The Waterbury Democrat., 1942-07-09
Today's Sport Parade

York Yankees. This season the team under the microscope was Brooklyn and the question was do the Buns really rate their lead?"
 The facts of this case are evident. As the major leagues resume play the Dodgers hold an 8h game lead over St. Louis and one of a dozen games over Cincinnati. This margin is almost historic in an organization famed for it's stretch battles. And as far as the Dodgers are concerned, the margin borders, on the sheerly impossible.
 The Buns lead the league in games won and lost, in batting and in fielding. Individually, they have virtual strangle- holds in the batting and pitching races. To 8 man, they are riding high and wide. Yet, g surprisingly large number of the writers who gathered in Cleveland for the second all-star team are convinced a reaction soon will be noted.
 The reporters acknowledge that Brooklyn is blessed with tremendous power and that the power was im- ported by Larry MacPhail. They admit that the Dodger infield is SC tight that 1t is hard to drive a pill through 1t.
 Over Ripe
 But they also hold that tie Dodger pitching is too good to be true and that serious slump Is ir immediate prospect The Brooklyn twirlers are so well seasoned that they are over-ripe. Possibly the bat ting will carry them through to the pennant because there Is no other contender with enough power tC develop into a serious threat.
 But the supposed experts, whilt almost conceding the Dodgers the flag because of the lack of opposi. tion, are all but certain that the same National League kings wil fall again into the pitfalls of tht World Series and that although they may be a good team for theil circuit they are not a good team al good teams are judged.
 The lack of balance between tho offense and the defense is the maJol argument the writers advance. But there is another reason, too, whicf must be recognized as the ofY-sprinf of the theory that wishing will make 1t 50. For the 1042 Dodgers are tt the writers perhaps the most un- popular team of the last 20 years.
 This unpopularity doesn't stem from the bottom-it seeps dowT from above. The reports have nc fight with the players, But they dt have surprisingly bitter argument with the management, meaning MacPhaii and Leo (the lip Duro' cher. Both men are loud, arrogant and Self-centered, and they rapidly are becoming much too unpleasant to live and work with.
 Odd Men
 MacPhail Is ar1 unpredictable sort At times one of the most forth right men in baseball, he Is at othei times given to the sort of tantrumi for which junior Is soundly pum' meled with a razor strop. As fOi Durocher, he has become sort of { Napoleon of the National League If Q writer s critical in the slight. est sense, he finds the Brooklyn clubhouse barred.
 The number of sport writing friends now commanded by thu Brooklyn club may be counted Or the right hand of three-flngeret Brown. The situation has becom' critical that even the men wht tabbed Brooklyn as the Nationa League winners are sitting back ant surnmoning all the JinxeS they'v' ever heard of.
 Barred dressing rooms and tan I trumS and egocentrIc poses are nov cities for 6 time-but only . Shor time. So today the universal atti tude of the writers Is summoned fl that old bromide-whatever hap pens Brooklyn, let's hope 1t is Tloth ing trivial. But wishing docsn' make 1t 90, and the writers at hear know this.
 You must give even the Devil hi due, and whether you like them o not you must give the Dcdgeri their due, too. The Dodgers don form 6 solid club and they are botheTsome lot to have as your dAil. cl1ore but they won't slump to tn point where they will blow the pen nant and although they aren't grea they'll do until the real thing come IalOng.