Evening star., 1941-03-19
Club Apparently
Better Off Than
Last Season
Remarkable Gehrinqer
In Excellent Condition
First Time in Years
BY GAYLE TALBOT,
Associated Press Sports Writer

LAKELAND, Fla. March 19-
Ever since the Detroit Tigers gaSped
their way to the last American
League championship and then were
beaten into state of exhaustion
by Cincinnati in the World Series
it has been customary to regard
them as dead pigeons.
With but slight variation the say
ing has been: We'll, whoever wins
in the American League, it won't
be Detroit" The recent realization
that big Hank Greenberg, the Ii
gers greatest slugger, was due to
be drafted any minute has swelled
the dirge for Del Bakers team.
After looking them over in train
ing camp here, the suspicion arises
that the Tigers might have been
planted a little prematurely. They
feel they have an even chance OF
repeating, with or without Green
berg. 1t probably would be rash to
pick them over either Cleveland or
the New York Yankees, but equally
it would be foolish to think they
will not be a powerful factor IN
the coming race.
Loss of Hank no Knockout.
Looking back on the Tigers last
year, they won out partly because
the strife-torn Cleveland Indians
collapsed and partly because they
(the Tigers had two great pitchers
in Buck Newsom and Lynwood Rowe
and three tremendous hitters in
Greenberg, Rudy York and Barney
McCoSky.
They lost the World Series, which
they entered tired and weary. But
they made it as close as the next
breath and it might have been a
vastly different story if Rowe had
not fallen down completely in his
two series starts. He still doesn't
know why. He simply had nothing
on the ball.
If and when Greenberg goes (and
he says I'm ready to go the minute
they call me'o it can't help being a
blow to the Tigers. Yet it will not
prove a knockout necessarily. They
still will have three dangerous hit
ters in McCosky C340), York (.316)
and Charley Gehringer (312). They
still will have NeWSom (2l-5), Rowe
Q6-3) and Tommy Baridges Q2-9)
to pace their pitching staff, which
includes several promising young
sters. And they still will have a
fine pair of catchers in Billy Sulli-
van and Bi-iie Tebbetts.
Greenberg's replacement would be
Ned Harris, brought up from Beau
mont of the Texas League. where he
hit .312 and was second in total hits
and runs scored.
Better Off Than Year Ago.
1t was the age and infirmities of
the Detroit infield that caused the
experts to pass them up unani-
mously in camp year ago. Second
Baseman Charley Gehringer was
croWding 81. and sick. Shortstop
Dick Bartell was 80 and his arthritis
had almost had him out of baseball
a couple of times. Third Baseman
Pinkie Higgins had ailing legs. First
bdStIIldll tLuby VI r. Ndo iACo4Glly 40
a horse, but his fielding left some
thing to be desired.
That was the crew that fought
through to the pennant and is get
ting set to try it again. Outside Of
being collectively four years older, it
actually appears better than it did
any time last year. Especially in
the case of the remarkable Gehrin-
ger. He is well and happy for the
first time in several years, and is
going and getting scorchers to his
right that he only scowled at year
ago.
York is a good-enough fielder, and
is hitting with terrific force. Hig-
gins legs have mended and the vet
eran is expecting a big year. Eric
McNair, obtained from the Chicago
White Sox at the waiver price, will
take some of the load off Bartell at
short, though Dick didn't ask for
any help.