The Waterbury Democrat., 1940-03-19
HUDSON MAYBE
 SENSATION OF AMERICAN LOOP
Young Washington Pitch- 7er Best Looking PrOs-
 pect Since Rowe
EDITORS NOTE: Following is the second of a series on the major league baseball clubs. To- morrow: The Brooklyn Dodgers.
By CHOICE KIRKsEY

By GEORGE KIRKSEY United Press Staff COrrespOndent)
 Orlando, Fla, March 19.-(UP)- Bucky Harris has been around longer than any other American league manager except Connie Mack and he doesn't kid easily. He knows he's not going any place with the Senators this season but he sincere ly believes he has a chance to lead the second division.
 Washington had the worst ball club last season in 20 years and no- body knows it any better than Har- ris. The Senators finished sixth with percentage of .428, lowest since 1919 when the club wound up with an even 400.
 Progress Seen
 Even with all our disgraceful ball last season we showed sparks of having something" Harris said. T think we can patch up few of our weak spots and make some progress this season."
 The bright spots in the Senators 1940 cast are Gerald Walker, the outf1elder obtained from the White Sox; Jimmy Pofahl, rookie short stop who hit 1903 for Minneapolis and was fifth in total bases; and Sid Hudson, a rookie dark horse who may be the seasons sensation If his work the first two weeks here isn't a dream.
 Walker is important in the Wash ington outlook because he's the first sparkplug the Senators have had in years. The club has had a reputa- tion of being loaded with players just going through the motions, Walker, happy to- get away from Chicago where he insists they have failed to live up to verbal promises made him by the late J. Louis Comiskey, is working his head of and looks like the fellow who hit 1858 in 1886 for Detroit.
 PofahlS arrival has made the Washington inf1eld in Harris opin- ion. The Minneapolis recruit looks like a hitter and there's no doubt about his fielding. The question mark is his arm. He's been favor ing it this spring because of an in- jured shoulder he suffered in taxi- cab accident late last season. If his arm is strong enough when the season opens, he'll do wonders for the Senators.
 Travis Shifted
 With Pofahl at short, Harris has shifted Cecil Travis to third and moved Buddy Lewis from the hot corner to the outfield. The new alignment has helped everybody.
 Travis natural position is third and Lewis never did like to play there," says Harris. Sam West tells me Buddy will be all right in right field. We know he can hit. And Travis, weighing 20 pounds more than last season when he was sick twice with the flu looks like a new man."
 Jimmy Wasdell is back with Min neapoliS, where he hit 1902, to play first and Jimmy Bloodworth, who lacks speed but who has good arm and good power. has finally grad uated into the second base job. If Wasdell doesn't throw us down at first we'll have good infield. So our only other worry is pitching"
 The Senators had three pitchers last year who won fl games-Dutch Leonard won 20, Joe Krakauskas Il and Ken Chase 10. The Tanks three top men, Ruffing, Donald and Pearson only won 46 games. Chase gives evidence of having a better year. Leonard's knuckle ball is one of the most feared pitches in the league. Krakauskas is one of those pitchers who has enough stuff to win 20 but you never can tell when he'll measure up to his promise. Joe Haynes, who won 8 and lost 12 last year, looks like he'll be an im- proved pitcher.
 But the fellow who has Harris raving is 6-foot, finch Sid Hudson, who won 2i and lost only for the Sanford Florida State league club. He finished every game he started, | famed 192 and two of his defeats weren't his fault. One was lost on l u41 CA4VA tAA1Q III t1lG VCAlCA Al4o LCd1AA failed to score while he allowed only 1 run. Hudson Looks Good
 Tt doesn't seem possible that a 23-year old kid can jump from a Class D league to the majors" says Harris, but all I know is that Sid Hudson is the greatest looking young pitcher I've seen since I had School boy Rowe at Detroit in 1883. Benny Bengough, the old Yankee catcher and one of my coaches, says Hudson has more stuff than Alley Donald, who was good enough to win 13 straight last season."
 Washington's outfield will be cas- fly the fastest in the majors. Walker, who'll play left, stole IT bases last season. George Case, in center, led both leagues with 51 stolen bases in l28 gabeS and is probably the f1eetest runner in the game. Lewis, in right, stolen 10 bases and isn't exactly slow poke.
 Rick Terrell, Jake Early and An- gelo Guiliani will form the Wash ington catching staff. The hope is that young Early, who caught 32 games last season, will come into his own and divide the receiving job with Terrell.