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Show Pfi THERE are more shattered dreams, dislocated hopes and tragedies in a training camp than non-combatants could ever guess. This is no sob story no crying match. It is a true story affecting the future lives and hopes of many very fine young men such as Charlie Char-lie Keller of the Yankees. Keller is as clean and as fine a citizen as 1 ever have known. He was a top student stu-dent at Maryland. He was a young star with the Yankees. He has known more than one bad break. He was just edging into the money when he was called to war service. Last sea-ton sea-ton a growth on his spine cut him down. Keller has been working desperately desper-ately to get back. The old pain Is gone. The suffering Is over. But back muscles take time to mend. "I can hit the ball solidly," he told me, "but It doesn't go very far. I need time to rebuild those destroyed destroy-ed muscles. What about the future? Who knows? I can only hope." There is Spud Chandler, nearing 40, a great pitcher with a great hear! The chunk they cut from his elbow is still a St. Petersburg exhibit. ex-hibit. "I'm aiming at 15 wins," Chandler told me. "I won't be far away." Maybe. Maybe not. But here's a man's career hanging In the balance. Tex Hughson of the Red Sox one bf the best. Chandler rated "Hughson the best in the American League. Last year Hughson won 12 and lost 11. Not too hot. But he also had a sore arm that called for an operation. opera-tion. How good will Hughson be this season? Who can say? Hughson in old-time shape can win the American League pennant for Joe McCarthy and the Red Sox. A wavering Hugh-son Hugh-son can bring about their defeat. If you saw the Kellers, the Chandlers, Chan-dlers, the Hughsons and others on the borderline, at work, you could sense their background of tragedy or their hopes of better and brighter days. A job Is pretty important when you have a wife and a few kids. I mean a job where you belong a job such as these veterans and others deserve. There happens to be more than you might know on the numan siae in a spring training camp, where men from 30 to 39 might be wondering wonder-ing what the next move will be. Football Coaches The new football season of 1948 already al-ready is under way, with the greatest great-est coaching shift in history. There are new men at Yale, Harvard, Indiana, In-diana, Navy, Michigan, Washington and Kansas, to mention only a few. They are all good men and those who have the best material will win. Those who haven't, won't. tv, mnst distinct shift belongs to Herman Hickman who left Army for Yale. The poet laureate of the Srnoky mountains, who as a fat country coun-try boy, reached stardom as a guard at Tennessee over 20 years ago, had no early dream that some day he would be head football man beneath New Haven's classic elms. At West Point, Hickman became the best line coach I ever saw. He also became one of the most inspirational inspira-tional factors in all footbalL No one can say just yet how Hickman Hick-man will work out as a head coach in his first year. My guess is that the Smoky mountain bard will do fine job with even fair material Even at football's middle ace, Herman knows in advance that he can handle any man on his squad, physically. This was true at Army when be had Coulter, Foldberg, Steffy and a few other brawny linrmpn. I've seen Hickman take them on two at a time with his amazingly active 300 or more pounds. Hickman should make a fine head coach. He has been a great football playerand also a great fellow. Between Be-tween seasons he can take over the chair of mountain poetry at Yale, in which his kinfolk might figure. The Great Bambino There is a story marching the rounds that is beyond all telling. Its setting is deep in tragedy, but its outline is as brilliant as any rim of stars. It is the story of Babe Ruth, suffering suf-fering beyond all comprehension, yet valiantly retracing his path of nearly 30 years ago for the good of baseball, for the good of all kids and for the good of suffering humanity in generalwhatever gen-eralwhatever the cause may be. It Is the story of a man who is much greater nearing the trail's end of glory than he ever was hitting his 714 home runs, and giving a vast nation the greatest thrills that sport ever has known. Babe Ruth has been my friend for over 30 years a great guy, set hi mammoth proportions of build, heart and appetite, especially when he was starring from 1914 through 1935 in the box, in the field and above all, at bat. Broken, but not beaten, a relic of the king that was, be is an even greater man today. His head may be bloody but it remains unbowed. un-bowed. I have watched his drawn face, where anyone could see bis inward suffering, as he autographed baseballs base-balls and score cards. I |