Evening Star Newspaper, December 10, 1936, Page 55

oo vews ] @he Foening Staf WASHINGTON, D. C, THURSDAY, DECEMBER 10, 1936. Features and Classified | ) PAGE D—1 Hemsley Tagged for Griffmen : Landis May Act on Feller Today BACKSTOP IS SEEN ASTRADING STOCK ‘Would Go to Cleveland for Pytlak and Hildebrand, Is Conjecture. BY FRANCIS E. STAN, Staff Corresponcent of The Star. EW YORK, December 10— Base ball's annual hog-calling and space-grabbing conven- tion passed into its final stage today with rumors still flying thick | and fast and the Washington ball club | virtually certain to be involved in a | possible series of startling happenings. Into the wee hours of this morn- ing President Clark Griffith of the Nationals and Manager Rogers Horns- by of the Browns were closeted in & two-man meeting, and it seemed likely that some time today Washington will get Catcher Rollie Hemsley and turn &t least three players over to St. Louis. If Hemsley is ticketed for Washing- ton, however, his tenure as a Senator 18 likely to be brief. Although Griffith and Manager Bucky Harris hold Hems- ley's basé ball ability in high regard, they do not admire his off-the-field activities and apparently the Cleve- land Indians do not give a hoot what Rollicking Rollie does after he doffs his uniform. At any rate, it would not be surprising if, by nightfall, Hemsley had become a member of the Wash- ington club, and then, without so | much as reporting to his Capital own- ers, bounce into the fold of the In- dians in exchange for Catcher Frankie Pytlak and Pitcher Oral Hildebrand. | Deal Is Likely Today. GRIFFITH frankly admitted early yesterday that Washington's best bet to swing a deal in addition to the Whitehill-Lee-Salveson trade was ‘with the Browns. During a “time out” at the regular American League meet- ing yesterday afternoon he made a date for 9 o'clock last night with Hornsby. Then he went out with Tom Yawkey and Joe Cronin of the Ped Sox and didn't return until nearly 11:30 o'clock, when he went into con- ference with a very impatient Mr. | Hornsby. | After an hour of conference Grif- fith stated that nothing would be an- nounced immediately, but he indicated that sometime today he may be able | to state that Hemsley is n-Natic»ml‘I as a result of a trade that involved the shipping of Cliff Bolton, Out- | fielder Jesse Hill and & pitcher to be | named to St. Louis. | Griffith refused to throw any light | on the subject of whether he will keep 1 or trade Hemsley. That will be a separate deal, as far as this corre- spondent has been able to determine. Griffith and Harris probably believe that Hemsley is a better and more durable catcher than Pytlak, but they also seem to believe that Pytlak is the more reliable of the pair. l | Griffs Sure to Profit. ¥ WASHINGTON should get Hems- ley in trade and ship him to Cleve- land for Pytlak and a pitcher, it is | likely to cause considerable discus- sion, some of it unfavorable to the ‘Washington ball club’s choice. Dur- ing the current meeting the relative merits of Hemsley and Pytlak have been brought up several times. Horns- by, naturally, has defended Hemsley, but despite the partiality to be ex- pected there was some food for thought in Rogers' argument that Hemsley, for all of his extra curricu- lar activities, is the more rugged of the pair. Still, the Washington ball club bosses prefer Pytlak, the smallest catcher in the major leagues today and s backstop who never in his big- league career has caught more than 90 games. Illness hampered him most of the time, but last year he hurdled this perennial obstacle and seemed bent upon catching the full season until Monte Pearson hit him on the Jaw with a pitched ball and broke the | mandibles in several places. Even if the Griffmen got Hemsley and clung to him, they scarcely could lose. Bolton never has fulfilled his promise, and Hill does not figure in the 1937 plans. Nor would the pitcher who would be given to St. Louis be much of a loss. Hornsby probably would ask for Ray Phebus, who ‘worked only once for Washington. If Phebus were not the hurler, it prob- ably would be a case of shunting somebody like Syd Cohen or Monte Weaver to the Browns, and this would be no great blow to Washington, “Will Fix Newsom.” RIFFITH frankly admitted this morning that he wanted to swing | the St. Louis deal far more than he | wanted to make a trade with Detroit | for Buck Newsom. If Blushing Buck | thought he was insuring his trade to some other club when he phoned | Washington newspaper men from his home in Hartsville, S. C., earlier in | the week he was dead wrong, at least according to Griff. “He came to Washington making & measly $5,000 per year,” said Griff, hot under the collar over the whole Newsom business. “He wound up by getting $11,000 last year, and he had @ record of only 17 wins and 15 de- feats. So the Washington club has done him dirt, huh? Well, I want to keep him. I've done him several favors L Meeting Our Mr. Special Dispatch to The Star. OUSE OF FALLEN ARCHES, New York, December 10.— There had been a short recess called at the American League | meeting to allow the clubowners to | put on the feed bag, and Mr. Grifith had lingered a trifile too long and was in a hurry. Just as he reached the elevator, however, a tall, husky blond boy stepped forward and in- troduced himself. By his side was | & pretty girl. The boy had heard so much of the Old Fox and was very glad to know he was going to work for Washington. Mr. G. forgot about the meeting tem- porarily, swept off his hat and engineered a bow. His eyes swept over the boy in keen appraisal and what he saw pleased him. “I'm weighing 210 pounds now, Mr. Griffith,” said Johnny Salveson, to whom the Nationals fell heir the night before in a three-cornered deal with the White ‘Sox and Indians. “I feel like I'm ready to pitch tomorrow. I wish it was time to go South.” Thinks He Can “Do It.” F JOHNNY hadn't introduced him- self, it is likely that Griff could have knocked him down without rec- ognizing him. After all, Salveson’s tenure in the American League, as a member of the White Sox, had been very brief. When he did pitch against Mr. G's team, it was done mostly in Chicago and Griff doesn't travel with the ball club. It was Bucky Harris who was most anxious to swing the Earl Whitehill-for-Salveson trade and it is quite possible that an added sense of appreciation for Harris’ | judgment swept over Griff when he‘ looked at the new National, just standing on a marble floor instead of in a pitchers’ box and wearing an Gvercoat instead of a uniform. “All I want is a chance to pitch,” Salveson said to Griff, after he had introduced the pretty girl as his wife. The missus, incidentally, strikingly resembles Mrs. Joe Cronin, ex- cept that she is a little taller. Johnny was married when he was 19, or so, and the little woman is from Scarsdale, N. Y. “I think I can do it,” Johnny was saying. “I'd like to have a chance like Jimmy De Shong got. In a way Jimmy was something like I am—a since he’s been with Washington and | he’s got the nerve to say that he got a ‘dirty deal.’” Well, I'll fix him.” Tigers Lose Interest in Buck. 'ROM the talk that is making the rounds this morning you can for- get the Newsom-to-Detroit rumor. In addition to Griff’s wanting to keep Newsom for “fixing” purposes, Man- ager Mickey Cochrane of the Tigers seems to have lost interest in Mr, New- som in view of the steadfast opinion of Griff that Buck is worth Elden Auker, Jake Wade and Pete Fox. Despite the apparently lackadaisical attitude which American League club owners seems to have taken toward the trading marts, there was a chance : today that a veritable deluge of deals would be sprung. Last night, for in- stance, Bill Werber was traded to Philadelphia from Boston for Frank Higgins and those who profess to know the “inside” of the trade mart say that Joe Cronin, who plans to play third base for the Red Sox him- self, does not intend to keep Higgins. Thus it would be reasonable to sup- pose that Cleveland would welcome getting Higgins from Boston in ex- change for Outfielder Joe Vosmik, for whom the Red Sox have been gunning ever since the meeting opened. The Boston-St. Louis deal also is supposed to be hot still. In fact, anything that happened today would come as no surprise, including no action at all. PEN AND INK PENALTIES AT ALL-SPORTS PARTY. "POPPING OFF Ytan. Johnny Salveson. fellow who never got much of a chance to start ball games.” Picks Up 30 Pounds. RIFF moved on a little later, be- cause Will Harridge was “ahem- ing” just behind him and there was league business upstairs. You were left with the Salveson family and you were struck with the looks of Wash- ington club’s newest acquisition. Of course, in 1935, Salveson had pitched a few times against the Griffs and you even faintly remembered him as a Giant in 1933, when he pitched batting practice before the first Giant-Washington world series game. That, incidentally, was the only game the Nationals won in the series and Whitehill pitched it, shut- ting out the Giants. But in 1933 and even in 1935, Salveson impressed you as be- ing a tall, thin, studious-look- ing fellow. On the Monte Weaver type, you know, except that Saiveson wears glasses ‘when he pitches. When he stood in the lobby he did not look thin eor studious. He wasn't wearing his glasses and he looked as big as a house—or a streamlined Shanty Hogan. “I picked up 30 pounds since 1935, he explained. “Of course, when I start pitching, I'll weigh about 190 or 192, stripped. But that’s fine for me. When I was given trials with | the Giants and Pirates, I was a | skinny kid and I guess they were right | when they said I didn’t have much | of a fast ball. I think that by now I'm ready to show my best pitching | and I hope that's good enough.” Case Parallels De Shong’s. JOHNNY'S reference to Jimmy De | their pitching careers strike a parallel. Jimmy, y'’know, was cut loose by the Athletics when he was just a kid and eventually the Yankees picked him up and carried him a couple of seasons. But the Yanks always had & flock of experienced pitchers on hand and never used De Shong ex- cept as a relief pitcher. Until he landed with Washington, Jimmy did little regular pitching outside of a full season on the Pacific Coast League, where he won 19 games. ‘Then he came-to the Washa ingtons in a trade a year ago. Griff and Harris gave up an established pitcher, Bump Had- ley, for him and everybody won- dered why. De Shong showed them by winning 18 games, or more than anybody eise on the Washington team won. Salveson was turned back by both the Giants and Pirates, in addition to the White Sox. His history, briefly, is that he graduated from the Long Beach, Calif., Junior College at & ten- der age and wanted to play profes- sional ball. At the time, the big West Coast colleges, California, Southern California, U. C. L. A. and others were after him but Johnny had an uncle who once played shortstop for Portland in the Pacific Coast League and he prevailed upon him to get him & major league trial. Last of McGraw’s Pitchers. ONB of the teammates of Johnny's uncle was Dave Bancroft, who was scouting for the Giants at the time Salveson wanted his trial. Ban- | croft asked John McGraw to look at | Johnny and the new Nat became the last pitcher to be signed by the “Lit- tle Napoleon.” At the time Johnny was only 17 years old. The Giants took him on but Bill Terry, who replaced McGraw as man- ager of the New Yorks, saw a chance thought Chagnon had the makings of a great pitcher and that he knew just what Chagnon ought to have known to fulfill his promise. So, No Player Worth $200,000, Says Buc Head Rickey May Be Forced to Lower Price on Dean to Save Face—Derringer in Demnnc!. BY SCOTTY RESTON. EW YORK, December 10 (#)—Heard at the major loague meetings: Jimmy Dykes, White Sox manager, offers this solution for the lack of trading: “They should hold these meetings right after the world series. Everybody forgets how Jousy his ball club is by December” . . . President Lou Comiskey of the ‘White Sox and Burt Shotton, man- ager of the Columbus Red Birds, have been in bed with flu ever since the start of the meetings .. . Club owners may abolish what re- mains of the major-minor league sgreement next year and allow major league officials to sign sand- lot players to major league con- tracts . . . Said Bill Benswanger, president of the Pirates: “No ball player is worth $200,000, not even Dean” ... Job-hunters at the meetings: Sid Weil, former president of the UNNING out of the field at the left, we find Lieut. Tommy of the United States Naval Academy—the Middies’ mentor is irked considerably by a random comment about interference with the plate receivers. His dash for the goal is blocked securely by our own Goldie Ahearn, who is slightly off-side at the moment, but a neat glay is being worked out between the Department of Justice ead coach and Hoya Jack Hagerty. Not'that the Cardinals’ Dutch intends any slight by turning his back on the con- Jerence, but he has worked so hard on the Touchdown Club’s over training table menu that he is too tired to stiff-arm | President McGovern and wise-cracking Crowley, who have just executed a slick end -run around Bergman’s secondary vocabulary. Eddie La Fond has called in Bill Guckeyson to support his decision that “Sleepy Jim” should be penalized Jor holding everybody’s attention, and behind the Fordham Battering Rams’ big chief, N. B. C’s Bill Coyle, in new mustache and hard-boiled shirt, listens to Speedboat Mel Crook bemoan the fact that so much gas is being wasted in the Willard ball room. Senator Pat McCarran seems to have a flock of words left over from his after-dinner speech—just a common failing of many in his line of work—so he is tossing a wide lateral to Bucky Harris—Bucky being fresh off the train from the major league powwow in Manhattan evidently is not the intended receiver, as he feigns attention while really thinking up a new pep talk for Cochrane about that Newsom-for-the-Tigers deal. Astor Clarke, the big-shot duck- pin dropper, is a sure strike to spare the Senator any embarrassment by cutting in on a reverse to Walter P. Johnson, the gentleman farmer from up Maryland way. The latter thinks sports banquets are very fine and all that sort of thing, but he wonders if the cows were put to bed at their regular time—J. T. B. < LANNED as a sports parade, the first annual all-sports banquet sponsored by the Touchdown Club last night at the Willard | was more a personal triumph for Jim Crowley, Fordham University’s foot | ball coach. Jim, noted wit and willing | talker, stole the show and the more than 500 at the tables roared their approval. Introduced by Dinner Chairman Johnny McGovern, the first all-Amer- ica back ever turned out by Minnesota, after a brief address by Senator Pat McCarran of Nevada, Crowley poked fun at his many fellow foot ball men- tors around the festive board and de- lighted with his relation of experiences as & member of Notre Dame's famed “four horsemen.” His best yarn had to do with the eleven on the eve of an Army game in New York by the late Knute Rockne. According to Crowley, Rock took to task the players, position by position, reminding them they had “looked pitiful all year and must crack down.” Even that “sterling Irish quarterback, Stuhldreher,” wasn't spared. when the Pirates offered to trade Chagron to the Giants, Terry ac- ceded to the Pittsburghers’ wishes and Sports Program Shong seems most timely. Verily, | included Salveson in the deal. Johnny saw little action with Pittsburgh, but when the Pi- rates wanted Outfielder Hafey of the White Sox the cagey Jimmy Dykes asked for Salve- son in exchange, he got him but used him little. Dykes, after all, has probably the best slab staff in the American League. Johnny finally went to Los Angeles of the Coast League last year. He did not report until May 15 but he won 21 games and lost only 7. He's got a great curve, just as De Shong has a good fast ball. And, as Har- ris put it the other day, “How many pitchers on the Washington club do | you think can go into the Coast League and win 21 games?” That really is food for thought. For Local Fans TODAY. Wrestling. Clff Olson vs. Matros Kirilenko, feature match, Turner's Arena, 8:30. All the regulars were pretty sheepish from Rock’s tirade when it came Crowley’s turn for the going-over. “And Mr. Crowley,” asked Rock (It’s the Crowley version), “will you play at right half for us today?” ‘What serious angle there was to the speech-making was provided by Sena- tor McCarran in his declaration that upon America apparently rests the re- sponsibility of teaching the world sportsmanship, “Whenever s nation gives time and attention to good, clean athletics that nation is safe from all the ravages of malcontent,” said the Senator. “Too much play may be wrong, but too little is worse.” Outstanding athletes and teams of the Capital area received rewards. To Ben Chapman, outfielder, voted the Nationals’ most valuable player, went SPORT CENTER Christmas Gift Sale! man 40% OFF KATE ano UTFITS MODELS FOR MEN, BOYS and GIRLS TOMORROW. Basket Ball. Bethesda-Chevy Chase High vs, ‘Western, Western gym, 3:30. American University vs. Johns Hopkins, Baltimore, Md. Wilson Teachers vs. Kutztown ‘Teachers, Kutztown, Pa. Georgetown Prep, at Maryland School for the Deaf. SATURDAY. Basket Ball. Southeastern University vs. Mount St. Mary’s, Emmitsburg, Md. sport Cen‘er CHRISTMAS Safll SHOE WOMEN, ICE SKATE scQUTFITS SHOE Regularly $6.00 J.44 To hundreds of Washingtonians there is only one place for ice skate outfits and that is The Sport Center. The reason is that The Sport Center consistently scores with ice skate values that are truly phe- momenal. A typical example is the fa- mous outfit offered here. Genuine Union Hardware tubular skates securely riveted to shoes made of specially tanned, weather-resisting leather, with many fea- tures seldom found in ice skate outfits at this price. Get a pair for yourself—put them on your Christmas gift list. OPEN NITES °TIL 8 P.M. ... . OPEN SAT. NITE 'TIL 0! SPORT CENTER 8th & D STREETS N.W. Free Parking . . . Phone Metropolitan 6444 Guaranteed for one year against defects in workman- ship or ma- te: 50c WOCL SKATING SOCKS 25¢ Plain and Fancy Colors with White or Fancy Tops STRAND & NORTHLAND SKIS Made in Maine and Designed by the Champions! Ski Boots, $3.95 up! - Ski Harness, $2.50 up! ~—By JIM BERRYMAN. & J wn.u:usn;-.-.. Jim Crowley Is “Show Stealer” At Capital’s All-S ports Dinner the Herald watch; Bill Guckeyson, Maryland's great halfback, received the Post plaque as the finest foot ball player among the local college group; to J. Edgar Hoover, chief of the Fed- eral Bureau of Investigation, was pre- sented the Post cup emblematic of the city sandlot base ball championship won by the Investigation nine; Bill Kemp, Eastern center, was given the Times trophy as the most valuable player in the public high school foot ball title series; Leroy Wipzke of Maryland, Jimmy Gemlo of Catholic University, Billy Burke of Georgetown, Emanuel Johnson of George Washing- ton, Leon Auerback of Gallaudet and Herman Winkler of American Univer- sity got Viner trophies as the most deserving scrubs of their foot ball dressing down of the Notre Dame | squads. Nationally-known figures in base | ball, foot ball, tennis, golf, soccer, | swimming, boxing, wrestling, bowling | and the turf worlds were among the | guests. - High spots of important foot ball | games were pictured. The entertain- ment was unfortunately curtailed be- | cause of a misunderstanding with the | Musicians’ Union, but the crowd didn't bother. It had Crowley and he was a show in himself. STUDY GAMECOCK SPORTS. COLUMBIA, S. C., December 10 (P).—~Trustees of the University of South Carolina have authorized a thorough study of the athletic and physical education situation at the institution, but made no announce- ment on the matter of contracts for Head Foot Ball Coach Don McAllister | and his assistants. CASH before you UDGE IN HOTTEST PO IN 16 YEARS Door Is Open to Others if Tribe Hurler Is Ruled Free Agent. BY PAUL MICKELSON. EW YORK, December 10 (#).~ Base ball overlooked even the great Dizzy Dean today and gazed at a hard-boiled man of 70, Commissioner Kenesaw M. Landis, for his long-awaited decision on the strange case of Bob Feller. The gray-thatched czar of base ball had one of two apparent decisions to render: To declare Feller a free agent or to rule him the property of the Cleveland Indians. However, no one knew for sure whether Landis would rule in the case of the sensational schoolboy pitcher today or wait until some colder day in January. The prevailing guess was he would act today. The commissioner definitely was on the hottest spot of his 16 years of czaring. Other Players Concerned. HOULD he rule Feller a free agent he would open automatically the doors for at least 20 other well known | major league stars, who would like nothing better than to be free agents on identical grounds of minor-major rule violations so they could sell their | services to the highest bidders. If he doesn’t rule Feller a free agent, the gruff commissioner wouid be ace | cused of overlooking rule violations if | for no other reason than that Feller was signed at the age of 15, whereas Landis consistently has refused to | recognize any contract signed by a player under 17. It was such a mess that many figured the commissioner would rule Feller the property of Cleveland and | then resign his office with the admoni- | tion that they needed his counsel no | longer. | Cleveland bases its claim to Feller |on the grounds that while it might have made a mess out of his cone tractual papers that it was above boerd on the contract and that Feller did sign a minor league contract with Fargo-Moorhead of the Northern League, as required. Rickey Waits in Vain. THE super base ball sale of Dean remained in status quo. Branch Rickey, vice president of the Cardie nals, stuck by his hotel telephone until last midnight for a call, supposedly from the Pittsburgh Pirates, but the | call never came, l “It looks like no deal” said Rickey, “but I just had a call from Manager Frank Frisch and he has given me | another idea. Maybe Il peddle Mr. | Dean by tomorrow night.” | ‘The Pirates were regarded as the | hottest seekers of the great Dizzy, al- though many insisted Dean already (See LANDIS, Page D-2.) Be Sure and Get My PRIGE buy TIRES Why pay more when | can save you $3 to $7 on the world’s finest first-line tires. Thous- ands of Washington motorists have learned that my CASH POLICY makes this saving pos- sible! | buy for cash . . . | sell for cash. I have no expensive bookkeeping systems. No in- terest charges to pay! Inves . no collectors ate before you buy! Get my price . . . see my tires before you decide CHOICE OF WORLD’S BEST FIR *GOODYEAR G 3 * FIRESTONE * GOODRICH Gum Dipped High Speed Safety ivertown * U. 8. ROYALS * KELLY-SPRINGFIELD All First-Line Tires SAVE 30% te 50% $1335 ALL SIZES, BUT NOT EVERY SIZE IN EVERY MAKE ] Y BEN HIU 4 A 3446 14th St N.W. e IRES you an extrs allowance off depending on their condition. Low 'NDLEY 621 Penna. 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