After a week hiatus because our commissioner was travelling for work, we are back.
SEPTEMBER 18, 1950
COWBOYS MAKE AFA DEBUT A MEMORABLE MOMENT
CFC Power Beats Boston 20-7 in AFA Debut
Pat Chappell and the Kansas City Cowboys looked right at home in their long-awaited debut as part of the American Football Association. A powerhouse in the now-defunct Continental Football Conference, it took four years and cost some $8,000,000 before the Cowboys, who won 3 of the four CFC titles and reached the championship game in the year they did not win it all, before they could be tested against an AFA eleven. The long-awaited game finally was staged, only because the Cowboys, along with the San Francisco Wings and New Orleans Crescents, joined the AFA. While the opponent was unfamiliar, the result was one that Cowboys fans had long grown accustomed to with a packed house of 14,250 jammed into tiny Packer Park to witness a 20-7 victory over the visiting Boston Americans.
It took a little time for the Chappell, long considered the best player in the folded loop, to make his mark in the AFA as the Cowboys were forced to settle for long field goal attempts on each of their first two possessions. Reuben Walston was successful from 51 yards out on his first try but missed the mark from 46 shortly after Boston quarterback Del Thomas threw his first of 4 interceptions.
Chappell, who did connect with fullback Mason Matthews for a pair of first down passes but seemed off with longer attempts in the opening quarter, settled down in the second period after finding ends Bill Tammaro and Pat Hill for a pair of solid gains as part of a 42-yard touchdown drive to make the score 10-0 after Thomas threw his second interception. Chappell called his own number on a 1-yard plunge for the Cowboys first AFA touchdown.
Boston would score its only points on a 5-yard toss from Thomas to Lamar Wright in the closing seconds of the opening half to cut the Kansas City lead to 10-7 but that would be as close as the Americans would get. A Boston fumble early in the fourth quarter gifted the Cowboys with great field position once again and Chappell connected with Pat Hill on a 1-yard throw for his first scoring pass in the new league and Walston would close out the scoring with his second field goal of the day.
The numbers were far less gaudy than we are used to seeing from the Kansas City offense. Chappell threw for 188 yards, completing 11 of 24 attempts with just one touchdown and a single interception. Bruising back Mason Matthews carried the ball just 10 times for 55 yards and the receiving duo of Ernie Orr and Bill Tammaro combined for just 4 catches but it was certainly enough to get the Cowboys the victory on this day.
In other action it was a rough trip to the west coast for the two-time defending league champion Chicago Wildcats as the Los Angeles Tigers scored three first quarter touchdowns and rolled to a 41-28 victory over the Chicago eleven. Rich McKowen threw for 211 yards and a pair of scores to pace the Cleveland Finches to a 17-10 road win in Philadelphia. It was the Dusty Sinclair show in Pittsburgh as the former Los Angeles quarterback adapted nicely to life at Fitzpatrick Park, with a 320 yard passing day to lead the Paladins to a 27-7 victory over the New York football Stars. There may be a new coach in Detroit as Tom Bowens replaced Frank Yurik but the result was unchanged with the St Louis Ramblers slamming the Maroons 38-0. In the final contest of the weekend the other two CFC survivors, New Orleans and San Francisco, battled to a 14-14 draw.
COUGARS CHARGE INTO CA FLAG RACE
The Chicago Cougars have become well known for their stumbles down the stretch over the past decade but that might be changing as the Cougars are suddenly the hottest team in a packed Continental Association pennant race and only a half game out of first place with two weeks remaining in the season. Five wins in their last six games while the rest of the contenders had a rough week as the Cougars hot on the heels of co-leaders Montreal and New York with games for the Chicago nine against both of those clubs coming up beginning Friday.
The injury-riddled Saints dropped 3 of their last 4 games but do have the luxury of playing 8 of their final 12 games at Parc Cartier although two of the four remaining road contests will be in the Windy City beginning next Monday. The Stars have dropped 4 in a row and have a quiet week ahead with just 4 games on the docket - all at home- beginning with a pair against Cincinnati midweek before the Cougars and Stars meet in what could be a crucial two-game set at Dyckman Stadium this weekend. In total, the Stars have 10 games left on their docket with the final six on the road. One cannot completely count out the two Ohio clubs either as both Cincinnati and Cleveland remain in the mix, although odds are long for both.
COUGARS HOT AT THE RIGHT TIME FOR A CHANGE
Winners of nine of their last twelve, the Chicago Cougars have caught fire at perhaps the perfect time. The Cougars have made up a full four games in two weeks, moving within a half game of the Montreal Saints and New York Stars, who sit atop the Continental Association.
Pennant contention seemed like an after thought as recently as late August for the perennial disappointers, who were a full eight games out of first less then a month ago. Since August 21st, the Cougars have gone 17-8, and with thirteen games left, they'll be in Chicago for eleven of them. The only two road games come this weekend against the Stars, as the Cougars have one more with the Cannons, three with the Sailors, three with the Kings, and two with the Stars at Cougar stadium to finish things off. Despite being somewhat unimpressive at home (35-31), this should be a huge advantage over the teams around them, as the other four teams within 2.5 games of the lead have far more road games.
What's helped the Cougars the most in September has been the starting pitching, as four of the five rotation members have ERAs below 2.65. The one member that doesn't, Pete Papenfus (5.16), has won two of his three starts, and for the season his is at 3.45 (114 ERA+) with 134 strikeouts, one behind staff ace Donnie Jones for second in the Continental Association. Jones himself has won a pair of starts, working to a 2.61 ERA (151 ERA+) and 1.06 WHIP with 19 strikeouts in 31 innings. His brother Johnnie has won both his outings, with a 1-run complete game win over the Kings and a 6-hit shutout of the Wolves to improve to 14-8 on the season. Duke Bybee has allowed just 4 runs and 4 walks with 13 strikeouts in 25 innings, while Jim Morrison is 2-1 with a 2.52 ERA (156 ERA+) as he continues to improve from his rough start to his Cougar career. Stopper David Molina has been huge late, winning two games and saving three more, as its been really tough to get runs on this talented staff.
The offense has been a point of weakness throughout the season, and it seems like a lot of wins have been in spite of it. Stars Leo Mitchell (.278, 8, 1) and Skipper Schneider (.212, 2) have been ice-cold in September, while the formerly red hot Charlie Woodbury (.250, 3) has seen his stick freeze. Luckily, slugger Red Bond has led the way, slashing .364/.440/.545 (164 OPS+) with 2 doubles, 2 homers, and 11 RBIs, but the true catalyst of the offense has come from an unlikely source.
That would be one of the team captains, Don Lee, who was only in the lineup because of the John Moss injury. The former All-Star has taken full advantage of his newfound at bats, hitting an impressive .400/.500/.633 (203 OPS+) with 4 doubles, a homer, a steal, 7 RBIs, 8 runs, and 6 walks. With Moss returning to patrol center this week, Lee will see some of his at bats slip away, but the 28-year-old outfielder has done enough to pick up valuable at bats down the stretch. Used mainly in a bench role, Lee has started just 13 of his 73 appearances, but the former 2nd Rounder has hit an impressive .306/.438/.518 (156 OPS+) in 107 trips to the plate. The speedy Lee has added 3 steals, 8 doubles, 2 triples, 2 homers, 15 RBIs, 17 runs, and 20 walks, while making an impact on the field and in the clubhouse. The Cougars strong leadership core has been tested in this up-and-down season, but Lee, Mitchell, and Duke Bybee have done excellent job keeping the team together.
This coming week will be a major one in determining their success in the 1950 season, and with all the blown opportunities early in the season, the Windy City Kitties have no one to blame but themselves. They are now forced to be at their best the rest of the way, starting with their chance to sweep the Cannons. Duke Bybee (12-11, 3.73, 93) will be on the bump against Jim Anderson (13-8, 3.41, 97) in the finale, with Pete Papenfus (13-10, 3.45, 134), Johnnie Jones (14-8, 3.04, 85), and Jim Morrison (8-15, 3.94, 86) scheduled for the Sailors series. After the last day of the offseason, the Cougars will finish their docket of road games, as co-aces Donnie Jones (16-11, 2.86, 135) and Peter the Heater look to best what could be the first place Stars. All eyes and all the pressure are locked on to the preseason favorites, who have a chance to do what they've been expected to do each season since they were edged in the 1941 World Championship Series:
Win the pennant!
TALES FROM THE LAIR
Wolves Trying to Play Spoiler On The Road - In this lost season for the Toronto Wolves, they are the only team mathematically eliminated in the Continental Association. However, their remaining games could still have an impact on the pennant race. This past week the Wolves went 2-3, splitting at Dyckman Stadium with the Stars, before dropping both in Chicago to the fast charging Cougars who are now only a half game behind both the Stars and Saints at the top of the standings. The Wolves finished the week by winning 2-0 in Parc Cartier, further raining on the Saints pennant parade plans.
Skipper Fred Barrell tells the team everyday that all these games have a direct affect on the CA final standings they have to play with intensity and pride, not just play out the string. Barrell tells the Mail & Empire "We will not be an easy win for any team in our remaining 13 games. Our players are playing not only for their jobs but to spoil other teams hopes in 1950 which has been disappointing, to say the very least for everyone in the organization but especially for our fans."
"This year, thankfully, we are finished with the Cougars who dominated us, winning 19 of 22. I do not ever remember an FABL team with a season record like that in all my years around this league."
This week the team finishes a series in Montreal before heading into Brooklyn with the goal of spoiling the Kings fading title hopes in a three games midweek series. This will determine if the Wolves can win a season series against one team in the CA. Wolves are currently 10-9 facing Tom Barrell's charges, winning 2 of 3 would give the Wolves their only winning record against a rival in 1950. This is aside from the family implications over family get togethers over baseball's off-season.
The Wolves then travel into the Queen City for three with the Cannons before returning home to finish the year at Dominion Stadium next Tuesday. Both wins last week were shutouts with Joe Hancock stifling the Stars followed by George Garrison's gem over the Saints on Sunday. Defense is still leaky on the infield - they were charged with 7 errors last week including three more by Wells at short giving him 18 in only 204 chances at the big league level. Wells' winter will involve fielding ball after ball after ball at short daily. The team is not sure if they can send him to Cuba this winter.
In hockey news, Brett has learned that the Dukes training camp up North is going well with players fighting for jobs both literally and figuratively. There have been a number of fights during inter squad games. In a telephone conversation with Dukes bench boss Jack Barrell, he told Brett "Yes there have been a number of guys pairing off in camp, some guys are still smarting from the way the season ended in April. I have no problem with that, as long as it does not get out of hand along with no one getting hurt. Guys are competing for roster spots."
- Keystones veteran George M. Brooks became just the 33rd pitcher in FABL history to reach the 1,500 strikeout plateau. The 37-year-old is having a fine season working out of the Philadelphia bullpen. He is 11-1 with 16 saves and a 2.94 era.
- 21-year-old outfielder Rod Shearer, the Chiefs second round pick in this year's draft, will make his big league debut this week after the Chiefs lost another rookie outfielder in Gene Burton to an ankle sprain. Shearer, who played his college ball at Plantersville A&M, was ranked 11th on the 11th on the OSA prospect pipeline and dominated Class B pitching before a recent promotion to Class A Cedar Rapids.
- Chuck Collins exile to the minors is over as the Brooklyn Kings have recalled the 25-year-old with the conclusion of the AAA season. Percy Pringle Jr. had this to say regarding Collins in the Brooklyn Daily Eagle recently. "Needless to say, 'No Luck' Chuck is angry but he did do what the Kings wanted him to do down in AAA, remembered how to hit. In his 50 game stretch in Jersey, Collins slashed 374/436/1019 with 10 home runs and 47 RBI's. That is what we are looking for from him. He's 25 now and Brooklyn management is hopeful he will turn into a a first baseman who averages 20 home runs and between 80-100 RBI's for the next decade.
- It has been a tough season for the Detroit Dynamos but their farm system has certainly prospered this year. Four of Detroit's minor league affiliates won league pennants this season with the lone exception being at the Class B level.
WHAT WILL CHARLIE BARRELL DO?
Three Sport Star May Opt Out of FABL Draft Again
FABL clubs, especially those out of the pennant race, are anxiously looking forward to the 1951 draft this January at what looks like a very talented group of players among the top half of the first round. The final draft order will not be determined until the end of December when the annual weighted draft lottery takes place and with the Continental Association selecting first it appears the best chances for landing the number one pick will be with the Philadelphia Sailors and Cincinnati Cannons, assuming the Cannons do not win the pennant.
There is plenty of talent at the top of the draft led by a half dozen position players that the league scouting service, the OSA, feels can develop into future all-stars. The list is dominated by high schoolers including infielders Chuck Clark, Joe Flanagan and Jim Upchurch, catcher Jim Hauer and outfielder Harry Swain. Boston high school pitcher Dick Heard may also be in the conversation for the number one pick, but that designation may end up falling to the OSA's top ranked college player.
That would be Charlie Barrell. With baseball royalty coursing through his veins, the 19-year-old second baseman from Noble Jones College seems a lock to be the first overall selection, unless he again opts out of the draft. Barrell was a certain top-five pick as a high school senior three years ago but withdraw from consideration for the FABL draft after committing to attend Noble Jones College.
Charlie, who is the half-brother to current FABL stars Deuce Barrell and Roger Cleaves, is not just a baseball phenom. He helped lead the Colonels cage team to an AIAA title last April and is forecast as a high first round pick in the 1952 Federal Basketball League draft assuming he stays for his senior season at Noble Jones College. Football may also be an option, as Barrell is the quarterback of the Colonels grid squad when he is not playing baseball or basketball. The 6'1" native of Los Angeles is not yet considered an elite passer but his father Joe was a star on the gridiron in the twenties and Charlie is said to have lots of room to grow in that sport.
Unlike football and basketball which wait for the conclusion of an athlete's senior season, FABL drafts players as college juniors and while many late round picks opt to stay in school instead of signing pro contracts after being drafted, no college player ever selected in opening round of the draft has ever turned down a baseball contract. But then again, no player other than Charlie Barrell has ever elected to officially opt out of the FABL draft as a high school senior. The question is - Will he opt out again?
COLLEGE GRID SEASON UNDERWAY
It was a soft opening for long parade of collegiate football games on their way over the coming months as a few teams, mostly in the southwest, got an early start on proceedings. Among the highlights include junior quarterback Pete Capizzi running for two touchdowns and passing for a third score to lead Central Kentucy to a 28-0 victory at home over McKinney State. The Tigers are considered one of the teams to beat in the Deep South Conference after a strong 9-2-1 season that culminated with a shutout of Maryland State in the Sunshine Classic on New Year's Day.
In other action Lambert College doubled Mile High State 20-10 behind a 102-yard rushing day from Stags back Jerry Maddux. Cache Valley, which won just once a year ago, started 1950 off on the right foot with a 37-16 drubbing of in-state rival Kit Carson University. The Southern Border Association became the first section to stage a conference game this decade with a pair of them: Abilene Baptist downed El Paso Methodist 31-12 while Canyon A&M thumped Flagstaff State 65-23.
While many of the top schools are still nearly two weeks away from their opening kick-off, the schedule does pick up next Saturday with four of the preseason top ten seeing their first action of the season. Those games include 4th ranked Cumberland hosting Mississippi Tech, #5 Travis College on the road to face College of Waco, 7th ranked Redwood entertains Minns College while #10 Texas Gulf Coast faces a stiff opening week challenge with a visit from the Georgia Baptist Gators to Houston to face the Hurricanes.
WEEKEND RESULTS
Bulein 17 Charleston (IL) 0
Utah A&M 24 Snake River State 13
Queen City 20 Texas Panhandle 14
Mobile Maritime 10 Paris Island Marines 0
Lambert College 20 Mile High State 10
Abilene Baptist 31 El Paso Methodist 12
Eastern Kansas 10 Baldwin City College 7
Central Kentucky 28 McKinney State 0
Payne State 24 Everman State (TX) 0
Cache Valley 37 Kit Carson University 16
Canyon A&M 65 Flagstaff State 23
Wyoming A&I 52 Western Montana 0
St. Benedict (PA) 16 Strub College 13
PRESCOTT UNVEILS PLANS FOR BARNSTORMING CIRCUIT
Daniel Prescott may be done with the Federal Basketball League, but he just cannot get the sport out of his blood. Prescott, who founded two professional basketball leagues and owned the most successful pro cage outfit of all-time in the Brooklyn Red Caps, folded his team at the conclusion of last season saying he had no interest in being part of the Federal League, which forced the disbanding of Prescott's American Basketball Conference a little over two years ago.
Prescott announced a new endeavor this week and has lined up an impressive collection of talent, one that might even rival the Federal loop for best of the sport. His Brooklyn Red Caps will continue on as a team but will not have a set schedule or even a home location. The Red Caps, along with three other 'teams' of players assembled by Prescott, will tour the country as a barnstorming league.
Prescott purchased the contracts of nearly every key player who played for one of the seven Federal League clubs that folded over the summer and will use those players to stock the three other squads that will compete with his Red Caps. The move comes as a blow to the Federal League, which had hoped to increase its overall quality of talent with top names like Red Caps star guard Ivory Mitchell but instead Mitchell and many others will be part of Prescott's new loop.
RECENT KEY RESULTS- Canadian middleweight champion Kevin Rawlings (26-5) crossed the border to fight in Buffalo last week and had a short evening, scoring a 1st round technical knockout of veteran Philadelphia fighter John Baker (26-8-1).
- Thursday night at Bigsby Garden, Lewis Jones claimed a unanimous decision victory over Larry Higgings. Jones (23-3-1) suffered back to back losses a year ago starting with a title defeat by 13th round TKO to Hector Sawyer followed by a disqualification against Tommy Cline but the recently turned 25-year-old is still considered one of the top heavyweights around and seems certain to get another title shot at some point in the future.
UPCOMING MAJOR FIGHTS- Sep 22 - Cincinnati, OH.: former welterweight champion Mark Westlake (28-6-1) faces contender Danny Rutledge (20-1-1)
- Sep 22 - Pittsburgh, PA: Italian middleweight Hugo Canio (17-1-2) vs Bobby Hinkle (30-9)
- Sep 22- Baltimore, MD: rising heavyweights John Jones (18-0-1) vs Brad Harris (18-0-1)
- Sep 29, 1950- Bigsby Garden, New York - World Middleweight title John Edmonds (32-3) faces formerly retired former champ Frank 'The Tank' Melanson (33-3-2)
The Week That Was
Current events from the week ending 9/17/1950
- Allied troops are reported to have entered Seoul, the former capital of the South Korea Republic, in a twenty-mile advance from the beachhead established Friday following a massive amphibious movement.
- A Russian plane was shot down by UN forces over Korea, and it was being flown by a Soviet pilot, giving further proof Russian was providing more than just material support to the North Korean Reds. The Soviets lodged a protest with the United States over the event.
- At least 25 soldiers were killed when a passenger train plowed into a troop train stalled by mechanical trouble in thick fog in Ohio last week.
- The British Foreign Secretary disagrees with American ideas that the Western Germans should rearm some German divisions for integration into a combined force to defend Europe against the threat of Russian aggression.
- Three Republican Congressmen who berated the Truman administration for "inviting" war in Korea were re-elected in Maine last week.