Show Yank Boss Pleased With Boys By GAYLE TALBOT j ST. ST PETERSBURG March 11 JP fp Joe Joe McCarthy is not a man man who enthuses easily about a new newball newball newball ball player because he has han han- dIed led Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig and nd Joe DiMaggio and has been l surfeited with baseball success as as' as i. i manager of the New York Yan- Yan kees ees So it iwas was little short of amazing to o sit on the bench with him and and and- hear him rave about the two youngsters youngsters young- young out on the field field Shortstop Shortstop Phil fail Rizzuto and Second Baseman Gerald Jerald Priddy Either Joe is Li softening up or these two really are re something special As practically ally cally everybody knows they came up from Kansas City together this spring pring Just Watch Them If you want to see something pretty just watch them he said with something akin to parental pride Look at that Rizzuto Howan How can an he miss being popular Hes He's little ittle but hes he's strong as a bull bull bull- great arms and hands Just sit it here lere and watch him and Priddy handle andle that ball ball- i iThe The beauty of it is that if I didn't have either one of them Id I'd still till have the same club I had last year l ear and we finished third with the he poorest hitting in the American Ameri- Ameri Ameri AmeriA A Acan can league most ost of the year and with no pitching to speak of from front E- E f J Jeither either Monte Pearson or Lefty j Gomez Well be stronger if even one of ot these hese new pitchers comes through j j jand and I never saw a greater bunch r of prospects Theres There's a half dozen of them with great records Ine double A company at Kansas City A and Newark They've all got fast A balls and know how to pitch J Who is that playing first base base base- J Zeke Bonura 7 interrupted a heck heck- tV I len ler er He got a wintry stare from McCarthy Gordon Is Okeh S S That said Joe is Joe Gordon and he is plenty of first baseman too oo Maybe hes he's got a few little things to learn about playing first but sut it wont won't take him long not long not that hat boy All hes he's got to learn is how to handle his feet and that's hats easy for him He used to to be DC an acrobat There are a lot of silly ideas S about players not being able to to shift from one position to another anyway Gordon was great on second second sec see ond hell he'll be as good on first I told everybody last spring that Hank Greenberg would be a great outfielder when they shifted him t from first and I wont won't be surprised if Harry Danning makes the Giants Giants- t ta a good outfielder I 1 It gives us a fine tight infield this way and we still get the benej fit of Gordons Gordon's hitting Red Rolfe looks like his old self at third and i Bill Dickey appears to have re re 4 covered his batting form I dont don't 4 suppose Bill ever will be quite the catcher he was but hes he's still better bet- bet fy v. v ter than most of the others 9 J Rizzuto in Army j jEven Even the suggestion that Rizzuto might be lost in the draft soon J failed to dampen the McCarthy op op- S What if he is he demanded I would still have as good or a at A better infield than I had last season sea sea- son Either Gordon or Frankie Crosetti can play short and Tommy Tommy Tommy Tom Tom- I my Henrich can come in from the t outfield to hold down fir first t basel base i Priddy will stay on second Nope I t tall j jall all Im I'm worried about now is for J j Gordon to learn not to cover too much ground off first Joe Joe DiMaggio ought to be here erel any minute now He must be in iS a hurry because he got stuck for forM speeding Joe was out a lot last 3 1 year If hes he's in there all the way way i this time and one or two of these new pitchers come through well we'll bel beI better S But watch Priddy and Rizzuto handle that ball Its It's worth the price of admission on just to see them practice |