JULY 30, 1945 - TRADE DEADLINE SPECIAL BULLETIN
ANOTHER DEAL FOR DETROIT
The Detroit Dynamos continue to be the busiest team in baseball after making yet another trade this week. Detroit, which had already acquired 4 players a week ago, made a deal with the Chicago Cougars to bring in veteran pitcher Art White on the eve of the trade deadline. White, a 33 year old lefthander who is 11-9 with a 3.08 era on the season, grew up just outside of Detroit and remembers cheering on the Dynamos as a teenager in 1929. Now he will have the opporunity to help lead Detroit back to the World Championship Series for the first time since that 1929 title.
White, with a career record of 146-113 over a dozen big league seasons with Brooklyn and the Cougars, will be counted on by Detroit manager Dick York to add a steady veteran presence to a rotation that is dominated by youth and includes a pair of raw rookies in 19 year old Carl Potter (8-7, 2.71) and 22 year old Pete Brown (7-8, 4.01). White joins outfielders Leon Drake, Lou Balk and Howie Smith along with third baseman Mack Sutton as recent additions to the club. Only Sutton, at 28, is under the age of thirty.
To bring White into the organization, Detroit parted with 3 prospects ranked outside the top 100 by OSA, along with veteran infielder Rabbit Mudd and their fourth round pick. Two of the prospects -22 year old pitcher Gene Madison and 20 year old second baseman Bob Schmelz are presently involved in the war effort while the third - 18 year old shortstop Bill Perrin- had just begun his pro career in Class C after being selected in the 5th round by the Dynamos in the 1945 draft. Perrin was born in Ohio but grew up in Detroit and played his high school ball in the city. The 36 year old Mudd was a backup infielder with Detroit after spending the previous two season in the Army Air Corps.
JIGGS McGEE'S TAKE: White gives Detroit the extra arm it clearly needs if the Dynamos are to be in the running for the pennant as September winds down. White is a 4-time all-star and a dependable back half of the rotation pitcher, seemingly a good fit for a Detroit club that was intent on not dealing any of its core prospects. In that regard they succeeded as all the top prospects remain in Detroit control, but they still surrendered some good young talent and I have to worry if White will be enough of a difference maker in Detroit. The lefthander may find the going a little tougher in Thompson Field than he did at the pitcher-friendly Cougars Park and not having Skipper Schneider to gobble up groundballs behind him won't help either. White has had some good seasons in the past but he is on pace for a career high BB/9 and homers allowed while also having his highest FIP since 1936. He may still pan out and might have been the best Detroit could get at the price they were willing to pay but there do appear to be a few red flags.
The prospects the Cougars added were not in the top 100 but that is not to say they lack potential. Detroit gave up a lot in this trade. Righthander Mean Gene Madison, 22, was originally a second round pick of the St Louis Pioneers in 1941 and had a very strong season at AA Akron in 1944 before the Navy came calling last November. There likely won't be a spot for him in the deep Cougars post-war rotation but he may fit in their bullpen some day or could be an attractive trade piece down the road. Bob Schmelz was a first round pick, 11th overall in 1942, but only had 31 pro games under his belt before the second baseman was called by the Army in January of 1943, so the verdict on him is still out. Bill Perrin is an 18 year old Detroit high school star who was selected in the fifth round last January by his hometown team and is a player I really like and I have a feeling he might end up being the best player out of the three.
Some might think this move means the Cougars are throwing in the towel on this season but they may just be clearing a spot for 23 year old Mike Thorpe, who is 12-1 at AAA Milwaukee and has more upside than the #257 prospect that OSA considers him to be. Or, they have received confirmation that Pete Papenfus is on his way back from the Navy despite the fact that nothing whatsoever has been officially stated on the topic. Pitching is not in short supply in Chicago and moving White helps clear out things a little for next season when most, if not all of the players at war, are anticipated to be back.
A little over a week ago I wrote that now was the time for GM Martin to make some moves to push this team over the hump. I asked him to do it without mortgaging too much of the future. Since then the Dynamos have made 4 trades last week, bringing in 4 bats to try and bolster the worst run scoring offense in the Federal Association. A new outfield of Smith, Drake and Balk along with “the Arkansas Artilleryman” 3B Mack Sutton. Yes the Dynamos have traded some draft picks including their first round pick, but the top prospects have not been dealt.
Now yesterday another deal was announced and no it was not another position player. This time the deal is for a veteran starting pitcher. The Dynamo’s announce a deal trading 3 prospects, 2B Rabbit Mudd and their 4th round pick to the Chicago Cougars for 33-year-old Art White. The lefty White is 11-9 on the season with a 3.09 ERA. He will join a rotation that has been a Jimmy Long, a couple of rookies and then a mix of veteran hurlers. He will likely slot in behind Long and ahead of rookie Carl Potter in the top 3 slots.
The Dynamos have done a lot to try and secure the Federal pennant here in 1945. Is it enough? Is it too much? Are they done? Rumors are flying that the Dynamos at trying to secure another arm. Sources confirm talks with the Chiefs, Miners and Stars. Will they pull off another deal or two? Will they shock the baseball world with another deal?
In talking with GM Martin he reminded me that while the club is all in for the race here in 1945, they are trying to find a balance for the future. I’m trying to figure out what he is talking about with balance for the future in all the moves that seem to be for the now.