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Tiger Fan · 03-26-2024, 11:50 AM

JULY 31, 1950

ALL QUIET ON TRADE FRONT

Little Seems To Be Brewing As Trade Deadline Arrives

FABL clubs still have a few hours remaining but at press time there has been no indication of any major activity in advance of today's baseball trade deadline. No moves have been made as of yet and the only players being offered are a few aging spare parts that appear to be drawing interest.

The best known names mentioned as available are likely outfielder Chink Stickles and pitcher Dixie Lee but both are aging veterans who are struggling this season so finding a buyer may be a year too late for the two offering clubs - struggling Toronto in Stickles case and Detroit for Lee.

Stickels is just 2 years removed from playing in his fourth all-star game but his production dipped last year to his worst since joining the Wolves from the New York Stars in 1943 and he has been even worse this season, batting just .213 and losing his starting job in the Toronto outfield. He is now 39 years old, and it is beginning to look like he has little left to give a team.

The story for the 37-year-old Lee is very much the same. He missed much of his peak with four seasons lost to the war effort, but Lee still has won 99 career big league games including a 19-12 season split between the Stars and Dynamos in 1945. This season, with a youth movement in full force in the Motor City, Lee has been bounced to the Detroit bullpen and he is 3-2 with 2 saves but owns an ERA of 6.07.

There is a shortage of buyers so the lack of players being dangled for trade is likely of little consequence. The New York Gothams had an 8 game lead atop the Federal Association at the All-Star break but have won just 6 of their last 17 games and perhaps opened the door a crack for the Washington Eagles or the Detroit Dynamos. Both are now 5.5 games back of the New York nine, but the Dynamos have already gone on record saying they are not going to be buyers and are happy to bring up more of their young talent for a possible pennant push. The Eagles always seem to feel they need pitching to make a run, and perhaps that is the case, but it would be a shock to see Washington pull off anything even close to a major trade before the day ends.

While the Brooklyn Kings hit a rough patch and have faded slightly, the Continental Association still has four teams within 4.5 games of first place Montreal. It is hard to imagine the front running Saints making a deal and the same is likely true for the third place Cannons but perhaps the New York Stars and Chicago Cougars are busy working the phones scrambling to find a last-minute addition. In the case of the Stars, if they are searching it is almost assuredly a backend starter as Richie Hughes (5-9, 4.25) and Vern Hubbard (7-10, 5.49) have not been consistent although Hubbard is coming off a pair of pretty good outings. The Cougars always seem to be in this position. They have the best talent in the loop but time and again come up short. There are not a lot of upgrades that could be made to improve the club so it may simply once more be a case in the Windy City of just hope that things will break their way for a change.

TALES FROM THE LAIR
Things Going From Bad to Worse For Wolves --Toronto goes on a 7 game losing skid to finish July with a 5-22 record which has old timers trying to remember if this the worst record in any month in the team's history. The team is now in a definite tail spin, in the seven losses the team was honestly only in two games. They were an extra innings loss to the Cougars on Tuesday along with a wild 14-10 game at Parc Cartier with the Saints. Manager Barrell is aging by the day, he said on the way to New York after being swept in both Chicago and Montreal "We cannot seem catch a break lately, we just have get back to basics, believe in ourselves which is getting harder as losses mount daily. Guys are starting to press which is leading to further mistakes. I am glad July is done, August will be better."

In a move that surprised Brett along with most other observers John Wells was sent back to Buffalo. Manager Barrell "The move with Wells came after much discussion up and down the organization. John was trying too hard at the plate, the failures there where affecting his work in the field. As a group we felt a short reset at AAA was best thing for his future. I talked to him before he left to tell him to keep working on fielding, this move was the best thing for him at this time because I could not give put him in the lineup everyday ahead of Finney and DeMott. Just go to Buffalo, get his mind in order we expect to see back in Toronto sooner rather than later. He took the news well saying that he would work his tail off to back here."

Although Brett was shocked by the move he could see the sense for both Wells and the team. In 16 games his line was .208/.264/.312. even more telling was his work in the field. Wells had made 9 errors in 80 chances at short. It was hard to tell which was affecting him more, lack of success at the plate or in the field. Certainly, one was affecting the other and riding the bench was not going to help him Toronto. Right now, Buffalo is where he needs to be getting regular playing time.

Brett has learned that the team is in serious trade talks that may lead to opening up a spot for Wells. He cannot get confirmation on who could be leaving Toronto, He knows Stickels has requested a trade.

Walt Messer of the New York Gothams collected his 1,500th career hit last week with Carlos Montes of the Chicago Chiefs notched his 1,000th.
Chuck Adams of the Cincinnati Cannons became just the 36th player in FABL history to hit 200 homers after Bow Wow took the Cougars George Oddo deep in the second inning of the Cannons 6-3 win in Chicago Saturday. Just for good measure Adams added another one, to give him 21 on the season, off Oddo an inning later. Oddo is Adams favourite victim, taking him deep 9 times in his career.
Ike Keller of Washington became just the third pitcher in FABL history to collect 150 career saves, joining Del Lyons (182) and Stan Waters (164) in that exclusive group.
Pete Casstevens had a 3 homer game against Washington last week. Three homer games have become a little more common in recent years as it was done 4 times a year ago an in 1947 a record 8 times but this is the firs one of the current season. The Chiefs star also becomes the first catcher to hit 3 homers in a game since another Chief, Tom Bird, did it back in 1938. The only other catcher to have a 3-homer game in FABL is believed to be Jim Pool, who turned the trick for Pittsburgh way back in 1929.
Detroit 2nd rounder pick Beau McLellan was 4-1 with a 1.94 era and a 203 ERA+ in Class A so the 18 year old is moving up to AA. Meanwhile, 22 year old Fred "Boom Boom" Washington - the Dynamos 1946 2nd rounder- has followed up a terrific first half in AA with an even better showing at AAA Newark, where Washington is 4-0, 1.50 with a 268 ERA+ and is just waiting for room to be made available in Detroit for his big league debut.
It looks like the Cougars can only beat one team this year:Chicago vs Toronto: 16-2 (.889). Chicago vs Everyone Else: 35-45 (.438). With only four games left against the Wolves, the Cougars may find it impossible to make up the 4.5 games they are behind the Saints.

After just two picks in four rounds last year, the Chicago Packers had possession of all three of their picks this go around, allowing them to bolster the #1 ranked farm system in the NAHC.

With their first pick, third overall, the Packers were expected to choose between defensemen Derek Veysey and Mathieu Harnois. Despite both being defensemen, the two are somewhat different players. Veysey is the more complete player, capable of playing on the left and right side, providing a pretty nice long shot, and closer to his first round caliber potential. Despite being just 17, he'd likely fill at least the third pairing on defense already, and is coming off a season where he scored 30 goals and assisted on 62 more for the Verdun Argonauts. Harnois, on the other hand, is more of a raw and projectable prospect who's comfortable only on the right, and is more of a traditional defender. He's also considered more of a leader in the clubhouse, as he was St. John's second assistant in their dominant 109 point season (51-6-7).

Perhaps lucky for the Packers, they did not have to pick between the two, as Veysey went second to the Motors, leaving the CAHA All-Star Harnois to become the team's first round selection. Coming off a 62 point season (13 G, 49 A) for the Saints, Harnois is expected to stay in the junior leagues until he is eligible to play for the Pittsburgh Rovers. This will allow him plenty of time to refine his game, as while there are questions there, none exist on his makeup. A bright young kid who all his teammates love, Harnois is the type of player who lives for the moment. Scouts have drawn comparisons of him to Packer defensemen Pete Moreau (4, 18, 22), a first line defender who skates well and is a force with his checking. A strong kid, if Harnois reaches his potential, the Packers could have one of the best blue lines in the league, led by young defensemen pairing Jesse Santoro and Mike Van Tol (4, 7, 11), with #1 ranked prospect Phil Stukas (11, 17, 28) now signed with the Packers after a productive season with the Vancouver Bears.

Six picks later, the Packers added a player they considered a first round talent in Spencer Quinn. The run on defensemen early contributed to his slide, as did some injury concerns that the medical staff believes they can keep under control. A Blainville, Quebec native, Quinn missed a little under a month with a strained Achilles tendon, holding him to 52 games with the Sherbrooke Industrials. Quinn netted 24 goals and 38 assists, showing the ability to play on either wing aside first line center Luc Fournier (32, 63, 95). Considered a similar player to third line winger Derek Gubb (9, 23, 32), Quinn isn't a traditional forward, focusing more on using his speed, positioning, and checking ability as opposed to lighting up the lamp. A strong supplemental player, Quinn's talent has drawn comparisons to Packer wing Jeremy MacLean (10, 24, 34), who matches with Max Ducharme (16, 20, 36) and star Tommy Burns (26, 38, 64), giving the Packers a talented, albeit, risky prospect on offense. He's also fairly along the development path, and with a little effort, a Packers scout believes he could play similarly to Tommaso Brescia (17, 14, 31), who joined midseason from the Shamrocks.

Rounding out the draft is center Denys Bergeron, a lefty shooter who tallied 25 points and 62 assists for the Kingston Cadets. More of a depth player who you'd want at the back of your lineup, Bergeron draw talent comps to veteran Ed Delarue (4, 13, 17), even if they have playstyle differences. A gifted passer with a real nose for the right pass, Bergeron is expected to set up his future teammates just like he did in Kingston, as he can zoom around the ice and find an open shot. He's not the greatest shooter, but if he's close to the net he can beat the goalie, and he's extremely lethal on a counter attack. He's a technically gifted player who is good as what he does, but the overall talent may hold him back from developing into a player on the top two lines

LIBERTY COLLEGE SCORING LEGEND TOPS FBL DRAFT

The news had long been known but the Chicago Panthers made it official over the weekend when they announced that Luther Gordon, the dominant center and two-time AIAA Red Barrette Trophy winner, would be the Panthers selection to open the FBL draft. Gordon, who led the Bells to a perfect regular season and to the AIAA championship game before coming up just short against Noble Jones College in the title contest, set a single season AIAA scoring record as a junior and then smashed that mark the following season. He might well have been a four-time All-American had he not struggled in high school, forcing the Brooklyn native to spend two years in a New York junior college before joining the Bells for his junior campaign.

The second pick in the draft was also a first team All-American as the Rochester Rockets went with forward Carl Casswell, a four year starter at Lane State who averaged 14.3 ppg as a senior. Other notable picks include second team All-American Brian Threadgill from St Blane, who was selected fifth by the Boston Centurions and Mike Miller, the 7'1" center from national champion Noble Jones College, who was taken in the second round by the Chicago Wildcats giving them the largest duo out of their two draft picks. Miller averaged 10.2 ppg for the Colonels but was unable to play in what would have been a much-anticipated meeting with Gordon in the title game because he was injured in the quarterfinals. Miller is fully recovered and ready to finally square off against Gordon in the Wildcats training camp.

NO SURPRISE. PANTHERS TAKE GORDON FIRST IN CAGE DRAFT

Federal Basketball League President Rollie Barrell must be a man of mixed emotions at the moment. On one hand, the founder of the basketball loop is thrilled with some positive press after nothing but bad news for the loop with the word that six of the seventeen clubs had decided to fold up shop. On the other hand, when Barrell dons his club owners' hat, the boss of the Detroit Mustangs must be very concerned to see the most hyped college basketball product in years -and perhaps ever- to land with his team's main rival.

That would be Luther Gordon. The center who played just two seasons of AIAA ball at Liberty College but was named the best player in the AIAA both seasons and rewrote the league scoring record. There seems little doubt that Gordon is going to develop into a star, and likely from day one, in the Federal Basketball League. He is a more hyped prospect that fellow Liberty College alum Ward Messer was when he joined Barrell's Mustangs two seasons ago. All Messer has done was win a rookie of the year award his first season and an MVP in his second.

Messer should be happy he managed to win an MVP before Gordon's arrival. Now, there is a slim chance that it is all just hype and Gordon will not be the Max Morris of basketball but by the sounds on the streets and in the watering holes of the Windy City his arrival is all that seems to be discussed.

The Chicago Panthers, a powerhouse to start in the four year old Federal loop, picked the right year to fall on hard times and they were rewarded with the first overall draft pick and the chance to take the potential franchise altering star. Put Gordon, all 6'9" of him, along with Richard Campbell and Cory Myers and you may just have the most imposing group of big men in the league. Add-in talented point guard Joe Hampton and it is easy to see why Barrell, the club owner, and everyone else in the West Division may be worried about matchups next season.

At a time when the tavern talk is all Chiefs successes, Cougars collapses or looking forward to another great Wildcats season, it is certainly a breath of fresh air for the fledgling cage loop to take center stage in sports crazy Chicago. The challenge will be keeping that momentum going during the season but few feel there is any doubt the Gordon will be an impact player.

CANARIES, COUGARS LEAD COLLEGE CAGE RECRUITING CLASSES

The Western Iowa Canaries have the top class of incoming freshman according to OSA after the scouting service released its rankings of the best collegiate basketball recruiting classes. Western Iowa has been a power in the Great Lakes Alliance for over a decade, reached the AIAA National Semi-Finals last season in a 29-4 campaign, and has not missed selection for the year end 32-team field championship tournament since 1938.

The Canaries are expected to be a contender for the national title again in the upcoming season and are led by a potential top pick in the 1951 Federal Basketball League draft in Darryl Baugher. The senior center from Chicago was the national freshman of the year in 1947-48 and has been a three-starter for the Canaries. He and sophomore guard Tim Jacobus, who was one of the top recruits a year ago, lead a strong club that will be augmented with the addition of an exceptional freshman crop that includes four players ranked in the top 30 high school seniors from last season.

Leo Black, a center from Milwaukee, was considered to be the number one pivot in the nation and he will be joined by the best high school forward in the country -Hank Ledet out of Denver- as two big additions to the Canaries roster. The other two are Billy Hudson, a sweet shooting forward out of St Paul High School in Minnesota and Texan Skeeter Duquette. Black and Ledet were ranked 7th and 8th overall in the national recruit rankings while Hudson was slotted in at 17 and Duquette was #30. Together they may give Western Iowa the deepest lineup in collegiate basketball.

The top recruit in the nation is Erv Corwin. The guard from Valdosta was named the top High School player in the state of Georgia and, despite heavy recruiting from both Noble Jones College and Georgia Baptist, opted to enroll at Bayou State. The Cougars, who had a losing record last season and have only made the AIAA year-end tournament twice since 1927, were a surprise destination for the prize recruit but he was joined by another top thirty player in forward Pete Barrier, who starred at Houston High in Texas.

Below are the top recruiting classes and where the top thirty recruits will attend school in the upcoming season.

RECENT KEY RESULTS

A pair of fights at the most famous venue in boxing were the highlights of last week's fight schedule. On Tuesday evening 34-year-old ring veteran Millard Shelton held off Rip Rogers for a split decision win in their 10-round middleweight tussle while last night British born welterweight Danny Julian won his second straight fight since crossing the Atlantic, improving to 29-1-1 with a unanimous decision over fellow contender George Gibbs. Gibbs drops to 27-6 with the defeat.

UPCOMING MAJOR FIGHTS

Aug 9- Thompson Palladium, Detroit: Welterweight John Gregory (20-8-3) vs Nate MacGilvray (24-12-3)
Aug 18- Lakeside Arena, Chicago: heavyweight Chris May (38-9) vs Corey Jones (26-15-3)
Aug 20- Vancouver, BC: Canadian heavyweight Harry Sweetland (28-8-1) vs Mark Moors (18-5-2)
Aug 30 - San Francisco, CA: MW Davis Owens (22-1) vs Brooks O'Connor (31-10-2)
Aug 31- Bigsby Garden, New York: Former World Welterweight champ Mac Erickson (22-2) vs Alonso Salazar (13-8-3)
Aug 31- Galveston, TX: middleweight Nick Harris (29-7-1) vs Andrew Hammon (23-4-2)
Sep 2 - Bigsby Garden, New York: middleweight contenders Ira Mitchell (25-5) vs Danny Julian (29-1-1)

The Week That Was
Current events from the week ending 7/30/1950

President Truman says he will bar the use of the A-bomb against North Korea, at least for now, noting he would not hesitate to use it again if it became necessary to assure world peace.
American troops had some success regaining ground lost the previous week in the war with North Korean communists.
British Navy flyers joined American planes in surprise attacks across the southwestern tip of Korea to stop advancing Red columns.
Turkey and Thailand have each offered to send troops to Korea and Britain will strengthen its numbers, it was announced by the United Nations.
In a speech to the country, President Truman called on all Americans to report to the FBI any information relating to espionage, sabotage and subversive activities.
Noting consumer prices are now higher than at any other point except for a brief period in 1948, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System warned Congress that prompt action is needed or "the country will face serious problems of gray markets and spiraling prices, which would upset the economy and add to difficulty in procuring manpower and materials necessary for the military effort."

03-26-2024, 11:50 AM	#911
Tiger Fan Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Ontario Canada Posts: 9,855	July 31, 1950 JULY 31, 1950 ALL QUIET ON TRADE FRONT Little Seems To Be Brewing As Trade Deadline Arrives FABL clubs still have a few hours remaining but at press time there has been no indication of any major activity in advance of today's baseball trade deadline. No moves have been made as of yet and the only players being offered are a few aging spare parts that appear to be drawing interest. The best known names mentioned as available are likely outfielder Chink Stickles and pitcher Dixie Lee but both are aging veterans who are struggling this season so finding a buyer may be a year too late for the two offering clubs - struggling Toronto in Stickles case and Detroit for Lee. Stickels is just 2 years removed from playing in his fourth all-star game but his production dipped last year to his worst since joining the Wolves from the New York Stars in 1943 and he has been even worse this season, batting just .213 and losing his starting job in the Toronto outfield. He is now 39 years old, and it is beginning to look like he has little left to give a team. The story for the 37-year-old Lee is very much the same. He missed much of his peak with four seasons lost to the war effort, but Lee still has won 99 career big league games including a 19-12 season split between the Stars and Dynamos in 1945. This season, with a youth movement in full force in the Motor City, Lee has been bounced to the Detroit bullpen and he is 3-2 with 2 saves but owns an ERA of 6.07. There is a shortage of buyers so the lack of players being dangled for trade is likely of little consequence. The New York Gothams had an 8 game lead atop the Federal Association at the All-Star break but have won just 6 of their last 17 games and perhaps opened the door a crack for the Washington Eagles or the Detroit Dynamos. Both are now 5.5 games back of the New York nine, but the Dynamos have already gone on record saying they are not going to be buyers and are happy to bring up more of their young talent for a possible pennant push. The Eagles always seem to feel they need pitching to make a run, and perhaps that is the case, but it would be a shock to see Washington pull off anything even close to a major trade before the day ends. While the Brooklyn Kings hit a rough patch and have faded slightly, the Continental Association still has four teams within 4.5 games of first place Montreal. It is hard to imagine the front running Saints making a deal and the same is likely true for the third place Cannons but perhaps the New York Stars and Chicago Cougars are busy working the phones scrambling to find a last-minute addition. In the case of the Stars, if they are searching it is almost assuredly a backend starter as Richie Hughes (5-9, 4.25) and Vern Hubbard (7-10, 5.49) have not been consistent although Hubbard is coming off a pair of pretty good outings. The Cougars always seem to be in this position. They have the best talent in the loop but time and again come up short. There are not a lot of upgrades that could be made to improve the club so it may simply once more be a case in the Windy City of just hope that things will break their way for a change. TALES FROM THE LAIR Things Going From Bad to Worse For Wolves --Toronto goes on a 7 game losing skid to finish July with a 5-22 record which has old timers trying to remember if this the worst record in any month in the team's history. The team is now in a definite tail spin, in the seven losses the team was honestly only in two games. They were an extra innings loss to the Cougars on Tuesday along with a wild 14-10 game at Parc Cartier with the Saints. Manager Barrell is aging by the day, he said on the way to New York after being swept in both Chicago and Montreal "We cannot seem catch a break lately, we just have get back to basics, believe in ourselves which is getting harder as losses mount daily. Guys are starting to press which is leading to further mistakes. I am glad July is done, August will be better." In a move that surprised Brett along with most other observers John Wells was sent back to Buffalo. Manager Barrell "The move with Wells came after much discussion up and down the organization. John was trying too hard at the plate, the failures there where affecting his work in the field. As a group we felt a short reset at AAA was best thing for his future. I talked to him before he left to tell him to keep working on fielding, this move was the best thing for him at this time because I could not give put him in the lineup everyday ahead of Finney and DeMott. Just go to Buffalo, get his mind in order we expect to see back in Toronto sooner rather than later. He took the news well saying that he would work his tail off to back here." Although Brett was shocked by the move he could see the sense for both Wells and the team. In 16 games his line was .208/.264/.312. even more telling was his work in the field. Wells had made 9 errors in 80 chances at short. It was hard to tell which was affecting him more, lack of success at the plate or in the field. Certainly, one was affecting the other and riding the bench was not going to help him Toronto. Right now, Buffalo is where he needs to be getting regular playing time. Brett has learned that the team is in serious trade talks that may lead to opening up a spot for Wells. He cannot get confirmation on who could be leaving Toronto, He knows Stickels has requested a trade. Walt Messer of the New York Gothams collected his 1,500th career hit last week with Carlos Montes of the Chicago Chiefs notched his 1,000th. Chuck Adams of the Cincinnati Cannons became just the 36th player in FABL history to hit 200 homers after Bow Wow took the Cougars George Oddo deep in the second inning of the Cannons 6-3 win in Chicago Saturday. Just for good measure Adams added another one, to give him 21 on the season, off Oddo an inning later. Oddo is Adams favourite victim, taking him deep 9 times in his career. Ike Keller of Washington became just the third pitcher in FABL history to collect 150 career saves, joining Del Lyons (182) and Stan Waters (164) in that exclusive group. Pete Casstevens had a 3 homer game against Washington last week. Three homer games have become a little more common in recent years as it was done 4 times a year ago an in 1947 a record 8 times but this is the firs one of the current season. The Chiefs star also becomes the first catcher to hit 3 homers in a game since another Chief, Tom Bird, did it back in 1938. The only other catcher to have a 3-homer game in FABL is believed to be Jim Pool, who turned the trick for Pittsburgh way back in 1929. Detroit 2nd rounder pick Beau McLellan was 4-1 with a 1.94 era and a 203 ERA+ in Class A so the 18 year old is moving up to AA. Meanwhile, 22 year old Fred "Boom Boom" Washington - the Dynamos 1946 2nd rounder- has followed up a terrific first half in AA with an even better showing at AAA Newark, where Washington is 4-0, 1.50 with a 268 ERA+ and is just waiting for room to be made available in Detroit for his big league debut. It looks like the Cougars can only beat one team this year:Chicago vs Toronto: 16-2 (.889). Chicago vs Everyone Else: 35-45 (.438). With only four games left against the Wolves, the Cougars may find it impossible to make up the 4.5 games they are behind the Saints. After just two picks in four rounds last year, the Chicago Packers had possession of all three of their picks this go around, allowing them to bolster the #1 ranked farm system in the NAHC. With their first pick, third overall, the Packers were expected to choose between defensemen Derek Veysey and Mathieu Harnois. Despite both being defensemen, the two are somewhat different players. Veysey is the more complete player, capable of playing on the left and right side, providing a pretty nice long shot, and closer to his first round caliber potential. Despite being just 17, he'd likely fill at least the third pairing on defense already, and is coming off a season where he scored 30 goals and assisted on 62 more for the Verdun Argonauts. Harnois, on the other hand, is more of a raw and projectable prospect who's comfortable only on the right, and is more of a traditional defender. He's also considered more of a leader in the clubhouse, as he was St. John's second assistant in their dominant 109 point season (51-6-7). Perhaps lucky for the Packers, they did not have to pick between the two, as Veysey went second to the Motors, leaving the CAHA All-Star Harnois to become the team's first round selection. Coming off a 62 point season (13 G, 49 A) for the Saints, Harnois is expected to stay in the junior leagues until he is eligible to play for the Pittsburgh Rovers. This will allow him plenty of time to refine his game, as while there are questions there, none exist on his makeup. A bright young kid who all his teammates love, Harnois is the type of player who lives for the moment. Scouts have drawn comparisons of him to Packer defensemen Pete Moreau (4, 18, 22), a first line defender who skates well and is a force with his checking. A strong kid, if Harnois reaches his potential, the Packers could have one of the best blue lines in the league, led by young defensemen pairing Jesse Santoro and Mike Van Tol (4, 7, 11), with #1 ranked prospect Phil Stukas (11, 17, 28) now signed with the Packers after a productive season with the Vancouver Bears. Six picks later, the Packers added a player they considered a first round talent in Spencer Quinn. The run on defensemen early contributed to his slide, as did some injury concerns that the medical staff believes they can keep under control. A Blainville, Quebec native, Quinn missed a little under a month with a strained Achilles tendon, holding him to 52 games with the Sherbrooke Industrials. Quinn netted 24 goals and 38 assists, showing the ability to play on either wing aside first line center Luc Fournier (32, 63, 95). Considered a similar player to third line winger Derek Gubb (9, 23, 32), Quinn isn't a traditional forward, focusing more on using his speed, positioning, and checking ability as opposed to lighting up the lamp. A strong supplemental player, Quinn's talent has drawn comparisons to Packer wing Jeremy MacLean (10, 24, 34), who matches with Max Ducharme (16, 20, 36) and star Tommy Burns (26, 38, 64), giving the Packers a talented, albeit, risky prospect on offense. He's also fairly along the development path, and with a little effort, a Packers scout believes he could play similarly to Tommaso Brescia (17, 14, 31), who joined midseason from the Shamrocks. Rounding out the draft is center Denys Bergeron, a lefty shooter who tallied 25 points and 62 assists for the Kingston Cadets. More of a depth player who you'd want at the back of your lineup, Bergeron draw talent comps to veteran Ed Delarue (4, 13, 17), even if they have playstyle differences. A gifted passer with a real nose for the right pass, Bergeron is expected to set up his future teammates just like he did in Kingston, as he can zoom around the ice and find an open shot. He's not the greatest shooter, but if he's close to the net he can beat the goalie, and he's extremely lethal on a counter attack. He's a technically gifted player who is good as what he does, but the overall talent may hold him back from developing into a player on the top two lines LIBERTY COLLEGE SCORING LEGEND TOPS FBL DRAFT The news had long been known but the Chicago Panthers made it official over the weekend when they announced that Luther Gordon, the dominant center and two-time AIAA Red Barrette Trophy winner, would be the Panthers selection to open the FBL draft. Gordon, who led the Bells to a perfect regular season and to the AIAA championship game before coming up just short against Noble Jones College in the title contest, set a single season AIAA scoring record as a junior and then smashed that mark the following season. He might well have been a four-time All-American had he not struggled in high school, forcing the Brooklyn native to spend two years in a New York junior college before joining the Bells for his junior campaign. The second pick in the draft was also a first team All-American as the Rochester Rockets went with forward Carl Casswell, a four year starter at Lane State who averaged 14.3 ppg as a senior. Other notable picks include second team All-American Brian Threadgill from St Blane, who was selected fifth by the Boston Centurions and Mike Miller, the 7'1" center from national champion Noble Jones College, who was taken in the second round by the Chicago Wildcats giving them the largest duo out of their two draft picks. Miller averaged 10.2 ppg for the Colonels but was unable to play in what would have been a much-anticipated meeting with Gordon in the title game because he was injured in the quarterfinals. Miller is fully recovered and ready to finally square off against Gordon in the Wildcats training camp. NO SURPRISE. PANTHERS TAKE GORDON FIRST IN CAGE DRAFT Federal Basketball League President Rollie Barrell must be a man of mixed emotions at the moment. On one hand, the founder of the basketball loop is thrilled with some positive press after nothing but bad news for the loop with the word that six of the seventeen clubs had decided to fold up shop. On the other hand, when Barrell dons his club owners' hat, the boss of the Detroit Mustangs must be very concerned to see the most hyped college basketball product in years -and perhaps ever- to land with his team's main rival. That would be Luther Gordon. The center who played just two seasons of AIAA ball at Liberty College but was named the best player in the AIAA both seasons and rewrote the league scoring record. There seems little doubt that Gordon is going to develop into a star, and likely from day one, in the Federal Basketball League. He is a more hyped prospect that fellow Liberty College alum Ward Messer was when he joined Barrell's Mustangs two seasons ago. All Messer has done was win a rookie of the year award his first season and an MVP in his second. Messer should be happy he managed to win an MVP before Gordon's arrival. Now, there is a slim chance that it is all just hype and Gordon will not be the Max Morris of basketball but by the sounds on the streets and in the watering holes of the Windy City his arrival is all that seems to be discussed. The Chicago Panthers, a powerhouse to start in the four year old Federal loop, picked the right year to fall on hard times and they were rewarded with the first overall draft pick and the chance to take the potential franchise altering star. Put Gordon, all 6'9" of him, along with Richard Campbell and Cory Myers and you may just have the most imposing group of big men in the league. Add-in talented point guard Joe Hampton and it is easy to see why Barrell, the club owner, and everyone else in the West Division may be worried about matchups next season. At a time when the tavern talk is all Chiefs successes, Cougars collapses or looking forward to another great Wildcats season, it is certainly a breath of fresh air for the fledgling cage loop to take center stage in sports crazy Chicago. The challenge will be keeping that momentum going during the season but few feel there is any doubt the Gordon will be an impact player. CANARIES, COUGARS LEAD COLLEGE CAGE RECRUITING CLASSES The Western Iowa Canaries have the top class of incoming freshman according to OSA after the scouting service released its rankings of the best collegiate basketball recruiting classes. Western Iowa has been a power in the Great Lakes Alliance for over a decade, reached the AIAA National Semi-Finals last season in a 29-4 campaign, and has not missed selection for the year end 32-team field championship tournament since 1938. The Canaries are expected to be a contender for the national title again in the upcoming season and are led by a potential top pick in the 1951 Federal Basketball League draft in Darryl Baugher. The senior center from Chicago was the national freshman of the year in 1947-48 and has been a three-starter for the Canaries. He and sophomore guard Tim Jacobus, who was one of the top recruits a year ago, lead a strong club that will be augmented with the addition of an exceptional freshman crop that includes four players ranked in the top 30 high school seniors from last season. Leo Black, a center from Milwaukee, was considered to be the number one pivot in the nation and he will be joined by the best high school forward in the country -Hank Ledet out of Denver- as two big additions to the Canaries roster. The other two are Billy Hudson, a sweet shooting forward out of St Paul High School in Minnesota and Texan Skeeter Duquette. Black and Ledet were ranked 7th and 8th overall in the national recruit rankings while Hudson was slotted in at 17 and Duquette was #30. Together they may give Western Iowa the deepest lineup in collegiate basketball. The top recruit in the nation is Erv Corwin. The guard from Valdosta was named the top High School player in the state of Georgia and, despite heavy recruiting from both Noble Jones College and Georgia Baptist, opted to enroll at Bayou State. The Cougars, who had a losing record last season and have only made the AIAA year-end tournament twice since 1927, were a surprise destination for the prize recruit but he was joined by another top thirty player in forward Pete Barrier, who starred at Houston High in Texas. Below are the top recruiting classes and where the top thirty recruits will attend school in the upcoming season. RECENT KEY RESULTS A pair of fights at the most famous venue in boxing were the highlights of last week's fight schedule. On Tuesday evening 34-year-old ring veteran Millard Shelton held off Rip Rogers for a split decision win in their 10-round middleweight tussle while last night British born welterweight Danny Julian won his second straight fight since crossing the Atlantic, improving to 29-1-1 with a unanimous decision over fellow contender George Gibbs. Gibbs drops to 27-6 with the defeat. UPCOMING MAJOR FIGHTS Aug 9- Thompson Palladium, Detroit: Welterweight John Gregory (20-8-3) vs Nate MacGilvray (24-12-3) Aug 18- Lakeside Arena, Chicago: heavyweight Chris May (38-9) vs Corey Jones (26-15-3) Aug 20- Vancouver, BC: Canadian heavyweight Harry Sweetland (28-8-1) vs Mark Moors (18-5-2) Aug 30 - San Francisco, CA: MW Davis Owens (22-1) vs Brooks O'Connor (31-10-2) Aug 31- Bigsby Garden, New York: Former World Welterweight champ Mac Erickson (22-2) vs Alonso Salazar (13-8-3) Aug 31- Galveston, TX: middleweight Nick Harris (29-7-1) vs Andrew Hammon (23-4-2) Sep 2 - Bigsby Garden, New York: middleweight contenders Ira Mitchell (25-5) vs Danny Julian (29-1-1) The Week That Was Current events from the week ending 7/30/1950 President Truman says he will bar the use of the A-bomb against North Korea, at least for now, noting he would not hesitate to use it again if it became necessary to assure world peace. American troops had some success regaining ground lost the previous week in the war with North Korean communists. British Navy flyers joined American planes in surprise attacks across the southwestern tip of Korea to stop advancing Red columns. Turkey and Thailand have each offered to send troops to Korea and Britain will strengthen its numbers, it was announced by the United Nations. In a speech to the country, President Truman called on all Americans to report to the FBI any information relating to espionage, sabotage and subversive activities. Noting consumer prices are now higher than at any other point except for a brief period in 1948, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System warned Congress that prompt action is needed or "the country will face serious problems of gray markets and spiraling prices, which would upset the economy and add to difficulty in procuring manpower and materials necessary for the military effort." __________________ Cliff Markle HOB1 greatest pitcher 360-160, 9 Welch Awards, 11 WS titles Last edited by Tiger Fan; 03-26-2024 at 08:14 PM.