The Detroit Tribune

40 TIGERS READY FOR SPRING SEASON

DETROIT - A full squad of 40 players and six additional Denver players are scheduled to report for Detroit Tigers' spring training when camp opens at Henley Field, March 1, with Manager Jimmie Dykes in charge.

Tiger President William O. DeWitt in announcing the roster said that three pitchers: Hank Aguirre, Bob Smith and Don Kaiser, and three catchers, Ron Witucki, Mike Roarke and Tom Yewcic have been ordered to be at Henley Field.

The 1960 Tiger squad includes twenty pitchers, six catchers, 11 infielders and nine outfielders. One player, hurler Bob Paffel is on the Service list.

Some 12 of the regular roster players are completely new to the Detroit squad. They are pitchers Joe Grzenda, Al Pehanick, Dave Reed, Phil Regan and Ram Semproch, Catcher Bob Rodgers, infielders Steve Bilko, Chico Fernandez, Frank Kostro and Casey Wise, and Outfielders Em Lindbeck and Andy Kosco.

Lefty Grzenda posted a 3-8 record at Charleston last season but had a creditable 3.58 earned run mark. Pehanick, a 6-5 right hander reliever, was at Toronto and won eight and lost six. His ERA was 2.94. Reed and Regan, both Michigan boys, were at Birmingham where Reed had a 6-5 record and a 3.06 ERA and Regan a 10-5 mark and a 2.94 ERA.

Semproch came to the Tigers in a winter deal from Philadelphia where in 1953 he won three and lost 10, but the previous season had a 13-11 record.

Up for another try are Jerry Davie, Wyman Carey, Bob Bruce and Jim Proctor. Holdover hurlers are Jim Bunning, Paul Foytack, Ray Lary and Don Mossi who between them won 65 games, and Pete Burnside, Tom Morgan, Ray Narleski and Dave Sisler of the relief crew.

In the catching department, added to veterans Lou Berberet and Red Wilson is rookie Bob Rodgers, a 21 year old switch-hitter from Prospect, Ohio. Rodgers caught at Knoxville in 1959 and had a .287 average with 55 runs-batted-in.

To aid this trio will be Witucki, Roarke and Yewcic. Witucki came out of the service in 1959 and finished out the year at Birmingham. Roarke came from Milwaukee via Louisville and Yewcic caught at Charleston all season.

Most of the roster changes have taken place in the infield section where four new players have been added. Steve Bilko is a new candidate for the first base job. He batted .305 at Spokane in 1959, with 26 home runs and 92 runs-batted-in. Chico Fernandez, from the Phillies had a .211 average, but is regarded as an excellent fielder.

Dykes wants to take a good look at young Frank Kostro, a .300 plus hitter both at Knoxville and Charleston in 1959. Kostro is a 6-2, 190 pounder from Hooversville, Pa. The other infield addition is Casey Wise also, from the Milwaukee organization. Wise batted .302 at Louisville as a second baseman in 1959.