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Show t . JSw fiCE Jf... . THE MAD PIPEE Spring, the Mad Piper, is leading lead-ing them back, ' Boudreau and Feller and Gordon Gor-don and Bauer, Williams, DiMaggio, Bearden and Mack, Dyer, McCarthy and Lemon and Sauer. Southworth and Musial, Slaughter Slaugh-ter and Sain, (This is a cinch without using the brain.) Spring, the Mad Piper, is tapping tap-ping his reed. Calling to Musial Harry the Cat, Kiner and Mize and the hardhitting hard-hitting breed, Blackwell and others who baffle a bat. Marion, Stephens and Pesky and Doerr, (That's quite enough of this why be a bore?) Spring Dreams of '49 KT THIS TIME last season, the ' following facts had been rather definitely established: The Red Sox and Yankees were to fight out the American League pennant race with Tigers and Indians in fairly close pur-& pur-& 1, suit. The Dodgers I 0"SI!,X' s and Cardinals were ryw to take over the S s! National League t race with t h e j, "xf" Braves always f e threatening. I V ly " This seemed to be Imr, n.r J logical enough. No one knew anything Grantland Rice about a pitcher named Gene Beard-en Beard-en and no one could guess that Lou Boudreau and Larry Doby would improve to any such extent as they did. Also, no one could figure the Cardinals would get such little help from their rookie crop, . and the Dodgers would be scrambling around last place long after the season opened. Now at least 10 clubs are indulging indulg-ing in early March dreams of October Octo-ber cash and glory. Here they are: AMERICAN LEAGUE Cleveland Indians, Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, Philadelphia Athletics and the Detroit Tigers. NATIONAL LEAGUE Boston Braves, Brooklyn Dodgers, St. Louis Cardinals, New York Giants and the Pittsburgh Pirates, with Chicago's Cubs hanging around the outskirts. There has seldom been a time in major league history where so many ball clubs in both leagues could be rated with a healthy chance to win. Something Some-thing nnforseen can happen to scatter them apart, but they could also come to the wire under two blankets. The best ball club in the two leagues looks to be Cleveland. The second best club should be the Red Sox. We are leaning heavily on that "should be" adjunct. THE BEST CLUB in the National Nation-al League should be the Dodgers with their speed and youth, their quantity of strong arms and stout legs, plus their 1948 experience. But it will probably prove to be the Braves again. If Billy Southworth could win a flag with Eddie Stanky out of action over two 'months and Warren Spahn afflicted with an off years (for Spahn), there is no particular reason why he should not win again with a few slight improvements and more help from these two standbys. Also, I have a fair idea that Billy Southworth's Braves will come north in April the best-conditioned team in the older circuit. South-worth South-worth overlooks few bets when it comes to getting the best out of what he has to work with. He wastes less time in his training campaign than any manager I ever knew. A Dip Into the Dark With the first day of spring training train-ing less than a week away, we hereby here-by climb out on the end of the limb of a palm tree which has no limbs to speak of. Here are our nominations for the early October roundup that may prevent us from seeing the Army-Michigan Army-Michigan football game: AMERICAN LEAGUE Cleveland Indians, Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, Detroit Tigers, Philadelphia Philadel-phia Athletics, St. Louis Browns, Chicago White Sox and the Washington Wash-ington Senators. NATIONAL LEAGUE B OS ton Braves, Brooklyn Dodgers, St. Louis Cardinals, Pittsburgh Pirates, New York Giants, Chicago Cubs, Philadelphia Phillies and the Cincinnati Cin-cinnati Reds. Vou can cut out this prediction, predic-tion, if you care to, and save it for next October. The two races are the toughest to pick that I can recall in the last two decades. Lou Boudreau's Cleveland Indians are better equipped than anyone else to win the American League pennant. |