The Waterbury Democrat., 1945-01-04
Is BoseboII Essential?

(StaII WrASeLJ
 Is BoseboII ESSentioI?
 War Momilizer James F. Byrnes' latest report which Is now before Congress, requests that all available 4-Fs not now employed in an es- sential activity should be forced to go into a war job or be placed in some sort of military service. The new edict which will probably re- ceive the lawmakers blessings fol- lows closely on the heels of Byrnes' last order which shut down all race tracks and asked for the re- examination of all 4-F athletes. This first directive definitely made leaders in every fed of sports in- cluding baseball feel slightly pes semistic about operating their re- spective sports in 1945, although they conceded that they might with the available supply of 4-Fs, muddle by. But this latest order ought to definitely halt most sports for the duration unless government officials decide that Sports is es- sential. And the foremost ques- ton in our minds at this early stage of the situation is: Is base ball essential?
 Baseball by most sportSmen is taken for granted, by this we mean that it comes in and goes out just like Spring. Summer Winter and Fall,-baseball, long recognized as the great American Sport, has become a part of the American way of life, it has be- come a habit. Some prefer tc watch it, some like to play it, and still others get enjoyment out o1 writing it. These three groups arc all doing their best for the war ef- fort and they would certainly hatC to see their favorite pastimt smothered for the duration. But 1t seems inevitable that tie worst Is just around the corner. With al 4-F's being put in war jobs, i! Congress paSeS it, 1t seems more than likely that baseball on z Major League scale will have tt fold up for the duration, and tht American public will have to grir and bear it. The War effort come! first. Maybe baseball is eSSentia It Is not officially considered S( now. Do you consider it essentiali PERT PARAGRAPHS
 Jimmy Lees fast moving anC hard hitting Crosby court quinte
 after being Sparked to decisive
 A to 31 victory over Torrington
 the defending state champs, b.
 Win Petteway and Whitey Kuzen
 ko, will fight to retain their leat
 in the Naugatuck Valley Leagu'
 when they meet Wilby in the Grow
 street gym on Saturday night The Blue and White, it might b,
 said, have one of the best CO
 ordinated teams in the league thi
 season and we wouldn't be to
 surprised to see them in the Stat Tournament. It Is our contention that their only real tough gam
 ahead will be when they mix i . up with on equally classy Leaven worth court squad on Jan. 24th. You mean to say that you didn' pick Southern Calf, Tulsa, Okla homa. Duke, West All Stars, South western and Texas College to vii . in the Bowl games on New Year ? Day. We'll when We come righ f down to brass tacks" we didn' l either. Although we can pat ou
 self on the back this once for pick l ing Tulsa over Georgia Tech il S the Orange Bowl contest. We kney r Tulsa could do it because they ha I too much power for the "Enginers. t The game We did bark up tn . wrong tree on though was tha e All Star game in which we picke - the East and the West won. Thi a seems to be good place to chang j the subject because we have fiv hundred per cent average and
 we went on it might get to be T little embarrassing.
 . For the first time in tEe pas Y. few seasons 1t seems as thoug F Bill Tracy's Tech Tigers are des , tined to really go places in basket .. ball. After their AT to Al win ove { the Rubber City combine last wee
 the Tracymen can really hay n something to talk about. And | e the looks of things, with youn g Jimmy Piersall and Joe Eiduk }. stellar right forward and left fol !. ward respectively. setting the pax ,s like they did in the Naugy gan :. with 36 points to their credi r, Leavenworth seems to be startir le a drive of their own which wi l. gather momentum as time goes cl