Evening star., 1940-04-23
Start on May |
Finding Favor
With Owners
Griffith Is Willing
To Call Off Mats
Boston Series
By Staff Correspondent Of The Star.

By Staff Correspondent Of The Star.
BOSTON, April 23.-There II
more than an outside chance this
1910 baseball campaign will mark
the last of the 154-game schedules
for the major leagues. If the
weather won't give into the ball
clubs, the brass hats who control
them may have to surrender to the
elements.
Out in Detroit, President Walter
o. Briggs of the Tigers has gone
on record as favoring a shorter
schedule to start May / and ending
late in September. Here in this
northernmost sector of the majors
comes a second motion from
Owner Yawkey of the Red Sox.
"It's almost sure to be brought up
the next time the majors meet"
Yawkey announced today. I'm still
minded about it, but If ball
clubs are going to run into current
conditions, say four times in every
five years, see no reason why the
season shouldn't be moved back to
around May /. and the schedule re-
duced to 140 games"
Bad Weather Takes Toll.
Again this spring the big league
clubs have been plagued by ele-
ments. A nor'easter has been raging
in New England, causing thousands
OF dollars damage along the coast.
All along the East bad weather has
kept the ball clubs in their hotels.
In Cincinnati a flood threatens the
Reds park for an undetermined
length of time.
Rain, cold, sleet and even snow
have postponed ball games. Club
owners who have spent thousands
apiece training their teams in the
semi-tropics are fearful of pneu-
monia epidemics and of torn liga-
ments and cartilages on slippery,
soggy diamonds.
Club owners and high officials
with whom this observer has talked
seem to be ready to take legislative
action. They have lost untold thou
sands of dollars at the box Offices
because of the weather. In addition,
their ball clubs, which were so finely
trained in Florida, Texas and Cali
fornia, rapidly are getting out OF
shape
"Why Not Postpone Series?"
For what we spent in Florida"
laments Casey Stengel of the Bos-
ton Bees, who have been idling in
Brooklyn, I'VE could have bought
a good pitcher and an infielder or
outfielder. Now we have to start
getting in shape all over again"
So far the Bees have played only
one of their seven scheduled games.
Clark Griffith, president of the
Nationals, telephoned his manager,
Bucky Harris, last night in Boston
and asked about the weather.
"Not much hope" Harris said.
WELL" barked Griffith, "why
can't the club come home and call
off the whole series?"
This isn't as radical as it might
sound. The Mats may play today,
but conditions won't be favorable.
If the temperature is around IS it
will be a surprise. There still is
snow on the ground in Boston.
Wage Scales Possibly Affected.
For years the club owners have
argued that by playing less than
154 games they cannot make money.
The reasons, put down in black and
white, never were made public. It
follows this is an old-fashioned
theory, without muci, basis, if they
now are thinking of shortening the
schedule to 140 games.
Such move might disturb the
wage scale. We wouldn't know
about this. But it might mean
that by starting May l fewer
double-headers would be created
and it would mean later spring
training dates. Whereas ball clubs
now go into training as early as
February Is, as do the Nationals,
they would wait until March 7
or 10.
"It seems to me-" Yawkey added,
"that month of training is plenty
of time to get a club in shape. The
main reason, anyway, is to get
line on the new players. Managers
like to get plenty of chances to see
what new men they want to keep
and spring training is about the
only chance. But it can be over
DONE" F. E.S.