Evening star., 1939-03-15
Has Enough Hitting
And More HurIinq,
Declares Joe
Pilot May Be Conceding
Yonk Superiority and
Looking to Future
BY GALE TALBOT,
Associated Press SPORTS Writer

SARASOTA, Fla, March 15.-As
a charter member Of the group that
thought Manager Joe Cronin Of the
Boston Red Sox took an outrageous
gamble in turning loose Frank Hig-
gins and Ben Chapman during the
winter, I'm now about to relent to
the extent of advising my fellow
members to wait and see.
Maybe Cronin, who is preparing to
start his fifth season as shortstop-
manager of the gilded hose, knew
exactly what he was doing. It's even
highly probably that he knows more
about baseball than any Of the men,
bers of our club. But, still he's got
to show me that he can send Higgins,
a flne-fielding, 1903 hitting third
baseman, to Detroit, and Chapman,
a .340-clubbing outfielder, to Cleve-
land and still have as good an entry
IN the American League race.
May Be Eyeing Future.
There is, of course, the probability
that he was looking to the future,
rather than to the 1899 flag race.
Perhaps he feels, as several of his
fellow pilots have been bold enough
to admit, that the Yankees are a
cinch for another season or two,
anyway. so why not start cutting
across to. say, 1941 on the chance
of mailing them there?
The Sox gave their wealthy Young
owner, Tom Yawkey, pleasant sur
prise by finishing second last wear.
beating out the more favored Cleve-
land and Detroit clubs in the process,
Iney won 88 games, only one less
than Chicago needed to capture the
National League pennant. But the
SoX were hopeless nine and one
half games behind the Yanks.
Ihey had thunderous power at the
plate: Jimmy FoXx, .349; Cronin,
1925; Chapman, .340; Joe Vosmik,
.324; Roger Cramer, .3Ol, and Hie-
gins. 1903. But they didn't have
enough good starting pitchers. 50
Cronln decided to give up some of
their power to get the pitching he
needed, and to gamble that he had
requirements for Higgins and Chap
man.
The pitchers he got were the vet
erans Elden Auker and Jake Wade
from Detroit and Denny Galehouse
from Cleveland. The boys he hopes
Will make him forget the two stars
ne lost are Ted Williams, one of
the most -talked-of rockies of the
year, who hit an impressive 1866 for
Minneapolis in 1888, and Jim Ia
Dor, promising young third -sacker
also from Minneapolis, who hit .3l6
IN l9 games with the Sox at the
close of the season.
Cronin Is Confident,
The way I look at it," said Joe,
rs that we still have everything
we had last season and have added
pitching strength. 1 haven't anv
doubts about Williams and Tabor
and l know that Auker, Wade and
Galehouse will improve our pitch
ing"
One thing that forced Cronin to
reach out recklessly for pitchers
was the indication that old Bob
Groves great left arm was headed
Tor the last windup. The aging wing
cracked up in midrace last wear,
and there's yet no telling whether
one OF the games outstanding pitch
ers will be ready to take his turn
this season.
Other members of a staff that
performed sensationally in streaks
last year include Jack Wilson, Fred
Ostermueller, Joe Heving and young
Jim Bagby, who beat the Yankees
in his first big league start. Outside
OF Woodrow Rich, who won 10 for
Little Rock, there appear to be no
outstanding prospects among the
rookie moundsmen.
Gene Desautels is back to do the
bulk OF the catching, with John
Peacock in support.