Evening star., 1940-04-19
Club Not Geared
To Score Off
Loops Best
Hudson Impressive,
Despite Trouncing
Given by Bosox
BY FRANCIS E. STAN,
Star StafY CORRESPONDENT

star stan Correspondent.
NEW YORK, April l9.-Any day
now the Nationals will get around
to scoring a run. They showed
vast improvement against Jim
Bagby, jr., yesterday in Washington
when they got a runner to third
base. They may even score here,
but as far as winning some ball
games the outlook isn't so bright.
The worse fears felt by Manager
Bucky Harris In spring training
have been realized. The Mats didn't
look the part of high-scoring
ball club then and they don't now.
In two games so far they haven't
scored in 18 innings. They have
made total of only seven hits.
Jimmy Wasdell is the only Nat to
have seen third base as these lines
are written.
This sorry record was compiled
against Boston pitching. Last year
the Red Sox hurlers ranked fifth
in the American League. Starting
today, our hitless heroes play three
games against the Yankees. And 1t
may be recalled the Yankees have
the best slab staff in the league.
Burden on the Hurlers.
The entire batting order, from
George Case down to Rick Ferrell,
looked bad against Grove and Bag
by. None of the Mats is hitting
but, of course, they will start. But
even when this happens, what can
the Washington pitchers expect?
The answer is they cannot expect
many runs. On occasions, of course,
the club will 60 on scoring sprees.
Lacking a power hitter, the Mats
still will need three hits in a row,
or base on balls and two hits, to
score and any baseball man will tell
you this is hard to do.
Most Clubs Have an Edge.
Thus the burden will fall upon
the shoulders of the pitching staff.
For hurting collection which is
being rebuilt after ranking sixth
in the league last year, this Is a
monumental task.
| Practically every other club in
the circuit has something on the
Washington team in the matter Of
power With Foxx, williams, Cro-
min and young Di Maggie, the Red
/, Sox have long hitters who can-and
did yesterday-romp of with q de-
cision with few well-timed extra
base blows.
The Yankees, Tigers, Indians and
even the lowly Athletics pack more
punch than the Mats.
This was one of the reasons why
the Mats were so anxious to land
Rudy York from Detroit over the
winter. President Clark Griffth
and Harris suspected that no fences
would be endangered by their club
and now that the suspicion has
been verified, new cause is given to
believe that again the Washington
club will make an effort to land a
power hitter.
Gomez & Co. Ahead.
The Mats, of course, aren't as
weak at bat as they have shown so
far. Buddy Lewis, Gerry Walker,
George Case and Cecil Travis are
better hitters than they have shown
against Grove and Bagby. When
the club starts hitting it will be
pesky outfit. It will beat out bunts,
hit singles and steal bases. It will
score frequently but, stacked up
against high-powered outfits like
the Red SoX, Yankees and Tigers,
the Mats will be like boys with pea
shooters fighting men with guns
The pitchers will have to wet the
enemy powder.
Right now the Mats are in tough
shape. Bagby is not the best pitch
er In the American League by a long
shot. He was fast yesterday, but
the Mats supposedly are a gang Of
fast-ball hitters. Here the Griff-
men will face better pitchers than
Jim. Such as, for instance, Lefty
Gomez. He was due to work today
in the Yankees opening game at
home.
Harris was not disappointed by
Rookie Sid Hudson's defeat in
Washington. There have been times
this spring when Sid looked better
than in his major league debut.
But, outside of one bad pitch to
! Jimmy Foxx, he wouldn't have
worked a bad game.
Hudson No Disappointment.
It was a strange performance, at
that. All of Bostons runs in that
TO affair were earned. Yet all ex-
cept one was manufactured after
| two men were out.
Sid was going along nicely with
two down in the third when Di
Maggie doubled and Cramer singled
him home. In the fifth Sid again
got the first two hittels and then
Cramer singled, Williams walked
and Foxx drove into the bleachers
to make it 40. The last two runs,
coming in the seventh, also were
made after two were down.
He'll get another crack at the
Sox in Boston," Harris has an
nounced. IF he knew the hitters
a little bit better he would have
made a better showing. If fellow
like Hudson, with his poise and all
| around ability can't make a ritcher