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Jiggs McGee · 01-23-2023, 11:53 AM

JULY 30, 1945

TRADE DEADLINE DAY

Dynamos Only Team to Make Major Moves So Far

Baseball's annual July 31 trade deadline is upon us as FABL clubs are running out of time to decide if they are contenders and if so, just what else do they need to turn those pennant dreams into reality. The Detroit Dynamos debuted four of their newcomers last week with a fifth -the recently acquired Art White- enroute from Chicago to join the club. With Leon Drake, Lou Balk, Howie Smith and Mack Sutton in the lineup the results were mixed as they Dynamos split their four games last week. Drake went 3-for-10 with 4 rbis and Smith went 3-for-11 but Sutton hit just .200, although he did homer in his first game back after nearly 4 years in the Air Corps, while Balk hit .125.

It is a small sample of course and the focus for the Dynamos is on catching the Philadelphia Keystones for top spot in the Federal Association. And in that regard the Detroit club may not be done dealing yet. The defending Fed champs lead both Detroit and Washington by 3.5 games. Philadelphia took 3 of 4 games last week from Pittsburgh, knocking the Miners to 7 games back and likely ending any consideration the Pittsburgh nine might have had of being buyers at the deadline.

There have been no major moves in the Continental Association although the third place Chicago Cougars did make two trades including the deal that sent Art White to Detroit for prospects. The Cougars also added veteran outfielder Ray Struble from the Philadelphia Sailors but, while Stuble is a decent depth outfielder, the move is not of the type that would alter a pennant race. As for the race, the Cougars remain 5 games off the pace now set by the Cincinnati Cannons with the Toronto Wolves 1 game back of Cincinnati. The Cannons and Wolves continue to play leapfrog for the top spot with Cincinnati, on the strength of 4 wins in 5 games last week back to the front after the Wolves went just 3-3 on the week.

The big question in the CA is will any of the big three make a major move to try and distance themselves from the pack? The Cougars -with the trading of Art White- are likely not the team that will make a big slash in the next 48 hours. Cincinnati is always looking to upgrade but the question is where as there is likely little available that could supplant any of their deep batting order so perhaps another starting pitcher for depth might be the only directior the Cannons would go. There has been some talk of a big move coming out of Toronto but at the time of this writing the only move the Wolves made was to add minor league outfielder Ed Hamor from the Oakland Grays of the St Louis Pioneers organization. Gray was hitting .302 in AAA and did bat .328 in a brief trial with the Pioneers last season so perhaps the Wolves are hoping he can continue that hot streak and perhaps force the struggling Gus Hull (.208) to the bench.

GOTHAMS MAY BE CLOSE TO BIG DEAL

Sources in New York indicate the Gothams are near to closing a significant deal. There are no other details available at this time but some are thinking it might involve Detroit and reuniting Sal Pestilli with his old pal Red Johnson. Pestilli is in the Army Air Corps at the moment but the 29 year old 5-time all-star and 1938 Whitney Award winner might just be the big outfield bat the Gothams covet for next season.

DYNAMOS STILL SHOPPING

Despite having added five new players in the past week and half the Detroit Dynamos are reportedly not done dealing in an effort to secure their first pennant since 1929. Rumours out of the Motor City have Detroit brass working the phones furiously as tomorrow's trade deadline approaches. One more starting pitcher is said to be what Dick York's club is looking for and there were even some stories circulating the Dynamos might consider parting with one of their 'untouchable' top prospects in the right deal.

One such rumour which appears not to be happening involved another deal with Boston as the Dynamos were trying to follow up last week's acquisition of Mack Sutton with a trade for 35 year old lefthander Dean Astle. Boston has had a lot of calls about Astle but it appears the Minutemen are going to hold on to him in hopes he would play a key role next season when the club feels it will be better positioned to contend as most, if not all, of the players at war return.

Detroit is said to be dangling 1944 first overall pick Roy Schaub, who is presently in the Army, or Del Johnson, a second baseman who was selected 6th overall this year, in an effort to add that elusive arm they seek. Among the possible candidates are thought to be Karl Johnson of Pittsburgh, The New York Stars Dixie Lee or Doc Newell of the Sailors.

1946 DRAFT PREVIEW: PART 3 - HIGH SCHOOL PITCHERS

Last year when we did our early look at the top candidates for the 1946 draft there were 6 high school pitchers that made our mock first round led by Tony Peckham. A year later Peckham still fits comfortably on the list of top high school pitchers, as do most of the others but our number one is a newcomer to the high school ranks with just one season under his belt. As a group there are 6 high school arms that OSA could see anchoring a big league rotation one day, but after that perhaps a bigger drop-off than usual.

Here are our Top Ten High School Pitchers eligible for the 1946 draft.

1: LARRY BEEBE RHP - Mamaroneck(NY) HS: OSA says the 17 year old has an excellent 4-pitch reprtoire, which should allow him to become a great starting pitcher. He has just one year of high school experience, going 9-2 with a 1.06 era while fanning 14.3 per 9 innings and walking just 2.1. He did not allow a homerun in 119 innings of work.

2: SAM FRANKLIN LHP - Benton Harbor (MI) HS: Primarily uses a side-arm deliver that keeps hitters off balance and induces a lot of ground balls. OSA sees Franklin as a potential to be top of rotation arm. He was an honouable mention All-American last season which was the best of his 3 year high school career, going 11-0 with a 0.98 era and fanning 177 in 110 innings of work.

3: TONY PECKHAM RHP - Lincoln HS, San Francisco, CA.: Last year's mock draft had Peckham as the number one pitcher, third overall and ahead of even college sensation John Stallings. If all comes together, OSA feels the youngster has the potential to be a top of the rotation arm. He went 10-0 with a 1.28 era and 152 strikeouts in 98 innings in what was his third season of high school ball.

4: BOB ALLEN RHP - Sonora (CA)HS: Often compared to fellow Californian Peckham, OSA sees the same top of the rotation potential for both pitchers. Allen is on the smallish side at 5'9" so perhaps durability may come in to question and there are concerns his secondary pitchers do not match his solid slider. But that might just be nitpicking from repeated views over 2 seasons. His numbers were close both years, but across the board he was slightly better as a sophomore than he was as a junior.

5: JACK COOPER RHP - Pelham Manor (NY) HS: Has the makings of being an excellent leader and willing to do what it takes to make himself a better pitcher are two things the scouts really like about Cooper. OSA says he has good raw stuff but is inexperienced, making a reference to the fact he has not pitched a lot of innings over his three seasons of high school ball and has spent more time than you would like out of a potential first round pick working out of a high school bullpen. OSA feels he will end up near the top of a big league rotation but our worry is he might be a little higher risk than the average high school arm -which is already risky enough.

6: CLINT ROGERS LHP - Brunswick (GA) HS: Seems to us like a lefthanded version of Jackie Cooper - a pitcher OSA feels will be a top of the rotation arm despite the fact he has pitched out of the pen so much in high school. He is a real worm killer but also vey raw at this stage. One positive he has great velocity already, peaking at 90 mph.

7: FRED WASHINGTON RHP - Linton (IN) HS: There is a lot to like about Washington. He had a very good sophomore season in his high school debut and was outstanding last year, posting a 0.73 FIP while going 11-0 with a 14.6 k/9 and just 1.8 BB/9. Nicknamed Boom Boom by his high school coach Gabriel Kaplan, OSA slots him just below the elite arms in this class, calling him a middle of the rotation arm with plenty of movement on his pitches.

8: TONY BONELLI RHP - Columbus (GA) HS: Another pitcher the scouting service feels can develop into a solid middle of the rotation option. He has 5 pitches with solid stuff across the board and should boast very good strikeout, walk and homerun totals as he matures according to OSA. He is 16-1 with a 1.45 era and 240 strikeouts in 180 innings of work over two high school seasons.

9: FRANK HADDER LHP - Rutherford (TN) HS: He has three pitches including a very good sinker but there are concerns his change-up is well below-average so perhaps there is question as to whether he has enough of a repertoire to be a starter instead of confined to the bullpen. OSA is not worried, projecting Hadder to being a middle of the rotation talent. Hadder has just one season of high school ball, going 9-1 with a 2.31 era and a 10.8 K/9 with a 3.3 BB/9

10: CHUCK BRIGGS RHP - Holbrook (MA) HS: Good size at 6'3" but the velocity has not picked up yet as he peaks at the 84-86 range right now. A 3 year starter at Holbrook High, Briggs needs to learn to throw more strikes, but if he does OSA sees him as a mid-rotation arm down the road.

Code:


HONOURABLE MENTION
 NAME             SCHOOL
Bill Kline	Annapolis (MD) HS
Lee Loeffler	Paw Paw (MI) HS
Harley Morgan   West (TX) HS
Dick Rutledge	Green Cove Springs (FL) HS
Heinie Strub	Eagle Rock HS, Los Angeles, CA.
Bill Sweet	Catholic Central HS, Steubenville, OH

Let's add one more as a pitcher to watch closely. Cyrus Goodman of Clarendon, AR., was #16 on our list last year for the mock first round and in his 3 years so far has been an All-American once and an honourable mention the other two times. His career pitching record is nothing short of outstanding at 35-0 with a 1.02 era and 574 strikeouts in 362 innings of work. OSA has downgraded him despite another strong season and calls him a spot starter at best. Goodman seems like just the arm someone might take a chance on late in the first round or early in the second.

Next week we will release our Full Mock First Round for the 1946 draft.

TALES FROM THE WOLVES DEN

A .500 Week, Injuries Drop Toronto to Second -The Toronto Wolves had an up and down week finishing at 3-3. The week began with a 5-3 loss to the Cougars in which the Chicago squad knocked the pitching around for 14 hits including 5 doubles...the score was flattering to Toronto. To add to the bad news Joe Bell was lost until the beginning of September with a foot issue. Bell was a late innings defensive sub at second for Henderson in addition to be used to rest Henderson or at third. His .278/.362/.422 line will be missed along with steady defense at second.

The logical callup from Buffalo would have been Bud House to add a bat that could play second, unfortunately House is also out until the middle of August so management recalled Tommy Anderson to give some depth in the 'pen. After a good performance at the big league level last September Anderson has had a rough time in both Toronto and Buffalo in 1945. Problems at both levels has been far too many free passes to the opposition. Manager Call and Pitching Coach Nichols hope by using Anderson in specific relief situations he will enjoy a little more success and regain his confidecne.

Toronto rebounded at mid week taking the first 3 of a five game set from the Sailors. Garrison notched his 13th victory of the season with a 5-4 win on Thursday, Cookie Myers ran his record to 12-1 with a come from behind 4-2 victory on Friday followed by a masterful 8-1 victory by Walls on Saturday. Walls is now 8-1 with a 3.88 ERA. He has been receiving the most run support of any starter.

The Wolves must of felt pretty good going into Sunday's double header where the team has been a terror. Not this Sunday as the Sailors swept, 7-5 and 4-2 in 10. Cleveland visits for 3 before the Wolves vacate Dominion Stadium for most of August. Foresters have played Toronto to a standstill this season going 6-6 against the Wolves.

A late trade has been announced between Toronto and St. Louis. Ed Hamor will be joining the Wolves a right handed hitting outfielder probably as a platoon with Gus Hull. Wolves sent prospect 1B Ed Abbott to the Pioneers.

CANNONS UNDECIDED ON DEAL

The trade deadline is upon us and the Cincinnati Cannons may just sit idly by and watch this time around. Certainly an unusual case for a Cannons club that has made some big July moves the past couple of years but this time around there does not seem to be a lot available that could improve the club.

Certainly not from the position player point of view where the Cannons are stacked. If they are going to make a move it will be for another veteran pitcher to add depth in case of an injury. The club has some targets in mind but it would be a tough decision as adding someone means they will need to cut one of their existing pitchers - likely Fred Hall or George DeForest - but the entire group has performed very well this season. Even Butch Smith, the reigning Allan Award winner who had a terrible start, seems to have found a home as the key man out of the Cincinnati bullpen.

Gotham Notes- Here we go again? Or building for the future? Gothams fans were angry if letters to the editor can be believed. Leon Drake was a popular player and now he's gone for another raffle ticket. Although sometimes frustrating to management with his up and down seasons, Drake has provided what little power there was behind Red Johnson during these war years. In return the team received minor league OF, currently in the military, George Bundy. Bundy is a former 4th round pick of the Dynamos.

On a positive note Drake's replacement in RF hit the ground running. Former Gothams 3rd round selection Bill Payne made the jump to the big club after a handful of games at AAA Toledo. He continued his torrid hitting going 12-23 (.522) with 2 doubles, a homer and 7 RBI in his first week of big league play. Payne had hit .364 and .385 in stops at AA and AAA this season.

What's next for the Gothams? I asked manager Bud Jameson about more moves. His reply was that the team will be looking to add to the major league team expecting more of the military players to be returning. "This isn't a rebuild. We want to be positioned to contend when our guys are back home."

Ed Baker won his 200th game last week and did so in fine fashion by spinning a 3-0 shutout over the New York Stars. The 40 year old, who spent 12 seasons with the Philadelphia Keystones before being dealt to Montreal prior to the 1940 campaign, is 200-183 including a 10-7 mark with a 4.21 era this season.
Sam Brown of the Cincinnati Cannons notched his 2000th career hit a week ago. The milestone marker for the 34 year old outfielder and 3-time all-star game last Sunday when we went 4-for-6 in a game against the New York Stars. A career .315 hitter over 1,595 games with Washington and the Cannons, Brown is batting .316 this season.
A 4-0 week for Boston including 3 straight over the Washington Eagles has Minutemen fans thinking perhaps their still is a chance. It will be a long haul as, at 46-52, the Minutemen are 9 games back with a lot of teams in front of them.
Montreal's Vic Crawford is showing he still has plenty left in the tank at age 37. Crawford enjoyed a 5-hit game -just the second of his career- a little over a week ago and then yesterday he hit 3 homeruns in a game for the first time in his career, leading the Saints to an 8-2 victory. On the year Crawford is hitting .326 with 10 homers and 75 rbi's, numbers on pace to match his glory seasons of the mid-1930s.
Three homerun games are still a pretty rare occurance with Crawford's being just the 25th time that has been accomplished and just the third this decade (joining Hank Koblenz in 1942 and Cliff Moss last year). Only Moss, Lou Kelly and Tom Taylor have had two games in their careers with 3 homeruns.

PETRIE'S RING FUTURE DIMMED BY LOSS TO HENDRICKS

Adrian Petrie, considered the best young boxer to come out of Canada in well over a decade, saw his hopes to be considered among the best in the middleweight division dealt a serious setback after suffering a split decision loss to JC Hendricks in Detroit over the weekend. The two talented youngsters both had high hopes and growing reputations entering the fight, which was held at the Thompson Arena on Saturday.

Petrie, a Montreal native who was recently discharged from the Royal Montreal Regiment of the Canadian 1st Army, was 7-0 as a professional entering the bout. He was so highly thought of despite his relatively young age of 23 that Petrie was included on the big military card in Liverpool last September. Hendricks was no slouch either. Also 23, the Detroit native entered the bout with a 6-1 record with his lone loss coming to Thomas Erwin before the war when Hendricks was just starting out.

It was an entertaining fight and both battled hard but, despite some protests from Petrie's corner afterwards, there appeared to be no hometown bias in awarding the decision to Hendricks.

*** A WEEK OF UPSETS ***

Petrie was not the only highly touted fighter to taste defeat in a bout many expected victory. Willis May, the Alabama native who was making his second appearance after four years in the Navy, suffered a technical knockout loss to lightly regardard Andy Branch on Friday. The 26 year old May, who entered the fight with an 11-1-2 record, really was just the victim of bad luck as he suffered what is suspected to be a broken hand from connecting with Branch's head regularly and was forced to stop in the fifth round, taking the loss.

The other upset loss was also a result of a stoppage as Bobby Bernard, the 26 year old Shreveport middleweight who was 12-2 entering his fight last Wednesday with Ray Pope, lost by a TKO in the 8th round after Pope opened a huge cut above Bernard's left eye. Pope, a 27-year old who hails from Tulsa, Ok., improves to 18-9-1 with the victory.

BRIT HEAVY TOPS BAKER

English heavyweight Leo Carmichael improved to 2-0 on his American tour with a unanimous decision over Clifford Baker in Washington DC Saturday evening. The 37 year old Londoner came across the Atlantic in the spring and fought on the undercard of former middleweight champ Artie Rees successful title defense over Tommy Erwin in March. Carmichael, who knocked out Mark Fountain in the spring, ran his carer mark to 30-4-1 with an unanimous decision over Philadelphia native Baker on Saturday. The 10-round bout was fairly even for the first six rounds but Carmichael, after a big showing in round seven, easily took the decision with a strong finish. Baker,35, who is the older brother of rising young heavyweight Scott 'The Chef' Baker, drops to 26-7-2 with the loss.

The Week That Was
Current events from the week ending 7/29/1945

Prime Minister Winston Churchill and his Conservative party went down to landslide defeat at the hads of the British electorate which voted into Parliament a sweeping Labor party majority.
Japan rejected the American-British-Chinese surrender ultimatum despite a clear warning that she now faces "prompt and utter destruction" by the mighty Allied land, sea and air forces assembled in the Pacific.
More than 1,000 American planes pounced on a concentration of Japanese warships at the Kure Naval Base and left it in a mess of burning wreckage. Heavy raids were also carried out all week on various Japanese cities.
Talks in Potsdam between the big three are set to resume today after a brief break for the British election. New Prime Minister Clement Attlee will replace the defeated Winston Churchill in meetings with President Truman and Premier Stalin. There is rumours that Russia will join the allies in the war against Japan but no announcement is expected until the conference is concluded.
Former French Premier Paul Reynaud has accused Marshal Henri Phillipe Petain of being in league with the Nazis as long ago as 1934, soon after Hitler rose to power.
The death toll in New York City's most spectacular air crash was set at 13 persons at least after a B-25 Army bomber smacked in the 79th floor of the fog-shrouded Empire State building.
Federal Price chief Chester Bowles says that 150 million copies of War Ration Book Five-which he hopes will be the OPA's last -will be distributed in December. At the same time 23 million motorists will get new gasoline books, the third edition since gas rationing began.

01-23-2023, 11:53 AM	#618
Jiggs McGee All Star Reserve Join Date: Dec 2019 Posts: 677	July 30, 1945 JULY 30, 1945 TRADE DEADLINE DAY Dynamos Only Team to Make Major Moves So Far Baseball's annual July 31 trade deadline is upon us as FABL clubs are running out of time to decide if they are contenders and if so, just what else do they need to turn those pennant dreams into reality. The Detroit Dynamos debuted four of their newcomers last week with a fifth -the recently acquired Art White- enroute from Chicago to join the club. With Leon Drake, Lou Balk, Howie Smith and Mack Sutton in the lineup the results were mixed as they Dynamos split their four games last week. Drake went 3-for-10 with 4 rbis and Smith went 3-for-11 but Sutton hit just .200, although he did homer in his first game back after nearly 4 years in the Air Corps, while Balk hit .125. It is a small sample of course and the focus for the Dynamos is on catching the Philadelphia Keystones for top spot in the Federal Association. And in that regard the Detroit club may not be done dealing yet. The defending Fed champs lead both Detroit and Washington by 3.5 games. Philadelphia took 3 of 4 games last week from Pittsburgh, knocking the Miners to 7 games back and likely ending any consideration the Pittsburgh nine might have had of being buyers at the deadline. There have been no major moves in the Continental Association although the third place Chicago Cougars did make two trades including the deal that sent Art White to Detroit for prospects. The Cougars also added veteran outfielder Ray Struble from the Philadelphia Sailors but, while Stuble is a decent depth outfielder, the move is not of the type that would alter a pennant race. As for the race, the Cougars remain 5 games off the pace now set by the Cincinnati Cannons with the Toronto Wolves 1 game back of Cincinnati. The Cannons and Wolves continue to play leapfrog for the top spot with Cincinnati, on the strength of 4 wins in 5 games last week back to the front after the Wolves went just 3-3 on the week. The big question in the CA is will any of the big three make a major move to try and distance themselves from the pack? The Cougars -with the trading of Art White- are likely not the team that will make a big slash in the next 48 hours. Cincinnati is always looking to upgrade but the question is where as there is likely little available that could supplant any of their deep batting order so perhaps another starting pitcher for depth might be the only directior the Cannons would go. There has been some talk of a big move coming out of Toronto but at the time of this writing the only move the Wolves made was to add minor league outfielder Ed Hamor from the Oakland Grays of the St Louis Pioneers organization. Gray was hitting .302 in AAA and did bat .328 in a brief trial with the Pioneers last season so perhaps the Wolves are hoping he can continue that hot streak and perhaps force the struggling Gus Hull (.208) to the bench. GOTHAMS MAY BE CLOSE TO BIG DEAL Sources in New York indicate the Gothams are near to closing a significant deal. There are no other details available at this time but some are thinking it might involve Detroit and reuniting Sal Pestilli with his old pal Red Johnson. Pestilli is in the Army Air Corps at the moment but the 29 year old 5-time all-star and 1938 Whitney Award winner might just be the big outfield bat the Gothams covet for next season. DYNAMOS STILL SHOPPING Despite having added five new players in the past week and half the Detroit Dynamos are reportedly not done dealing in an effort to secure their first pennant since 1929. Rumours out of the Motor City have Detroit brass working the phones furiously as tomorrow's trade deadline approaches. One more starting pitcher is said to be what Dick York's club is looking for and there were even some stories circulating the Dynamos might consider parting with one of their 'untouchable' top prospects in the right deal. One such rumour which appears not to be happening involved another deal with Boston as the Dynamos were trying to follow up last week's acquisition of Mack Sutton with a trade for 35 year old lefthander Dean Astle. Boston has had a lot of calls about Astle but it appears the Minutemen are going to hold on to him in hopes he would play a key role next season when the club feels it will be better positioned to contend as most, if not all, of the players at war return. Detroit is said to be dangling 1944 first overall pick Roy Schaub, who is presently in the Army, or Del Johnson, a second baseman who was selected 6th overall this year, in an effort to add that elusive arm they seek. Among the possible candidates are thought to be Karl Johnson of Pittsburgh, The New York Stars Dixie Lee or Doc Newell of the Sailors. 1946 DRAFT PREVIEW: PART 3 - HIGH SCHOOL PITCHERS Last year when we did our early look at the top candidates for the 1946 draft there were 6 high school pitchers that made our mock first round led by Tony Peckham. A year later Peckham still fits comfortably on the list of top high school pitchers, as do most of the others but our number one is a newcomer to the high school ranks with just one season under his belt. As a group there are 6 high school arms that OSA could see anchoring a big league rotation one day, but after that perhaps a bigger drop-off than usual. Here are our Top Ten High School Pitchers eligible for the 1946 draft. 1: LARRY BEEBE RHP - Mamaroneck(NY) HS: OSA says the 17 year old has an excellent 4-pitch reprtoire, which should allow him to become a great starting pitcher. He has just one year of high school experience, going 9-2 with a 1.06 era while fanning 14.3 per 9 innings and walking just 2.1. He did not allow a homerun in 119 innings of work. 2: SAM FRANKLIN LHP - Benton Harbor (MI) HS: Primarily uses a side-arm deliver that keeps hitters off balance and induces a lot of ground balls. OSA sees Franklin as a potential to be top of rotation arm. He was an honouable mention All-American last season which was the best of his 3 year high school career, going 11-0 with a 0.98 era and fanning 177 in 110 innings of work. 3: TONY PECKHAM RHP - Lincoln HS, San Francisco, CA.: Last year's mock draft had Peckham as the number one pitcher, third overall and ahead of even college sensation John Stallings. If all comes together, OSA feels the youngster has the potential to be a top of the rotation arm. He went 10-0 with a 1.28 era and 152 strikeouts in 98 innings in what was his third season of high school ball. 4: BOB ALLEN RHP - Sonora (CA)HS: Often compared to fellow Californian Peckham, OSA sees the same top of the rotation potential for both pitchers. Allen is on the smallish side at 5'9" so perhaps durability may come in to question and there are concerns his secondary pitchers do not match his solid slider. But that might just be nitpicking from repeated views over 2 seasons. His numbers were close both years, but across the board he was slightly better as a sophomore than he was as a junior. 5: JACK COOPER RHP - Pelham Manor (NY) HS: Has the makings of being an excellent leader and willing to do what it takes to make himself a better pitcher are two things the scouts really like about Cooper. OSA says he has good raw stuff but is inexperienced, making a reference to the fact he has not pitched a lot of innings over his three seasons of high school ball and has spent more time than you would like out of a potential first round pick working out of a high school bullpen. OSA feels he will end up near the top of a big league rotation but our worry is he might be a little higher risk than the average high school arm -which is already risky enough. 6: CLINT ROGERS LHP - Brunswick (GA) HS: Seems to us like a lefthanded version of Jackie Cooper - a pitcher OSA feels will be a top of the rotation arm despite the fact he has pitched out of the pen so much in high school. He is a real worm killer but also vey raw at this stage. One positive he has great velocity already, peaking at 90 mph. 7: FRED WASHINGTON RHP - Linton (IN) HS: There is a lot to like about Washington. He had a very good sophomore season in his high school debut and was outstanding last year, posting a 0.73 FIP while going 11-0 with a 14.6 k/9 and just 1.8 BB/9. Nicknamed Boom Boom by his high school coach Gabriel Kaplan, OSA slots him just below the elite arms in this class, calling him a middle of the rotation arm with plenty of movement on his pitches. 8: TONY BONELLI RHP - Columbus (GA) HS: Another pitcher the scouting service feels can develop into a solid middle of the rotation option. He has 5 pitches with solid stuff across the board and should boast very good strikeout, walk and homerun totals as he matures according to OSA. He is 16-1 with a 1.45 era and 240 strikeouts in 180 innings of work over two high school seasons. 9: FRANK HADDER LHP - Rutherford (TN) HS: He has three pitches including a very good sinker but there are concerns his change-up is well below-average so perhaps there is question as to whether he has enough of a repertoire to be a starter instead of confined to the bullpen. OSA is not worried, projecting Hadder to being a middle of the rotation talent. Hadder has just one season of high school ball, going 9-1 with a 2.31 era and a 10.8 K/9 with a 3.3 BB/9 10: CHUCK BRIGGS RHP - Holbrook (MA) HS: Good size at 6'3" but the velocity has not picked up yet as he peaks at the 84-86 range right now. A 3 year starter at Holbrook High, Briggs needs to learn to throw more strikes, but if he does OSA sees him as a mid-rotation arm down the road. Code: HONOURABLE MENTION NAME SCHOOL Bill Kline Annapolis (MD) HS Lee Loeffler Paw Paw (MI) HS Harley Morgan West (TX) HS Dick Rutledge Green Cove Springs (FL) HS Heinie Strub Eagle Rock HS, Los Angeles, CA. Bill Sweet Catholic Central HS, Steubenville, OH Let's add one more as a pitcher to watch closely. Cyrus Goodman of Clarendon, AR., was #16 on our list last year for the mock first round and in his 3 years so far has been an All-American once and an honourable mention the other two times. His career pitching record is nothing short of outstanding at 35-0 with a 1.02 era and 574 strikeouts in 362 innings of work. OSA has downgraded him despite another strong season and calls him a spot starter at best. Goodman seems like just the arm someone might take a chance on late in the first round or early in the second. Next week we will release our Full Mock First Round for the 1946 draft. TALES FROM THE WOLVES DEN A .500 Week, Injuries Drop Toronto to Second -The Toronto Wolves had an up and down week finishing at 3-3. The week began with a 5-3 loss to the Cougars in which the Chicago squad knocked the pitching around for 14 hits including 5 doubles...the score was flattering to Toronto. To add to the bad news Joe Bell was lost until the beginning of September with a foot issue. Bell was a late innings defensive sub at second for Henderson in addition to be used to rest Henderson or at third. His .278/.362/.422 line will be missed along with steady defense at second. The logical callup from Buffalo would have been Bud House to add a bat that could play second, unfortunately House is also out until the middle of August so management recalled Tommy Anderson to give some depth in the 'pen. After a good performance at the big league level last September Anderson has had a rough time in both Toronto and Buffalo in 1945. Problems at both levels has been far too many free passes to the opposition. Manager Call and Pitching Coach Nichols hope by using Anderson in specific relief situations he will enjoy a little more success and regain his confidecne. Toronto rebounded at mid week taking the first 3 of a five game set from the Sailors. Garrison notched his 13th victory of the season with a 5-4 win on Thursday, Cookie Myers ran his record to 12-1 with a come from behind 4-2 victory on Friday followed by a masterful 8-1 victory by Walls on Saturday. Walls is now 8-1 with a 3.88 ERA. He has been receiving the most run support of any starter. The Wolves must of felt pretty good going into Sunday's double header where the team has been a terror. Not this Sunday as the Sailors swept, 7-5 and 4-2 in 10. Cleveland visits for 3 before the Wolves vacate Dominion Stadium for most of August. Foresters have played Toronto to a standstill this season going 6-6 against the Wolves. A late trade has been announced between Toronto and St. Louis. Ed Hamor will be joining the Wolves a right handed hitting outfielder probably as a platoon with Gus Hull. Wolves sent prospect 1B Ed Abbott to the Pioneers. CANNONS UNDECIDED ON DEAL The trade deadline is upon us and the Cincinnati Cannons may just sit idly by and watch this time around. Certainly an unusual case for a Cannons club that has made some big July moves the past couple of years but this time around there does not seem to be a lot available that could improve the club. Certainly not from the position player point of view where the Cannons are stacked. If they are going to make a move it will be for another veteran pitcher to add depth in case of an injury. The club has some targets in mind but it would be a tough decision as adding someone means they will need to cut one of their existing pitchers - likely Fred Hall or George DeForest - but the entire group has performed very well this season. Even Butch Smith, the reigning Allan Award winner who had a terrible start, seems to have found a home as the key man out of the Cincinnati bullpen. Gotham Notes- Here we go again? Or building for the future? Gothams fans were angry if letters to the editor can be believed. Leon Drake was a popular player and now he's gone for another raffle ticket. Although sometimes frustrating to management with his up and down seasons, Drake has provided what little power there was behind Red Johnson during these war years. In return the team received minor league OF, currently in the military, George Bundy. Bundy is a former 4th round pick of the Dynamos. On a positive note Drake's replacement in RF hit the ground running. Former Gothams 3rd round selection Bill Payne made the jump to the big club after a handful of games at AAA Toledo. He continued his torrid hitting going 12-23 (.522) with 2 doubles, a homer and 7 RBI in his first week of big league play. Payne had hit .364 and .385 in stops at AA and AAA this season. What's next for the Gothams? I asked manager Bud Jameson about more moves. His reply was that the team will be looking to add to the major league team expecting more of the military players to be returning. "This isn't a rebuild. We want to be positioned to contend when our guys are back home." Ed Baker won his 200th game last week and did so in fine fashion by spinning a 3-0 shutout over the New York Stars. The 40 year old, who spent 12 seasons with the Philadelphia Keystones before being dealt to Montreal prior to the 1940 campaign, is 200-183 including a 10-7 mark with a 4.21 era this season. Sam Brown of the Cincinnati Cannons notched his 2000th career hit a week ago. The milestone marker for the 34 year old outfielder and 3-time all-star game last Sunday when we went 4-for-6 in a game against the New York Stars. A career .315 hitter over 1,595 games with Washington and the Cannons, Brown is batting .316 this season. A 4-0 week for Boston including 3 straight over the Washington Eagles has Minutemen fans thinking perhaps their still is a chance. It will be a long haul as, at 46-52, the Minutemen are 9 games back with a lot of teams in front of them. Montreal's Vic Crawford is showing he still has plenty left in the tank at age 37. Crawford enjoyed a 5-hit game -just the second of his career- a little over a week ago and then yesterday he hit 3 homeruns in a game for the first time in his career, leading the Saints to an 8-2 victory. On the year Crawford is hitting .326 with 10 homers and 75 rbi's, numbers on pace to match his glory seasons of the mid-1930s. Three homerun games are still a pretty rare occurance with Crawford's being just the 25th time that has been accomplished and just the third this decade (joining Hank Koblenz in 1942 and Cliff Moss last year). Only Moss, Lou Kelly and Tom Taylor have had two games in their careers with 3 homeruns. PETRIE'S RING FUTURE DIMMED BY LOSS TO HENDRICKS Adrian Petrie, considered the best young boxer to come out of Canada in well over a decade, saw his hopes to be considered among the best in the middleweight division dealt a serious setback after suffering a split decision loss to JC Hendricks in Detroit over the weekend. The two talented youngsters both had high hopes and growing reputations entering the fight, which was held at the Thompson Arena on Saturday. Petrie, a Montreal native who was recently discharged from the Royal Montreal Regiment of the Canadian 1st Army, was 7-0 as a professional entering the bout. He was so highly thought of despite his relatively young age of 23 that Petrie was included on the big military card in Liverpool last September. Hendricks was no slouch either. Also 23, the Detroit native entered the bout with a 6-1 record with his lone loss coming to Thomas Erwin before the war when Hendricks was just starting out. It was an entertaining fight and both battled hard but, despite some protests from Petrie's corner afterwards, there appeared to be no hometown bias in awarding the decision to Hendricks. * A WEEK OF UPSETS * Petrie was not the only highly touted fighter to taste defeat in a bout many expected victory. Willis May, the Alabama native who was making his second appearance after four years in the Navy, suffered a technical knockout loss to lightly regardard Andy Branch on Friday. The 26 year old May, who entered the fight with an 11-1-2 record, really was just the victim of bad luck as he suffered what is suspected to be a broken hand from connecting with Branch's head regularly and was forced to stop in the fifth round, taking the loss. The other upset loss was also a result of a stoppage as Bobby Bernard, the 26 year old Shreveport middleweight who was 12-2 entering his fight last Wednesday with Ray Pope, lost by a TKO in the 8th round after Pope opened a huge cut above Bernard's left eye. Pope, a 27-year old who hails from Tulsa, Ok., improves to 18-9-1 with the victory. BRIT HEAVY TOPS BAKER English heavyweight Leo Carmichael improved to 2-0 on his American tour with a unanimous decision over Clifford Baker in Washington DC Saturday evening. The 37 year old Londoner came across the Atlantic in the spring and fought on the undercard of former middleweight champ Artie Rees successful title defense over Tommy Erwin in March. Carmichael, who knocked out Mark Fountain in the spring, ran his carer mark to 30-4-1 with an unanimous decision over Philadelphia native Baker on Saturday. The 10-round bout was fairly even for the first six rounds but Carmichael, after a big showing in round seven, easily took the decision with a strong finish. Baker,35, who is the older brother of rising young heavyweight Scott 'The Chef' Baker, drops to 26-7-2 with the loss. The Week That Was Current events from the week ending 7/29/1945 Prime Minister Winston Churchill and his Conservative party went down to landslide defeat at the hads of the British electorate which voted into Parliament a sweeping Labor party majority. Japan rejected the American-British-Chinese surrender ultimatum despite a clear warning that she now faces "prompt and utter destruction" by the mighty Allied land, sea and air forces assembled in the Pacific. More than 1,000 American planes pounced on a concentration of Japanese warships at the Kure Naval Base and left it in a mess of burning wreckage. Heavy raids were also carried out all week on various Japanese cities. Talks in Potsdam between the big three are set to resume today after a brief break for the British election. New Prime Minister Clement Attlee will replace the defeated Winston Churchill in meetings with President Truman and Premier Stalin. There is rumours that Russia will join the allies in the war against Japan but no announcement is expected until the conference is concluded. Former French Premier Paul Reynaud has accused Marshal Henri Phillipe Petain of being in league with the Nazis as long ago as 1934, soon after Hitler rose to power. The death toll in New York City's most spectacular air crash was set at 13 persons at least after a B-25 Army bomber smacked in the 79th floor of the fog-shrouded Empire State building. Federal Price chief Chester Bowles says that 150 million copies of War Ration Book Five-which he hopes will be the OPA's last -will be distributed in December. At the same time 23 million motorists will get new gasoline books, the third edition since gas rationing began. __________________ Lead Columnist of The Figment Sporting Journal The Scripture of Sports Last edited by Jiggs McGee; 01-23-2023 at 12:00 PM.