Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1942-04-03
Dodgers Money
Likely TO Beat
Reds, Cards
Three-Woy Flag Race
Looms With Brooks
Ready to Buy In
BY GAYLE TALBOT,
Associated Press Sports Writer.

TAMPA, Fla, April 3.-If Larry
MacPhail's bank roll holds out
and fine, lusty bank roll it is-the
Brooklyn Dodgers probably will fight
OF both the st. Louis Cardinals and
the Cincinnati Reds and win them
selves another National League
pennant.
If it were not for the redhead's
absolute determination to have a
winner and his willingness to spend
big money to get it, the temptation
would be strong to pick one of the
three top clubs out of hat. They.
appear to be that evenly matched
right now. But it is a pretty good
baseball axiom to string along with
the Spender.
1t should be beauty of a race.
right down to the wire. The Dodgers
and Cards waged thriller last year,,
but this one might be even better
because the Cincinnati club has re-.
covered from its world champions"
daze and is going to be in there
punching. 1t appears safe to dismiss,
the other five outfits from the real
contention, though Pittsburgh might,
as usual, set hot early pace.
Dodgers Appear Soundest.
The Dodgers are a little sounder
club all around than either the
Reds or the Cards, and there Is no
guarantee that they will not increase
their strength during the race. II
their pitching shows signs of falling
OF, for instance, MacPhail will go
after Buck Newsom hard enough to
get him. He might get Buck any
way. That might prove discouraging
to the Reds and the Cards, for their
chances of adding any strength
from here on are practically nil.
Already Brooklyn has one of base
balls outstanding infield quartets IN
Dolf Camilli. Billy Herman, PeeWee
Reese and Arky Vaughan, and it has.
the leagues best young outfelder In
Harold ReiSer. 1t has a brace of top
pitchers in Kirby Higbe and Whit
Wyatt and two good catchers in
Billy Sullivan and Mickey Owen.
There is no outstanding weakness.
The Cardinals have shown mors
zip and fire than any club training
in Florida. They are the fastest,
team in baseball today and oldtimers
say they might be the fastest ever.
They possess two truly outstanding
men in Third BaSeman James Brown
and Center Fielder Terry Moore, and
they have by far the best southpaw
pitching staff In the game.
Cincinnati Is Dangerous.
But a club with all that must
have weakness. In the case of the
| Cards 1t appears to be the lack Of
a slugger or two who can bang
extra base hits with fair consistency
or clout the long fly when a mate
Is on third. The team shows symp-
| toms of missing Johnny Mics big
bat. After all the Cards could not
beat the Dodgers last year when
Mize was driving in 100 runs. and
Ray Sanders, the new first -baseman,
doesn't look like that kind of a
hitter.
Cincinnati must be considered a
very dangerous contender. despite
the loss of Billy Werber's talents at
third base and comparative weak
ness at that point. If the veteran
Gerald Walker, purchased last week
from Cleveland, can hit 300 in a new
league and bounce in around 100
runs the Reds will go a long way.
They still have superlative pitching.
There is a slim chance that Mel
OTIS group of creaking veterans on
the New York Giants will all get
over their ailments at once and
begin blasting the ball in unison. If
they should do that they could be
troublesome in spots, despite their.
lack Of pitching. But Mel probably
Is in for a bad first year.
If any one insists upon a complies
final standing, here is one guess:
Cd Brooklyn, (2) Cincinnati, (3) ST.,
Louis, "a Chicago, 50 Pittsburgh,
90 New York, CD Boston, 80 Phila-
delphia.