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Show I My Greatest Thrill in Sport j An Interview With CLARK GRIFFITH President of the Washington Baseball Team .. . . J. t. J. J. J. J. JL J. J. A 1. A J. J. J. J. JL . . J. .. J, J, J, J, ".J.J.JLJ.AJ. fTTVVTT V V V V W YTTT '"" V" TT V - WITH a curr-er In bu.Hi'btill extentl-iuc extentl-iuc ov;r a period of more than thirty yearn, it Is no easy nniltr to (IHermlne what one situation furnished fur-nished the bluest kick for him, according ac-cording to Clurk (irillilh. Hut the boss of the Washington A nit'i'icnns c;in recall re-call none that proved as potent in .stirring his emotions as the feat of Walter Clark Griffith. j,,i.Son In fanning Long George Kelly in the seventh and final world series game, In which the Oiffmcn established their superiority over (he New York (Hunts. Having been a pitcher himself, nnd a cracking good one, too, It might be supposed I hat some close play or tense situation occurring during the many years he was in uctive service, and which concerned him personally, would ho most indelibly engraved on his mind, but such Is not the case. I "Last season proved Just one succes- 1 sion of thrills for me," said the veteran 1 diamond strategist. "There were any 1 timber of big moments during the 1 inpiiign, such ns the whining of I be liiilh by Allen Russell In that I s nt New York when our club ted the league leadership from I nnkees. I post-season set with the I was chock full of exciting slt- 1 too, notably the hit Harris 1 the sixth game that scored I uul enabled us to grab that I -t Is true Hint without 1 8 blngle then, the opportunity - . -" Johnson to stage his big scene the next day never would have been presented, pre-sented, for a victory for the Giants r -f v V V V W V T 4 T V , V V V V V V 'C -- -- W -c would have ended the series in their favor. "But, so far as I am concerned. It was Walter who provided me with the biggest punch 1 ever have experienced. experi-enced. "It will be remembered that Johnson John-son twice struck out Kelly after having hav-ing purposely passed Young in that seventh game, the second time In the eleventh Inning, with runners on second sec-ond and tirst. But it was the first time he accomplished the feat thai stands out most vividly in my memory. "The dramatic circumstances attending at-tending the feat were a factor, I sup pose. The score was a tie nt 3-aIl. due to the fact that Harris In the eighth inning airaiu had come through with a hit that scored two runs, when Johnson, who previously had suffered two defeats, entered the box to oppose op-pose the Giants in the ninth Inning. ".Manager Harris wns staking his all on the big fellow, and If he failed again Washington's cause would be lost. "Walter easily disposed of Llnd-strom, Llnd-strom, the first batter up, but was nicked for a triple by Friseh. With Young, n left-handed hitter of great ability up, Harris wisely decided to purposely pass him and take a chance with Kelly, who hits the same way Johnson pitches right-handed. "To me it seemed that the outcome of that game and it meant the series hinged on the result of that duel between pitcher and batsman. 5nd when Johnson succeeded in makrtig Kelly swing-futilely at a third strike I knew that Washington would win the highest honor in the sport and that no other moment could give rue a bigger kick. "It turned out that my .confidence was justified, for we copped in the twelfth inning. But even the hit that produced the decisive counter didn't give me the thrill I felt when Walter slipped over that third strike." ((c) by Public Ledger Company.) |