The Waterbury Democrat., 1941-09-26
BROOKLYN CLUB
 REACHES COAL
 AFTER q YEARS
Players Stage Wild Train Celebration; Individuals
 Champs, Too
BY GEORGE KIRKsEY United Press stan COErespondent)

United Press stan COrrespOndentl
 New York, Sept. 26 = Look up yonder on the National League throne. Bless my soul, if 1t Isn't the Brooklyn Dodgers, the peoples team your boys and my boys, 6 gang that's far from perfect but SO hu- man you can't help but love them even when they're wrong.
 But they're not wrong now. They are the National League champions efter one of the bitterest season. long struggles in baseball annals - two team race in which they ran one-two with the St. Louis Card- inals with never more than four games separating them from almost the first put-out of the season.
 The s-endearingly known in every. hamlet in the land as "the Bums"-celebrated their pennant- cllnchlng victory in Boston yester- day during Q five-hour train ride back to New York last night.
 It was wild, riotous evening on e special train in which the Dodgers poured champagne, ripped of shirts and engaged in horseplay that kept everyone in continual uproar. It was a celebration reminiscent of the days when Babe Ruth used to lead those rowdy Yankee pennant parties.
 RuA Donnie, veteran New York scribe who travelled with the Yan- kees in their palny days, remarked after the shirt was ripped of his back: T never saw anything like this since the Bambino ran wild
 At Long Last
 But 2l years is long time to wait to win @ pennant, and that's how long the Dodgers have had to bide their time before donning the pur- pie robes of champions. They'd had many great players down the years -Dazzy Vance, Babe Herman, Glenn Wright, Jacques F'ournier, Burleigh Grimes and others = but they always wound up empty-hand- ed.
 That is, until this crew came along. With 6 motely gang of youngsters, and veterans, cast-offs and pick-ups, the Dodgers beat of c season.long threat from the Card inals to climb the golden stairs.
 The Dodgers had the heat on them from beginning to end. They opened the season by losing three straight to their hated enemies, the Giants, but proved their gameness under fire by getting up of the floor every time they were knocked down. At no time during the season were the Dodgers more than four games In fornt. The times they were on top and the last time they stayed there, roaring down the stretch In one of Che National Leagues most thrilling finishes.
 The pennant clinching finish was a combination of @ 6-o Dodger vic. tory over the Braves in Boston and a 3-l defeat for the Cardinals at Pittsburgh. Whit Wyatt, the tall Georgian whose life outside of base. ball Is devoted to farming, twirled the deciding game. A fiye-hit shut out which gave him his 22nd vic. tory and his seventh Shutout. Pete Reiser hit his l4th homer with c mate on base, and the Braves corn- mitted four errors to help the Dod- ger cause.
 Four Champions
 Not only are the Dodgers cham. pions collectively, but they are champions individually aS witness the following list:
 Batting Champion-~-Pete Reiser.
 Pitching Champions (inost vic- tories) )-Whit Wyatt and Kirby Hig. be, % victories each.
 Most shutouts-Whit Wyatt.
 Home Run Champion = Dolf Ca- milli.
 Runs Hatted Tn Champion-Dolf Camilli.
 Leader In Doubles and Triples = Pete Reiser.
 Most Runs Scored-Pete Reiser.
 All these added up together tell the story of why the Dodgers finally reached the promised land. In addi- ton they had some great second base play from Billy Herman, some opportune hitting by Dixie Walker and some gilt-edge clutch pitching by Curt Davis and Hugh Casey, the leagues most valuable relief hurler, Tn one stretch Casey pitched in six out of eight games with the pen. nant riding on almost every pitch.