Crimson Nine Faces Pesky, Others Here In Battle With Amherst Trainees Friday

A sight Boston baseball fans would give their eye-teeth to see--Ted Williams and Johnny Pesky participating in a ball game--will be the privilege of Harvard diamond devotees this Friday afternoon, when the Amherst Naval Training nine, comprised of Williams, Pesky, and other major league aces, takes on the Crimson team at Soldiers Field.

The Stahlmen, headed for their busiest week of the season, looked plenty sluggish yesterday afternoon, dropping a 13 to 8 merry-go-round to the Boston Coast Guard, in a game called after eight innings because of rain.

All that prevents Friday's contest with the trainees from reaching epic proportions is the fact that Williams participation will be as coach, not player. The eccentric Red Sox outfielder underwent a hernia operation recently, and is not sufficiently recovered to play.

The ball game between Harvard and Williams and Co. was arranged yesterday morning by Floyd Stahl and "Whitey" Fuller, former Dartmouth press agent who handles publicity for the Amherst station. The naval trainees have all been graduated from the Amherst school, but they are now marking time before reporting for further study to Chapel Hill, N. C. The boys, who haven't played any formal games this year, asked for a contest before going South, and the Harvard battle was put through.

Besides Williams and Pesky, two ex-Red Sox who need no introduction to anyone who has glanced at a sports page in the last two years, the naval team has oodles of talent. On the mound will be Johnny Sain, ex-Braves southpaw, who sparkled in relief work and as a starting pitcher. His catcher will be Fred Naumetz, center and co-captain of the Boston College football team last fall.

Gremp at First

Buddy Gremp, another fugitive from Casey Stengel's Allston wigwam, is the Amherst first baseman, and Mickey Connelly, one of Naumetz's gridiron teammates at B. C., plays second. Pesky, of course, will be at short.

It was a good ball game for six innings at Soldiers Field yesterday afternoon, but the last two frames were Harvard nightmares.

After the visitors, whose ranks were sprinkled with professional talent, jumped on starter Brendon Reilly for three runs in the first frame, the Crimson nipned away at the Coast Guard lead run by run, and Bob Slattery's two-run home run to left in the fifth put the Stahlmen ahead 5 to 4. But Lou Belanger replied in the sixth with a circuit clout to left center to equalize matters again. Harvard failed to score in the sixth.

Not Farley's Day

At this point Stahl replaced Reilly, who had pitched good ball from the second to the fifth, but weakened in the sixth when Belanger touched him for four bases, and Jack Farley took the mound. It wasn't Farley's day, and the Guardsmen chalked up, in that order, a triple, double, single and walk. Without having retired a man, Farley left.

So three runs were in when Captain Warren "Moe" Berg took the mound with very little warmup, and the Boston club kept right on going. A double play (Harvard had three all told) got Berg out of that jam at the cost of only one more run, but the Coast Guard came back with four more tallies in the eighth, aided by very sloppy Crimson play.

The Stahlmen committed no loss than eight errors, of every known variety. Coast Guard blasted out 16 hits, and was granted five walks and a hit batsman, but 13 men were left stranded on the basepaths. Although the Varsity only had seven blows, they were meted out 14 bases on balls.

Fitz Hits Homer

Ned Fltzgibbons was the top Harvard hitter, with a single and prodigious home run in three official trips. Jerry Kiley of the visitors was the ace of the day, though, going five for five.

Jim Hogan, who used to catch for the Cleveland Indians, had only a fair day against the College boys. He drew a pass, popped to Fltzgibbons, and blasted a hit off Gallagher's glove before a Berg curve caught him in the wrist and forced him to leave the game.

Harvard respected Hogan's arm, though, and no Varsity player attempted to pilfer second, and Paul Quinn was picked off second by the ex-Indian in the fourth. But Jim Gallagher made him and starting pitcher Al Cleary (from the Northern League) look mighty foolish in the third frame when the Crimson third-sacker stole home.

In the midst of its busiest week of the year, the Varsity nine treks to Exeter this afternoon for an engagement with the schoolboys.

The Harvard summary:   ab  r  h  po  a  e Sorgi, 2b  3  1  0  1  2  0 Richards, rf, lf  3  0  0  1  0  0 Gallagher, 3b  3  1  1  4  4  1 Fitzgibbons, c  3  1  2  4  1  1 Flynn, cf  5  2  1  0  0  2 Wilcox, 1b  2  0  0  6  1  2 Slattery, 1b  2  1  1  5  0  0 Quinn, lf  1  0  0  0  0  0 Clark, rf  3  0  1  1  0  0 Gleason, ss  3  2  1  1  3  1 Reilly, p  2  0  0  1  2  0 Farley, p  0  0  0  0  0  0 Berg, p  1  0  0  0  0  1 Totals  31  8  7  24  13  8

  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8 Coast Guard  3  1  0  0  0  1  4  4--13 Harvard  1  0  1  1  2  0  1  2--8

Runs batted in--Fitzgibbons 2, Slattery 2, Richards, Gleason, Home runs--Slattery, Fitzgibbons. Stolen bases--Gallagher, Fitzgibbons. Double plays--Gleason and Wilcox; Reilly, Wilcox and Gallagher; Gleason, Sorgi, and Slattery. Struck out--By Reilly 2, by Berg 1. Bases on balls--off Reilly 2, off Farley 1, off Berg 1. Hits--off Reilly 7 in 6; off Farley 3 in 0 (retired no batters); o Berg, 6 in 2.

  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8 Coast Guard  3  1  0  0  0  1  4  4--13 Harvard  1  0  1  1  2  0  1  2--8

Runs batted in--Fitzgibbons 2, Slattery 2, Richards, Gleason, Home runs--Slattery, Fitzgibbons. Stolen bases--Gallagher, Fitzgibbons. Double plays--Gleason and Wilcox; Reilly, Wilcox and Gallagher; Gleason, Sorgi, and Slattery. Struck out--By Reilly 2, by Berg 1. Bases on balls--off Reilly 2, off Farley 1, off Berg 1. Hits--off Reilly 7 in 6; off Farley 3 in 0 (retired no batters); o Berg, 6 in 2.

Runs batted in--Fitzgibbons 2, Slattery 2, Richards, Gleason, Home runs--Slattery, Fitzgibbons. Stolen bases--Gallagher, Fitzgibbons. Double plays--Gleason and Wilcox; Reilly, Wilcox and Gallagher; Gleason, Sorgi, and Slattery. Struck out--By Reilly 2, by Berg 1. Bases on balls--off Reilly 2, off Farley 1, off Berg 1. Hits--off Reilly 7 in 6; off Farley 3 in 0 (retired no batters); o Berg, 6 in 2.