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Show iPfi COME time back we were discuss- ing the affairs of baseball's state with Connie Mack. The part that luck plays came up for some chatter. "In my opinion luck plays a rmall part, a very small part." Mack said, "with 154 games to play. There is only one spot that luck can figure rather heavily. heav-ily. This could be in some injury or illness striking at a key player, one who can't be replaced. re-placed. This is about the worst luck you can get," he said. 1 3 ' MACK So the Braves can be charged with the worst luck of the season In losing Eddie Stanley for practically prac-tically the rest of the season. For despite what Branch Rickey and Leo Durocher thought about it, Stanky has been the most valuable, the most useful second baseman in the National league. His absence from Brooklyn has accounted In large part for most of the Dodgers' doldrums earlier in the race. It has accounted ac-counted for a losa of 100,000 In attendance, due to so many games lost that Stanky's presence pres-ence could have won. When the Stanky blow fell, Billy Southworth had Just organized organ-ized his cast into the most formidable for-midable team in the league. It had cood catchlns and certainly one of the soundest pitching staffs in Johnny Sain, Warren Spahn, Bill Voiselle and Vernon Bickford. Braves Had Hitters The Braves had a good hitting outlleld on hand. But above all In iitanky and Alvin Dark, the Braves had the strongest second-base second-base combination in the circuit And it might be added that Stanky was largely responsible for young Dark's fine play and his marked Improvement. On the day Stanky was hurt, both be and Dark were hitting .320. Both were among the first five among the league'a best hitters. As a defensive combination combi-nation they had no superior pair to face. Just how Stanky's substitute will work out has yet to be shown over a long stretch. This could easily be the wrecking wreck-ing bad luck that Mack was talking talk-ing about The Braves may win the pennant without Stanky. With the pepper box around they wera the best team in their league, the team one had to pick as the probable prob-able pennant winner. You know what would happen to the Cardinals Card-inals If they lost Stan Musial or where the Indians would be without with-out Lou Boudreau. Athletics Have Pitchers The fact that a majority of the experts, prophets, and soothsayers still are waiting for the Athletics to crack hasn't annoyed Mack too greatly. Still he hasn't liked it too much. The records show that he has the soundest and most consistent con-sistent pitching staff in the league. "And the facts show," Mack tells you, "that we have Just about as good a ball club aa the Yankees, Indians or Red Sox In other departments. It Isn't as ' fast as It might be but It can hit and field and I certainly ' know of no other club that has more spirit. No club that haa been up around the front for three playing months can be considered any morning glory. If Phil Marchildon were In his 1917 shape, we'd have a nice lead already set aside with better bet-ter prospects on ahead." Whatever I ippens, 1948 can be set down as one of Mack'a bigger years. The veteran won his first American league pennant 46 years ago In 1902. He won again in 1905, 1910, 1911, 1913, 1914, 1929, 1930 ai.d 1931. So it has been a matter of 17 years since the tall, thin old-timer old-timer has won a flag and he feels that be could make good use of his 10th pennant before retiring from the busy scene. He had no idea this spring that he could do as well as he has to date. I tet'l pretty sure that back In early April, Mack gladly would have settled for a spot at the bottom bot-tom of the first division. Favorites Fade Out At that time about all you could hear were the Yankees and the Red Sox. The Tigers and the Indians In-dians drew the next rounds of applause. ap-plause. What everyone overlooked was the value of six or seven good, consistent pitchers in season where good pitching was extremely extreme-ly scarce. When such ball players as Eddie Joost and Hank Majeskle began acting like stars, the Athletics Ath-letics began showing dust to both Yankees and Red Sox. They gave pretty fair proof of their Intentions by opening the season In Boston and walloping wal-loping the astonished Red Sos three times running. Shortly after this they moved op with the Cleveland Indiana and began be-gan feeding Alhlctlo dust to the rest of the league. |