Evening star., 1945-07-25
BIuege Hopeful Levi!
|WiII Bolster Attack;
Indians Cop Finale
BY JOHN b. KELLER.

Dy JO1N d. hELLEh.
Buddy Lewis is coming back to
the ball game while the Mats are
in Boston over the week end, Man
ager Os Bluege says, and if Buddy
comes back swinging with old-time
vigor his club will appreciate it.
At Griffith Stadium last night
the Mats finished their home stand
against the Western clubs with a
record of six wins and seven de-
feats and lack of timely punch
more than anything else dropped
them below 500 for the 13-game
span.
When Lewis left the Mats after
the 1941 season to enter the Army
Air Corps, he was 800 hitter and
apt to pole long ball at any time.
He has looked good in batting drills
begun last Saturday when he re-
Joined the club, and says he feels
fit to play, despite Charley -horsed
leg.
At any rate, Buddy is going to
overlook the ailing leg and assume
the right-field berth with the Mats
when they open three-game series
in Boston against the Red Sox Fri
day. He might see action for two
or three innings tomorrow as the
Washington club engages a Navy
nine in an exhibition at the New
London Comm submarine station.
Lewis to Bat Third.
Lewis will bat in third place, with
George Binks probably dropping to
seventh to make the lower end of
the order more menacing. Whoever
catches will bat eighth, and Joe
zardon, spectacular outfielder who
now is hitting 1903, will move to
the bench.
Bluege perhaps was prompted to
hurry Lewis into the Mats lineup
by their woeful showing at bat re-
Gently, especially in the last three
games dropped to the Cleveland
Indians. In those games the Mats
mustered but 19 hits for grand
total of four runs.
AS they dropped their third
straight and the series to the Tribe
last night, the Mats collected but
seven hits off AL Reynolds, right
handler, who never was in serious
trouble at any time. In sharp con-
trast, the Indians attack had Dutch
Leonard on spot in almost every
inning OF the eight he pitched. That
Dutch was not beaten worse than
4 to 0 was mildly amazing.
The shutout was the second for
the Second-place Mats within a
week and dropped them three full
games under the leading Detroit
Tigers, who idled yesterday. 1t also
left the Mats mere game ahead
of the surgent Chicago White Sox
and the Red Sox. So the Boston
series should be wild scrap for the
runnerup position.
Tribe Earns Two Runs.
Leonard gave up II hits and two
passes last night and in each of the
rounds he hurled the Tribe got at
least hit. A fast play at the plate
kept score from the Tribe in the
second inning, double-play checked
it in the third, but the Indians got
home in the fourth.
At that, the run was not earned,
for Rick Ferreu let a couple of
pitches get away from him to bring
to the plate jeff Heath, who had
singled and been sacrificed to sec
ond. But the Indians got two
earned runs in the three they
counted in the sixth. Heath's double,
an intentional pass to Lou Bou-
dreau, Frank Hayes long fly and
Felix Mackiewicz's single made
them. Mackiewicz took second as
his drive was fumbled by Zardon,,
then counted as AL Cihocki hit.
After hammering Leonard, the
Indians were a subdued lot against
Al Carrasquel in the ninth.
Three times the Mats clustered
two hits in an inning. They did
so in the second after two were
out, but force play stopped them.
A double play offset the first of two
hits in the fifth. After Hills Layne
picked up Leonard's bat in the
eighth to double, George Case got
an infield single. But George Myatt
struck out, Binks hoisted out and
Harlond Cliff rolled out.
Mats Best Drive Only an Out.
In the seventh when Reynolds
gave two passes, his total for the
game, the Mats could not knock the
ball out of the infield.
The hardest drive off Reynolds was
made by Cliff at the start of the
second inning, but, Heath backed
against the wall of the stand back
of left for a sparkling catch.
The Mats won't show again In
Griffith Stadium until next Tues
day, when Philadelphia's Athletics
will move in for a four-game series
to be played in three nights. The
Red Sox will follow for six games
in three days.
After that the Mats will head into
their last Western invasion of the
wear