Show VMS TO PLAY BALL cyreal great ball balin season seen see returned vets A add dd color to NotI game by AL JEDLICKA features play ball 11 and the crack LIL 0 the bat again thrill amer leans the nation over as the 1946 season gets under way while softball football basket bull ball and goll golf have challenged baseball tor for youths attentions in recent years the gamo game still ranks as the no I 1 sports spectacle an enjoyable outdoor relaxation for the fans last year approximately 15 million persons paid to watch major ana and minor league ball and with most of the big stars returning from the war this season attendance should bi be equally great or greater nineteen Nind teen hundred and forty six may be a memorable year for another reason too for it marks the introduction of baseball on a big time tim professional basis in mexico following an old american custom 13 president resident avila adlla camacho tossed out jahe lie first ball at the mexican leagues first game in which the vera cruz blues walloped the mexico city reds 12 to 5 before an overflow crowd of in mexico city in the U S chief interest again will center on the major league races though the return of topnotch performers perform erp from the services and continued postwar prosperity should herald a banner minor league season be like old times again in the american league with the new york yankee sluggers back in there denting tho the fences but because of an average pitching staff joo joe mccarthys McCar thys aggregation will be X ak I 1 1 A v Z e X A EASY WAY WAX i jimmy I 1 i dykes i with kudy las lackl ki joo joe a and doyle lade of the chicago white sox box strongly pressed to for r pennant i hon orsby ors by the champion detroit tigers botton boston red sox jand was washington ington senator rp yanks have sluggers gars indicative 61 the ae dynamite in the yankee bats dimaggio hit in n hta his last lait season out keller SUrn StIrn and t mickey dickey though falling failing be below lowthe the mark maik the other regulars regu lara have that gilve yankee yanked touch in the pinch while the new arkers kers abc a re long on power powei and short on pitching tha detroit tigers have strength in both departments and may linay well repent repeat their 1043 league triumph A slugger in 78 games last year after hlo hit discharge from the army hank greenberg will be at first this sea son with hard hitting pinky higgins back at third and barney mccosky dick wakefield and pat mullin in brilliant outfield but the tigers real strength lies on the with lanky hal who won 23 25 games in 1943 while dropping only 9 0 heading the start staff jn in addition manager steve oneill has dizzy trout an IB game winner last year virgil trucks stuffy Over mireAl al benton and ru ruff gentry because of allaround all around balance many of the major league scribes like the boston red sox chances in 1946 1046 williams sparks red sox back from the he wars after three years in naval aviation spindly ted williams who lilt hit for joe cro outfit in 1942 promises to put plenty of punch back into the scarlet hose along with rudy york obtained from the tigers finlan in an trade johnny pesky who hit 01 S R A 14 1 4 ati 11 4 4 t 11 3 1 4 P C CAdDIN CARDINALS ALS manager eddie dyer center talks it over with johnny beazley and enos slaughter before joining the navy in 1943 and bobby doerr who rung up a average prior to his induction in the army in 1944 in pitchers tex hughson and big boo ferris manager cronin appears to have two surefire sure fire alre 15 to 20 game winners while mickey harris jim bagby and jim wilson are expected to develop into grade A mounds men nosed out of the american league pennant by a single game in 1845 1043 the washington senators will be ba back knocking at the door again this year it if their knuckle balling pitching fuching start staff stands up under the sli six month strain and the boys can stir up enough punch to help out hard hitting jeff heath stan spence buddy lewis and cecil travis head of the senators knuckle bailers to la 30 year old emil dutch leonard vet of 13 long seasons of play who chalked up 17 victories in 1945 against 7 losses and possessed an earned run average of per game the other so called flutter bailers are roger who turned in 20 wins aist last year marino etti with 14 and johnny much stronger than in 1945 following theyer the removal noval of ulcers others have a chance while cleveland st louis chi bajo cago and philadelphia have been counted out of the american league pennant racer ra cothey they may with lots of luck crow crowd dinto into the first division because of a strong pitching start staff headed by the sensational bobby feller fresh from the navy cleveland stands the best chance of breaking into the select four while 83 year old connie macks philadelphia athletics appear headed tor for the cellar despite the pr presence es ence of russ christopher ind dick no hit fowler on the pitch pitching ling staff profiting again from their ex extensive ten farm club st louis cardinals alethe ruling favorites favorite s to take national league honors away from the chicago cubs the brooklyn dodgers new york giants Giant sand and boston braves also are highly touted while pirates may well deve lopinto chii thedarl dark horses of the race few new major league managers have stepped into the goldmine gold minced mine eddie dyer hasin has in his first year I 1 agthe st louis car cardinals danals manager he bucce succeeds eds billy southworth who has taken up the reins of ie the boston braves in his regular outfield the lucky mr dyer intends ta start stan mu elal who hit before entering the navy in 1914 terry moore the fielding genius who hit prior to his induction into service jn ln 1042 1942 land and enos slaughter who batted before joining the air force the same year star performers in the infield include the great Marty Marlon Marion wide ranging shortstop and whitey Kurows kurowska kl slugging third bas baseman cipan who hit and batted in runs last year mighty mound staff among dyers ranking pitchers are red 13 barrett arrett who won 23 games his last time out oui johnny beazley 21 1 max lanier 17 and harry brecheen 18 14 while charley grimm has pone none of this kind of talent in chicago he does have a hustling ball club to work behind a winning mound start staff headed by big hank borowy who helped pitch the culis cubs into a pennant after being secured from the yankees last year claude Pas senu who won 17 games in 1945 despite an ailing rag right ht airm hank wyse who turned in ill 22 victories in spite of a sore back ind and HI bithorn Bl thorn who chalked up 18 8 wins in 1043 1943 before beloro entering the navy A 1 WM ON ai N Z V 5 kv 11 all eft ME the notional national leagues hagues champion batsman in 1945 with a mark phil cavarretta cavaretta will be back at first to pace the cubs attack with help forthcoming from the veteran stanley hack at third who hit in his hid season as a 8 bruin last year little peanuts lowrey andy and grimm hopes big bill nicholson cholson Nl who flopped to last year led by the li irrepressible repressible leo athe 4 the lip durocher who won f fame am e as one of the toughest of the gas houle houie aunill gang at st louis in the thirties leg the brooklyn dodgers aie are figured to be right up vp in 6 the thick of the national league race the lip enters the pennant run with a fair country outfield in pete reiser who hit before joining the army in 1942 goody rosan rosen who batted last year the ve veteran teran dixie walker and rookie gene her manski in the infield billy herman and peewee pee wee reese make a winning combination around second while none too strong the pitching staff is built around fire balling kirby higbe hugh casey ed head and vie vic lombardi Lom bardl giants still powerful the new york giants while not the hated and andi if eared feared aggregation of the john mcgrawsr McGra wor or bill terry days nonetheless is expected to cut it a figure in this years race no defensive geniuses the giants do possess power with manager mel ott who hit last year in right johnny mize at first mickey witek at third and walker cooper 3 17 behind the plate ability of brainy billy so southworth uth worth to spur the boston braves to give r 4 IA A r S I 1 SMILING new york giants bob blattner Blatt ncr second base and dill bill rigney shortstop have the old spirit all they have largely accounts tor for tho the high esteem in which the team has been held this year the braved do have the nucleus tor for a winner arinner with big mort cooper who won 63 65 games for southworth in three years for the cards on the hill and slugging tommy holmes max west and johnny hopp in tho the outfield Pitts burghs pirates rated none too highly in the early doping could easily develop into the tha dark horse of the 1916 1946 season in shortstop bill cox jand and outfielder ralph kiner manager frisch has come up with two prize prospects to go along with established performers perform eri like bob elliott in the outfield and elble fletcher and babe dahlgren in the in field with lefties wilkie and roo roe and right handers sewell gables and klinger the pirates should get good pitching quoted at 30 to I 1 longshoes long shots in early betting to win the national league gonfalon gon falon the cincinnati reds and philadelphia do not figure ln in the running |