Who's on Third?

"Daddy, buy me a program. I can't tell the players."

"Everybody knows these players, son. This is the All-Star game. See that old fellow with the funny crouch? That's Stan Musial. The one with the frown is Roger Marls; the right fielder with the limp is Mickey Mantle. And that fellon-whose cap keeps falling off--that's Willie Mays. See how easy it is?" "Daddy, who's on third?" "Here's 50-c- son, Go buy a program."

The 45,480 fans shoehorned into Washington's brand-new stadium for last week's All-Star game could be pardoned for wondering who was on third; the Minnesota Twins' Rich Rollins was not even a big-league regular this time last year. But when American League players, managers and coaches cast their All-Star ballots for the 1962 games, they not only elected Third Baseman Rollins to the team, but they also gave the 24-year-old third baseman more votes (184 out of a possible 280) than any other player in the league, including Mantle and Maris.

"Everything Right." In the first of the two games last week, Rollins proved that he was worth the votes. He was the only American League standout in a contest that saw Willie Mays cover centerfield like a vacuum cleaner, Maury Wills steal everything except the Scoreboard, the National League win 3-1. But in a losing cause, Rollins handled three hot shots to third flawlessly, and shut off a National League rally with a one-hand grab of Tommy Davis' ripping sixth-inning grounder. At bat, he was the only American Leaguer to reach base twice, scored his team's lone run. Said Rollins: "Maybe after you've been picked for the All-Star team five or six times, you can think you're pretty good. But a man in my position can't afford to think that way. I'm not a success yet."

Perhaps not quite yet, but at $8,000 a year, Rollins is certainly the year's best bargain in baseball. He leads the American League in hits (108), ranks fourth in batting (.315), fourth in R.B.I.s (59). and his hot bat is the main reason why the Twins, seventh-place finishers last season, are basking in the American League's first division. "Even when the team is doing everything wrong," says Minnesota Manager Sam Mele, "Rich does everything right. He hits with one on, he hits with two on, and he hits with none on. With seven more like him, we might never lose a game."

Son of a Cleveland welder, Rollins was one of those college phenoms that the scouts all rush to see--and then dismiss.

At Ohio's Kent State University, he flashed a .358 batting average in his senior year. But he was short, bowlegged and stubby-armed. Worse yet, he wore glasses to correct astigmatism in his right eye. Only the Twins were interested enough to make an offer. Two years ago, they signed him up for a paltry $6,000 and shipped him off to the Wilson Tobs in the Class B Carolina League.

Relax and Enjoy. Studious and methodical, Rollins set out to learn the pro game by the numbers, jotting down everything--tips from players and coaches, comments on opposing pitchers, acid reminders of his weaknesses. Fellow players considered him something of a grind; he smoked a pipe, drank only beer, rarely went to the movies, read history books. But in his first year, he batted .341 in the minors, and last year he clipped off .294 in 13 games, after being called up to the parent club.

This spring he beat out five other candidates for the third-base job with the Twins. In his first ten ball games after the season's start, Rollins collected 18 base hits for a .486 average; a few weeks ago, he demolished the New York Yankees single-handed with a pair of home runs. Now that he has won All-Star honors in his first full year, Rich Rollins might be expected to relax and enjoy his stardom. But he still sits in the dugout, frowning through the glasses and writing notes on scraps of paper. "There's always somebody waiting to take your place," he says grimly. "Baseball is the most insecure profession I know."

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.