Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1958-01-23
WIN, LOSE OR
DRAW 8, FRANCIS s1Ann
A Most Flexible Word

BABE RUTH WAS CALLED many things but never
Home Run" Ruth That title belonged to John Franklin
Baker Of the old Athletics who led the American League
In homers from 1911 through 1918 He tied Sam Crawford
of the Tigers for the lead in the 1914 season.
Bakers output the first season he the title
nine The following season, he upped it to TO- and
the title with IL homers in 1918 He and Crawford each
hit eight homers during the 1914
Which is by way Of worming into this discussion Of
the Dodgers ball park the Los Angeles Coliseum
The regular who doesn't hit 10 homers won't be regular
for long. Pitchers apt to hit dozen homers They
viii be taking dead aim at the shortest left field line in
big league history
Expansion" is flexible word. In the instance OF
the Dodgers moving Brooklyn to Los Angeles means
embracing the width of the country and playing in
park that will seat lO 900 people instead OF 32l But
baSebals sef-styed progress movement" also means
new Of cheap home runs.
The Polo Grounds with its 257-foot fence
sidered monsrosty and 1t inspired the term Chinese
home run The Giants have left the Polo Grounds. But
when the Dodgers signed TO play In the Coliseum. the
National League snapped 257-oot fence for that
Is feet shorter.
IT is LITTLE WONDER that National League pitchers
are wailing With the lively ball that aegedly is being
used almost anyone from the club house custodian up
reach the Coseums left field fence For that matter
its only 800 feet down the right field line.
We will have 40-foot high fence along the left
field line to be cleared President Walter OMaley says
pacatingly and at the time cycling those 0l 900
seats So what? 1t won't prevent the pop fly hitter from
clearing it.
Have you been to Fenway Park in Boston? For
decades it considered joke by the ballpayers be-
cause the fence down the left field line only 3l5 feet
away from home plate The Red Sox properly loaded up
with righ-handed hters visiting avoided the
Of southpaw pitchers reasoning that right-handed
pitchers stood better chance
Even the rght-handed pitchers baked. Many "sore
arm" cleared up in hurry the visitors left
Tenway Park
FENwAY PARK and Ebbets Field and the Polo
Grounds, however we're viewed Sympatheticaly by the
baseball brass because they built originally 1912
1918 and 1884, respectively.
Those old parks" basebals foremost brains
peated Some day will be able to progress Wen make
the parks less uniform. that playing
n games at home won't have that big pull visiting
club playing only IL games"
Some progress The Giants in Francisco won't be
playing in desert exactly but their park will be fairer
than OMaleys Coliseum. Take away those l0 900
in Los Angeles. and it's playground far baseball
Is concerned.
That 40-foot screen only $50 feet away is a handball
wall and you know who gets the best of it. don't you?
The Dodgers, who already loaded with rghhanded
hitters and OMaey, already trying satisfy his 1858
customers in the biggest and yet smallest ball park in
the majors.
1T MIGHT BE INTERESTING to speculate as TO how
many home runs any pull hitter Of the past, IL he
playing for the Dodgers in the Coliseum might hit
Eighty for Jimmy Foxx2 Or for Hank Greenberg2
Forty for fringebig Lacquer like AL Evans who was the
ueSpar OF all tnu base coacneS with MS neS down the
line while with the Senator's from 1899 through 1850
In our lifetime let's face 1t there won't be
any attempt to seriously limit the distances OF the fences
The club too busy counting the TO care
much If the top home-run hitter happens to play II
games in park like the Coliseum.
The fairest ball park in the Nation according to
mosc baplayers is Chicagos Comskey Park Washington
ranks we'll up but Comskey Park is $50 feet down each
line and AIS TO direct center These considered
more less ideal distances according TO most players
Comskey Park is perfect that when the people
OF Tampa built their duper ball park possibly the
best in Florida they matched the dimensions Of the Sox
park Although the Sox trained there, 1t named AL
Lopez Field.
Lopez at the time manager OF the Indians, who
trained in Arizona. The only thing TO make II perfect
was for Lopez to be managing the Sox. Now he is.