Evening Star Newspaper, May 28, 1940, Page 21

SPORTS. THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C., TUESDAY, MY 28, 1940, —21 Collapse of Olympics Fails to Deter Yankee Trackmen in Quest of Records _ SPORTS. The SPORTLIGHT Fans Fail to Realize Greatness of Ott By GRANTLAND RICE, Bpecial Correspondent of The Star, NEW YORK, May 28 (N.AN.A).— George Ade once introduced one of the finest of all slogans. It was called “Flowers for the living.” The dead neither know. nor care. If any living ballplayer is en- titled to flowers at this stage of his career the name is Melvin Thomas ©Ott of the Giants. Ott has at least one record that no other ballplayer carries today, as far as I can locate the vital statistics. Born in Gretna, La., in 1909, this young prodigy suddenly showed up with McGraw’s Giants in 1925 at the age of 16. For 16 years there has been no other city marked against his name—only New York. Mel came from the Bayou dis- trict straight to the big town. He never has played in a minor league. “This kid was a big leaguer the day he was born,” McGraw once told me. “He doesn't peed any minor league schooling. Little but Mighty, Ott Clouts With Best ‘When the young spring of 1940 came riding through gales, sleet, snow and weather blown from the Barren Lands, they said Ott was about through. He was only 31 Yyears old, but he had been around a long time. He was starting slowly under killing weather conditions, but he still was out there, hanging around. When the season opened Mel Ott still was on the job and as May moves along to June, Mel still is up around the .300 class with the old punch. Ott, at his physical peak, is 5 feet 9 inches in height, weighing from 155 to 160 pounds. He always had a queer habit of | lifting his foot from the ground as he started his swing—his right foot—and then swinging from his left as his right foot promptly set- tled back into place. It was his| own foot action. It wasn't sup-| posed to be “form,” but it must be. | For in his 15 years with the Giants, up through 1939, Ott had mauled out 369 home runs and 359 doubles. He had lashed out 2061 hits and 791 of these blows had been for extra bases. Mel Never Has Bothered About Showmanship As far back as 1928 Mel plastered | 42 home runs. He had hit 25 or more home runs through 10 or 11 years. He had hit over 30 home Tuns through seven seasons. Ott never has been interested in trying for so-called color. He never pops off. He never has tried to make 2 headline by some eccentric ac- tion. He gets into no brawls with umpires. He has no interest in be- ing a showman. “I just happen to like baseball,” he tells you. “If I'm anything at all, write me down as a ballplayer.” If Ott isn't a ballplayer, there are no ballplayers. Shy, retiring, he ducks the spotlight. But the main answer is that Mel has batted in more than 1400 runs Irom something over 2,000 hits, with | & 15-year average, up to this season, | of .315. New York Fans Fail To Appreciate Ott I don't believe the fan crowd, at large, appreciates Mel Ott. This goes for New York, especially. They take him for granted, because he never breaks training, never folds up on | the job, always plays his game to the limit. It always is “Good old Mel. He'’s alway’s there.” But not being a nut or a headline seeker, never caring to be a showman, the mob forgets how long “good old Mel” always had been there. They forget that he has lambasted over 20 home runs a year for 12 con- secutive years—that he has passed the 30 home-run mark for seven years. In addition to all this, Ott is quite an outfielder. He can cover his full share of terrain under fire. He's a ballplayer's ballplayer, even if the surging multitudes don’t quite slip him the break he deserves. Jobs Threatened, Aztecs Rally in Roller Derby Their confidence regained, the Chicago Aztecs will be out to make it two in a row over the Washing- ton Pawnees at Riverside Stadium tonight, as the roller derby series enters its second week. The Aztecs’ 11-9 victory last night -was their second in seven games. A possible shake-up of the Chi- cago team was forestalled by the form reversal, for it became known that the futuure of several players was at stake before last night'’s game started. ARE Sothat three golfers can collect from the fourth. Stopbeing the pay- off man. Better your score with & Ibetter golf ball. : Pley TRUE BLUE U.S. ROYAL Early Performances Outdoors Indicate Bevy of Marks High Jump, 440 and Mile Standards Picked as Most Vulnerable By LAWRENCE PERRY. NEW YORK, May 28—In the spring running of track athletes evidence accumulates showing that the calling off of the Olympic games has mitigated neither their ardor nor their speed. In particular, the achievement of Gordon Kemmer, University of California, in turning in a 47-second quarter recently, has reminded track enthusiasts of the fact that the mile run is not the only record likely to be broken in the future. Kemmer is a freshman and his time was so close to Ben Eastman’s 464 world record as to warrant belief it will be trodden under the Californian’s swift feet before he has been graduated. Then, Eddie Morris, Huntington Beach High, in California, has been running the century in .09.5—the world record is .09.4—this spring and the furlong in .20.9, the world mark being .203. What will this lad do when he is older and in college? So with Harold Davis, a first-year student in junior college at Salinas, Calif. He is turning in .09.6 in the century and .20.7 in the furlong. Mehl Shows Great Promise. Nor should some of the more established runners be overlooked— Walter Mehl, for instance, who sprang an upset at Los Angeles the other day in beating Greg Rice in the 2-mile run, time 9:0138, thereby repeating a previous upset at Memphis in approximately the same time. Running such as this so early in the season is really extraordinary when you consider that the best time made last year for the out- door 2-mile was Greg Rice's 9:02.6. It is the more amazing because for some reason it is much easier to flirt with 9 minutes and under on indoor tracks than upon uncovered cinders. Of course, there is Maki’s world outdoor record, 8:532, but that 5 a blazing exception to the rule that athletes make easier work of the distance under roof than al fresco. Rice and Mehl, by the way, are likely to run in the Prince- ton invitation meet. Chuch Fenske's 4:08% at the re- cent Cotton Bowl meet also was ex- tremely significant. Add to the fore- going citations the current high-‘ jumping feats of Steers and Wilson of Southern California. Both these athletes already are jumping in the vicinity of the world record, 6 feet| 9% inches, and are earnestly in quest of 6 feet 10 inches. Finally, there is Al Blozis of Georgetown, who broke the word 16- pound shot-put record every. time he | competed indoors last wintér and is | preparing to duplicate these feats in the open. California Leapers Keen. Col. Bill Hayward, track coach at the University of Oregon and one of the leading figures in the sport over a period of 38 years, believes that of all events in track, records in the high jump, the quarter and the mile will be the first to go. In thinking the present high jump soon | will fall no doubt he had the pair | of California leapers in mind, just as he was thinking of young Kem- | mer in relation to the 440. | Concerning the mile, Col. Hay- | ward, talking to L. H. Gregory of | Portland, had some interesting things to say: | “In the quarter it’s spring speed | plus condition,” he explained. “The quarter mile is a sprint rather than a run, and sprinters don’t get faster with age. Furthermore, only in college is a sprinter likely to reach that peak of perfect condition the man must have who betters 464 seconds, for only in college can he obtain the supervised training to put him in such condition. But the mile is different. It's a run, and en- durance counts there. Athletes do gain in endurance as they grow older, up to a certain point, and grown in America. All GOLF BALLS Ask your Pro A WINNING NUCLEUS—Landon School’s green and inexperienced baseball squad failed to accomplish much this season, but the lads out that way are saying “Wait till next year.” And here are three of the reasons: Paul Baker (left) and John Sager, who did most of the pitching, and Coach Bill Nelligan (right), who'll be on the job again in 1941. ~—Star Staff Photo. Unsung Marty Kuntz,G. U. Prep Netman, Takes Unnoticed and unsung even by his own teammates, although un- beaten in competition this year, chunky little Marty Kuntz of Georgetown Prep climaxed a stellar spring tennis season for himself yesterday wher;'he won the prep school singles championship by de- feating Crandall Alford of Landon in straight sets, 6—3, 6—3, 6—3. Although No. 2 on the Prep team, Kuntz wasn't even seeded in the tournament which started nearly two weeks ago at Garrett Park even though he had won every singles match in which his team was en- League Crown gaged in dual competition this spring. Kuntz didn’t wait until yesterday to prove the dopesters wrong, for in the semifinals of the tournament he whipped his teammate, Hal Titus, who not only had played No. 1 on the Prep team this season but was seeded No. 1 in the competition. Alford extended him throughout yesterday's match with long, sus- tained rallies, but in the end Kuntz's superior speed and clever | footwork decided the issue. * Eighteen years old, the new champion will graduate from the Prep next month. 100 M.P.H. Club Picks Miller as President BY the Associated Press. INDIANAPOLIS, May 28—Chet Miller, Detroit race driver, has been elected president of the “100-Mile- an-Hour” Club, composed of men who have driven the entire 500 miles of ‘an Indianapolis Motor Speedway race at 100 miles an hour or more, Miller succeeds Zeke Meyer of Philadelphia. Louis Meyer of Huntington Park, Calif., was named vice president, succeeding Ted Horn of Hawthorne, N. J. Maryland Aces Booking Maryland Aces are seeking a double-header Memorial Day with a strong unlimited nine. Call Buck Nairn, Capitol Heights 675. few milers reach the endurance peak at coMege ages. That’s why vir- tually all the very great milers have been older men. “For this reason I expect the new mile record-breaker, whoever he is, to be at least two years, prob- ably more, past college age. “To what I have said add that the competition must be there. The closer and more spirited this is, the more likelihood of records.” Pole vault above 15 feet? Per- haps, says Hayward. “What hap- pens after 15 feet in the pole vault is as much up to the pole as to the vaulter. The possibilities of bamboo poles have just about reached a limit.” T LAZORA’S rich, mild bouquet grows on you. It’s different—a new experience in smoking satisface tion. Pleasure pyramidswith each successive smoke. Magnificent quality—the sort you expect to find only in cigars at 10 cents and up. Choicest shade grown wrapper—the costliest leaf long filler. And beautifully made for a cool, even, long burning smoke. Try La Azora—today. MREEET G.H.P. Cigas f o Major Leaders By the Assoclated Press. American League. Batting—Radcliff, St. Louis, 403; Hayes, Philadelphia, .398. Runs—Case, W n, 32; Moses, Philadelphia, 30. Rung_batted in—Foxx, Boston, 39; » Washington, 29. Hits—Radcliff, St. Louis, 50; Cramer, Boston, 49. Doubles—Hack ard Boudreau, Cleveland, 13. Triples—Finney, Boston, 5; Judnich, St. Louis, and Lewis, Washington, 4 Home runs—Foxx, Boston, 11; Trosky, Cleveland, 10. Stolen bases—Case. Washing- ton, 14; Walker, Washington, 6. Pitching—Newsom Detroit, and Milnar, Cleveland, 5-1. National League. Batting—Danning, New York, .393; Walker, Brooklyn, .388. Runs—Mize, St. Louis, ‘Werber, Cincinnati, 24. Runs batted in—Duanning, New York, 31; Leiber, Chicago, 29. Hits—Danning, New York, and Leiber, Chicago, 43. - Doubles—Werber, Cincinnati, 9; six tied with 8. ‘Triples—Ross, Boston, 6; Ca- milli, Brooklyn, 4. Home runs—Mize, St. Louis, 12; Danning, New York, 7. Stolen bases—Frey, Cincinnati, « 8; Reese, Brooklyn, 4. Pitching—Walters, Cincinnati, 7-0; Melton, Giants, 4-1. 25; Cubs Seek Shortstop To Give Them Fair ChanceatFlag - Miller of Bees Liked, But Wrigley Refuses To Pay High Price By the Associated Press. CHICAGO, May 28—The Chicago Cubs, realizing that they might get into the National League flag chase with a reliable shortstop, still are looking for & successor to Bill Jurges. Jurges, you may remember, was the last fancy shortstop the Cubs employed, and they let him get away after the 1938 season in a trade with the New York Giants. Gabby Hartnett’s crew has tried major leaguers and minor leaguers since Jurges joined the Giants, but there’s still a gap in the Cub infield. Bees Cling to Miller. Clarence Rowland, chief Cub scout, went East with the Cubs two weeks 8go to try to pry little Eddie Miller loose from the Boston Bees, but has drawn a blank so far. The price on Miller, in cash and players, has been too steep. Eddie, a smooth flelder and fair hitter, might well put the Cubs in the race. Miller, 24 years old, broke in with the Bees a year ago and was a sen- sation in 77 games before he broke his leg. His defensive work was superb and he batted 267. This year he’s been hitting much more con- sistently and fielding brilliantly. Since Jurges left, the Cubs have had four shortstops, but none has filled the bill. Dick Bartell, obtained in the Jurges trade, and Bobby Mat- tick were the Cub shortstops in 1939. Wrigley Wary of Stars. This year the Cubs have had three men at the spot—Bob Stur- geon, Mattick and Bill Rogell, the latter obtained from Detroit for Bartell. Sturgeon, 19 - year - old rookie, started at short, but soon was shipped to. Jersey City. The 35-year-old Rogell was given a try and now Mattick is back in there. Owner Phil Wrigley doubtless is wary of turning loose a bundle of cash for Miller or any other star. He needs a shortstop, but in the past he has had several bitter ex- periences in trying to buy a top- flight performer—Dizzy Dean and Chuck Klein being two of the many who were stars elsewhere, but flops with the Cubs. Red Sox in Double Bill Virginia Red Sox will play a double-header Memorial Day with Nolan at Baileys Cross Roads, start- ing at 1:30. Red Sox players are urged to call Coach Denterman, Columbia 6941. Landon Nine, Built This Year, Holds High Hopes for 1941; Drops Final to Bethesda Landon’s baseball team today looked forward to next year when all but two of its regulars will be back determined to improve on the 1940 season which closed yesterday with a 3-to-2 loss in 7 innings to Bethesda-Chevy Chase at Garrett Park. This year the team won 2 and lost 7 games. Starting the year with one of the greenest and smallest squads in this sector, Bill Nelligan, 23-year-old coach, had problems galore and it was sometime before he could de- velope a stable line-up. Nelligan, former Willilams College outfielder who refused an offer from the St. Louis Cardinals to workout this spring, prefering to teach rather than have a trial with the big leaguers, recently received an offer from Hartford of the Eastern League to play this summer and is giving it serious consideration. Had to Develop Pitchers. Only a handful of boys reported to Nelligan when the first call for material was sounded. There wasn’t a pitcher in the lot, so Nelligan turned to Paul Baker, football and basket ball star, for help. Baker learned rapidly and finally managed to ovetcome his main fault—wild- ness. In yesterday's game he walked two, a new low for the season. After an ailing arm kept Bob Kephart from shining as a catcher, Chuck Boteler, regarded as the best player on the team, came in from centerfield to receive. This caused a shift of Bob Hill from right field to center and Kephart went to right. The changes worked out satisfactorily, especially behind the plate, where Boteler starred. For a while Chuck was hitting over .500 but finished at about .330. N\ George Perkins, who, along with Hill, are the only regulars certain to be missing next year, took over the first baseman’s job until the tennis team called Shortstop Crandall Al- ford. Perkins was shifted to short and Substitute John Beattey went to first. Beattey was weak at the plate, but a capable fielder: Second base was handled through- out by Ben McKelway, a steady fielder, but streaky hitter. Many of McKelway's hits, though, were for extra bases. On third, John Sager looked bad when the season opened, but improved. His main fault was MEN'S FINE SHOES St ack sne mute: $ IS 50 maker’s finish. Charse {t! o y terms. EISEMAN'S—F at 7th letting a third strike go by. He also helped with the mound duties. Team Has a Walter Johnson. Helping Hill and Kephart in the garden was Walter Johnson (no re- lation to the former Washington pitcher), who was a flashy flelder, but weak hitter. Jack Deveraux and De Brett also saw outfield service. Both show promise for next year. Landon could do little with the brilliant hurling of Bethesda's pitch- er yesterday, Faris Mirhige, who fanned 11 and gave 3 hits. One was a home run by Baker in the first inning, which cut in half the win- ner’s early lead. After Landon tied the score’ in the second inning, Bethesda came back to tally once more in the fifth to win. o o > ©000HD0 MO ] Deeaux.rt. K'hartrf. Totals 23 324 & 200 010 0—3 110 000 0—2 Runs—Miller, Hashagan, Day, Baker, Perkins. Two-base hit—Cremins. Three- T TR TN a len bases—] er (2), Cremf Eaton. Losing pitcher—Baker. s (ORI - Y Totals 25 721 & Ghecas to Captain G. U. Lou Ghecas, Georgetown's all- District outfielder, will captain the Hoyas’ 1941 baseball team, having been selected by his teammates yes- terday. FYEAR 4 AS LOW AS 66 6.00-16 Cash price with your old tire [}1Ff Briarley Quickly Routs Charlotte Hall Nine Special Dispatch to The Star, . CHARLOTTE HALL, Md, May 28.—Briarley Military Academy is claiming the Maryland Stats mili- tary school title after beating Char- lotte Hall here yesterday in a game called at the end of the fifth in- ning due to rain. The score was 11 to 1. “Smokey” Intindola of Briarley allowed but one hit, and helped with & double and three runs. Errorless ball was played by both teams. Briarley’s victory was the second in three games with Charlotte Hall this season. BIGGEST TRADE-IN ALLOWANCES IN THE ENTIRE HISTORY OF WASHINGTONS OLDEST AUTO DISTRIBUTORS on the beautiful 1940 CHRYSLER need your car. Let us prove it. Bring it in for appraisal. JR.3 BROS. 1612 YOU ST.NW. 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