The Waterbury Democrat., 1940-04-16
CARDINAL POWER
AGAINST REDS
PITCHING IN N. l..
DiMaggiO, Gordon, Donald,
Powell and Ruffing of
Yanks Not Right
BY GEORGE KIRKsEY

| Ok UEOkG1E MANMSE4
UNITED Press Staff Correspondent
New YORK, April 16-(UP)-To-
morrow the world may fall asunder,
but today the baseball season
opens.
With more than 100000 people
looking on, and approximately
50000,00 interested, the major lea
CUES open campaign which ends
next october.
The all-powerful New York
Yankees will try to bag their fifth
consecutive American League pen
nant-a new record. ..
The Cincinnati Reds, so brutally
abused in the World Series, will
try to repeat - something that
hasn't been done in the National
League since 1867. In each lea
que seven other clubs will try to
knock them off, swell chance. The
Yanks and Reds look like a million
bucks to everybody from Broadway
to San FTancisco's Market street.
AS luck would have 1t, the Yanks
start crippled. Joe DiMaggio,
American League batting champion,
will be on the sidelines with Grip
Piled knee. Joe Gordon has
charley horse and may or may not
play. Alley Donald has a sciatica
infection. Jake Powell is recover
ing from a brain conclusion. in a
hospital in Asheville, KY. Red Ruff
fing, designated to pitch the OPEN
ing game today has troublesome
elbow which necessitated treatment
yesterday. AS Lefty Comes said:
1T looks like the Yankees are try
ing to bheak-up the Yankees"
But regardless Of these cripples,
the Yankees remain 7-20 favorites
to win the American League PEN
nant. Some folks say they can
loce any two men in the lineup
from NV to Christmas and still
win. Some other folks don't agree
principally $4,000, 900 Tom Yawkey
who owns the Boston Red Sox.
Tom said that this is the year his
Red SoX will come wingiEg down
In front and he is asking no quar-
ter and giving none.
Reds Have Pitchers
In the National League everyone
predicts the usual dog-eat-dog fight,
Bill Mckenzie of Cincinnati is
banking on his solid pitching staff
of Derringer, Walters, Thompson
and Moore to carry the Reds
through to another pennant In
pitchers league, McKechnie has the
best hand. But the st. Louis Car
dlnals are loaded from top to bot
tom with power which may blast all
pitching to Kingdom Come. Then
too there are the Brooklyn Dodgers,
with their defense, the New York
Chants with their sparkling rockies
and the Pittsburgh Pirates, with
their rekindled spirit under Frankie
FriSch.
Next October who knows but
what two different ball clubs will
line up against each other-or may
be it will be the same old story of
the Yankees against the club that F
can survive torrid National Lea
gre race.
But today we are concerned only
with the great American custom
of opening the season. Among the
many new interesting sights the
fans will see rockies galore-Dom
DiMaggio with the Red Cox. Johnyn
Rucker, with the Giants, Dom Dali
lessandro with the Cubs, Pee Wee
Reese with the Dodgers. Mike Nc
Cormick with the Reds, Walter
Judnich with the st. Louis Browns.
Top gam of the day will pit the
Red Sox against the Senators at
Washington. where President Roos-
evelt will throw out the first ball.
The Yanks open against Connie
Mack's Athletics at Philadelphia.
The National Leagues most i'm
portant ga1le will be at Cincinnati
where the Reds, 1899 champions,
will clash with the Chicago Cubs,
1888 champions,