PONY League’s Greatest Thriller To Play Return Engagement For Jamestown’s Falcons

He’s coming back to the Falcons, ladies and gentlemen … the one and only … the Mighty Behemoth of Bash … the Belting Blimp … the Blasting Beauty … the Sultan of Swat … the Swashbuckling Swiper … the Shah of Slam … the Salubrious Slasher … the Scintillating Satrap of Shock … that Mighty Macer of the horsehide spheroid … Mr. Jawn “Roly Poly” Newman!

The worst possible news that one could conjure for those men with rubber and buggy whip arms who will toe slabs around the PONY League circuit this season arrived at the P-J sports department this morning.

It really isn’t a command performance, this return engagement … rather it is a request affair … Johnny Newman decided he’d rather play ball in Jamestown than with a Double A club. He had a mighty good chance to string along with the Buffalo Bisons in the double role of relief and bullpen backstop and pinch hitter. But Big Jawn wants to play every day and, more than all else, he dotes on donning the livery of the Jamestown Falcons.

Newman and Harry Bisgeier, Falcons prexy, went into a long huddle Thursday night in Fort Pierce, Fla. There were several topics about which they conversed. Both laid their cards on the table and spoke very frankly about the present and the future. Mr. Newman may like to clown at times, but under the surface this Roly Poly person has a keen intellect. Several points of disagreement were cleared up, including the salary terms of a new contract. Once in accord, both principals sought out Mr. John Stiglmeier, general manager of the Buffalo club. The Bisons had an option for the purchase of Newman and because of his hitting power and wartime uncertainties, Buffalo was on the verge of exercising its option. But once Newman made known his wishes in the matter, Stiglmeier never hesitated.

“If Newman thinks Jamestown is his place, then it is alright as far as the Buffalo club is concerned. We won’t stand in the way of his return, Harry,” said Stiglmeier. “I’ll send a wire to our Buffalo office right away to have that agreement torn up.”

And so the big fellow, who broke the all-time PL home run record, led the league in batting, runs batted in, extra bases, and bases on balls received in 1941, is coming back to terrorize the PONY pitchers for another campaign.

This writer believes the return of Newman boosts the Falcons’ pennant stock about 30 percent, and that’s a lot.

With Newman, Mulleavy and Elmer Weinschreider on the attack against enemy flingers, together with certain other players Bisgeier confides to us he is angling for, the Jamestown plate power should be close to a par with the pennant winning squad of 1941.

With John Pollock gone and capable catchers the hardest thing to find in Class D ball, it won’t be surprising if Big Jawn is assigned to backstopping duties. But the real news of the moment: The Belting Blimp is Back!