The Waterbury Democrat., 1941-08-07
,dgers Pitching Regans Glass As Club Again Sets P1c
Yanks Got Rolling When Sturnl, Forgotten Man, Went to First
First Seeker
 E. Aid tn Drive On Record For Double Plays
Rv LITTER EVANS

By LUTHER EVANS
 (NEA Service Stan CorrespOndentD
 New York, Aug. 7--Those Yankees are blasting their way toward an- other American league pennant and sports pages are cluttered with names of New York greats DiMag- gio, Keller, Heinrich, Dickey, Cor don, Rolfe, Rizzuto.
 But square -jawed young man who came through in the clutch is all but forgotten by player, fan and writer.
 He is John Peter Sturm, the 25- l year-old recruit first baseman. Johnny Sturm didn't figure in the plans last spring when Joe Me- Carthy formed his infleld around the highly touted peagreens, Ger aid Priddy and Phil Rizzuto. The Kansas City pair looked so good that Manager Mccarthy sold Babe Dahlgren to the Braves and assigned the inimitable Joe Gordon | to farst base.
 By the end of the first month, ! however. it was evident that this unit, wasn't going any place. Gordon, who has no peer as second haseman, was uncomfo at first, though he played 1t satis- | factorily.
 1t developed that Gerry Friday was too slow at second. Neither Priddy nor Rizzuto hit well enough. There seemed some question about the strength of Rizzuto's arm. Base runners were knocking him down and breaking up double plays.
 STURM RATED ABOVE DAHLGREN IN FIELD
 So Priddy and Rizzllto went to the bench, Gordon returned to sec Ord. and Frank CroSe tti tottered in as shortst0p.
 With no alternative. Mccarthy dispatched the six foot one inch l85-pound Sturn1 to first base.
 With Gordon on second and Sturn, a polished left-handed field- CT on first, the Yankees launched the drive which swept them to a 12- game lead over the Clevelands.
 When Rizzuto got his second chance, as result of the veteran |, Crosetti being spiked, the club really was oil to the races.
 Jewell Ems, former manager of | Indianapolis and now a Cincinnati coach, calls Sturm a better fielder | than the fiashy Dahlgren. Sturm likes to tell about the time he made all three putouts in a triple play while with Joplin in the Vest ern Association
 with runners on second and l third, a ball was hit to the short- stop," he relates. T took the throw for one out, and when the man on third hesitated about going home, I threw to the plate and he was caught in run down.
 T backed up the plate and took the throw, chasing and tagging the | runner before he could get back to third. Meanwhile, the man on sec ond had hesitated and before he knew it he was hung up, and I beat him to second for the third out. Honestl"
 DOUBLE PLAYS COMPLETED WHEN STURM IS AROUND
 On the last western swing, Sturm twice started double plays in extra innings as the New Yorks beat the Detroits in IT innings.
 Sturm teamed with Priddy and Rixzuto to set the all-time double | play record last season with 193. Today the Tanks are closing in on the American league record of 187 double killings set by Cleveland in 1888. The Yankees have completed l20.
 AS leadoff man, Sturm's .250 bat ting average is the weakest among | the New York regulars. but no one worries much about 1t, not even Johnny himself.
 q believe I'll do better" he says, confidently 'I've been hitting the ball well, but unfortunately right into the flelders hands. When 1t eyens up and those balls start drop ping for hits my average will climb"
 Last season he batted .3l2 for Kan SOS City. In three years in the American Association he did not fall below 300.
 "Sturm is q good hustling ball player" asserts Joe Mccarthy.
 Johnny Eturm doesn't mind be- ing the forgotten man of the Yan- kees.
 He is content to be . Yankee.