobb fly into a rage at Mig
Clarke because Clarke, telling what
he regarded merely as funny story,
admitted that at least 20 times when
Ty slid into the plate he really
didn't put the ball on him, but only
stabbed at him and then tossed the
ball away quickly, the speed and
deftness with which he operated
confusing the umpire. Ty didn't see
anything funny in the story. His
angle was that, by trickery, Mig had
knocked 20 runs off his runs-scored
record. Even 20 years after that
was a serious matter to him.
Attitude of Ball Players Justified.
That's the way the time ball
players regard their records-and
that's the way, some day, the great
ballplayers of this era will regard
theirs-jealously. That's the way it
is bound to be with great COM
petitors in any sport-and, if you
ask me, the way it should be.
The figures in the record book are
a transcription of ballplayer's
lifetime achievement-the things he
accomplished by skill and training
and courage under fire. When his
ballplaying days are over. they are
the things people remember him by
his contribution to great game
his claim to fame.
Ty Cobb has a million dollars and
Young and Marquard something less
than that. But they each have a
stake in the history of baseball and
there is no reason why any of them
should regard it lightly.
Integrity of Armstrong Clear.
Other possible engagements be-
tween Henry Armstrong and Lou
Ambers, mapped out in advance of
their fight for the lightweight cham
pionship, should cause no one to
think that Henry or Lou will pull
any punches when they meet on
August %. The wisdom of plan
ming other fights between them be-
fore this one has been decided may
be open to question but at least it
has been done in the open and the
honesty of both fighters and their
managers is open to no question
whatever.
Circumstances have demonstrated
forcefully the integrity of Arm
strong and Eddie Mead twice in the
last year or so. In that period Arm
strong has engaged in two defenses
of the welterweight championship,
which, because of his scant pound
age, is of small use to him, and on
either occasion he could have
chucked it gracefully-but he still
has it.
The first of these fights was with
Ceferino Garcia, a legitimate well
terweight at the time but since
grown to middleweight-a rugged,
hard-hitting Filipino, who carried a
l6-pound advantage into the ring
against the little Negro. Several
times in that fight Armstrong was
hurt, dazed and on the verge of a
Knockout and if there had been any
larceny in him he could have taken
the easy way out-plus percentage
of Garcias earnings as champion
the usual arrangement, I believe, in
such transactions. Instead, he
fought his way savagely out of the
trouble spots and went on to take
the decision.
Had Chance in England.
The other was with Ernie Roder-
lex in England. Because of his style
of fighting, which bears not even a
faint resemblance to the straight
up-left jab-right-cross style so
favored in England, it was predicted
by some students of boxing in this
country that Henry would be expos
ing himself to a serious risk of dis
qualification for foul fighting, or at
least the loss of the decision at the
hands of a referee trained in the
old school.
Henry could have taken either
road to defeat without losing pres
tige in this country and could have
capitalized on it handsomely, since
good welterweights are scarcities.
The ballyhoo would have been ter
rife for a return match-and as
matter of protection, in case of acci-
dent, Mead had signed Roderick to
come over here and fight If he were