Jack Gordon tells of a missing sun, ailing pitchers, and a worried coach of the NAS Pasco's Flyers on May 18, 1943

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THE SKY-WRITER, PASCO, WASHINGTON, TUESDAY, MAY 18, 1943

By JACK GORDON

SCENE: Locker room of the Pasco Flyers.

CAST: One missing sun, Four ailing pitchers, one worried coach.

PROPERTIES: One linament bottle (king size) and one crying towel.

STORY: You won't have to travel down to New Orleans or points south to hear a first class rendition of the "blues" this week for the Pasco Flyers have set to music a lament all their own and it's all because of the weatherman.

The Flyers' parody of "Stormy Weather" started about a month ago, when last they were on speaking terms with Ole Sol. Since that time the whole team has developed the kinks, tireditis and other maladies while the sun continued to play hide-and-seek behind the clouds.

But this story is about four of the Flyers' top chuckers who've failed to round into shape, mostly because they haven't had enough of sunshine's vitamin "A" that's so important to-every baseball team in training.

Johnny Bittner, Hunk Anderson, Mike Budnick and Edson Bahr are all on the linament list and judging from Coach Peter's frowns, won't be able to take mound assignments for some time. They've all come down with sore arms of various descriptions. Their inactivity places the pitching burden on Rube Sandstrom and Fred Gay and rookie Vince Pesky.

Whether or not the three of 'em can carry the load until Peters nurses his ailing "four horsemen" back to health is an item for the yogies, but five-ll get you ten that unless the team gets a break with the weatherman this month, your 1943 Pasco Flyers are going to get bumped and hard by teams not as good as the Isaacson's Seattle nine.

Here's what Coach Peters has to say about his Flyer chuckers as they look now:

JOHN BITTNER, the ex-Hollywood fireballer: An injured ligament may keep him out of action for the season.

HUNK ANDERSON, former Spokane and Seattle Rainier chucker: A sore elbow and a lack of work has put him behind and a lack of good weather hasn't helped his arm any, either.

MIKE BUDNICK, another former Seattle Rainier: Bothered with a cramped muscle caused by cutting loose too early in the season.

RUBE SANDSTROM, Brooklyn's rookie: Workhorse of the moundmen, he's been concentrating his efforts on the field re-surfacing amd is a bit late. Should be ready in June. Needs the work.

ED BAHR, farmhand from the N. Y. Yankee system: got nicked in infield the other day and is benched along with the rest. Needs the work to pick up a little self-confidence.

The only able-bodied men on the Flyer's pitching staff are Fred Gay, another Hollywood ex. and Vince Pesky, the former Portland "U" hurler. Fred has been taking his time and has carefully rounded himself into shape; will get most of the calls this year. As for Pesky, brother of the famed Johnny Pesky, Boston Red Sox great, is laboring against two odds. The fact that he's a rookie breaking in with old hands, and that his hours are such that it hasn't been easy for the bespectacled right hander to round into shape.