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Show uimiimiiiiiiiiimiiimiiiimimimii IIPOT8i I 1 By ROBERT McSHANE - B.l.md br W.ii.m N.wipopr Union 5 I i i minim "mini? ' THE next four or five weeks will ! 1 see some of the best all-out scraps the National league has ever i known. The slightly delirious Dodg-i Dodg-i ers and the pennant-mad Cardinals Cardi-nals will be attempting to knock each other out while the Pirates prepare to take advantage of any I momentary weakness. Just a few short weeks ago the Dodgers were being handed the i National league pennant. It was all ! decided that they would meet the j Nrw York Yankees In the World i series. The most Important question ques-tion was: Would It be possible to hold the entire series in Yankee stadium in order to accommodate j more spectators? Then up jumped the St. Louis Cardinals to disrupt all the pretty plans. Brooklyn's grip on the pennant pen-nant wasn't so secure after all. Billy Southworth's boys were loaded load-ed for big game and the big game wore Brooklyn uniforms. To make matters worse, "Onkle" Frank Frisch's Pittsburgh Pirates decided to play some real baseball. They annexed 33 out of 45 games beginning last June 27. During that winning streak they picked up 18 out of 21 games, storming to a spot where they began to menace the leaders. Over Their Heads? There seems to be a feeling that the Pirates are playing over their heads. At least that's the opinion of Leo Durocher, a quiet, unassuming unassum-ing gentleman connected with the Dodgers. Leo does not believe the Pirates can continue playing their very successful ball. That may be y ..f.f j,.u.rwAv.WAW.V,sMVAWWfM4(l! FRANK FRISCH wishful thinking, but Leo isn't very much impressed with the Buccaneers. Bucca-neers. He figures he, would rather have them to beat than the Cards, "I wouldn't mind," he said bravely, "if they were up there with us instead in-stead of the Cards." The chances are excellent thai Mr. Durocher's wishes will not be granted. The Cardinals can see the pennant fluttering courageously In the distance and refuse to be wished out of a contender's position. Mr. Frisch and his Pirate crew deserve more than they will get In the '41 battle. They were 16 Vt games out of first place on June 28. It was quite a feat to draw up within with-in striking distance of the league leaders. However, this is not a new experience for Frisch. He was managing the St. Louis Cards back in 1934. On Labor day of that year the Cards were eight games back. In October they were beating the Tigers to win the World series. The F ordhnm Flash What is responsible for the Pirate's Pi-rate's recent victory splurge? A I large part of that answer is Frisch, S the old Fordham Flash. He took over a listless sixth-place club in 1940 and wound up the season in the first division, j A graduate of the McGraw School i of Baseball, Frisch eats, sleeps and talks the game. He suffers unbearably unbear-ably in defeat and is inconsolable when things aren't going right. A j two-fisted fighter, his tongue has the sharpness and sting of a whiplash He keeps his boys on their toes. Though they realize Frisch sputters verbally for that exact purpose, the Pirates are alert-and that's what "Onkle" Frank wants. When the team was rolling along at the crest of the season's victory 1 streak, Frisch decried any team ! greatness. "The boys are hitting good with men on bases," he said, j "We've had good pitching, but above all, we've had real team spir-it. spir-it. And you can't do a thing in the world without spirit." In this connection, Frisch brought up the mutter of Joe Medwick back in the old Cardinal days. "There we wore winning a pennant and going after extra dough and everything every-thing a player wants and Medwick ! would like as not complain that his shoulder or arm was bad. He'd ; want to rest a day. How can you even think of rest with a real goal ahead? It doesn't stand to reason." It s very easy to believe that j rise n couldn't rest at such a time, j In fact, he'd be uncontrollable. Ac- cording to his own version, it's the double-headers that wear you down. I hey re not really actual games. 'They're the two games in one day- the one the team plays in the afternoon and the one you play at night up ln your room. You always wui the night games because you .hn'iA"11 flgUred out how thin8s hould have gone .t g your sleep and wears out the rug. Ive walked 500 miles ,round every room ,n the National league " |