Evening star., 1945-02-11
Club Of Cubans Looms
Unless Griffith Gets
Vets in Line Soon
By JOHN B. KELLER.

odScUdll, already QaFaSS6Q Dy
Government crackdowns and threats
of work-or-jail legislation, has run
into another woe. Even If the way
Is cleared to a fourth wartime
championship season, rounding up
playing material will be difficult,
for this is the big 'holdout" year.
Clubs in both major circuits are
encountering plenty OF trouble in
getting talent into line, and the
Washington ball club appears to be
having more trouble than any other.
With little more than three weeks
remaining before training camp
opens at the University of Maryland
at College Park, only three Mats
who may be classed as regulars have
returned signed contracts to Clark
Griffith, and the club president
admits he is having difficulty in
negotiations with a couple of dozen
Of his charges.
Safely within the fold SO far as
contracts are concerned are George
Myatt, second baseman; Gil Tor
res, third baseman, and Mike Fer
min, catcher. True, IL other signed
contracts are in the safe at the
clubs Georgia avenue quarters, but
these are from players of very un-
certain quality.
Could Field Cuban Team.
Could be that Manager Os Bluege
will have to field a team composed
entirely of Cuban talent, with one
exception Torres could be shifted to
first base, Pedro Gomez used at
shortstop and Luis Suarez at third,
with Myatt returned to second base.
In the outfield, Jose Zardon-S Sanchez
and a couple of other boys from the
island among the Is now on the
Washington roster might be en-
ployed
Guerra could go behind the bat
and give good account of himself,
but the pitching would be up to
two or three Cuban lads fresh from
winter-league baseball
Such a club would be carrying to
the extreme Griffith's vow that the
Mats will have a team, even If only
the minimum of nine players is
available.
At that, the Mats might be better
off than some of the other big
league outfits All the majors have
gone after Cuban talent this winter,
the manpower situation being what
it is in the Nation, but the WASH
ington club got the jump on them
by year at least. Major League
scouts combing the clubs in the
island have rounded up a number
of players. However, they got only
what Joe Cambria, the Mats Latin
America specialist, didn't deem
worthy Of bringing up to Washing
ton.
Griffith Hot After Holdouts.
This doesn't satisfy Griffith,
though. He's going after the Nat
holdouts without waiting to learn
what the Army's disposition of his
4-F athletes and the work-or- fight
legislation may do to baseball. AS
usual, salary squabbles are respon-
sible for the failure of a majority of
the players to swing into line. Some
now holding jobs in defense plants
don't want to sign anything until
their status as professional athletes
Is cleared and few others appear
to have lost all interest in playing |
baseball.
To all who haven't answered the
call OF the Washington club Griffith
has sent burning letters, quoting
baseball rules whereby the backward
ones might be out of the organized
games good graces for all time
unless they agree to terms. But the
lads, though many played below
par baseball on club that finished
a poor last in the American League
last year, are proving stubborn.
They want raises or else, and one
can't blame them for trying to get
the dough.
Their demands may give Griffith
lot of pain, for salaries in baseball,
unlike those in industry, are not
fixed individually or by grade by
Government directive. Back in
1912 when Uncle Sam began telling
workers in industry just what pay
they might have baseball drew an
odd ruling.
U. s. Easy on Players Pay.
No specific salary scale based on
position filled or length of service
was drawn by baseball. Instead,
each club was given a minimum and
maximum salary limit based on its
payroll.
This meant that no player could
be signed for less than the lowest
salary then paid by the club nor
for more than the highest-paid
player received. But that left the
club wide open to demands for in
creases, for there was plenty of
leeway between the high and low in
pay. 1t is believed that, the maximum
salary on the Mats last year was
$4,000, which Pitcher Dutch
Leonard was supposed to receive.
There may have been a $4,000 salary
or two. but most of the players were
far under the latter figures.
Quite likely number of the two
dozen holdouts are bidding for raises
of from 81 900 to $4,000 for 1945. The
Washington maximum gives plenty
OF room for these requests and q
great opportunity for argument.
Boy. pass Clark Grif1th those