Bad Boys, Bad Times. Scott H. Longert

      Chapter 3

      BROADWAY AND A MOOSE

      Even though the Indians were struggling, there were a few bright spots to ease some of the fans’ anxiety. Lyn Lary got off to a hot start, batting near .400, though, as already noted, the veteran shortstop had some difficulty fielding his position. Lary also stole a few bases, reminding fans he still had the good speed and baserunning ability that most of his teammates lacked. To date, the Indians front office had to be pleased with at least part of the big trade with the St. Louis Browns.

      Lynford Lary was born in Armona, California, on January 28, 1906. He played all three big sports in high school in Visalia, earning a reputation as one of the premier athletes in the state. After graduation he decided to attend college at the University of California. Just before he officially enrolled, he got an offer to play semipro ball. Lary had little money to pay for a college education, making it an easy decision to forget higher learning and go for the cash instead. Soon the Oakland Oaks ball club in the Pacific Coast League offered a contract for the 1925 season. Lary jumped at the chance to make some decent money and began to concentrate all his efforts on becoming a professional ballplayer.

      After several seasons at Oakland, Lary became one of the most sought-after prospects in the league. In 1928 he batted .314, getting the rapt attention of the New York Yankees. The Major League club wanted Lary and second baseman Jimmie Reese as a package deal. The two represented the slickest fielding combination in the entire PCL. Both players eagerly signed deals, then traveled cross-country to report for 1929 spring training. The Yankees turned heads by paying Oakland an outrageous sum of $125,000 to acquire the great double-play combination. Years later, the Yankee front office ranked this deal as one of the poorest transactions they had ever made in the history of the organization.

      Lary impressed his new teammates from the start, eventually beating out Leo Durocher and grabbing a spot in the starting lineup, which included the marquee names of Ruth, Gehrig, and Bill Dickey. Jimmie Reese, on the other hand, would flame out quickly, setting up Lary as the lone survivor of the six-figure transaction. In his first season, the shortstop played in eighty games and batted a reasonably good .309. The following year Durocher was gone, traded to the Cincinnati Reds. In 1930 Lary hit for a lower average but played in 117 games and scored 93 runs. He really hit his stride in 1931, belting 10 home runs and knocking in 107 along with 100 runs scored. The Yankees now had at least something to show for the $125,000 spent.

      While living in New York City, Lary gravitated toward the high-society nightlife. He saw every new movie and attended all sorts of trendy Broadway plays. He began to dress like a movie mogul, often being seen wearing the latest fashion of flannel trousers, brightly colored silk shirts, and navy blazers with coordinated handkerchiefs in the breast pocket. In addition, he smoked a pipe, looking every part the Hollywood director. One day Babe Ruth walked into the Yankees locker room and noticed Lyn wearing one of his classic outfits. The Babe smiled and said, “Hi, Broadway!” The nickname stuck immediately and followed Lary the rest of his playing career.

      Though Lary had a great season in 1931, another milestone was just around the corner. While watching a new feature film, he indirectly met his wife-to-be, the beautiful Mary Lawlor. The two did not have a conversation because Mary was on the screen, the lead actress of the popular comedy being shown. Lary viewed the movie several times, convinced he had found his one true love. Via a great stroke of luck, Miss Lawlor would soon leave Hollywood for an extended run on the Broadway stage. Lary wrangled tickets to the play and, through a mutual friend, David Marks, got a quick introduction. The encounter did not go well, as Mary paid little attention to the smitten Lary. Undeterred, he thought he could impress her by dropping off complimentary box seat tickets to the next Yankee game. The day came and Lary kept peering into the stands, hoping to catch a glimpse of the classy star. Much to his disappointment, the actress never arrived. He discovered later that Mary knew nothing about baseball and had no interest in seeing a game.

      Broadway Lyn did not give up the quest, persuading his Marks to set him up with Mary for an evening of dinner and dancing. This time the two celebrities really hit it off, dancing to the popular song “Lucky in Love,” and soon were an item. After a brief courtship they were married on July 14 in New York City, with Babe Ruth serving as the best man. With no time for a honeymoon, the young couple cruised around town in a huge eight-cylinder automobile with Lary’s name plate on the side door.

      Ballplayers around the American League took notice that Lary had landed a genuine Hollywood star. Though many of the guys dated beautiful women, Broadway Lyn had outdone them all. He would lead the Major Leagues until Joe DiMaggio wed the spectacular Marilyn Monroe more than twenty years later.

      Certainly 1931 was a great year for Lary, yet an incident on the ballfield would mark him for the rest of his time in New York. In late April the Yankees were in Washington to play the Senators. In the top of the first inning, Lary reached base with a clean single. There were two out when first baseman Lou Gehrig smashed a tremendous drive to deep center field, heading straight for the bleachers. Lary sped past second while the ball cleared the center-field wall, hit the concrete, then bounced back onto the field. He raced to third and rounded the bag, looking back to see the Washington outfielder holding the ball in his glove. Despite the Senators standing at their positions without moving, Lary wrongly assumed the ball had been caught and headed for the Yankees bench without touching home plate. The Yankee dugout, watching the flight of Gehrig’s monstrous home run, failed to notice Lary had stopped before crossing home. The Iron Horse rounded third and touched home, only to be called out by the umpire for passing Lary on the baseline. The ruling gave Lou a triple, but no runs were credited to New York thanks to Lary’s remarkable lapse. Of course the Senators won the game by two runs.

      Dan Daniel, the fine New York sportswriter, later mused that Lary had some issues in his head. He wrote, “Lary had a blind spot in his mentality. Sometimes under pressure he’d hold the ball too long and suddenly haul off with a wild heave.”

      The Yankee shortstop could not offer a valid reason for pulling up halfway down the baseline and jogging to the dugout. Later he did say he thought the ball had been caught, but it was still difficult to understand his not touching home plate just to be sure. If he had turned around, he might have noticed Gehrig still running about thirty feet behind him. The most amazing thing about the incident came to light at season’s end. Gehrig and Ruth tied for the lead in round trippers with forty-six. If Lyn had continued home that day in Washington, Gehrig would have won the crown outright with forty-seven.

      In 1934 the Yankees were no longer thrilled with their shortstop, and sent Lary to the Boston Red Sox. Over the next few years he had stops in Washington and St. Louis before arriving in Cleveland for the 1937 season. Manager O’Neill soon learned that his new ballplayer still had a strong hankering for the nightlife. Lary did not drink excessively or get into trouble, but saw no reason not to stay out late at the clubs and socialize until the dawn. This behavior lasted all through his time with the Indians. In spite of the late hours, Lary continued to lead Cleveland in hitting for a good portion of the season. He seemed to be undergoing a rejuvenation with the Indians.

      As the season entered June, Cleveland had a record of 19–14, actually not a bad total when your number one and number two pitchers are out of the lineup. Johnny Allen made a slow recovery from the appendicitis attack, pitching only two innings of relief on May 11. He waited nine more days before starting against Chicago. He had tremendous support from his teammates, who bashed twenty-one hits and scored sixteen runs, but Allen retired in the third inning, too fatigued to go any further.

      At the end of May Allen regained his