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THE 'T'HE THE ' ' two somev hat weird andwoolly andwoolly and | - * woolly pennant races in the two twob twob b g leagues belong to the tactors factors factorsthat factorsthat that make sport what it is Thismeans This ' ' means i eans its uncer uncertalnty uncertainty 'wvasaass'w wvasaassw , uncerjr & talnty tainty lts its variousbreaks variousbreaks various breaks of luck Ih its itsv itssudden itsJ v | sudden and bafflings baffling5vings baffling ' m f j ? s 5vings vings vlngs Without thiS thiSlncertainty thist thist t \ \ uncertainty \lncertainty lncertainty s sport1 p port 0 r t twould < ' \ B would be a drab affair offair at af of fair fair'i fairi fairSeveral ' Several 1 letters letterss lettersf\s lettersf s e tt e r s shave \ s have come our way way\ way wayrecently \ " , . , , t recently asking askmg us usto usto usto t to explain why it is 7s isGrantlandKIce IStha tt t 24 tha that t the Cardinals CardinalsGrantland CardinalsGrantland Grantland GrantlandKIce Rice Riceworld world s championshave championshave champions championshave have been in lasl last laslplace lastplace lastplace place with mth the- the thetail - - tail end G ants of o(1946 o1946 ( 1946 battling for the top top7 ? Why the thepennant thepennant thepennant pennant winning winnmg Red Sox of last lastyear lastyear lastyear year have been working their theirtongues theirtongues theirtongues tongues out to get a toe hold m In the theflrst thefirst thefirst flrst first division ? ' Why the Athlet cs cswho Cswho cswho who finished 55 games beh nd last lastyear lastyear lastyear year are only a few games from fromthe fromthe fromthe the top of the American league league9Why ? ' Why Bob Feller and Hal Newhous Newhouser er the two star pitchers of the last lastfew lastfew lastfew few years have taken so much pun punIshment punishment9 Ishment 7 ? Why Stan Musial b'fusial bfusial ' a nor normal normat cormal mal mat 365utter 365 hitter \utter utter \ has been trying trymg to topass topass topass pass 200 ? ' Why the tbe Dodgers with withso withso withso so many erratic pitchers ltchers and omy only omyone onlyone onlyone one 300 hitter hitter-have hitter have - have been leadingor leading or challenging challengmg for the top ? TIns This TInsfusillade Thisfusillade Thisfusillade fusillade of queries goes on and onThe on onThe The Erratic Erratze Element ElementThe The answer is simple enough It ItIs Itis ItIs Is the uncertainty of sportand sport and the theuncertamty theuncertainty theuncertainty uncertamty uncertainty of the human and oth otherW1se otherwise otherwise erW1se erwise animal race Including race racehorses racehorses racehorses horses harness horses or grey greyhounds greyhounds greyhounds greyhoundsFor hounds houndsFor For example e'iample eiample ' : the Cardinals were wererated wererated wererated rated at 3 to 5 this year the best bestteam bestteam bestteam team in baseball But who could couldtell couldtell couldtell tell In advance thatIuslal that Musial \Iuslal Iuslal Iuslala Musiala ! \ a great greatball greatball greatbaU ball player would first have an anappendiX anappendix anappendix appendiX aliment allment ailment and later on an anC aneye ane C eye ) e attack1 attack " ' ' After spending spendmg a month monthWith monthwith monthwith With the team in m St Petersburg we werated werated werated rated the Bed Red Birds the ( he best team teamnd teamand teamand and , nd also the best conditioned team teamwe teamWe teamwe we had seen leave the south southIn southIn southla In yearsSo yearsSo years yearsSo So did most of o1 the big league leaguemanagers leaguemanagers leaguemanagers managers Joe Crorun Cronm Cronin included mcluded and andbaseball andbaseball andbaseball baseball experts who were In the thewest thewest thewest west coast ViClDltyNeither vicinityNeither vicinity ViClDlty vicinityNeither Neither Cronm nor Eddie Dyer Dyertwo Dyertwo Dyertwo two pennant winning winnmg managers managerscould managerscould managerscould could slip shp us any angle on the debade debadeWhy de debacle debade bacle bade bacleWhy badeWhy Why don t you figure it out7 out7was out outwas ? was their comeback Which W\uch W uch \ had us usstopped usstopped usstopped stopped In our tracks Both Red RedSox RedSox RedSox Sox pitching pltchmg and hitting luttmg took the thesame thesame thesame same dive the Cardinals Cardmals ran across acrossThey acrossThey acrossThey They were practically the same samepitchers samepitchers samepitchers pitchers and hitters who won both bothflags bothflags bothflags flags a year ago This again 13 is 13what iswhat iswhat what makes sport what it ISo is o 0 0 . Leading Leadmg Rule Breakers BreakersAn An argument came up re recently ently as asto asto asto to what sport game or compel compet taonhas non lion nonhas lionhas has more rule infractions-baseball infractions baseball infractionsbaseballfootball infractionsbaseballfootball Infractions - baseballfootball football boxing boxmg golf tennis tetlnls racmg racing racmghockey racinghockey racinghockey hockey basketball or what ? ' In our ouropmlOn ouropinion ouropinion opmlOn opinion the two worst offenders are arefootball aretootball arefootball football tootball college and pro and golfI golfBasketball golf golfBasketball I Basketball and hockey are not so sotar sotar : far tar behind judging judgmg from the penal penalles penalies penalies les ies mfl infl inn cted eted but they are not qUite qUiteup quiteup quiteup up to the two we have namedDurry namedHurry named namedHurry Hurry Durry up Yost told me once oncethat oncethat oncehat that ( he doubted there was ever a asingle asingle asingle single football Cootball play without a foul foulthat foulthat foulthat that might have been called Tbls This Tblssounds Thissounds Thissounds sounds reasonable In football tootball we wehave wehave wehave have 22 young active athletes all allunder allunder allunder under tension body to bodyThe bodyThe body bodyThe The tour four officials are usually high highgrade highgrade highgrade grade doing their best But four fourmen fourmen fourmen men can t watch 22 men scattered scatteredall all over the field fleld Holding Holdmg is the themam themain themain mam main offense There is illegal use useof useof useof of hands and arms There is Js oft off oftside offside offside side There is starting too qUickly qUicklyThere quicklyThere quicklyThere There are any number of offenses offensesthat offensesthat offensesthat that a player can commit often oftenWith oftenwith oftenwith With no intent mtent ot of breaking breakmg anyrule anyrule any anyule rule ule In rule breaking holding holdmg espe espe- especially especially especially - - cially the pros are subtler than thecollegians the thecollegians thecollegians collegians They know more They Theyknow Theyknow Tbeyknow | know how to grab an opponent and andlet andlet andlet let go in the traction fraction of a second secondI I get this from ex collegians who whohave whohave whohave have just justturned jus ' turned pro We Wee . . can t tmatch tmatch tmatch match the pros In holding holdmg ' . all of ofthem ofthem ofthem them say They are much faster fasterand fasterand tasterand and smarterYet smarterYet smarter smarterYet Yet if H officials begin calling calking too toomany toomany toomany many penalties they ruin the game gameThey gameThey gameThey They are accused of trying to hog hogthe hogthe hogthe the spotlight So most of them try tryto tryto tryto to call only omy the penalties that count countThey countThey They 11 overlook an offside oftslde or a ahold abold hold ng penalty that had no effecton effect effecton effecton on the play This sounds reason reasonable reasonable reasonable able enough unless the sound of the thewhistle thewhistle thewhistle whistle dominated the playIn playIn play playIn breakingfootball In the matter of rule breaking breakingfootball breakingfootball football leads them all . . It la is the thetype thetype thetype type of competition that leads to torule torule torule rule breaking breakmg a big part of o1 it unin unintentIonal unintentional unintentional tentIonal through overeagerness overeagernessthat overeagernessthat overeagernessthat that leads to hold ng offside or start startIng starting startIng Ing ahead of the ball also illegal illegaluse illegaluse illegaluse use of handsBasketball hands handsBasketball Basketballand Basketball and HockeyBaseball Hockey HockeyBaseball Baseball players have little littlechance littlechance littlechance chance to break rules with four lough kugh tourlough fourlough fourkugh umpires Otherwise OtherW1S , . they theyprohably theyprobably theyprobably prohably probably would be the ( he leadersThe leadersThe leaders leadersThe The basketball whistle is a mourn mournful mournfail mourntill hockeyhas ful fail sound in the land and hockey has Its share of offenders otIenders Track Trackand Trackand Trackand and field fleld is close to 100 per er cent centclean centclean centclean clean . . It is that type of tport 5Port sport Polo PoloDeetoS Polooeet.s PolooeeL5 DeetoS oeet.s oeets . good officiating tor for ( or like foot- foot football foot-sail foot sail - - ball It Is a contact eontact game Withlorse with a . ahorse alorse footIball foot-I foot I aI I I /lorse lorse horse / or pony thrown in . In . |
