[Jiggs McGee]

AUGUST 27, 1962

SAILORS START PULLING AWAY IN CA
KINGS HOPE TO KEEP IT A TWO WAY RACE FOR SEPTEMBER

Just when the Continental Association started to get good, the San Francisco Sailors got better, and they've followed up their 16-8 July with a 17-7 August. Winners of 8 of their last 10, they've recently won series against the Cincinnati Cannons and Chicago Cougars, and now they're at least seven games ahead of everyone but Kansas City. They play them just one more time this season, three games in the city of fountains, and those could prove to be what determines the winner of the pennant.

It's funny the Foresters aren't consider in any of this, as Cleveland has lost 19 of their last 27. August has been brutal for their stars, as both Rufus Barrell (0-3, 7.76, 8) and Adrian Czerwinski (0-3, 7.09, 14) have been awful. Same goes for Hal Kennedy (.158, 2, 7), as only John Low (.345, 4, 16) and Sherry Doyal (.313, 4, 10, 1) did much of anything. A surprising decline from the Continental dynasty head, their poor form pretty much eliminates them from the playoffs, and they're at risk of finishing outside the top three for the first time since they were a CA worst 60-94 in 1948.

Kansas City is about all the hope we have for a race, but after struggling with elbow problems all season, Ken Newman's season will finally have to end because of it. A huge loss for the Kings, the 33-year-old hit .336/.443/.585 (160 OPS+) with 26 doubles, 19 homers, 67 walks, 87 RBIs, and 95 runs, snubbed of what should have been his 11th All-Star selection. Adding depth like Joe Dorch (.310, 3, 27) could pay off now, as he's a decent bat and can fill out the back of a lineup. Ahead of him will still be Pat Davis (.364, 15, 77, 34), Charlie Rogers (.297, 14, 64, 11), Hank Newman (.371, 32, 98), Al Farmer (.315, 21, 81, 6), and Bob Burge (.317, 8, 75). Even without Newman, they'll still put up runs, but making up a three game deficit without one of their top players will be tough.

Pioneers Still Holding Off Dynamos, Set to Enter September As Leader

With five days left and a six game lead, the St. Louis Pioneers are guaranteed to enter the last full month of the season as the Federal Leader. One of the biggest storylines around the Pioneers have been the pitching, but they have a chance to see their young star finish the season with a .400 season. Slashing an absurd .390/.490/.769 (214 OPS+), Bob Bell's average is just ten points away, and it comes with 37 homers, 92 RBIs, and 100 runs scored. With that and elite defense (11.1 ZR, 1.083 EFF), he should be the Whitney selection barring a late season injury, and having Jerry Smith (.301, 22, 83, 11) and Steve Schultz (.307, 21, 92) batting behind him as certainly helped.

Detroit still has a chance, six games back, with a recent change being made to their rotation. $150k man Howie French (10-7, 2, 4.05, 94) has been moved to the pen from the rotation, as deadline pickup Bud Henderson (5-5, 5.15, 51) has been outstanding since the trade. The former Star is 3-1 in 5 starts and a relief appearances, working to a 2.61 ERA (174 ERA+), 1.21 WHIP, 8 walks, and 9 strikeouts. Seemingly himself after not having any success post-injury, starts from him have made the Dynamos trade look better, as Virgil Ewing (.285, 13, 77) has been average and without his power. They need a lot of help from the rest of the association, but don't expect Verlin Alexander's club to give up anytime soon.

• The injury bug bit a trio of Continental Association clubs last week. Kansas City, desperately trying to close the gap on San Francisco, will have to do so without the services of Ken Newman as the 33-year-old, who had spent most of the season at first base because of an ongoing elbow issue, hurt the joint making a throw in a rare start at third base last week. The 3-time Whitney Award winner, who was batting .336 with 19 homers, is done for the rest of the season.
• Meanwhile the Chicago Cougars, who are presently 7 games off the pace have lost lead-off man and centerfielder Jerry McMillan (.335,17,62) for a couple of weeks with a hamstring issue.
• The Cincinnati Cannons are likely out of the running for the CA flag, sitting 10 games back and in sixth place. The Cannons also learned that Jim York (11-11, 5.51) is done for the year as the 25-year-old will need surgery on his elbow.
• The news was not all bad for Newman as he did sign a 1-year extension with the Kings for what at the moment is a record salary of $204,000. Currently Dallas Berry of Cincinnati, Jerry Smith of St Louis and Adrian Czerwinski of the Cleveland Foresters are the highest paid players in FABL, earning a reported $200,000 each for this season. Newman is being paid $187,500 for this season.
• Detroit is getting what it hoped for from Bud Henderson, who is 3-1, 2.61 since the trade with the Stars but third baseman Virgil Ewing (.257,3,14), while still a big improvement on the now released and in the minors with Pittsburgh Tommy Griffin, is underperforming from what he accomplished in Los Angeles. One of the prospects dispatched by Detroit to the west coast in the deal, young pitcher Jim Schoolfield, is off to a strong start since being called up by the Stars. The 21-year-old has a 0.93 era after 9 relief appearances.
• It was a foregone conclusion practically from opening day but the expansion New York Imperials officially became the first team eliminated from pennant contention after absorbing their sixth consecutive loss last Tuesday. The Imperials are 30-89 and on pace to lose a record 115 games. No team in the Continental Association has ever lost more than the 108 defeats saddled on the 1911 Philadelphia Sailors. The FABL record is 111 set by the Detroit Dynamos in 1935 while the team with the most losses in major league baseball history is the 1890 Century League's Pittsburgh Miners, who went 28-112 although the 1883 Baltimore Bannerman did have a lower winning percentage than those Miners, going just 15-83 (.153) in Century League play.
• Harry Dellinger of the Philadelphia Keystones had a great week, winning top honours in the Federal Association for the past seven days after going 15-for-30 with 3 homers last week. Included in the 24-year-old's big week was a 5-hit game in a win over the Boston Minutemen. Dellinger was not the only player to enjoy a five-hit outing last week as Charlie Rogers also turned the trick in the Kansas City Kings 10-1 drubbing of Cleveland last Tuesday. Rogers did not win CA player of the week but his teammate Ed Farmer, who hit .462 with a pair of homers, did.
• Frenchy Mack won his 75th career game last week. The 25-year-old Pioneers star is 19-4 with a FABL best 2.15 era this season and his overshadowing teammate Billy Hasson (17-7, 3.14), who is a 3-time Allen Award winner.

RECENT KEY RESULTS

• A mild upset last week as fighters from opposite coasts met in St Louis. Highly touted west coast welterweight Roger Lewis, a 24-year-old who was seemingly on the fast track to contention, lost for just the second time in 18 outings when he was outpointed by Billy Dvorak on Thursday evening. The only previous defeat suffered by the San Francisco native Lewis came early in his career when he was disqualified from a bout with John Wallace. This outing was decidedly one-sided as Dvorak, a 22-year-old who hails from Columbia, MD., and was fighting in just his 7th professional bout, dominated the meeting. Not much attention had been paid to Dvorak but perhaps that will change after he ran his record to a perfect 7-0, although Lewis was the first fighter with much of a pedigree that Dvorak has faced.

UPCOMING MAJOR FIGHTS

• September 7- Former middleweight champion George Quisenberry makes his return to the ring, fighting for the first time since his title loss to Lyman King in January. The Canadian, 38-2-3, who held the crown for two and a half years, will face Billy Randall in Los Angeles.
• September 15- Middleweight champion Lyman King will face George Hatchell in what will be the first title fight ever staged in desert casino city of Las Vegas. The 25-year-old King, who knocked out Steve Bradshaw in May to run his perfect record to 40-0, will take on Hatchell, a 30-year-old from Puyallup, WA., who held the title on two different occasions in the 1950s and had an unsuccessful to attempt to win it for a third time two years ago when he lost a decision to George Quisenberry. Hatchell is 43-7-2 and most recently won by decision over veteran boxer Davis Owens.

The Week That Was
Current events from the week ending 8/26/1962

• Britain and the United States made another proposal for a treaty for an unpoliced ban on nuclear tests in the atmosphere, under water and in outer space but the Soviet Union immediately turned a cold shoulder on the idea. The Western plan also suggested continuing to work on a treaty to ban tests in environments, but with the provision for international on-site inspection of suspicious tremors which might indicate underground tests.
• United States Disarmament Agency officials expressed the belief that Red China will set off another nuclear explosion within a matter of months. The Agency believes that unless a ban is put in place over the next few years at least 20 countries not now possessing a nuclear capability will be able to deliver nuclear devices.
• The United States blamed the Soviet Union for "wanton provocations" and "senseless" police cruelty in the Soviet sector of Berlin following the illegal erection of the Berlin Wall. In a note delivered to Moscow, it once again called on Russian officials to meet with the US, Britain and France "to find ways of reducing dangerous tensions and restoring normal conditions to Berlin."
• An off-course Mariner II spacecraft rocketed into space today on an intended 109-day trip to explore the planet Venus. Despite severe trajectory errors, Cape Canaveral staff is hopeful they could correct most of it by remote control signals to an on-board motor.
• The United States blamed shelling on Havana last week on an underground exile Cuban students group and said it had no advance knowledge of the attack. More than 60 mortar shells were launched at Havana's Miramar suburban shore area Friday night. Fidel Castro had blamed the U.S. for the attack.