Show apice WITH the boston br braves av es of 1947 making threatening pennant gestures for the first time since 1914 a somewhat inside story ot of the old stallings outfit might be worth telling in 1914 the braves under the fiery miracle man george stall ings were 15 games off the pace as late as july 4 and they were still last on july 18 the then the he na miracle 0 of f base e ball s miracles took f place as they went on to win the pea pen nant and beat the B southworth athletics 4 straight but part of the story of the braves of 1914 goes back to the spring training program of that year in the south to a pair of great corn com peti tors possibly the greatest that ever wore spiked shoes their ananies names were maranville and evers the rabbit and the crab heading north that year I 1 stopped oft off for a few days at the braves camp in march the main idea was to call on a few old friends such as hank gowdy johnny evers and rabbit maranville intending to spend only a day or so I 1 hung around longer for it was the most interesting camp I 1 had run across in an exhibition game that after noon evers and maranville collided at second base each trying to cover the bag both seemed to be badly jolted but neither gave any sign of being hurt I 1 noticed maranville a few min u utes es later a er looking oo 00 ng for or some lost os 0 object around second base a what were you looking tor for I 1 asked the rabbit in the dugout later two of my teeth he said slid where my mouth collided with wit h johnny s head lie he s got a t tough ough head jr A short while later evers was hit on the arm with a fast ball he gave no sign of being hurt as he grinned and started tor for first base they could take it another member of the braves was hit and he also showed no sign of any trouble although he carried a lump above his elbow here nert outside of the genial hank gowdy was a rather snarling tough group without too much ability the team had dick rudolph george tyler and bill james pitch ing but they had never looked like johnson alexander and mathew son or feller newhouse shea and blackwell Blackw eU As far as one could see here was a ball club that might finish sixth or seventh or even eighth the squad that week had shown no power at all only some pretty fair pitching that night maranville told me what was taking place I 1 lost two teeth I 1 he said I 1 and I 1 I 1 never blinked two men were hit and they never rubbed their arms we weep vp made a rule on this club that nobody can show he has been hurt not evan if he gets a concussion not even if he gets his block knocked off don t think losing two teeth was any fun it hurt but I 1 never let anyone know it I 1 like that brand of baseball don t ever let getem em know you ve been hurt the victory drive I 1 lost considerable interest in this maranville philosophy when the braves were last on july 4 15 games away from the first place what about it now I 1 said to the rabbit dit about that time just warming up he said just warming up watch us in the stretch it was from late july on that the braves headed by the driving force of george stallings Sta lungs a great man ager a fighter from every known angle plus rudolph tyler and james went to work stallings told me later he lost four pairs of trousers sliding up and down the bench I 1 was full of bench splinters he said dick rudolph was oneff the best and one of the smartest pitchers in baseball history tyler and james came to his help day af after ter day you got this refrain rudolph tyler and james they caught the giants in the stretch picked up 15 games on one of mcgraw s good teams and then wrecked the athletics in four straight in the world series and all the athletics had was bender and plank and bush col lins mcinnis baker barry and what looked to be one of the great teams of all tune time a team that had won four pennants in five years it wasn jsn t even a contest team now the braves of 1947 just 33 years later under the able diree tion of billy southworth another great manager are among the teams to beat these braves are a much better ball club than the braves of 1914 but whether or not they can show the same amount of iron in their systems as this miracle squad offered against a for lorn hope Is another guess it asp iset t often that any team has a maranville and an evers on the same squad two blazing spots ot of flame |