The Akron Beacon Journal from Akron, Ohio • Page 35

Kennedy Earns Victory As Tribe Wins, 6-1 Tough Luck Guy Bill Kennedy Travels Rough Road To Big Leagues; Hopes To Stick With Indian Trihe And Perhaps Another Will Be Dispelled By Building Of Arena Bob Feller Blanks Sox Six Frames -By JIM SC'HLEMMER- FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 1948 AKRON BEACON JOURNAL OHrtlSSAKY COUCH AHO tIECHANlCfIL 1 TUCSON, Ariz. William Aulton Kennedy, Akron's contribution to the Cleveland Indians, waited 27 years before reaching the big time. Then, in rapid succession this spring he has been sidelined with bad legs, a pulled muscle, a bruised groin, a mild case of shin splints and, to cap the climax, by being struck on the head Sunday at Los Angeles by a fly ball during fungo practice That would be enough to get an ordinary man down. Lefty Bill Kennedy, however, is not an ordinary man, if for no other reason than he has become used to adversity during his baseball career Corfsider the season of 1939, for example. Kennedy had been selected as a pitching prospect in the baseball school run by the Akron Yankees in the fall of 1938.

He signed a Yankee contract in the spring of 1939 and was shipped to Easton in the Eastern Shore league Easton shipped him to Butler in the Penn State association and Butler released him. He came back to Akron and was re-signed by the Yankees and shipped to Amsterdam in the Canadian-American league Amsterdam released him and he returned to Akron. The Yankees gave him a new trial in 1940 and it was his ill fortune to be called upon to pitch in a game which found Manager Pip Koehler playing third base in the absence of the injured Johnny Harbin Slapped To Ashland liy Yankees KOEHLER three errors in a row and caused Kennedy to lose a 7-5 contest. He didn't look too good and he didn't feel too good. And maybe he didn't act the part of a good loser So the Yankees shipped him to Ashland, in the Mountain State league for the remainder of the 1940 campaign In 1941 he was moved up to Amsterdam again for spring training but in June, in a dispute with Yankee farm chief as to where he should go next he told some of them where they could go and the result was that he was sent to Rocky Mount in the Coastal Plains league and in 1942 he was sold outright to that independent club He won 13 and lost five for Rocky Mount that season, then entered the army air corps on Sept.

16, 194.:. It sums up a military career of three and one-half years to say that he was discharged on Feb. 17, 1946 Yet during that service career Lefty Bill Kennedy learned how to pitch. Some of his experience came with the New Castle, air base team in 1944; some with the Lansdale, semi-pro club, and some with the strong Langley Field team in 1945 Anyhow, when Kennedy received his service discharge he simultaneously received offers from the Cardinals, Phillies and Giants. He signed with the Cardinals and was sent to Biloxi, with the Columbus Red Birds in the spring of 1946 He trained well and he pitched well and to this day he does not know why Manager Charley Root released him.

On his way from Biloxi to Rocky Mount he decided to sell himself to Atlanta in the Southern Association. But Atlanta wasn't at home and so he continued to Rocky -Mount where he proceeded to win 28 and lose only three games. The Boston Red Sox bought his contract outright in June of that 1946 season. Last year the Red Sox had him at Scranton in the Eastern league where he won 15 and lost two. The Red Sox tried to hide him under a Louisville contract last fall but the Indians found him and made him their first choice in the draft He has had his ups and downs long before his avalanche of tough breaks this spring.

This is, of course, the highest up he has been. He likes the altitude and is determined to stay in it Crappies Hit As Mogadore Lake Opens Mogadore reservoir's spring fishing season came in with a splash yesterday with the crappies cooperating admirably, Supt. of Water Wendell LaDue reports. Turnover of boats at the livery was rapid with fishermen taking limit catches in as little as two or three hours and then surren dering the craft to other anglers, LaDue said. As a result, the landing seldom was without boats during the day.

Fish averaged eight to nine inches in length, according to the superintendent. There were no violations of the rule that only crappies may kept. Fishermen reported throw- backs of other species. Season re mains open until April 22. Catches should be reported to liverymen.

Women Open Pin Tourney Firing opens tomorrow in th annual Akron Women's Bowling association championship tournament on the North Hill Temple alleys. Two shifts of five-women teams will take the drives, six at 7 p.m. and six more at 9 p.m., to inaugurate what promises to be the biggest tournament in the history of the association. Entry sheets show 161 teams entered, 217 sets of doubles and 375 in the singles. Total prize money amounts to $2,217.50.

Action will be resumed Sunday with doubles and singles starting at 4 p.m. and running through the 8 o'clock shift. One shift of teams will appear at 9 p.m. Sunday. Following teams will see action tomorrow at 7 o'clock: Pick's Boathouse, Woco, Amco "965," Clark Wlllcox of Ravenna, Slovene Center of Barberton and Witwer Insurance.

These teams will appear on the 9 o'clock shift: Nonskids, Tom's Tavern, Houseley Brothers Landscaping, Beveridge Beauty Salon, Grandview Inn and St. Luke's. WORCFSTrTR, Ma. Pal Comlke, et)i. Palennn.

N. knocked out Al Klnser, Worcenter U. PRELIMINARY ARCHITECT drawings of the proposed Akron Arena make a cozy picture for district sportsmen who for years have maintained that this basketball hotbed needed an Indoor sports center seating upwards of 8.000 fans. The arena, architect's conception of which is shown above, will seat 11,200. Incorporators of the Akron Arena planned to meet this week end In Akron to lay future plans.

Candidates For Derby Step Today NEW YORK Wl Eastern racing fans will get their first full preview of top Kentucky Derby candidates tomorrow with the running of the six-furlong $20,000 Experimental Free Handicap at Jamaica. One Derby hopeful King Ranch's Better Self made an impressive showing in Jamaica's opening day feature yesterday, outrunning 12 older horses in the Paumonok Handicap. The black son of Bimelirh toured the muddy, six-furlong route in to beat out Mrs. Ethel Du Pont Weir's Royal Governor by four lengths, with Let's Dance running third. Principal interest tomorrow is expected to center on the sophomore debut of Belair Stud's pair of Whirling Fox and Gangway, and the Marylander W.

L. Brann's Escadru. Leafs, Wings Near Finals NEW YORK (U.E) The Toronto Maple Leafs and the Detroit Red Wings, one-two during the National Hockey league's regular season, were each only one game away today from the final round of the Stanley cup playoffs. The Leafs hold a 3-1 lead over the Boston Bruins in one semifinal round, although they were upset by the Bruins last night, 3-2. The Red Wings have a 3-2 edge against the N.

York Rangers after a 3-1 win over the New Yorkers last night. The Bruins, performing on their home ice, succeeded in rallying after three straight defeats to stop the Leafs. The Red Wings, also performing in their home town, swarmed all over the Rangers, making a total of 32 shots to the New Yorkers' 18. Chuck Rayner stopped 29 of the Detroit assaults, but that fine job wasn't good enough. Toronto meets Boston again on Saturday night at Boston.

Detroit and New York meet again in New York on Sunday. Local Guardsmen Honored For Play Members of Akron Third Battalion, Ohio National Guard, were honored recently in battle formation for going to the finals of the Ohio National Guard basketball tournaments before bowing to Anti-Tank 35-24. Col. E. C.

Hostetler. commanding officer, presented the runner-up trophy to the team and cited First Sergt. James Partlow for his devoted efforts to the team and efficient management in piloting the team to the finals. Members of the team are: James Thigpen, team captain, Jack Mar-chand, Stanley Fortune, Nelson Wilhelm and Jimmie Greer. Everybody wants By JIM SCHLKMMKR Beacon Journal Sports Editor TUCSON Cleveland Indian brain-trusters, particularly Lou Boudreau, were much impressed by the showing of Akron's Bill Kennedy as the elongated southpaw got credit for the Indians' 6-1 win over the Chicago White Sox yesterday.

Kennedy entered the game at the start of the seventh inning after Bob Feller had worked the first six and had gone out with the Tribe ahead, 1-0. THE AKROXITK was wild, in a careful sort of way, at the outset. He walked Aaron Robinson and Bill Wight on low curves which just missed the plate but he was on the starting end of an odd double play which erased both Sox base runners. Then Luke Appling parted Kennedy's hair with a single and Tony Luplen dumped another single Into right to score Jim Delsing, whose tap It was which had led to the double play. These were the only hits off Kennedy.

He disposed of three in a row in the eighth, striking out Floyd Baker to end that frame. He nicked pinch hitter Ralph Weigcl with one away in the ninth but he made a neat fielding job on Delsing's rap to force Wei-gel at second. Then he walked Appling hut ended the game by having Lupien fly out. HE WAS MUCH faster than in any previous appearance this spring, a fact that the board of strategy, fellow teammates and the scribes all commented upon. Bill McKechnie describes Kennedy's rather shaky start as due, not to wildness, but to shyness and Deacon Bill was highly pleased by the way Kennedy overcame this condition.

"I like Kennedy a lot," Boudreau said at a press conference following the game. "He was a little wild perhaps but you must have noticed that his wildness was low. He was keeping his pitches down and was occasionally getting them just a bit too low. "I'll take that kind of pitching any day in contrast to high and wide tosses which keeps the catcher jumping and the manager in distress." FELLER JUST breezed through his six innings. He gave up five hits.

One in each of as many frames and escaped being hit safely only in the fifth inning. He didn't strike out a man. He walked two. Bob Kennedy and Cass Michaels, both in the sixth. Wight, the big southpaw up from Kansas City whom the Van-kees gave to the Sox In part payment for Ed Lopat, worked six innings for the Chicagoans.

Dale Mitchell, leading off in the first, beat out a topper which went for A sinpip. That was the Indians' only hit until tne fourtn wnen im nooin-son homered over the right field wall. That 1-0 lead held until the run off Kennedy in the seventh. But the 1-1 tie didn't hold good for long. Roman Brunswick, a See KENNEDY, Fage 86 Nonskid Pin Meet Gets Under Way "Sixth annual Firestone house bowling tournament is under way with five-men teams taking their turns.

Fifty-seven teams are entered with 100 doubles teams and 157 singles slated to compete. Guaranteed first prize in the five-men event is $100, $50 for winners of the doubles and $25 for first place the singles and like amount in all-events. Leagues will compete as their schedules are completed, on the same night until all events have been completed. Midwest Amateur Has 250 Linksmen FRENCH LICK, Ind. (INS) A ftelti of 250 golfers from six states, led by defending Champion Ben Owen of Louisville, start the 13th annual Midwest amateur golf tournament on the Hill Course at French Lick today.

Slaughter's .056 Balling Mark In Last 17 Trips To Plate Alarms Cardinal Club WHO IS HE? He is the 6-foot, 3-inch, 195-pound second son of the Luther E. Kennedys of 1007 Bowery st. They brought him to Akron from Carnesville, in 1925 when Bill was 4 years old. That just about makes him a native son Kennedy, spent a dozen years at Goodrich; now operates a band machine at Firestone. The family has always lived around the Howe school district; on St.

Otair Berry and now adjacent to the Cooper Canoe House on Bowery Baseball has always been Bill's real love, He pitched for the Tolsky team in the city Mass league in 1936 with Jimmy Ball as his catcher. Ball was his catcher, too, at South high school when Kennedy pitched there under the coaching of Roe Anderson. He lacked six weeks of graduating when he entered professional baseball. He fully intends to pick up the remaining credits needed. His other sandlot experience in Akron was with the Goodrich Local team before embarking on the Yankee roller coaster.

He lived on a farm in Medina county, however, for one year' while he was in high school and he spent that year in Granger high school He played basketball for Granger but in the spring, when it was discovered he had signed a baseball contract, Granger ruled him ineligible for high school athletics there. He did not press the issue when he returned to -South high Mates Say He Has World Of Stuff toast of the Brooklyn Dodgers team as a result of his one-hit, 8-2 victory over Montreal yesterday, Uie first time a Dodger hurler has gone the route. A walk, an See ENOS on Page 3 Slovene Players To Meet Tomorrow AH members of last year's Bar berton Slovene Center baseball team and anv new candidates In terested are invited to attend the team's reorganization meeting at 2 p. m. tomorrow.

The sesnion will be held In the Slovene Center clubrooms on W. 14th Barberton. BRADENTON, Fla. (UP) The St. Louis Cardinals, fearful of repeating the bad start they made last season, were alarmed today by the batting slump of Enos "Country" Slaughter.

The raw-boned right fielder, counted on to bat In the cleanup spot, has made only one hit in his last 17 trips to the plate, an average of .056. The Cardinals lost a 10-mnmg game yesterday to the Boston Braves, 4-3, when Clint Conatser's long fly scored Earl Torgeson from third base. B. h. B.

St. Louis (N) 003 000 010 0 3 0 1 Boston INI 300 000 000 1 4 9 1 Batteries: Brazle. Wllks 5i. Burkhurt (7l and Wllber. Hucha i5): Beszlev.

Pren- dereast i4i, Bicktord (7), O. Elliott (101. and Masl. ST. PETERSIH Rfi, Fla.

11 A five-inning workout with no Ill-effects gave the New York Yankees added hope today that Outfielder Charley "King Kong" Keller can become a mighty slugger again. Keller played yesterday as the New Yorkers routed the Philadelphia Phillies, 10-1. In five Innings, he walked twice and lined out once. Philadelphia 'N) 100 000 000 1 4 New York A 210 110 05x 10 12 1 Batteries: Judd. Jurlslch i4.

Christanle B. and Padgett; Reynolds. Oumpert 161. and Silvera. 'em! Carlton's MORE ABOUT BOWLING Humbly, but with a mwnltrde of pride, I'm happy to say that the Portage Lakes Tavern atlll mainUlns a four-game lead In the Lakes Tavern League, after winning two (lames Wednesday night at the Portage Lakes Bowling Center.

Just casually, I might mention that youra truly chalked up a tidy aum of 654 pins, which Isn't bad bowling In anybody'! league. The Great Ryan and BUI Kruger took the necessary two out of three In grudge match last Wednesday P. M. against Welloclc and Wlgglna. Yours, THANK CHABOUDY, P.S.

I wonder? i P.P.S. Do you suppose the good food prepared hy Mrs. Chaboudy, at the Lakes Tavern on Manchester Road, phone MI-9001, could be helping my game? WHILE PLAYING with Ashland in the Mountain State league he met Eleanor Johnson, a native of Bluefield, W. on one of the too frequent trips to that mountain city. "Ashland traveled in an ordinary city bus; smelly motor and straight, hard-backed seats.

The trip to Bluefield was about 200 miles of torture," says Kennedy. "But after I met Eleanor it was like traveling on liquid velvet" Bill and Eleanor were married on SO, 1942. They have two daughters: Linda, 5, on April 18, and Patricia Dianne, 30 months. Last December Kennedy bought a home In Rocky Mount because he found that his daughters thrive there after previously having encountered pneumonia and other ailments in Akron and Bluefield Until becoming tax-paying resident of Rocky Mount, Kennedy listed 774 Bell Akron, as his official address. That is the home of Grady, his older brother.

He PHOENIX, Ariz. (U.R) The New York Giants today bought Outfielder Les Layton from Jersey City and 35-year-old First Baseman Johnny McCarthy, an ex-Giant, from Minneapolis. The Giants scored their fifth victory in six games against the Pittsburgh Pirates yesterday, 6-5, on Bob Thomson's homer with one man on in the ninth inning. RH.E. Pittsburgh fN) 000 002 300 5 4 2 New York, ini nu owl in kkA Drto If nln ll, i5.

Trlnkle U), and Cooper, Livingston ((). TAMPA, Flu. WP.i The Clnrln natl Reds' roster was reduced to 85 players today with the optioning of 23-year-old Outfielder Bob Usher to the Syracuse Chiefs of the International league. WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (UP.) The Philadelphia A's were to leave their training camp here today to begin the barnstorming swing that will carry them back to the north.

They won their final game here yesterday, 3-2, over Toronto. R. H. E. Toronto tint) 030 000 000 2 1 1 Philadelphia A1 000 030 00X 9 4 2 Batteries: Thompson and Lonata: Christopher, Kellner 181.

Savage (81. and Querra, Pranks (6i. VERO BEACH, Fla, (I'D Southpaw Joe Hatten was the got 'em! FINE JUVwLkJ IJ has a sister, Wilma, at the home of his parents. WHAT KIXD OF pitcher is he? He has never had a sore arm, he says. He is never very long on control in the spring.

He hopes the Indians will string along with him until he gets in his normal groove Some of his temmates with whom I have checked say that he isn't as fast as had been predicted but that he seems to have a world of stuff. His phenomenal record at Rocky Mount in 1946 would indicate this to be true. For In that season he registered the amazing total of 456 strikeouts for an all-time baseball record while winning 28 and losing three games and allowing only 1.03 earned runs per nine Innings. Last year with Scranton he struck out 113 men In 134 innings pitched. Apparently the anSVver lies in control.

A left-hander with control is a rarity these days and a definite asset to any club BOWLING WITH Wilman on the Monarch squad are Small, Joe Puccinilla, Rudy Habsteler and Dick Simons. Crack Pittsburgh bowlers will appear on the 6 p. m. shift while Clevelanders will fire away at 8 p. m.

Bowlers appearing over the week end will attempt to unseat Semo Stavich of Martin's Ferry, who blasted his way to the top of the standings last week. Tournament Manager Benny Cole looks for the biggest crowd that has ever jammed his alleys to watch Wilman and the other hotshots perform. FAM, RIVER. Mass Jackie 147, Providence. R.

outpointed Jimmy Bauer, 153, Cambridge (10), SERVICE! Joe Wilman Here Saturday To Shoot In Sweepstakes ACTION IN THE WADC Rubber City bowling sweepstakes promises to warm up Saturday night at Akron Recreation Center. Crack keglers from Chicago, Pittsburgh and Cleveland will ap-near on the drives. a iii fti i Lgj ALL WOOL dJ I One of the country's leading teams and one of the foremost figures in the kegling pastime will show at 10 o'clock when Joe Wilman leads his Chicago Monarch Beer squad into action. Wilman was runnerup to Andy Varlpapa in the national singles match game championship In January, He has twice won the American Bowling Congress all-events title and was named the "bowler of the year" In 1946. Wilman and his partner, John Small, won the national doubles match game championship two years ago.

Wilman is generally regarded as one of the finest gentlemen to ever tread the bowling boards, a "nice guy" and a splen-did competitor. INSTANT With the demand for fine All-Wool GABARDINE SUITS at an all time high we suggest that you get yours tomorrow at CARLTON'S. Scleet from our huge collection of new arrivals! Gahardine is the toughest, smartest suit fahric in the world holds a press and fights wrinkles. And the price? Not one penny higher than last year! 't -on- I -J' i THEy ALL gS IT'S TIME FOR BEER 1 CHARGE IT Pay weekly or twice monthly at no extra cost! WHEEL ALIGNMENT WHEEL BALANCING COMPLETE BRAKE SERVICE MUFFLERS AND TAILPIPES INSTALLED FENDIX UNDERCOATING 01.0 OR NEW CARS (The But Sound Deadener TIRES, TUBES, BATTERIES, ALL MAKES NO CHARGE FOR ROAD SERVICE ON BATTERIES Rubber shop employes are entitled to regular employes discount on tires and batteries. HORRIS TIRE BATTERY CO.

.278 8. High Back of Mayflower Hotel HE-5124 HE-5124 Kali Also Headquarters for Jorman Shoes FARR DISTRIBUTING CO. AKRON, OHIO.