Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1940-08-31
Laie Rush Gets Yanks
Sentimental BACKING
Of Nations Fans
Western Trip Is Likely
To Decide Flag Fight;
Mats Deemed Setups
BY BURTON HAWKINS,
Star Staff Correspondent.

NEW YORK, Aug. 31.-The YAM
KEGS, whose very magnif1cence over
the span of the last four years
created a wave of resentment
against them, suddenly have dis
covered themselves benefiting by a
shift in sentiment. In the unfamn-
lar role Of an underdog, New York
has captured the public fancy.
Wagering still is high against
them, but the Yankees almost over
night have become an appealing
outfit, except in such baseball CEN
tiers as Detroit and Cleveland. New
York seems to be the club which
has the best chance to prevent the
generally despised Indians from
capturing the American League
pennant.
The Yankees aren't the fence
| denting, robust crew of four pre-
vious pennant-w winning seasons, out
in winning II of their last 20 games
they have crept within striking
distance of league-leading Cleveland
and the second-place Tigers. At
least, they have resembled the Yam
KEGS of 1936-1939 and the baseball
world has warmed to their gallant
comeback.
Western Trip May Tell.
1t isn't the same awe-inspiring
team. not with Joe Di Maggie its
only batter hitting over 800. Charley
Keller is hitting only .29O, George
Selkirk mere 1853, Red Rofe an
unf1attering .248 and Bill Dickey a
surprisingly low .232, but the Yam
KEGS have risen nevertheless.
Their swing through the West
may determine the flag fight. After
five more games at Yankee Stadium,
New York will swing west for i'm
portant engagements and in the
stretch drive the Yankees won't be
hampered by the schedule. In % of
their last Is games the Yankees will
be meeting such foundering foes as
Washington, st. Louis and Phila-
delphia.
Washington, of course, figures
prominently in plans of the
Yankees. In II remaining games
with the Mats, New York will be
meeting a team which has little
equipment or incentive to check its
rush. The Mats would relish
throttling the Yankee threat even
at the expense of seeing the Indians
win, for baseball is an honest game,
but Washington doesn't figure to
disturb New York's cherished am
bition of fifth straight pennant.
And neither do the Browns nor
Athletics.
Tribe, Tigers Have Games.
Favoring the Yankees, too, is the
fact Cleveland and Detroit still are
slated to tangle nine times. Any
thing approaching an even break
between those teams will be break
for New York. which is calculated
to gobble up ground at the expense
of the leagues three bottom teams.
The Indians, barring the anti
Witt movement, and the ensuing un-
pleasant publicity, easily could have
been sentimental choices to fracture
New York's reign. They forfeited
that with their Vitt-column activity,
however, and the swing has been to
the Yankees instead of the SEEM
ingly more perishable Tigers.
Washington, in attempting to
avoid slipping into seventh or eighth
place, has an incentive in a mega
tive sort of way, but with the
Yankees keyed to a pennant pitch,
the outlook isn't rosy for the Mats
in their remaining games with New
York.
Joe Krakauskas was to take the
mound against the Yankees today,
with Dutch Leonard and Rene
Monteagudo the probable choices of
Manager Bucky Harris for to-
morrow's double-header. Rained
out yesterday, the Mats will make
up that game on their final trip
here next month.