The Wilmington morning star., 1945-10-03
CAPACITY CROWDS
TO ATTEND OPENER
Tigers Favored In Betting
To Win First Game
OF Series
BY GAYLE TALBOT

| MotoI lily was JdillluSu w llC
rafters with baseball World Series
fans today as the Detroit Tigers
and Chicago Cubs went through
their final limbering-up for to
morrow's opening tussle of the sew.
en-game championship set.
Not hotel room was to found
by late arrivals, and two lake
steamers being used as floating
hotels were similarly packed by
the crowd that had flooded in to
see the first peacetime series since
1941. Briggs Stadium, with it's more
than $4,000 seats, including some
II, 600 bleachers, was certain to be
a sell-out at game time, 1880 p.l...
Eastern Standard Time.
The rival managers, Steve o.
Neill of the Tigers and Charlie
Grimm of the Cubs, stood pat on
their pitching choices for the open
err. Hal Newhouser, Detroit's Is
game winner, was to face Hank
Borowy, the 100000 beauty who
won II for the Cubs while losing
only two in the final two months
of the National League race. He
won 10 for the Yankees before the
Cubs got him.
With Newhouser, a slim south.
paw, prepared to bear down on the
Cubs left-handed hitting array of
Phil Cavarretta, Stan Hack and Bill
Nicholson, the Tigers remained
firm 5-to-7 favorites to win the
opener, and 1913 choice of the
bookmaking gentry to capture the
series. The first three games will
be played here, after which the
clubs will jump overnight to Chi
cago to finish the set.
Borowy will have the important
advantage of having pitched
against the American league cham
pions for number of years while
he was with the Yanks. He knows
their batting weaknesses, and
Grimm has never wavered in his
belief that the youthful looking,
mild-talking Highlander will get
the Cubs off on the winning side.
The Tigers, speaking privately
have expressed lot of respect for
Borowy's skill.
/ While O'Neiu predicted fatty
that his Tigers, who had to fight
right down to the final day to sew
up their flag, would capture the
| hxr
Grimm preferred to let the Cubs
bats speak for themselves. Meth
er would hesitate to say who might
pitch the second game for him.
ONeill was on record that Stubby
rOvermire, another lefthander,
would face the Cubs in the second
bout if Newhouser should win the
first. Otherwise, he said it would
be Virgil Trucks, a highlander.
Claude Passeau was Grimm'S Sec
ond game nominee.
Series weather prospects were
fairly promising. Although a chill
wind blew today and drizzle fell
on the Tigers while they worked
out before noon, Selfridge Field ad-
vised that the sun would be out to-
morrow and that it likely would be
| no colder than 60 degrees at game
time.
Manager Grimm arrived at the
park early today, swathed in an
overcoat, and watched the Tigers
60 through a lengthy hitting and
fielding drill. He and O'Neill con-
graduated each other on winning
! their pennants and posed for bat
terry of cameras.
Grimm at least pretended to be
greatly impressed as he watched
Eddie Mayo, Roy Cullenbine, Hank
Greenberg and other Tigers slam
a dozen balls into the stands.
"They sort of massage that ball,
at that" he commented. "Of
course, we might show them a lit.
tie better pitching tomorrow"
Grimm thought he would be able
to start his crack second-baseman
| Don johnson, in the opener. john
sons neck, injured in a collision
with Umpire Babe Pinelli in Gin
cinnati last Thursday, was just
bout mended. Otherwise the Cubs
reported in top shape for thu bat
J tle. and the Tigers were getting
around fairly, spryly, too, except
that Greenberg still limped on an
injured right ankle and promises
not to cover a great deal OF terri
tory in left field.
Trucks, who might try to blow
the Cubs down in the second series
game, toiled hard with Catcher
paul Richards today in an effort to
get his curve working properly.
He threw nothing but fast balls
in his single post-Navy eff mt
against the St. Louis Browns two
days ago. Though he was pretty
impressive, the Browns gave his
fast one a long ride every time
they got hold of it.
Richards, the veteran player.
coach and Minor league manager
was slated to catch the opener for
the Tigers, and possibly every
game of the series Mickey Living
ston. a right-handed batter, was
to wear the mask for the Cubs IN
each game that Southpaw pitched
for Detroit, with Paul Gillespie
doing the honors against Tiger
right-handers.
IJmpires for the opener figured
tn he Bill Summers, American