Evening star., 1941-04-13
Cards, With Biggest Crop
OF Rocks, Expect at Least
Two to Show Real Glass
Yankees, Dodgers Also Are Depending
On Highly PubIicized Novees

his teammate, Infielder Lou String
er, who was brought up from Los
Angeles with him as sort of a silent
partner, has been the brightest
newcomer to the Cubs.
Ryba Unusual Rookie.
Stringer was a second baseman
on the coast and might have eased
in front of Billy Herman with the
Cubs. but Manager Jimmy Wilson
gave him try at the unfamiliar
job of shortStop. He developed so
swiftly that now it looks as though
he will open the season there
instead of Billy Myers, for whom
the Cubs gave the Cincinnati Reds
so much in one of the winters
biggest trades.
The Boston Red Sox have an
unusual rookie pitcher in Mike
Ryba, commonly known as the "one-
man team" He is IS years old, an
age at which most players are
dropping out of the majors instead
of entering. He started pitching
in 1928 and has played every posi-
tlon, once pitching one-half of
double-header and catching the
other half. He managed Springfield,
Mo, one season, catching in SO
games and batting $40, and pitching
in enough to get a record of IA won
and lost.
He had periodical trials with the
st. Louis Cardinals, spring, summer
and fall. He won 16 games and lost
8 in various efforts to show his
pitching skill in the National
League.
Tigers White SparkIes.
Last year with Rochester he won
"a games and was voted the most
valuable player in the International
League
What pitching honors in that
league that Ryba didn't gain went
to Harold White of Buffalo, who is
expected to add gilt to the Detroit
Tigers mound staff this year He
had the best percentage record in
the league, 16 games won and 4
lost, and the best record in earned
runs with 243. The Tigers also are
priding themselves on Floyd Giebell,
who came up from Buffalo last
September in time to pitch the
pennant clincher against Cleveland
Supposedly the best rookie brought
into the big leagues by the draft
was Frank Rufus) Melton, whom
the PhillieS lifted from the Car
dinals Columbus farm. He is 6 feet
5 inches tall and led the American
Association in strikeouts with 142.
The Cards had so many other fine
rockies they couldn't sqeeze him
onto their own roster. A lot of
other clubs wanted him, but the
Phillies had first call in the draft,
one of the few benefits of finishing
in the cellar.
Lands Blocks Deal.
The Dodgers wanted him so badly
they made secret deal to buy him
from the Phillies even before he was
drafted, but Commissioner Lands
volded the transaction.
The Phils also have several other
good looking freshmen, including
Nick Etten, who will be their regular
first baseman, and Dan Litwhiler,
who came up last September just in
time to set the National League
seasons record for batting streak,
81 games, with an average of .345.
1t may develop that the outstand-
ing rookie is not one of the boys
who are coming up with ready
made regulations. There are a lot
of others worth keeping an eye on.
Some Of these "sleepers" are Dick
West and Witt Guise of Cincinnati,
Ace Adams of the New York Giants,
Paul Erickson of the Cubs, Tom
Early of the Boston Bees, Pete Suder
of the Philadelphia Athletics, Ned
Harris of the Tigers, Murray Howell
of Cleveland, John Lucadello of
the ST. Louis Browns, and James
Dopey) Dean and Jim Vernon of
Washington.
You'll probably see and hear a
lot of all of them.