Evening star., 1947-03-10
Gil Shows He Can Sock
To Left as Mats Bow
To 'Nooga Farm
By Burton Howkins
Sfor sioH Corespendent

ORLANDO, Fla, Mar. 10.-The
Mats bosses are guilty Of tampering
with Gil Coan's batting style and
the evidence thus far indicates the
young outflelder is going to be a
more dangerous hitter because OF
1t. Coan has been instructed to
concentrate on learning to whack
hits into left field on the theory
that scattering his safeties will boost
his batting average. The results
have been gratifying.
Coan strictly was a pull hitter
last season and there was a natural
reluctance on the part of WASH
ington's brain trust to alter his
style. Gil, after all, had been a
.372 hitter with Chattanooga in 1916
and recommending changes in his
batting stroke might have wrecked
his confidence.
HE had to learn that a double to
left can be more valuable than a ter
terrifically long drive to right which
is caught" said Coach Clyde Milan.
IF we had tried to have him switch
his style last year we would have
ruined Coan as hitter. Fans would
have thought we were crazy to make
adjustments in a batting style that
was SO successful in the minors.
Coan probably would have lost faith
in us and in himself.
Now He's Ready to Change.
Nov, after a full year in the
majors, Gil knows he can't attempt
to pull the ball into right field every
time up. He can make himself far
more dangerous by punching few
hits into left field occasionally and
he realizes 1t. That 200 batting
average he had last year woke him
up"
Coan has appeared briefly in two
of the Mats tussles, one of which
was an intrasquad game, and cur
rently is displaying a .667 batting
average with four hits in six at
tempts. More significant is the fact
that three of Gil's hits have been
drilled into left field and two have
been doubles.
Gil hasn't smashed ball to the
right side Of the infleld, by design.
His fourth hit was raped off the
pitchers glove and on the occasions
he failed to hit he flied to the left
field and fouled to the third base
man. He's experimenting and he's
making huge success of it.
Coan Is on Spot.
Coan is squarely on the spot. He
has been granted the inside track
on the left-field job and he intends
to remain regular. If his quest
for regular position fails he'll be
shunted to a Triple-A club for more
experience and Gil isn't in mood
to accept the demotion.
He has been smart enough to fol-
lew instructions and he's making
good at his new assignment more
rapidly than anticipated.
Frankly" says Milan, IT thought
his average would suffer in exhibi-
ton games until he got the knack
of hitting to left, but apparently he's
an apt pupil. He's gonna be whale
of batter if he can spray some
hits to left as well as pull some into
right field"
Chattanooga Beats Mats, 80.
Coan collected a double and single,
both to left field, yesterday as the
Mats absorbed an 3D. beating from
Chattanooga in inaugurating their
exhibition slate here before 1900
fans. The Mats regulars deserted
the scene at the end of five innings
with q 20 lead, but the rockies
quickly disposed of that advantage.
Howard Martin pitched himself out
of any notion he may have been
nursing about sticking with the Mats
It required only an inning, for in the
seventh he yielded seven runs on
five hits and two errors as the Look
outs dispatched II men to the plate
The Mats had picked up run in
the first inning when Coan doubled
moved to third on George Myatt's
infield out and scored on Joe Grace's
single to left. Doubles by Stan
Spence and Jerry Priddy fetched the
Mats their other run in the second
inning off Vernon Curtis.
Two Rockies Hurl Well.
Meanwhile the Mats were obtaining
spiffy pitching from Rockies John
Sonny Dixon, Charlotte product
who won 10 games and lost II last
season, and Scott Cary, small south
(See HAWKINS, Page A-13.)