Evening star., 1939-08-04
Th.. ~
SPoRTLIGHT
Current RedIegs Rate
With Great of Past
By GRANTLAND RICE,

BY GRANTLAND RICE,
Special Correspondent of The Star
NEW YORK, Aug. 4 (NANA0.-
How do the Cincinnati Reds of 1899
stack up with the pick of the
National League parade through the
last 40 years? What should their
ranking be against the top teams of
the older league, who have written
more than few chunks of baseball
history?
In my opinion, there are three
main rivals to consider along these
lines-the Giants of 1905-the Cubs
Of 1906-7-the Giants of 1922
This moves the Reds up into a
group of four leaders, selected
through four decades.
The Giants of 1905 had Bresnahan
catching, and Mathewson, McGin-
nifty, Ames and Wiltse. But they
lacked the all-around strength of
the 1906 Cubs with Killing catching;
Brown, Overall. Reulbach and others
pitching; Chance, Evers, Tinker and
Steinfeldt for an infield-Sheckard
Schultz, Slagle and Holman for an
outfield.
This Cub team won 116 games
that season, still an all-time record
1t won four pennants in five years,
including two World Series. 1t had
about everything a ball club needs,
including smartness to high de-
gree.
RedIegs Have Everything
A Greet Club Needs.
The same goes for the Giants
around 1902. They drew fine
pitching from Art Nehf, Phil
Douglas, Hugh McQuillan and Jesse
Barnes; plus brilliant infield play
from Frisch, Bancroft and Groh.
Irish Meusel and Ross Young were
their outfield luminaries. This was
strong Giant outfit, as the Yankees
discovered in two World Series tests
1t has been a long time in the
faraway and long ago of baseball
since any National League team
ripped the heart out of pennant
race as the Reds of 1889 have done
They blew into August with an
1l-game lead, outpacing the Yankees
with something to spare.
They have had the catching and
the pitching-the punch and the
speed. In lombard they have one
of the best. And neither the Cubs
of 1906 nor the Giants of 1921 had
any pair of pitchers to match the
records of Bucky Walters and
Paul Derringer up to the August
roundup.
They have a high-class infield
and a fast, hard-hitting outfield,
and this squad is directed by one of
the ablest managers baseball has
yet known-the name being Bill
McKechnie. Bill has proved his
place too many times before in too
many spots to be overlooked.
MeKechnie Stor Instructor
As Well as Leader.
McKechnie is something more
than an able leader. He is one of the
best instructors and developers OF
young talent that we have around.
I've seen him more than once
point out certain weak spots young
player might have, with the sEg-
gested cure. And Bill would go to
work on that cure This one might
hit up-this one might hit down at
the ball McKechnie would spot
such faults at once-and apply the
needed correction
Beyond that he knows how to
get the best work from every member
of his squad. AS a rule they'll all
give him 100 per cent of what they
have to offer. He knows how to calm
down the nervous types and key up
the lazier actors. Which is more
than a mere trifle.
The 1899 Reds are far better ball
club than many critics seem to figure.
I can go long way back to Red
land history-back to the days when
Rem Mulford was their historian
back to the days when Eagle Eye
Jake Beckley played flrst-when Bid
McPhee was at second-when
Tommy Corcoran was at short-back
to the days when Noodles Hahn came
out of my home town at Nashville to
strike out 16 men and set National
League record.
Due to old and almost forgotten
memories, I've always pulled for the
Reds-remembering Harry Vaughan
and Heinie Pietz-even my old
friend, George Wright, who played
on the unbeaten Reds of 1869 And
1869 wasn't merely yesterday. There
are many, many yesterdays in 10
years ago.
Soy Bosox Could Win EosiIy
With Cincinnati Pitching.
So I may be prejudiced But I
happen to know this 1899 bunch of
Reds fairly well. They can play
their share of baseball. They have
the fundamentals of hitting and
pitching, which is the main idea.
But beyond that happen to know
they have no fear of the Yankees
along any line. They have the spirit.
I've talked to Lombardi, McCor-
mick, Derringer, Walters and sew
eral others-and to these I have
mentioned that the Ynakees are
only a good ball club, but a ball club
that can be beaten
Say" one of the Reds told me,
"the Red Sox beat them five straight
on their home grounds. Could that
happen to any bunch of supermen?
The Red Sox have beaten them eight
out of IL games this year. They've
beaten them by a big margin over
two years.