Evening star., 1946-05-15
Club Now Formidable
As Jeff Socks .328;
Ends Tiger String
BY Burton Howkins
Stor Stoff Correspondent

DETROIT, May 15.-The Mats
haired boy at the moment is
JEFF Heath, who 10 days ago re-
turned to Washington's lineup with
a .160 batting average, which had
branded him a failure and disguised
his bosses.
They were eager to trade him,
but Manager Ossie Bluege took one
fling at psychology and has been
amazed by the results.
Heath has sparkled beyond
Bluege's fondest hopes, and WASH
ington officials now are appearing
exceptionally smart in dispatching
George Case to Cleveland to obtain
the muscular outdelder, for jeff in
10 games since being restored to
regular duty has whacked out a
.428 batting average and lifted his
mark for the season to 1923.
Twice Heath was booted out of
Wasnington's lineup by Bluege, who
wearied of Jeff's eight strikeouts in
his first Is trips to the plate. He
was messing things up in the out
field, too, but has bounced back
with rash of eXtra-base blows and
improved fielding.
Griffs' Artillery Formida BILE.
With Heath hitting it's a formid-
able batting order the Mats are
presenting now, for joining Heath
in elite hitting circles are Mickey
Vernon, 1878; Cecil Travis, 1888;
Stan Spence, $40, and Jerry Priddy,
1902.
Buddy Lewis snapped out of a
prolonged batting slump here yes
terday to blast his first home run
of the season, a double and single
to bat across runs and score 3
more as Washington embarrassed
the Tigers, ISL, to snap their g.
game winning streak. With Lewis
joining in the power parade the
Mats are becoming tough team.
Heath, contributing three doubles
and a single, batted in four runs,
while Spence and Travis collected
three hits each as Washington ham,
mered Stubby Overmire, Tommy
Bridges and George Caster for 20
hits.
Meanwhile Roger Wolff was hav-
ing no trouble annexing his third
victory. He had a 4-hit shoutout
entering the ninth inning, but Ansel
Moore ruined it with a line drive
homer into the lower rightfield
stands.
Wolff in Hot Streak.
Wolff, incidentally, has given the
Mats brilliant pitching in his last
three efforts. In a start against
Detroit last week he unleashed a
4-hit performance only to lose, 10.
to Hal Newhouser, then hurled three
scorelesS innings in a relief role as
the Mats and Athletics battled to a
SIS, 15-inning tie.
In the last 81 innings he has
pitched, Wolff has allowed only IL
hits and 2 runs-one of them un-
earned. Rogers three triumphs
have been achieved at the expense
of Boston, New York and Detroit,
which would indicate he'll do all
right against the weaker clubs.
Wolff and Mickey Vernon, who
got single to hit safely in his 18th
straight game, were the only Mats
who failed to smash at least two
hits yesterday as Washington pro-
duced its largest score and most
enjoyable inning of the season.
The Mats blasted Overmire for
three runs in the third as Lewis,
Priddy and Travis singled and Gil
Torres and Heath doubled then
sprayed eight runs across the plate
in a hectic fifth.
Lewis Hits 3-Run Homer.
Vernon opened with a single
which was followed by a Travis
double and AL Evans single. Wolff
walked and after Torres forced him,
Lewis belted homer into the lower
right-field stands, scoring Evans
and Torres.
Ia NoAA1S SooeCA az tA1dG pOlllG d1lQ
Spence greeted him with a single.
Vernon walked and Heath drilled a
double to right, scoring both run
ners, before Priddy brought the in
ming to an end with a grounder.
Singles by Evans and Torres, plus
doubles by Lewis, Spence and Heath,
netted the Mats four more runs in
the ninth.
Dutch Leonard was to seek his
third win here today, with the
Tigers countering with a first time
starter in 21-year-old Ted Gray,
recently discharged from the Navy.
The Mats will invade Cleveland to-
morrow for the opener of a three
game series.