FEBRUARY 12, 1945
WILD SEASON LIES AHEAD FOR FED
Baseball's Federal Association has often given us some memorable season with four or more teams waged in a tight battle for much of the year but 1945 is shaping up to be perhaps the largest pennant chase seen in decades in the loop. At this point as we sit a month away from the start of spring training there is no clear cut favourite for the Fed flag and one could easily make a case for all but perhaps the St Louis Pioneers as the team to beat.
The Philadelphia Keystones are the defending champs after winning by a fairly wide 9 game margin a year ago. They will be without 15 game winner Pepper Tuttle (army) and starting shortstop Tim Humphrey (navy) and both will be missed although vet Jake Creel was acquired over the winter and is probably a little better with the glove at shortstop than Humphrey was. The Keystones offense revolves around Bobby Barrell and while another triple crown season might be too much to ask for, one still has to think The Georiga Jolter will come up big once again. First baseman Harry Shumate has had two strong seasons in Philadelphia but he will turn 35 shortly after opening day so perhaps there are worries about a bit of a slide. The rotation, anchored by ace Red Ross, looks solid at the top but Tuttle will be missed. As is the case with most teams, all of the top pitching prospects are overseas but perhaps 22 year old John Grimes, who had a solid season in AAA a year ago, can step up to replace Tuttle.
Few, if any, expected the Detroit Dynamos to finish second a year ago but they were one of the bigger surprises of 1944. For that reason alone it is hard to count them out but there seem to be a lot of holes in the Detroit roster for 1945 with second sacker Gil London (army), 15 game winner Jimmy Mayse (navy), 10 game winner Pug Bryan (navy) and relief ace Willie Montgomery (army) all lost to the war effort. Add in the fact that third baseman Frank Vance will turn 43 this season and the fact the club is facing a cash crunch that might force them to part with a player like outfielder Henry Jones -another greybeard at age 40- and there is little reason to think the Dynamos will contend, but that was the same tune we were singing a year ago with the prospect of Detroit facing a full season without Red Johnson.
The Pittsburgh Miners have been beat up badly over the years by Selective Service and this year was no different with outfielder Luke Berry (navy) and promising 21 year old infielder George Darnell (army) getting the call along with reliever Speed Brown (navy). There was a little good news on the war manpower from as Tony Puccinello will return after a hernia made him 4-F. Pooch last pitched in 1942 but might be a solid replacement for Brown. The Pittsburgh rotation returns four strong startes in Karl Johnson, George Phillips, Don Miller and Billy Ligons, who had a breakout season a year ago as a 27 year old. There are going to be some holes in the offense to patch but if vets Mahlon Strong and Moxie Pidgeon can stay healthy -a big ask- and productive the Miners might be just fine.
Many anticipated another step forward from the Washington Eagles in 1944 after a stellar '43 season that saw the Stockdales stay in the thick of the pennant race until a late season fade. Instead the club got off to a terrible start to the '44 campaign and was never in contention although some positives can be taken from a 34-18 stretch run. The Eagles pitching staff had a strong season a year ago but must duplicate it for Washington to have any chance. The good news is for the most part the Washington pitchers escaped the military draft and even added to it's ranks with the return of Juan Tostado after missing 3 seasons due to the war. But before you start thinking Washington got off easy there is the little matter of Mel Carrol and Jesse Alvardo -perhaps the two best offensive players on the team that finished last in the Fed in runs scored a year ago- both leaving for the navy. Runs might be very hard to come by for the home side at Columbia Stadium this season as neither will be easy to replace. The prospect of Larry Colaianni and Bob Coon being penciled in as the starting third baseman and left fielder instead of Carrol and Alvardo is likely causing more than a few sleepless nights for Eagles skipper John Lawrence.
Boston won it all '43 but dipped a year ago despite a big season from Walt Wells on the mound and the addition of Billy Dalton. The good news for the Minutemen is Selective Service did not hit them too hard this off-season. Catcher Buster Farrar (army) and pitcher Dick Higgins (navy) have left but many other teams were hit much worse. The big question mark once again surrounds Bill Van Ness and can he finally be the strong starting catcher the Minutemen thought they were getting when they drafted him 6th overall in 1935. Van Ness was awful last season and may even lose his starting job to Jiggs Jackson if he has a repeat of 1944 so catcher remains a big concern in Boston.
The Chicago Chiefs have spent three consecutive seasons in the second division and clearly admitted to their fans they were in rebuild mode with deals last summer to send Tom Bird and Rabbit Day to Cincinnati. The Al Wheeler experiment-who also went to the Cannons in a separate transaction- was a terrible experience for the organization. They also lost starting centerfielder Wayne Newcomb, Bird's replacement at catcher Frankie Kitchen and pitcher Luis Sandavol all to the army. The Chiefs do stil have Ron Rattigan and Bob Martin -two of the few remaining links to their pair of WCS wins last decade- and perhaps if things break right they could surprise after dealing stars like the Dynamos did a year ago.
Selective Service has once again played a role as many teams were affected over the winter by war losses but the one exception might be the New York Gothams, who benefited greatly with the return of pitcher Harry Carter from the navy. The Gothams also did not lose a single key regular to the war effort this winter and their rotation of Ed Bowman, Jim Lonardo and Jim Baggett along with Carter might just be enough to make the Gothams the team to beat in the Fed this season.
The St Louis Pioneers are perhaps the one team you can count out this year. They lost 21 game winner Buddy Long to the army air corps which likely contributed their decision to deal veteran centerfielder Gail Gifford and pitcher Sam Sheppard to Cincinnati for a pair of first round draft picks and highly touted outfield prospect. As if things couldn't get worse in St Louis, the Pioneers also lost 24 year old outfielder Pershing Christian, coming off a very strong rookie season, to the Army. There is a lot of young talent in the organization but so much of it is overseas. However, perhaps if pitchers Lazaro DeLeon and Ben Fiskars and infielder Homer Mills can break out after getting some FABL experience last season and 21 year old outfielder Larry Gregory enjoys a successful rookie season this can still be a productive year for the Pioneers.
- Eagles owner William Stockdale is confident that war mobilization director James Byrnes will come to recognize the value of wartime baseball. "I have met with Undersecretary of War Patterson for two and one-half years," he stated. "I know he thinks the expenditures of manpower and transportation for baseball are worth while. I think Mr. Byrnes will come to that same decision. From my experience, I know folks on the hill are friendly to baseball. They realize the contribution the game has given to war relief. Although baseball is listed as nonessential, I don't think any one in his right mind thinks that baseball should stop."
- Nothing official but the latest activity in Washington regarding the business of baseball in wartime has all the earmarks of a trial balloon. No authority of the ODT will accept responsibility for the rumour that the big leagues would be asked to realign themselves into East and West groups to reduce travel. This was a rumour that had baseball people scattering to verify all weekend. The idea was first floated a couple of years ago but nothing became of it.
- Aboard the Battlewagon Alabama, pride of the Third Fleet, Pete Papenfus ranks next to Admiral Halsey as the most popular man in the Navy but he is running out of catchers when he wants to throw a few. His first catcher was a cook named Haynes, but he had to quit when his thumb was shoved half way to the elbow with one of Peter the Heater's fastballs. He has since gone through 3 more of them, and all went away with hand injuries. Too bad he doesn't have someone like Adam Mullins or Heinie Zimmer on board.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL HEADS MOVE FAST TO COMBAT GAMBLING EVIL
AIAA Chief Suggests Return of Game to Campus Might Aid
College basketball authorities throughout the nation, disturbed by admission of four Jersey City Tech players they had accepted $1,000 to throw a game, pondered anew today methods of combating widespread gambling on games that one source estimated ran as high as $10 million weekly.
Leaders of the indoor sport, such as Charles B. Darrow, promoter of the doubleheaders at Bigsby Garden, assert that the action of the Jersey City Tech players in no way typlified the attitude of the college athlete in general. The AIAA issued a call for the "every day fan, who is in no way to be confused with the professional gamblers, to help us by not betting on college athletics."
Meantime, a grand jury called into a rare night session by Judge Samuel S. Leibowitz, heard testimony from the four players: Al Harbison, Ulysses Bucci, Don Sparkman and Eric Bode as well as Jersey City Tech head coach Duke Van Kirk. Police have disclosed that more than 12 men have been arrested in Bigsby Garden on bookmaking charges since the horse racing ban of January 3. The men, according to police, are accused of "making book" on fights, hockey and basketball after complaints had been received that race-track followers had mushroomed a "new business."
The players are alleged to have conspired with known gamblers to throw a January 20th game against Manhattan Tech, one in which Jersey City Tech would lose 50-47 despite being heavily favoured and are also suspected of shaving points in a 3 point win over Brooklyn Catholic on February 3 in which the Techsters were favoured by 6 points.
AIAA officials are contemplating a return of the game to campus play only, eliminating the high revenue generating events like those that are scheduled weekly in major arenas in big cities like New York, Chicago and Boston.
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COLLEGIATE BASKETBALL RANKINGS
# Team FPV Record Points Prv Conference
1. St. Patrick's (72) 24-4 1800 1 Indy Northeast
2. Annapolis Maritime 24-2 1715 2 Indy South
3. Carolina Poly 18-3 1591 3 South Atlantic Conference
4. North Carolina Tech 18-4 1557 6 South Atlantic Conference
5. Rainier College 20-2 1554 4 West Coast Athletic Association
6. Liberty College 24-3 1496 5 Indy East
7. Western Iowa 18-3 1375 9 Great Lakes Alliance
8. Ohio Poly 21-5 1255 11 Indy Midwest
9. CC Los Angeles 18-4 1248 8 West Coast Athletic Association
10. Garden State 17-5 1127 10 Liberty Conference
11. Mobile Maritime 16-5 1107 7 South Atlantic Conference
12. St. Martin's College 21-6 951 14 Indy Northeast
13. St. Blane 18-7 923 15 Indy East
14. St. Pancras 20-5 841 18 Indy East
15. Chesapeake State 15-6 802 12 South Atlantic Conference
16. Noble Jones College 16-5 695 13 Deep South Conference
17. Mississippi A&M 15-7 628 16 Deep South Conference
18. Middlesex 21-6 523 17 Indy Northeast
19. Texas Gulf Coast 15-7 447 NR Southwestern Alliance
20. Great Plains State 20-9 328 NR Indy Midwest
21. Conwell College 19-7 327 19 Indy East
22. Western Florida 15-6 260 NR Deep South Conference
23. Miami State 19-7 216 NR Indy South
24. Lincoln 14-7 185 22 Great Lakes Alliance
25. Wichita Baptist 18-6 171 20 Midwestern Association
Others Receiving Votes:
Dickson 16-7 110 Academia Alliance
Plover College 17-7 45 Indy Midwest
Eastern State 18-8 39 Indy South
Lane State 13-9 38 West Coast Athletic Association
Empire State 15-6 14 Liberty Conference
Charleston Tech 15-6 12 South Atlantic Conference
Harper College 17-6 10 Indy East
Coastal California 14-9 6 West Coast Athletic Association
Oklahoma City State 15-6 4 Plains Athletic Association
RESULTS INVOLVING RANKED TEAMS
MONDAY FEBRUARY 5
none scheduled
TUESDAY FEBRUARY 6
#13 St Blane 67 Valley State 64
#20 Great Plains State 41 Payne State 38
#23 Miami State 38 Michigan Lutheran 32
WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 7
#1 St Patrick's 52 Hartford Wesleyan 41
#8 Ohio Poly 54 Huntington State 36
#12 St Martin's College 53 Narragansett 36
#14 St Pancras 47 Bardney 40
#16 Noble Jones College 49 Cumberland 30
Opelika State 52 #17 Mississippi A&M 37
Troy State(NY) 54 #18 Middlesex 49
Pittsburgh State 49 #21 Conwell College 40
#22 Western Florida 45 St Andrews College 40
THURSDAY FEBRUARY 8
#3 Carolina Poly 54 Columbia Military Academy 46
#4 North Carolina Tech 46 Lexington State 37
#6 Liberty College 49 St Matthew's College 41
#7 Western Iowa 62 Detroit City College 44
Alexandria 47 #11 Mobile Maritime 43
#13 St Blane 47 Kansas Agricultural 27
#15 Chesapeake State 48 Bulein 31
#24 Lincoln 43 St Ignatius 34
Lambert College 56 #25 Wichita Baptist 50
FRIDAY FEBRUARY 9
#1 St Patrick's 36 Strub College 26
#2 Annapolis Maritime 47 Brunswick 40
#5 Rainier College 47 Custer College 42
#14 St Pancras 39 Orrville 35
#19 Texas Gulf Coast 49 Lubbock State 44
Northern California 45 #9 CC Los Angeles 26
SATURDAY FEBRUARY 10
#3 Carolina Poly 57 Maryland State 39
#4 North Carolina Tech 46 #11 Mobile Maritime 44
#7 Western Iowa 49 #24 Lincoln 44
#12 St Martin's College 47 Noth Carolina Atlantic 38
Alexandria 30 #15 Chesapeake State 29
St Andrews College 38 #16 Noble Jones College 32
#17 Mississippi A&M 46 Bluegrass State 44
#18 Middlesex 39 Western Montana 32
#19 Texas Guld Coast 61 Red River State 40
#21 Conwell College 51 Grant(IN) 38
#25 Wichita Baptist 52 Perry State College 22
SUNDAY FEBRUARY 11
#5 Rainier College 48 Lane State 46
#9 CC Los Angeles 36 Redwood 31
#20 Great Plains State 52 East Missouri Seminary 25
SAWYER SAYS HE IS READY FOR TITLE DEFENSE
Heavyweight Champion Hector Sawyer says he is excited to get back into the ring after more than three years in the army. The World Champion, who sports a 49-3-1 record, has spent plenty of time boxing in fundraising matches while in the service including most recently on the undercard of the big Archie Rees middleweight title fight in England last September, but says there is something different about a pro fight.
"The army bouts are great and all," Sawyer explained "but they don't compare to a big time pro fight. It will be something to get back in the ring with the title on the line."
Sawyer's challenger, 35 year old Minnesota native Willie Meyer (32-7-1) is not expected to provide much of a challenge for the champ. This bout is clearly designed to ease Sawyer back into the pro game before he faces a real opponent -likely Mark Fountain- in June or July.
RUTLEDGE MAKES PRO DEBUT
The much anticipated pro debut of Danny Rutledge came last week and the 20 year old welterweight did not disappoint, earning a second round knock in front of a hostile crowd at the Cleveland Arena against hometown boy Will Wright. Rutledge, who hails from Louisville is considered to be one of the best young fighters around in any weight class.
THIS WEEKS FIGHT ROUND-UP
Wayne Dunn continues to impress in the welterweight division as the 29 year old Hartford native improved to 22-6 with an unanimous decision over Henry Nichols (15-10) in Baltimore on Tuesday. Dunn counts 17 knockouts among his 22 victories and is considered to be among the best welterweights in the nation.
There was controvery in Kansas City when Pete Roe was disqualified for multiple infractions in his heavyweight bout with Michael Wilkins. Roe was deducted points and warned repeatedly for low blows and leaning on his opponent's neck before the referee finally had enough and called the fight in the 8th of it's scheduled 10 rounds. That set off a melee in the ring when someone from Roe's corner attacked the referee and soon a half dozen men were going at it in the ring. It took the police to settle things down and result in Roe's trainer spending a night in jail. Wilkins improves to 8-13 with the win while Roe, a 35 year old St Louis native, falls to 21-5-3.
The Week That Was
Current events from the week ending 2/11/1945
- A Moscow report says Red Army advance forces have broken across the Oder River before Berlin and claim the "complete destruction of Nazi Germany is very near."
- Four divisions of the American 3rd Army were reported making "good progress" in a new offensive launched across the German frontier from Luxembourg on a 22-mile front.
- American troops have seized control of much of Manila while Tokyo is rocked by both a 'severe' earthquake and one of the largest forces of Superfortresses ever to hit Japan.
- Diplomatic quarters believe that one of the momentous decisions to be announced at the end of the Big Three conference may be the formation of a military board by the United States, Britain and Russia to deal the death blow to the German army. Observers believe the Russians are now ready -for the first time- join the Americans and British in a joint military committee that will execute the strategy planned by Roosevelt, Churchill and Stalin.
- Civil rule in Berlin ceases, with the city in a panic and described by Moscow radio as a "city of death and ruins."
- Two oil tankers collided in New York Harbor, setting fire to both, killing at least 12 and disrupting Harbor traffic with blazing oil slicks.