1953: The Year in Preview
by Charlie Qualls
Nineteen-Fifty-Three will be an eventful year, so say the league’s top Prognosticators.  Luckily, we don’t let them anywhere near the draft (hell, they would only speed things up anyway).
* In England, Queen Mary will die, mysteriously being replaced by… another Queen.  It’s a good thing England has a lot of Queens lying around.  (I swear that’s a joke at the Royals' expense and not the gay community, not that there’s a difference).
* Dwight D. Eisenhower will be crowned President of the United States, but in all fairness, he was elected in ’52.
* Astronomer E.P. Hubble will die, but it is unclear how.
* Lung Cancer will be linked to cigarette smoking.  An even more shocking discovery will be made, as car crashes will be linked to driving around in cars and crashing into things.
* The Boston Braves will move to Milwaukee and will fail to win anything ever again due to the insane amounts of beer available.  The St. Louis Browns will pack their bags for Baltimore (in '54), hatching a nest of Orioles and making it OK for ballplayers to wear bright orange.
* Infidelity expert Alfred C. Kinsey releases “Sexual Behavior in the Human Female” and, ironically, never gets laid again.  Hillary and Tenzing will be the first to climb Everest and, not so ironically, never have trouble getting laid again.
* Ben Hogan will win the Masters, the U.S. Open and the British Open while a young Earl Woods watches in disgust, muttering to himself and vowing revenge for no particular reason.
* The New York Yankees will win their fifth straight championship prompting a pissed off Arthur Miller to pen “The Crucible."
* Duke Snider will claim that he finally achieved his "30/30" goal by killing thirty North Koreans and thirty "other guys."  Watch your back, Ted Williams!

QUALLS' CALLS
TEAM PREVIEWS BY CHARLIE 

BOSTON
“I’ve looked at love from both sides now…”

  Boston stayed true to last year’s drafting form: fill holes now, prospect later.  Like last year's first round pick, Harvey Kuenn, second baseman Jim Gilliam was in Beacon manager Charlie Qualls’ view at all times.  And with fourth pick overall and Brooklyn in need of a second bagger, Qualls was a bit worried.  The hope of course is that Gilliam will step up and fill the gap at second base, thus solidifying the infield for years to come.  Gilliam also has speed to offer.  His “D” range at second is a little troubling, but they’ve had worse.  Also new to the club is last season's first rookie pick overall, slugger Eddie Mathews, who takes over at third and completing the league’s youngest infield.
  Charlie Qualls is hoping that by switching things up, he can shake his team out of the .500 rut they’ve been stuck in.  He added two switch hitters to the two he already has.  Qualls traded the steady Dom Dimaggio in the hopes that he can squeeze at least one more year out of switch hitter Sam Jethroe’s aging legs.  Mantle, Gilliam and Dave Philley round out the "S" squad.
  The pitching staff gets a tweak as well adding Harvey Haddix to the rotation and handing over the closer role to Leo Kiely.  Ed Lopat looks to continue his success in the league and Warren Spahn wants to prove that he can win more games than he completes.  Bob Lemon's road to improvement was slowed by a demotion to the (Far) Eastern Leagues.
  The Beacons will be pushing the speed limit this year.  The wheels report card reads: 4 D’s, 3 B’s and an A.  The steal marks look even better: 1 D, 2 C’s, 3 B’s 1 A and 1 “E” as in “don’t Even try for second.”
  Qualls knows that he’s risking a lot by peppering his squad with rookies this year, but with Mickey Mantle and Gus Zernial watching their backsides from the outfield, they should develop nicely. 

BROOKLYN
Welcome to Brooklyn, now get out!

  Management may have traded hands in Brooklyn, but the draft strategy has stayed eerily the same:  Draft ‘em to trade ‘em, or the "Draft and Shaft" as fans are starting to call it.  In his first UL draft, manager Glen Reed decided to gamble.  His first pick of the rookie draft was highly touted save man, Elroy Face.  A decent choice for third pick overall, except the Superbas already have a super door closer, last year’s first round pick Hoyt Wilhelm.  Perhaps Reed looked around the league and noticed a shortage of stoppers.  In any event, Brooklyn’s skipper eschewed the many fine choices of future starters and saved Face by trading him for Lew Burdette.  Fortune smiled on Reed in the reentry draft as Johnny Antonelli slipped to the number three pick.  Reed scooped him up, then traded him and prospect Dick Donovan for Richie Ashburn.  Brooklyn also says good-bye to newly drafted catchers Del Crandall and Gus Triandos.
  But when the dust settled, Reed seemed to make out like a thief by adding one man: base bandit Richie Ashburn.  Ash is Glen’s favorite type of non-pitcher: A speedy glove man who gets his ash on base.  Those who have gone tip-to-tip with Reed in the past know that Dick Ashburn is a dangerous tool to put in his hands.
  Beyond Fred Hutchinson, starting pitching is still the big question mark for the Superbas.  Their farm system is loaded with fresh faced tossers, but that won’t help much this year.  The bullpen, led by Hoyt Wilhelm looks to get a lot of work.
  Brooklyn will also most likely be playing “musical second baseman” as Pete Runnels serves his country overseas.  But generally, the feeling is that the line up of Ashburn, Minoso, Jackson, Woodling and Hodges will more than take up the slack offensively.

CHICAGO
Draft is a cool breeze for windy city.

   Having the first picks of both drafts doesn't automatically guarantee success, but Colt GM Lance Mueller made the most of all his picks.  True, he spent the most money, but he’s hoping to get what he paid for.  The first pick of the reentry draft was a no-brainer, Whitey Ford was easily the best pitcher available in both drafts.  His Whiteness should make a positive impact immediately and soon may be the anchor of Chicago’s staff.  First pick in the expansion draft was a little tougher.  Al Kaline was a tempting choice, but Mueller quickly realized that an impact shortstop is a rarity and invested in the Bank of Ernie.  The sure-handed Banks will be a stabilizing force in the middle of the infield as well as the middle of the line up.
   Mueller also addressed perhaps his biggest weakness: the bullpen.  Closer Ted Wilks’ war experience caused him to reevaluate his life and tendered his resignation.  Last year’s closer du jour, Monk Dubiel’s war number was also called, so Mueller chose reliever Joe Ostrowski as his second reentry pick and closer Don Elston as his second rookie pick.  Elston will develop in the minors as Ostrowski assumes closer duties.  Lance also went fishing for old pal Dizzy Trout, hoping he can regain some of his 1951 magic.  A post-draft swoop of Ellis Kinder should help as well.
   Draft pick Johnny Lindell will take over for the Colts most productive player, Bobby Thompson.  Lindell brings a pretty shiny glove to the fray as well as much needed speed to one of the leagues slowest squads.
   Things should look a little brighter for Chicago this year.  True, they will desperately miss Thompson’s presence and leadership (oh, and his bat), but Banks, Ford and the return of Bobby Avila should provide some excitement.  And there’s no way Whitey’s new rotation mates Parnel, Newcombe, Rogovin and Dickson can so badly under perform the way they did last season.  Is there?

DETROIT
The Sound of Sameness

Hello Priddy my old friend
I've come to trust in you again
But the league is slowly creeping
Up the standings while you're sleeping
And the line-up that was planted in Brad's brain
Still remains...
amid the Sound of sameness.

And the fans they get a chill
tantamount to standing still
Johnny Podres is a swoop it seems
But Joey Jay is only seventeen
Are my eyes deceived, are we the same as '51?
Son of a gun
I smell the Sound of sameness.

But in the brimming stands I saw
thirty thousand, maybe more.
We are winning without changing,
No need for useless rearranging
Coaches using stars that others never shared
And no one dared
Disturb the Sound of sameness.

"Fools" said Brad,"You do not know
Sameness really does not blow.
Watch my bats that they might teach you,
Scout my arms that they might reach you."
But his words like a bunted baseball fell,
And rolled
down the line of sameness

And their jerseys tired and torn
give new meaning to "uniform"
And the scoreboard flashed its warning,
That the runs they were not forming
And the board said, Clem and Robin
are looking for some help
An unheard yelp
Still mired in the Sound of sameness.

LOUISVILLE
"Potential greatness" (by Mark Allen)

   With a bevy of "potentially" great young pitchers, Louisville addressed probably their most glaring need in the drafts, power hitters, by taking Kaline and Bailey in the rookie draft and Dick Kokos and re-signing ex-Colonel Luke Easter in the reentry draft.  With no more power left the Colonels took P Ruben Gomez in 3rd round as a long term project.
   The Colonels did pick up some pitching that may have an immediate impact as they traded Richie Ashburn for two more potential stud pitchers, in Antonelli and Donovan.  Ashburn was expendable as the Colonels are well stocked in the OF and the team had heard some disturbing rumours that Richie had developed an inclination for the sauce while in Korea.
   "It don't get no better than this"

ST. LOUIS
Bob-ing for another pennant.

   The Maroons plan was simple: Draft heavy hitters.  One of last seasons most disappointing offenses needed help.  So how did they manage to draft mostly pitchers?  “Just lucky, I guess” Manager Tim Smith was paraphrased as quipping.  Smith feared the seventh pick overall would leave him slim pickins.  But when his number came up in the rookie draft, he noticed that the highest rated starter was still on the market.  Bob Keegan’s age (32) may have prevented other managers from picking him in the first round, or perhaps they hoped this fact might propel him into the next round.  Keegan’s ratings are comparable to those of last year's draft star, Stu Miller and Tim hopes he will be an integral part of his teams drive for pennant #2.  The next pleasant surprise came in round two as Smith was practically forced to swoop starter Bob Buhl, one of the drafts hotter prospects.  For budgetary reasons, St. Louis only picked up one player in the reentry draft: another Bob, reliever Bob Chipman.  “Mr. Chips” was one of Washington’s more steadfast pen jockeys last season.  Smith also put his line out for a fish to go with his chips, but Chicago was using bigger bait and snared Dizzy Trout.
   Smith also managed to swap for the draft’s top closer, Roy “In Your” Face, to round out a highly enviable pitching draft.  Boston manager CB Qualls was stunned to see the picks, saying, “If any of the first six clubs had drafted those guys, I would have called it a successful draft.  But to get them in seventh position is sick!  Sick, I tell ya.”
   With a rejuvenated and healthy line up and the current champs’ super star on vacation in Korea, the Maroons like their chances of competing for the title in ’53.  Manager Smith knows that a full season of Musial, Campy and Vern Stephens can be a potent vehicle in the drive to victory.  Watch for him to shop Johnny Pesky this season, although Pesky did a masterful job of holding down the fort while various superstars did their tours on the DL last season.

1953 PREVIEW