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Jiggs McGee · 03-01-2022, 09:45 AM

JUNE 9, 1941

GOOD NEWS, BAD NEWS WEEK FOR MINUTEMEN

The Boston Minutemen went 5-2 over the past week and increased their lead atop the Federal Association to 4 games. That 4 game bulge on both New York and Detroit is the largest lead any Fed team has enjoyed all season. The Minutemen have been hot of late, winning 14 of their last 18 including taking 2 of 3 on the road against both the Gothams and the Dynamos over the past 10 days. Things seem to be looking up for the Minutemen, or at least they were until the club received word last week that first baseman Bob Donoghue (.267,4,21) is back on the injury list. It is Donoghue's knee again, something that has given him lots of problems in the past, and this time the man known as 'Mr. Clout' in New England will miss at least two months.

Injuries are nothing new to Donoghue but he had stayed relatively healthy each of the past two seasons and it is no coincidence they were also the best years of the 28 year old's career. This year has been a different story as Donoghue missed most of spring training and the first two weeks of the season with knee troubles. After he returned to the lineup in late April he struggled. Meanwhile, Art Spencer (.349,2,15), a natural second baseman, was doing a terrific job filling in for Donoghue at first and spelling the underachieving Mack Sutton (.188,5,18) at third. If Spencer can keep up his performance the Minutemen might just be okay until their slugging first baseman returns, especially with second year outfielder Bill Burkett (.350,9,36) suddenly turning into a power hitter. Boston leads the Fed in runs scored, something one would not have thought possible with Donoghue and Sutton playing the way they are. The Minutemen also lead the Fed in fewest runs allowed, with veteran Ed Wood (8-1, 2.30) and rookie Ray Dalpman (7-0, 2.86) leading the way, as the club tries to snap a 27 year pennant drought.

MCCULLOUGH DEFERMENT REQUEST DENIED

Bad news for the Cincinnati Cannons as the club learned this week that the draft board in Newark, New Jersey has declined infielder Charley McCullough's request for a deferral on financial grounds. The 25 year old McCullough, who is in the midst of the best season of his career, is single but supports his ailing father, his mother and two younger siblings. The board denied it, citing McCullough's sizeable savings from his baseball career as sufficient money to support his dependents. McCullough does plan on going to Newark and meet the draft board in person and has a hearing set for the day after the all-star game. If McCullough is required to report for service it will likely be by the end of July.

DRAFT BOARD CALLS CHIEFS OUTFIELDER JONES AGAIN

Selective Service officials disclosed this week that William B. 'Bill' Jones, Chicago Chiefs outfielder, has been asked to submit for re-examination by his local draft board in Plainfield, Il., as his case has been reopened. Jones had a low Selective Service number but was deferred because of a dental deficiency. The re-examination reportedly was ordered because of a change in Selective Service dental requirements. The 29 year old is in his fourth season with the Chiefs but has appeared in just 13 games this season while batting .194.

QUICK HITS

Trivia question. The single season leader for pitching wins at George Fox University is closing in on his 1,000 career FABL game. Can you name the player? Answer at the bottom of quick hits.
It was a bad week for serious injuries. First Boston loses Bob Donoghue for 2 months and then a pair of pitchers go down. Veteran Montreal hurler Ed Baker (2-9, 5.07) is done for the year and perhaps his big league days are over after he blew out his elbow on Friday and two days later the Sailors Paul Richardson (0-1, 5.02) saw his season come to an end with an injury to his elbow. And this just a week after Washington's Eddie Bloom (3-3, 4.23) suffered a hamstring strain that will sideline the 33 year old for up to 3 months.
Lost in the excitement of Bob Donoghue's injury was the fact that the Fed leading Boston Minutemen will also have to play without young second baseman Buddy Schneider (.335,0,18) for a week after he got hurt Saturday in a win over the Chicago Chiefs.
Tough week for the Gothams as they dropped 4 straight and went just 2-5 over the past 7 days. The slumping Keystones, in the midst of a 5-12 stretch, scored 10 runs in back to back games off of New York pitching.
Some in the New York media feel the Stars are struggling and they were a couple of weeks ago when they dropped 6 straight to Cincinnati and Chicago, but since beating the Cougars in the finale of their 5 game series the New Yorkers have won 9 of their last 14 in a stretch that included 3 twin bills. Meanwhile, the second place Cougars are just 6-5 including that loss in the finale against the Stars.
Pitching depth, which a lack of was expected to be their downfall this season after trading George Phillips to Pittsburgh and losing Dixie Lee to the army, has not been a problem in New York. They demonstrated that through a tough stretch that saw them play 12 games in the last 10 days. The Stars have allowed the fewest runs against in the CA and have 7 pitchers who have thrown at least 30 innings and all have an era below 3.00
What has happened to George Phillips? The ex-Stars hurler looked great in spring training and has been solid the past three seasons but is just 1-9 with a 4.69 era for the Miners this season. He looked great in a complete game shutout of Philadelphia in his second start but is 0-7 with a 5.69 era since May 1st. At least Charlie Stedman (5-3, 2.17) and Karl Johnson (5-4, 3.70) are winning some games in Pittsburgh as Tom Barrell (3-4, 5.62) and even Lefty Allen (4-6, 3.98) are also struggling to earn some W's.
It's been a month now since Fred McCormick left for the army and the Toronto Wolves have gone 13-17 in that span. With 7 of those losses in extra innings and an 8th by just one run, you have to wonder if the defending champs would be much closer to .500 with their star 1B still in the fold. It has been a struggle for Toronto all season but you can't blame Ockie Holliday (.286,2,16). The 25 year old was promoted to replace McCormick on the roster and has had a pretty solid first month as a big leaguer.
Glen Sexton started his major league career with the Keystones by going 0-for-11, but his first major league hit was a big one, a 2-run single off the Gothams Gus Goulding to open the scoring in a 10-6 win over New York. The hit has been his only hit in 20 at-bats. Sexton was splitting time with Chet McCormick in AAA Louisville where he was hitting .375 in 56 at-bats. Meanwhile, McCormick has continued to excel in AAA, slashing .333/.380/.490 in 153 at-bats, so he will likely get a promotion shortly. Both catchers are considered prospects, but you have to give some credit to Keystones catching great Carl Ames. Ames was signed to a minor league contract on April 30th after not making the major league club and since Ames reported to Louisville, McCormick has hit .352 (38-for-108), while Sexton hit .349 (15-for-43) before his call-up.
The AAA Union League has only seen 11 no-hitters in it's 35 year history but nearly half of them have been thrown by Louisville Derbies pitchers. Tim Walters was the latest as the 36 year old career minor leaguer notched the 5th no-hitter in Derbies history by beating Richmond last week. Walters has been in the Keystones system since 1925 but has never made it to the big leagues.
Trivia answer. A trick question as the answer is current Detroit Dynamos outfielder Rip Curry. a two-way player in college, Curry went 19-8 over three seasons with the Reds including an 11-1 season in 1929. The AIAA record for wins in a season is 12, so Curry is in a large group that was one shy of that mark. He never pitched as a professional player.

The Week That Was
Current events from the week ending 6/08/1941

in an unexpected meeting Hitler and Mussolini discussed plans for "final liquidation" of the British Empire in a conference at Brenner Pass. To include active French collaboration against England Hitler asked Mussolini to 'make sacrifices' in his territorial demands upon France. They also discussed plans for the next step of the war and the possible effects of enhanced American aid to Britain.
President Roosevelt signed the mandatory priorities bill giving the Government legal authority to subordinate civilian needs completely in the interest of national defense. It requires industry to produce first the things the government tells it to, and without protest.
FDR threatened to send in US troops to break the strike at a California plant tasked with manufacturing planes and vowed to take similar drastic action to end defense work stoppages during the unlimited national emergency.
The US Navy says it has the world's most powerful and heavily armored fleet and is ready for war if need be although the second ocean part of the "two-ocean" Navy still is in the making. The Army feels it needs another year as many of it's men are still green and up to date tanks and artillery are just beginning to come out of the factories.
A usually reliable Soviet source claims Italy and Germany have completed an ambitious plan designed to attack and overwhelm the Panama Canal. The information suggests the US keep a close eye on Germany merchant vessels which recently have cleared South American ports, saying they could be transformed into armed raiders on the high seas.
Portugal expects a Nazi invasion and does not intend to put up any defense. Much of the Portuguese army has been sent to the Azores and other Portuguese possessions and important government documents have been sent out of the country in anticipation of a Nazi invasion.
ex-Kaiser Wilhelm II, last of the German emperors and driving force of the last war, died this week in Holland where he had been living in exile. He was 82.

03-01-2022, 09:45 AM	#368
Jiggs McGee All Star Reserve Join Date: Dec 2019 Posts: 677	June 9, 1941 JUNE 9, 1941 GOOD NEWS, BAD NEWS WEEK FOR MINUTEMEN The Boston Minutemen went 5-2 over the past week and increased their lead atop the Federal Association to 4 games. That 4 game bulge on both New York and Detroit is the largest lead any Fed team has enjoyed all season. The Minutemen have been hot of late, winning 14 of their last 18 including taking 2 of 3 on the road against both the Gothams and the Dynamos over the past 10 days. Things seem to be looking up for the Minutemen, or at least they were until the club received word last week that first baseman Bob Donoghue (.267,4,21) is back on the injury list. It is Donoghue's knee again, something that has given him lots of problems in the past, and this time the man known as 'Mr. Clout' in New England will miss at least two months. Injuries are nothing new to Donoghue but he had stayed relatively healthy each of the past two seasons and it is no coincidence they were also the best years of the 28 year old's career. This year has been a different story as Donoghue missed most of spring training and the first two weeks of the season with knee troubles. After he returned to the lineup in late April he struggled. Meanwhile, Art Spencer (.349,2,15), a natural second baseman, was doing a terrific job filling in for Donoghue at first and spelling the underachieving Mack Sutton (.188,5,18) at third. If Spencer can keep up his performance the Minutemen might just be okay until their slugging first baseman returns, especially with second year outfielder Bill Burkett (.350,9,36) suddenly turning into a power hitter. Boston leads the Fed in runs scored, something one would not have thought possible with Donoghue and Sutton playing the way they are. The Minutemen also lead the Fed in fewest runs allowed, with veteran Ed Wood (8-1, 2.30) and rookie Ray Dalpman (7-0, 2.86) leading the way, as the club tries to snap a 27 year pennant drought. MCCULLOUGH DEFERMENT REQUEST DENIED Bad news for the Cincinnati Cannons as the club learned this week that the draft board in Newark, New Jersey has declined infielder Charley McCullough's request for a deferral on financial grounds. The 25 year old McCullough, who is in the midst of the best season of his career, is single but supports his ailing father, his mother and two younger siblings. The board denied it, citing McCullough's sizeable savings from his baseball career as sufficient money to support his dependents. McCullough does plan on going to Newark and meet the draft board in person and has a hearing set for the day after the all-star game. If McCullough is required to report for service it will likely be by the end of July. DRAFT BOARD CALLS CHIEFS OUTFIELDER JONES AGAIN Selective Service officials disclosed this week that William B. 'Bill' Jones, Chicago Chiefs outfielder, has been asked to submit for re-examination by his local draft board in Plainfield, Il., as his case has been reopened. Jones had a low Selective Service number but was deferred because of a dental deficiency. The re-examination reportedly was ordered because of a change in Selective Service dental requirements. The 29 year old is in his fourth season with the Chiefs but has appeared in just 13 games this season while batting .194. QUICK HITS Trivia question. The single season leader for pitching wins at George Fox University is closing in on his 1,000 career FABL game. Can you name the player? Answer at the bottom of quick hits. It was a bad week for serious injuries. First Boston loses Bob Donoghue for 2 months and then a pair of pitchers go down. Veteran Montreal hurler Ed Baker (2-9, 5.07) is done for the year and perhaps his big league days are over after he blew out his elbow on Friday and two days later the Sailors Paul Richardson (0-1, 5.02) saw his season come to an end with an injury to his elbow. And this just a week after Washington's Eddie Bloom (3-3, 4.23) suffered a hamstring strain that will sideline the 33 year old for up to 3 months. Lost in the excitement of Bob Donoghue's injury was the fact that the Fed leading Boston Minutemen will also have to play without young second baseman Buddy Schneider (.335,0,18) for a week after he got hurt Saturday in a win over the Chicago Chiefs. Tough week for the Gothams as they dropped 4 straight and went just 2-5 over the past 7 days. The slumping Keystones, in the midst of a 5-12 stretch, scored 10 runs in back to back games off of New York pitching. Some in the New York media feel the Stars are struggling and they were a couple of weeks ago when they dropped 6 straight to Cincinnati and Chicago, but since beating the Cougars in the finale of their 5 game series the New Yorkers have won 9 of their last 14 in a stretch that included 3 twin bills. Meanwhile, the second place Cougars are just 6-5 including that loss in the finale against the Stars. Pitching depth, which a lack of was expected to be their downfall this season after trading George Phillips to Pittsburgh and losing Dixie Lee to the army, has not been a problem in New York. They demonstrated that through a tough stretch that saw them play 12 games in the last 10 days. The Stars have allowed the fewest runs against in the CA and have 7 pitchers who have thrown at least 30 innings and all have an era below 3.00 What has happened to George Phillips? The ex-Stars hurler looked great in spring training and has been solid the past three seasons but is just 1-9 with a 4.69 era for the Miners this season. He looked great in a complete game shutout of Philadelphia in his second start but is 0-7 with a 5.69 era since May 1st. At least Charlie Stedman (5-3, 2.17) and Karl Johnson (5-4, 3.70) are winning some games in Pittsburgh as Tom Barrell (3-4, 5.62) and even Lefty Allen (4-6, 3.98) are also struggling to earn some W's. It's been a month now since Fred McCormick left for the army and the Toronto Wolves have gone 13-17 in that span. With 7 of those losses in extra innings and an 8th by just one run, you have to wonder if the defending champs would be much closer to .500 with their star 1B still in the fold. It has been a struggle for Toronto all season but you can't blame Ockie Holliday (.286,2,16). The 25 year old was promoted to replace McCormick on the roster and has had a pretty solid first month as a big leaguer. Glen Sexton started his major league career with the Keystones by going 0-for-11, but his first major league hit was a big one, a 2-run single off the Gothams Gus Goulding to open the scoring in a 10-6 win over New York. The hit has been his only hit in 20 at-bats. Sexton was splitting time with Chet McCormick in AAA Louisville where he was hitting .375 in 56 at-bats. Meanwhile, McCormick has continued to excel in AAA, slashing .333/.380/.490 in 153 at-bats, so he will likely get a promotion shortly. Both catchers are considered prospects, but you have to give some credit to Keystones catching great Carl Ames. Ames was signed to a minor league contract on April 30th after not making the major league club and since Ames reported to Louisville, McCormick has hit .352 (38-for-108), while Sexton hit .349 (15-for-43) before his call-up. The AAA Union League has only seen 11 no-hitters in it's 35 year history but nearly half of them have been thrown by Louisville Derbies pitchers. Tim Walters was the latest as the 36 year old career minor leaguer notched the 5th no-hitter in Derbies history by beating Richmond last week. Walters has been in the Keystones system since 1925 but has never made it to the big leagues. Trivia answer. A trick question as the answer is current Detroit Dynamos outfielder Rip Curry. a two-way player in college, Curry went 19-8 over three seasons with the Reds including an 11-1 season in 1929. The AIAA record for wins in a season is 12, so Curry is in a large group that was one shy of that mark. He never pitched as a professional player. The Week That Was Current events from the week ending 6/08/1941 in an unexpected meeting Hitler and Mussolini discussed plans for "final liquidation" of the British Empire in a conference at Brenner Pass. To include active French collaboration against England Hitler asked Mussolini to 'make sacrifices' in his territorial demands upon France. They also discussed plans for the next step of the war and the possible effects of enhanced American aid to Britain. President Roosevelt signed the mandatory priorities bill giving the Government legal authority to subordinate civilian needs completely in the interest of national defense. It requires industry to produce first the things the government tells it to, and without protest. FDR threatened to send in US troops to break the strike at a California plant tasked with manufacturing planes and vowed to take similar drastic action to end defense work stoppages during the unlimited national emergency. The US Navy says it has the world's most powerful and heavily armored fleet and is ready for war if need be although the second ocean part of the "two-ocean" Navy still is in the making. The Army feels it needs another year as many of it's men are still green and up to date tanks and artillery are just beginning to come out of the factories. A usually reliable Soviet source claims Italy and Germany have completed an ambitious plan designed to attack and overwhelm the Panama Canal. The information suggests the US keep a close eye on Germany merchant vessels which recently have cleared South American ports, saying they could be transformed into armed raiders on the high seas. Portugal expects a Nazi invasion and does not intend to put up any defense. Much of the Portuguese army has been sent to the Azores and other Portuguese possessions and important government documents have been sent out of the country in anticipation of a Nazi invasion. ex-Kaiser Wilhelm II, last of the German emperors and driving force of the last war, died this week in Holland where he had been living in exile. He was 82. __________________ Lead Columnist of The Figment Sporting Journal The Scripture of Sports Last edited by Jiggs McGee; 03-01-2022 at 11:15 AM.