Show ITH the boston braves of 1947 W WITH making threatening pennant gestures for the first time since 1914 a somewhat inside story ot of the old stallings outfit might be worth telling in 1914 the braves under the fiery miracle Alf man alan george stallings were 15 games off the pace as late as july joly 4 and they were still last on july 18 the then in the miracle of baseballs miracles took place as they went on to win the pennant and beat the B southworth athletics 4 straight but part of the story of the braves of 1914 goes back to the spring training program of that year in the south to a pair of great competitors peti tors possibly the greatest that ever wore spiked shoes their names were maranville and evers the rabbit and the crab heading north that year I 1 stopped off for a few days at the braves camp in march the main idea was to call on a few old friends such as hank gowdy johnny evers and rabbit maranville intending to spend only a day or so I 1 hung around longer for it was the most interesting camp I 1 had run across in an exhibition game that afternoon evers and maranville collided at second base each trying to cover the big bag both seemed to be badly jolted but neither gave any sign of being hurt I 1 noticed a few minutes later looking tor for some lost object around second base what mat were you looking tor N I 1 asked the rabbit in the dugout later two of my teeth he be said where my mouth collided with johnnys head hes got a tough head A short while later evers was hit on the arm with a fast ball he gave no sign of being hurt as he grinned and started for first base they could take it another member of the braves was hit and he be also showed no sign of any trouble although he carried a lump above his elbow here outside of the genial hank ank gowdy was a rather snarling tough group without too much ability the team had bad dick rudolph george tyler and BM bill james pitching but they had never looked me like johnson alexander and mathewson or feller newhouse shea and blackwell blackwel eU As tar far as one could see here her e was a ball club that might finish sixth or seventh or even eighth the squad that week had shown no power at all only some pretty fair pitching that night maranville told me what was taking place 1 I lost two teeth he said and I 1 never blinked two men were lilt hit and they never rubbed thet their r arms weve made a rule on this club that nobody can show he has been hurt not even if he gets a concussion not even if he be gets his block knocked off dont think losing josing two teeth was any fun fan it hurt but bat I 1 never let anyone know it I 1 like that brand of baseball dont ever getem let em know youve been hurt the victory drive I 1 lost considerable interest in this maranville philosophy when the braves were last on july 4 15 games away from the first place what about it now I 1 said to the rabbit about that time just warming up he said just warming up watch us in the stretch it was from late july on that the braves headed by the driving force of george stallings a great manager a fighter from every known angle plus rudolph tyler and nd james went to work stallings told me later he lost tour four pairs of trousers sliding up and down the bench 1 I was full of bench splinters he said dick rudolph was one of the best and one of the smartest pitchers in baseball history tyler and add james came to his help day after day you got this refrain rudolph tyler and james they caught the giants in the be stretch picked up 15 games on one of mcgraws mcgrawsr McG raws good teams and then wrecked the athletics in four straight in the world series and au all the athletics had was bender and plank and bush collins mcann Is baker barry and what looked to be one of the great teams of all time a team that had won tour four pennants in five years it even a contest team now the braves of 1947 just 33 years later under the able direction of billy southworth another great manager are among the teams to beat these braves are a much better ball club than the braves of 1914 but whether or not they can show the same amount of iron in their systems as this miracle squad offered against a forlorn hope Is another guess it often that any team has ha a maranville and an evers on the th same squad two blazing spots of flame hank gowdy was at Ms his best ru |