NOVEMBER 3, 1941
SAINTS PROMOTE FROM WITHIN TO NAME NEW MANAGER
The Montreal Saints conducted a wide search but in the end they found the replacement for the fired Dick Pozza right in their own backyard as Saints bench coach Homer Moore got the promotion. It will be the first big league managerial job for the 50 year old Moore, who did spend seven seasons as the skipper of the Saints AAA affiliate in Minneapolis before moving to the big club as Pozza's right hand man a year ago. Moore guided the Lumberjacks to the Century League title in 1940.
The Saints say they conducted a number of interviews with other potential candidates before deciding to name Moore to the post. Montreal Assistant General Manager Phil Catalfamo points to how well Moore is respected by the players, many of whom played for him at Minneapolis at one time or another. "One of the key factors is the quality of relationship Moore is able to build with players to develop their skills to another level," explained Catalfamo of the choice to hand the reigns to Moore.
The Saints also announced that Pete Boyer, who worked with Moore in Minneapolis in 1940, has been promoted from AAA where he was the pitching coach and will handle the same duties in Montreal next season. Boyer has a decent reputation in the baseball world but he knows very well the Montreal pitching squad as he had been working with them previously in spring training and at the AAA level. Prior to beginning his coaching career in 1933, Boyer spent over a decade in the Federal Association with Pittsburgh and the Chicago Cougars. He won 115 big league games and pitched in a pair of World Championship Series, winning a title with the Cougars in 1922.
Montreal still has several openings with the most pressing being the need to find a new Scouting Director following the retirement of Mark House last month after just 2 years on the job. With the amateur draft approaching that is the key need but the Saints also must decide on a bench coach to replace Moore and the third base coaching slot is also vacant.
FIELDING AWARDS HANDED OUT
The Chicago Herald-Examiner has selected the top defender's at each position in FABL. This comes courtesy of Herald-Examiner Sports Editor and Chicago Sportswriters Guild President Percy Sutherland, who uses a complex mathematical formula to hash out just who is the top gloveman at each position in the league. Here are the 1941 men with the golden hands:
Code:
C - Fred Barrell Brooklyn Kings
1B - Ron Rattigan Chicago Chiefs
2B - Buddy Schneider Boston Minutemen
SS - Skipper Schneider Chicago Cougars
3B - Tommy Wilson St Louis Pioneers
LF - Chick Donnelly Boston Minutemen
CF - Carlos Montes Chicago Cougars
RF - Bill Barrett New York Stars
P - Chuck Cole New York Stars
Through a complex formula known only to Sutherland and his nephew, an engineering graduate of Whitney College, the newsman says the Carlos Montes of the Cougars was the best defensive player in the game last season. Sutherland summed up Montes this way saying simply he "catches everything hit near center field."
It is also likely no coincidence that the Boston Minutemen and Chicago Cougars - the two pennant winning clubs - combined to place 4 players on the nine man squad including both of the Schneider boys in Boston second baseman Buddy and shortstop Skipper of the Cougars.
VERY QUIET HEADING TOWARDS FABL WINTER MEETINGS
This off-season, at least up to this point, has been the quietest in recent memory and there is very little chatter in advance of next week's winter meetings to be held in Chicago. Many observers feel a lot of teams are taking a wait and see attitude with plenty of clubs worried about how a possible increase in Selective Service requests for additional manpower being cited as the prevailing reason why there has been no activity.
"Teams are just taking a wait and see attitude right now," offered one General Manager. "October and early November are usually pretty busy, but it is almost eerie, how quiet things are right now. Just seems like nobody is taking trade."
It is a far contrast from even just a year ago when names like Adam Mullins, Lew Seals, George Phillips, Tom Barrell, Cliff Moss, Nate Spear and Jack Flint all were moved at or before the winter meetings. The prevailing thought this year is there will be plenty of time to make a move, if needed, in March and club's should have a better idea who Uncle Sam might be calling up to his team during the 1942 season by then.
STARS ONE WIN AWAY FROM CLINCHING EASTERN CROWN
The New York Football Stars improved to 7-0 on the season with a 24-14 come from behind win over the Pittsburgh Paladins in Sunday AFA action. The Stars are now one win away from clinching the Eastern Division title as with 4 games remaining they are 3 ahead of second place Boston and hold the tie-breaker after beating the Americans twice this season. Sunday's game at the Bigsby Oval got off to a rough start for the New York eleven as the Paladins led 14-0 early in the second quarter and 14-3 at the break. The tide turned quickly as the Stars intercepted a pair of Mike Brown passes in a span of less than three minutes. The first pick came from Jerry Reese late in the third quarter that gave the Stars the ball on the Pittsburgh 10 yard line. After Tom Jamason scrambled for 8 yards setting up a third and goal on the one, back Mark Hedge dove in for the score to make it a 4 point game. Three plays later Brown was intercepted again and this time Don Key ran it back 42 yards for a score to give New York a 17-14 lead. Jamason, who ran for a game high 58 yards would add an insurance touchdown late in the contest.
Boston stayed alive in the hunt for the division title with a 14-7 win on the road in Washington. Del Thomas threw for 131 yards while Steve Kelly ran for 56 and a touchdown to pace the Americans. Bernard Dishmon, who ran for 881 yards a year ago and finished second in the league in that category, continues to struggle this year as the Washington back gained just 8 yards on 10 carries and has just 200 on the year.
The biggest upset of the week came in Cleveland as the Finches surprised Detroit 24-10, handing the Maroons their first loss after 6 straight wins to start the season. Perhaps it is not as big an upset when one considers the Finches nearly won in Detroit two weeks ago, losing 14-13 but holding Stan Vaught to just 3 catches. Cleveland did a solid job on Vaught again Sunday, allowing 5 catches but they kept the receiver out of the end zone for just the second time this season.
Detroit's loss opens the door for the Chicago Wildcats, who improved to 4-2 with a 33-0 shellacking of winless St Louis. Leon Stone led the way for the Wildcats with 106 yards rushing and a pair of touchdowns. The other contest saw defending league champion Brooklyn end a two game losing skid with a 21-7 win at home over Philadelphia. Kings back John Faulkner ran for 85 yards and a score to increase his league leading rushing total on the year to 528 yards.
Code:
AFA STANDINGS
EASTERN W L T PCT
New York 7 0 0 1.000
Boston 4 3 0 .571
Brooklyn 3 4 0 .429
Washington 2 4 0 .333
Philadelphia 1 6 0 .143
WESTERN W L T PCT
Detroit 6 1 0 .857
Chicago 4 2 0 .667
Cleveland 5 3 0 .625
Pittsburgh 3 4 0 .429
St Louis 0 8 0 .000
RESULTS
Sunday November 2
Chicago 33 St Louis 0
Boston 14 Washington 7
New York 24 Pittsburgh 14
Philadelphia 7 Brooklyn 21
Cleveland 24 Detroit 10
UPCOMING GAMES
Sunday November 9
Cleveland at Chicago
Detroit at New York
Washington at Brooklyn
Boston at Philadelphia
PASSING LEADERS YDS
Thomas, Bos 1076
Burnett, Det 1075
J Taylor, Phi 754
Proos, Wsh 658
RUSHING LEADRES YDS
Faulkner, Bkn 528
Bernstein, Cle 493
Jamason, NYS 423
Jordan, Det 400
Spears, StL 392
RECEIVING LEADERS CATCHES
Vaught, Det 49
Nicholson, Cle 27
May, Bos 19
Smith, NYS 17
Sandera, Bos 17
Fitzgerald, Bos 17
SCORING LEADERS PTS
Vaught, Det 98
Milatz, NYS 57
Bernstein, Cle 42
Smith, NYS 36
- Quite a year for the New York Stars, bidding to become the first unbeaten team in quite some time. Going back the past 5 years only one team finished as strong as 9-2. That was the 1939 Chicago Wildcats, who went 9-2 but then lost to the Boston Americans in the AFA championship game.
- Has to be some worry in the offices of the Detroit Maroons today. The club is 6-1 but that lead is no where near as imposing as it felt when they went into Chicago and spanked the Wildcats 46-27 three weeks ago. Detroit has a tough test next week as they have to go to New York and try to hand the Stars their first loss of the season. If the Wildcats win at home over Cleveland, a team they hammered 51-6 at Forester Field earlier in the season, Detroit's lead is suddenly down to one game and the Maroons-Wildcats tussle at Thompson Field November 23rd suddenly becomes a whole lot more important.
- A move is being spearheaded by Senator Connally (D,Tx) where he is strongly urging the Annapolis Maritime eleven to tackle Travis College in the Lone Star Classic on New Year's Day. Connally sent a telegram to the superintendent of the navy school declaring that "this game would not only be of great value to the Navy, but would be a merited tribute to that great section which in the present emergency is outstanding in it's loyalty to the United States and it's foreign policy." The Texas Senator asserted that either Travis College or Darnell State would "undoubtedly be the outstanding football team in the Southwest." The Lone State Classic, along with the East-West Classic played in California, are considered to be the two most prestigious of the five college showcase games held on New Year's Day each year.
- Annapolis Maritime beat Pierpont Saturday 14-7 to run their perfect record to 6-0 on the season. The Navigators have 3 more games remaining in their campaign including finishing off with Rome State at Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Stadium in Philadelphia November 29th in their annual tussle. The Centurions dropped to 2-2-1 on the year after falling 28-3 to St Blane over the weekend.
- Annapolis Maritime is one of 8 schools that have been perfect so far this season. The 6-0 Navigators are joined by fellow Independent Miami State (5-0) as well as Academia Alliance leaders Henry Hudson (5-0), Alabama Baptist (5-0) from the Deep South Conference, Plains Athletic Association leader Daniel Boone College (6-0), Carolina Poly (6-0) of the South Atlantic Conference and the Southwestern Alliance leading duo of the Travis College Bucks and Darnell State Legislators, both 6-0.
Code:
MAJOR COLLEGE FOOTBALL SCORES
Alabama Baptist 45 Cent. Kentucky 0
George Fox 26 Ellery 0
Northern California 9 CC Los Angeles 7
Henry Hudson 14 Brunswick 0
Northern Minnesota 17 Bronx Tech 7
Carolina Poly 24 Georgia Baptist 9
Brooklyn State 17 Whitney College 0
Noble Jones College 30 Opelika State 14
Dickson 28 Sadler 6
St. Patrick's 20 Empire State 14
Western Iowa 17 Indiana A&M 7
Cowpens State 44 Hamman 14
Detroit City College 16 Lincoln 14
Minnesota Tech 13 St. Magnus 6
Mississippi A&M 27 Wisc. Catholic 9
Daniel Boone College 26 St. Ignatius 3
Annapolis Maritime 14 Pierpont 7
St. Blane 28 Rome State 3
Central Ohio 14 Pittsburgh St 13
Oklahoma City State 19 Lawrence State 3
Eastern Oklahoma 34 Fremont State 0
Lane State 45 Idaho A&M 0
Red River State 42 Shreveport St 0
Garden State 16 Maryland State 7
St. Pancras 42 Wisconsin St 33
Bayou State 16 Cumberland 0
Travis College 14 Texas GulfCoast 6
Darnell State 29 Arkansas A&T 7
Lubbock State 28 Amarillo Meth 28
Baton Rouge State 27 Bluegrass St. 14
Eastern State 23 Chesapeake St 0
Rainier College 14 Custer College 3
Portland Tech 13 Spokane State 10
Huntington State 14 Lexington State 0
Richmond State 20 Grafton 10
The Week That Was
Current events from the week ending 11/02/1941
- Breaking news at the end of the week as word comes the US destroyer Reuben James was sunk by torpedo, presumably German in the submarine infested waters west of Iceland. Later Hitler admits it was a German U-boat that sank the Reuben James but claims the American ship fired first and the Nazi sub was merely defending itself.
- Washington regards Hitler's claim of the US destroyer attacking first as an effort to bring Japan and Italy into action against the United States. The feeling is Hitler is asserting that the US attacked Germany because that would invoke the Tri-Partite Pact of 1940, which pledges the Axis group to assist one another with all political, economic and military means when one of the three is attacked by a power not involved in the European war or the Chinese-Japanese conflict.
- Senator Gerald Nye (R,ND) charges that the first armed American ship carrying war material into a British port will be only "the advanced guard of an American transport loaded with troops for overseas duty." Staunchly anti-US involvement in the war, Nye was instrumental in the development and adoption of the Neutrality Acts that were passed between 1935-1937.
- A clash between Russian and Japanese soldiers on the Siberian line has been reported by the Russian news agency Tass. The Red Army also reports taking back some ground from the Nazis and slowing their push towards Moscow.
- More issues with strikes in defense industries and the White House promises to take drastic action if a Presidential request to call off a strike of 53,000 United Mine Workers in mines owned by major steel companies is ignored. After 4 days union president John Lewis agrees to end the strike avoiding a big tie-up in the construction of planes.
- A bill being debated in the Senate goes as far as calling strikes in the defense industry sabotage and calls for jail time for those who lead walkouts.