Evening star., 1939-08-18
Big Three Of Mound
Collapse Together;
Carrasque| Hur|s
Lewis Only Consistent
Hitter os Club Drops
Five of Six Games
BY FRANCIS E. STAN.


Battered and beaten in five of the
last six games and fresh out of first
rank starting pitchers, the Nationals
returned to Griffth Stadium today
to oppose the Boston Red Sox in
their last home series Of this month.
1t wasn't pretty picture that
Manager Bucky Harris had before
him today. His Nats-the same fell
lows who won nine out of their last
10 games at home-took a gosh
awful pasting on the road in the last
week. In Boston they dropped two
out Of three games And in New
York they lost three straight.
The three starters who had been
burning up the American League
Dutch Leonard, Joe Krakauskas and
Ken Chase-returned to Washington
last night without victory among
them. Krakauskas was knocked out
of the box in Boston and again in
New York yesterday as the Yanks
won 9-to-8 victory in 10 innings.
Chase threw a six-hitter at the
Yanks but lost, to 2. Leonard also
hurled six-hitter but was beaten,
4 too
Alex Only Road Winner.
The lonesome victory turned in by
the Griffmen was pitched by Alejan-
dro Carrasquel. of all people. The
Venezuelan, who has been in the
doghouse with Harris for weeks. was
used out of desperation against the
Red Sox and he responded with a
6-to-3 victory. OF that performance
Harris has decided that he rates an
other starting chance and today,
when the Sox invade the stadium for
the opener of three-game set, Alex
was to do the pitching.
The schedule makers haven't been
very kind to the Mats this month
When they face the Sox today 1t
will mark their fifth consecutive
series against first-division teams.
In Washington, before leaving on
the jaunt to Boston and New YORK,
the Mats had to face the White Sox
and Yanks. Then came the Red
SoX and Yankees on the road and
today the Bosox are facing them
again.
This is a tough slate for any club
and especially so for a team with
the obvious shortcomings of the
Mats. When they get the pitching
they can't hit And when they hit
they can't get the pitching or the
fielding, or both. This was the case
yesterday.
The Griffs come home today with
most of their batting averages in
need Of bolstering. Their only con-
sistent hitter is Buddy Lewis, who
managed to bat 4O7 for the SIX
game trip, getting 10 hits IN q
times at bat, scoring three runs and
batting across half a dozen from the
No. position in the batting order.
But outside of Buddy nobody has
been hitting much. George Case,
who had been giving Lewis a merry
chase for the club batting lead, is
trying to struggle out of a slump.
The attack in the center of the
batting order has been weak and
spotty. Lewis, and in a lesser
measure, Jimmy Bloodworth, has
been carrying the load.
At home better things may be
expected. The Griffs of 1889, like so
many other Washington teams of
recent years, simply aren't much of a
ball club on the road. In their big
stadium they are tough to beat.
They not only get better pitching
but they hit better and, for no rea-
son at all, they seem to field better.
CrOsetti's Triple Whips Griffs.
If CarrasQuel can repeat his effort
of last Sunday in Boston he won't
make anybody sore except the Red
SoX Alex, Ken Chase and Dutch
Leonard are the likely starters for
the Griffs during the Boston set and
none has been particularly effective
against the runners-up. The Sox
consistently have beaten left-handed
pitchers, such as Chase, and for some
reason Leonard has difficulty with
them.
Yet Harris has no other choice.
Bucky doesn't like to start SOUTH
paws against Boston but there is no
body else. Joe Haynes, of course,
could be pressed into service but this
would break up the relief brigade
to such an extent that if Chases
turn was skipped the southpaw
would have to put on the fire hat
and await rescue duty. And Ken is
no relief pitcher.
The Mats did everything better
than the Yanks yesterday except
score runs. They made more hits,
got better pitching and made fewer
errors than the champions but
eventually blew the decision in the
10th when Frankie Crosetti tripled
and scored, after some delay, on
Buddy Rosar's outfield fly.
The Yanks took an early lead off
Joe Krakauskas but lost it when the
Griffs jumped on Alley Donald for a
AZ edge. Then Di Maggie homered
with two mates aboard and the
Yanks went ahead again. In the
eighth the Mats scored twice to tie 1T
at 8-8 and thus it remained until
Messrs. Crosetti and Rosar took
charge. Pete Appleton, most effec-
tive pitcher in the game, was
charged with the defeat.