WEDNESDAY, APRIL 11, 1951 "Off The Cuff" The wheels of fortune often take strange turns, and one of the most ironical turnabouts of recent times is the situation involving two important baseball men who currently hold down $65,000 a year jobs. • , Baseball’s commissioner, A. B. “Happy” Chandler, now finds himself in a rut even greater than that into which he cast Giant manager Leo Durocher only four short years ago. It was April 9, 1947 when the commissioner be gan the first of his many tirades against the fiery boss of the Brooklyn Dodgers, who has since vaulted the river to become mana ger of the Giants. That morning Chandler an nounced that Durocher was sus pended from organized baseball for one year. This was only one of the acts which through the next three years threatened Leo’s very existence in baseball. Chand ler has been refused a new con tract by the major league club owners. He may even have to re tire before his present contract expires in 1952. On the other foot, Durocher has the enviable role of being a $65,000 a year mana ger of a red hot pennant contend er, with more friends thai# he could ever boast before Chandler worked his personal havoc. Let’s take a look at-the events leading straight to this about face. First; it seems now that Chand ler was getting desparate back in 1947 to display some of the strength that his position was supposed to lend him, but which he had never used fully up until that April morning. So. when "The Lip” sounded off from his spring training quarters with some facts that were contrary to Yankee mogul Larry MacPhail’s liking, Chandler saw his chance. Leo had charged that, he had seen MacPhail sitting with known gamblers at an exhibition game. Branch Rickey was right behind him in his accusations. MacPhail demanded that Chandler arraign Leo or charges of conduct unbe coming to a baseball man. Chand ler did more—he suspended Du rocher. This move, however, won more friends for Leo than for Happy. The' commissioner was openly criticized for being too hasty. He made statements which implied, that if he told all he knew : about Durocher the public would think he had acted too leniently. Leo invited Happy to open the so called “Durocher file,” but noth ing was done about it. Rickey stood by his manager throughout year of suspension, and the following year, Leo was back at the Dodger reins. But during Durocher’s absence, Burt Shotton had piloted the Bums to the pennant, and Leo was ex pected to repeat. Injuries, and a break-down of the pitching staff kept the 1948 Dodgers far off the pace, and the wolf began to breathe down Leo’s neck. In mid- July Durocher signed to manage NEW SHOW at CENTER STAGE Players Present George Bernard Shaw's John Bull's Other Island beginning Friday, April 13—8:00 p.m. Fri. -90 c tax incl. Sat. 1.25 tax incl, with alter show snack ' 'The Lip' Gains By Happy's Whippings By ART BENNING the Giants, an act Which numbed many a baseball fan, particularly Giant fans. As far as pennant chances go, this move put Leo from the frying pan into the fire. The Giants fin shed a lack-lustre fifth that year, and the fans weren’t sure they wanted Leo around which proved golden to Durocher, and probably resulted, in his staying on as Giant manager. The commissioner slapped a $5OO fine on Leo for tampering with Freddie Fitzsimmons in the deal which brought fat Freddie to the Giants’ coaching staff from the Braves. No one : could quite see Chandler’s motive, because it had been the front office which had signed Fitzsimmons, not Leo. For the first time Chandler was openly criticized for making Du rocher his “whipping v boy.” This Chandler denied. But another event soon removed the doubt from most men’s minds that Chandler was using Duro cher. When a Puerto Rican fan, Fred Boysen, charged that Leo had struck and kicked him fol lowing a game at the Polo Grounds, Happy immediately sus pended Leo from baseball, before hearing the charges formally. The writers clamored for Happy’s job even then, positive that Chandler was being unfair to L'eo. Duro cher’s popularity swelled. In the 'trial which exonerated Durocher, it seemed that the commissioner was more on trial than the accused. Everyone was pulling for Durocher. The Giants now claimed him as their own. When he finally convinced owner Horace Stoneham that he should sacrifice some vaunted power for more speed and a better defense, Leo was finally on his way back to the top. For 1951, the experts rate the Giants a good chance of reaching the top. If such should be the case, it will be Durocher who put them there, with the help of course, of commissioner Chandler. For if Chandler had not picked on Leo as the natural guy on whom to show his “power,” Leo might never have lasted out those first two years as Giant manager. So while Leo Durocher basks in the friendly glow of public sentiment, and the glitter of his gilt-edged contract, Happy Chand ler sits precariously on his lush perch watching it tumbling fast beneath him. How ironical that the commissioner unwittingly helped the “black sheep” to the top, and at the same time under mined his own security. THE DAILY COLLEGIAN, STATE COLLEGE. PENNSYLVANIA IM Dep't Sets Date For Badminton Entries Deadline for all entries in the intramural badminton tournament is 4:30 p.m. Thurs day, Clarence “Dutch” Sykes, assistant director of the intra mural department has an nounced. Each organization may enter two players. Independent stu dents may enter as unattached individuals. The entrance fee is 25c per man. Separate single elimination tournaments will be provided for fraternity and independent groups. 9IM Handball Teams Advance Action continued in the intra mural doubles handball tourna ment with both fraternity and independent teams meeting com petition Monday night at Re c hall. In the fraternity games, Jerry Weisman and Burton Cushner, igma Alpha Mu, beat Robert Kol arik and Clifford Hoch, Lambda Chi Alpha, .21-13, 17-21, 21-9; Robert Bunnell and Robert Pat ton, Phi Gamma Delta, beat Richard Collodi and Jerry Mau rey, Delta Upsilon, 21-12, 21-14; Earl Hower and Vincent O’Bara, Phi Delta Theta, beat Donald Williams and Alfred Wilson, Aca cia, by forfeit. Robert Sundius and John Al barano, Theta Kappa Phi, beat Earl Comfort and Robert Grove, Alpha Zeta, 21-9, 21-14; John Mc- Call and Louis Gomlick, Alpha Tau Omega, beat David Harmon and James Kilgore, Lambda Chi Alpha, 21-9, 21-18; Barr Asplundh and John Hoover, Sigma Chi, beat Donald Schwartz and Stan ley Bushkoff, Zeta Beta Tau, 21-4, 21-5. In the independent action, Al bert Fegley and Daniel Rausher beat William Taylor and Richard Hart; 21-19, 21-13; Robert Heidt and Richard Biddle beat Robert Ingram and John Krupczak, by forfeit; Rudolph Ralff and John Simkovich ‘ took over first, place by winning their second game, beating Robert Smith and Ar inand Lyken, 21-5, 21-4. PROBLEM: BUILD MOTORS, CONTROLS FOR A STEEL MILL Modern mills equipped by General Electric handle hot steel rolling at 60 miles per hour. Specialists at General Electric tackle many of America’s toughest technical inuring 1951 .more than one-third of G-E production will go to help fill America’s military needs. For the Air Force, General Electric builds jet engines, instruments, gunnery systems. For the Army: radar and equipment for guided missiles. For the Navy: .turbines to propel ships, motors for turning turrets, etc. For industry, General Electric builds motors that drive steel mills, caaylru£jt6ab con/ec&ncc GENERAL Lion Stickmen Open '5l Season At Western Maryland Friday When Coach Nick Thiel’s lacrosse team invades Western Mary* land this Friday for its opener, the Lions will be seeking a repeat of-dast year’s 17-4 slaughter. According to Thiel, the Lions should, walk off the field with the win. But whether the Lions will, ~~ have it as easy as last season's match is another matter. Last year, the Mason-Dixon team wound up the season with a terrible 1-10 log. Not only that, but the Green Terrors lost 10 in succession before they snapped out of the- doldrums with a 7-5 triumph over a so-so , Franklin and Marshall team. So far this year, the Terrors have dropped their only match, 13-3, to Wil liams. The problem, then, for Thiel is to keep his squad from getting too over-confident; if Penn State should get in too cockey a mood, Western Maryland could give State more than its share of trou ble. Meet Navy Saturday Saturday's contest with Navy, however, is another story. The Middies knocked off the Lions last year, 9-6, even though' the Lions played their best game of thte year. Last year’s match was a see-saw battle all the way. The Lions fooled the Middies as they jumped off to a 2-1 first period lead. Navy, however, forged right back into the lead, 5-3, at half. Penn State still wouldn’t call it quits as they rallied for a 5-5 deadlock at the three-quarter mark. Experience began to tell in the last quarter as Navy fin ally pulled away to win, 9-6. Middies Rale High The Middies were rated 7th last year nationally as compared to Penn State’s better-than-av erage 19th rating. - The Middies’ record was not that much better th’an State’s as the Annapolis crew ended up with a 6-4 record while the Lions finished with the exact opposite, 4-6. This year it looks like the Mid shipmen have come up with an other formidable club. In their first three outings, the Midship men bounced Harvard, 14-2; drubbed Washington college (Md.), 12-8; and took Swarth more into camp by the rather convincing score of 14-3. To say the least, Swarthmore logging mills, printing presses . . . equipment for mines . . . turbines to increase the supply of electricity. The G-E engineers, physicists, and other specialists assigned to these projects are challenged by some of the most difficult technical problems that men are asked to solve. They work assured that their contributions are meaningful and important. Eleven Teams Win In IM Volleyball Action continued in the IM volleyball league Monday night when 11 games were played. Du-B trounced SAE-B 15-3, 15-1; Sigma Nu-B defeated Chi Phi-B‘ 15-6, 15-7; and Pi Kappa Phi-B took Lambda Chi Alpha-B by 15-9 and 15-S scores. The Kappa Sigs beat Kappa Delta Rho-B 15-12; 15-7; Phi Del ta Theta-B won over Phi Kappa Sigma-B 15-6, 15-7; and Phi Kap pa-B swamped Phi Gamma Delta -33 15-4 and 15-7. Delta Sigma Phi-B outscored Sigma Phi Alpha-B 15-3 in the third game after dropping the first 14-16. It took Sigma Chi-B and Omega Psi Phi-B the full three games to down Delta Tau Delta-B and Phi Kappa Tau-B. SAM won in three games from AEPi 15-3, 14-16, and 15-9. Tau Phi Delta took the second and third games after dropping the first. has one of the better clubs in the east, or for that matter, in the country. FORDHAM UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF LAW NEW YORK . Three-Year Day Course Four-Year Evening Course CO-EDUCATIONAL Member of Assn, of American LaW'fSchools Matriculants must be College graduates and present full tran script of College record CLASSES BEGIN SEPT. 24, 1951 For further information address REGISTRAR FORDHAM UNIV. SCHOOL OF LAW 302 Broadway, New York 7, N.Y. PROBLEM: INSTALL POWER CABLE UNDER THE GREAT DIVIDE G-E engineers under Al Lee, Denver ’37, de vised system utilizing irrigation tunnel. ELECTRIC PAGE SEVEN problems
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers