Evening star., 1945-03-08
II Team Is Selected
By Washington Boss;
Only 4 Men Report
BY JOHN B. KELLER.

A baseball training camp with only
three players on the field just isn't
lone, SO Clark Griffith, president of
the Washington club, found plenty
lof time at College Park yesterday
when the Mats opened their con-
lditioning center to null over prob
Iable lineup for the 1945 champion
ship campaign.
Bundled in muffler, heavy over
coat and overshoes, the 75-year- -old
lchief OF the Mats shivered in the
fdugout at the University of Mary
land field and checked the club
roster, to come up with this batting
order down to the batterymen:
George Case, left field; George
Myatt, shortstop: George Binks,
right field; Stan Spence, center field;
Fred Vaughn, second base; Harlond
Cliff, third base, and Joe Kuhel,
first base.
However, there are many 'ifs" to
this order. Cases shoulder that had
a bad habit of popping out of place
frequently last season must have
been mended by an operation he
underwent last December. Binks
must display plenty of the batting
power that got him .374 average
with Milwaukee. Spence, now la,
must miss the draft. Cliff must
regain the hitting strength he had
While with the st. Louis Browns.
And the manpower directives must
not jolt the Mats too hard.
Veterans Wintered Well.
But Griffith is optimistic. He be-
lleves the Mats will move up to the
American League start next month
in pretty good trim.
AS drilling began, only Dutch
Leonard and Roger Wolff, veteran
pitchers, and Al Evans, catcher, of
the l3 batterymen on the Washing
ton roster were out in playing togs
along with Manager Os Bluege and
Nick Altrock. coach. Johnny Meg.
geling, Oldest hurler on the SQUAD.
checked in later, but not in time to
don uniform.
It'll be different next week,
though, says Griffith. I'm expect
ing the other regulars here then.
Also our group of 10 Cuban players
Will be around. They can't get a
plane out of Havana before Mon
day."
OF the trio reporting for camp
opening, only Evans appears over
weight, and he is not so far above
playing poundage that it will take
him long to shed the extra amount.
He was scaled at 205 by Trainer
Mike Martin, which means that AL
has to take off only 10 pounds to be
IN the pink for service behind the
bat.
Draft Again Rejects Wolff.
Wolff, who spent the winter toll
ing in his fathers butcher shop at
Chester, ILL.,, also weighs about 2O5,
and that's 20 pounds under what he
carried when he arrived at camp
last year. An infection that both
cred shoulder muscles handicapped
him greatly then, but Wolff had
some dental attention after the 1914
season and says the pain has gone.
He declares he is in better general
health, and he looks to be, too.
Wolff, by the way, is the only one
OF the Mats at camp who has been
re-examined by his draft board.
Classed as 4-F after the original
examination. he again has been re-
lected for service. Foot trouble is
the reason.
Leonard is right at his best pitch
ing weight, 207, he claims. His tour
OF the European western war front
with USO troupe of ballplayers
during the winter was rugged enough
to get him in pretty good shape,
Dutch said. At times within 1000
yards of the firing line, the enter
talners had to do some fast moving
about, it seems, especially when
caught by the Nazis' hard December
drive.