Evening star., 1942-06-14
Flash Superb Fighter
In Action, but Not
OF Killer Type
Unconcerned About Bot
Mark Until Challenged
BY Deer This Yeor
BY GRANTLAND RICE,
Special Correspondent of The Star

In case you happen to be interested,
"a natural" in sport is something
we'll beyond the average, or even
the better people, on both the physi-
cal and mental side Among the
leading "naturals" IA like to nomi-
nate Joe Flash GORDON, the New
York Yankees second baseman.
Gordon is something more than
a great ball player and a fine all.
around athlete. AS student at
Oregon and Washington he could
have been one of the best football
players of his day-a dead certain
All-America. The Flash and Tuffy
Leemans were freshmen together
at oregon when Doc Spears had
the team, and at that time Cor
dow was every bit as good as the
able Tuffy. But his baseball coach,
sensing an all-time baseball star,
vanked him away from the grid
iron.
Beyond the athletic side Joe Cor
don has the most amazing disposi-
ton or temperament I've run across
in sport. He is one of the best
competitors you ever will see in
action, but never on the grim, re-
lentless or killing side.
Acrobatics Improve Joe.
His nature is as sunny as the
State of his birth, the same being
California. the city being Los An
eeles. He takes life as it comes,
the good and the bad. with a grin,
letting fate ard nature take their
devious courses.
His home for some time has been
Eugene, Greg. where in winter he
pursues the battling steelhead in
a land this fighting fish has helped
to make famous.
For more than 10 years Gordon
has been working at acrobatics on
the side. He can throw his body
right or left in midair and this
accounts for some of the amazing
plays he makes around second base.
He is lightning fast with hands
and feet, with refexes just as fast
in either
I never have seen a big league
ballplayer work under less tension.
It would take more than World
Series to make him tighten up.
As Good as He Wants to Be.
A year or two ago Joe Mccarthy
made this statement about his Sec
ond baseman: Gordon is as great
a ballplayer as he wants to be. I've
never seen a better defensive second
baseman. But he is a natural $3.50
hitter, or better, who seems to be
content with .280 mark as long
as we keep winning. Most ball.
players like their hits. Gordon pays
no attention to any batting average.
Some day, maybe, he will. Then
watch him
A few of us were kidding the
Flash about his 28G average when
it should have been well over 300.
All you could get from Joe was a
grin and the remark. What diff
ference does it make as long as we
keep winning?"
lifetime all-seaSon batting average
up to 1912 has been only .275, his
World Series average for three years
has been .349. When the harder
pressure came along the Flash mere
" tilted his mark a matter OF "A
points
Accepts Doerr's Challenge.
One of the men who helped to
lift Gordon far above his old groove
this season is Bobby Doerr of the
Boston Red Sox. Boston supporters
for some time have been trifle
upset because Gordon was rated
over their own second-basing pride,
Doerr being a fine infielder with
a major league batting mark at .290.
But in his new season Doerr
sounded like a barrel of crockery
being rolled down the cellar steps.
He was exploding base hits all over
the landscape. For the first few
weeks Bobby ran his mark we'll
above 400.
1t was at this point Gordon got
busy and accepted the challenge,
He no longer was the easygoing,
don't bother type. not caring how
many hits he got. The Flash started
out in hot pursuit of his slugglng
rival
Il could hit $50 or better" Cor
don told me once, IF there was no
third baseman on the other team.
The hardest balls I hit always seem
to find his glove"
Change in Timing Helps.
This season Gordon began to
change his timing, to wait just a
little longer for drives to center or
to right center. Which means that
with hot target to shoot at, with
the inspiration partly furnished by
Doerr, Gordon merely stepped up
his concentration on the work at
hand.
The Y9nkees had the pennant
won before the season started,
Every one knew that, including the
other seven teams. So the Flash
finally decided to pay more atten-
ton to his own part in the cast.
AS Bill Dickey puts it, ITS worth
catching for the Yankees just to
stand back of the plate and watch
Joe kill off sure base hits back Of
second or somewhere in right field.
And the funny part is he makes
most of these look easy chances
that any one could handle"