Evening star., 1941-04-13
By Francis E. Stan.

By Francis E. Stan.
A few minutes before o'clock to-
morrow a delegation of waddling
officials, followed by the Army Band
and the out-of step baseball armies
of the New York Yankees and the
Washington Nationals, will trudge
to the f1agpole in cepterfeld of Grif-
fifth Stadium to start another season
of major league baseball in the man
ner to which the national pa5time
has become accustomed since 1912.
One of the mincing officials will
be little, white haired gentleman
who can do the whole thing blind
folded, if necessary. He knows every
inch of the NANCY grass. He knows
exactly how many l0-inch pulls will
send Old Glory to the top of the
white mast and he undoubtedly will
inform the nearest brass hat that
Babe Ruth, back in 1927, just missed
knocking off the gold ball with
one of the longest of the Bambino's
TIA home runs.
Clark Calvin Griffith always gets
a little watery eyed at the opening
ball game in Washington. He does
this after the President of the
United States throws out the first
ball and the Washington pitcher
rubs it up and the enemy lead-of
hitter steps to the plate. He looks
at the jammed grandstand, and at
the teeming pavilion. and at the
bleachers. He hears the hot dog
hawkerS selling couple of tons OF
transparency packaged ground beef
and pork, mixed with cereal, sold at
10 cents per stick, including roll and
mustard.
The old gentleman should know
the routine. Tomorrow, for the Both
consecutive year, he will run the
show. There is no better act in
sports than the opening baseball
game and Clark Griffith, II years
old now, knows it. And all baseball
knows that it owes the term, ma
tional pastime," to Griffith.
Doesn't Direct Men.
Griffith sits in a lower box seat
but not close enough to the Wash
ington dugout to send messages. He
doesn't believe in directing his team
between the hours of and $50 p m
He gave that up after the season OF
1920 and leaves it to his manager
But he watches and makes mental
notes and, on days like tomorrow
when all is gala and the United
States, whether in peace or war
turns to the ball park, he thinks
back to that April afternoon in 1917
when he officially wore Washing
ton uniform for the first time.
Thirty years ago Washington was
the doghouse of baseball. A famed
old baseball writer, Charlie Dryden
had coined a phrase Washing
ton-first in war, first in peace and
last in the American League" The
Nationals had been in the circuit fol-
II years and had finished last on
four occasions, seventh on five other
tries and sixth twice In the spring
of 1911 the grandstand burned down
Manager Jimmy McAleer quit, the
! stockholders were losing money and
a 41-year-old troubleshooter named
Griffith had agreed to quit his job as
manager of the Cincinnati Reds of
the National League to inherit Nc
Aleer's post.
The world was not quite so martial
back in 1912. A portly man with a
walrus mustache was in the White
House and one deal was as good as
New Deal. A new grandstand, ca
pable of seating $4,000, had beer
erected. The Nationals, fresh ur
from their Charlottesville, Va, train.
ing camp, where they were forced tt
shovel snow off the field to work out
ostensibly were ready to finish
seventh or eighth. All they had tt
recommend themselves was a new
manager, Griffith, and a pitcher
named Walter Johnson, in the op.
posite order.
Baseball was not called the ma.
tional pastime in those days. 1t was
established solidly enough, perhaps
but not until Griffith came to Wash
ington did President of the United
States unconsciously add the magic
touch. The Chief Executive was
Mr.. Taft. Pulling all strings he coulc
find, Manager Griffith induced the
portly President to drop around fol-
the opener. Nobody, not even Mr.
Taft, expected the Mr.. Big of the
United States to wrap his plump
fingers around baseball and throw
1t to the pitcher, who happened tc
be this fellow Johnson.