Evening star., 1939-09-24
Griffmen Near Record
For Smacking Into
Double Plays
Contest Is Tight Until
Champions Push Over
a Runs in Seventh
BY FRANCES E. STAN.

Dutch Leonard went after his
Goth pitching victory OF the season
yesterday against the Yankees in
Griffith Stadium and the Mats, his
teammates, went to painful lengths
to discourage him. In the end the
plump knuckle-baller, who before
the game was presented a trophy
emblematic of his value to the
Washingtons, did become discouraged
and went down to his eighth defeat.
The score was to l.
For six innings, though, Dutch
was in there and knuckling down.
He was giving the world champions
run for their money and Rookie
Outfielder Elmer Gedeon was giving
them another. So the score, going
into the seventh, was 2 to / in
favor of the Yanks.
But then it was that Leonard
either Cd got discouraged or ca
lost his stuff. Anyway, the Yankees
jumped all over him for four runs
and clinched the ball game. The
feature blow was Joe Di Maggio's
29th home run of the season which
scared into the left field bleachers.
Gedeon Clumsy Fielder.
The events leading up to the big
Inning were pretty tragic from a
Washington viewpoint. The Yank-
ees were spotted a 10 lead in their
half of the first inning when Gedeon
absurdly misjudged a lazy liner
by Red Rolfe and finally succeeded
in playing it into ridiculous
triple On Charley Keller's long
fly Rolfe scored.
The Mats came back in their
half of the first to tie the score.
This run also was tainted. Opening
the Washington offensive Sammy
West tripled and then Buddy Lewis
sent a moderately long fly to Di
Maggie. The centerdelder's great
throw had West nailed at the plate
by foot, but Sammy's slide
knocked the ball out of Catcher
Bill Dickey's glove and he was ruled
safe on the backstop's error. That
made it IL.
Nearly Tie Undesirable Record.
Thus the game started all over
again in the second inning but the
Mats did no better by Leonard. In
fact, they came within one of ty-
ing the major league record for
hitting into double plays. In the
first four innings the Nats-Blood-
worth, Giuliani, Travis and Lewis
drilled into double plays and new
record was in the offing. All they
needed was another and they would
have tied the mark held jointly by
four clubs.
But after these repeated failures
Leonard became discouraged and
Monte Pearson, who was pitching
for the champs, became so effective
that he didn't give the Mats d
chance to hit into double-play.
In the last four innings, for in
stance. the Washingtons didn't get
a hit. Indeed, Pearson retired the
last Is Nat hitters in order.
Gordon Makes Fluke Hit.
Getting back to the run-making,
the score was tied until the fourth
when, with Dickey on first base, Joe
Gordon tried to recall a swing and
succeeded in lofting single to
right. This sent Dickey to third and
he scored on Babe Dahlgren's bona
flde double to left.
The seventh inning brought about
the end of Leonard's hopes. With
one down Pearson doubled and then
Crosetti flied out. But Rolfe walked
and Keller singled and Di Maggie hit
his home run. This made the score
6-1.
The last run was peculiarly in
nocuous. 1t came about in the
eighth when George Selkirk led off
with a single, took second on wild
pitch, advanced on Gordon's sacri-
flee and scored on Dahlgren's long
fly to Gedeon.
That really was all there was to
the game.