Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1958-07-31
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DRAW >, FRANCIS s1App
Before the Giant Era

ONCE UPON A TINE, quite few first basemen seemed
to have been cut from the same pattern. They were
little guys standing 5eetlO thereabot and they
nible They wore small mitts about the size of kitchen
hot-gloves, and they were wonderfully dexterous.
Joe Judge was one of this breed SO were stufy
McInns and Johnny Neun, who happened to make the
last unassisted triple play in the big leagues back in 1927
And so was LII Blue who was buried yesterday
Later there was to come succession of muscle men.
Hank Greenberg and Rudy York and Johnny Mize and
Gil Hodges and Ted Kluszewski They what looked
like lacrosse nets for mitt which partially compensated
for the agility they lacked but which the Judges and
Nouns and the Blues had in abundance.
LUZERNE ATWOOD BLUE born in Washington
on March S. 1897 Not many homegrown boys made the
big leagues Just ohand there to mind only Blue
and G. Harris Doc) White and Art Devn and Earl Clark
and Walter Beall and Paul Hines and Johnny Klppstein
There others, of course.
Blue and White and Devlin were above average major
leaguers Clark wasn't bad He served years with
the old Boston Braves and with the st. Louis Browns
While he never played in as many 100 games in any
season. he wound up with lifetime average Of .2s and
fielding record.
The record was made early in 1929 when Clark was
playing centerhed for the Braves That afternoon he
credited with IL putouts and assist for an all
time chances accepted" mark for outhelder.
Dos White was an extremely good pitcher, but Blue
also star He stay with Detroit in the spring
of 1921 which Ty Cobbs first year manager Twice
before Lu had been rejected by Cobb predecessor Hughe
Jennings.
WHEREAS JENNINGS HAD SHIPPED Blue back to the
minors Cobb named Lu his first baseman, liking his
slick fielding and his ability to bat from both sides Of the
plate Blue rewarded Cobb by hitting 3OS for l53
and became a favorite in Detroit.
Blue was to remain a Tiger for seven years before
switching to the Browns but the suspicion that Cobb
tapped strictly for his ability not for personal friend
ship Nowhere in his own autobiography, THE Tiger
Wore Spikes" does Cobb mention Blue and the rumor
is that Ty and LII didn't exactly hit 1t on.
Some say that Cobb really didn't want to be manager
and that Iris Speakers success in managing Cleveland
to a pennant in 1920 whetted Tys appetite What his
arch-rival could do Cobb could do.
One thing Ty was doing was giving investment tips
to his friends Buy few hundred shares of Coca-Coa
advised the Georgian, loyal to his home State And
after you buy don't sell for little profit Forget about
1t for few years and live off it when you want to retire
Most of Cobb's friends such writers as Henry
Edwards Tiny Maxwell Fred Lieb and Jim Crusinberry
. paid attention Had listened to Ty" lamented
the late Edwards each Of could have made between
$25o0OO and 100000 by 1929"
MAYBE COBB WASN'T great manager, but he made
bundle But he couldn't Lu Blue Of being drag
on ball club Blue wasn't able to hit with Cobb He'll
Veach and Fotherg but the fans liked LUIS Fancy
Dan stun at first base And goodness knows in those days
the Detroit infelders sorry, scatter-arm crop
One Of Blues problems was to get his name spelled
correctly About 80 per cent of the baseball writers made
1t Lou" Blue Jack Keller who used to write baseball
for The Star, campaigned vigorously in behalf Of "Lu
short for Lnzerne To Keller it amounted to fetish.
In later years. when Washington had a catcher who
invariably was called Cliff Bolton, factualminded Keller
waged the fight His name Clifton, not Clifford"
he would storm the short handle has got to be Cliff
Keller fought the good fight, but you couldn't say
that he Long after he retired, Blue conducted
chicken ranch nearby Washington. Once in while HI
sent letters to sports departments, The letterheads
resignedly, began, Lou Blue :"
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